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| 1 And the days are many, and the word of Jehovah hath been unto Elijah in the third year, saying, 'Go, appear unto Ahab, and I give rain on the face of the ground;' |
Elijah – Type of the true Church in the flesh--The Christ, Head and Body. B256; PD46/56
Third year – Either the third of Elijah's sojourn at Zarephath, or after his original announcement to Ahab. R4740:1
The entire period of the drouth was 3½ years. (Luke 4:25; Jas. 5:17) R4740:2
Shew thyself – Prefigured the coming out of the true Church of God from her wilderness hiding after the year 1799 AD. R5857:4
Unto Ahab – Type of the Roman empire. B256
Representing the governments of earth. PD46/56
I will send rain – Showing return of divine favor. A sufficiency of punishment had come upon Israel for their iniquities. R4740:2,6
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| 2 and Elijah goeth to appear unto Ahab. And the famine is severe in Samaria, |
A sore famine – Typifying the spiritual famine during the Dark Ages. B256; R5741:6
For 3 ½ years, typical of the "time, times, and a half,"--1260 years, of the famine "not of bread, nor of water, but of hearing the word of the Lord." (Amos 8:11) R5993:3
Typical of the period in which the true saints of God were hidden from the eyes of the world in a wilderness condition. R4741:2
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| 3 and Ahab calleth unto Obadiah, who [is] over the house and Obadiah hath been fearing Jehovah greatly, |
Governor – Royal superintendent, or prime minister. R4740:2
Now Obadiah – Represents partially consecrated ones. R3401:5
Feared the LORD – But must have failed to let his light shine properly, else he would not have been an acceptable servant in the house of Ahab. R3401:3
He was a true worshipper of the Lord, but timid. R3401:3
Such as are ashamed of the Lord will lose the great prize. R3401:5
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| 4 and it cometh to pass, in Jezebel's cutting off the prophets of Jehovah, that Obadiah taketh a hundred prophets, and hideth them, fifty men in a cave, and hath sustained them with bread and water |
When Jezebel – Typical of the apostate church of Rome. B256
Symbolizes the great mystery of iniquity. R3399:4; PD46/56
Cut off the prophets – The first religious persecution on record. R2325:6
Hid them – Evidently at the risk of his all. R4740:2
Fifty in a cave – The experiences of God's prophets, for the most part, were far from enviable. A54
Fed them – Josephus connects Obadiah's widow with the woman of 2 Kings 4:1-7 and her debt with the fun R3430:6
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| 5 and Ahab saith unto Obadiah, 'Go through the land, unto all fountains of waters, and unto all the brooks, if so be we find hay, and keep alive horse and mule, and do not cut off any of the cattle.' |
Horses and mules – Apparently he was more solicitous for his beasts than for the poor of the people. R3401:2
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| 6 And they apportion to themselves the land, to pass over into it; Ahab hath gone in one way by himself, and Obadiah hath gone in another way by himself; |
Ahab went – Probably with a good retinue of servants. R3401:2
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| 7 and Obadiah [is] in the way, and lo, Elijah to meet him; and he discerneth him, and falleth on his face, and saith, 'Art thou he my lord Elijah ' |
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| 8 And he saith to him, 'I [am]; go, say to thy lord, Lo, Elijah.' |
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| 9 And he saith, 'What have I sinned, that thou art giving thy servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death |
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| 10 Jehovah thy God liveth, if there is a nation and kingdom whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee; and they said, He is not, then he caused the kingdom and the nation to swear, that it doth not find thee; |
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| 11 and now, thou art saying, Go, say to thy lord, Lo, Elijah; |
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| 12 and it hath been, I go from thee, and the Spirit of Jehovah doth lift thee up, whither I know not, and I have come to declare to Ahab, and he doth not find thee, and he hath slain me; and thy servant is fearing Jehovah from my youth. |
He shall slay me – He surmised that Elijah would in some manner disappear during his absence and that, in consequence, the king's anger would be against his servant. R3401:5, R4740:2
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| 13 'Hath it not been declared to my lord that which I have done in Jezebel's slaying the prophets of Jehovah, that I hide of the prophets of Jehovah a hundred men, fifty by fifty in a cave, and sustained them with bread and water |
Slew the prophets – See comments on 1 Kings 18:4.
