Front matter (continued, part 55)
The king wanted help from the prophet, but he was too proud to admit it or to face Ahijah personally. The prophet still lived in Shiloh (11:29) because he was too old and infirm to relocate in Judah, and he wanted to be faithful to the very end and warn Jeroboam of the consequences of his sins. Did the king think a disguise would fool the godly prophet, blind as he was? Ahijah could see more in his blindness than Jeroboam and his wife could see with their gift of sight.6 The gifts the queen carried were those of a common laborer, not gifts fit for a king to give.
Then the blind prophet looked even further ahead (vv. 15–16) and saw the entire kingdom of Israel defeated by the enemy (Assyria), rooted out of the land, and scattered among the nations. This happened in 722 BC. The kingdom of Israel had a new religious system, but they were still under the Lord's covenant (Lev. 26; Deut. 28—30). That covenant warned that their disobedience to God's law would bring military defeat and national dispersion to the nation (Deut. 28:25–26, 49–52; Lev. 26:17, 25, 33–39; and see Deut. 7:5 and 12:3–4). What would be the cause of this terrible judgment? "[T]he sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin" (v. 16). Just as David was God's standard for measuring the good kings, Jeroboam was God's example of the worst of the bad kings. See 1 Kings 15:34; 16:2–3, 7, 19, 26, 31;
The discerning prophet (vv. 4–6). It was about twenty miles from Tirzah to Shiloh, but the prophet knew she was coming before she even arrived in the city. The aged prophet knew who was coming, why she was coming and what he was supposed to tell her. "The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him" (Ps. 25:14 nkjv). "Surely the Lord does nothing, unless He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets" (Amos 3:7 nkjv). Jeroboam sent his wife to Ahijah, but Ahijah said that he was sent to her! He gave her the message she was to give to her husband, and it wasn't a very happy one.
The revealing message (vv. 7–16). First, the
1 Kings 12—15
26:7), and James wrote his epistle to "the twelve tribes scattered abroad" (James 1:1). In his vision of future events, John the apostle saw twelve tribes sealed by God (Rev. 7:4) and twelve gates named for the twelve tribes (21:12). 5 Nowhere in Scripture do we read of any servant of the Lord "retiring" and doing nothing for the Lord as he waited to die. Instead of relocating in Judah, or staying in Israel to oppose the false religion, the old man accepted the status quo and became comfortable. Moses and the other prophets served to the very end, and there's no evidence that the apostles abandoned their calling when they became old. Dr. William Culbertson, for many years dean and then president of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, often ended his public prayers with, "And, Lord, help us to end well." 6 Saul disguised himself and both Samuel and the witch saw through it (1 Sam. 28). Wicked King Ahab disguised himself in battle, hoping King Jehoshaphat would be killed, but a random arrow hit him just the same (1 Kings 22:30ff.). Godly King Josiah foolishly interfered with Pharaoh Neco, disguised himself, and was killed in battle (2 Chron. 35:20–25). God can see through disguises. 7 The prophet Nathan took a similar approach in confronting King David (2 Sam. 12:7–8a). 8 Thomas Jefferson, Notes on Virginia, in The Life and Selected Writings of Thomas Jefferson, edited by Adrienne Koch and William Peden (New York: Modern Library), 258.
22:52; 2 Kings 3:3; 9:9; 10:29, 31; 13:2, 6, 11; 14:24; 15:9, 18, 24, 28; 17:21–22. The distressing fulfillment (vv. 17–20). Jeroboam apparently had a palace in Tirzah as well as the palace in Shechem, and it must have been at the edge of the city. Ahijah had told Jeroboam's wife that the child would die as soon as she entered the city (v. 12), but v. 17 indicates that he died when she stepped on the threshold of the door. All Israel did mourn the loss of this son and they gave him a funeral suited to a crown prince. The king's hand had been healed and his altar destroyed (13:1–16), and now his son had died. His army would be defeated by the king of Judah, also named Abijah (2 Chron. 13). How many times did God have to warn him before he would repent?
Nobody could sin like Jeroboam, son of Nebat. During his twenty-two years as king of Israel, he led his family and the nation into ruin. One day Jeroboam died and was succeeded by his son Nadab who was assassinated. The day would come when not a single male descendant of King Jeroboam would be alive, nor would you be able to identify the ten tribes of Israel.
"Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice cannot sleep forever.…"8 Thomas Jefferson wrote those words in 1781, but they are just as applicable to us today.
IV. The kingdoms destroyed (1 Kings 15:1—22:53) A.Judah—15:1–24
Notes 1 Don't confuse Jeroboam I with Jeroboam II, Israel's fourteenth king, who reigned from 782–753. His history is found in 2 Kings 14:23–29. 2 It's unlikely that Aaron was trying to introduce a new god to Israel but rather was presenting Jehovah in the form of the golden calf (Ex. 32). The calf was supposed to be a "help" to the Jews in their worship of the Lord. Aaron certainly knew that Jehovah was the only true God, but he also knew that the weak people couldn't live by faith in an invisible Jehovah, especially when their leader Moses had been absent for forty days. This fact doesn't exonerate Aaron, but it does help us better understand the mind-set of the people. It was easier to worship the invisible Lord by means of the visible calf, and it wasn't long before the idolatry gave birth to indecency and immorality (Ex. 32:6, 19; 1 Cor. 10:1–8). No matter what excuse Aaron gave, he had sinned in giving the people what they wanted and not what they needed. Jeroboam also gave the people what they wanted, and false teachers are doing the same thing today (2 Peter 2; Jude 1ff.). 3 According to Exodus 29 Aaron and his sons needed for their consecration one bull for a sin offering, a ram for a burnt offering, and another ram for a fellowship offering. It took seven days for the consecration service to be completed. Obviously, Jeroboam wasn't following God's directions. 4 People talk about "the ten lost tribes of Israel," but this is not a biblical concept. God knows where children of Abraham are and He will call them together when it's time. Some nations have claimed to be the descendants of the so-called ten lost tribes, but these claims are unfounded. Jesus spoke of the "twelve tribes of Israel" (Matt. 19:28; Luke 22:30), and Paul spoke of "our twelve tribes" as living entities in his day (Acts
CHAPTER NINE 1 Kings 15:1—16:28 (2 Chronicles 13—16) KINGS ON PARADE W
ere it not for the overruling hand of a sovereign God, the Jewish nation could never have accomplished what God called them to do: bearing witness of the one true and living God, writing the Scriptures, and bringing the Savior into the world. There were now two kingdoms instead of one, and leaders and common people in both kingdoms had departed from the Lord to serve idols. The priests still carried on the temple ministry in Judah, but during the 345 years from Rehoboam to Zedekiah, only eight of Judah's nineteen kings were classified as "good." As for Israel's twenty kings, for the most part they were all self-seeking men who were classified as "evil." Some were better than others, but none was compared with David.
