1 Kings - Lesson 18

• Last week, we witnessed the beginning troubles and trials of the famine through the life of a widow and her son.

  • However, despite the trials faced during this time, the widow is able to attest to the God of Israel and His power.

    • Through a series of events, she sees her provisions met, her son raised, and the God of Israel prove Himself time and again.

  • Tonight’s text will be no different, as this time all of the Northern tribes will attest to the power and might of the God of Israel.

    • If I were to outline our time in the text tonight, we will see the following:

    • 1. Elijah meets with Obadiah (vv.1-16)

    • 2. Elijah confronts Ahab (vv.17-19)

    • 3. Show down Part 1: Baal (vv.20-29)

    • 4. Showdown Part 2: Yahweh (vv.30-40)

    • 5. The Lord brings rain (vv.41-46)

  • And if I were to put a tag on our text tonight it would simply be: The Great Showdown.

    • With that being said, I invite you to meet me in 1 Kings 18:1-16 for the reading of the word of the Lord.

1 Kings 18:1 Now it happened after many days that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth.”
1 Kings 18:2 So Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria.
1 Kings 18:3 Ahab called Obadiah who was over the household. (Now Obadiah feared the Lord greatly;
1 Kings 18:4 for when Jezebel destroyed the prophets of the Lord, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave, and provided them with bread and water.)
1 Kings 18:5 Then Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go through the land to all the springs of water and to all the valleys; perhaps we will find grass and keep the horses and mules alive, and not have to kill some of the cattle.”
1 Kings 18:6 So they divided the land between them to survey it; Ahab went one way by himself and Obadiah went another way by himself.
1 Kings 18:7 Now as Obadiah was on the way, behold, Elijah met him, and he recognized him and fell on his face and said, “Is this you, Elijah my master?”
1 Kings 18:8 He said to him, “It is I. Go, say to your master, ‘Behold, Elijah is here.’ ”
1 Kings 18:9 He said, “What sin have I committed, that you are giving your servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death?
1 Kings 18:10 “As the Lord your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent to search for you; and when they said, ‘He is not here,’ he made the kingdom or nation swear that they could not find you.
1 Kings 18:11 “And now you are saying, ‘Go, say to your master, “Behold, Elijah is here.” ’
1 Kings 18:12 “It will come about when I leave you that the Spirit of the Lord will carry you where I do not know; so when I come and tell Ahab and he cannot find you, he will kill me, although I your servant have feared the Lord from my youth.
1 Kings 18:13 “Has it not been told to my master what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the Lord, that I hid a hundred prophets of the Lord by fifties in a cave, and provided them with bread and water?
1 Kings 18:14 “And now you are saying, ‘Go, say to your master, “Behold, Elijah is here” ’; he will then kill me.”
1 Kings 18:15 Elijah said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.”
1 Kings 18:16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.

• Quite a bit of time has passed since Elijah’s encounter with the widow and her son.

  • The text tells us that it is now the third year of the famine in the land which means that this is the last year of the famine. (James 5)

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

• • And it’s within this last year of the famine that the word of the Lord comes to Elijah for his next steps.

    • So, the Lord gives Elijah a command which is to go and show himself to Ahab and then He would send rain upon the earth.

    • So, in obedience to the word of the Lord, Elijah makes his way in that direction.

  • An interesting note is found in verse 2 where the writer mentions that “the famine was severe in Samaria”.

    • This statement becomes the writer’s way to lead us into the upcoming details of the narrative.

    • Indeed, this drought was severe, but most especially in the region of the land of Samaria.

  • And the reason being is because this was the headquarters of Israel’s great apostasy and departure from the Mosaic Law.

    • So, because of the extent of the drought’s reach, it would force individuals to get creative with where they could find struggling sources of nutrition.

    • The scene quickly pivots to the introduction of a new character – a man named Obadiah.

  • We’re told that Obadiah was a servant of Ahab’s household, but most importantly, the writer mentions that Obadiah “feared the Lord greatly”.

