Epic Bible Study: Elijah the Tishbite

[GodIsSalvation]

How I figure this topic will work:

Well to be bluntly honest with you all, I personally figured the Bible Discussion Section typically has a lot of the same themed topics and set up for those topics. Nothing wrong with that because I understand many people got questions and I like how we all help eachother with those questions. I merely figured I might try something new here to sort of spruce up and keep fresh our studying of the Bible.

Now dictionary.com's first definition of an Epic is what I am going for with this topic:

Epic- Noting or pertaining to a long poetic composition, usually centered upon a hero, in which a series of great achievements or events is narrated in elevated style: Homer's Iliad is an epic poem.

So basically my idea is this and here will be the rules for this topic:

1. Every few days I will advance the story of Elijah, simply by copy pasting whatever pertains to him in Kings 1 & 2. I will ask that I be the only one to advance the topic in regards to Elijah's epic story. (I will try to do this regularly either after a given space of time or if we all feel we have all sufficiently discussed the part of the story all ready posted.)

2. This is where you come in, we will simply discuss each part of the Epic as we move along in whatever manner you deem fit be it simple observation/comment, questions, archaeological finds relating to this time period, extra-Biblical hsitory surrounding this time era, and all the typical Bible Discussion stuff we engage in daily on here.

Aside from all that I personally will be using the KJV because I like the style of it (just seems so much more epic in ye olde english.) However I encourage you all to follow along with any translation you wish. So without further ado, let's get to it!

Epic Bible Study: Elijah the Tishbite

​

Prologue: 1 Kings 16:29-34

[SUP]29 [/SUP]And in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of Judah began Ahab the son of Omri to reign over Israel: and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty and two years. [SUP]30 [/SUP]And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord above all that were before him.
[SUP]31 [/SUP]And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him.
[SUP]32 [/SUP]And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.
[SUP]33 [/SUP]And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.
[SUP]34 [/SUP]In his days did Hiel the Bethelite build Jericho: he laid the foundation thereof in Abiram his firstborn, and set up the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Joshua the son of Nun.

Elijah and the Widow: 1 Kings Chapter 17

17 And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
[SUP]2 [/SUP]And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying,
[SUP]3 [/SUP]Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
[SUP]4 [/SUP]And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
[SUP]5 [/SUP]So he went and did according unto the word of the Lord: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
[SUP]6 [/SUP]And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
[SUP]7 [/SUP]And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.
[SUP]8 [/SUP]And the word of the Lord came unto him, saying,
[SUP]9 [/SUP]Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
[SUP]10 [/SUP]So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
[SUP]11 [/SUP]And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.
[SUP]12 [/SUP]And she said, As the Lord thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
[SUP]13 [/SUP]And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.
[SUP]14 [/SUP]For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sendeth rain upon the earth.
[SUP]15 [/SUP]And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
[SUP]16 [/SUP]And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah.
[SUP]17 [/SUP]And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him.
[SUP]18 [/SUP]And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?
[SUP]19 [/SUP]And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
[SUP]20 [/SUP]And he cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?
[SUP]21 [/SUP]And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him again.
[SUP]22 [/SUP]And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
[SUP]23 [/SUP]And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth.
[SUP]24 [/SUP]And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth.


(So just to recap on the point of the topic. Here is the beginning of Elijah's epic, comment on any part of the story in whatever way you wish. After we are comfortable with our discussion of this part of Elijah's story or after a few days pass I shall advance the story. And if you are over-excited like I usually am you can of course always pick up a Bible and of course read ahead )

 

[guestno2]

Elijaaaah yay, I like him


It is interesting and amazing how God took care of Elijah (vers 6)

Verses 3-6 I think this is the way He wants to take care of us in spiritual way.

