Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary1 Kings 18

The third year. The period of drought was three years, but the interval since the preceding rain was six months longer (Luke 4:25; James 5:17). For the normal dry season (May-October) see p. 110. Shew thyself. The king had been searching everywhere for Elijah, but to no avail. Now the prophet was commanded to go and reveal himself to the king. The interdict had been placed upon the land by Elijah’s direct announcement to Ahab as to what the Lord would do. It was fitting that it should be removed in the same way. Neither King nor

people would be allowed any excuse for attributing the end of the drought to the power of their gods or prophets.

Ellen G. White

Elijah went. Elijah knew that his life would be in danger, but when he received the command from the Lord to show himself to Ahab, he immediately obeyed, and trusted in God to protect him.

Obadiah. The name means “servant of Jehovah.” The character of the man was in keeping with the meaning of his name. It is significant that the king would keep a man in so important an office whom he knew to be a servant of the Lord. But Ahab knew that this man who was faithful to God would also be faithful in administering the affairs of the royal household.

Jezebel cut off. Not until here is the picture given us of the severity of the persecution against God’s people, and who was its leading spirit. Queen Jezebel, enraged over Elijah’s message shutting up the heavens that they might not rain, was determined that the prophet and all who associated themselves with him in the service of Jehovah should be slain. Indeed, quite apart from the famine, Jezebel’s devotion to Baal would make her hostile to the prophets of God. An hundred prophets. The prophets here mentioned were evidently members of the schools of the prophets. They were a group of prophet scholars and prophet preachers who were originally trained under the prophets and dedicated their lives to a promulgation of the message of righteous and holy living. The fact that 100 of them were hid by Obadiah shows that they must have been quite numerous even in Israel, which for so long a period had been going contrary to the ways of the Lord. In a cave. Caves were common in Palestine. In the Mt. Carmel region alone over 2,000 caves have been counted. Caves in Palestine were both natural and man made, and served as homes, tombs, storehouses, cisterns, or stables for cattle. In times of war and oppression they afforded excellent places of refuge (Joshua 10:16–27; Judges 6:2; 1 Sam. 13:6; 22:1; 24:3–10; 2 Sam. 23:13).

Fountains. Palestine is famous for its springs and fountains, welling up from under a rock or bank, or from the ground. They are the permanent source of many streams and rivers. Evidently long after the usual rivers had gone dry, some streams fed by springs drawing their water from the snows of the Lebanon Mts. continued to flow throughout the hot dry season, when there was no rain.

Divided the land. This personal inspection of the land by the king and one of his chief officers marks the extreme straits to which Israel had been reduced by the drought.

Art thou that my lord Elijah? Perhaps it would be better to translate “Is it thou, in person, my lord Elijah?” or, “Art thou here, my lord Elijah?” Obadiah’s humility in the presence of the prophet is striking. It is born of reverence for God. Obadiah was one of the chief officers of the realm, but he recognizes himself as a servant or slave (see vs. 9, 12) before the messenger of the Lord. The question was asked not for information but from surprise. “Are you here, when the king has been seeking you all these years, throughout the land?”

Tell thy lord. Elijah was bidden by the Lord to go and show himself to Ahab. Now he had met Obadiah, but he does not accompany Obadiah to the king. On the contrary, Obadiah is to announce the prophet’s presence to Ahab, and the king may, if he so desires, go out to the prophet. The true relationship between people is not always

indicated by the titles or official positions they hold. Servant or slave frequently stands much higher as concerns real greatness or superiority than king or lord.

No nation or kingdom. There were many small kingdoms not far distant from Israel. It would be natural for someone whose life was hunted to seek exile in some nearby state. Ahab not only searched his own land but had inquiry made for Elijah in all the neighboring countries.

Shall carry thee. Obadiah had every confidence in God to take care of His servant Elijah. He was fearful that the “Spirit of the Lord” would sweep Elijah away from harm to some hidden refuge, before the contact with Ahab was made.