    • In other words, Obadiah was a follower of Yahweh, and this is further expressed in Obadiah’s protection of the sons of the prophets.

    • He would hid in a cave close to 100 prophets from the crazed vengeance and Jezebel and would supply them with food and water.

    • It is also worth noting that this Obadiah is not the same Obadiah named after the Old Testament book.

  • The writer continues by adding that this Obadiah along with Ahab are on a search for land and water to keep the horses.

    • Because the way of life during this time was agrarian it required plentiful crops and water sources to sustain the food sources.

    • This included their only means of transportation in that day – horses and mules.

    • And being that they are setting out to look for land that provided just a sign of life further demonstrates how severe this drought was.

    • It gets so bad that someone figures it would be best to split up and cover more ground.

  • As a result of that decision, Obadiah comes across Elijah and being that Obadiah knew who Elijah was immediately fell to his face in reverence.

    • From that point, Elijah gives Obadiah very direct instructions: “Go, say to your master, “Behold Elijah is here.’”

    • To which Obadiah immediately responds, “What sin have I committed, that you are giving your servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death?”

• To paint a quick picture, Jezebel has searched throughout the entire lands for anyone who believed in Yahweh and for them to be killed.

  • Anything that looked like Yahwehisim (Worship of Yahweh) or resembled the worship of Yahweh was to be destroyed.

    • And if that wasn’t good enough, verse 10 mentions that surrounding kingdoms were on notice to swear that there was no sight of any prophets.

  • Consider the deep conviction and necessity to eliminate truth from every public place and then for it to be replaced with lies concocted by governing leadership?

    • This might sound a lot like what we are beginning to see more and more in our world today.

    • Jezebel becomes the very epitome of the causation of the collapse of nations by way of circumcising nations from their foundational truths!

    • And if Jezebel didn’t get things her way, she had the power of the pillow which means that she has the ear of the King.

    • And with the ear of the King comes the power of his armory and more!

  • So as Elijah tells Obadiah to go to King Ahab and tell him that he is in the city, Obadiah is worried for his very own life – and rightfully so.

    • So Obadiah seems to be wavering a bit between wanting to obey the words of Elijah or to acquiesce to the corners of silence.

  • It gets so bad that in verse 12, Obadiah says, if I tell the King you are here what if the Spirit of the Lord just whisks you away – I have to account for what I said.

    • So you can feel the tension; comical yet difficult tension of the conversation.

    • And perhaps this is the tension that some may even find themselves in today.

• What do you do when you find yourself on the job and something is done that was improper or went against your very values as a believer.

  • Do you stand up and say something, knowing that it might cost you something in the end – maybe that promotion, friendship, or even worse the job?!

    • This is the crossroads where Obadiah fell.

    • However, Obadiah takes Elijah at his word (obedience), according to the word of the Lord, and shares the report with Ahab.

  • And isn’t that the very definition of what faith is: Not knowing what the next steps look like, but simply knowing that because He said it, I’ll do it.

    • Faith is the only vehicle by which God uses to demonstrate to men and women who He is:

    • Hebrews 11:6 tells us this:

Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

• Well, it’s without fail that the Lord leads Elijah into the belly of the beast, as it were, to King Ahab himself. Check out verses 17-19.

1 Kings 18:17 When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is this you, you troubler of Israel?”
1 Kings 18:18 He said, “I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, because you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and you have followed the Baals.
1 Kings 18:19 “Now then send and gather to me all Israel at Mount Carmel, together with 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of the Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

• Without fail, at the sight of Elijah, King Ahab moves to accuse Elijah for the drought.

  • To which the reader reading this account would say: “Well ain’t that the pot calling the kettle black?”

    • How quick our sin blinds us to believe that we aren’t the problem but everyone else is.

  • The reality was, this drought was simply a physical demonstration of the king’s spiritual condition which now is reflected in the people as well.

