In the books of 1-2 Kings, the prophet Elisha is the Spirit-filled man of God who walks with God, represents God, and shows the way to covenant faithfulness through word and deed. Elisha shows Israel who God really is, particularly when compared to the false gods the people are choosing to worship, and he shows them the kind of life they too can experience through the power and presence of God.
However, Elisha serves a central role not only in the narrative of 1-2 Kings, but in the whole of Scripture, anticipating the ultimate Spirit-filled man of God, Jesus Christ. In doing so, he also serves as a preview of what it means to know God in the new covenant through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in Christ.
One of the primary ways Elisha demonstrates the power and presence of God in his life and therefore anticipates Jesus Christ and the new covenant believer’s life in the Spirit is through his mission and ministry in the Spirit as recounted in 2 Kings 3-7. This paper will establish this understanding in three ways.
First, it will explain how Elisha’s Spirit-empowered ministry of the Word in this passage reveals God’s power and presence in and through him.
Second, it will explain how Elisha’s Spirit-empowered ministry of miracles in this passage reveals God’s power and presence in and through him.
Finally, it will explain how Elisha’s Spirit-empowered mission and ministry anticipate the Spirit-empowered mission and ministry of Jesus Christ, both in word and deed. In fulfilling what Elisha’s ministry anticipates, Jesus then makes it possible for the power and presence of God to be experienced by new covenant believers in Christ through the Spirit.
In establishing this truth, this paper intends to further understanding of the Elisha narrative within 1-2 Kings and its significance within biblical theology for our understanding of Jesus Christ and the believer’s life in him.