We should …… hide thyself by the brook Cherith …meaning be always around the God waters (still waters) meaning around His words and spirit… and we have to take daily ration of food from Him (once upon a time in my homechurch there was a reading with precisely interpretation what means bread and meat and water spiritually for us, but I already forget that, but briefly it is daily reading bible, praying and be filled with HS)

Verse 24 Interesting end… like really? Just know she realized that? (verse 24 Now by this I know that thou art a man of God)

That means it was really true what Jesus said about these times, that in Israel has been very little faith in that time …she had faith, but I mean, she took her time with that proclamation…

Verses 12-16 I’m jumping here little bit from verse to verse, but as for oil and flower miracle and cake miracle goes I understand this like that we in faith must to give first (no matter that I think I really have nothing to give) and then God will give me more… and oil is example of the anointing of the Holy Spirit… we have to be filled with the Spirit …(eph5) so what we lose in service to others, then we have to ask our Lord for supplement of love, empowerment of HS, but He gave us just when we spend it, give it away, and He will give us so much that our “cup” (sorry idk right word for it ) will overflow

As it goes for flower – well maybe it means bread like bible? I suppose…

be bless

 

[GodIsSalvation]

Elijaaaah yay, I like him


It is interesting and amazing how God took care of Elijah (vers 6)

Verses 3-6 I think this is the way He wants to take care of us in spiritual way.

We should …… hide thyself by the brook Cherith …meaning be always around the God waters (still waters) meaning around His words and spirit… and we have to take daily ration of food from Him (once upon a time in my homechurch there was a reading with precisely interpretation what means bread and meat and water spiritually for us, but I already forget that, but briefly it is daily reading bible, praying and be filled with HS)

Verse 24 Interesting end… like really? Just know she realized that? (verse 24 Now by this I know that thou art a man of God)

That means it was really true what Jesus said about these times, that in Israel has been very little faith in that time …she had faith, but I mean, she took her time with that proclamation…

Verses 12-16 I’m jumping here little bit from verse to verse, but as for oil and flower miracle and cake miracle goes I understand this like that we in faith must to give first (no matter that I think I really have nothing to give) and then God will give me more… and oil is example of the anointing of the Holy Spirit… we have to be filled with the Spirit …(eph5) so what we lose in service to others, then we have to ask our Lord for supplement of love, empowerment of HS, but He gave us just when we spend it, give it away, and He will give us so much that our “cup” (sorry idk right word for it ) will overflow

As it goes for flower – well maybe it means bread like bible? I suppose…

be bless

Interesting comments and I like this thinking indeed.

A big comment of mine on here indeed be the faith of the Widow as you correctly pointed out. She demonstrates her faith greatly and I can see some common parallels with today.

For example in her first meeting with Elijah he asks for some cakes, and we see that the poor widow barely has enough food for her and her son. However, despite this, she still has faith and hearkens to Elijah and makes him some food for which Elijah tells her the LORD shall protect her and her kid from starvation by not allowing the barrel of meal and the cruse of oil to deplete until the rains return.

Next test of her faith is her son dies (or at least comes close enough to death that he momentarily stops breathing.) The woman does seem dismayed, even wondering if this is punishment for her sins. Notice though very carefully, she does not doubt God, but she does question Elijah. Elijah takes her son and pleads to God to restore his breath and God does it. This confirms beyond a shadow of a doubt for the woman that indeed Elijah is a man of God. Not only that, but look at this in the greater context of the Bible and Jesus. The widow readily confesses that she has sinned before. God doesn't punish her son for her sins, God saves her son because of her and Elijah's faith.

 

[RedTent]

To give a sort of background of the world at that time, the kingdoms of Judah and Israel had split and there was tension between the two. Asa was king of Judah, but it was at the end of Asa's reign. His son Jehoshaphat then took over, both tried to follow the Lord, although the golden calf was still followed by God's people. They said that the calf represented God. Still, the temples to other God's were destroyed, and the worship of Yehoveh was brought to the people. Jehoshaphat felt that it was better to cooperate and make friends with Israel than to fight them, so in the later days of his reign Ba’al worship was brought back to Judah.

From the first, Ahab was a weakling, spiritually, but he didn't deny Yehoveh. until his wife Jezebel convinced him it was a good idea, and make Ba'al their God. Ahab felt his marriage was a very good idea because it made powerful Phoenicia his ally. Jezebel was the daughter of the king of Phoenicia. She knew just how to maneuver Ahab to win her way, she was the power behind him. She felt Ellijah was her enemy and her worship of Ba'al was her driving force. As we will see later, even when Elijah proved Yehoveh was God with by confronting her priests, Jezebel stayed true to Ba'al.

