Difference between revisions of "Elijah"

<p> ("God-Jehovah".) (&nbsp;1 Kings 17:1, etc.). "The Tishbite, of the inhabitants of Gilead." No town of the name has been discovered; some explain it as "Converter." His name and designation mark his one grand mission, to bring his apostate people back to [[Jehovah]] as THE true God; compare &nbsp;1 Kings 18:39 with &nbsp;Malachi 4:5-6. In contrast to the detailed genealogy of Samuel, Elisha, and other prophets, [[Elijah]] abruptly appears, like [[Melchizedek]] in the patriarchal dispensation, without father or mother named, his exact locality unknown; in order that attention should be wholly fixed on his errand from heaven to overthrow [[Baal]] and [[Asherah]] (the licentious Venus) worship in Israel. This idolatry had been introduced by [[Ahab]] and his idolatrous wife, Ethbaal's daughter [[Jezebel]] (in violation of the first, commandment), as if the past sin of [[Israel]] were not enough, and as if it were "a light thing to walk in the sins of Jeroboam," namely, the worship of Jehovah under the symbol of a calf, in violation of the second commandment. (See AHAB; AARON.) </p> <p> Ahab and his party represented Baal and Jehovah as essentially the same God, in order to reconcile the people to this further and extreme step in idolatry; compare &nbsp;1 Kings 18:21; &nbsp;Hosea 2:16. Elijah's work was to confound these sophisms and vindicate Jehovah's claim to be God ALONE, to the exclusion of all idols. Therefore, he suddenly comes forth before Ahab, the apostate king, announcing in Jehovah's name "As the Lord God of Israel liveth (as contrasted with the dead idols which Israel worshipped) before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word." The shutting up of heaven at the prophet's word was, Jehovah's vindication of His sole Godhead; for Baal (though professedly the god of the sky)and his prophets could not open heaven and give showers (&nbsp;Jeremiah 14:22). The socalled god of nature shall be shown to have no power over nature: Jehovah is its SOLE Lord. </p> <p> Elijah's "effectual" prayer, not recorded in 1 Kings but in &nbsp;James 5:17, was what moved God to withhold rain for three years and a half; doubtless, Elijah's reason for the prayer was jealousy for the Lord God (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:10; &nbsp;1 Kings 19:14), in order that Jehovah's chastening might lead the people to repentance. In "standing before the Lord" he assumed the position of a [[Levitical]] priest (&nbsp;Deuteronomy 10:8), for in Israel the Levitical priesthood retained in [[Judah]] had been set aside, and the prophets were raised up to minister in their stead, and witness by word and deed before Jehovah against the prevailing apostasy. His departure was as sudden as his appearance. Partaking of the ruggedness of his half civilized native [[Gilead]] bordering on the desert, and in uncouth rough attire, "hairy (&nbsp;2 Kings 1:8, Hebrew: "lord of hair") and with a girdle of leather about his loins," he comes and goes with the suddenness of the modern Bedouin of the same region. </p> <p> His "mantle," 'adereth , of sheepskin, was assumed by [[Elisha]] his successor, and gave the pattern for the "hairy" cloak which afterwards became a prophet's conventional garb (&nbsp;Zechariah 13:4, "rough garment".) His powers of endurance were such as the highlands of Gilead would train, and proved of service to him in his after life of hardship (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:46). His burning zeal, bluntness of address, fearlessness of man, were nurtured in lonely communion with God, away from the polluting court, amidst his native wilds. After delivering his bold message to Ahab, by God's warning, he fled to his hiding place at Cherith, a torrent bed E. of [[Jordan]] (or else, as many think, the wady Kelt near Jericho), beyond Ahab's reach, where the ravens miraculously fed him with "bread and flesh in the morning ... bread and flesh in the evening." (See CHERITH.) </p> <p> Carnivorous birds themselves, they lose their ravenous nature to minister to God's servant, for God can make the most unlikely instruments minister to His saints. It was probably at this time that Jezebel, foiled in her deadly purpose against Elijah, "cut off Jehovah's prophets" (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:4; &nbsp;1 Kings 19:2). The brook having dried up after a year's stay he retreated next to [[Zarephath]] or Sarepta, between [[Tyre]] and Sidon, where least of all, in Jezebel's native region, his enemies would have suspected him to lie hid. But apostates, as Israel, are more bigoted than original idolaters as the Phoenicians. From &nbsp;Joshua 19:28 we learn Zarephath belonged to Asher; and in &nbsp;Deuteronomy 33:24 [[Moses]] saith, "let [[Asher]] dip his foot in oil." At the end of a three and a half years of famine, if oil was to be found anywhere, it would be here, an undesigned coincidence and mark of genuineness. </p> <p> At God's command, in the confidence of faith, he moves for relief to this unpromising quarter. Here he was the first "apostle" to the [[Gentiles]] (&nbsp;Luke 4:26); a poor widow, the most unlikely to give relief, at his bidding making a cake for him with her last handful of meal and a little oil, her all, and a few gathered sticks for fuel; like the widow in the New [[Testament]] giving her two mites, not reserving even one,: nor thinking, what shall I have for my next meal? (&nbsp;Luke 21:2.) So making God's will her first concern, her own necessary food was "added" to her (&nbsp;Matthew 6:33; &nbsp;Isaiah 33:16; &nbsp;Psalms 37:19; &nbsp;Jeremiah 37:21); "the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the oil fail until the day that the Lord sent rain upon the earth." Blessed in that she believed, she by her example strengthened Elijah's faith in God as able to fulfill His word, where all seemed hopeless to man's eye. </p> <p> Her strong faith, as is God's way; He further tried more severely. Her son fell sick, and "his sickness was so sore that no breath was left in him." Her trial brought her sins up before her, and she regarded herself punished as unworthy of so holy a man's presence with her. But he restored her son by stretching himself upon the child thrice (as though his body were the medium for God's power to enter the dead child), and crying to the Lord; hereby new spiritual life also was imparted to herself, as she said, "by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth." Toward the close of the three and a half years of famine, when it attacked [[Samaria]] the capital, Ahab directed his governor of the palace, the Godfearing Obadiah who had saved and fed a hundred prophets in a cave, to go in one direction and seek some grass to save if possible the horses and mules, while he himself went in the opposite direction for the same purpose. </p> <p> Matters must have come to a crisis, when the king set out in person on such an errand. It was at this juncture, after upward of two years' sojourn at Zarephath, Elijah by God's command goes to show himself to Ahab. Overcoming the awestruck Obadiah's fear, lest, when he should tell the king, Behold Elijah is here, meanwhile the Spirit should carry him away, Elijah, whom Ahab's servants had been seeking everywhere in vain for three years, now suddenly stands before Ahab with stern dignity. He hurls back on the king himself the charge of being, like another Achan, the troubler of Israel; "I have not, troubled Israel, but thou and thy father's house, in that ye have spoken the commandments of Jehovah, and thou hast followed Baalim." On [[Carmel]] the issue was tried between Jehovah and Baal, there being on one side Baal's 450 prophets with the 400 of Asherah, "the groves"), who ate at Jezebel's table under the queen's special patronage; on the other side Jehovah's sole representative, in his startling costume, but with dignified mien. (See CARMEL; ASHTORETH.) </p> <p> Amidst Elijah's ironical jeers they cried, and gashed themselves, in vain repetitions praying from morning until noon for fire from their god Baal, the sun god and god of fire (!), and leaped upon (or up and down at) the altar. [[Repairing]] Jehovah's ruined altar (the former sanctity of which was seemingly the reason for his choice of Carmel) with 12 stones to represent the tribes of all Israel, and calling upon the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to let it be known that He is the Lord God, he brought down by prayer fire from heaven consuming the sacrifice, wood, stones, and dust, and licking up the water in the trench. The idolatrous prophets were slain at the [[Brook]] Kishon, idolatry being visited according to the law with the penalty of high treason against God the king of the national theocracy (&nbsp;Deuteronomy 13:9-11; &nbsp;Deuteronomy 13:15; &nbsp;Deuteronomy 18:20). Then upon the nation's penitent confession of God follows God's removal of the national judgment. </p> <p> The rain, beginning with the small hand-like cloud, and increasing until the whole sky became black (&nbsp;Luke 12:54; &nbsp;Luke 13:19), returned as it had gone, in answer to Elijah's effectual prayer, which teaches us to not only pray but also wait (&nbsp;James 5:17-18; &nbsp;1 Kings 18:41-45). Ahab rides in his chariot across the plain 16 miles to Jezreel, in haste lest the rainflood of the [[Kishon]] should make the [[Esdraelon]] or [[Jezreel]] plain impassable with mud; Elijah, with Spirit-imparted strength from "the hand of the Lord upon" him, running before, but no further than the entrance of the city, for he shrank from the contamination of the court and its luxuries. Jezebel's fury upon hearing of the slaughter of her favorite prophets knew no bounds: "so let the gods do to me and more also, if I make not. thy life as the life of one of them by tomorrow" (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:2). Elijah fled for his life to [[Beersheba]] of Judah, with one attendant, and leaving him there went a day's journey into the wilderness. </p> <p> His not having heretofore moved to the neighboring land of godly Jehoshaphat, and his now fleeing to its most southerly town, farthest from Ahab's dominion, and thence into the desert, at first sight seems strange. But upon closer search into [[Scripture]] it is an undesigned propriety that he avoids the land of the king whose one grand error was his marrying his son [[Jehoram]] to Athaliah, Ahab's and Jezebel's daughter, at least as early as the sixth or seventh year of [[Jehoshaphat]] and the tenth or eleventh of Ahab (Blunt's Undesigned Coincidences); thereby he became so closely allied to the ungodly Ahab that at the [[Ramoth]] Gilead expedition he said to the latter, "I am as thou art, my people as thy people" (&nbsp;1 Kings 22:4). In this flight Elijah's spirit of faith temporarily gave way. </p> <p> After the excitement of the victory over the Baal priests, and the nervous tension which under God's mighty hand sustained him in running to Jezreel, there ensued a