Elijah - A Man of Like Nature

 

Elijah was not perfect as we are not perfect.

 

Rom 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Study of the Old Testament scriptures encourages us to continue in our faith, to trust in God, and to live for Him. The accounts of how the Lord faithfully worked in the lives of His people in times past, encourages us and strengthens us to live for Him. As the Lord worked in Elijah’s life, He will also work in our lives.

James 5:17-18 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain; and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the sky poured rain, and the earth produced its fruit. (NAS)

Elijah was a man of God, a man of faith, and a man of prayer. He believed God and He prayed according to the will of God; therefore, God answered his prayers. James tells us that Elijah had a nature like our own, in order to encourage us to pray for great things as Elijah did. We can expect the Lord to answer our prayers just as He answered Elijah’s prayers. Elijah was an imperfect human being just like the rest of us; he had his moments of failure just as we all do; and he sinned just as we all do. As we shall see in this study, his faith failed for a time, but the Lord was gentle and patient with him just as He is with us.

IKing 17:1-24

1King 17:1 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.

Ahab was a wicked king in Israel and he led the people to worship Baal. God appointed Elijah the prophet to deal with Ahab. Elijah was a man of faith, he believed that God wanted him to confront Ahab, and he believed that God would stop the rain in the land of Israel, in answer to his prayer; therefore, he announced to Ahab that it would not rain for a number of years, not until he said it would rain again. This was designed to get the attention of Ahab as well as the attention of the people of Israel. Therefore, it did not rain for 3 and ½ years according to Elijah’s word, and in answer to Elijah’s prayer.

1King 17:2-7 And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. 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. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.

The Lord commanded Elijah to go to the brook Cherith. The name Cherith means cutting, the brook Cherith was a place where the Lord began to increase Elijah’s faith by cutting away his doubts. The Lord commanded the ravens to bring bread and meat to Elijah twice a day, day after day. First of all, it is not natural for ravens to give their food to anyone; and secondly, ravens are scavengers, they are unclean and they eat unclean food. It is a miracle that the ravens would bring food to Elijah and that the food would be fit to eat. As time went on, the brook dried up and Elijah had to trust the Lord to provide for him in a new way. The brook dried up because it did not rain as a result of Elijah’s prayer; therefore, Elijah may have been tempted to pray for rain even though Israel had not yet repented of Baal worship. The Lord also puts us in circumstances that are designed to increase our faith, the circumstances are different but the results are the same. Difficult circumstances are designed by God to increase our faith, by removing our doubts. As was the case with Elijah, when the Lord has something He wants us to do, He first equips us and prepares us for the task.

1King 17:8-16 And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. 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.

After the brook had dried up, the Lord told Elijah to go to a place called Zarephath to a widow woman who would provide for him. The word Zarephath means refinery, a place where metal is refined, where impurities are removed from metal.

Job 23:10 But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.

The Lord was not yet finished with Elijah, the Lord had a plan to increase Elijah’s faith even more, and to increase our faith as we study the life of Elijah. Apart from the working of God, there was no way for the woman to provide for Elijah, she did not even have enough food for herself. She believed the word of God spoken by God’s servant Elijah; and as a result, the Lord made her handful of meal and her little oil last until after the rain came back to the earth. The Lord took Elijah from one impossible situation and placed him in another, but with the Lord all things are possible. While the Lord was at work increasing Elijah’s faith, He was using Elijah to make Himself known to the widow woman. There is no limit to the number of ways that the Lord can work in our lives. We can be sure that He knows what He is doing at all times; and He is doing that which is best for us and for those around us.

1King 17:17-24 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. 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? 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. 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? 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. And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. 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. 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.

The woman may have had some doubts about Elijah being a true man of God, and the Lord wanted her to know that all that Elijah had been teaching her about Him was true. Therefore, the Lord allowed the woman’s son to become sick and die, so that He could give her faith to believe. Furthermore, while the woman was experiencing a great trial, Elijah was growing in faith, he was learning that he could trust the Lord even to raise the dead in response to his prayer. We must not forget that Elijah was not perfect, he was a descendant of Adam just like all of us, and he had a sin nature just like all of us.