The study of how these kings led their people, especially the study of Ahab is a lesson for us. Our churches are renouncing all the teachings of the OT, saying they are nailed to the cross. Our presidents are declaring for same-sex marriage, abortion on demand, and Clinton personally demonstrated and instructed us that sexual morality was dead.
Our next President, George Bush, stood in a Mosque shortly after 911 and declared that the God of Christianity and the God of Islam was the same god. In April 2009, President Obama on a diplomatic visit to Turkey told his Islamic audience: “We do not consider ourselves to be a Christian nation………..we consider ourselves to be a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of common values”.

it always takes a series of steps and stages brought about over time by poor leadership to finally arrive at a whole new reality. That is what happened in Israel.

 

[GodIsSalvation]

To give a sort of background of the world at that time, the kingdoms of Judah and Israel had split and there was tension between the two. Asa was king of Judah, but it was at the end of Asa's reign. His son Jehoshaphat then took over, both tried to follow the Lord, although the golden calf was still followed by God's people. They said that the calf represented God. Still, the temples to other God's were destroyed, and the worship of Yehoveh was brought to the people. Jehoshaphat felt that it was better to cooperate and make friends with Israel than to fight them, so in the later days of his reign Ba’al worship was brought back to Judah.

From the first, Ahab was a weakling, spiritually, but he didn't deny Yehoveh. until his wife Jezebel convinced him it was a good idea, and make Ba'al their God. Ahab felt his marriage was a very good idea because it made powerful Phoenicia his ally. Jezebel was the daughter of the king of Phoenicia. She knew just how to maneuver Ahab to win her way, she was the power behind him. She felt Ellijah was her enemy and her worship of Ba'al was her driving force. As we will see later, even when Elijah proved Yehoveh was God with by confronting her priests, Jezebel stayed true to Ba'al.

The study of how these kings led their people, especially the study of Ahab is a lesson for us. Our churches are renouncing all the teachings of the OT, saying they are nailed to the cross. Our presidents are declaring for same-sex marriage, abortion on demand, and Clinton personally demonstrated and instructed us that sexual morality was dead.
Our next President, George Bush, stood in a Mosque shortly after 911 and declared that the God of Christianity and the God of Islam was the same god. In April 2009, President Obama on a diplomatic visit to Turkey told his Islamic audience: “We do not consider ourselves to be a Christian nation………..we consider ourselves to be a nation of citizens who are bound by ideals and a set of common values”.

it always takes a series of steps and stages brought about over time by poor leadership to finally arrive at a whole new reality. That is what happened in Israel.

Yes indeed and a good background for sure. This is why I included the Prologue detailing the start of Ahab's reign as we will definantly be seeing Ahab, Jezebel, and the priests of Baal again as much of Elijah's story revolves around them.

I liked your parallel to today as well. This is a particular reason I chose Elijah to examine. We see Elijah lived in an era of extreme difficulty for believers of God, not just spiritually, but also politically. Yet Elijah persevered and overcame thanks to his strong faith in the LORD. But alas, I feel as if I am getting ahead of myself here lol, we will examine these things much closer as we progress through Elijah's epic story.

 

[RedTent]

Something that is often missed is that Elijah was a Hebrew who worshipped a Hebrew God. He was to have nothing to do with unclean animals or with gentiles.

Elijah was fed by unclean birds, the ravens. He was sent to Zarephath, a city in Phoenica, and it was an unclean gentile woman who fed him, and was saved through her faith.

Luk 4:24 He also said, "I assure you: No prophet is accepted in his hometown.
Luk 4:25 But I say to you, there were certainly many widows in Israel in Elijah's days, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months while a great famine came over all the land.
Luk 4:26 Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them--but to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon.

So we see that from the first, gentiles were included in God's plan of redemption and OT scripture isn't for Israel only.

 

[GodIsSalvation]

Something that is often missed is that Elijah was a Hebrew who worshipped a Hebrew God. He was to have nothing to do with unclean animals or with gentiles.

Elijah was fed by unclean birds, the ravens. He was sent to Zarephath, a city in Phoenica, and it was an unclean gentile woman who fed him, and was saved through her faith.

Luk 4:24 He also said, "I assure you: No prophet is accepted in his hometown.
Luk 4:25 But I say to you, there were certainly many widows in Israel in Elijah's days, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months while a great famine came over all the land.
Luk 4:26 Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them--but to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon.

So we see that from the first, gentiles were included in God's plan of redemption and OT scripture isn't for Israel only.

