Elijah's Trial of the False Prophets; the Destruction of Baal's Prophets. 30 And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. 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. No one who was present that day missed the point. And will a nation change their god?" Roumie said he was drawn to both "The Chosen" and "Jesus Revolution" because of their scripts and characters, which "spoke to his heart.". What he said we are not told; but, 1. Should the explanation in Genesis on how God created plants before the sun affect the understanding of creation? 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. 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. God reveals his secrets to his servants the prophets; and yet, without a revelation, we may foresee that when man's judgments run down like a river God's mercy will. to please their deity, as Herodias did Herod, and so to obtain their request. Pray louder! he said. He himself retired to pray (for though God had promised rain, he must ask it, Zechariah 10:1), and to give thanks for God's answer by fire, now hoping for an answer by water. Of course, most Israelites probably didnt totally reject Yahweh, the God of Israel. Dont let any of them run away! The people captured all the prophets. Choose a bull and prepare it. It does not appear that either the increase of the provision or the raising of the child had caused him to be taken notice of at Zarephath, for then Ahab would have discovered him; he would rather do good than be known to do it. It was strange that so good a man as Obadiah would accept of preferment in a court so addicted to idolatry and all manner of wickedness. 6:9). To win his people back, God demonstrated his power and mocked Baal along the way. Note, It has been the lot of the best and most useful men to be called and counted the troublers of the land, and to be run down as public grievances. And when midday was past, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. 732 views, 45 likes, 11 loves, 7 comments, 73 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from : 22 2023 . Like madmen they cut themselves in pieces with knives and lancets (1 Kings 18:28; 1 Kings 18:28) for vexation that they were not answered, or in a sort of prophetic fury, hoping to obtain the favour of their god by offering to him their own blood, when they could not obtain it with the blood of their bullock. And the people answered him not a word. 27 And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked. 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. They danced around the altar they had built. You can also change some of your preferences. They could say nothing to justify themselves, and they would say nothing to condemn themselves, but, as people confounded, let him say what he would. 26 And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. For the nations around Israel, Baal was the rider of the clouds, who brought the rains and blessed the earth.When Baal showed up, the heavens rained oil, the rivers ran with honey, mothers gave birth to healthy children, and even the dead could be raised. Those halt between them that are unresolved under their convictions, unstable and unsteady in their purposes, promise fair, but do not perform, begin well, but do not hold on, that are inconsistent with themselves, or indifferent and lukewarm in that which is good. This he calls (1 Kings 18:21; 1 Kings 18:21) halting between two opinions, or thoughts. At the end of the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit had . All answers are REVIEWED and MODERATED. Nay (1 Kings 18:13; 1 Kings 18:13), Was it not told my lord how I hid the prophets? They worshipped God to please the prophets, but worshipped Baal to please Jezebel and curry favour at court. Jesus reminds us that when we try, we risk devoting ourselves to money and hating him (see Luke 16:13). He that had protected so many prophets, he hoped, should not have his own life hazarded by so great a prophet. II. Also bring the four hundred fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebels table.. (2.) There was a heavy rain: Gods word through Elijah was proved true. There he spoke with us. Do you believe that? 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. Baals 450 prophets worked themselves into a frenzy, cutting themselves, dancing, and chanting to their god. Their perishing thus is the using, as the apostle speaks of them (Colossians 3:22), was to intimate the utter abolition of them after a little while, Hebrews 8:13. Three years and a half's famine would not bring them back to God. Carmel had neither tabernacle nor temple; it was a great way distant from the ark of the testimony and the place God had chosen; this was not the altar that sanctified the gift; yet never was any sacrifice more acceptable to God than this. The people must be brought to repent and reform, and then they may look for the removal of the judgment, but not till then. But, since Ahab invites him not to ride with him, he will run before him (1 Kings 18:46; 1 Kings 18:46) as one of his footmen, that he may not seem to be lifted up with the great honour God had put upon him or to abate in his civil respect to his prince, though he reproved him faithfully. The higher the vote, the further up an answer is. I brought them food and water. 