1 Pet 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:

Apart from the Lord’s working in Elijah’s life, he would not have been able to represent God in the battle against evil. We can expect that the Lord will work in our lives through trying circumstances just as He did in Elijah’s life, and that in the end we will be useable by God, to bring other people to faith in the Lord.

IKing 18:1+17-46

1King 18:1 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.

Here we see that the Lord is telling Elijah that He will again send rain upon the earth. It was the will of the Lord for Elijah to pray that the rain would stop; and it was the will of the Lord that Elijah would pray that the rain would return. Because Elijah was in close fellowship with the Lord, he was aware of the will of the Lord; therefore, he was able to pray according to the will of the Lord and his prayers were answered. The same is true for us. If we will stay in close fellowship with the Lord, we will know His will, and we will be able to pray effectively; and as a result, we will see the Lord do great things in answer to our prayers.

1King 18:17-18 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel? 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.

Ahab blamed Elijah for the drought, but Ahab was responsible for the drought. Elijah was the person who prayed that it would not rain upon the earth, but Ahab is the person who was responsible for the drought because he brought the judgement of God upon the land, by his worship of Baal. The wicked are all the same, they always bring judgement upon themselves and upon the world around them, as a result of their wickedness. They always refuse to accept responsibility for the consequences of their action and try to lay the blame on others. When the righteous confront evil, the wicked always accuse the righteous of evil. We must remember that the Lord is the Judge and the wicked will not escape His judgement.

1King 18:19-22 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. 20 So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel. 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. 22 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.

For the previous 3½ years the Lord was preparing Elijah to stand alone before the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah, a goddess associated with Baal worship. Elijah was outnumbered 850 to 1, but he had the Lord on his side because he had faith in the Lord. In great boldness, Elijah commanded king Ahab to bring all the prophets of Baal, all the prophets of the Asherah, and all the people of Israel to mount Carmel, and Ahab the king obeyed his command. Nothing is impossible when we are doing the will of God.

1King 18:23-24 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: 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.

Elijah had great confidence because he knew the Lord and because the Lord had prepared him for this moment of confrontation. The Lord also prepares us to do His will, just as He did for Elijah; the circumstances may be different, but the result is always the same. We also experience trials and circumstances that are designed to increase our faith and to give us confidence to do the will of the Lord. As was the case with Elijah, we can face overwhelming odds, when we are doing the will of God.

1King 18:25-29 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. 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. 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. And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them. 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.

Elijah gave the prophets of Baal first choice of bulls, and also gave them from morning until evening to invoke Baal, to send down fire to consume their offering. At noon Elijah boldly began to mock them and they became so desperate that they began to cut themselves and shout loudly in an effort to get the attention of Baal. After all their carrying on, the people of Israel could plainly see that Baal was not a god at all and that these prophets were false.

1King 18:30-39 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. 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: 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. 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. 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. And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water. 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. 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. 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. 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.

Now it was Elijah’s turn to present his offering to the true God of Israel. After preparing the offering, he commanded that the altar and everything on it be drenched with water so that it would be impossible to burn. Elijah then prayed a simple prayer, about fifteen seconds in duration, and immediately the Lord answered with fire. The fire of the Lord consumed everything including the water and the stones of the altar. The event made it very clear to the people of Israel that Elijah’s God was the true God, and they said, “The LORD, he is the God”.

1King 18:40 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.

The people obeyed the command of Elijah because the people no longer had any doubt; they believed that the Lord is the God of Israel. The prophets of Baal deserved to die without mercy; therefore, with great boldness, Elijah slew the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal. Chapter 19:1 tells us that he slew all the prophets; therefore, we know that he also slew the four hundred prophets of the Asherah as well.

1King 18:41-45 And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain. 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, 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. 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. 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.

