Charles Ellicott Commentary 2 Kings 1:16

"And he said unto him, Thus saith Jehovah, Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word? therefore thou shalt not come down from the bed whither thou art gone up, but shalt surely die." — 2 Kings 1:16 (ASV)

And he said. — Hebrew, spoke. The Septuagint adds, “and Elijah said.”

Is it not because. — Omit “not.” The question is parenthetical here; the connection of the main sentence is, Because you have sent ... therefore you shall not come down, etc.

Off. — From, as in 2 Kings 1:4; 2 Kings 1:6. The words of the oracle are repeated verbatim three times.

“Here, just as in other cases,” says Bähr, “Elijah reappears suddenly and disappears again, and no one knows from where he comes or to where he goes.” The peculiar form of the story suggests that it was derived initially from oral tradition rather than from a written source.