A garment, and what it covers
Elijah's Mantle
When Elijah was taken up, his mantle fell to Elisha, who had asked for a double portion of his spirit. That plain prophet's cloak had already divided a river once, and in Elisha's hand it divided it again.
“He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan;”2 Kings 2:13
The garment in Scripture
The garment in Scripture. The mantle appears first when Elijah passed by Elisha at the plough and cast his mantle upon him (1 Kings 19:19), calling him to follow. Years later, as the day of Elijah's departure drew near, the two came to the Jordan, and Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground (2 Kings 2:8). Elijah asked what he might do for Elisha before he was taken, and Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me (2 Kings 2:9). As they walked on, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven (2 Kings 2:11). Elisha took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him (2 Kings 2:13), came again to the Jordan, and smote the waters and said, Where is the Lord God of Elijah? And when he also had smitten the waters, they parted hither and thither, and Elisha went over (2 Kings 2:14).
What it means
What it means. The mantle is the visible sign of a calling and of the God who stands behind it. When it first fell on Elisha it summoned him from the field to the work of a prophet. When it fell the second time it marked the passing of that work from the master to the servant. Yet the mantle by itself parted no waters. Elisha's cry, Where is the Lord God of Elijah, shows that he trusted not in the cloth but in the God who had worked through Elijah. The double portion he received was not twice the man but the inheritance of a firstborn son, a full share in the same Spirit and the same commission. The story teaches that God's work does not die with His servants. Elijah was taken, but the calling continued, and the same power that had gone before was present for the one who took up the mantle in faith. What God begins through one He carries on through another for His own purposes.
How it points to Christ
How it points to Christ. This account speaks more of calling and the continuing of God's work than of covering, and we do the text no favor by forcing it. Still, the mantle taken up and the double portion asked and given can lift our eyes to Christ, who ascended and poured out His Spirit on His people. He told His disciples that they would receive power after the Holy Ghost is come upon you (Acts 1:8), and He promised, greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto my Father (John 14:12). The garment that pointed beyond itself to the Lord God of Elijah teaches us to look past every servant to the Christ they served. And the deeper clothing the gospel offers is not a prophet's mantle but the Lord Himself, for as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ (Galatians 3:27), and we are told to put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ (Romans 13:14).
Questions people ask
What was the double portion Elisha asked for?
In the law of inheritance the firstborn received a double portion (Deuteronomy 21:17). Elisha was asking to be treated as Elijah's true heir and successor, to carry on his ministry in the same Spirit, not simply to have twice Elijah's power.
Is Elijah's mantle a picture of being clothed in Christ?
This story leans more toward calling and succession than toward covering, so we should not press it too far. It does lift our eyes to the God behind the servant, and it can remind us that our true clothing is Christ Himself, but the direct covering language belongs more to passages like Isaiah 61:10.