2 Kings 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.”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Elijah's students, anxious after his supernatural ascension, ask Elisha to send a search party, but Elisha refuses, knowing the Spirit has already taken him.
Context
Elijah has just been taken up to heaven in a whirlwind with horses and a chariot of fire (2 Kings 2:11). Elisha stands with the disciples of Elijah at Jericho. The students, overwhelmed by loss, wish to search for their master, perhaps hoping he may have been cast down somewhere alive.
In the Original Language
'Ye shall not send' translates the Hebrew emphasis on refusal and finality. The phrase conveys not mere prohibition but the certainty of one who has perceived the Spirit's action.
Application
When we sense God's hand in a situation, we are invited to trust that perception even when those around us urge frantic action. Faith sometimes means standing still and knowing.