God never promised to remove all trials or to give us heaven on earth. However, He has promised that the man who separates himself from the world and gives himself over to the Lord will be blessed.
many of the trials and troubles we face are meant to teach us deeper and deeper confidence in Him alone.
The Jews have left the only stability they have known and have made the long and hard trip to Israel. But their work has only begun. Now they must rebuild. They begin in the right place restoring the ancient altar and begin work on the foundation of the temple. But opposition comes quickly. First, in the form of compromisers who want to join them for the purpose of defeating their purpose and zeal. Second, in the form of hired counselors who work to “frustrate their purpose.” For now, the adversaries win and the Jews cease work on the temple. The opposition has been too much for them. The temple lies abandoned.
An indepth outline of introductory notes on the Book of Genesis.
This passage tells of the translation of Elijah to heaven, but the real story is about Elisha. He is determined to follow his master to the end and he desires a double portion of Elijah’s blessing. We see that he gets the blessing and begins to perform some of the miracles for which he is known. O, that we might follow hard after God (Psalm 63:8) as Elisha followed hard after the spirit of Elijah!