Keep in mind that the books of Kings and Chronicles don't record history from exactly the same perspective. The focus in 1 and 2 Kings is on the kings of Israel, but in 1 and 2 Chronicles, the emphasis is on David's dynasty in Judah. The northern kingdom of Israel, later called Samaria, is mentioned in Chronicles only when it had dealings with Judah. Another thing to remember is that the two kingdoms used different systems in keeping official records. In Judah, the king's
1 Kings 15
ple of the Lord was in Jerusalem, and there the priests, the sons of Aaron, conducted the form of worship commanded by the Lord through Moses. Judah worshipped the one true and living God, while Israel worshipped two golden calves. Israel's priests were hirelings, not divinely appointed servants of the Lord. In Judah, the people honored the Lord God Jehovah. "God himself is with us!" Therefore, if Israel attacked Judah, Israel was fighting against the Lord!
reign was counted from the beginning of the next calendar year after he began his reign, while in Israel, the count began with the year the king actually ascended the throne. Also, some kings had their sons as coregents during the closing years of their reign. These factors complicate calculating how long some kings reigned, and this helps us understand why biblical chronologists don't always agree.
A dynasty continues (15:1–24; 2 Chron. 13—16) The northern kingdom of Israel had nine dynasties in about 250 years while the Southern kingdom faithfully maintained the Davidic dynasty for 350 years, and that was the dynasty from which the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of David, would come (Matt. 1:1). With all of its faults, the kingdom of Judah was identified with the true and living God, practiced authorized worship in the temple, and had kings who came from David's family. Two of these kings are named in these chapters—Abijah and Asa.
Abijah's sentries weren't doing a very good job, for while Abijah was speaking, some of Jeroboam's soldiers moved behind him and set up an ambush. If Judah did attack, they'd find their smaller army fighting on two fronts, surely a dangerous situation. It's important to have good theology, but it's also important to have good strategy and alert guards on duty. But Abijah was up to the challenge and he cried out to God for deliverance. At the same time, the priests blew their trumpets (Num. 10:8–10) and the army of Judah gave a great shout, just as the people had done at Jericho (Josh. 6), and the Lord sent immediate victory.2 Over half of Jeroboam's army was slain by the army of Judah, and Abijah's soldiers moved north to capture the city of Bethel, ten miles from Jerusalem. From Bethel they moved five miles north and took Jeshanah and four miles northeast to take Ephrain (Ephron). Abijah not only defeated the army of Israel and recovered some lost territory, but he gave Jeroboam a blow from which he never recovered. Then the Lord struck Jeroboam and he died (2 Chron. 13:20; 1 Kings 14:19–20).
Abijah (vv. 1–8; 2 Chron. 13). This son of Rehoboam was handpicked by his father because of his proven ability (2 Chron. 11:22), but he wasn't a godly man (15:3). He reigned only three years (913–910). He was from David's line through both parents, for David's infamous son Absalom was Abijah's paternal grandfather. Abijah may have had David's blood flowing in his veins, but he didn't have David's perfect heart beating in his breast. Abijah's father, Rehoboam, had kept up a running war with Jeroboam, and Abijah carried on the tradition.
It was for the glory of His own name that the Lord acted as He did. In 1 Kings, Abijah isn't marked out as a godly ruler, but we commend him for his understanding of God's truth and his faith in God's power. Abijah was no Joshua, but the God of Joshua was still the God of His people and proved Himself faithful. Abijah become more and more powerful, fathered many children, and helped to continue the dynasty of David. God uses imperfect people to do His will, if only they will trust Him.
However, Abijah knew his history and had faith in what God said to Moses and David. He had the courage to preach a sermon to Jeroboam and his army of 800,000 men, twice as large as Judah's army, reminding them of the true foundation for the Jewish faith (2 Chron. 13:4ff.). For his platform, he used Mount Zemaraim, a prominent place located on the border between Benjamin and Israel (Josh. 18:22). He opened his sermon by reminding Jeroboam that the line of David was the true royal dynasty as stated in God's unchanging covenant with David (vv. 4–5; 2 Sam. 7) The phrase "covenant of salt" means "a perpetual covenant" (Num. 18:19).
Asa (vv. 9–24; 2 Chron. 14—16). Abijah's son Asa ruled for forty-one years (910–869). He began his reign with a heart like that of David (1 Kings 15:11; 2 Chron. 14:2), but though a good king for most of his life, during the last five years of his reign, he rebelled against the Lord. The word "mother" in 15:10 (kjv) should be "grandmother" for it refers to the same person mentioned in v. 2. The Jewish people didn't identify relatives with the same precision we do today. There were three major divisions to Asa's life and reign.
Anticipating the argument that the Lord had also made Jeroboam king, Abijah explained why the nation divided (2 Chron. 13:6–7). Jeroboam had rebelled against both Solomon and Rehoboam and had to flee to Egypt to be safe. Then Rehoboam, in his immaturity, listened to unwise counsel and made a foolish decision that led to Jeroboam becoming king.1 But God's original plan was that the line of David would reign over a united kingdom. In 1 and 2 Chronicles, the emphasis is on the legitimacy of the Davidic dynasty (1 Chron. 17:14; 28:5; 29:11, 23; 2 Chron. 9:8). Having settled the matter that the sons of David should sit on the throne, Abijah reminded Jeroboam that only the sons of Aaron could serve in the temple (2 Chron. 13:8–12). The only divinely authorized tem-
(1) Peace and victory (vv. 9–11; 2 Chron. 14:1— 15:7). Thanks to his father's victory over Jeroboam (2 Chron. 13), Asa had peace during the first ten years of his reign (2 Chron. 14:1). During that time, he led a national reformation, cleansed the land of idolatry, and urged the people to seek the Lord (vv. 2–5). He also fortified the land by building defense cities and assembling an army of 580,000 men (vv. 6–8). The emphasis, however, wasn't on military achievements
1 Kings 15
but on seeking the Lord (v. 7). It was God who gave them peace because they sought His face. They used that time of peace to prepare for any war that might occur, for faith without works is dead. It's a good thing Asa was prepared, because the Egyptian army attacked Judah, led by Zerah, who was a Cushite. The two armies met at Mareshah, about twenty-five miles southwest of Jerusalem.
ormation, and certainly he dealt more severely with sin in the land than in the first phase. He expelled the shrine male prostitutes, for this practice was prohibited by God's law (Deut. 23:17), as was sodomy itself (Lev. 18:22; 20:13; see also Rom. 1:27 and 1 Cor. 6:9). He also removed his own grandmother from being the queen mother because she had an idolatrous shrine in a grove. That took some courage! We aren't told where this dedicated wealth had been kept, but Asa brought it to the temple treasury because it had been dedicated to the Lord. This was probably booty taken from the enemies he and his father had defeated with the Lord's help.