LORD'S prophets – The worthy servants of Mark 12:3-5. R1796:1
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| 14 and now thou art saying, Go, say to my lord, Lo, Elijah and he hath slain me!' |
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| 15 And Elijah saith, 'Jehovah of Hosts liveth, before whom I have stood, surely to-day I appear unto him.' |
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| 16 And Obadiah goeth to meet Ahab, and declareth [it] to him, and Ahab goeth to meet Elijah, |
Ahab went to meet Elijah – Prophetic of the great contest between Catholicism and Protestantism in the Reformation period. R5751:5
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| 17 and it cometh to pass at Ahab's seeing Elijah, that Ahab saith unto him, 'Art thou he the troubler of Israel ' |
Ahab – Type of worldly governments claiming to be Christ's kingdom. R5751:2[R5751:10], R389:2*
Elijah – Type of the true Church of Christ in the flesh, this side the veil. R5751:3[R5751:3]
Although the true Church is indeed represented symbolically by a woman, it is also represented sometimes by a man--when the picture includes the Lord Jesus Christ, the Head of the Church. R5751:3[R5751:3]
Art thou he – Implying that all the trouble was properly chargeable to Elijah. R3401:6
This is the worldly custom. R4740:3
That troubleth Israel – The valiant for the truth have always been considered enemies by the nominal mass. R577:5, R234:6
We would trouble Israel by showing the Lord's people their transgressions. R234:6
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| 18 And he saith, 'I have not troubled Israel, but thou and the house of thy father, in your forsaking the commands of Jehovah, and thou goest after the Baalim; |
Baalim – Bel, type of the God of Babylon: the Pope. D40
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| 19 and now, send, gather unto me all Israel, unto the mount of Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the shrine, four hundred eating at the table of Jezebel.' |
Prophets of Baal – So the priests and the religious representatives of a great church system have been the obedient servants of the great false institutions, pictured by Ahab and Jezebel. R5751:3
Jezebel – A false Christian church system married to earthly governments. R5751:2, R389:2*
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| 20 And Ahab sendeth among all the sons of Israel, and gathereth the prophets unto the mount of Carmel; |
Mount Carmel – About seventeen miles from the palace at Jezreel, an ideal place for such a spectacle. R3406:1
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| 21 and Elijah cometh nigh unto all the people, and saith, 'Till when are ye leaping on the two branches if Jehovah [is] God, go after Him; and if Baal, go after him;' and the people have not answered him a word. |
Elijah – Here representing Jehovah. R3402:1, R4740:3
How long halt ye – "Choose ye this day whom ye will serve." (Josh. 24:15) R2950:4,6
"Today, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts." (Heb 3:15) R2950:6
Coming to a positive decision is a great blessing, and a great help in the formation of character. R2950:4
Two opinions – "Ye cannot serve God and Mammon." (Matt. 6:24) R2950:3
A contrast to the present dominant religious sentiment of compromise. D190
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| 22 And Elijah saith unto the people, 'I I have been left a prophet of Jehovah by myself; and the prophets of Baal [are] four hundred and fifty men; |
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| 23 and let them give to us two bullocks, and they choose for themselves the one bullock, and cut it in pieces, and place [it] on the wood, and place no fire; and I I prepare the other bullock, and have put [it] on the wood, and fire I do not place; |
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| 24 and ye have called in the name of your god, and I I call in the name of Jehovah, and it hath been, the god who answereth by fire He [is] the God.' And all the people answer and say, 'Good [is] the word.' |
Your gods – Infidelity in our day is calling upon many to worship the god of nature; and, through Higher Criticism and Evolution theories, the priests of error are misleading many. R3407:5
That answereth by fire – Elijah challenged the priests of Baal to a public test as to which god could answer prayer. PD46/56
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| 25 And Elijah saith to the prophets of Baal, 'Choose for you the one bullock, and prepare first, for ye [are] the multitude, and call ye in the name of your god, and place no fire.' |
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| 26 And they take the bullock that [one] gave to them, and prepare, and call in the name of Baal from the morning even till the noon, saying, 'O Baal, answer us!' and there is no voice, and there is none answering; and they leap on the altar that one had made. |
Called on ... Baal – Noted for being preeminently the sun god, the god of nature, fertility, etc. R3406:2
To accept the offering and vindicate his cause. PD46/56
If Baal were powerful enough to answer their prayers, then the people might understand that it was because Baal was offended with them that they had experienced the drouth. R2332:5
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| 27 And it cometh to pass, at noon, that Elijah playeth on them, and saith, 'Call with a loud voice, for he [is] a god, for he is meditating, or pursuing, or on a journey; it may be he is asleep, an doth awake.' |
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| 28 And they call with a loud voice, and cut themselves, according to their ordinance, with swords and with spears, till a flowing of blood [is] on them; |
They cried aloud – Yelling and cutting themselves, claiming they had committed sins, chastising themselves, that Baal be propitiated and answer them. R3406:3
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| 29 and it cometh to pass, at the passing by of the noon, that they feign themselves prophets till the going up of the present, and there is no voice, and there is none answering, and there is none attending. |
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| 30 And Elijah saith to all the people, 'Come nigh unto me;' and all the people come nigh unto him, and he repaireth the altar of Jehovah that is broken down; |