reaction physically and an overwhelming depression of mind; for the hope which had seemed so bright at Carmel, of a national repentance and return to God, the one ruling desire of his soul, was apparently blighted; his labors seemed lost; the throne of iniquity unshaken; and hope deferred made his heart sick. [[Sitting]] under a juniper (retem , rather broom) he cried in deep despondency: "It, is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life." God, with tender considerateness, first relieved his physical needs, by sending to his exhausted frame "tired nature's kind restorer, balmy sleep," and then, by His angel, food; and only when nature was refreshed proceeds to teach him spiritually the lesson he needed. </p> <p> By God's command, "in the strength of that meat" (the supernatural being based on the natural groundwork) he went, Moses like, 40 days and 40 nights unto a cave at [[Horeb]] where he "lodged" for the night (Hebrew lun ). It was the same wilderness which received Moses fleeing from Pharaoh, and Elijah now fleeing from Ahab, and lastly Paul escaping from the Judaic bondage of ritualism. The lonely wilderness and awful rocks of [[Sinai]] were best fitted to draw the spirit off from the depressing influences of man's world and to raise it up to near communion with God. "He sought the ancient sanctuary connected with the holiest, grandest memories of mankind, that his spiritual longings might be gratified, that he might have the deepest sense of the greatness and nearness of God. He wished to be brought down from the soft luxuriant secondary formations of human religion (the halting between two opinions, between the luxurious Baal worship and the uncompromising holy worship of Jehovah) to the primary stratification of God's religion ... to the naked, rugged, unyielding granite of the law" (Macmillan, The [[Garden]] and City). </p> <p> Jehovah there said, "What doest thou here, Elijah?" thou whose name implies thy calling to witness for God Jehovah, away from the court and people whom thou wast called to reprove! Elijah pleads his "jealousy for Jehovah God of hosts," and that with all his zeal he is left. the sole worshipper of Jehovah, and that even his life they seek to take away. God directs him to "go forth and stand upon the mountain before the Lord," as Moses did when "the Lord passed by." There by the grand voice of nature, the strong wind rending the rocks, the earthquake, and the fire, (in none of which, though emanating from God, did He reveal Himself to Elijah,) and lastly by "a still small voice," God taught the impatient and desponding prophet that it is not by astounding miracles such as the fire that consumed the sacrifice, nor by the wind and earthquake wherewith God might have swept away the guilty nation, but by the still small voice of God's Spirit in the conscience, that Jehovah savingly reveals Himself, and a revival of true religion is to be expected. </p> <p> Those astounding phenomena prepared the way for this, God's immediate revelation to the heart. [[Miracles]] sound the great bell of nature to call attention; but the Spirit is God's voice to the soul. [[Sternness]] hardens; love alone melts. A John the Baptist, Elijah's antitype, the last representative of the Sinaitic law, must be followed by the [[Messiah]] and His Spirit speaking in the winning tones of &nbsp;Matthew 11:29. The still small voice constrained Elijah to wrap his face in his mantle; compare Moses, &nbsp;Exodus 3:6; &nbsp;Isaiah 6:2. A second time to the same question he gives the same reply, but in a meeker spirit. Jehovah therefore cheers him amidst despondency, by giving him work still to do for His name, a sure token that He is pleased with his past work: "Go, return ... to the wilderness of Damascus, and anoint [[Hazael]] king over Syria, [[Jehu]] ... over Israel, and Elisha ... prophet in thy room. </p> <p> Yet (adds the Lord to cure his depression by showing him his witness for God was not lost, but had strengthened in faith many a secret worshipper) I have left Me 7,000 in Israel who have not bowed unto Baal," etc. Elisha he first sought out and found in [[Abel]] Meholah in the valley of the Jordan on his way northward, for spiritual companionship was his first object of yearning. [[Casting]] his mantle on him as the sign of a call, he was followed by Elisha, who thenceforth became his minister, and who executed subsequently the former two commands. (See ELISHA.) [[Apostasy]] from God begets injustice toward man. Puffed up with the success of his war with Syria, and forgetting the Lord who had given him victory (1 Kings 20), Ahab by Jezebel's wicked hardihood, after vainly trying to get from [[Naboth]] the inheritance of his fathers, had him and his sons (&nbsp;2 Kings 9:26, compare &nbsp;Joshua 7:24) slain for falsely alleged blasphemy, and seized his property as that of a criminal forfeited to the crown; the elders of Jezreel lending themselves to be Jezebel's ready instruments. (See NABOTH.) </p> <p> With Jehu and [[Bidkar]] his retinue riding behind, he proceeded to take possession of the coveted vineyard on the following day (compare "yesterday," 'emesh , "yesternight," the mock trial and murder of Naboth having taken place the day before); but, like a terrible apparition, the first person he meets there is the enemy of his wickedness, whom his conscience quails before, more than before all other foes. "Hast thou found me (compare &nbsp;Numbers 32:23) O mine enemy? .... I have found thee, because thou hast sold thyself (as a captive slave bound) to work evil," etc. The dogs should lick his blood "in the place" where they licked Naboth's (fulfilled on his son Jehoram, Ahab's repentance causing judgment to be deferred); Jezebel and Ahab's posterity should be (what Orientals regard with especial horror) the food of dogs and birds (&nbsp;1 Kings 21:19-24). Twenty years later Jehu remembered the very words of the curse, so terrible was the impression made by the scene, and fulfilled his part of it (&nbsp;2 Kings 9:7-10; &nbsp;2 Kings 9:25-26; &nbsp;2 Kings 9:33-37). </p> <p> Three years later, part of the judgment foretold came to pass upon Ahab, whose blood, after his fall in the battle of Ramoth Gilead, the dogs licked up while his chariot was being washed in the pool of Samaria. His successor [[Ahaziah]] after a two years reign, during which [[Moab]] rebelled, fell from a lattice and lay sick. Sending to consult concerning his recovery the [[Philistine]] oracle of [[Baalzebub]] at Ekron, he learned from his messengers that a man met them saying, "Is it not because there is not a God in Israel that thou sendest to inquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come down, .... but shalt surely die" (&nbsp;2 Kings 1:6). As usual, Elijah's appearance was sudden and startling, and he stands forth as vindicating Jehovah's honor' before the elect nation. Ahaziah, with his mother's idol-mad vindictiveness, sent a captain with fifty to arrest this "lord of hair" (Hebrew text: &nbsp;2 Kings 1:8) whom he at once guessed to be Elijah. </p> <p> Emerging from some recess of Carmel and taking his seat on "the hill" or "mount" (Hebrew), he thence met the captain's demand, "Man of God, the king saith, come down," with "If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty." So it came to pass. Again the same occurred. The third, however, escaped by begging him to hold his life precious and to spare him. Elijah went down, under God's promised protection, and spoke the same message of death to the king in person as he had previously spoken to the king's messenger. This was his last interview with the house of Ahab, and his last witness against Baal worship. The severity of the judgment by fire is due to the greatness of the guilt of the [[Israelite]] king and his minions who strove against God Himself in the person of His prophet, and hardened themselves in idolatry, which was high treason against God and incurred the penalty of death under the theocracy. </p> <p> It is true the Lord Jesus reproved the fiery zeal of James and John, "the sons of thunder," as ignorant of the true spirit of His disciples, when they wished like [[Elias]] to call down fire to consume the [[Samaritans]] who would not receive Him. But the cases are distinct. He was not yet revealed to the half-pagan Samaritans as clearly as Jehovah had been through Elijah to Israel, the elect nation. His life was not sought by the Samaritans as Elijah's was by Israel's king and his minions. Moreover, the temporal penalties of the theocracy, ordained by God for the time, were in our Lord's days giving place to the antitypes which are abiding. </p> <p> [[Shortly]] afterward Elijah wrote a letter (miqtab ) which came subsequently "to Joram," son of the pious Jehoshaphat: "Thus saith the Lord God of David thy father (of whom thou art proving thyself so unworthy a successor), because thou hast not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat thy father, nor... of Asa, king of Judah, but hast walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and hast made Judah and the inhabitants of [[Jerusalem]] to go a whoring like ... the house of Ahab, and hast slain (Elijah writes foreseeing the murder, for his translation was before Jehoshaphat's death, &nbsp;2 Kings 3:11, after which was the murder) the brethren of thy father's house which were better than thyself, behold with a great plague will the Lord smite thy people, thy children, thy wives, and all thy goods, and thou shalt have great sickness ... until thy bowels fall out" (2 Chronicles 21). </p> <p> [[Already]] in Elijah's lifetime [[Joram]] had begun to reign jointly with his father Jehoshaphat (&nbsp;2 Kings 8:16; &nbsp;2 Kings 8:18) and had betrayed his evil spirit which was fostered by [[Athaliah]] his wife, Ahab's daughter. Jehoshaphat in his lifetime, with worldly prudence, while giving the throne to Joram, gave Joram's brethren "great gifts and fenced cities." But Elijah discerned in Joram the covetous and murderous spirit which would frustrate all Jehoshaphat's forethought, the fatal result of the latter's carnal policy in forming marriage alliance with wicked Ahab. Therefore, as Elijah had committed to Elisha the duty laid on himself by God of foretelling to Hazael his elevation to the [[Syrian]] throne (Elisha being Elijah revived in spirit), so Elijah committed to him the writing which would come after Elijah's translation to Joram with all the solemnity of a message from Elijah in the unseen world to condemn the murder when perpetrated which Elijah foresaw he would perpetrate. </p> <p> The style is peculiarly Elijah's, and distinct from the narrative context. So Isaiah foretold concerning Cyrus' future kingdom (Isaiah 44-45); and [[Ahijah]] concerning [[Josiah]] (&nbsp;1 Kings 13:2). Fairbairn makes it be called "a letter from Elijah" because he was ideal head of the school of prophecy from which it emanated, and his spirit still rested upon Elisha. But the language, &nbsp;2 Chronicles 21:12, implies in