    • Sin doesn’t just stay in one place, no – if it can it seeks to spread and will spread quickly, especially when unchecked.

  • The true cause of this calamity was due to the King’s compromises and restructuring of God’s order and ways.

    • Every king, for both the north and the south, are obligated and reminded about the conditions of the Mosaic covenant.

    • Yet the further we have moved away from Solomon’s rule, the more we begin to see a departure from the ways of the Lord.

    • And if you remember, this was the very warning in which both David’s father and the Lord Himself, gave to Solomon as a warning several times over.

    • This just goes to show us that we as sheep need constant reminders to not go too far! That’s the purpose of a Shepherd!

  • So in order to bring about a proper perspective for Ahab to see and understand, he walks him down memory lane to see where the departure first began.

    • Isn’t it amazing how the world sees Christianity as more opposition to truly loving people than they can?

  • Sin will have us think that down is up and up is down, and in Elijah’s case, truth in the midst of a delusional people must be greatly demonstrated.

    • And this is exactly what he sets out to show, by the power of God.

    • In few short words, Elijah tells Ahab, “I can show you who is both the Creator of your calamity and who is the Reliever of it.”

    • Check out verses 20-29.

1 Kings 18:20 So Ahab sent a message among all the sons of Israel and brought the prophets together at Mount Carmel.
1 Kings 18:21 Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you hesitate between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people did not answer him a word.
1 Kings 18:22 Then Elijah said to the people, “I alone am left a prophet of the Lord, but Baal’s prophets are 450 men.
1 Kings 18:23 “Now let them give us two oxen; and let them choose one ox for themselves and cut it up, and place it on the wood, but put no fire under it; and I will prepare the other ox and lay it on the wood, and I will not put a fire under it.
1 Kings 18:24 “Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, He is God.” And all the people said, “That is a good idea.”
1 Kings 18:25 So Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one ox for yourselves and prepare it first for you are many, and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it.”
1 Kings 18:26 Then they took the ox which was given them and they prepared it and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon saying, “O Baal, answer us.” But there was no voice and no one answered. And they leaped about the altar which they made.
1 Kings 18:27 It came about at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Call out with a loud voice, for he is a god; either he is occupied or gone aside, or is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and needs to be awakened.”
1 Kings 18:28 So they cried with a loud voice and cut themselves according to their custom with swords and lances until the blood gushed out on them.
1 Kings 18:29 When midday was past, they raved until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice; but there was no voice, no one answered, and no one paid attention.

• So, the true challenge begins: The showdown between the True and only living God, Yahweh, versus the idol worship of Baal.

  • Ahab accepts Elijah’s challenge and the location of the match.

    • The location was Mount Carmel a very familiar place for Ahab and the Baal prophets because this was the “sacred dwelling place of Baal”.

    • For some this is the difference between a home game advantage versus an opposing rival’s home game.

    • However, Elijah is not moved by where the location of the match will be because at the end of the day Elijah knows he serves the Living God!

  • At the point where all the people have assembled, Elijah draws near to the people with a powerful statement: “How long will you hesitate between opinions?”

    • The word for “hesitate” in Hebrew is psh (pa-sha) which means to limp or to waver.

    • In other words, how long will you all waver between the God of Israel and the idol Baal?

    • “A choice has to be made as to whom you will serve, but there is no serving two masters.”

  • And here the people fell silent because they had no answer for Elijah at this point. For lack of better words: They were stuck between a rock and a hard place.

    • This language begins to sound quite familiar to the days of Joshua. You might remember these words from Joshua himself in Joshua 24:14-15.

Joshua 24:14 “Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.
Joshua 24:15 “If it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”

• After Elijah’s statement to choose, he lets them know that the odds of this competition are stacked against him.

  • He mentions that he alone is left as a prophet of Yahweh (although a bit exaggerated) compared to the 450 illegitimate prophets of Baal.

  • He then takes it a step further and has the opposing team’s prophets choose the ox of their liking.

