The Fire and Passion of Elijah

The last four posts will really describe the story that will run its course through the rest of the history described in Samuel, Kings, and Chronicles. It’s this painful lust for empire — and everything that comes with it — that will drive the Israelites into captivity. While we’ll need to build more of a case around my argument by using the prophets, it would be unfair to skip through the rest of the history of the divided kingdom without mentioning anything else about it.

We left off as Rehoboam was being petitioned not to be as harsh as his father Solomon had been on the people. Rehoboam will, after rejecting the advice of his elders and accepting the “wisdom” of his peers, respond by telling the people that if they didn’t like the reign of his father, they hadn’t seen anything yet. “My finger is as thick as my father’s waist,” he said. “He scourged you with whips, I will scourge you will scorpions.”

Not a very likable political platform to run on. Not surprisingly, the people rebel against Rehoboam and follow another upstart leader, Jeroboam. Jeroboam returns from Egypt to seize the opportunity to reign and the kingdom is split in two, with the northern kingdom becoming “Israel” and the southern kingdom becoming “Judah.” Jeroboam will not seize the opportunity to reign in righteousness and obedience, however. He immediately sets up an alternate place of worship, a decision that is based on political fear of the southern kingdom influencing his people if they were to continue worshipping in Jerusalem. He sets up some golden calves and leads the people of the northern kingdom into idolatry. Jeroboam is succeeded by his son Nadab, who is followed Baasha, Elah, Zimri, and finally, Omri.

Omri is the most well documented king in extra-biblical history and was known (outside of the Bible) for being shrewd and ruthless. He attempted to reign by demonstrating his power and then establishing treaties with the countries around him. The plan worked for a time and Omri established an intimate relationship with the Phoenicians. After his death, the kingdom was passed into the hands of Ahab and the Israel/Phoenicia partnership was solidified through the marriage of Ahab to Phoenicia’s high priestess (of Asherah worship) named Jezebel. Through this marriage, Jezebel brings into Israel the full force of Phoenician Baal and Asherah worship. (The short version of this would be to go back and review the nature of the Amorite paganism, as the worship of the Phoenicians was simply an evolved version of child sacrifice and shrine prostitution.)

Onto the scene bursts the prophet Elijah, of whom we know very little background other than that he comes from Tishbe in the north. Elijah is known throughout biblical history to have been a prophet filled with fire and passion. Fire just happened to be Elijah’s prop of choice and is always seen popping up in Elijah’s ministry. Obviously, Elijah’s contest with the Baal prophets on Mt. Carmel will be tested with fire. When he is under attack from the army general from Israel, Elijah will call down fire from heaven to consume the advancing attackers. Elijah is a man of the flames!

So, this fiery prophet approaches Ahab about his sin and tells him that it’s not going to rain until he (Elijah) says so. Jewish tradition holds that God did not tell Elijah to tell Ahab this and was not particularly happy about Elijah’s passionate response. This hits many Christians sideways, yet a closer inspection of the Text will show many, many hints that support the Jewish position. God never speaks to Elijah with instructions about holding back the rain. And again, we see Elijah as a man of fiery passion; in the Jewish world, we call this chutzpah.

And what kind of chutzpah does Elijah have? How does he dare make such a bold prediction about the rain?

Because it’s in the Text. Give Deuteronomy 11:16–18 a read.

Elijah knows what God said in His book; Elijah binds God to His word. And God honors the move, but it appears that He may not be too pleased about that. Elijah will have to go and live in a cave and be fed by ravens. Now, any person of the Old Testament will tell you that ravens in the Scripture symbolize the scavenger, meaning that Elijah is being fed with food from somebody else’s table. As if to say, “Elijah, I’m going to honor your prophetic statement, but please realize that innocent people are going hungry because of the lack of rain. I’m going to feed you with those hungry people’s food.”

Elijah will then spend time at a widow’s house (in Phoenicia, by the way) and God will sustain them with a starvation-ration's worth of miraculous biscuits (about two biscuits each day). Could this be another message to Elijah? Finally, God DOES speak to Elijah, and His first words are, “Enough! Go tell Ahab that it’s going to rain!”

But he doesn’t tell Elijah HOW to tell Ahab. And so Elijah stages one of the greatest contests of Israelite history. Many of us are familiar with the context on Mt. Carmel. Elijah says that the Baal prophets are to set up a bull to sacrifice on the mountain and cry out to Baal. Elijah will set up an identical sacrifice and cry out to YHVH. Whichever sacrifice God responds to will indicate the victor. What we often do not realize is that Elijah is stacking the deck in Baal’s favor. He chooses Baal’s animal (the bull) to be sacrificed at Baal’s altar (there’s already an altar to Baal on Carmel) and is crying out for Baal’s weapon (lightning/“fire from heaven”). He’s giving Baal home court advantage.

Of course, Baal is found to be sleeping on the job and the God of Israel will consume the sacrifice, the altar, the water, and the ground under the altar with fire. Elijah seizes and kills the prophets of Baal and then prays for rain. When God finally produces a rain cloud, Elijah sends word to Ahab and then runs a half-marathon ahead of the chariot to Jezreel.

Jezebel isn’t happy to hear about this contest and its results. She tells Elijah that he will be dead within 24 hours and nobody stands up for Elijah.

The whole contest didn’t work.

Nobody changed. Nobody repented.

And so Elijah goes out to the wilderness, lies under a rotem bush, and gives up. But God comes to Elijah and demands that he travel to Mt. Sinai (Horeb) to meet with Him. So Elijah goes to Sinai, and when he gets there God finds Elijah in a cave (have we heard this story before?) and brings fire on the mountain. Fire, but no God. Then an incredible wind, but no God. Then, a terrible earthquake, but no God.

But, then — a still, small voice.

The Jews teach that this gentle whisper is the same whisper exchanged by two lovers in bed with one another. It’s the intimate whisper of love between a husband and wife.

In the opinion of my teacher, God’s point is this: “Elijah, fire and force and power don’t work. It doesn’t change the human heart. Love does. Just go love them and teach them how to love others.”

In fact, it’s the people’s lust for power and force and fire that’s leading them to burn babies in the fires of the Baals. It’s their lust for security that’s causing them to visit the shrine prostitutes of Asherah.

But God invites His prophets to invite His people to trust the story.

And how do you convince an entire nation of adulterous idol-worshippers to trust the story? Not with legislation. Not with clever rules and loud shouts and “winning the culture wars.”

You convince people by showing them a better way. You convince them with love.

Always have. Always will.

And, apparently, God knew this all along. Imagine that.