some stricter sense it was Elijah's writing delivered by Elisha, his successor, to Joram. But see Lord A. C. Hervey's view JEHORAM. Elijah's ministry was now drawing to its close. Symptoms appear of his work beginning to act on the nation, in the increased boldness of other prophets to the king's face, besides Elijah himself: e.g. &nbsp;1 Kings 20:35-36; again, Micaiah, 1 Kings 22. Hence, we find not less than fifty called "sons of strength" at Elijah's translation (&nbsp;2 Kings 2:3; &nbsp;2 Kings 2:7); and these settled at Bethel, one of the two head quarters of idolatry. </p> <p> To these sons of the prophets, as well as to Elisha, it was revealed that their master Elijah was about to be caught up front them. Elijah sought that privacy which he felt most suitable to the coming solemn scene; but Elisha would not leave him. To [[Gilgal]] (the one on the W. border of the [[Ephraimite]] hills), Bethel, and [[Jericho]] successively, by the Lord's mission, Elijah went, giving probably parting counsels to the prophets' schools in those places. Finally, after parting asunder the Jordan with his mantle, he gave Elisha leave to ask what he would, and having promised that he should have a double portion of Elijah's spirit, a chariot and horses of fire parted the two, and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. The "hardness" of Elisha's request, and its granting being dependent on his seeing Elijah ascend, imply that it is to be got from God not (&nbsp;Matthew 19:26) man; that therefore he must look up to Him who was about to translate Elijah, not to Elijah himself. </p> <p> The "double portion" is not "double" what Elijah had, for Elisha had not tidal; but, as the firstborn son and heir received two portions, and the other children but one, of the father's goods (&nbsp;Deuteronomy 21:17), so Elisha, as Elijah's adopted son, begs a preeminent portion of Elijah's spirit, of which all the other "sons of the prophets" should have their share (Grotius); compare &nbsp;Deuteronomy 21:15. But the comparison in the context is not with other prophets but with Elijah. Double, literally, "a mouth of two," is probably used generally for the spirit in large or increased measure, the spirit of prophecy and of miracles. Elisha performed double as many miracles, namely, 16 as compared with Elijah's eight; and the miracles of a like kind to Elijah's; compare &nbsp;1 Kings 17:17-24 with &nbsp;2 Kings 4:29-37; &nbsp;1 Kings 17:16 with &nbsp;2 Kings 4:1-7. Elisha, when getting his choice, asked not for gains, honors, or pleasures, but for spiritual gifts, with a view, not to his own glory, but to the glory of God and the edification of the church. </p> <p> Seeing that the national evils were so crying, he sought the only remedy, an increased measure of the Spirit, whose power had already began somewhat to improve the state of the nation. As Elijah's ascension was the forerunner of Elisha's possessing an influence such as Elijah had not, Elisha becoming the honored adviser of kings whereas Elijah had been their terror, Elisha on his deathbed being recognized as "the chariot of Israel and the horsemen thereof" by king [[Joash]] just as Elijah had been by Elisha, so Christ's ascension was the means of obtaining for the church the Holy Spirit in full measure, whereby more souls were gathered in than by Jesus' bodily presence (&nbsp;John 16:6-15; &nbsp;Ephesians 4:8-14). When the Old Testament canon was being closed, Malachi, its last prophet, threw a ray over the dark period of 400 years that intervened until the New Testament return of revelation, by announcing, "Behold I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. </p> <p> And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." Our Lord declares that John the [[Baptist]] was the Elias to come (&nbsp;Matthew 11:14; &nbsp;Matthew 17:12). This is explained in &nbsp;Luke 1:11; &nbsp;Luke 1:17, which refers to &nbsp;Malachi 4:5-6; "he shall go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers (Jacob, Levi, Moses, Elijah, &nbsp;Malachi 1:2; &nbsp;Malachi 2:4; &nbsp;Malachi 2:6; &nbsp;Malachi 3:3-4; &nbsp;Malachi 4:4, who had been alienated as it were by their children's apostasy) to the children (made penitent through John's ministry), and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just." John was an Elijah, but not the Elijah, from whence to the query (&nbsp;John 1:21), "Art thou Elias?" he answered, "I am not." "Art thou that prophet?" "No." </p> <p> Elijah is called by Malachi "the prophet," not the Tishbite, as he here represents the whole series of prophets culminating in the greatest, John (though he performed no miracles as Elijah). The Jews always understood a literal Elijah, and said, "Messiah must be anointed by Elijah." As there is a second consummating advent of Messiah, so also of His forerunner (possibly in person as at the transfiguration, &nbsp;Matthew 17:3, even after which He said (&nbsp;Matthew 17:11), "Elias shall first come and restore all things," namely, at "the times of restitution of all things"), possibly a prophet clothed with Elijah's miraculous power of inflicting judgments, which John had not. The miracles foretold of the two witnesses (&nbsp;Revelation 11:4-5, "fire out of their mouth," i.e. at, their word; &nbsp;1 Kings 17:1; &nbsp;2 Kings 1:10; "power to shut heaven that it rain not," &nbsp;James 5:17; &nbsp;Luke 4:25; and "to turn the waters to blood and smite the earth with all plagues ") are the very ones characteristic of Moses and Elijah. </p> <p> The forerunning "the great and dreadful day of Jehovah" can only exhaustively refer to Messiah's second coming, preceded by a fuller manifestation of Elijah than that of John before Messiah's first coming. Moses and Elijah's appearance at the transfiguration in glorified bodies is a sample of the coming transfiguration (Moses, buried by the Lord, of the sleeping saints; and Elijah, translated without death, of living saints) and of their reign with Christ over the earth in glorified bodies, as Peter, James, and John are a sample of the nations in the flesh about to be reigned over. </p> <p> The subject of Moses' and Elijah's discourse with Jesus on the mount was His decease, for this is the grand center to which the law as represented by Moses, and the prophets represented by Elijah, converge. Elijah's translation was God's witness for His faithful servant to the apostate postdiluvial world, as Enoch's to the antediluvial, against their unbelief. God's voice, "This is My beloved Son, hear Him," attests that the servants must bow to the Son for whose coming they prepared the way (compare &nbsp;Revelation 19:10 end). Rome's barefooted [[Carmelites]] have many absurd traditions as to the derivation of their order from Elijah himself, and as to the "cloud out of the sea" typifying the [[Virgin]] Mary, to whom a chapel is dedicated on the imaginary site of Elijah's seeing the cloud! </p>

<p> <i> Old Testament </i> . Elijah of Tishbe was a lone figure from the remote part of Gilead east of the Jordan. One of the better known characters in the Old Testament, he also made an impact on later [[Judaism]] and on the New Testament writers. A contemporary of the Israelite kings Ahab and Ahaziah (874-852 b.c.), Elijah represented a class of prophets who were normally not associated with any sanctuary or prophetic guild (but see &nbsp;2 Kings 2:3-7 ). He challenged Ahab, whose policies were designed to replace the Israelite idea of kingship with the ancient Near Eastern concept of monarchy and royal law. Elijah defended Yahweh's sovereignty over history and justice, as well as over false gods (&nbsp;1 Kings 17-18 ). </p> <p> The stories of Elijah (known as the Elijah cycle) dominate much of the latter half of 1Kings (17-19,21) and the early chapters of 2Kings (1-2). The chronological order of the cycle is uncertain, making the course of Elijah's life obscure. The cycle was incorporated into the theological history of Israel and Judah, without which our knowledge for the reign of Ahab would be almost unknown. It contained six separate narratives that included several anecdotal stories about Elijah's life that may have circulated independently among his disciples in the northern kingdom. All but the last were concerned with the clash of Baal and Yahweh. Elijah appeared to vindicate the distinctive character of the people of God when their identification was threatened by Ahab's liberal policies. He also answered Jehoshaphat's question (&nbsp;2 Kings 3:11 ) and sent a letter to Jehoram (&nbsp;2 Chronicles 21:12-15 ). </p> <p> Elijah appeared on the scene without warning, introduction, or genealogy (&nbsp;1 Kings 17:1 ) to deliver an oracle to Ahab announcing a drought, presumably a punishment for defection to the Baal cult. Afterward, he returned to Zarephath where he was miraculously sustained (&nbsp;1 Kings 17:17-24 ). God then chose a [[Gentile]] believer (the Phoenician woman of Zarephath) to shame his people and to rebuke Jezebel, Ahab's Phoenician queen, showing that there was a Yahwistic believer in her own country. The unfailing water supply shows that God—not the kingwas the dispenser of the water of life. Chrysostom said that Elijah learned compassion in the house of the widow so he could be sent to his own people. Yahweh did not just intervene at critical times in the affairs of people, but was now accessible to believers in the ordinary affairs of life (&nbsp;1 Kings 17:12 ). </p> <p> Three years later there was a break in the drought and Elijah was successful in ending Baal worship at Carmel. The Baal priests were not completely destroyed; they actually continued on past the end of the Ahab dynasty, until the time of Athaliah of Judah (who was related to Ahab's royal house). Elijah helped Israel understand that Yahweh guided the fortunes of the nations; even the Baal cult was under his control. Yahweh, not Baal, had the power of life and death, and was the giver of rain and good things. The Carmel story showed a reminiscence of the change of political and religious sovereignty from Tyre to Israel. Israel was not truly synchretistic; Baal or Yahweh would be king, but not both (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:21 ). Ahab was not wholly Baalist; his family bore Yahwistic names, and he consulted with Yahweh after the encounter with Elijah (&nbsp;1 Kings 20:13-15,22,28 ). The [[Tyrian]] cult of Baal Melqart may have been a pseudo-monotheistic movement that precipitated this struggle. Israel now saw the mediation of God's will in history and the interpretation of his divine will. </p> <p> Elijah's success was merely temporary; he fled to Mount Horeb (although this may not be in chronological order) to escape Jezebel's wrath (&nbsp;1 Kings 19 ). Here, the small voice of God was in direct opposition to the noisy and primitive sounds of the [[Canaanite]] deities, which pointed toward a more spiritual and transcendent concept of Yahweh. The theophany in &nbsp;1 Kings 19 is similar to &nbsp; Exodus 33:19 , and