The Story of Elijah: The Fire of God
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Intro:
Talking to my kids around the dinner table about sin
Sin is boring, sin makes
Context
After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel.
How did Ahab die?
Last week we left Elijah on Mount Sinai where God arrived in his chariot which was described as wind, earthquake and fire.
God then hears Elijah’s report against Israel and tells Elijah that he is going to raise up three swords to bring Israel complete destruction
Hazael
Jehu
Elisha
When Elijah leaves Sinai he finds Elisha and anoints him as his disciple, his apprentice, the next great prophet.
starting in chapter 20 the author of Kings focuses on Ahab and his pathetic leadership
He goes to war with Ben-hadad, the king of Syria.
God gives him victory over Ben-hadad, but Ahab lets him go - which is not what God told him to do
Then we see Ahab wanting a vineyard next to his castle
But the owner of the vineyard would not sell it, so Jezebel has the owner falsly accused of a crime and stoned to death so Ahab would stop whining and get his vineyard.
After this Elijah confronts Ahab, then condemns him for what he has done to Naboth, the owner of the vineyard.
Who is Moab?
And you shall say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Have you killed and also taken possession?” ’ And you shall say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: “In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick your own blood.” ’ ”
Part of the judgement on Ahab was that the dogs would lick his blood in the same place that he had Naboth killed.
1k 21
the conversation continues...
Ahab said to Elijah, “Have you found me, O my enemy?” He answered, “I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do what is evil in the sight of the Lord.
Behold, I will bring disaster upon you. I will utterly burn you up, and will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free, in Israel.
And I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the anger to which you have provoked me, and because you have made Israel to sin.
And of Jezebel the Lord also said, ‘The dogs shall eat Jezebel within the walls of Jezreel.’
Anyone belonging to Ahab who dies in the city the dogs shall eat, and anyone of his who dies in the open country the birds of the heavens shall eat.”
When Ahab heard these words he he was so distraught, so afraid, so grieved that he actually humbled himself before God.
And God told Elijah that because Ahab has humbled himself, the utter destruction of his house and family will begin with his sons, and not with him.
Then in chapter 22 we see Ahab wanting to go to war to claim some land that belonged to Israel.
So he partners with Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, and they go to war.
After the battle dies down, somebody accidentally shoots an arrow which struck Ahab in the chest.
He told his chariot driver to take him home. And sure enough, Ahab dies, and they washed out his chariot in the same place where owners of the vineyard had been stoned, and the dogs came and licked his blood, thus fulfilling the prophecy of Elijah.
So thats the story of Ahab’s death, so back to 2 k 1:1
After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel.
Moab was in allegiance and under the authority of Israel.
Who is Moab?
Ahab was demanding that the king of Moab supply 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams.
So when Ahab died, they used that moment as a chance to escape from the heavy hand of Israel.
So now that we know whats going on, we pick up the story of Elijah
And what we see in verses 2-8 is a injured king who is blinded by sin
Sin Blinds People
Sin Blinds People
There are many stories in the bible that we see sins blinding effects.
Sin is boring, its blinds us, and it makes us stupid.
Sin blinds people to the glory of God, and blinds people to the truth
Sin distorts reality to the point that we are incapable of seeing clearly
Most every story in the bible illustrates Sins blinding effects.
From Adam and Eve, to Jacob and Esau, to The disciples and the pharisees.
Sin blinds people to God’s faithfulness, love, peace, truth, righteousness and glory, and we, like blind beggars, go about searching for these things in all the wrong places.
Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness.”
Ahaziah is Ahab and Jezebel’s first born son
1k
Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned two years over Israel. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and walked in the way of his father and in the way of his mother and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. He served Baal and worshiped him and provoked the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger in every way that his father had done.
So after Ahab dies, Ahaziah takes his seat as the king of Israel
he only reigns for two years, and in those two years he does evil in the same way his father Ahab did.
Now, Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber and lay sick...
We don’t know what sort of accident this was,
Perhaps Ahaziah was a kluts and tripped and fell through some lattice and the injuries are infected
Maybe we was drunk and fell out of a window and is suffering from internal bleeding
We don’t know what happened, only that he fell through some lattice and is now laid up sick with some injuries that are sever enough for him to consult a deity as to whether or not he’s going to recover.
