Raised Up from Calamity
Introduction: When calamity strikes
Context:
29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri began to reign over Israel, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. 30 And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD, more than all who were before him. 31 And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took for his wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him. 32 He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made an Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.
Baal. Lit, “lord,” “owner.” The principal Canaanite god, often associated with a particular place (here, Peor). Baal manifestations of fertility worship were in many locations. Baal was pictured in Canaanite mythology as a vibrant god riding a bull on the clouds. He often had the horns of a bull on his helmet. He held a club (perhaps representing thunder) in one hand and a spear (perhaps representing lightning) in the other. He was believed to exercise his power each year in the autumn and winter rains, reviving the dry soil and bringing the mysterious life force to animals and the land. Baal worship and other ancient Near Eastern fertility worship did not focus on commandments, sin, forgiveness, or life after death; it was thought instead that Baal guaranteed the dependable cycle of the growing seasons. See note, Ex 34:13; see also p 403.
Baal
Baal was the most popular Canaanite god and the son of El, the high god. Every region in Canaan had a Baal to worship. Archaeologists have discovered artifacts near Ras Sharma (ancient Ugarit) that portray Baal as the god of rain, thunder, and lightning. The Canaanites believed that Baal controlled the changing seasons and that his touch made colors wilt. They also believed that Baal provided the earth’s produce, and temple prostitution was used to remind him to send rain. During religious ceremonies, an officiating priest danced about Baal’s altar, chanting and cutting himself with a knife, hoping to attract Baal’s attention. New Year festivals celebrating the death and rebirth of nature provided the annual epitome of Baal worship. Baal’s priests taught that he was responsible for plagues and misfortunes. Only human sacrifices could placate Baal. Most often, those sacrificed were children. When the Phoenicians, a people who originated on the island of Crete, arrived in Canaan by ship, they adopted Baal and his consort, Asherah, as their fertility gods. The Phoenicians later carried their newly adopted gods throughout the Mediterranean aboard their cargo ships. See note, Nu 25:3.
Asherah/Ashtoreth
(Plural forms: Asherim/Asheroth/Ashtaroth)
Baal’s female counterpart is commonly called Asherah, though other titles appear in the Bible (see note, Ex 34:13). To honor Asherah, a Canaanite woman had to offer either her hair or her chastity. The city of Ashkelon, where Samson killed 30 Philistines (Jgs 14:19), once housed a shrine for Asherah. Like her counterpart, Baal, Asherah had a retinue of temple prostitutes. The
God, though, is a jealous God (Exod. 20:4–6), and he countered this move toward his rival Baal with a drought. A drought attacked Baal worship at its center. After all, Baal was a fertility god. He was thought to be the personal force behind the rains, the dew, thunder, and lightning. In effect, Yahweh is challenging Baal to come through for his worshipers. He refuses to provide the rain because the people will attribute its produce to Baal.
Elijah must have wondered what God was up to when he was left without water, and must have been doubly surprised when he heard God’s marching orders: “Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there” (17:8). This city was on the coast of the Mediterranean between the great Phoenician cities of Tyre and Sidon. Indeed, as we mentioned above, the wicked Jezebel came from this general region. While a Sidonian goes to Israel and works much mischief there, we now see God sending a faithful Israelite prophet to Sidon, and much good will result.
God demonstrated that it is he and not Baal who provides life. Fertility and food are the gift of his hand. God here does it miraculously in a way that authenticates the divine word. And this is an important point. God doesn’t perform miracles to be sensational, but to confirm a prophetic word (Heb. 1:1; 2:4). Furthermore, miracles have a redemptive purpose. They restore what sin has torn apart. The famine was a result of the sin of idolatry. The miracle overcomes the ravages of famine in the life of the widow and her son.