Like his father, Asa knew how to call on the Lord in the day of trouble (14:11; 13:14–18). The king wasn't ignorant of his plight, because he identified Judah as "those who have no power." Zerah's army was almost twice as large as Asa's, and Asa's men had no chariots. Whether by many soldiers or by few, the Lord could work in mighty power. He may have had the words of Jonathan in mind when he prayed that way (1 Sam. 14:6). He might also have been thinking of what Solomon asked in his prayer of dedication (2 Chron. 6:34–35). Sudden deliverance in the midst of battle is a repeated theme in 2 Chronicles (13:14–18; 14:11–12; 18:31; 20:1ff; 32:20–22). Asa's motive wasn't simply to defeat a dangerous enemy but to bring glory to Jehovah. Like David approaching Goliath, he attacked the enemy army "in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel" (1 Sam. 17:45). In response to Asa's prayer of faith, the Lord soundly defeated the Egyptian army and enabled Asa and his men to pursue them south to Gerar. There the men of Judah and Benjamin plundered the cities around Gerar and brought back an immense amount of spoils. This defeat of the Egyptian army was so thorough and so humiliating that the Egyptians didn't attack the people of Judah again until nearly three hundred years later when King Josiah met the forces of Pharaoh Neco at Carchemish (2 Chron. 35:20–24). The Lord sent the prophet Azariah to meet Asa and the victorious army and give them a message of encouragement and warning (see also 1 Kings 12:21–24; 2 Chron. 16:7). More than one general has won a battle but afterwards lost the war because of pride or carelessness, and the Lord didn't want Asa to fall into that trap. Azariah's message was the same as that of King Asa: seek the Lord, obey Him, trust Him, and be strong in the Lord (2 Chron. 15:1–7; see also 14:4 and Deut. 4:29). Azariah reviewed the the dark days of the judges, when the nation didn't have a king, a godly priest, or anyone to enforce the law (Judg. 2:11–21). Because the people had turned to idols, their land was overrun by the enemy and it wasn't safe to travel (Judg. 5:6; 19:20). This was a fulfillment of God's covenant warning (Deut. 28:25–26, 30, 49–52). But whenever the people cried out to God and forsook their idols, He mercifully forgave them and defeated the enemy. Azariah admonished the king and the people to get to work, build the nation, and serve the Lord faithfully.
Once again, he removed the idols from the land, and he also repaired the altar of sacrifice that stood in the court of the priests before the temple. How or why the altar was damaged, the text doesn't say, but without the altar, the priests had no place to offer sacrifices. Solomon dedicated the temple in about 959, and Asa's fifteenth year was 896 (2 Chron. 15:10), so the altar had been in constant use for over sixty years. Perhaps it was just worn out, but a neglected altar isn't a very good testimony to the state of religion in the land. The Hebrew word can also mean "to renew," so perhaps the altar was rededicated to the Lord.
It's one thing to remove idols and repair the altar, but the greatest need was to rededicate the people. In the fifteenth year of his reign, Asa called for a great assembly to gather at Jerusalem to worship the Lord and renew the covenant.3 Not only did the people of Judah and Benjamin attend, but devout people came to Jerusalem from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon. The thing that drew them was the obvious fact that the Lord was with Asa. Since they assembled in the third month, they were probably celebrating the Feast of Pentecost (Lev. 23:15–22). The king brought the spoils of battle to be dedicated to the Lord, including valuable metals (1 Kings 15:15) and animals for sacrifice (2 Chron. 15:11).
At significant times throughout Jewish history you find the leaders and the people renewing their commitment to the Lord, a good example for the church to follow today. After the nation crossed the Jordan and entered the land, they renewed their covenant with the Lord (Josh. 8:30ff.). Joshua called for a similar meeting near the close of his life (Josh. 24). When Saul was named king, Samuel called for an assembly and a time of renewal (1 Sam. 11:14—12:25). King Joash and King Josiah both renewed the covenant between themselves and the people and God (2 Kings 11:4ff.; 23:1ff.). Spiritual revival or renewal doesn't mean asking God for something new but for the renewal of our devotion to that which He has already given to us. Asa didn't reorganize the priesthood or remodel the temple, nor did he import new worship ideas from the pagan nations around him. He simply led the people in rededication to the covenant that God had already given them. They sought the Lord with all their hearts and He heard them.4 God was pleased with this new
(2) Reformation and renewal (vv. 12–15; 2 Chron. 15:8–19). This is the second phase of Asa's ref-
1 Kings 15—16
defenses but the king's lack of faith. Unlike David, whose heart was sincere before the Lord (see 1 Kings 15:5, 11), Asa's heart was divided—one day trusting the Lord and the next day trusting in the arm of flesh. A perfect heart isn't a sinless heart but a heart wholly yielded to the Lord and fully trusting Him. King Asa revealed the wickedness of his heart by becoming angry, rejecting the prophet's message, and putting him in prison. Apparently some of the people opposed Asa's foreign policy and his mistreatment of God's servant, so the king brutally oppressed them.
step of commitment and He gave Judah and Benjamin peace for another twenty years.
(3) Relapse and discipline (vv. 16–24; 2 Chron. 16:1–14). Apparently King Asa had become careless in his walk with the Lord, because the Lord sent Baasha, king of Israel, to war against him.5 Baasha fortified Ramah, which was located about six miles north of Jerusalem. From this outpost he would be able to monitor his own people who might go to Jerusalem and also launch his own attack on Judah.
After all that the Lord had done for Asa, you would think he would have called the people together to confess sin, seek the Lord, and learn His will about this serious situation. But instead, in his unbelief, he resorted to politics. He took the dedicated treasures from the temple and gave them to Ben-hadad, king of Syria, and entered into a pact with a pagan nation. (David had defeated Syria! See 2 Sam. 8:3–12 and 1 Chron. 18:3–4.) With Syria attacking Israel from the north, Baasha would have to abandon Ramah and move north to defend his country. King Asa not only followed the bad example of his father Abijah in making an unholy alliance, but he insisted that Ben-hadad lie and break his treaty with Israel! Scripture doesn't tell us when Abijah made a pact with Ben-hadad, but perhaps he married one of the Syrian princesses and in that way secured peace, following the example of Solomon (2 Chron. 13:21).
God gave Asa time to repent, but he refused to do so. In the thirty-ninth year of Asa's reign, the Lord afflicted him with a disease in his feet, which must have brought him considerable pain and inconvenience. Once again, he turned his back on the Lord and refused to confess his sins and seek Jehovah, but he turned for help to his physicians. Two years later, he died, and the throne was given to his son Jehoshaphat, who had probably served as coregent during the last years of his father's life.6 Asa was a man who made a good beginning and lived a life of faith, but when it came to his final years, rebelled against the Lord. The people made a very great bonfire in his honor, but in God's sight, the last years of Asa went up in smoke (1 Cor. 3:13–15).7
A dynasty concludes (15:25—16:22) At this point, the historian turns to the account of the kings of Israel and will remain there until the end of the book. The story of the kings of Judah is found primarily in 2 Chronicles. David's dynasty is mentioned in 1 and 2 Kings only where there is some interaction between Judah and Israel. The dynasty that began with Jeroboam is now about to end.
B.Israel—15:25—22:53
Ben-hadad took the silver and gold, broke his promise with Israel, and helped Judah. He captured the cities of Ijon, Dan, and Abelmaim in the north, and then marched through the tribe of Naphtali and took all the important storage cities. In this way, he gained control over the major trade routes and crippled Baasha's power and income. Having achieved his purpose, Asa conscripted the people to go to Ramah and carry off the stones and timber, and with that material the king built two fortified cities: Mizpeh about two and a half miles north of Ramah, and Geba about the same distance to the east. Judah had extended its border as far as Bethel (2 Chron. 13:17), and these new military sites would make their position even more secure.
Nadab is assassinated (15:25–31). Jeroboam reigned over Israel for twenty-two years (14:20) and became the prime example in Scripture of an evil king (see 15:34; 16:2, 19, 26, etc.). Nadab inherited his father's throne as well as his father's sinful ways. He had reigned only two years when a conspiracy developed that led to King Nadab being assassinated by Baasha, a man from Issachar. Nadab was with the army of Israel, directing the siege of Gibbethon, a Philistine city south of Ekron. This border city had been a source of friction between Israel and the Philistines. It actually belonged to the tribe of Dan (Josh. 19:43–45) and was a Levitical city (Josh. 21:23), and Nadab wanted to reclaim it for Israel.