like the story of the widow, may show that God is to be found in the daily affairs of humans, rather than in supernatural phenomena. </p> <p> Like Amos in a later period, Elijah showed an astute social concern, emerging as a leader with strong ethical ideals (&nbsp;1 Kings 21 ). The Naboth incident shows a social dimension in the clash between Israelite law and Canaanite kingship. By appropriating Naboth's land as crown property, Ahab was out of his jurisdiction. Inalienable land in Israel was in principle hereditary, although Yahweh was the true owner. In this position, God demanded the rule of law and justice, and watched over ethical and legal morals. Elijah, whom Ahab saw as a blood avenger (v. 20), is introduced with dramatic suddenness only at the end of this section, confronting Ahab for taking possession of the vineyard. The king was indicted for infringing on two of the ten commandments that were recognized as the basis for society: murder and forcible appropriation, both capital offenses. The curse concerning Ahab was not literally executed on him, however, but on his successor. This may have been because of his repentance, but probably was due to the [[Hebrew]] idea of the extended self, taking for granted the cohesion of life and liability between generations. Ahab's dynasty ended because of the Naboth incident, not because of the Baal struggle. Later, Elijah protested Ahaziah's appeal to Baal-Zebub, the local god of [[Ekron]] (&nbsp;2 Kings 1:9-15; [[Josephus]] called this god "the lord of the flies, " as did the Ras Shamra texts ). Elijah was here described as a hairy man with a shaggy cloak, evidently the insignia of a prophet (&nbsp;2 Kings 1:8 ). </p> <p> The translation of Elijah into heaven occurs in an anecdotal section concerned mainly with Elisha (&nbsp;2 Kings 2:1-12 ). Elijah was associated with the prophetic guilds in Bethel, Gilgal, and Jericho. He did not bequeath his staff to Elisha, but his cloak, which had a spiritual not a magical power. Elisha desired a double portion of Elijah's spirit, a stipulation in Hebrew law whereby the eldest son received his share and was equipped as the true successor to his father. The whirlwind and sudden disappearance of Elijah, with the addition of a theophany, emphasize God's presence in the incident. </p> <p> In later Old Testament prophetic tradition, Elijah was associated with the day of the Lord (&nbsp;Malachi 4:5-6 ), and was soon to be sent by God on the behalf of the people. He was described as similar to the messenger in &nbsp;Malachi 3:1 (which also may have been an allusion to Elijah, since both prepared the way for Yahweh). The purpose of Elijah's coming was either to pacify family quarrels (&nbsp; Malachi 2:10-16 ), culminating in a new social order, or to restore the covenant relationship. </p> <p> <i> Later [[Jewish]] Tradition </i> . Elijah was prominently featured in popular legend and theological discussion of eschatological expectation during the intertestamental period. The reason for this may be his enigmatic rapture in &nbsp;2 Kings 2:11 (the reward for his zeal for the law, according to &nbsp; 1 [[Maccabees]] 2:58 ,; which fostered the idea of his sinlessness ), and the prophecy of his return in Malachi, which nurtured the idea of him becoming a messianic figure from the heavenly kingdom who came to purify the priesthood. He was said to be an intercessor for Israel in heaven, a heavenly scribe who recorded the Acts of men, and who had an eternal existence (&nbsp;Sirach 48:1-14 ). </p> <p> <i> New Testament </i> . The New Testament, which mentions the prophet nearly thirty times, shows the influence of the late Jewish tradition of Elijah being the forerunner of the Messiah. The expectation of Elijah's return occurs frequently in the [[Gospels]] (&nbsp;Matthew 17:10; &nbsp;Mark 9:11 ). Many were convinced that either Jesus (&nbsp;Matthew 16:14; &nbsp;Mark 6:15; &nbsp;8:28; &nbsp;Luke 9:8,19 ) or John the Baptist (&nbsp;John 1:21,25 ) were the expected prophet. Although John denied that he was Elijah, he wore the prophet's style of clothing (a mantle of camel's hair and a leather girdle &nbsp;Matthew 3:4; &nbsp;Mark 1:6 ). Moreover, Jesus said that John went forth as Elijah in spirit; he was thus the symbolic fulfillment of the prophet's mission (&nbsp;Matthew 11:14; &nbsp;Mark 8:28; &nbsp;Luke 1:17 ). </p> <p> Although the tradition that Moses and Elijah would appear together in the last days was not to be found in rabbinic Judaism, both of these Old Testament characters were present and spoke at the transfiguration of Jesus, testifying to the importance of the impending events as eschatological (&nbsp;Matthew 17:3-4; &nbsp;Mark 9:4-5; &nbsp;Luke 9:30,33 ). Some have seen the two as representing the Law and the Prophets, which were now both considered to be subservient to Christ. </p> <p> Jesus' prayer on the cross with the opening words of &nbsp;Psalm 22:1 , "Eli, Eli" (My God, My God) was either misunderstood or willfully misinterpreted as a petition for help to Elijah (&nbsp;Matthew 27:46-49; &nbsp;Mark 15:34-36 ). Jewish lore identified Elijah as a helper in time of need, and since Elijah did not come, Jesus' petition was considered a failure. The church, however, did not accept this figure of Elijah; only Christ himself would be called on in stressful times. </p> <p> Various events of Elijah's life are alluded to in the New Testament. James uses Elijah as a powerful example of a supplicant (5:17), relying on Jewish tradition, which credited Elijah with a reputation for prayer (although this is not specifically mentioned in &nbsp;1 Kings 17-18 ). He also describes the passage of time of the drought in &nbsp;1 Kings 18:1 as three and a half years (cf. &nbsp; Luke 4:25; &nbsp;Revelation 11:6 ). James attempts to refute the Jewish tradition of the sinlessness and eternal nature of the prophet by stating that Elijah was a man "just like us." His prayers were effective because he was righteous. </p> <p> Jesus used the story of God sending Elijah to the widow of Zarephath to show that the Gentiles were not to be excluded from salvation (&nbsp;Luke 4:25-26 ). Later church tradition takes the two witnesses of Revelation to be modeled after Moses and Elijah (&nbsp;Revelation 11:3-6 ). They were given the power to shut up the heavens and to bring the fire of judgment like Elijah in &nbsp;1 Kings 17-18 (cf. &nbsp; Malachi 4:5; &nbsp;Sirach 48:1-14 ). In a similar vein, Jesus rebuked the sons of [[Zebedee]] for wondering whether they should call down fire from heaven on the [[Samaritan]] village (&nbsp;Luke 9:54 ). </p> <p> Paul uses the rabbinic model of Elijah and the idea of the remnant of Israel in &nbsp;Romans 11:2-5 (see &nbsp; 1 Kings 19:10-18 ). Just as Elijah became aware that a remnant of true believers still existed in Israel, Paul understands that there was still a sacred remnant of Jews who were elected by grace. </p> <p> Mark W. Chavalas </p> <p> <i> See also </i> [[Israel]]; First and Second [[Theology]] ofKings; [[Prophetess]] ProphecyProphet </p> <p> <i> Bibliography </i> . F. Anderson, <i> JBL </i> 85 (1966): 46-57; H. Bietenhard, <i> NIDNTT, </i> 1:543-45; J. Gray, <i> I-II Kings </i> ; J. Jeremias, <i> TDNT, </i> 2:928-41; H. H. Rowley, <i> BJRL </i> 43 (1960): 190-219; R. W. Wallace, <i> Elijah and Elisha </i> . </p>

<p> The chief purpose for which God raised up Elijah was to preserve in Israel the worship of Yahweh, Israel’s covenant God. Israel had always been tempted to mix the worship of their God with the religious practices of local [[Baalism]] (see BAAL), but matters suddenly worsened after Jezebel became queen. Jezebel was daughter of the king-priest of [[Philistia]] and had married King Ahab of Israel. She brought with her a new and more dangerous form of Baalism, which she then tried to make the national religion of Israel. This was the Baalism of the god Melqart, whose influence had already spread south along the [[Mediterranean]] coast as far as Mt Carmel (&nbsp;1 Kings 16:30-33). </p> <p> '''Early resistance to Baalism''' </p> <p> Baal was supposed to control nature and fertility. Therefore, to show the powerlessness of Baal, Elijah announced a three-year drought throughout Israel and Phoenicia. God’s miraculous provisions of food, both in Israel and in Phoenicia, showed that he, not Baal, was the God of nature (&nbsp;1 Kings 17:1-4; &nbsp;1 Kings 17:9; &nbsp;1 Kings 17:16; cf. &nbsp;Luke 4:25-26). Elijah’s healing of the widow’s son confirmed the woman’s faith in the one true God (&nbsp;1 Kings 17:24). </p> <p> After three years of drought, Elijah challenged Ahab to gather Baal’s prophets to Mt Carmel for a public contest to show who was the true God, Yahweh or Baal (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:19-21). The Baal priests considered Mt Carmel to be one of their sacred sites, yet even there they were shamefully defeated (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:40). As a final proof that Israel’s God, not Baal, controlled nature, Elijah announced that God would end the drought by sending a storm. That same day the drought ended (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:41-46; cf. &nbsp;James 5:17-18). </p> <p> Elijah felt that he was fighting alone in his battle with Jezebel’s Baalism (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:22; &nbsp;Romans 11:1-5). This feeling was strengthened when, in spite of his spectacular victory over Baal at Mt Carmel, nothing in Israel seemed to have changed. The people did not cease from their Baal worship, and Jezebel did not cease from her efforts to kill him. He therefore fled for his life (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:1-3). </p> <p> God directed Elijah south to Mt Sinai, the place where, centuries earlier, he had established his covenant with Israel. There he showed Elijah the difference between spectacular public events and the quiet work of God within people’s hearts. The former may have some use, but Israel would have truly lasting benefits only as people listened to the voice of God in their hearts and responded to it. God assured Elijah that a minority of people in Israel would make the quiet response of faithfulness to him (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:10-12; &nbsp;1 Kings 19:18). </p> <p> For Israel’s idolatrous majority, however, there would be further violent and spectacular events, but these would be in judgment against them rather than against Baal. God’s instruments of judgment against Israel would be an enemy king Hazael, an Israelite king Jehu, and Elijah’s successor Elisha (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:15-21). </p> <p> '''Ministry fulfilled''' </p> <p> In addition to opposing Ahab and Jezebel because of their Baalism, Elijah opposed them because of their greed and injustice. After their seizure of Naboth’s vineyard, Elijah announced the judgment of God upon them (&nbsp;1 Kings 21:20-24). Ahab’s son Ahaziah, who came to the throne after Ahab’s death, continued the