This is awesome right here! I admit I myself missed this as well. Great comment and way to connect Elijah's story in the Old Testament to Jesus' teachings in the NT, as well as Jesus Himself confirming the part of Elijah's story.

Heh, you always find me such interesting things in the Bible that are good for strengthening faith in God RedTent, I am adding you as a friend on here post haste!

 

[guestno2]

ooo, I missed that too, thanx redtent, its funny in our translation they are not ravens, but other..I mean different kind of birds, I will look it up for you, dont know name of those birds in EN, but I m sure that they are not ravens ...

 

[guestno2]

OFF TOPIC

Ok I didn’t find it.. I mean apparently in EN stays term raven for two birds who are not same, not in SK


- havran (corvus frugilegus) which is raven, which is not the bird who feed Elijah of tishbite

- krkavec (pls say it out load, lool) which is corvux corax (why you don’t have name for this one?)


so in my SK bible it is corvux corax – krkavec (say it out load one more time, haha) who feed the Elijah of tishbite

 

[GrandHoboMaster]

Sirach 48:11 Blessed are those who saw you, and those who have been adorned in love; for we also shall surely live.

It means he is not so attractive and cheerful person (as much of you suppose).
And knowing his deads in past. And knowing his present way. I guarantee majority of you, folks, would not like him (in real life).

For he is to bring disastors. And he will exterminate the common scientific worldview, not by peacefull preaching. But, by death, thousands of corpses, people burnt alive and torn to pieces.
Besides his own enemies (and the common enemies of christianity) he will execute publicly such events like Olympic Games parades.

This man will be full with blood, cause only through such kind of mircles jews could be turned into Christianity.

For most of you (them who will see his deads), Elijah, will be appeared as a terrible murderous ruthless monster (not as beloved saint).

 

[GodIsSalvation]

OFF TOPIC

Ok I didn’t find it.. I mean apparently in EN stays term raven for two birds who are not same, not in SK


- havran (corvus frugilegus) which is raven, which is not the bird who feed Elijah of tishbite

- krkavec (pls say it out load, lool) which is corvux corax (why you don’t have name for this one?)


so in my SK bible it is corvux corax – krkavec (say it out load one more time, haha) who feed the Elijah of tishbite

Heh check this out both translations are actually correct and refer to a raven. Just gotta keep in mind there are many Kinds of raven descended from the patriarchal and matriarchal ravens aboard Noah's Ark.

Common Raven - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"The Common Raven (Corvus corax), also known as the Northern Raven, is a large all-black passerine bird. Found across the Northern Hemisphere, it is the most widely distributed of all corvids"

Heh as for the Slovak pronunciation I'll hazard a guess it's pronounced kryk-ah-veck (sorry if this is wrong lol, is fun to try to say out loud though.) Funny enough I was listening to Slovak national anthem earlier today trying to sing along. As a national anthem nerd myself I must say Slovakia has a very epic anthem! "Far above the Tatra lightning bolts are pounding! These bolts we shall banish, brothers, they will vanish; Slovaks are rebounding."

Grr, I digress badly though lol, don't get me started on national anthem nerdom lol.

 

[GodIsSalvation]

Sirach 48:11 Blessed are those who saw you, and those who have been adorned in love; for we also shall surely live.

It means he is not so attractive and cheerful person (as much of you suppose).
And knowing his deads in past. And knowing his present way. I guarantee majority of you, folks, would not like him (in real life).

For he is to bring disastors. And he will exterminate the common scientific worldview, not by peacefull preaching. But, by death, thousands of corpses, people burnt alive and torn to pieces.
Besides his own enemies (and the common enemies of christianity) he will execute publicly such events like Olympic Games parades.

This man will be full with blood, cause only through such kind of mircles jews could be turned into Christianity.

For most of you (them who will see his deads), Elijah, will be appeared as a terrible murderous ruthless monster (not as beloved saint).

Perhaps, but then again considerring when Elijah is meant to return perhaps the Earth and the wicked generation will get what they deserve lol. However, we are getting ahead of ourselves here lol, perhaps this is best left for a topic on eschatology.

Not that I am trying to put ya down brother, for just like you I believe much the same. Merely I would like for this topic to be moreso about Elijah before he ascended up to heaven. Lol, not to spoil the ending, but I figure we will end the Epic when Elijah ascends to the heavens in the fiery chariot.