Everyone was happy with the results of the treaty except the Lord. He sent the prophet Hanani to rebuke the king and give him the word of the Lord. It was the task of the prophet to rebuke kings and other leaders, including priests, when they had disobeyed the law of the Lord. The prophet's message was clear: if Asa had relied on the Lord, the army of Judah would have defeated both Israel and Syria. Instead, Judah merely gained a few towns, the Lord's treasury was robbed and the king was now in a sinful alliance with the Syrians. Hanani reminded Asa that the Lord hadn't failed him when Zerah and the huge Egyptian army attacked Judah. The king had done a foolish thing in hiring the Syrians. Judah would pay for his mistake for years to come, and Syria did become a constant problem to the kingdom of Judah.
Baasha not only killed the king but he seized his throne and proceeded to fulfill the prophecy of Ahijah that Jeroboam's family would be completely wiped out because of the sins Jeroboam committed (14:10–16). Had Jeroboam obeyed God's Word, he would have enjoyed the blessing and help of the Lord (11:38–39), but because he sinned and caused the nation to sin, the Lord had to judge him and his descendants. That was the end of the dynasty of Jeroboam I.
The fundamental problem was not Judah's lack of
Baasha disobeys God (15:32—16:7). Baasha set
1 Kings 16—17
people who refused to submit knew what the covenant said, so in declaring their allegiance to a foreign god, they were taking their own lives in their hands. 5 There's a chronological problem here since Baasha ascended the throne during Asa's third year and reigned for twenty-four years (1 Kings 15:33). This means he died in Asa's twenty-seventh or twenty-eighth year and therefore could not have attacked Judah in Asa's thirty-sixth year. Dr. Gleason Archer suggests that the word translated "reign" in 2 Chronicles 16:1 (kjv, niv) should be understood as "kingdom," that is, "in the thirty-sixth year of the kingdom of Judah." Therefore, the writer was dating this event from the division of the kingdom in 931–930, and not from Asa's accession to the throne in 910. The Hebrew word translated "reign" is translated "kingdom" or "realm" in 2 Chronicles 1:1, 11:17 and 20:30. Some students see these numbers as a copyist's error, for in the Hebrew, the difference between the letters used for 36 and 16 is very slight. See Archer's Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties (Zondervan), 225–226. 6 The inability of the physicians to help Asa must not be interpreted as a divine rejection of the medical profession. God can heal either with or without means (Isa. 38:21), and Paul had Luke "the beloved physician" on his missionary staff (Col. 4:14). Even Jesus said that sick people need a physician (Luke 5:27–32). To use 2 Chronicles 16:12 as an argument for "faith healing" and against going to the doctor is to misinterpret and apply a very plain statement. Asa's sickness was a judgment from the Lord, and his going to the physicians was a rebellion against the Lord. He refused to repent, so God refused to let him be healed. 7 Asa's body was placed in his prepared tomb. The burning had nothing to do with cremation, a practice that the Jews considered reprehensible. 8 The phrase "because he killed him" in verse 7 indicates that though Baasha fulfilled God's will when he killed Nadab and then wiped out the house of Jeroboam, he was still responsible for his motives and his actions. Baasha didn't enter into his grisly work as a holy servant of God but as an evil assassin who wanted the throne.
up his palace at Tirzah and reigned over Israel for twenty-four years. Instead of avoiding the sins that brought about the extinction of Jeroboam's family— and he was the man who killed them—Baasha copied the lifestyle of his predecessor! It has well been said that the one thing we learn from history is that we don't learn from history. Baasha had destroyed Jeroboam's dynasty, but he couldn't destroy the word of God. The Lord sent the prophet Jehu to give the king the solemn message that after he died, his family would be exterminated, and another dynasty would be destroyed because of the father's sin. Baasha's descendants would be slain and their corpses become food for the dogs and the vultures. For a Jew's body not to be buried was a terrible form of humiliation.8
Elah is assassinated (16:8–14). Baasha had a normal death, but his son and successor did not. Elah appears to be a dissolute man who would rather get drunk with his friends than serve the Lord and the people. Arza was probably the prime minister. Both men forgot the words of Solomon, who knew a thing or two about kingship: "Woe to you, O land, when your king is a child, and your princes feast in the morning! Blessed are you, O land, when your king is the son of nobles, and your princes feast at the proper time—for strength and not for drunkenness" (Eccl. 10:16–17 nkjv).
The assassin this time is Zimri, the captain of half of the charioteers in the army of Israel. As a noted captain, he had access to the king, and what better time to kill him than when he was drunk? Like Elah's father, Zimri seized the throne, and once he was in power, he killed every member of Baasha's family. Baasha had fulfilled the prophecy of Abijah and Zimri fulfilled the prophecy of Jehu. But it must be pointed out that a person who fulfills divine prophecy is not innocent of sin. Both Baasha and Zimri were murderers and guilty of regicide, and the Lord held them responsible and accountable. The dynasty of Jeroboam was no more and the dynasty of Baasha was no more. In Judah, the dynasty of David continued.
CHAPTER TEN 1 Kings 17—18 LET THE FIRE FALL! E
Notes 1 This interpretation of Rehoboam's foolish decision is that of his son and not that of the Lord. It did not come from an inspired prophet. We would expect a son to defend his father. 2 Joshua's victory at Jericho seems to be the backdrop for this event. The Lord is called "captain" (v. 12; Josh. 5:13–15), the priests blew the trumpets, and the people shouted (Josh. 6:1–21). The victory was completely from the Lord. 3 The calling of assemblies is a significant thing in the history of the Jews, both before and after the division of the kingdom. (See 1 Chron. 13:2–5; 28:8; 29:1; 2 Chron. 5:6; 20:3ff; 30:1ff.) 4 The fact that submitting to the covenant was a matter of life or death (2 Chron. 15:13) doesn't imply that Judah had become brutal or that the sword brought about the revival. Those who refused to seek God and renew the covenant were declaring that they were practicing idolatry, and according to Deuteronomy 13:6–9, idolaters were not to be spared. The
lijah the Tishbite1 suddenly appears on the scene and then leaves as quickly as he came, only to reappear three years later to challenge the priests of Baal. His name means "The Lord (Jehovah) is my God," an apt name for a man who called the people back to the worship of Jehovah (18:21, 39). Wicked King Ahab had permitted his wife Jezebel to bring the worship of Baal into Israel (16:31–33) and she was determined to wipe out the worship of Jehovah (18:4). Baal was the Phoenician fertility god who sent rain and bountiful crops, and the rites connected with his worship were unspeakably immoral. Like Solomon who catered to the idolatrous practices of his heathen wives
1 Kings 17
trolled by a prophet of Jehovah, would make it clear to everybody that Baal the storm god was not a true god at all.
(11:1–8), Ahab yielded to Jezebel's desires and even built her a private temple where she could worship Baal (16:32–33). Her plan was to exterminate the worshippers of Jehovah and have all the people of Israel serving Baal.
