Did Elijah go to heaven?

Did Elijah go to heaven? Jesus said no one except Him had gone to heaven. However, the Bible teaches us that Elijah and Enoch never died but went to heaven. So what is the explanation for this?

According to 2 Kings 2:11 “Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind”. Genesis 5:24 says that “Enoch walked with God then he was no more, because God took him away”. Both of these passages imply that Elijah and Enoch went to heaven. It is also implied that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are all alive and with the Lord in heaven (Luke 20:3738) and all who are God’s people will be in heaven when they die (Luke 16:19 – 31)

The quote of Jesus

The quote of Jesus is in John 3:13 “no one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven, the son of man”. Jesus is not emphasizing the fact that no one has ascended into heaven. Rather, He says that no one has ascended into heaven and come to earth from heaven. In this chapter, Jesus is talking to Nicodemus who was an expert in the law and Scriptures of his day, but did not understand the spiritual things that Jesus was talking about. Jesus said to him, “we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen… no one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven, the son of Man”. He was pointing out to Nicodemus that when He spoke of heavenly things, He was giving him first hand information because He had been there, seen it and spoke from personal experience.

How does this Bible passage speak to you? Please share your thoughts below!