Seeing as you are quite knowledgeable though, I am curious as to any questions, comments, input you might have regarding either the background of Elijah's time (reign of Ahab) or anything to draw upon with the story of Elijah and the Widow.

 

[guestno2]

Heh check this out both translations are actually correct and refer to a raven. Just gotta keep in mind there are many Kinds of raven descended from the patriarchal and matriarchal ravens aboard Noah's Ark.

Common Raven - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"The Common Raven (Corvus corax), also known as the Northern Raven, is a large all-black passerine bird. Found across the Northern Hemisphere, it is the most widely distributed of all corvids"

Heh as for the Slovak pronunciation I'll hazard a guess it's pronounced kryk-ah-veck (sorry if this is wrong lol, is fun to try to say out loud though.) Funny enough I was listening to Slovak national anthem earlier today trying to sing along. As a national anthem nerd myself I must say Slovakia has a very epic anthem! "Far above the Tatra lightning bolts are pounding! These bolts we shall banish, brothers, they will vanish; Slovaks are rebounding."

Grr, I digress badly though lol, don't get me started on national anthem nerdom lol.

haha

OK,so again off topic, ehm ..


First, thank you for info…

But I still think that it is “shame”, that EN have not different terms-names for different kinds of birds.. its confusing I mean my language is not even that old, but sometimes it seems to be that we have actually richer language
[FONT=&quot]
And our anthem ..oh, just no no no, I hate our anthem… I mean I strongly don’t like our anthem..and for your peace, our anthem does really not make sense (even to me) I mean what to expect from nation who hanged their first president, we are little bit crazy.. and our anthem is just… horrible just do me a favor and don’t listen to our anthem ever again.. haha every freakin nation has normal anthem but we have to choose that one.. ok, I just cant even …just no… I already once violate your rules here being off topic, so sorry for that…. [/FONT]

 

[thecreationtutor]

I don't think we have to turn everything in scripture into a special meaning to make it more interesting- the oil in the pot, the cake of bread. - God takes care of His children when they walk out in faith - that is what happened - simple faith and obedience goes a long way with the Lord

 

[guestno2]

[FONT=&quot]Hm, I am sorry if I caused your discomfort, I see you are one of them who feel averse to this way of ..hm interpretation .. I however like it, Jesus also used many parables’ when he preached, and also that’s how we roll in my homechurch, but for your peace, I will retreat into the background and I leave space for more hard-headed and wiser users .. be blessed[/FONT]

 

[RedTent]

Elijah has been told by the Lord that God is going to declare a drought on Israel because they have turned from Him to worshipping Ba'al. It is a supernatural drought, so severe the land is too dry to even have dew so the crops dry up, and this drought is truly supernatural for it is only affecting Israel and Phoenicia, not Judah. Instead of Israel realizing that it was because they had made themselves into idolators instead of God's people through their actions that the drought had come to them, they blamed Elijah for the drought.

1 Kings 18 NIV

Elijah and Obadiah

18 After a long time, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.” 2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab.
Now the famine was severe in Samaria, 3 and Ahab had summoned Obadiah, his palace administrator. (Obadiah was a devout believer in the Lord. 4 While Jezebel was killing off the Lord’s prophets, Obadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them in two caves, fifty in each, and had supplied them with food and water.) 5 Ahab had said to Obadiah, “Go through the land to all the springs and valleys. Maybe we can find some grass to keep the horses and mules alive so we will not have to kill any of our animals.” 6 So they divided the land they were to cover, Ahab going in one direction and Obadiah in another.
7 As Obadiah was walking along, Elijah met him. Obadiah recognized him, bowed down to the ground, and said, “Is it really you, my lord Elijah?”
8 “Yes,” he replied. “Go tell your master, ‘Elijah is here.’”
9 “What have I done wrong,” asked Obadiah, “that you are handing your servant over to Ahab to be put to death? 10 As surely as the Lord your God lives, there is not a nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to look for you. And whenever a nation or kingdom claimed you were not there, he made them swear they could not find you. 11 But now you tell me to go to my master and say, ‘Elijah is here.’ 12 I don’t know where the Spirit of the Lord may carry you when I leave you. If I go and tell Ahab and he doesn’t find you, he will kill me. Yet I your servant have worshiped the Lord since my youth. 13 Haven’t you heard, my lord, what I did while Jezebel was killing the prophets of the Lord? I hid a hundred of the Lord’s prophets in two caves, fifty in each, and supplied them with food and water. 14 And now you tell me to go to my master and say, ‘Elijah is here.’ He will kill me!”
15 Elijah said, “As the Lord Almighty lives, whom I serve, I will surely present myself to Ahab today.”

