He will put me to death. He knew, by the Spirit, where to meet him, and we are here told what passed between them. From Genesis to Revelation, we see that one of our Creator Kings primary qualities is his lavish generosity. 13Havent you been told what I did? He then solemnly addressed himself to God by prayer before his altar, humbly beseeching him to turn to ashes his burnt-offering (as the phrase is, Psalms 20:3), and to testify his acceptance of it. Giving is what we do best; the air into which we were born. Giving signals and solidifies our allegiance to and dependence on God and his kingdom. He also brought them food and water.) When Jezebel was killing all the LORD's . 24You prophets of Baal, pray to your god, and I will pray to the Lord. He pleads that he did not deserve to be thus exposed, and put in peril of his life: What have I said amiss?1 Kings 18:9; 1 Kings 18:9. Ahab issued out writs accordingly, for the convening of this great assembly (1 Kings 18:20; 1 Kings 18:20), either because he feared Elijah and durst not oppose him (Saul stood in awe of Samuel more than of God), or because he hoped Elijah would bless the land, and speak the word that they might have rain, and upon those terms they would be all at his beck. Their greedy hearts created other gods out of every coin in their coffers. Pray to your god, but dont start the fire.. We are fairly put to our choice whom we will serve,Joshua 24:15. But when we worship the idol of money, when our lives are oriented primarily toward earning, getting, and keeping, we become deformed, reflecting not the image of Yahweh, Lord of heaven and earth, but money, the god of me and mine. But in this chapter his appearance was as public as before his retirement was close; the days appointed for his concealment (which was part of the judgment upon Israel) being finished, he is not commanded to show himself to Ahab, and to expect rain upon the earth, 1 Kings 18:1. Elijah sought not his own glory but in subserviency to God's, and for his own necessary vindication. At the same time Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel, where he bent down to the ground with his head between his knees. And the people answered him not a word. 4. 23 Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: 24 And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. The execution he did upon the prophets of Baal, 1 Kings 18:40. The people must be brought to repent and reform, and then they may look for the removal of the judgment, but not till then. Little wonder, then, that when King Ahab chose to marry a woman from Baal territory, the farmers in Israel built a house for this new god and welcomed him to the neighborhood (see 1 Kings 16:31). How deaf Baal was to them. If we can find one that has more right to us, or will be a better master to us, than God, we may take him at our peril. 10As surely as the Lord your God lives, the king has sent people to every country to search for you. V. Elijah hereupon hastened Ahab home, and attended him himself. And all the people came near unto him. Blessed are those that have not seen what they saw and yet have believed and been wrought upon by it more than those that saw it. Elijah allows it to them (1 Kings 18:25; 1 Kings 18:25), gives them the lead for their greater confusion; only, knowing that the working of Satan is with lying wonders, he takes care to prevent a fraud: Be sure to put no fire under. 1 Kings 18:40. III. The sad state of Israel at this time, upon two accounts:--. We left the prophet Elijah wrapt up in obscurity. He sent the rain in torrents. 29The afternoon passed, and the prophets continued to act like this until it was time for the evening sacrifice. get answers to your Bible questions from 50+ resources ($2,400+ value! He hid 100 of them in two caves, when the persecution was hot, and fed them with bread and water,1 Kings 18:4; 1 Kings 18:4. 3. (2.) And nothing can't answer you when you call out to it! Baals 450 prophets worked themselves into a frenzy, cutting themselves, dancing, and chanting to their god. Elijah vs. the priests of Baal. Moses's altar and Solomon's were consecrated by the fire from heaven; but this was destroyed, because no more to be used. [1.] And there was a sore famine in Samaria. In a truly horrific passage, Jeremiah writes that our worship of idols consumes not only our flocks and herds but also our sons and daughters (Jer. The prophets of Baal went first. Some, we hope, had their hearts thus turned back, but the generality of them were convinced only, not converted, yielded to the truth of God, that he is the God, but consented not to his covenant, that he should be theirs. 2. Those few that escaped the sword were forced to abscond, and hide themselves in caves, where they were buried alive and cut off, though not from life, yet from usefulness, which is the end and comfort of life; and, when the prophets were persecuted and driven into corners, no doubt their friends, those few good people that were in the land, were treated in like manner. Those that slighted and hated his counsels would gladly be beholden to him for his prayers. 30Then Elijah said to all the people, Now come to me. So they gathered around him, and Elijah rebuilt the altar of the Lord, which had been torn down. Obadiah saluted him with great respect, fell on his face, and humbly asked, Art thou that my lord Elijah?1 Kings 18:7; 1 Kings 18:7. 