A Bible Comparison of Elijah and Elisha

Here is a comparison or contrast between the prophets Elijah and Elisha in the Old Testament and Who their miracles point to.

The Old Testament Prophet

No man ever called himself to be a prophet. It has always been God Who calls a man to be a prophet. Jeremiah is a prime example as God spoke to him saying “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations” (Jer 1:5). The very same thing happened to Aaron where God “said to Moses, “See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron shall be your prophet” (Ex 7:1). There are similar callings to Isaiah (chapter 6), Ezekiel (Ezk 4), Elisha (1st Kings 19:16) and every other prophet in the Old Testament. Even John the Baptist, the last of the Old Testament prophets, was set aside at birth for this purpose (Matt 11:13). We also know that both Elijah and Elisha were called by God, for there is no one who is a prophet in the Bible which was not first called by God, but what are the differences between these two prophets of God?

Elijah the Prophet

Elijah was one of the most powerful prophets in the Old Testament and one of the most beloved and yet hated. The nation either loved him or they hated him; most detested him. There was no middle ground. God was the One Who empowered Elijah but this prophet of God had faith like few others in the Bible. Our first experience with Elijah was when it was written in 1st Kings 17:11, “Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” Elijah was somewhat of a forerunner of the ministry of Jesus Christ when “the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and he revived” (1st Kings 17:22) and the Father always hears Jesus’ words (John 11:42) and immediately Lazarus came to life (John 11:43). There is also some similarities between Jesus’ multiplying the bread and fish and the instance where the “jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah” (1st Kings 17:16).

Elisha the Prophet

Even before Elisha was designated to take over for Elijah, Elisha was destined to be a prophet of God as God tells Elijah, “And Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be king over Israel, and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place” (1st Kings 19:16) although at first, Elisha went to be an assistant for Elijah and left everything behind for it (1st Kings 19:21). Before Elijah left this earth, Elisha asked “Please let there be a double portion of your spirit on me” (2nd Kings 2:9) and shortly after this “Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven” (2nd Kings 2:11b) and Elisha succeeded Elijah. Elisha asked for a double portion and had sixteen miracles, double that of Elijah’s eight. Elisha divided the river Jordan (2nd Kings 2:14), healed the waters of a Jericho spring (2nd King 2:21), commanded bears out of the woods (2nd Kings 2:24), provided water for kings, oil for a widow; sixteen miracles in all.

For Profit Prophets

Jesus warned the disciples to “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves” (Matt 7:15) but “You will recognize them by their fruits” (Matt 7:16) for “many false prophets will appear and deceive many people” (Matt 24:11). These “false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect” (Matt 24:24). Paul understood that after he left “savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock” (Acts 20:29). They would even have “a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people” (2nd Tim 3:5). It is so easy to get “carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes” (Eph 4:14). Paul wrote to Timothy and warned him about “evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2nd Tim 3:13).

Conclusion

Both Elijah and Elisha had similarities with one another but also with the Messiah that was to come and did come in Jesus Christ but they cannot compare with Him. No one can. Jesus was born of virgin, lived a sinless life, gave His life as a ransom for many, died on the cross to satisfy the wrath of God that was due us, shed His blood for the forgiveness of sins, and was raised from the dead. That is Who we put our trust in every single day. We can pillow our head at night knowing that we who are born again will not face the judgment of God because we have repented of our sins and turned to Christ and placed our faith in Him.

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Blind Chance or Intelligent Design available on Amazon.