We can go to Young's Literal Translation in the NT for a commentary on this. Notice that it points out that these people have not only committed these sins, but it had become a part of them so it wasn't that they had committed a theft, it was that they were thieves, etc. What we habitually do (prayer, steal, do good for others, etc.) becomes who we are.

1Cor. 6:9-10 YLT 9 have ye not known that the unrighteous the reign of God shall not inherit? be not led astray; neither whoremongers, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor sodomites,
10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, the reign of God shall inherit.

 

[GodIsSalvation]

Heh well I can see we all ready might as well advance to the next story of Elijah in our Epic Bible Study. And that's okay cause this is actually one of my more favorite stories of Elijah, and in the Bible all around just for the simple fact of like, whoa this could be Obadiah the same guy who wrote book of Obadiah and here he is meeting up with Elijah! I was really started thinking on this instance in the other topic about obeying leaders. Here we have two itneresting examples. We got Elijah who is basically a wanted man on the run cause you know Jezebel really hates him, but Elijah is not a rebel anarchist punk rocker, he is one of the most obedient servants of the LORD of all time. Then you got Obadiah, yes Obadiah does serve in King Ahab's court and carries out his duties as he is charged to, but Obadiah has a little secret that he hid the prophets of the LORD from that witch Jezebel's genocide of the prophets........ EPIC!

Anyways without further ado on with our story. 1 Kings Chapter 18 (and wow, this be a true story!)

Elijah and Obadiah

18 And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.
[SUP]2 [/SUP]And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
[SUP]3 [/SUP]And Ahab called Obadiah, which was the governor of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly:
[SUP]4 [/SUP]For it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the Lord, that Obadiah took an hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.)
[SUP]5 [/SUP]And Ahab said unto Obadiah, Go into the land, unto all fountains of water, and unto all brooks: peradventure we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts.
[SUP]6 [/SUP]So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
[SUP]7 [/SUP]And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Art thou that my lord Elijah?
[SUP]8 [/SUP]And he answered him, I am: go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
[SUP]9 [/SUP]And he said, What have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me?
[SUP]10 [/SUP]As the Lord thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee: and when they said, He is not there; he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found thee not.
[SUP]11 [/SUP]And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
[SUP]12 [/SUP]And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of the Lord shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the Lord from my youth.
[SUP]13 [/SUP]Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the Lord, how I hid an hundred men of the Lord's prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water?
[SUP]14 [/SUP]And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here: and he shall slay me.
[SUP]15 [/SUP]And Elijah said, As the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him to day.
[SUP]16 [/SUP]So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him: and Ahab went to meet Elijah.



Elijah Kills Baal

[SUP]17 [/SUP]And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
[SUP]18 [/SUP]And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim.
[SUP]19 [/SUP]Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at Jezebel's table.
[SUP]20 [/SUP]So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.
[SUP]21 [/SUP]And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.
[SUP]22 [/SUP]Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the Lord; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men.
[SUP]23 [/SUP]Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under:
[SUP]24 [/SUP]And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.
[SUP]25 [/SUP]And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.
[SUP]26 [/SUP]And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.
[SUP]27 [/SUP]And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.
[SUP]28 [/SUP]And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.
[SUP]29 [/SUP]And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.
[SUP]30 [/SUP]And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down.
[SUP]31 [/SUP]And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the Lord came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:
[SUP]32 [/SUP]And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord: and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.
[SUP]33 [/SUP]And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood.
[SUP]34 [/SUP]And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time.
[SUP]35 [/SUP]And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.
[SUP]36 [/SUP]And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.
[SUP]37 [/SUP]Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
[SUP]38 [/SUP]Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
[SUP]39 [/SUP]And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The Lord, he is the God; the Lord, he is the God.
[SUP]40 [/SUP]And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.
[SUP]41 [/SUP]And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.
[SUP]42 [/SUP]So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees,
[SUP]43 [/SUP]And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.
[SUP]44 [/SUP]And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down that the rain stop thee not.
[SUP]45 [/SUP]And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.
[SUP]46 [/SUP]And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

 

[RedTent]

I have truly loved studying 1 Kings, especially how it explains and amplifies what we learn in the New Testament.