  • Similarly, he has them choose the oxen that he will use in the great showdown of who is the true God of Israel.

  • Ideally, all the odds were in favor for King Ahab and his idol, Baal to succeed.

    • Elijah then lays down the rules of engagement for how this competition would work for both parties.

  • He informs the Baal prophets to prepare their ox for sacrifice by cutting them up and laying it on the alter with no fire underneath.

    • He informs the Baal prophets to prepare their ox by cutting them up  and laying it on the alter with no fire underneath.

  • What makes this a bit comedic is that not only was Baal considered a fertility god, but he was also the one who supposedly sent lightning from heaven which would cause fire.

    • So as one could imagine with the past 3 years of great drought and famine in the land, there would seemed to have been great silence from Baal.

    • And it leaves the question of tension on the opposing team hanging in the balance: Will Baal answer this time?

• As the writer continues, the competition begins and the Baal prophets are calling and pleading for Baal to consume the ox with fire from heaven.

  • They call on Baal morning, noon, and evening to the point that they are screaming, pleading for an answer.

    • If that weren’t enough, they seek to cut themselves in an attempt to appease Baal to respond to their request.

    • But to no avail, there remained great silence.

  • The writer mentions that Elijah has a bit of a comical moment as he awaits to see a demonstration from Baal.

    • Elijah tells the prophets in few short words: You might need to yell a bit louder; he is a busy god up there.

    • Or maybe he is pre-occupied with other matters.

    • He takes an even greater dig: “You know what he might be in a deep sleep and needs to be awakened”.

  • It’s at the end of their time and there has been no response, and in that the people had nothing to say.

    • Now the stage was set for a perfect opportunity for the people to see the only true and Living God demonstrate His great power.

    • Clearly, there is a built up anticipation now to see what Elijah will do. Check out verses 30-40.

1 Kings 18:30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” So all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord which had been torn down.
1 Kings 18:31 Elijah took twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Israel shall be your name.”
1 Kings 18:32 So with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord, and he made a trench around the altar, large enough to hold two measures of seed.
1 Kings 18:33 Then he arranged the wood and cut the ox in pieces and laid it on the wood.
1 Kings 18:34 And he said, “Fill four pitchers with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood.” And he said, “Do it a second time,” and they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time,” and they did it a third time.
1 Kings 18:35 The water flowed around the altar and he also filled the trench with water.
1 Kings 18:36 At the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, today let it be known that You are God in Israel and that I am Your servant and I have done all these things at Your word.
1 Kings 18:37 “Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that You, O Lord, are God, and that You have turned their heart back again.”
1 Kings 18:38 Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.
1 Kings 18:39 When all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, He is God; the Lord, He is God.”
1 Kings 18:40 Then Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; do not let one of them escape.” So they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.

• Now the real demonstration would begin! Elijah calls for all the people to come close as he prepared the altar of the Lord.

  • What becomes a significant moment here is that he rebuilds the very altar of Yahweh that the people had torn down before.

    • This had to have been quite a sobering moment because as Elijah is setting up the alter with 12 stones, perhaps the people are remembering.

    • Perhaps the people are reminiscing on a once united Israel where the Lord dwelled in the Temple built by Solomon.

    • This would indeed be a moment they would not forget!

  • Elijah proceeds to prepare for his sacrifice, but with a twist. He requests that a trench be made around the altar.

    • And within those trenches he has them filled to the brim along with the sacrifice itself being drenched in water.

    • And he has them do this three times.

  • After the point of preparation, the writer notes that it is time for the evening sacrifice, which means it was about 3PM.

    • He then steps forward and makes a public prayer for the Lord to show Himself.

  • Notice, Elijah’s prayer is completely opposite of his Pagan predecessors.

    • Where the Baal priest sought the attention of their god with loud voices, screams, and cutting, Elijah is having an intelligible conversation with Yahweh.