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. He durst not strike him, remembering that Jeroboam's hand withered when it was stretched out against a prophet, but gave him bad language, which was no less an affront to him that sent him. 1 And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, show thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth. Baal's 450 prophets worked themselves into a frenzy, cutting themselves, dancing, and chanting to their god. Elijah told him to go and look again. 37Lord, answer my prayer so these people will know that you, Lord, are God and that you will change their minds., 38Then fire from the Lord came down and burned the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, and the ground around the altar. 29 And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded. Did they tithe to themselves? 21 And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? III. They allow the proposal to be fair and unexceptionable "God has often answered by fire; if Baal cannot do so, let him be cast out for a usurper." The following cookies are also needed - You can choose if you want to allow them: You can read about our cookies and privacy settings in detail on our Privacy Policy Page. Transfers the title of honour he gave him to Ahab: "Call him thy lord, not me;" that is a fitter title for a prince than for a prophet, who seeks not honour from men. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel. [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. But it was utterly false concerning Elijah; so far was he from being an enemy to Israel's welfare that he as the stay of it, the chariots and horsemen of Israel. We are fairly put to our choice whom we will serve,Joshua 24:15. 40 And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. Then he said, Do it a third time, and they did it the third time. (Obadiah was a true follower of the LORD. But God listened to his prophet. Does the devil have power to make us sick? Answer The account of Elijah and the prophets of Baal is recorded in 1 Kings 18. Yet his guilty conscience gave him little reason to hope for it, but, rather, to fear some other more dreadful judgment. He also recognized, though, that people in his day faced a new, subtler, and perhaps even stronger temptation: to treat money as an idol like Baal, an idol to worship as a god to get what they wanted. Ahab had continued fasting all day, either religiously, it being a day of prayer, or for want of leisure, it being a day of great expectation; but now let him eat and rink for, though others perceive no sign of it, Elijah, by faith, hears the sound of abundance of rain,1 Kings 18:41; 1 Kings 18:41. Sign up now for the latest news and deals from Bible Gateway! Note, Though the answer of our fervent and believing supplications may not come quickly, yet we must continue instant in prayer, and not faint nor desist; for at the end it shall speak and not lie. IV. 27 At noon Elijah began to taunt them, saying, "Shout louder, for he is a god! Pursuant to this order we have here, I. Let the prophets of Baal choose one bull and kill it and cut it into pieces. You have gone after the Baals. 6 So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself. Article Images Copyright , The Real Reason Israel Worshiped Baal (It Wasn't Just a Pretty Statue), Michael Rhodes, Robby Holt, and Brian Fikkert. 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. Even on Baals home turf, people starved while waiting for Baal to bring his promised abundance. 32Elijah used these stones to rebuild the altar in honor of the Lord. This great good man used his power for the protection of God's prophets. Elijah's God was neither talking nor pursuing, needed not to be either awakened or quickened; while he was yet speaking, the fire of the Lord fell, and not only, as at other times (Leviticus 9:24; 1 Chronicles 21:26; 2 Chronicles 7:1) consumed the sacrifice and the wood, in token of God's acceptance of the offering, but licked up all the water in the trench, exhaling that, and drawing it up as a vapour, in order to the intended rain, which was to be the fruit of this sacrifice and prayer, more than the product of natural causes. Obadiah recognized Elijah, so he bowed down to the ground and said, Elijah? And all the people came near unto him. (3.) And they did it the third time. Community answers are sorted based on votes. How did the spirit of God move upon the face of the waters in Genesis 1:2? Yet, bad as things were. (2.) 27At noon Elijah began to make fun of them. Elijah might have looked for rain seventy times seven times, and not have seen it, if he had not thus begun his work at the right end. Elijah satisfied him that he might with safety deliver this message to Ahab, by assuring him, with an oath, that he would, this very day, present himself to Ahab, 1 Kings 18:15; 1 Kings 18:15. I see nothing, he said. God will first prepare our heart, and then cause his ear to hear, will first turn us to him, and then turn to us,Psalms 10:17; Psalms 80:3. But there was no voice. Elijah first surrendered, or rather discovered, himself to Obadiah. See 2 Kings 2:16. The time was that of Ahab, king of Israel. "I love Jesus and it is the honor of my life to get to portray him," he said. That wanting to get rich inevitably causes such