The people in Israel were easily led back and forth between Jehovah and Ba’al, depending on which God promised prosperity and good crops. It is a lot like our saying that being works won’t save, let’s toss out works. What is the most profitable to our earthly life, what we decide or what God decides?

21 And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.

KJV Matthew 6:24 No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. (Mat 6:24 KJV)

Today the teaching is that you don’t need to search all scripture for what God is saying because we have such reasoning powers, we can determine the right way. Instead of searching for absolute truth as acceptable and right, it is what is your truth. Since God loves His children, He would never punish us for our sins since we are saved. And that any belief, observance, tradition or activity that we attach Christ’s name to, no matter how pagan in its origin or how opposite of the Biblical commands, is now redeemed and therefore it is acceptable to God.

The idea that there is absolute truth above and beyond our reasoning and that is what we are after is beyond a lot of people, especially the intellectuals.

 

[GrandHoboMaster]

Perhaps, but then again considerring when Elijah is meant to return perhaps the Earth and the wicked generation will get what they deserve lol. However, we are getting ahead of ourselves here lol, perhaps this is best left for a topic on eschatology.

Not that I am trying to put ya down brother, for just like you I believe much the same. Merely I would like for this topic to be moreso about Elijah before he ascended up to heaven. Lol, not to spoil the ending, but I figure we will end the Epic when Elijah ascends to the heavens in the fiery chariot.

Seeing as you are quite knowledgeable though, I am curious as to any questions, comments, input you might have regarding either the background of Elijah's time (reign of Ahab) or anything to draw upon with the story of Elijah and the Widow.

I can not know more than the scriptures and common tradition (saints of the church) tell us.
I can explain to you the sources of information of my previous comments.

All the time of existing christianity, there are existed a verbal apostolic tradition (information which passed in verbal way, since not anything must be sighed). And as part of it was known that Elijah is to become last pope (the bishop of Rome) under name of Peter II (it was known from begining, before the Irish monk made written prophessy). And Sirah (which is also a holy book, though non-put in the canon) also claims his unconditional returning. One of the earliest christian writers was explained an alternative picture of his return (find and see whom I mean). One recently glorified by Greek church, monk of Aphon mount (saint Nilus, died about 100 years ago) had written openly that the both beast of the revelation, will be products of unnatural scientific human-made creation of androids (now we call such technology as DNA clonning). And if we read carfully the revelation, we can understand that the fasle prophet a wicked copy of Elijah (DNA-clon) as well as the antichrist himself is a copy (DNA-clon) of Jesus Himself. And even the name Anty-Christ points us it openly. Moreover if we read carefully the 17 chapter of revelation we will see that under Great Harlot and New Babylon could be meant only a single pair of the Church and Great City (the capital of one of the biggest country which is not USA).

You know, I see the pretty similar parallels (to Elijah ascention) in the story explained by Carlos Castaneda.
As the shamans (Huan Matus and his group) was dissapied (burn by inside fire) from the world (into another one) upon reaching the highest eight level of their shamanic development. Elijah same way was taken upon reaching the highest level of his developement as a hermit. The difference in the quality of their energies (the warrioirs of the shadow collected energy of the Great Eagle=Earth-Mother and the prophet of God who gained the Divine power). And Elijah was not the first in the way, Enoch succeded earlier than him.

Look, apart from fantacies of Pablo Koaglyo and any fiction, Elijah was a virgin prophet (as all fathers and the tradition tell us). Nothing curious we should try to find in his relations with widow.

But we can reflect why he did it (and why he burnt the soldiers serving the authorities of ancient Israel).

And if ones took time for reflection, he could understand many things of the way and manner of the new appearence of Elijah. Since (I give a simple, but proven hint) the well known parable of Lord about prodigal son and his wise elder brother, explains us the story of the second appearence of Elijah and Enoch in the world (and that is story about two humans, not about two alliens)

 

[RedTent]

GrandHoboMaster: I really don't think that books that don't measure up to the tests we put scripture through should be included in a bible study. They are interesting and give lots of history, but we are studying scripture. And certainly not anything from the spirit world that God warns us against like shamans or Carlos Castaneda, etc.