worship of Baal and likewise met opposition from Elijah. God preserved Elijah from Ahaziah’s attempts to capture him, and then used Elijah to pronounce certain death upon the Baalist king (&nbsp;2 Kings 1:2-4; &nbsp;2 Kings 1:13-17). </p> <p> The time had now come for Elijah to pass on to Elisha the responsibility for preserving the faithful and preparing judgment for the Baalists. Elijah tested his young successor to see whether he was prepared for the difficult and wide-ranging work ahead, or whether he would rather settle at one of the schools of the prophets (&nbsp;2 Kings 2:1-6). Elisha stayed with Elijah to the end, and in due course received Elijah’s spiritual inheritance (&nbsp;2 Kings 2:9). Elijah’s earthly life ended when he was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind (&nbsp;2 Kings 2:11). </p> <p> Jews of a later era expected the return of Elijah immediately before the coming of the Messiah (&nbsp;Malachi 4:5-6; &nbsp;Mark 6:15; &nbsp;Mark 8:27-28). Jesus pointed out that this ‘Elijah’, this forerunner of the Messiah, was John the Baptist (&nbsp;Matthew 11:10-14; &nbsp;Matthew 17:10-13; &nbsp;Luke 1:17). </p> <p> On the occasion of Jesus’ transfiguration, Elijah and Moses appeared together talking with Jesus about his coming death, and witnessing something of his coming glory. These two men, the great lawgiver and the great prophet, were representative figures from the former era. Their presence symbolized that the one to whom the law and the prophets pointed had now arrived. All the expectations of the former era were now fulfilled in Jesus Christ (&nbsp;Luke 9:28-31; cf. &nbsp;Luke 24:27; see TRANSFIGURATION). </p>

<p> '''Eli'jah.''' (my God is Jehovah). Elijah has been well entitled "the grandest and the most romantic character that Israel ever produced." "Elijah, the Tishbite, ... of the inhabitants of Gilead" is literally all that is given us to know of his parentage and locality. Of his appearance as he "stood before" Ahab, (B.C. 910), with the suddenness of motion, to this day, characteristic of the Bedouins, from his native hills, we can perhaps realize something from the touches, few but strong, of the narrative. </p> <p> His chief characteristic was his hair, long and thick, and hanging down his back. His ordinary clothing consisted of a girdle of skin around his loins, which he tightened when about to move quickly. &nbsp;1 Kings 18:46. But in addition to this, he occasionally wore the "mantle," or cape of sheepskin which has supplied us with one of our most familiar figures of speech. </p> <p> His introduction, in what we may call the first act of his life, is the most startling description. He suddenly appears before Ahab, prophesies a three-years drought in Israel, and proclaims the vengeance of '''Jehovah''' for the apostasy of the king. Obliged to flee from the vengeance of the king, or more probably of the queen, (compare &nbsp;1 Kings 19:2, he was directed to the brook, Cherith. There, in the hollow of the torrent bed, he remained, supported in the miraculous manner with which we are all familiar, till the failing of the brook obliged him to forsake it. </p> <p> His next refuge was at Zarephath. Here, in the house of the widow woman, Elijah performed the miracles of prolonging the oil and the meal, and restored the son of the widow to life after his apparent death. 1 Kings 17. In this or some other retreat, an interval of more than two years must have elapsed. The drought continued, and at last, the full horrors of famine, caused by the failure of the crops, descended on Samaria. </p> <p> Again Elijah suddenly appears before Ahab. There are few more sublime stories in history than the account of the succeeding events - with the servant of '''Jehovah''' and his single attendant on the one hand, and the 850 prophets of Baal on the other; the altars, the descending fire of '''Jehovah''' consuming both sacrifice and altar; the rising storm, and the ride across the plain to Jezreel. 1 Kings 18. </p> <p> Jezebel vows vengeance, and again Elijah takes refuge in flight into the wilderness, where he is again miraculously fed, and goes forward, in the strength of that food, a journey of forty days to the mount of God, even to Horeb, where he takes refuge in a cave, and witnesses a remarkable vision of '''Jehovah''' . &nbsp;1 Kings 19:9-18. He receives the divine communication, and sets forth in search of Elisha, whom he finds ploughing in the field, and anoints him prophet in his place. 1 Kings 19. </p> <p> For a time, little is heard of Elijah, and Ahab and Jezebel probably believed they had seen the last of him. But after the murder of Naboth, Elijah, who had received an intimation from '''Jehovah''' of what was taking place, again suddenly appears before the king, and then follow Elijah's fearful denunciation of Ahab and Jezebel, which may possibly be recovered by putting together the words recalled by Jehu, &nbsp;2 Kings 9:26; &nbsp;2 Kings 9:36-37, and those given in &nbsp;1 Kings 21:19-25. </p> <p> A space of three or four years now elapses, (compare &nbsp;1 Kings 22:1; &nbsp;1 Kings 22:51; &nbsp;2 Kings 1:17, before we again catch a glimpse of Elijah. Ahaziah is on his death-bed, &nbsp;1 Kings 22:51; &nbsp;2 Kings 1:1-2, and sends to an oracle or shrine of Baal to ascertain the issue of his illness; but Elijah suddenly appears on the path of the messengers, without preface or inquiry utters his message of death, and as rapidly disappears. </p> <p> The wrathful king sends two bands of soldiers to seize Elijah, and they are consumed with fire; but finally the prophet goes down and delivers to Ahaziah's face, the message of death. No long after, Elijah sent a message to Jehoram denouncing his evil doings, and predicting his death. &nbsp;2 Chronicles 21:12-15. </p> <p> It was at Gilgal - probably on the western edge of the hills of [[Ephraim]] - that the prophet received the divine intimation that his departure was at hand. He was at the time with Elisha, who seems now to have become his constant companion, and who would not consent to leave him. "And it came to pass as they still went on and talked, that, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven." (B.C. 896). </p> <p> Fifty men of the sons of the prophets ascended the abrupt heights behind the town, and witnessed the scene. How deep was the impression which he made on the mind of the nation may be judged of from the fixed belief which many centuries after prevailed that Elijah would again appear for the relief and restoration of his country, as Malachi prophesied. &nbsp;Malachi 4:5. He spoke, but left no written words, save the letter to Jehoram king of Judah. &nbsp;2 Chronicles 21:12-15. </p>

<p> '''Elijah''' (e-lî'jah), my God is Jehovah. 1. That most renowned prophet of Israel who, with no introduction as to his birth or parentage, or even account of the divine commission given to him, bursts forth in sacred story as the stern denouncer of judgment on apostate Israel, and who, after his marvelous course of miracle and bold vindication of God's authority, is translated without tasting death. He first appears as a messenger from God to Ahab, the wicked king of Israel, probably in the tenth year of his reign. He was sent to prophesy three years' drought in the land of Israel. After delivering this startling and distressing prophecy, he was directed to flee to the brook Cherith, where he was miraculously fed by ravens. When the brook had dried up he was sent to a widow woman of Zarephath, and again the hand of the Lord supplied his wants and those of his friends. He raised the widow's son to life. &nbsp;1 Kings 17:1-24. After the famine had lasted the predicted period, Elijah encountered Ahab, and then ensued the magnificent display of divine power and of human trust upon the ridge of Carmel. &nbsp;1 Kings 18:1-46. See Ahab. The reaction from such a mental strain left the prophet in a weak, nervous condition, and in a fit of despondency he fled from Jezebel into the "wilderness" and desired death. In Mount Sinai the downcast man of God was witness of Jehovah's strength and experienced Jehovah's tenderness in a very remarkable vision. &nbsp;1 Kings 19:9-18. He anointed Elisha to be prophet in his room. &nbsp;1 Kings 19:1-21. He then retired into privacy, but after the dastardly murder of Naboth he suddenly appeared before the guilty king and announced the judgment of Jehovah against the royal pair. &nbsp;1 Kings 21:1-29. Several years after occurred the prophecy of Ahaziah's death. &nbsp;2 Kings 1:1-1 See Ahaziah. The slaughter by fire of the two companies of troops sent to take Elijah must have greatly increased the popular awe of the prophet. Elijah was translated to heaven in a miraculous manner. &nbsp;2 Kings 2:1-25. The character of Elijah made a deep impression upon the Jews. He was expected to return to earth as the forerunner of Messiah; an expectation encouraged by the remarkable prophecy, &nbsp;Malachi 4:5-6, already referred to. The prophecy was indeed fulfilled, but not in the way they imagined. John Baptist, though not personally Elijah, &nbsp;John 1:21, was to go before the Messiah in the spirit and power of the ancient prophet, &nbsp;Luke 1:17; and thus our Lord himself explained the matter to his disciples. &nbsp;Matthew 17:10-13. There was, it is true, a personal appearance of Elijah with Moses, when the two in glory stood beside the transfigured Saviour on the holy mount, and talked with him of his coming death—a proof how both the law and the prophets pointed to a [[Redeemer]] suffering ere he was triumphant. &nbsp;Matthew 17:1-8; &nbsp;Mark 9:2-8; &nbsp;Luke 9:28-36. There are those who believe that the prediction of Elijah's coming has not yet had its full accomplishment; and they expect, before the second appearing of the Lord, that the old stern prophet of Gilead, who never died, will tread the earth again. Such a question, however, cannot be discussed here. </p>