So he sends his messengers to go and inquire of Baal-Zebub as to whether or not he will recover
Who is Baal-Zebub
Baal-Zebub is the god of Ekron, which is a philistine city.
cities and nations that worship Baal all have their own version of Baal
Its the same deity, but interpreted differently
So for Ahaziah to send messengers to Baal-Zebub was just showing that Ahaziah was a chip of the old block, as Ahab also worshiped the Baals.
Whats with the name Zubub?
Satire: One of the really cool things about the bible is how the authors often use rhetorical devices and wit to mock those who reject Truth for Lies.
You see, what Ahaziah really wanted his messengers to do was to inquire of Baal-Zebul
The word Baal is used in two different ways in the bible:
Proper Name: such as Baal the Canaanites god.
Title: which means Lord or Master - In Hosea God refers to himself as baal,
So when Ahaziah sends his messengers he wants them to go to inquire of Baal-Zebul, which means Lord of Princes, or Lord of Thrones - this was an honorary title for Baal
We see that the Scribes accused Jesus of being possessed by this same deity, Beelzebul, who is the Prince of Demons - which we learn is Satan himself.
However, the author of kings, inspired by the Holy Spirit, has a wonderful skill in word play and satire (which we will see more of in the passage)
instead of writing the name Baal-Zebul, which means Lord of Princes, he writes Baal-Zebub, which means Lord of Flies.
This is a mocking title toward Baal
If Baal is not the Lord or master of princes and thrones and lofty places, he is the lord of the annoying bloodsucking, always pestering flies…
This is a great example of the bible taking aim at the idols of a culture and bringing them into proper perspective.
You think you are inquiring of the Lord of Princes, but in reality you seek wisdom and prophecy from the lord of flies.
So off go the messengers to inquire of the lord of the flies as to whether or not the king would recover from his injuries.
As the messengers are on their journey, the the Scene shifts to Elijah in vv. 3-4
But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus says the Lord, You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’ ” So Elijah went.
2k 13-4
Elijah comes to the messengers with a question, and a prophecy.
Question:
‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?
Prophecy:
You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.
The question, is repeated three times in this story, which tells us that this is one of the central concerns of the narrative
2 Kings: The Power and the Fury The God Who Detests Our Idols (vv. 1–8)
Yahweh’s words are repeated three times (vv. 3, 6, 16)—clearly they highlight the central concern of the narrative. When Ahaziah sends to Philistia he implies Israel has no God; when he appeals to Baal-zebub he is implying that Yahweh is either non-existent or irrelevant and inadequate. (Is this not, in principle, the essence of all our idolatry? By taking first recourse to other helps and supports we subtly confess the inadequacy and insufficiency of Yahweh to handle our dilemmas.)
When Ahaziah sends his messengers to Ekron, he implies Israel has no God;
when he appeals to Baal-zebub he is implying that he wants nothing to do with YHWH,
he wants nothing to do with the God of his fathers.
He is in open rebellion against God by pursuing the wisdom of Baal rather than turning to YHWH.
EXAMPLE*
We can all relate to Ahaziah’s idolatry here.
When circumstances of life became overwhelming Ahaziah did not want inquire of YHWH because he hated him. YHWH was his enemy.
And when circumstances of life become overwhelming for us we often don’t inquire of God, not because we hate him, but because we don’t trust him, or we don’t think he is strong enough, or we think that he is disinterested.
Fear - (Death, sickness, family, finances, relationships) where do you look for security?
Do you go to Jesus?
Do you find security his promises?
Do you find safety in his kingship?
Grief - (Loss of a loved one, disappointment, broken trust) Where do you look for comfort?
Do you first pursue the God of all comfort?
The one who is near to the broken hearted?
Chaos - (Cannot find peace, life is always happening to you, fighting depression and anxiety) where do you look for peace?
Do you seek the one who is our peace, the prince of peace?
You see, we are no different that Ahaziah,
We so often run to the arms of entertainment to bring us joy when we are down
we run to food and drink to bring us peace when we are greiving
We run to legislation, finances, and alarm systems when we are looking for security.
We use our kids, and our spouses, and our friends as the source of our joy when true joy only comes from God.
We are indeed much like Ahaziah, looking for answers apart from God!
And because of Ahaziah’s idolatry, YHWH says the king will not recover, he will not come down from his bed, but he will surely die.
So Elijah speaks these words to the kings messengers, then walks away.
