Like a fire there appeared the prophet Elijah
whose words were as a flaming furnace.....
Then Elisha, filled with the twofold portion of his spirit,
wrought many marvels by his mere word. During his lifetime he feared no one,nor was any man able to intimidate his will.
Nothing was beyond his power....
Jesus and his Evangelists compare the Prophets Elijah and Elisha to Saint John the Baptist. Like the ancient prophets, the ascetic in the Jordan Valley scolded the Pharisees and Sadducees when they dared to approach him for baptism. They presumed to say, "We have God as our father" but he declared, "God can raise up children to Abraham from these stones. [Implying, he has no need for you, and no use!] Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees."
However, with all due to respect to the Baptist, we can easily recognized Elijah and Elisha as Old Testament types of Jesus; and when we study their lives and hear Sirach's praise of them, we recognize the glory that will be discovered with all the more intensity in the Son of God.
On three occasions Jesus brought the dead back to life from the nether world, by the will of the LORD. They included a little girl, a widow's son, and his friend Lazarus; not to mention himself! He anointed Peter as his vicar and not his successor, for he remains as ruler and king.
Elijah was taken aloft with a whirlwind of fire in a chariot with fiery horses. Jesus soared into heaven entirely on his own, and took his seat at God's right hand.
When these two prophets demonstrated enormous authority over kings and tyrants, Jesus declares, "All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me."
As Elijah was expected to return, the Lord is "destined... in time to come to put an end to wrath before the day of the LORD, to turn back the hearts of fathers toward their sons, and to establish" the Kingdom of God.
As Elisha's grave was disturbed by Moabites but his healing power remained in his bones, so the Lord's tomb was disturbed by his vacating it -- with healing power and even more wonder.
Finally, Sirach declared of Elijah and Elisha,
Blessed is he who shall have seen you
And who falls asleep in your friendship.
For we live only in our life,
but after death our name will not be such.
Of Jesus we can say, "Blessed are they who shall see him, and all those who fall asleep in his friendship." For we live only in our life for a while, but long after our death -- when the Earth itself will have forgotten that we ever disturbed its dust -- he will call us by name from the dirt to meet him in heaven with Mary, the angels, and all the saints.
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I love to write. This blog helps me to meditate on the Word of God, and I hope to make some contribution to our contemplations of God's Mighty Works.
Ordinarily, I write these reflections two or three weeks in advance of their publication. I do not intend to comment on current events.
I understand many people prefer gender-neutral references to "God." I don't disagree with them but find that language impersonal, unappealing and tasteless. When I refer to "God" I think of the One whom Jesus called "Abba" and "Father", and I would not attempt to improve on Jesus' language.
You're welcome to add a thought or raise a question.