'You Raise Me Up' Duet Earns A Standing Ovation From The Judges, 7 Tests to See if Your Worship Is Truly Christian or Pagan, 3 Bad Church Approaches to Good Money Stewardship, 5 Critical Rules to Teach Your Kids to Help Them Stay Safe, 4 Things You Should Know about Jesus Revolution, Jesus on Adultery: Its More Controversial Than You Think, This site is a proud member of the Salem Web Network, a subsidiary of, Copyright 2023, Crosswalk.com. But there was no voice. All rights reserved. 28 And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. We may request cookies to be set on your device. Otherwise, the rain will stop him.. Does the Bible encourage the practice of Lent? He turned the hearts of his people back to himself. "In reconcilable differences (says bishop Hall) nothing more safe than indifferency both of practice and opinion; but, in cases of such necessary hostility as betwixt God and Baal, he that is not with God is against him." He stood by them, and patiently heard them for so many hours praying to an idol, yet with secret indignation and disdain; and at noon, when the sun was at the hottest, and they too expecting fire (then if ever), he upbraided them with their folly; and notwithstanding the gravity of his office, and the seriousness of the work he had before him, bantered them: "Cry aloud, for he is a god, a goodly god that cannot be made to hear without all this clamour. Behold the bullock and the wood; but where is the fire?Genesis 22:7; Genesis 22:8. (2.) 46The Lord gave his power to Elijah, who tightened his clothes around him and ran ahead of King Ahab all the way to Jezreel. The God therefore that has power to pardon sin, and to signify it by consuming the sin-offering, must needs be the God that can relieve us against the calamity. Elijah Kills the Prophets of Baal - During the third year without rain, the LORD spoke his word to Elijah: "Go and meet King Ahab, and I will soon send rain." So Elijah went to meet Ahab. A fight to the finish. Let it go on therefore to a trial. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there. It is a very bad thing to halt between God and Baal. But humans cannot serve two kings. Twelve barrels of water (probably sea-water, for the sea was near, and so much fresh water in this time of drought was too precious for him to be so prodigal of it), thrice four, he poured upon his sacrifice, to prevent the suspicion of any fire under (for, if there had been any, this would have put it out), and to make the expected miracle the more illustrious. There he would be alone. 35 And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water. This writing has come about a few days after The Test - 2002 and the Latter Rain, and adds greater clarity to what can be expected in the latter rain. 45After a short time the sky was covered with dark clouds. 3. Elijah's Trial of the False Prophets; the Destruction of Baal's Prophets. Six times his servant goes to the point of the hill and sees nothing, brings no good news to his master; yet Elijah continues praying, will not be diverted so far as to go and see with his own eyes, but still sends his servant to see if he can discover any hopeful cloud, while he keeps his mind close and intent in prayer, and abides by it, as one that has taken up his father Jacob's resolution, I will not let thee go except thou bless me. [People] who want to get rich, Paul declares, fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. (1 Tim. 39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God. But this will always prompt you to accept/refuse cookies when revisiting our site. Obadiah therefore could with a good conscience enjoy the place, and therefore would not decline it, nor give it up, though he foresaw he could not do the good he desired to do in it. " By afternoon, worshippers of Baal were cutting themselves up and ripping off their clothes, writhing in unspeakable suicidal frustration.When he called on them to shout and wake up . To demonstrate that he was neither ashamed of, nor afraid for, what he had done, though he knew how Jezebel would resent it, but durst venture himself in the midst of his enemies, as being confident of the Divine power and protection. (Poole), ii. How did the spirit of God move upon the face of the waters in Genesis 1:2? 22 Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men. Go tell your master that I am here., 9Then Obadiah said, What wrong have I done for you to hand me over to Ahab like this? That Elijah could have made such a run is assured in the Arab runners could easily cover one hundred miles in two days. (Patterson and Austel), 2018 David Guzik No distribution beyond personal use without permission. But it is strange to find such an eminently good man governor of Ahab's house, an office of great honour, power, and trust. No one who was present that day missed the point. Who has required these things at your hands? They likely continued going to church, paying their tithes, and saying a prayer or two now and againespecially on holidays. 