Scriptural patterns are so cool. Not that I have anything against floor patterns or fabric patterns, they?re pretty nice too. But the patterns in give you a peak at the author?s thought-flow of the passage.
wwwSpecifically, patterns in a book like 1st Kings, jump out at you if you?re ?listening?. I don?t know how many Christians spend some solid time looking at these 4 historical books or if they consider them as being dry as the dust under their bed. I personally think that these things would make a great movie if it doesn?t cause someone to stumble. Either way, I?ve done other pieces touching on worship in the book of Kings but this life of Elijah and taking a look at Ahab has uncovered some interesting repetitions.
Check this out Ahab?s career is summed up in the shadow of his predecessors Jereboam and Baasha (1 Kings 21:22). I?m not going to get into their history right here except focusing on their similarities.
Jereboam?s sin was religious in nature as was Baasha?s (1 Kings 12-16). Ahab, we know, brought in all types of false worship and considered the way of Jereboam as mere child?s play (1 Kings 16:31). Jereboam?s sin resulted in his entire lineage getting wiped out (1 Kings 14:10; 1 Kings 15:29) as did Baasha (1 Kings 16:3, 7, 11-13) ?Ahab got the same sentence on his own family. A phrase mentioned in Jereboam?s and Baasha?s respective death sentence (1 Kings 14:11; 16:4) is repeated once more in Ahab?s death sentence (1 Kings 21:24). The one belonging to Ahab, who dies in the city, the dogs will eat, and the one who dies in the field the birds of heaven will eat.
Even the bit of Micaiah versus the 400 prophets (1 Kings 22:13-27) vying for the King and the people?s dedication parallels that portion of Elijah versus the prophets on Carmel (1 Kings 19). The deciding factor in Micaiah?s situation not being the evidence power of God but the evidenced word of God?if His promises would come true. ?If indeed you return safely then the word I have spoken to you was not of the Lord. Listen all you people!? (1 Kings 22:28)
What strikes me is how apparently minor the role of Elijah is at this point. Ahab outright calls him ?my enemy? (1 Kings 21:20) and you would expect some epic. But it looks like God is done showing this guy signs. Ahab saw the stopping of rain at Elijah?s command, the fire from heaven, the rain returning?all that. He saw it and even believed God at this point, repenting to the point that God would show mercy on the man by not instituting wrath until he died.
Finally something that really stands out because of its implications resonate as far as 2 Thessalonians 2 is Ahab and the deceiving spirit within the 400 prophets telling him to attack Ramoth-Gilead. Not only was this deceiving spirit giving him a lie, the man knew it was a lie and would still go on ahead with what he?s doing.
The people in 2 Thes 2 would not receive the love of the truth to be saved (2 Thes 2:10) by their willful disbelief (2 Thes 2:12). God, at this point where the man of lawlessness is revealed (2 Thes 2:8,9) will send a deceiving spirit so that they are sealed up in their disbelief. God elevates them from repeated, hard-hearted unbelievers to outright vessels of wrath (Romans 9) by giving them over to what they want anyway?to not believe the truth by heaping up lies around them (Romans 1; 2 Tim 4:3).
Interesting patterns. Do you notice anything else in the text that seems to indicate a pattern?
-r-
Elijah: The Place
Elijah: The Proclamation
Elijah: The Performance
Elijah: The Pronouncement
Elijah: Ahab’s Problem