Food from unclean birds (17:2–7) After Elijah left the king's presence, Jezebel must have instigated her campaign to wipe out the prophets of the Lord (18:4). As the drought continued and famine hit the land, Ahab began his search for Elijah, the man he thought caused all the trouble (18:17). In one sense, Elijah did cause the drought, but it was the sins of Ahab and Jezebel that led the nation into disobeying God's covenant and inviting His chastening. The Lord had a special hiding place for His servant by a brook east of the Jordan, and He also had some unusual "servants" prepared to feed him. The Lord usually leads His faithful people a step at a time as they tune their hearts to His Word. God didn't give Elijah a three-year schedule to follow. Instead, He directed his servant at each critical juncture in his journey, and Elijah obeyed by faith.
The prophet Elijah is an important figure in the New Testament. John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of Elijah (Luke 1:17), and some of the people even thought he was the promised Elijah (John 1:21; Mal. 4:5–6; Matt. 17:10–13). Elijah was with Moses and Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matt. 17:3), and some students believe that Moses and Elijah are the two witnesses described in Rev. 11:1–14. Elijah wasn't a polished preacher like Isaiah and Jeremiah, but was more of a rough-hewn reformer who challenged the people to abandon their idols and return to the Lord. He was a courageous man who confronted Ahab personally and rebuked his sin, and he also challenged the priests of Baal to a public contest. He was not only a worker of miracles, but he also experienced miracles in his own life. These two chapters record seven different miracles that Elijah either performed or experienced.
"Go, hide yourself!" was God's command, and three years later the command would be, "Go, show yourself!" By leaving his public ministry, Elijah created a second "drought" in the land—an absence of the word of the Lord. God's word was to the Jewish people like the rain from heaven (Deut. 32:2; Isa. 55:10): it was essential to their spiritual lives, it was refreshing, and only the Lord could give it. The silence of God's servant was a judgment from God (Ps. 74:9), for not to hear God's living word is to forfeit life itself (Ps. 28:1). At the brook Cherith ("Kerith Ravine" niv), Elijah had safety and sustenance. Until it dried up, the brook provided water, and each morning and evening the ravens brought him bread and meat. The raven was considered "unclean" and "de-testable" on the Mosaic list of forbidden foods (Lev. 11:13–15; Deut. 14:14), yet God used these birds to help sustain the life of his servant. The ravens didn't bring Elijah the carrion that they were accustomed to eat, because such food would be unclean for a dedicated Jew. The Lord provided the food and the birds provided the transportation! Just as God dropped the manna into the camp of Israel during their wilderness journey, so He sent the necessary food to Elijah as he waited for the signal to relocate. God feeds the beasts and the ravens (Ps. 147:9; Luke 12:24), and He can use the ravens to carry food to His servant.
A nationwide drought (17:1) The Jewish people depended on the seasonal rains for the success of their crops. If the Lord didn't send the early rain in October and November and the latter rain in March and April, there would soon be a famine in the land. But the blessing of the semiannual rains depended on the people obeying the covenant of the Lord (Deut. 11). God warned the people that their disobedience would turn the heavens into bronze and the earth into iron (Deut. 28:23–24; see Lev. 26:3–4, 18–19). The land belonged to the Lord, and if the people defiled the land with their sinful idols, the Lord wouldn't bless them.
It's likely that Elijah appeared before King Ahab in October, about the time the early rains should have begun. There had been no rain for six months, from April to October, and the prophet announced that there would be no rain for the next three years!2 The people were following Baal, not Jehovah, and the Lord could not send the promised rain and still be faithful to His covenant. God always keeps His covenant, whether to bless the people for their obedience or to discipline them for their sins.
God had held back the rain because of the fervent prayers of Elijah, and He would send the rain again in response to His servant's intercession (James 5:17–18). For the next three years, the word of Elijah would control the weather in Israel! The three and a half years of drought would prepare the people for the dramatic contest on Mount Carmel between the priests of Baal and the prophet of the Lord. Like a faithful servant, attentive to his master's commands, Elijah stood before the Lord and served him. (Later, his successor, Elisha, would use this same terminology. See 2 Kings 3:14 and 5:16.) An extended drought, announced and con-
As the drought grew worse, the brook dried up, leaving the prophet without water, but he never made a move until the word of the Lord came to tell him what to do. It has well been said that the will of God will never lead us where the grace of God cannot keep us and care for us, and Elijah knew this from experience. (See Isa. 33:15–16.)
Food from empty vessels (17:8–16) Elijah lived at Cherith probably a year, and then God
1 Kings 17
Back of the loaf is the snowy flour, And back of the flour is the mill, And back of the mill is the wheat, sun, and shower, The farmer—and the Father's will.
told him to leave. God's instructions may have shocked the prophet, for the Lord commanded him to travel northeast about a hundred miles to the Phoenician city of Zarephath. God was sending Elijah into Gentile territory, and since Zarephath was not too far from Jezebel's home city of Sidon, he would be living in enemy territory! Even more, he was instructed to live with a widow whom God had selected to care for him, and widows were usually among the neediest people in the land. Since Phoenicia depended on Israel for much of its food supply (1 Kings 5:9; Acts 12:20), food wouldn't be too plentiful there. But when God sends us, we must obey and leave the rest to Him, for we don't live on man's explanations—we live on God's promises.
Life for a dead boy (17:17–24) This is the first recorded instance in Scripture of the resurrection of a dead person. The evidence seems clear that the widow's son actually died and didn't just faint or go into a temporary swoon. He stopped breathing (v. 17), and his spirit left the body (vv. 21–22). According to James 2:26, when the spirit leaves a body, the person is dead. The great distress of both the mother and the prophet would suggest that the boy was dead, and both of them used the word "slay" with reference to the event (vv. 18 and 20 kjv).
"Because of our proneness to look at the bucket and forget the fountain," wrote Watchman Nee, "God has frequently to change His means of supply to keep our eyes fixed on the source." After the nation of Israel entered the Promised Land, the manna ceased to fall into the camp and God changed His way of feeding the people (Josh. 5:10–12). During the early days of the church in Jerusalem, the believers had all that they needed (Acts 4:34–35), but a few years later, the saints in Jerusalem had to receive help from the Gentile believers in Antioch (Acts 11:27–30). Elijah was about to learn what God could do with empty vessels!
The mother's response was to feel guilty because of her past sins. She believed that her son's death was God's way of punishing her for her misdeeds. It isn't unusual for people to feel guilty in connection with bereavement, but why would she point her finger at her guest? She recognized Elijah as a man of God, and perhaps she thought his presence in the home would protect her and her son from trouble. Or maybe she felt that God had informed her guest about her past life, something she should have confessed to him. Her words remind us of the question of the disciples in John 9:2, "Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?"
The fact that the woman had been instructed by the Lord (v. 9) isn't proof that she was a believer in the God of Israel, for the Lord gave orders to a pagan king like Cyrus (2 Chron. 36:22) and even called him his "shepherd" (Isa. 44:28). The widow spoke of Jehovah as "the Lord your God" (v. 12, italics mine), for she could easily discern that the stranger speaking to her was a Jew, but even this isn't evidence she was a believer. It's probable that Elijah remained with her for two years (18:1), and during that time, the widow and her son surely turned from the worship of idols and put their faith in the true and living God.