destruction? "As long as God keeps bringing me stories that I can honor him with, to me, it doesn't matter what genre they . Why didnt Abraham bargain with God when it came to Isaac being offered as a burnt offering like he did when it came to Sodom and Gomorrah? If you have any questions, please review our Privacy Policy or email us at privacy@biblegateway.com. The people, as the jury, gave in their verdict upon the trial, and they are all agreed in it; the case is so plain that they need not go from the bar to consider of their verdict or consult about it: They fell on their faces, and all, as one man, said, "Jehovah, he is the God, and not Baal; we are convinced and satisfied of it: Jehovah, he is the God" (1 Kings 18:39; 1 Kings 18:39), whence, one would think, they should have inferred, "If he be the God, he shall be our God, and we will serve him only," as Joshua 24:24. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. He thought Elijah was not in good earnest when he bade him tell Ahab where he was, but intended only to expose the impotency of his malice; for he knew Ahab was not worthy to receive any kindness from the prophet and it was not fit that the prophet should receive any mischief from him. Note, It bodes well to any people when God calls his ministers out of their corners, and bids them show themselves--a sign that he will give rain on the earth; at least we may the better be content with the bread of affliction while our eyes see our teachers,Isaiah 30:20; Isaiah 30:21. [1.] Then Ahab went to meet Elijah. a. Even Christ and his apostles were thus misrepresented, Acts 17:6. His new conquest will be lost if he do not look about him quickly." 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. They prayed to Baal from morning until noon, shouting Baal, answer us! But there was no sound, and no one answered. THE PROPHETS OF BAAL,THE PROPHETS OF ASHERAH,AND THE LATTER RAIN. VI. 41Then Elijah said to Ahab, Now, go, eat, and drink, because a heavy rain is coming. 42So King Ahab went to eat and drink. Share Our idols never stop consuming and destroying that which we hold most dear. Deserters must not look for God's favour till they return to their allegiance. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. The Bible states that during the encounter with Elijah the prophets of Baal, "And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them." ( 1 Kings 18:28 ) Where Do We See God's Power over Baal? 44 And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. 18 And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim. 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. Used by permission of Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down. Has the book of Amos been fulfilled or is it a reference to end times? 19Now tell all Israel to meet me at Mount Carmel. I incline to this because we find, when they came together, Elijah, knowing what Ahab wanted him for, appointed him to meet him on Mount Carmel, and Ahab complied with the appointment, though Elijah took such a way to revoke the sentence and bless the land as perhaps he little thought of. Not only some Israelites worshipped God and others Baal, but the same Israelites sometimes worshipped one and sometimes the other. In it, Elijah, the prophet of Gd, puts to the test what was at the time perceived as the most supreme and powerful of all the godsBaal. 11Now you want me to go to my master and tell him, Elijah is here? The long drought was over, and it was demonstrated that the prayers of Elijah both withheld the rain and then subsequently brought the rain. And now, 1. When we read about the Israelites worshiping the god Baal in 1 Kings 18, we tend to think of them developing a preference for wooden idol images. Please see our Privacy Policy for cookie usage details. They got their sacrifices ready; and we may well imagine what a noise 450 men made, when they cried as one man, and with all their might, O Baal! In the myth, Baal returns to life when the rains come. 3. (2.) The god who answers by setting fire to his wood is the true God.. Then let them put the meat on the wood, but they are not to set fire to it. 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? You can check these in your browser security settings. 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. Though he expected an answer by fire, yet he came near to the altar with boldness, and feared not that fire. When we cannot carry a reformation so far as we would we must do what we can, and rather comply with some corruptions than not do our utmost towards the extirpation of Baal. Prophets should be called seers, and shepherds, and watchmen, and ministers, rather than lords, as those that mind duty more than dominion. (Mark 6:20). The sad state of Israel at this time, upon two accounts:--. (4.) Note, The worship of idols is a most ridiculous thing, and it is but justice to represent it so and expose it to scorn. It was great condescension in God that he would suffer so plain a case to be disputed, and would permit Baal to be a competitor with him; but thus God would have every mouth to be stopped and all flesh to become silent before him. He also brought them food and water.) The king and court were all for Baal; so was the body of the people. 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