2 Kings 2:13 (ASV)

Passage

He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of the Jordan.

Nearby Context

2 Kings 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, which parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

2 Kings 2:12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and the horsemen thereof! And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.

2 Kings 2:13 He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of the Jordan.

2 Kings 2:14 And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said, Where is Jehovah, the God of Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they were divided hither and thither; and Elisha went over.

2 Kings 2:15 And when the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho over against him 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.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "took", "mantle", "elijah", "fell", "went", "back", "stood", and "bank". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "took" and "mantle", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 12's "And Elisha saw it and he cried..." into verse 14's "And he took the mantle of Elijah...", so "took" and "mantle" belong inside that flow. In 2 Kings context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "took" and "mantle" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.