When the messengers heard these words from Elijah they turned around, they didn’t go to Ekron to inquire of Baal-zebub, but instead obeyed the words Elijah and brought this message back to the king.
When they arrive the king is wondering why the returned so quickly?
And the news they gave him was not good
2k 1 5-
The messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, “Why have you returned?” And they said to him, “There came a man to meet us, and said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the Lord, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’ ”
When Ahaziah heard the his messengers repeat the phrase “thus says YHWH” it would have put chills down his spine
YHWH is the enemy God, the God that prophesied complete and utter destruction on his house
YHWH was the God he grew up hearing about from his father Ahab and Jezebel his mother.
YHWH was the God that caused the great famine, and brought fire down from heaven to kill the prophets of Baal when he was a child.
He had heard all about this God, and now some man is claiming to speak for YHWH saying that he is not going to get better, but he is going to die.
So they
And the message was not the one the king wanted to hear.
Maybe his messengers got fooled by some trickster
Should the king put any stock in what this man said to his messengers?
So no doubt with anger and fear in his voice he asks his messengers what sort of man said these things?
He said to them, “What kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?”
Maybe it was just a trickster, one who is playing a cruel joke on the king and his messengers
Maybe his messengers heard wrong..
Maybe his messengers are confused...
So “what kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?”
They answered him, “He wore a garment of hair, with a belt of leather about his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”
But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and David’s mighty men were not with Adonijah.
as soon as the messengers describe this man who came speaking the words of YHWH, the king knew exactly who it was.
His worst fears have just come true!
This man who brought down fire from heaven has come out of the shadows and has set his sight on king Ahaziah
This man who caused his mother, Jezebel to go into fits of rage is no speaking again.
And he is calling out the Kings Idolatry and prophesying that he is going to die.
So how does Ahaziah respond?
One way he could have responded would to have thought to himself, “I’m injured, concerned that I might die, Elijah has raised people from the dead, maybe he could help me?”
But instead, he responds the way he was taught to respond by his parents.
He gets angry and wants to see Elijah killed.
So look at what he does in vv9-17
9 Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’ ”
10 But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
11 Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty men with his fifty. And he answered and said to him, “O man of God, this is the king’s order, ‘Come down quickly!’ ”
12 But Elijah answered them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
13 Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up and came and fell on his knees before Elijah and entreated him, “O man of God, please let my life, and the life of these fifty servants of yours, be precious in your sight.
14 Behold, fire came down from heaven and consumed the two former captains of fifty men with their fifties, but now let my life be precious in your sight.”
15 Then the angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king
16 and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’ ”
17 So he died according to the word of the Lord that Elijah had spoken. Jehoram became king in his place in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, because Ahaziah had no son.
2 k 1 9-
Sin Makes People Stupid
Sin Makes People Stupid
In the first part of the story we saw that sin makes people blind to the power of God.
We seek truth, peace, joy, glory, and love apart from God, who is the source of all good things.
because of sin we are often blind to the fact that God is truly supreme, he is our king, and he is in charge of all things.
And in this part of the story we see that sin not only makes people blind, but makes people stupid.
Sin Makes People Stupid
Sin Makes People Stupid
Ahaziah sends out three groups of 50 men with their captains to arrest Elijah and each group is consumed by fire, accept for the last, because the captain had more sense than the king.
This is a perfect example how sin makes us stupid.
we continue to go back to the same worthless practices again and again trusting that the result will be different this time.
When we give into sin we become stupid
The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense.
Think about how this is true in the bible
Ananias and Sapphira who get themselves killed over a silly lie about how much they got for their property. What a waste.
Or David and Bathsheba. David was the king, he had everything he could ever want. You’ve seen the Lord bless your socks off since you were a boy. And you send for a pretty bathing girl? And then try to cover your tracks with one boneheaded sin after another?
The prodigal son is another classic example. He could have had fine food, familial warmth, and a roof over his head. But he got greedy, blew through a wad of cash, and ended up with the pigs.
Think about An
Or what about the thief on the cross (the bad one) who can’t think of anything better to do with his final breaths than to mock another dying “criminal”?
The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense.
And here reading this story we see how sin has made Ahaziah stupid.