Elijah knew that it was time to pray for the rain to return to the earth, because the drought had served its purpose in getting the attention of all the people of Israel. Elijah was able to pray in faith because he knew that it was the will of the Lord for the rain to return. When we pray for those things that we know to be will of the Lord, we can be sure, we will receive that for which we pray.

1King 18:46 And the hand of the LORD was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

With the hand of the Lord on Elijah he ran ahead of Ahab’s chariot to the entrance of Jezreel. Elijah displayed great strength because the Lord strengthened him. The Lord also strengthens us in times of need.

IKing 19:1-14

1King 19:1-4 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time. And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.

After confronting all the 850 false prophets, suddenly Elijah became frightened of one woman. He ran for his life because of her threat against him. After having experienced the power and faithfulness of God for 3½ years, Elijah’s faith failed. Elijah was truly a man of like nature; he was like us, he had doubts and weaknesses. He was not perfect; nevertheless, the Lord was able to use him to bring the hearts of the people back to Himself. The Lord can also use us, even though we are not perfect.

When Elijah recognized his sin of unbelief, he became so depressed and discouraged that he requested that he might die. Elijah recognized that he was not any better than anyone else because of his unbelief. The Lord did not want Elijah to become puffed up because of his great success; therefore, He allowed his faith fail for a time. The Lord also wants all of us to know that we are not perfect, we all need a savior.

1King 19:5-8 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat. And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. And the angel of the LORD came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee. And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.

After having acknowledged his sin of unbelief, Elijah fell asleep. The angel of the Lord woke him up and fed him twice. He then went forty days and nights without eating. The Lord did not reject Elijah for his sin of unbelief; but instead, He helped him and strengthened him. The Lord does not reject us when we fail to trust Him, He is faithful even when we are not.

2 Tim 2:13 If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

1King 19:9-14 And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.

The Lord did not come to Elijah in the great wind, in the earthquake, or in the fire; the Lord came to Elijah in a still small voice. The Lord does not deal harshly with us, even when we fail to trust in Him as we should. By this time Elijah was physically tired and wanted to be relieved of his responsibilities. Elijah had an intimate relationship with the Lord; and as a result, he could express his true feeling to the Lord. No one can hide anything from the Lord, He knows us and everything about us, He even knows what we think.

Ps 139:2 Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.

We should always be honest with the Lord; we should make our true feelings and desires known to the Lord. He loves us and desires our fellowship, and He wants us to be intimate with Him.

IKing 19:15-21

1King 19:15-17 And the LORD said unto him, Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king over Syria: And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room. And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay.

The Lord was going to give Elijah his desire to be relieved of his responsibilities as prophet; therefore, He instructed him to anoint Elisha to be prophet in his place. We are always eventually replaced by someone else; it is not necessarily a bad thing.

1King 19:18 Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.

The Lord wanted Elijah to know that he was not the only person in Israel who was faithful to Him. We should never think that we are alone; there are many who believe in the Lord.

1King 19:19-21 So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him. And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee. And he said unto him, Go back again: for what have I done to thee? And he returned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him.

Elijah anointed Elisha, a simple farmer, to be prophet in his place. Elisha followed after Elijah, the relationship was somewhat like an apprenticeship for Elisha. Elisha learned about the Lord and about the work of a prophet from Elijah, by accompanying him.

II Ki 2:9-12 And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.

Elijah was taken into heaven and a double portion of the spirit of Elijah was given to Elisha. The Lord took Elijah away, but He did not leave His people without a prophet. Elijah was greatly used by the Lord and he was a great prophet, but he was not perfect. We can also be greatly used by the Lord, even though we are not perfect. We can all be replaced, the Lord does not need any of us, but He does desire to use us so that we may be glorified with Him. If we have faith and if we will pray according to the will of the Lord, He will do mighty things in and through our lives, and we will experience great joy in knowing and serving Him.

All Scripture taken from King James Bible

* Bible Studies by Max Swan

Thus says the LORD, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD who exercises lovingkindness, justice, and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,” declares the LORD. (NAS) Jer 9:23-24