36At the time for the evening sacrifice, the prophet Elijah went near the altar. The land of Judah lay close to the land of Israel, yet we find no complaint there of the want of rain; for Judah yet ruled with God, and was faithful with the saints and prophets (Hosea 11:12), by which distinction Israel might plainly have seen the ground of God's controversy, when God caused it to rain upon one city and not upon another (Amos 4:7; Amos 4:8); but they blinded their eyes, and hardened their hearts, and would not see. This was not as a morning cloud, which passes away (though Israel's goodness was so), but one that produced a plentiful rain (Psalms 68:9), and an earnest of more. They thought to trim the matter, and play on both sides, as the Samaritans, 2 Kings 17:33. By this time there was no food in Samaria. 1. 37 Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again. Note, Those who profess religion should study to recommend themselves to the esteem even of those that are without by their integrity, fidelity, and application to business. He ordered abundance of water to be poured upon his altar, which he had prepared a trench for the reception of (1 Kings 18:32; 1 Kings 18:32), and, some think, made the altar hollow. Indeed, giving back to God and to his people is part of our DNA, a sign of our family resemblance to our generous Creator. See Luke 1:16; Luke 1:17. "I love Jesus and it is the honor of my life to get to portray him," he said. In the myth, Baal returns to life when the rains come. Those that procure God's judgments do the mischief, not he that merely foretels them and gives warning of them, that the nation may repent and prevent them. Changes will take effect once you reload the page. When Jezebel was killing the Lords prophets, I hid a hundred of them, fifty in one cave and fifty in another. Even Christ and his apostles were thus misrepresented, Acts 17:6. If I go tell King Ahab you are here, and he comes and doesnt find you, he will kill me! If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here: We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. I. If Ahab had paid the respect to Elijah that he deserved he would have taken him into his chariot, as the eunuch did Philip, that he might honour him before the elders of Israel, and confer with him further about the reformation of the kingdom. 4When Jezebel was killing all the Lords prophets, Obadiah hid a hundred of them in two caves, fifty in one cave and fifty in another. Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. Why did Herod like to listen to John the Baptist, who criticized Herods lifestyle? April 2018. All answers are REVIEWED and MODERATED. Click to enable/disable _gat_* - Google Analytics Cookie. If Baal really is a god, maybe he is thinking, or busy, or traveling! Yet his guilty conscience gave him little reason to hope for it, but, rather, to fear some other more dreadful judgment. How importunate and noisy the prophets of Baal were in their applications to him. 10 Reasons God Might Not Be Blessing Your Life, 9 Christians You Don't Want to Sit Beside on Sunday Morning, 6 Truths about Jesus Coming into the World, Inspiring Mother Breaks Down after Earning Golden Buzzer with Celine Dion Hit, 7 Ways Anxiety Dominates the Christian Mind. Please ensure your answer MEETS all our guidelines. 21Elijah approached the people and said, How long will you not decide between two choices? In the end, Those who make [idols] will end up like them, as will everyone who trusts in them (Ps. Had he, by his spies, surprised Elijah, he would have triumphed over him; but, now that he was thus surprised by him, we may suppose he even trembled to look him in the face, hated him, and yet feared him, as Herod did John. The priests of Baal would pray to their god, and Elijah would pray to his God. It should seem, he made this diligent search for him, not so much that he might punish him for what he had done in denouncing the judgment as that he might oblige him to undo it again, by recalling the sentence, because he had said it should be according to his word, having such an opinion of him as men foolishly conceive of witches (that, if they can but compel them to bless that which they have bewitched, it will be well again), or such as the king of Moab had of Balaam. (5.) Money becomes a spiritual power that too often uses us rather than the other way around. Sign up now for the latest news and deals from Bible Gateway! No, he waives the prescription, and enters upon the merits of the cause:--"There can be but one God, but one infinite and but one supreme: there needs but one God, one omnipotent, one all-sufficient. [4.] Of course, most Israelites probably didnt totally reject Yahweh, the God of Israel. They leaped up and down, or danced about the altar (so some): they hoped, by their dancing, to please their deity, as Herodias did Herod, and so to obtain their request. Help us purchase electrical generators for churches. We may suppose it was a great surprise to Ahab to hear that Elijah, whom he had so long sought and not found, was now found without seeking. Yet, bad as things were. 11Now you want me to go to my master and tell him, Elijah is here? 3King Ahab sent for Obadiah, who was in charge of the kings palace. The wind began to blow, and soon a heavy rain began to fall. And will a nation change their god?" 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