He is blinded by rage and sends a captain with his 50 men to go and arrest Elijah
Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’ ”
But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’ ”
Adonijah sacrificed sheep, oxen, and fattened cattle by the Serpent’s Stone, which is beside En-rogel, and he invited all his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the royal officials of Judah,
but he did not invite Nathan the prophet or Benaiah or the mighty men or Solomon his brother.
And now, fire is coming down to consume the group of 50 men
When Ahaziah hears that fire came down from heaven and consumed his men, you would think that he would try a different tactic, but no, He sends another group of 50 men
And the same thing happened to them,
Does Ahaziah stop there? NO!
no
He sends a third group of 50 and this time the captain of the 50 shows he has more sense than the king and asks for mercy.
What funny is the first two groups have almost the same script “O man of God, the king says, ‘come down’”
Elijah likewise has the same response, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.”
What Elijah is doing here is mocking them with wordplay.
They say, “o man of God, come down” the Hebrew word for man is “ish”
So they say, o ish of God, come down”
Then Elijah responds to each group by saying, “if I am a ish of God, let fire come down from heaven..”
The Hebrew word for fire is “esh” which comes from the same root as man “ish”
Elijah knows this and mocks them with word play
you want the ish of God to come down? if im the ish of God let the esh of God come down.
and fire (which represents God’s judgement) comes down to consume them.
What Elijah is doing is exposing how stupid sin has truly made them by playing these word games with them.
The stupidity of Ahaziah sending three different groups can be compared to the stupidity Ahab and the prophets of baal.
And the result is the same, fire comes down from heaven to judge them.
Elijah comes down with the third group and gives Ahaziah the same message, you will not come down from your bed. , but you will surely die.
And now, fire is coming down to consume the group of 50 men
Ahaziah died like his father, a stupid and spiritually blind man who would not trust in God.
I want to close by looking at verse 17
English Standard Version Chapter 1
So he died according to the word of the LORD that Elijah had spoken.
There is a theme throughout the story of Elijah, and throughout the whole bible, that what YHWH declares can be counted on.
when we look at the cross what see on display is the true esh (fire judgement of God) coming down on the true Ish of God (the one true man of God)
17 So he died according to the word of the Lord that Elijah had spoken. Jehoram became king in his place in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, because Ahaziah had no son.
the reason these men were consumed by fire was because they had no one to stand in their place.
Ahaziah died according to the word of the Lord
Their king was evil and under God’s judgment
They had no sacrifice that they could bring in their place
They had no medator
At Mount Carmel, the fire came down upon the bull on behalf of the people. The bull took the judgement so the people could be free.
But Israel is out of covenant with God. They have no mediator. They are enemies of God
And prepares us for the beautify of the gospel
Paul says that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. That we were once enemies, but are now brought under the covenant protection of Christ.
And on the cross we see
The true man of God, Jesus, took upon himself the judgement of God, so we, though deserving of judgement, would be set free.
Ahab died according to the word of the Lord
You see, as blood bought individuals we never have to fear the judgement or fire of God. Because Jesus has stood in our place, he has satisfied God’s perfect justice.
What God says is true.
So we now live free from condemnation.
God’s words are true
God’s words are true
Not only does he delivers on his threats, like in the case of these two wicked kings, but he also delivers on his promises.
So as we go this week, let us go and live as faithful men and women, not allowing sin to blind us to the power of God. And let us not allow sin to lead us down the path of stupidity. But humbly we seek the true wisdom of God, which is Jesus himself.
His words are to be trusted.
Lets pray.
God is unchanging, meaning, that he is just as trustworthy today as he was in the days of Elijah.
But what tends to happen is that we allow sin to take up residence in our lives, and we become blind to the faithfulness of God:
we begin to doubt him
we begin to look for hope in other people, places, and things
We lose confidence in the God who continues to sustain us with each breath we take.
And when that happens, we become what the proverbs over and over again calls a fool
we become stupid.
we believe lies
we think joy is found outside of the person of Christ
We think peace is found within
and we think love is found on a computer screen.
When sin sets up residence in our lives, we become both blind and stupid, forgetting that what God says, is truth.
So go this week knowing that what God says is trustworthy and true:
And what he says is that
he is your peace
he is the way the truth and the life
He is the source of all righteousness
In him there is joy forever more
He is the fountain of love
He is the definition of glory
And he has brought you near, and has made you sons and daughters of the king, and has removed your guilt and shame to where we can say with full confidence there is NO condemnation for those who are in Christ.
Lets pray.