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| 31 and Elijah taketh twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of Jehovah was, saying, 'Israel is thy name;' |
The sons of Jacob – Typifying the twelve apostles. B246
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| 32 and he buildeth with the stones an altar, in the name of Jehovah, and maketh a trench, as about the space of two measures of seed, round about the altar. |
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| 33 And he arrangeth the wood, and cutteth in pieces the bullock, and placeth [it] on the wood, and saith, 'Fill ye four pitchers of water, and pour on the burnt-offering, and on the wood; |
Barrels – Earthen jars. R3406:3
Water – From a never-failing spring which is to be found on the slope of Mt. Carmel. R3406:3
Pour it on – No one could say that there was a secret smouldering of fire beneath. R4740:5; PD46/56
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| 34 and he saith, 'Do [it] a second time;' and they do [it] a second time; and he saith, 'Do [it] a third time;' and they do [it] a third time; |
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| 35 and the water goeth round about the altar, and also, the trench he hath filled with water. |
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| 36 And it cometh to pass, at the going up of the [evening-]present, that Elijah the prophet cometh nigh and saith, 'Jehovah, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, to-day let it be known that Thou [art] God in Israel, and I Thy servant, that by Thy word I have done the whole of these things; |
Came near, and said – This prayer is beautiful in its simplicity, manifesting no boastful spirit. R3406:4
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| 37 answer me, O Jehovah, answer me, and this people doth know that Thou [art] Jehovah God; and Thou hast turned their heart backward.' |
Hear me, O LORD – Elijah prayed to God to vindicate his cause. PD46/56
Turned their heart – Recalling them again by their experiences, and by these signs, to be thy people. R2332:6
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| 38 And there falleth a fire of Jehovah, and consumeth the burnt-offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and the water that [is] in the trench it hath licked up. |
Fire of the LORD fell – The fire descended and consumed the sacrifice, licking up even the water in the trench. PD46/56
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| 39 And all the people see, and fall on their faces, and say, 'Jehovah, He [is] the God, Jehovah, He [is] the God.' |
All the people – Representing the world. R5629:1
Fell on their faces – A lesson for us is that the masses of Christendom are deceived today, as were the masses of Israel. By and by, when God shall open their eyes, every knee shall bow. R4740:5
The LORD – Jehovah, He is God. PD46/56
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| 40 And Elijah saith to them, 'Catch ye the prophets of Baal; let not a man escape of them;' and they catch them, and Elijah bringeth them down unto the stream Kishon, and doth slaughter them there. |
Prophets of Baal – Public teachers of idolatry. A55
And slew them there – Representing the punishments visited upon the Papacy at the end of the three and one-half symbolic "times" (1260 literal years). B256
It is not a divine command to us today to put all false teachers to death. R4740:5
It is for us to slay and utterly expose the errors and follies which are deceiving the people. R3407:5, R4211:3*
Foreshadowing the Second Death of all who work iniquity after full opportunity. R4740:6
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| 41 And Elijah saith to Ahab, 'Go up, eat and drink, because of the sound of the noise of the shower.' |
There is a sound – Might be understood better, "I hear from the Lord the message of an abundance of rain coming." R3407:1
Abundance of rain – Typifying the millions of Bibles published and issued shortly after the end of 1799. B256
Showing a return of divine favor. R4740:6
Nearly all of our great Bible Societies were organized within fifteen years after 1799. R5752:5, R4211:3*
A spiritual drouth ended in 1798. R5751:3[R5751]
From 325 AD, when the Nicene creed was promulgated, there was practically no Bible study for 12 centuries until 1526, when the art of printing had become common and Tyndale had published his manuscript. It was 1799 before the Bible came into great prominence. R5752:1-5
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| 42 And Ahab goeth up to eat, and to drink, and Elijah hath gone up unto the top of Carmel, and he stretcheth himself out on the earth, and he placeth his face between his knees, |
Down upon the earth – Elijah did not pray for rain until he understood that it was the Lord's due time for it to come. We are to pray for and confidently expect those things and only those things which the Lord has promised to give us. R3407:2-4
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| 43 and saith unto his young man, 'Go up, I pray thee, look attentively the way of the sea;' and he goeth up and looketh attentively, and saith, 'There is nothing;' and he saith, 'Turn back,' seven times. |
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| 44 And it cometh to pass, at the seventh, that he saith, 'Lo, a little thickness as the palm of a man is coming up out of the sea.' And he saith, 'Go up, say unto Ahab, 'Bind and go down, and the shower doth not restrain thee.' |
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| 45 And it cometh to pass, in the meantime, that the heavens have become black thick clouds and wind and the shower is great; and Ahab rideth, and goeth to Jezreel, |
Great rain – Representing the wide circulation of the Bible since 1799. R5857:4
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| 46 and the hand of Jehovah hath been on Elijah, and he girdeth up his loins, and runneth before Ahab, till thine entering Jezreel. |
Was on Elijah – Enduing him with supernatural power. R3407:4[R3407]
Ran before Ahab – An act of courtesy, showing that he recognized Ahab as the king of the nation. R3407:4[R3407]
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