Readings:
1 Kings 19-21
Wisdom 2

1 Kings 19-21

When Elijah finds out that Jezebel seeks to kill him, he flees to the wilderness and sits down below a tree to die. It’s funny because Jezebel has wanted him dead for years, and now he runs away for some reason.

Sitting below the tree he is fed and ministered to by an angel. And then he sets off on a 40 day journey, while fasting, to what is here called Horeb, but is also known as Mount Sinai. There he meets God not in an earthquake or mighty wind, but in a “small still voice.”

This gentle whisper reminds Elijah that God doesn’t need a fireworks display, like what took place of mount Carmel, every time he acts in the world. God tells him to go back and anoint a king in Syria, and a new king in Israel, and a successor for himself and these three will together destroy every man in Israel that worshiped Baal, all the population but 7000.

When Elijah leaves he’s probably in really good spirits. He’s met God and been given a new task, and so he stops by Elisha’s home and calls him to be his disciple, and eventually he’ll be the main prophet and succeed Elijah in that role. The calling of Elisha bears some similarities to the way Jesus called his disciples and their responses.

The focus shifts back to Ahab and his battles with a Syrian king named Ben-Hadad. He lays siege to Samaria with an impressive army but one of the prophets comes to Ahab and tells him to attack because God will prove himself as God to him once again by giving him a victory over this stronger army. Ahab attacks and it goes just as the prophet says. Now after the showdown on mount Carmel, and this impressive victory, you’d think Ahab would repent and return, but he doesn’t.

After another battle with the Syrians Ahab is condemned by the same prophet because he let Ben-Hadid go and return to Syria rather than destroying him.

We close out this days readings with a story about Ahab taking a vineyard that the owner was unwilling to sell. The way this happens is about as wicked as it can be. Jezebel forges Ahab’s seal and sends letters to the town where this man lived, ordering the local officials to rig a trial against him and then stone him to death. When you think about it, it isn’t much different from what David did to Uriah the Hittite when he had him killed and then took his wife.

Ahab goes and takes the vineyard after it’s owner is unjustly killed, and Elijah goes to see him there. Elijah tells him that he’ll be cut down, and all the men of his household, just like the previous two dynasties to rule Israel. But when Ahab repents and puts on sackcloth in mourning, God amazingly has mercy on him. He doesn’t void the punishment, but just delays it so that all the males of his family aren’t killed while he’s alive. That’s a small mercy, but considering Ahab was the most evil king in Israel’s history, it’s amazing that he even got that reprieve. This just shows that nobody is beyond repentance and redemption. Of course it didn’t stick with Ahab and he still remained evil, he just had a moment of contrition and then returned to form.

Wisdom 2

Just had to make a brief observation about how clearly this chapter is referring to Jesus Christ. Even if this book wasn’t written by king Solomon placing it around 900 BC , it was written at least 100-200 years before Christ, and yet it describes how his opponents react to his message to the letter.

Tomorrow’s Readings:
1 Kings 22
Wisdom 3
John 1