The stories of Elijah?s life may not be as famous as David and Goliath, but they are just as powerful and descriptive. Elijah, standing on Mt. Carmel laughing at the worshippers of Baal suggesting that they speak up?perhaps their god is out to eat or something. Or perhaps we may remember Elijah, his heart melted as he wishes that he could die. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
His story begins against a very dark back-drop. The Northern Empire has continued to degenerate since its inception. Remember impetuous Jereboam, heading North and coming up with a method to retain the loyalty of his subjects (1 Kings 12,13). He sets up two idols and tells the 10 tribes that they were the gods that rescued them out of Egypt. That denial of the Living God became the pattern for the Northern kingdom.\n<\/p>\n
\nAs if following in that pattern isn?t bad enough, King Ahab marries a Sidonian princess?one of the very people that oppressed the Israelites in the Land of Canaan. This woman was so bad that she becomes a pattern for the worse type of harlotry?physical and religious. This woman would literally have meals with the priests of her obscene goddess encouraging them in their idolatry!\n<\/p>\n
\nAhab went off and built a temple to Baal in Samaria. Within it he erected a Baal which the people (and he himself) could bow down to. He even went on to carve his very own obscene Asherah pole in repeated direct violation of God?s commands (Deut 16:21-22).\n<\/p>\n
\nThings were bleak in the land and the leadership continued to harden their hearts promoting and encouraging the denial of the Living Deity?finally compounding their guilt by rebuilding old Jericho. God?s warning through Joshua (Josh 6:26) was fulfilled as the eldest son of Hiel died at the laying of the foundation and the youngest son died at the erecting of the gates (1 Kings 16:34)\n<\/p>\n
The leadership was turned from God and setting up their own system and practices which they would rely on in their futility. The people were led astray by the continual precedence of disobedience.\n<\/p>\n
In this setting, Elijah the Tishbite makes his sudden appearance in the King?s court.\n<\/p>\n
\n-r-<\/em>\n<\/p>\n \nThe setting:<\/p>\n Omri?s Son Ahab becomes king of Israel on the 38th year of King Asa of Judah An Asherah is a Canaanite Goddess, usually a tree that is denuded and carved with imagery, female or otherwise. This is where the warning of the groves comes from. Also, Asherah’s could be erected in temples which housed male prostitutes. 2 Kings 23:7<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The stories of Elijah?s life may not be as famous as David and Goliath, but they are just as powerful and descriptive. Elijah, standing on Mt. Carmel laughing at the worshippers of Baal suggesting that they speak up?perhaps their god is out to eat or something. Or perhaps we may remember Elijah, his heart melted […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-155","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nAhab rules for 22 years in Samaria (16:29)
\nAhab does more evil than all who were before him (16:30)
\nHe followed in footsteps of Jeroboam (setting up false worship 12)
\nMarries Jezebel, daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians
\nHe worshipped the Baal (16:31)
\nHad a temple to Baal built in Samaria and set up a Baal there (16:32)
\nAhab made an Asherah pole (16:33)
\nDid more to anger the Lord than all of Israel before him
\nHiel the Bethelite rebuilt Jericho (16:34)
\nA the laying of the foundation, Abiram died and at the erecting the gates, Segub died (16:34)
\nAs warned by Joshua son of Nun (Joshua 6:26)<\/p>\n