  • Elijah’s prayer is quite simple: “Lord answer your servant so that this people will know that you are God and have turned their heart back again.”

    • Immediately, the text tells us that the fire of the Lord consumed everything around the alter, as if it was licked clean, including the water.

  • As one could imagine, a sight like that would have left anyone speechless.

    • And in this case, it moved the people to fall on their faces declaring aloud, “The Lord, He is God!” (Demonstration of repentance)

    • Truth had been made known to those who had been disillusioned by idol worship.

  • Immediately, Elijah has every Baal prophet seized and brought down to the brook Kishon to be slaughtered according to the Law (Deuteronomy 13:12-15)

    • Check out what the text says:

Deuteronomy 13:12 “If you hear in one of your cities, which the Lord your God is giving you to live in, anyone saying that
Deuteronomy 13:13 some worthless men have gone out from among you and have seduced the inhabitants of their city, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods’ (whom you have not known),
Deuteronomy 13:14 then you shall investigate and search out and inquire thoroughly. If it is true and the matter established that this abomination has been done among you,
Deuteronomy 13:15 you shall surely strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying it and all that is in it and its cattle with the edge of the sword.

• Well, it’s after this scene that the promise of the Lord providing rain was beginning to brew.

  • Check out verses 41-46.

1 Kings 18:41 Now Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of the roar of a heavy shower.”
1 Kings 18:42 So Ahab went up to eat and drink. But Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he crouched down on the earth and put his face between his knees.
1 Kings 18:43 He said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go back” seven times.
1 Kings 18:44 It came about at the seventh time, that he said, “Behold, a cloud as small as a man’s hand is coming up from the sea.” And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, so that the heavy shower does not stop you.’ ”
1 Kings 18:45 In a little while the sky grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy shower. And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel.
1 Kings 18:46 Then the hand of the Lord was on Elijah, and he girded up his loins and outran Ahab to Jezreel.

• As Elijah had predicted to Ahab, that until he gave the word, there would be no rain upon the land.

  • And now, here came the long-anticipated words in which King Ahab waited for: “Go up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of the roar of a heavy thunder”.

    • Without hesitation, King Ahab got up to go and celebrate the end of the drought with a banquet of sorts.

    • And while Ahab goes to celebrate, Elijah proceeds back up the mountain of Mt. Carmel and gets into a fetal position in prayer. He’s praying for rain.

  • Being that Elijah is in deep prayer, he sends his servant to go up and look towards the Mediterranean Sea to see if he sees rain coming.

    • And apparently, Elijah had him do that 7 times presuming the servant did not see any indication of rain.

    • What becomes a powerful point in this part of the narrative is Elijah’s persistence in his prayer, even when he doesn’t see a sign.

  • Elijah’s prayers are not moved by his failure to see God move, rather it motivates him to pray even more.

    • It’s on the seventh time around that Elijah’s servant sees something: “A cloud as small as a man’s hand coming up from the sea.”

  • At this sight, Elijah immediately gets up and attempts to send word to Ahab to hurry on his chariot quickly because of the heavy storms headed their way.

    • And without fail, the clouds grew dark, the winds increased, and the rain commenced.

    • And the writer notes that the hand of the Lord was on Elijah.

• What does the writer show us by the leading of the Spirit:

  • 1. We see the sovereign hand of the Lord at work through his servant.

  • 2. The power of the Lord through prayer

  • 3. The power of the Lord over nature

    • All of this was accomplished during a time of great apostasy in Israel’s history.

    • And the Lord turned hearts back to Him by revealing Himself and His nature in a powerful way!

  • The Lord demonstrated that His power alone can sustain life, replenish it, and deliver it.

    • We saw in Chapter 17, amid the famine, the Lord sustain a widow, a prophet, and a son.

    • And now that same God has turned hearts by showing Himself mightily.

  • May we never underestimate God’s control over the affairs of nature and human interaction.

    • God alone is worthy to be worshiped, adored, and praised!

    • Let’s Pray.