QUESTIONS and ANSWERS – Viewpoint

There seems to be a conflict between Jesus’ words in John 3:13 and 2 Kings 2:11. Please explain.

“No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man.” – John 3:13

“As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.” – 2 Kings 2:11

We give credit to Darek Barefoot for the answer to this seeming dilemma, quoting from his booklet, “Resurrection and Life Beyond Death.”

“2 Kings 2:11 relates how, at the end of his ministry in the northern kingdom of Israel, Elijah is taken up to heaven, that is, into the sky, in a fiery chariot. Those who hear of the event do not automatically conclude that Elijah has left earthly existence behind. When the holy men of Israel come to meet Elijah’s successor, Elisha, they insist on sending out a search party in case Elijah has been carried to a nearby mountain or valley. Elisha predicts correctly that the search will be unsuccessful, but he says nothing about Elijah having departed to the presence of God (2 Kings 2:15-18). Earlier, the godly man Obadiah had said that the Lord might carry Elijah off to a distant place where he could not be found (1 Kings 18:12).

“Elijah was transported (906 BC - editor’s addition) during the reign of Jehoshaphat. But years later, (889 BC - editor’s addition) Jehoshaphat’s son and successor, Jehoram, receives a letter from Elijah, (which reads: ‘This is what the LORD, the God of your father David, says: You have not walked in the ways of your father Jehoshaphat or of Asa king of Judah. But, you have walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and you have led Judah and the people of Jerusalem to prostitute themselves, just as the house of Ahab did. You have also murdered your own brothers, members of your father’s house, men who were better than you. So now the LORD is about to strike your people, your sons, your wives and everything that is yours, with a heavy blow. You yourself will be very ill with a lingering disease of the bowels, until the disease causes your bowels to come out’” (2 Chronicles 21:12-15). This letter is evidence that Elijah was removed from Israel to another land instead of being taken into the supernatural realm.”

“If the Old Testament left any doubt about whether or not Elijah went to heaven, Jesus later put it to rest when He addressed the question of whether humans had ever before ascended to heaven…”(John 3:13).

Thus, we see that there is no real conflict between these two scriptural citations.

E. Weeks