Now thou sayest. Obadiah had no desire to bring about the death of Elijah, which he was certain would be the prophet’s fate if he took him to the king. But if he did not deliver Elijah to Ahab, he was certain that he himself would die. Did Elijah wish to bring about the death of a man who had saved the lives of 100 prophets?

Surely shew myself. Elijah had his commission from God and, inconceivable though this might be to Obadiah, Elijah was prepared to meet Ahab that very day.

Ahab went. The king went to the prophet, not the prophet to the king. Ahab realized that Elijah gave his first allegiance and service to One higher than an earthly king, and thus the king was forced to make his way to the man whose life he sought. He knew full well that the prophet had not agreed to this strange meeting to surrender himself into the hands of the king. King rather than prophet faced the meeting with fear, even though the king was accompanied with a strong bodyguard of soldiers and the prophet had only the defense of God.

That troubleth Israel. Israel had been sorely troubled, and in his inmost soul Ahab understood the reason why. But guilt always tries to shirk the responsibility for the evil it brings. Ahab sought to place the blame upon Elijah for the curse that had smitten the land. One of the greatest evils of sin is that it always seeks to confuse the issue. It refuses to bear the blame for the troubles it causes, and tries even to make it appear that righteousness rather than iniquity is responsible for man’s woe.

Ellen G. White

But thou. The king has met his master. The humble cloak of the prophet carries greater authority than the royal robe. It is Elijah who sits in the seat of judgment, while the king is the culprit standing at the bar. As Elijah fearlessly tells him that it is he who has troubled Israel, the king quails before the words of merited rebuke. Forsaken the commandments. The king and all within the realm need to know that it is their disobedience to the commandments of God that has brought the sore judgments upon themselves and their unhappy land. Serving Baal has been following the pathway of a fool’s paradise. Seeking life, they found death; seeking joy, they found sorrow and woe; seeking peace and prosperity, they found trouble and ruin.

Gather to me. It is the prophet, not the king, who gives the orders. Ahab recognized the divine origin of the command, and obeyed at once. Mount Carmel. A range of hills 15 mi. (9.3 km.) long, with its northwestern promontory jutting out into the Mediterranean. The hills are about 550 ft. (167.7 m.) high at the promontory and about 1,700 ft. (518.3 m.) high at the southeast. The height affords a beautiful view of the Mediterranean, the plains of Esdraelon and Sharon, and of much of Samaria.

Prophets of Baal. These were the priests and teachers of Baal, and the prophets of the groves were the priests connected with the worship of Astarte. The number gives an idea of the extent to which these degrading cults had taken hold of the people of Israel. Eat at Jezebel’s table. That is, they received their support from the hands of the queen. They were Jezebel’s subsidized clergy.

Ahab sent. In harmony with Elijah’s directions, Ahab sent forth a call for all Israel to gather at Carmel, together with the prophets of Baal and Astarte. The people came with strange forebodings. Mt. Carmel, once a place of great scenic beauty, with its idol temples in flourishing groves, was now a place of desolation. Trees stood gaunt and bare, springs were dry, and flowers were no more. The gods of fertility had sadly failed their worshipers, and they had failed themselves. Their own shrines were places of vexation and dishonor. Here on these grounds consecrated to pagan shrines, once so beautiful, now so barren and forlorn, Elijah proposed to demonstrate the utter folly of the worship of Baal.

How long halt ye? The people of Israel stood at the crossroads. Would they reject forever the God who had established them as a separate people, and accept Baal as their master and lord? If Jehovah was God, He was the one who should be worshiped. If Baal was God, they should follow him. The challenge was presented, and the people were given an opportunity to express themselves.

Answereth by fire. The test that Elijah proposed was entirely fair. The issue at stake was, Who was God, Jehovah or Baal? If Baal was what the pagan priests claimed him to be, then let him demonstrate that fact by bringing forth fire from heaven. If he has, indeed, the power of the rain and the storm, let him send forth his lightning bolts. Even the priests of Baal could not deny the fairness of the offer made, though they must have feared the results.