Elijah's response was to carry the lad to his upstairs room, perhaps on the roof, and to cry out to the Lord for the life of the child. He couldn't believe that the Lord would miraculously provide food for the three of them and then allow the son to die. It just didn't make sense. Elijah didn't stretch himself out on the boy's dead body in hopes he could transfer his life to the lad, for he knew that only God can impart life to the dead. Certainly his posture indicated total identification with the boy and his need, and this is an important factor when we intercede for others. It was after Elijah stretched himself on the child for the third time that the Lord raised him from the dead, a reminder that our own Savior arose from the dead on the third day. Because He lives, we can share His life by putting our faith in Him. (See 2 Kings 4:34 and Acts 20:10.)
The woman's assets were few: a little oil in a flask, a handful of barley in a large grain jar ("barrel" kjv), and a few sticks to provide fuel for a fire. But Elijah's assets were great, for God Almighty had promised to take care of him, his hostess, and her son. Elijah gave her God's promise that neither the jar of grain nor the flask of oil would be used up before the end of the drought and famine. God would one day send the rain, but until then, He would continue to provide bread for them—and He did.
The result of this miracle was the woman's public confession of her faith in the God of Israel. She now knew for sure that Elijah was a true servant of God and not just another religious teacher looking for some support. She also knew that the Word he had taught her was indeed the Word of the true and living God. During the time he lived with the widow and her son, Elijah had shown them that God sustains life (the meal and oil didn't run out) and that God imparts life (the boy was raised from the dead).
In our modern society, with its credit cards and convenient shopping, we need to remember that each meal we eat is a miracle from the hand of God. We may live far from the farmers who grow our food, but we can't live without them. "Give us this day our daily bread" is more than a line in a prayer that we may too casually recite. It's the expression of a great truth, that the Lord cares for us and uses many hands to feed us.
Elijah hadn't been in public ministry for a long time, yet his private ministry to the woman and her son was just as important both to the Lord and to
1 Kings 17—18
that He had sent to punish the idolatrous nation for over three years.
them. The servant who won't "hide himself" and minister to a few people isn't really ready to stand on Mount Carmel and call down fire and rain from heaven. People who have proved themselves faithful with a few things in small places can be trusted by the Lord with many things before many people in the bigger places (Matt. 25:21). Elijah had proved the power of God in Baal's own home territory, so he was now ready to challenge and defeat Baal in the kingdom of Israel.
Obadiah meets Elijah (vv. 1–16). Students don't agree on the character of Obadiah, the governor of the palace. A man of great authority, he was administrator of the royal palace as well as steward and supervisor of whatever estates the king possessed. But was he a courageous servant of God (his name means "servant of Jehovah") or a timid compromiser who was afraid to let his witness be known? The text informs us that Obadiah "feared the Lord greatly" and proved it during Jezebel's "purge" by risking his life to rescue and support one hundred prophets of the Lord.3 That doesn't sound like a man who was compromising his testimony! Why should he tell the king and queen what he was doing for the Lord? The Lord had put Obadiah in the palace to use his God-given authority to support the faithful prophets at a time when openly serving the Lord was a dangerous thing.
During these three years as an exile and a hunted man (18:10), Elijah has learned a great deal about the Lord, about himself and about the needs of people. He has learned to live a day at a time, trusting God for his daily bread. For three years, people have been asking, "Where is the prophet Elijah? Is he able to do anything to ease the burdens we carry because of this drought?" But the Lord is more concerned about the worker than the work, and He has been preparing Elijah for the greatest challenge of faith in his entire ministry.
The king and Obadiah were searching the country for grass and other foliage that could be used to feed the horses and mules used in the army. Ahab wasn't especially concerned about the people of the land, but he wanted his army to be strong just in case of an invasion. It's remarkable that the king was willing to leave the safety and comfort of the palace to scour the land for food for the animals. It seems that when Ahab was away from Jezebel, he was a much better man.
Before we leave the account of Elijah's sojourn with the widow of Zarephath, we must consider how our Lord used this story in the sermon He preached in the synagogue in Nazereth (Luke 4:16–30). During the first part of the sermon, the listeners approved of what Jesus said and complimented Him on His "gracious words." But then He reminded them of the sovereign grace of God that reached other nations besides the covenant people of Israel. The great Jewish prophet Elijah actually ministered to a Gentile widow and her son and had even lived with them, and yet he could have ministered to any of the many widows in the nation of Israel. His second illustration was from the ministry of Elisha, Elijah's successor, who actually healed a Gentile general of leprosy (2 Kings 5:1–15). Certainly there were plenty of Jewish lepers he might have cured!
The Lord led Elijah to the road that Obadiah was using and the two men met. Obadiah had such reverence for Elijah and his ministry that he fell on his face on the earth and called him, "My lord, Elijah." But Elijah's aim was to confront wicked King Ahab, and he wasn't about to go looking for him, so he commissioned Obadiah to tell the king where he was. We can understand Obadiah's concern lest the king come back and not find the prophet. During the three years Ahab had been searching for Elijah, no doubt he had followed up many false leads, and Ahab wasn't interested in wasting time and energy at such a critical point in the nation's history. Furthermore, Ahab might punish Obadiah or even suspect him of being a follower of Elijah's God. But when Elijah assured the officer that he would remain there and wait for the king, Obadiah went off to give Ahab the message.
Our Lord's emphasis was on the grace of God. He wanted the proud Jewish congregation in the synagogue to realize that the God of Israel was also the God of the Gentiles (see Rom. 3:29) and that both Jews and Gentiles were saved by putting their faith in Him. Of course, the Jews wouldn't accept the idea that they were sinners like the Gentiles and had to be saved, so they rejected both the messenger and the message and took Jesus out of the synagogue to cast Him down from the hill. Elijah's ministry to the widow and her son was proof that God is no respecter of persons and that "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). Whether a person is a religious Jew or a pagan Gentile, the only way of salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ.
Not all of God's servants are supposed to be in the public eye like Elijah and the other prophets. God has His servants in many places, doing the work He's called them to do. Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea didn't make a big fuss about their faith in Christ, yet God used them to give proper burial to the body of Jesus (John 19:38–42). Esther kept quiet about her Jewish heritage until it was absolutely necessary to use it to save the life of the nation. Over the centuries, there have been numerous believers who have kept a low profile and yet made great contributions to the cause of Christ and the advancement of His kingdom.
Fire from heaven (18:1–40) For three years, Elijah had hidden himself at the brook Cherith and then with the widow in Zarephath, but now he was commanded to "show himself" to wicked King Ahab. But along with God's command was God's promise that He would send rain and end the drought
Elijah meets King Ahab (vv. 17–19). Everything that Elijah did was according to the Word of the Lord
1 Kings 18
Who originally built the altar that Elijah used? Probably a member of the believing remnant in Israel who privately worshipped the Lord. But the altar had been destroyed, probably by the prophets of Baal (19:10), so Elijah rebuilt it and sanctified it. By using twelve stones, he reaffirmed the spiritual unity of God's people in spite of their political division. Elijah had given the prophets of Baal some advantages, so now he gave himself some handicaps. He had a trench dug around the altar and filled it with water. He put the sacrifice on the wood on the altar and had everything drenched with water.