<p> (Ἠλίας) </p> <p> One incident in the life of Elijah is recalled by St. Paul (&nbsp;Romans 11:2-4) and another by St. James (james 5:17f.). </p> <p> (1) Much is to be learned from a great man’s mistakes; the memory of his lapses may save others from falling. In a mood of despair Elijah imagined that the worst had happened to Israel, and that the worst was likely to overtake himself. The prophets were slain, the altars were digged down, he was left alone, and his enemies were seeking his life. Ahab and Jezebel and the false prophets had triumphed; it was all over with the cause of righteousness and truth for which he had laboured. Seeing that all Israel had proved unfaithful to God, there was nothing for the lonely, outlawed prophet to live for, and he requested that he might die. But the answer-ὁ χρηματισμός, the Divine oracle-proved him to be the victim of a morbid fancy, and brought him back to facts. Among the faithless many others were as faithful as he. God had reserved for Himself seven thousand men who had not bowed the knee to Baal. All Israel had not forsaken Him, and-what was still more important-He had in no wise forsaken Israel. There is but one thing that could ever conceivably justify pessimism-the failure of Divine power or love; and the fear of that calamity is but a human weakness. Now St. Paul could not help seeing the close analogy between the conditions of Elijah’s critical time and those of his own. Israel as a whole seemed once more to have forsaken God, in rejecting the Messiah. In certain moods St. Paul might be tempted to compare himself-lonely, hated, hunted-to the sad prophet. But did the ‘great refusal’ of the majority prove either that all Israel was unfaithful or that God had cast off His people? No, for ( <i> a </i> ) now as in Elijah’s time there were splendid exceptions, forming a remnant (λεῖμμα = שְׁאָר) which was the true Israel; and ( <i> b </i> ) God’s immutable faithfulness made the idea of a rejection incredible and almost unthinkable. </p> <p> (2) St. James (5:17f.) takes an illustration from the story of Elijah, and in doing so reminds his readers that, though so great in life and so remote from ordinary humanity in the manner of his exodus from the world, the prophet was yet a man of like passions (or ‘nature,’ Revised Version margin) with us-ἄνθρωπος ὁμοιοπαθὴς ἡμῖν-so that his experiences may serve as a help to weak, ordinary mortals. The success of his prayer for a time of drought, and again for rain in a time of famine, is cited as an evidence of the fact that ‘the prayer of a righteous man availeth much in its working.’ It has to be noted, however, that the OT narrative (1 Kings 17) contains no reference whatever to the former petition, while the latter is scarcely deducible from &nbsp;1 Kings 18:42, where it is only stated that the prophet bowed himself down upon the earth and put his face between his knees. [[Sirach]] (48:2, 3), however, affirms that he ‘brought a famine,’ and ‘by the word of the Lord he shut up the heaven’. In <i> 4 Ezra </i> (7:109) Elijah is cited as an example of intercession <i> pro his qui pluviam acceperunt </i> . </p> <p> James Strahan. </p>

<p> The prophet, a native of Tishbeh in Gilead, &nbsp;1 Kings 17:1 . His parentage and early history are unknown. His bold faithfulness provoked the wrath of Ahab and Jezebel, especially when he threatened several years of drought and famine as a punishment for the sins of Israel, B. C. 908. By the divine direction the prophet took refuge on the bank of the brook Cherith, where he was miraculously fed by ravens. Thence he resorted to Zarephath, in Phoenicia; where one miracle provided him with sustenance and another restored to life the child of his hostess. [[Returning]] to King Ahab, he procured the great assembling at mount Carmel, where God "answered by fire," and the prophets of Baal were destroyed. Now too the long and terrible drought was broken, and a plentiful rain descended at the prophet's prayer. [[Finding]] that not even these mighty works of God would bring the nation and its rulers to repentance, Elijah was almost in despair. He fled into the wilderness, and was brought to Horeb, the mount of God, where he was comforted by a vision of God's power and grace. Again he is sent on a long journey to Damascus to anoint Hazael as king of Syria. Jehu also he anoints to be king of Israel, and Elisha he summons to become a prophet. Six years later he denounces Ahab and Jezebel for their crimes in the matter of Naboth; and afterwards again is seen foretelling the death of king Ahaziah, and calling fire from heaven upon two bands of guards sent to arrest him. Being now forewarned of the approach of his removal from earth, he gives his last instructions to the school of the prophets, crosses the Jordan miraculously, and is borne to heaven in a fiery chariot without tasting death, leaving his mantle and office to Elisha, &nbsp;1 Kings 17:1-19:21 &nbsp; 21:29 &nbsp; 2 Kings 1:1-2:18 . </p> <p> His translation occurred about B. C. 896. Previously, it is supposed, he had written the letter which, eight years afterwards, announced to king Jehoram his approaching sickness and death, &nbsp;2 Chronicles 21:12-19 . </p> <p> Elijah was one of the most eminent and honored of the Hebrew prophets. He was bold, faithful, stern, self-denying, and zealous for the honor of God. His whole character and life are marked by peculiar moral grandeur. He bursts upon our view without previous notice; he disappears by a miracle. He bears the appearance of a supernatural messenger of heaven, who has but one work to do, and whose mind is engrossed in its performance. His history is one of the most extraordinary on record, and is fraught with instruction. It was a high honor granted to Moses and Elijah, that they alone should appear on the mount of Transfiguration, many centuries after they had gone into heaven-to bear witness of its existence, and commune with the [[Savior]] concerning his death, &nbsp;Luke 9:28-35 . </p> <p> John the Baptist was foretold under the name of Elias, or Elijah, from his resemblance in character and life to the ancient prophet of Israel, &nbsp;Malachi 4:5,6 &nbsp; Matthew 17:10-13 . </p>

<p> Though the history of this highly favoured servant of the Lord would afford much improvement to enlarge upon, according to the Scripture testimony concerning him, yet it would swell this work to a size much beyond the limits intended, for the writer to indulge himself in it. I have therefore noticed this prophet, only with a view to remark the greatness of his name. Elijah is a compound word, including two of the names of JEHOVAH. Eli, my God; and Jah, the Lord. It would be thought presumptuous to call our children in the present hour by such names, in the plain English of the words, but with the Hebrews it was done in honour of the Lord God of their fathers. And so particular do the pious fathers of the Old Testament seem to have been, in naming their children, that they studied to give them such as might have some allusion to the Lord, or to retain one of the letters of JEHOVAH in them. If I venture to add another observation concerning this great man, it would be but just to remark, that in that memorable prophecy of Malachi, concerning the coming of Elijah before the day of Christ, (&nbsp;Malachi 4:5) though our Lord explained this to his disciples, in making reference to the spirit of Elias in the person of John the baptist, (&nbsp;Matthew 17:11-12) yet our Lord did not limit the coming of Elijah to that season only. The Evangelists, in describing the transfiguration of the Lord Jesus, relate that Elijah and Moses were present at the solemn scene. (&nbsp;Matthew 17:3-4) And there doth not seem an objection, wherefore Elijah may not again appear before the Lord Jesus comes in glory, as is supposed, he will in his reign upon earth. The expression of Malachi seems to warrant this conclusion, for it is said, that this mission of Elijah will be "before the great and dreadful day of the Lord." The first coming of Christ, was indeed a great and glorious, but not a dreadful day. Whereas, the second coming is uniformly spoken of as the terrible day of the Lord. For while it will be "to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe," it is no less said to be "in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ." (&nbsp;2 Thessalonians 1:8; 2Th 1:10) </p>

<li> The Elijah spoken of in &nbsp;2 Chronicles 21:12-15 is by some supposed to be a different person from the foregoing. He lived in the time of Jehoram, to whom he sent a letter of warning (Compare &nbsp; 1 Chronicles 28:19; &nbsp;Jeremiah 36 ), and acted as a prophet in Judah; while the Tishbite was a prophet of the northern kingdom. But there does not seem any necessity for concluding that the writer of this letter was some other Elijah than the Tishbite. It may be supposed either that Elijah anticipated the character of Jehoram, and so wrote the warning message, which was preserved in the schools of the prophets till Jehoram ascended the throne after the Tishbite's translation, or that the translation did not actually take place till after the accession of Jehoram to the throne (&nbsp;2 Chronicles 21:12; &nbsp;2 Kings 8:16 ). The events of &nbsp;2 Kings 2 may not be recorded in chronological order, and thus there may be room for the opinion that Elijah was still alive in the beginning of Jehoram's reign. <div> <p> '''Copyright Statement''' These dictionary topics are from M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated [[Bible]] Dictionary, Third Edition, published by [[Thomas]] Nelson, 1897. Public Domain. </p> <p> '''Bibliography Information''' Easton, Matthew George. Entry for 'Elijah'. Easton's Bible Dictionary. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/ebd/e/elijah.html. 1897. </p> </div> </li>

<p> '''''ē̇''''' -'''''lı̄´ja''''' ( אליּהוּ , <i> ''''''ēlı̄yāhū''''' </i> or (4 times) אליּה , <i> ''''''ēlı̄yāh''''' </i> , "Yah is God"; [[Septuagint]] Ἠλειού , <i> '''''Ēleioú''''' </i> , New Testament Ἠλείας , <i> '''''Ēleı́as''''' </i> or <i> '''''Elı̄́as''''' </i> , the King James Version of New Testament Elias ): </p> <p> I. The Works of Elijah </p> <p> 1. The [[Judgment]] of [[Drought]] </p> <p> 2. The [[Ordeal]] by [[Prayer]] </p> <p> 3. At Horeb </p> <p> 4. The [[Case]] of Naboth </p> <p> 5. Elijah and Ahaziah </p> <p> 6. Elijah [[Translated]] </p> <p> 7. The Letter to Jehoram </p> <p> II. The Work of Elijah </p> <p> III. Character of the Prophet </p> <p> IV. Miracles in the Elijah Narratives </p> <p> V. Elijah in the New Testament </p> <p> Literature </p> <p> (1) The great prophet of the times of Ahab, king of Israel. Elijah is identified at his first appearance (&nbsp;1 Kings 17:1 ) as "Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the sojourners of Gilead." Thus his native place must have been called Tishbeh. A T ishbeh (Thisbe) in the territory of [[Naphtali]] is known from [[Tobit]] 1:2; but if (with most modern commentators) the reading of the Septuagint in 1 Ki is followed, the word translated "sojourners" is itself "Tishbeh," locating the place in Gilead and making the prophet a native of that mountain region and not merely a "sojourner" there. </p> I. The Works of Elijah <p> In &nbsp;1 Kings 16:29-34 we read of the impieties of Ahab, culminating in his patronage of the worship of the Tyrian Baal, god of his Tyrian queen Jezebel (&nbsp; 1 Kings 16:31 ). &nbsp;1 Kings 16:34 mentions as another instance of the little weight attached in Ahab's time to ancient prophetic threatenings, the rebuilding by [[Hiel]] the [[Bethelite]] of the banned city of Jericho, "with the loss" of Hiel's eldest and youngest sons. This is the situation which calls for a judgment of Yahweh, announced beforehand, as is often the case, by a faithful prophet of Yahweh. </p> <p> 1. The Judgment of Drought </p> <p> Whether Elijah was already a familiar figure at the court of Ahab, the narrative beginning with &nbsp;1 Kings 17:1 does not state. His garb and manner identified him as a prophet, in any case (&nbsp; 2 Kings 1:8; compare &nbsp;Zechariah 13:4 ). Elijah declared in few words that Yahweh, true and only rightful God of Israel, whose messenger he was, was even at the very time sending a drought which should continue until the prophet himself declared it at an end. The term is to be fixed, indeed, not by Elijah but by Yahweh; it is not to be short ("these years"), and it is to end only when the chastisement is seen to be sufficient. Guided, as true prophets were continually, by the "word of Yahweh," Elijah then hid himself in one of the ravines east of ("before") the Jordan, where the brook Cherith afforded him water, and ravens brought him abundant food ("bread and flesh" twice daily), &nbsp;1 Kings 17:2-6 . As the drought advanced the brook dried up. Elijah was then directed, by the "word of Yahweh," as constantly, to betake himself beyond the western limit of Ahab's kingdom to the Phoenician village of Zarephath, near Sidon. There the widow to whom Yahweh sent him was found gathering a few sticks from the ground at the city gate, to prepare a last meal for herself and her son. She yielded to the prophet's command that he himself should be first fed from her scanty store; and in return enjoyed the fulfillment of his promise, uttered in the name of Yahweh, that neither barrel of meal nor cruse of oil should be exhausted before the breaking of the drought. (Josephus, <i> Ant </i> , VIII, xiii, 2, states on the authority of Menander that the drought extended to [[Phoenicia]] and continued there for a full year.) But when the widow's son fell sick and died, the mother regarded it as a Divine judgment upon her sins, a judgment which had been drawn upon her by the presence of the man of God. At the prayer of Elijah, life returned to the child (&nbsp;1 Kings 17:17-24 ). </p> <p> "In the third year," &nbsp;1 Kings 18:1 (&nbsp; Luke 4:25; &nbsp;James 5:17 give three years and six months as the length of the drought), Elijah was directed to show himself to Ahab as the herald of rain from Yahweh. How sorely both man and beast in Israel were pressed by drought and the resulting famine, is shown by the fact that King Ahab and his chief steward Obadiah were in person searching through the land for any patches of green grass that might serve to keep alive some of the king's own horses and mules (&nbsp; 1 Kings 18:5 , &nbsp;1 Kings 18:6 ). The words of Obadiah upon meeting with Elijah show the impression which had been produced by the prophet's long absence. It was believed that the Spirit of God had carried Elijah away to some unknown, inaccessible, mysterious region (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:10 , &nbsp;1 Kings 18:12 ). Obadiah feared that such would again be the case, and, while he entreated the prophet not to make him the bearer of a message to Ahab, appealed to his own well-known piety and zeal, as shown in his sheltering and feeding, during Jezebel's persecution, a hundred prophets of Yahweh. Elijah reassured the steward by a solemn oath that he would show himself to Ahab (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:15 ). The king greeted the prophet with the haughty words, "Is it thou, thou troubler of Israel?" Elijah's reply, answering scorn with scorn, is what we should expect from a prophet; the woes of Israel are not to be charged to the prophet who declared the doom, but to the kings who made the nation deserve it (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:17 , &nbsp;1 Kings 18:18 ). </p> <p> 2. The Ordeal by Prayer </p> <p> Elijah went on to challenge a test of the false god's power. Among the pensioners of Jezebel were 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of the Asherah - still fed by the royal bounty in spite of the famine. [[Accepting]] Elijah's proposal, Ahab called all these and all the people to Mt. Carmel (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:19 , &nbsp;1 Kings 18:20 ). Elijah's first word to the assembly implied the folly of their thinking that the allegiance of a people could successfully be divided between two deities: "How long go ye limping between the two sides?" (possibly "leaping over two thresholds," in ironical allusion to the custom of leaping over the threshold of an idol temple, to avoid a stumble, which would be unpropitious; compare &nbsp;1 Samuel 5:1-5 ). Taking the people's silence as an indication that they admitted the force of his first words, Elijah went on to propose his conditions for the test: a bullock was to be offered to Baal, a bullock to Yahweh, but no fire put under; "The God that answereth by fire, let him be God." The voice of the people approved the proposal as fair (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:22-24 ). Throughout a day of blazing sunshine the prophets of Baal called in frenzy upon their god, while Elijah mocked them with merciless sarcasm (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:25-29 ). About the time for the regular offering of the evening sacrifice in the temple of Yahweh at Jerusalem, Elijah assumed control. Rebuilding an ancient altar thrown down perhaps in Jezebel's persecution; using in the rebuilding twelve stones, symbolizing an undivided Israel such as was promised to the patriarch Jacob of old; drenching sacrifice and wood with water from some perennial spring under the slopes of Carmel, until even a trench about the altar, deep and wide enough to have a two- <i> '''''ṣe'āh''''' </i> (half-bushel) measure set in it, was filled - the prophet called in few and earnest words upon the God of the fathers of the nation (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:30-37 ). The answer of Yahweh by fire, consuming bullock, wood, altar and the very dust, struck the people with awe and fear. [[Convinced]] that Yahweh was God alone for them, they readily carried out the prophet's stern sentence of death for the prophets of the idol god (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:38-40 ). Next the prophet bade Ahab make haste with the meal, probably a sacrificial feast for the multitude, which had been made ready; because rain was at hand. On the mountain top Elijah bowed in prayer, sending his servant seven times to look out across the sea for the coming storm. At last the appearance of a rising cloud "as small as a man's hand" was reported; and before the hurrying chariot of the king could cross the plain to Jezreel it was overtaken by "a great rain" from heavens black with clouds and wind after three rainless years. With strength above nature, Elijah ran like a courier before Ahab to the very gate of Jezreel (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:41-46 ). </p> <p> 3. At Horeb </p> <p> The same night a messenger from Jezebel found Elijah. The message ran, "As surely as thou art Elijah and I am Jezebel" (so the Septuagint), "so let the gods do to me, and more also" (i.e. may I be cut in pieces like a sacrificed animal if I break my vow; compare &nbsp;Genesis 15:8-11 , &nbsp;Genesis 15:17 , &nbsp;Genesis 15:18; &nbsp;Jeremiah 34:18 , &nbsp;Jeremiah 34:19 ), "if I make not thy life as the life of one of" the slain prophets of Baal "by to-morrow about this time." [[Explain]] Elijah's action how we may - and all the possible explanations of it have found defenders - he sought safety in instant flight. At Beersheba, the southernmost town of Judah, he left his "servant," whom the narrative does not elsewhere mention. Going onward into the southern wilderness, he sat down under the scanty shade of a desert broom-bush and prayed that he might share the common fate of mankind in death (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:1-4 ). After sleep he was refreshed with food brought by an angel. Again he slept and was fed. In the strength of that food he then wandered on for forty days and nights, until he found himself at Horeb, the mountain sacred because there Yahweh had revealed Himself to Moses (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:5-8 ). The repetition of identical words by Elijah in &nbsp;1 Kings 19:10 and &nbsp; 1 Kings 19:14 represents a difficulty. Unless we are to suppose an accidental repetition by a very early copyist (early, since it appears already in the Septuagint), we may see in it an indication that Elijah's despondency was not easily removed, or that he sought at Horeb an especial manifestation of Yahweh for his encouragement, or both. The prophet was bidden to take his stand upon the sacred mount; and Yahweh passed by, heralded by tempest, earthquake and thunderstorm (&nbsp; 1 Kings 19:9-12 ). These were Yahweh's fore-runners only; Yahweh was not in them, but in the "still small voice," such as the prophets were accustomed to hear within their souls. When Elijah heard the not unfamiliar inner voice, he recognized Yahweh present to hear and answer him. Elijah seems to be seeking to justify his own retreat to the wilderness by the plea that he had been "very jealous," had done in Yahweh's cause all that mortal prophet could do, before he fled, yet all in vain! The same people who had forsaken the law and "covenant" of Yahweh, thrown down His altars and slain His prophets, would have allowed the slaughter of Elijah himself at the command of Jezebel; and in him would have perished the last true servant of Yahweh in all the land of Israel (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:13 , &nbsp;1 Kings 19:14 ). </p> <p> Divine compassion passed by Elijah's complaint in order to give him directions for further work in Yahweh's cause. Elijah must anoint Hazael to seize the throne of Syria, Israel's worst enemy among the neighboring powers; Jehu, in like manner, he must anoint to put an end to the dynasty of Ahab and assume the throne of Israel; and Elisha, to be his own successor in the prophetic office. These three, Hazael and his Syrians, Jehu and his followers, even Elisha himself, are to execute further judgments upon the idolaters and the scorners in Israel. Yahweh will leave Himself 7,000 (a round number, a limited but not an excessively small one, conveying a doctrine, like the doctrine of later prophets, of the salvation of a righteous remnant) in Israel, men proof against the judgment because they did not share the sin. If Elijah was rebuked at all, it was only in the contrast between the 7,000 faithful and the one, himself, which he believed to number all the righteous left alive in Israel (&nbsp;1 Kings 19:15-18 ). </p> <p> 4. The Case of Naboth </p> <p> The anointing of Hazael and of Jehu seems to have been left to Elijah's successor; indeed, we read of no anointing of Hazael, but only of a significant interview between that worthy and Elisha (&nbsp;2 Kings 8:7-15 ). Elijah next appears in the narrative as rebuker of Ahab for the judicial murder of Naboth. In the very piece of ground which the king had coveted and seized, the prophet appeared, unexpected and unwelcome, to declare upon Ahab, Jezebel and all their house the doom of a shameful death (1 Ki 21). There was present at this scene, in attendance upon the king, a captain