No voice. How could there be? Baal was nothing but a product of man’s imagination, and he could not answer prayer. They leaped. The meaning is, they “leaped up and down,” as in the margin. This was a wild ritual dance, in which they worked themselves up into a state of frenzy. Such exhibitions are said at times to have been accompanied by manifestations of demoniacal power, and undoubtedly it was hoped that by such means fire might be secured. But the Lord intervened. Satan and his angels were held in leash, and no fire appeared.

Elijah mocked them. These priests of Baal needed to learn that their god could not answer their prayers. Elijah’s words to them were expressions of supreme contempt. His scornful ridicule was not lost on the spectators, who were there to make their decision between Jehovah and Baal.

Cut themselves. Self-mutilation, common in Oriental frenzy, was resorted to under the notion that the gods delight in the shedding of blood. Such bloody rites in cases of extreme heathen propitiation were not unusual in OT times (Jer. 16:6, 7), but they were forbidden to God’s people (Lev. 19:28; Deut. 14:1).

They prophesied. These agents of Baal were called prophets (v. 19). The performance of their service as a whole may have been considered an act of prophesying. Or probably in a more restricted sense they prophesied as did Saul, who “prophesied in the midst of the house” when an evil spirit came upon him (1 Sam. 18:10). Saul’s experience may have been like that of devil worshipers in Oriental lands today, who are said sometimes to work themselves up to a high state of religious frenzy, when they give

utterance to unintelligible noises and grunts. Satan and his angels were present at Carmel and would have done anything within their power to bring down the desired fire had this been permitted by God. But the Lord, although allowing the demons to exhibit some of the more revolting aspects of their presence in men, did not allow Satan to bring down fire in the name of Baal.

Repaired the altar. In ancient times men had at this altar worshiped the God of heaven, but for a long time it had not been used. Reverently Elijah brought together the scattered stones. There are many homes today in which the altar of God has been broken down. It is time that a work be done similar to that upon Carmel. At evening God’s children should reverently come together at the family altar for a period of quiet devotion. In the morning families should again unite in a season of prayer. The altar of prayer and devotion should be kept in constant repair.

With water. A perennial spring, which is never known to have failed even in the severest drought, is said to be in the neighborhood of the traditional scene of the sacrifice. By directing that water be poured on the sacrifice and wood, Elijah would preclude all suspicion of fraud.

Evening sacrifice. For long and noisy hours the priests of Baal had gone through their violent and excited leapings and screamings, praying wildly, muttering incoherently, but with no results. Utterly wearied and exhausted, they at length retired in despair. The multitude too were tired of the scenes of horror and excitement, and were in a receptive frame of mind for the ministrations of the prophet of God. Of Abraham. Elijah addresses the God who is the Father of them all. He speaks to Him quietly and reverently, in striking contrast to the frenzied shrieks of the prophets of Baal. Let it be known. The prayer was utterly simple, utterly sincere, without excitement, straight to the point, and right from the heart.

Ellen G. White

Turned their heart. The great burden on Elijah’s heart was the conversion of Israel—that their hearts which had turned to Baal might be turned back to God.

Then the fire. With starling suddenness, like a great flashing of lightning, fire came down and consumed the sacrifice, and even the stones of the altar. Never before had such a flash been seen by the assembled host. It was visible to all about, even to the multitude gathered at the foot of the hill. The people recognized it as the consuming fire of God.

The Lord, he is the God. Hearts so shortly before devoted to Baal were now turned back to the Lord as the great God of heaven and earth. With one accord the multitude raised a shout and acknowledged Jehovah as Lord.

Take the prophets of Baal. Elijah will not have the people’s zeal waste itself in mere words. He requires that they show their conversion and conviction by deeds—deeds which might bring upon them the wrath of the unholy queen, but which, once committed, will make a break between them and the cause of Baal. As a result of the wonderful manifestations of that day the multitude had acknowledged the fact that Jehovah is God—all except the priests of Baal, who had refused to repent. Elijah’s summary execution of these priests was a fearful vengeance, but it was necessary and showed God’s indignation against those who persist in rebellion, and who are willing to corrupt and demoralize an entire people for selfish ends. The sentence against them served both

as an example and a warning. God is not to be trifled with, and a terrible retribution awaits all who will sell their souls for the corruption of the world.