(v. 36), including confronting the king and inviting him and the priests of Baal to a meeting on Mount Carmel. Ahab called Elijah "the troublemaker in Israel," but it was really Ahab whose sins had caused the problems in the land. Surely Ahab knew the terms of the covenant and understood that the blessings of the Lord depended on the obedience of the king and his people. Both Jesus and Paul would be called "troublemakers" (Luke 23:5; Acts 16:20; 17:6), so Elijah was in good company.
Mount Carmel was located near the border of Israel and Phoenicia, so it was a good place for the Phoenician god Baal to meet Jehovah, the God of Israel. Elijah told Ahab to bring not only the 450 prophets of Baal but also the 400 prophets of the Asherah (Astarte), the idols that represented Baal's "wife." It seems that only the prophets of Baal showed up for the contest (vv. 22, 26, 40).
At the time of the evening sacrifice, he lifted his voice in prayer to the God of the covenant, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. His request was that God be glorified as the God of Israel, the true and living God, and make it known that Elijah was His servant. But even more, by sending fire from heaven, the Lord would be telling His people that He had forgiven them and would turn their hearts back to the worship of the true God. Elijah may have been thinking of God's promise to Solomon in 2 Chronicles 7:12–15. Suddenly, the fire fell from heaven and totally devoured the sacrifice, the altar, and the water in the trench around the altar.5 There was nothing left that anybody could turn into a relic or a shrine. The altar to Baal still stood as a monument to a lost cause. The prophets of Baal were stunned, and the people of Israel fell on their faces and acknowledged, "The Lord, He is God!"
The prophets of Baal meet the God of Israel (vv. 20–40). Representatives were present from all ten tribes of the northern kingdom, and it was this group that Elijah addressed as the meeting began. His purpose was not only to expose the false god Baal but also to bring the compromising people back to the Lord. Because of the evil influence of Ahab and Jezebel, the people were "limping" between two opinions and trying to serve both Jehovah and Baal. Like Moses (Ex. 32:26) and Joshua (Josh. 24:15) before him, Elijah called for a definite decision on their part, but the people were speechless. Was this because of their guilt (Rom. 3:19) or because they first wanted to see what would happen next? They were weak people, without true conviction.
But Elijah wasn't yet finished, for he commanded the people to take the false prophets of Baal and slay them. This was in obedience to the Lord's command in Deuteronomy 13:13–18 and 17:2–5. The test had been a fair one, and the prophets of Baal had been exposed as idolaters who deserved to be killed. The law required that idolaters be stoned to death, but Elijah had the prophets killed with the sword (19:1). This action, of course, angered Jezebel, from whose table these men had been fed (v. 19), and she determined to capture Elijah and kill him.
Elijah weighted the test in favor of the prophets of Baal. They could build their altar first, select their sacrifice and offer it first, and they could take all the time they needed to pray to Baal. When Elijah said he was the only prophet of the Lord, he wasn't forgetting the prophets that Obadiah had hidden and protected. Rather, he was stating that he was the only one openly serving the Lord, and therefore he was outnumbered by the 450 prophets of Baal. But one with God is a majority, so the prophet had no fears. Surely the prayers of 450 zealous prophets would be heard by Baal and he would answer by sending fire from heaven! (See Lev. 9:24 and 1 Chron. 21:26.) By noon, Elijah was taunting the prophets of Baal because nothing had happened. "He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall hold them in derision" (Ps. 2:4 nkjv). The prophets of Baal were dancing frantically around their altar and cutting themselves with swords and spears, but still nothing happened. Elijah suggested that perhaps Baal couldn't hear them because he was deep in thought, or busy in some task,4 or even traveling. His words only made them become more fanatical, but nothing happened. At three o'clock, the time of the evening sacrifice at the temple in Jerusalem, Elijah stepped forward and took charge.
The rains return (18:41–45) Elijah had announced three years before that it was his word that stopped the rain and only his word could start it again (17:1). He was referring to the power of his prayers, the words that he spoke to the Lord (James 5:17–18). It had been a long and disappointing day for King Ahab, and Elijah sent him to his retainers to get something to eat.6 Elijah went to the top of Carmel to pray and ask the Lord to send the much-needed rains. "Every day we live," wrote missionary Amy Carmichael, "we have to choose whether we should follow in the way of Ahab or of Elijah." Matthew 6:33 comes to mind.
Elijah's unusual posture was almost a fetal position and indicated the prophet's humility, his great concern for the people, and his burden for the glory of the Lord. Unlike the answer to the prayer at the altar, the
1 Kings 18—19
answer to this prayer didn't come at once. Seven times Elijah sent his servant to look toward the Mediterranean Sea and report any indications of a storm gathering, and six of those times the servant reported nothing. The prophet didn't give up but prayed a seventh time, and the servant saw a tiny cloud coming from the sea. This is a good example for us to follow as we "watch and pray" and continue to intercede until the Lord sends the answer.
5 Satan is a counterfeiter of the miracles of God (2 Thess. 2:9–10) and could have sent fire from heaven (Job 1:9–12; Rev. 13:13), but the Lord restrained him. 6 Some have suggested that Ahab ate some of the sacrificial meat, but that doesn't seem possible. Elijah's sacrifice was completely consumed and the sacrifice to Baal was never exposed to any fire.
CHAPTER ELEVEN 1 Kings 19 THE CAVE MAN I
The little cloud wasn't a storm, but it was the harbinger of the rains that were to come. Elijah commanded the king to mount his chariot and return to his palace in Jezreel as soon as possible. We aren't told how he broke the news to Jezebel that Baal had been publicly humiliated and declared to be a false god, and that the prophets of Baal that she supported had been slain. But neither the drought nor the famine had brought Ahab and Jezebel to repentance, and it wasn't likely that the fire from heaven or the coming of the rain would change their hearts (Rev. 9:20–21; 16:8–11). All the evidence notwithstanding, Jezebel was determined to kill Elijah (19:1–2).
t encourages me when I read James 5:17, "Elijah was as human as we are" (nlt). I have a tendency to idealize the men and women in Scripture, but the Bible is the "word of truth" (2 Tim. 2:15) and describes the warts and wrinkles of even the greatest. When James wrote those words, he undoubtedly had 1 Kings 18 and 19 in mind, for in these chapters we see Elijah at his highest and at his lowest. When the psalmist wrote that "every man at his best state is altogether vanity" (Ps. 39:5), he included all of us except Jesus. An old adage reminds us, "The best of men are but men at their best," and Elijah's history proves how true this is.
Strength for the journey (18:46) Soon the heavens were black with clouds and great torrents of rain began to fall on the land. The Lord not only proved that he was the true and living God, but He also put His approval on the ministry of His servant Elijah. Elijah had neither chariots nor retainers to drive them, but he did have the power of the Lord, and he ran ahead of Ahab and reached Jezreel ahead of the king, a distance of about seventeen miles. This was quite a feat for an older man and in itself was another sign to the people that God's powerful hand was upon His servant.
However, the outstanding leaders in Scripture, with all their humanness, knew how to find their way out of what John Bunyan called "the slough [swamp] of despond" and get back on track with the Lord. We can learn from their defeats as well as their successes. Furthermore, by studying passages like 1 Kings 19, we're reminded to give glory to the Master and not to His servants (1 Cor. 1:27–29). We're also reminded to prepare for what may happen after the victories God gives us. How quickly we can move from the mountaintop of triumph to the valley of testing! We need to humble ourselves before the Lord and get ready for the trials that usually follow the victories.