named Jehu, the very man already chosen as the supplanter of Ahab, and he never forgot what he then saw and heard (&nbsp;2 Kings 9:25 , &nbsp;2 Kings 9:26 ). </p> <p> 5. Elijah and Ahaziah </p> <p> Ahab's penitence (&nbsp;1 Kings 21:28 , &nbsp;1 Kings 21:29 ) averted from himself some measure of the doom. His son Ahaziah pulled it down upon his own head. Sick unto death from injuries received in a fall, Ahaziah sent to ask an oracle concerning his recovery at the shrine of Baal-zebub in Ekron. Elijah met the messengers and turned them back with a prediction, not from Baal-zebub but from Yahweh, of impending death. Ahaziah recognized by the messengers' description the ancient "enemy" of his house. A captain and fifty soldiers sent to arrest the prophet were consumed by fire from heaven at Elijah's word. A second captain with another fifty met the same fate. A third besought the prophet to spare his life, and Elijah went with him to the king, but only to repeat the words of doom (2 Ki 1). </p> <p> 6. Elijah Translated </p> <p> A foreboding, shared by the "sons of the prophets" at Beth-el and Jericho, warned Elijah that the closing scene of his earthly life was at hand. He desired to meet the end, come in what form it might, alone. Elisha, however, bound himself by an oath not to leave his master. Elijah divided Jordan with the stroke of his mantle, that the two might pass over toward the wilderness on the east. Elisha asked that he might receive a firstborn's portion of the spirit which rested upon his master. "A chariot of fire, and horses of fire" appeared, and parted the two asunder; "and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven" (&nbsp;2 Kings 2:1-11 ). </p> <p> 7. The Letter to Jehoram </p> <p> In &nbsp;2 Chronicles 21:12-15 we read of a "writing" from Elijah to Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. The statements of &nbsp; 2 Kings 3:11 , &nbsp;2 Kings 3:12 admit of no other interpretation than that the succession of Elisha to independent prophetic work had already occurred in the lifetime of Jehoshaphat. It has been pointed out that the difficult verse, &nbsp; 2 Kings 8:16 , appears to mean that Jehoram began to reign at some time before the death of his father; it is also conceivable that Elijah left a message, reduced to writing either before or after his departure, for the future king of Judah who should depart from the true faith. </p> II. The Work of Elijah <p> One's estimate of the importance of the work of Elijah depends upon one's conception of the condition of things which the prophet confronted in Northern Israel. While it is true that the reign of Ahab was outwardly prosperous, and the king himself not without a measure of political sagacity together with personal courage, his religious policy at best involved such tolerance of false faiths as could lead only to disaster. Ever since the time of Joshua, the religion of Yahweh had been waging its combat with the old Canaanite worship of the powers of Nature, a worship rendered to local deities, the "Baalim" or "lords" of this and that neighborhood, whose ancient altars stood "upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree" (&nbsp;Deuteronomy 12:2 ). The god imported from Phoenicia by Jezebel bore also the title Baal; but his character and his worship were worse and more debasing than anything that had before been known. [[Resistance]] offered by the servants of Yahweh to the claims of the queen's favored god led to persecution, rightly ascribed by the historian to Jezebel (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:4 ). In the face of this danger, the differences between the worship of Yahweh as carried on in the Northern [[Kingdom]] and the same worship as practiced at Jerusalem sank out of sight. The one effort of Elijah was to recall the people from the Tyrian Baal to Yahweh, the God of their fathers. The vitality of the true religion in the crisis is shown by the fidelity of such a man as Obadiah (&nbsp;1 Kings 18:3 f), or by the perseverance of a righteous remnant of 7,000, in spite of all that had happened of persecution (&nbsp; 1 Kings 19:18 ). The work begun by Elijah was finished, not without blood, by Jehu; we hear no more of the worship of the Tyrian Baal in Israel after that anointed usurper's time (2 Ki 9; 10). To say that Elijah at Horeb "learns the gentleness of God" (Strachan in <i> HDB </i> ) is to contradict the immediate text of the narrative and the history of the times. The direction given Elijah was that he should anoint one man to seize the throne of Syria, another to seize that of Israel, and a prophet to continue his own work; with the promme and prediction that these three forces should unite in executing upon guilty Israel the judgment still due for its apostasy from Yahweh and its worship of a false god. Elijah was not a reformer of peace; the very vision of peace was hidden from his eyes, reserved for later prophets for whom he could but prepare the way. It was his mission to destroy at whatever cost the heathen worship which else would have destroyed Israel itself, with consequences whose evil we cannot estimate. Amos and Hosea would have had no standing-ground had it not been for the work of Elijah and the influences which at Divine direction he put in operation. </p> III. Character of the Prophet <p> It is obvious that the Scripture historian does not intend to furnish us with a character-study of the prophet Elijah. Does he furnish even the material upon which such a study may profitably be attempted? The characterization found in &nbsp;James 5:17 , "Elijah was a man of like passions (margin, "nature") with us," is brief indeed; but examination of the books which have been written upon the life of Elijah leads to the conclusion that it is possible to err by attaching to events meanings which those events were never intended to bear, as well as by introducing into one's study too much of sheer imagination. It is easy, for example, to observe that Elijah is introduced <i> to the reader </i> with suddenness, and that his appearances and disappearances <i> in the narrative </i> seem abrupt; but is one warranted in arguing from this a like abruptness in the prophet's character? Is not the sufficient explanation to be reached by observing that the historian's purpose was not to give a complete biography of any individual, whether prophet or king, but to display the working of Yahweh upon and with the kingdoms of Israel and Judah through the prophets? Few personal details are therefore to be found recorded concerning even such a prophet as Elijah; and none at all, unless they have a direct bearing upon his message. The imagination of some has discerned a "training of Elijah" in the experiences of the prophet; but to admit that there must have been such a training does not oblige us to discover traces of it in the scenes and incidents which are recorded. </p> <p> Distrusting, for the reasons above suggested, any attempt at a detailed representation of the prophet's inner life, one may seek, and prize, what seems to lie upon the surface of the narrative: faith in Yahweh as God of Nature and as covenant God of the patriarchs and their descendants; consuming "zeal" against the false religion which would displace Yahweh from the place which must be His alone; keen vision to perceive hypocrisy and falsehood, and sharp wit to lash them, with the same boldness and disregard of self that must needs mark the true prophet in any age. </p> IV. Miracles in the Elijah Narratives <p> The miraculous element must be admitted to be prominent in the experiences and works of Elijah. It cannot be estimated apart from the general position which the student finds it possible to hold concerning miracles recorded in the Old Testament. The effort to explain away one or another item in a rationalistic way is wholly unprofitable. Elijah's "ravens" may indeed be converted by a change of vowel-points into "Arabians"; but, in spite of the fact that Orientals would bring offerings of food to a holy hermit, the whole tenor of the narrative favors no other supposition than that its writer meant "ravens," and saw in the event another such exercise of the power of Yahweh over all things as was to be seen in the supply of meal and oil for the prophet and the widow of Zarephath, the fire from heaven, the parting of the Jordan, or the ascension of the prophet by whirlwind into heaven. Some modern critics recognize a different and later source in the narrative of 2 Ki 1; but here again no real difficulty, if any difficulty there be, is removed. The stern prophet who would order the slaughter of the 450 Baal prophets might well call down fire to consume the soldiers of an apostate and a hostile king. The purpose and meaning of the Elijah chapters is to be grasped by those who accept their author's conception of Yahweh, of His power, and of His work in Nature and with men, rather than by those who seek to replace that conception by another. </p> V. Elijah in the New Testament <p> Malachi (&nbsp;Malachi 4:5 ) names Elijah as the forerunner of "the great and terrible day of Yahweh," and the expectation founded upon this passage is alluded to in &nbsp;Mark 6:15 parallel &nbsp; Luke 9:8; &nbsp;Matthew 16:14 parallel &nbsp; Mark 8:28 parallel &nbsp; Luke 9:19; &nbsp;Matthew 27:47-49 parallel &nbsp; Mark 15:35 , &nbsp;Mark 15:36 . The interpretation of Malachi's prophecy foreshadowed in the angelic annunciation to [[Zacharias]] &nbsp;Luke 1:17 ), that John the Baptist should do the work of another Elijah, is given on the authority of Jesus Himself (&nbsp;Matthew 11:14 ). The appearance of Elijah, with Moses, on the Mount of Transfiguration, is recorded in &nbsp;Matthew 17:1-13 parallel &nbsp; Mark 9:2-13 parallel &nbsp; Luke 9:28-36 , and in &nbsp;Matthew 11:14 parallel &nbsp; Mark 9:13 Jesus again identifies the Elijah of Malachi with John the Baptist. The fate of the soldiers of Ahaziah (2 Ki 1) is in the mind of James and John on one occasion (&nbsp; Luke 9:54 ). Jesus Himself alludes to Elijah and his sojourn in the land of Sidon (&nbsp;Luke 4:25 , &nbsp;Luke 4:26 ). Paul makes use of the prophet's experience at Horeb (&nbsp;Romans 11:2-4 ). In &nbsp;James 5:17 , &nbsp;James 5:18 the work of Elijah affords an instance of the powerful supplication of a righteous man. </p> <p> (2) A "head of a father's house" of the tribe of [[Benjamin]] (&nbsp;1 Chronicles 8:27 , the King James Version "Eliah"). </p> <p> (3) A man of priestly rank who had married a foreign wife (&nbsp;Ezra 10:21 ). </p> <p> (4) A layman who had married a foreign wife (&nbsp;Ezra 10:26 ). </p> Literature <p> The histories of Israel and commentaries on Kings are many. Those which tend to rationalizing tend also to decrease the importance of Elijah to the history. F. W. Robertson, <i> Sermons </i> , 2nd series, V; Maurice, <i> Prophets and Kings of the Old Testament </i> , [[Sermon]] VIII; Milligan, <i> Elijah </i> ("Men of the Bible" series); W. M. Taylor, <i> Elijah the Prophet </i> . </p>