Elijah said. Elijah was in complete command of the situation. It was he who commanded the people, and it was he who directed the king. There is a sound. The sound was not in the prophet’s ears but in his heart. By faith he knew that rain was about to fall. The repentance of the people had removed the cause for judgment, and Elijah perceived that the longed-for showers were consequently due to fall. Elijah lived a life of faith and a life of prayer. When God sent him to announce the drought, he knew that it would be even according to the word of the Lord. The same Spirit that had placed in his mouth the one prediction, now gave to him the other.

Elijah went up. While Ahab went to feast, Elijah went to pray. His prayer was one of intercession in behalf of penitent Israel. He knew that the rain would come, but it was his concern that the conditions for receiving the heavenly blessing be fully met, and that the results of the reformation might be permanent. God has promised His people showers of heavenly blessing with the sending of the Holy Spirit at the time of the latter rain. Are the saints today praying as did Elijah, or are they feasting as did Ahab? When, and only when, God’s people are intensely in earnest, when they are willing to pray as did Elijah, and make their chief concern the fulfilling of the necessary conditions, then the latter rain will fall.

Ellen G. White

Go again. The rain did not immediately fall. But Elijah’s faith did not waver. He continued to pray more earnestly than before. Again and again the servant was sent, and still the heavens were as brass, and the earth as powder and dust. Yet Elijah’s intercession did not cease. This earnest prayer of the prophet became proverbial for intensity and perseverance in supplication (James 5:18).

Ellen G. White

A little cloud. This cloud was to Elijah the token of divine favor. He ceased his prayer. There was other work to do. He gave directions to his servant to be passed on to Ahab. Quickly the king was to be on his way. Elijah did not wait for the heavens to gather blackness; he acted on the first indication that his prayer had been heard. The world today needs men with the faith of Elijah. The work of God will be finished by men who work in the spirit and power of this prophet of old. To them heaven will be very near as they go forth in faith to battle against the hosts of evil. Multitudes will turn from a worship of the gods of this world to the Lord who made heaven and earth. Upon humble men and women everywhere the Spirit of God will fall (Joel 2:28, 29), enabling them to do in their sphere what Elijah did in his. God’s hand is not shortened that it cannot save. God is as powerful, as willing, to grant victories today as He was in the days of Elijah. When God’s people come to the place where they have the same spirit as Elijah had, when they are as earnest, as active, as courageous, as willing to persevere in prayer, as dauntless in the face of danger, and as eager to answer the calls of the Lord, then God’s work will quickly be finished and Jesus will return to receive His own.

Jezreel. This is the first mention of Jezreel as a royal city. Ahab had a palace here, although Samaria continued to be his capital (ch. 21:1). It was to the palace in Jezreel that Ahab desired to add the vineyard of “Naboth the Jezreelite,” and in the securing of which Jezebel had Naboth slain (ch. 21:1–16). It was also here that the dogs were to eat the body of Jezebel (1 Kings 2:19, 23; 2 Kings 9:10, 33–37), and that Joram was slain by Jehu (2 Kings 9:15–26). Jezreel was in the territory of Issachar (Joshua 19:17, 18), in a

picturesque location overlooking the plain of Esdraelon. It was probably 28 mi. (45 km.) from Mt. Carmel to Jezreel.

Ran before Ahab. The return of Ahab to Jezreel was at night, in a blinding rainstorm, over treacherous mountain roads. The way being difficult to see, the desert prophet ran before the king, guiding the royal chariot in safety to the gates of Jezreel. In this gracious act Elijah showed that he had no ill feelings toward the king, and that he was willing to perform any service, however humble or inconvenient, for the benefit of his lord.