God had chastened His people with drought and famine but had cared for His special servant Elijah. God had sent fire from heaven to prove that He was the true and living God. Now He had answered the prayer of His prophet and had sent the rains to water the land. You would think that Elijah would be at his very best spiritually and able to face anything, but the next chapter records just the opposite. As great a man as Elijah was, he still failed the Lord and himself.
If Elijah could have described to a counselor how he felt and what he thought, the counselor would have diagnosed his condition as a textbook case of burnout. Elijah was physically exhausted and had lost his appetite. He was depressed about himself and his work and was being controlled more and more by self-pity. "I only am left!" Instead of turning to others for help, he isolated himself and—worst of all—he wanted to die. (Elijah never did die. He was taken to heaven in a chariot. See 2 Kings 2.) The prophet concluded that he had failed in his mission and decided it was time to quit. But the Lord didn't see it that way. He always looks beyond our changing moods and impetuous prayers, and He pities us the way parents pity their discouraged children (Ps. 103:13–14). The chapter shows us how tenderly and patiently God deals with us when we're in the depths of despair and feel like giving up.
Notes 1 "Tishbite" probably refers to the town of Tishbe in Gilead, located west of Mahanaim. 2 The six-month period from April to October is the factor that explains the seeming discrepancy between 1 Kings 18:1 (three years) and Luke 4:25 and James 5:17 (three years and six months). When the expected early rains didn't appear in October, Elijah explained the cause. The drought was already six months old by the time Elijah visited Ahab. 3 On the schools of the prophets, see 1 Samuel 10:5 and 2 Kings 2:3–7 and 6:1–2. 4 The Hebrew word in verse 27 that is translated "pursuing" in the KJV and "busy" in the niv can also mean "relieving himself." Idolaters make their gods in their own image.
The chapter begins with Elijah running away and trying to save himself. Then the prophet argues with
1 Kings 19
the Lord in order to save his own life. When God's servants get out of God's will, they're liable to do all sorts of foolish things and fail in their strongest points. When Abraham fled to Egypt, he failed in his faith, which was his greatest strength (Gen. 12:10ff.). David's greatest strength was his integrity, and that's where he failed when he started lying and scheming during the Bathsheba episode (2 Sam. 11—12). Moses was the meekest of men (Num. 12:3), yet he lost his temper and forfeited the privilege of entering the Promised Land (Num. 20:1–13). Peter was a courageous man, yet his courage failed and he denied Christ (Mark 14:66–72). Like Peter, Elijah was a bold man, but his courage failed when he heard Jezebel's message.
the Lord and tries to defend himself. Finally, he obeys the Lord and yields himself and is restored to service. In all of this, Elijah was responding to four different messages.
The enemy's message of danger (19:1–4) When the torrential rain began to fall, Jezebel was in Jezreel and may have thought that Baal the storm god had triumphed on Mount Carmel. However, when Ahab arrived home, he told her a much different story. Ahab was a weak man, but he should have stood with Elijah and honored the Lord who had so dramatically demonstrated His power. But Ahab had to live with Queen Jezebel and without her support, he knew he was nothing. If ever there was a strong-willed ruler with a gift for doing evil, it was Jezebel. Neither Ahab nor Jezebel accepted the clear evidence given on Mount Carmel that Jehovah was the only true and living God. Instead of repenting and calling the nation back to serving the Lord, Jezebel declared war on Jehovah and His faithful servant Elijah, and Ahab allowed her to do it.
But why flee to Judah, especially when Jehoram, king of Judah, was married to Ahab's daughter Athaliah (2 Kings 8:16–19; 2 Chron. 21:4–7). This is the infamous Athaliah who later ruled the land and tried to exterminate all of David's heirs to the throne (2 Kings 11). The safest place for any child of God is the place dictated by the will of God, but Elijah didn't stop to seek God's will. He traveled 90 to 100 miles to Beersheba and left his servant there. Did he say, "Stay here until I return?" or did he just set the man free for his own safety. If the enemy came after Elijah, his servant would be safer someplace else. Furthermore, if the servant didn't know where Elijah was, he couldn't inform against him.
Why did Jezebel send a letter to Elijah when she could have sent soldiers and had him killed? He was in Jezreel and the deed could have been easily accomplished on such a wild and stormy night. Jezebel wasn't only an evil woman; she was also a shrewd strategist who knew how to make the most of Baal's defeat on Mount Carmel. Ahab was a quitter, but not his wife! Elijah was now a very popular man. Like Moses, he had brought fire from heaven, and like Moses, he had slain the idolaters (Lev. 9:24; Num. 25). If Jezebel transformed the prophet into a martyr, he might influence people more by his death than by his life. No, the people were waiting for Elijah to tell them what to do, so why not remove him from the scene of his victory? If Elijah disappeared, the people would wonder what had happened, and they would be prone to drift back into worshipping Baal and letting Ahab and Jezebel have their way. Furthermore, whether from Baal or Jehovah, the rains had returned and there was work to do!
Beersheba had a special meaning to the Jews because of its associations with Abraham (Gen. 21:22, 33), Isaac (26:33), and Jacob (46:1). The "juniper tree"2 is actually a flowering shrub ("the flowering broom tree") that flourishes in the wilderness and provides shade for flocks and herds and travelers. The branches are thin and supple like those of the willow and are used to bind bundles. (The Hebrew word for this shrub means "to bind.") The roots of the plant are used for fuel and make excellent charcoal (Ps. 120:4). As Elijah sat under its shade, he did a wise thing—he prayed, but he didn't pray a very wise prayer. "I've had enough!" he told the Lord, "so take my life."3 Then he gave his reason: "I'm no better than my fathers." But God never asked him to be better than anybody else, but only to hear His Word and obey it.
Jezebel may have suspected that Elijah was a candidate for a physical and emotional breakdown after his demanding day on Mount Carmel, and she was right. He was as human as we are, and as the ancient church fathers used to say to their disciples, "Beware of human reactions after holy exertions." Her letter achieved its purpose and Elijah fled from Jezreel. In a moment of fear,1 when he forgot all that God had done for him the previous three years, Elijah took his servant, left Israel, and headed for Beersheba, the southernmost city in Judah. Charles Spurgeon said that Elijah "retreated before a beaten enemy." God had answered his prayer (18:36–37), and God's hand had been upon him in the storm (18:46), but now he was walking by sight and not by faith. (See Ps. 16:7–8.)
The combination of emotional burnout, weariness, hunger, and a deep sense of failure, plus lack of faith in the Lord, had brought Elijah into deep depression. But there was also an element of pride involved, and some self-pity, for Elijah was sure that his courageous ministry on Mount Carmel would bring the nation to its knees. Perhaps he was also hoping that Ahab and Jezebel would repent and turn from Baal to Jehovah. His expectations weren't fulfilled, so he considered himself a failure. But the Lord rarely allows His servants to see all the good they have done, because we walk by faith and not by sight, and Elijah would learn that there were 7,000 people in Israel who had not bowed to Baal and worshipped him. No doubt his own ministry had influenced many of them.
For three years, Elijah had not made a move without hearing and obeying the Lord's instructions (17:2–3, 8–9; 18:1), but now he was running ahead of