2Ki 2:1 And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal.
2Ki 2:11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
So Elijah was taken up into the heaven. Did he go to the heaven of God’s throne? Jesus Christ says no…
Joh 3:13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
If he did not go to Heaven where god’s throne is, where did he go? To answer this, we have to first understand how many heavens there are…
2Co 12:2 I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth
such an one caught up to the third heaven.
Thanks to Paul we know there are three. What are they? There is the Heaven of God’s throne…
Rev 11:19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.
Oh, now this is interesting, there is a Temple in Heaven and in that Temple is the heavenly Ark.
Heb 8:1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;
Heb 8:2 A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.
Heb 8:3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer.
Heb 8:4 For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:
Heb 8:5
Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.
So the Tabernacle of Moses was an
EXACT copy of the Temple in Heaven right down to the fact that there was a High Priest. The High Priest was the type of Jesus Christ.
Heb 8:1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum:
We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;
Heb 8:2
A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.
Heb 8:3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer.
Now remember Moses’ tabernacle was an EXACT copy with a High Priest. Could just anyone enter the Holy of Holies where the Mercy Seat (the very type of the throne of God) was?
Lev 16:2 And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.
Hmmm, Aaron the High Priest, the earthly type of Jesus Christ was the only one allowed in the presence of the throne of God (the Mercy Seat on top of the Ark) and that was only once a year. The Day of Atonement. Christ is the only one allowed in the Heavenly Throne room and that is to make Atonement for us with His blood instead of the blood of bulls and goats.
A great deal of symbolism here that one should do some serious study on.
There is another heaven…
Psa 8:3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;
Gen 1:14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:
Gen 1:15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.
Gen 1:16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.
Gen 1:17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,
Gen 1:18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.
The heaven in which we find the Sun, Moon and stars as well as other suns, planets, asteroids, solar systems and galaxies.
Then there is the heaven we call the atmosphere…
Gen 1:20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.
Gen 7:11 In the six hundredth year of Noah's life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.
Rain falls from clouds in the atmosphere.
Gen 7:23 And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things,
and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth: and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark.
So we see there are three heavens.
So, which one for Elijah?
2Ki 2:11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder;
and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
A whirlwind can only occur where there is air. The air of the heaven we call the atmosphere. Why did God take Elijah? To take him to his reward? Can’t be…
Heb 11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
They all died in the faith without receiving the promises. What promises?
Heb 11:16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city.
Anyone here believe that might be Washington D.C.? How about New York city? Didn’t think so. What is being referred to here is the New Jerusalem…
Rev 21:2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
But Elijah, just like everyone else, has not received that promise yet…
Heb 11:39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith,
received not the promise:
Heb 11:40 God having provided some better thing for us,
that they without us should not be made perfect.
Well then, where did he go? Well, let’s look at this. First of all is this the first time this happened to Elijah? Nope…
1Ki 18:7 And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Art thou that my lord Elijah?
1Ki 18:8 And he answered him, I am: go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
1Ki 18:9 And he said, What have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me?
1Ki 18:10 As the LORD thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee: and when they said, He is not there; he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found thee not.
1Ki 18:11 And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
1Ki 18:12 And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee,
that the Spirit of the LORD shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the LORD from my youth.
Elijah was famous for disappearing and reappearing somewhere else. This explains what we find later on in 2 Kings 2…
2Ki 2:15 And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.
2Ki 2:16 And they said unto him, Behold now, there be with thy servants fifty strong men; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master:
lest peradventure the Spirit of the LORD hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he said, Ye shall not send.
2Ki 2:17 And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, Send. They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him not.
2Ki 2:18 And when they came again to him, (for he tarried at Jericho,) he said unto them, Did I not say unto you, Go not?
They wen t three days looking for Elijah expecting to find him somewhere else. This was a common occurrence for Elijah.
Now why was Elijah taken?
2Ki 1:17 So he died according to the word of the LORD which Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram reigned in his stead in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; because he had no son.
2Ki 3:1 Now Jehoram the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years.
The king died and Jehoram became king in his place. God’s plan was to use Elisha to deal with Jehoram and since God never, ever replaces a righteous leader with another and embarrasses a man who has served God wholeheartedly, He removed Elijah from that area and used him in another location. How do we know that he was in another location?
2Ch 21:12
And there came a writing to him from Elijah the prophet, saying, Thus saith the LORD God of David thy father, Because thou hast not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat thy father, nor in the ways of Asa king of Judah,
2Ch 21:13 But hast walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and hast made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to go a whoring, like to the whoredoms of the house of Ahab, and also hast slain thy brethren of thy father's house, which were better than thyself:
2Ch 21:14 Behold, with a great plague will the LORD smite thy people, and thy children, and thy wives, and all thy goods:
2Ch 21:15 And thou shalt have great sickness by disease of thy bowels, until thy bowels fall out by reason of the sickness day by day.
The catching up of Elijah was in 852 BC, this king was Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat. (Different Jehoram than the one mentioned in 2 Kings 2 as the son of Ahab), Jehoram began to reign in 848 BC. Jehoram reigned 8 years...
2Ch 21:5 Jehoram was thirty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.
Now this letter from Elijah came at least 8 years after King Jehoram began to reign. So Elijah wrote this letter somewhere about 8 to 10 years after being transported.
Just for fun, do you think this has ever happened to anyone else?
Act 8:35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
Act 8:36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?
Act 8:37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Act 8:38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.
Act 8:39 And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.
Act 8:40 But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.
Here is the account of another servant of God being transported. He disappeared from the eunuch’s view and reappeared in Azotus.
Now, show me how you can justify the contradictions of someone being in Heaven and the clear statements that no one goes there…
Joh 3:13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
Joh 7:34 Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me: and where I am, thither ye cannot come.
Joh 8:21 Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.
Joh 13:33 Little children, yet a little while I am with you. Ye shall seek me: and as I said unto the Jews, Whither I go, ye cannot come; so now I say to you.
Act 2:34 For David is not ascended into the heavens: but he saith himself, The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand,
Rev 5:10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.
Joh 14:3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.
And where will Christ be at His return?
Act 1:11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.
Zec 14:4 And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
