why did the prophets of baal cut themselves

If you do not want that we track your visit to our site you can disable tracking in your browser here: We also use different external services like Google Webfonts, Google Maps, and external Video providers. Maybe we can find enough grass to keep our horses and mules alive and not have to kill our animals. 6So each one chose a part of the country to search; Ahab went in one direction and Obadiah in another. If I go tell King Ahab you are here, and he comes and doesnt find you, he will kill me! Asked April 28 2020 Then he dug a ditch around the altar that was big enough to hold about thirteen quarts of seed. Even in those bad times, when the calves were worshipped and the temple at Jerusalem deserted, yet there were some good people that feared God and served him, and some good prophets that instructed them in the knowledge of him and assisted them in their devotions. And all the people came near unto him. They just added Baal worship to their insurance policy. The king and court were all for Baal; so was the body of the people. 14 And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah is here: and he shall slay me. Elijah on Mount Carmel 26 And they took the bull that was given them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, shouting, "O Baal, answer us!" But there was no sound, and no one answered as they leaped around the altar they had made. He could not bring them to the altar at Jerusalem unless he could unite the two kingdoms again (which, for correction to both, God designed should not now be done), therefore, by his prophetic authority, he builds an altar on Mount Carmel, and so owns that which had formerly been built there. In it, Elijah, the prophet of Gd, puts to the test what was at the time perceived as the most supreme and powerful of all the godsBaal. 18 And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim. God has his remnant among all sorts, high and low; there were saints in Nero's household, and in Ahab's. He did not think it enough to fear God himself, but, having wealth and power wherewith to do it, he thought himself obliged to assist and countenance others that feared God; nor did he think his being kind to them would excuse him from being good himself, but he did both, he both feared God greatly himself and patronised those that feared him likewise. 45 And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. By this time there was no food in Samaria. (2.) In the myth, Baal returns to life when the rains come. Practicing the King's Economy: Honoring Jesus in How We Work, Earn, Spend, Save, and Give. Why did Herod like to listen to John the Baptist, who criticized Herods lifestyle? And when midday was past, they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice. The Lord is God!. Hence we read of those that hide themselves in the top of Carmel,Amos 9:3. Ahab got in his chariot and started back to Jezreel. 10As surely as the Lord your God lives, the king has sent people to every country to search for you. But there was no voice. Christianos ad leones--Away with Christians to the lions. Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one bull for yourselves and prepare it first, since there are many of you; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it ." So they took the bull that was given to them and prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, "O Baal, hear and answer us." However, it is put to this experiment, "Let each side prepare a sacrifice, and pray to its God, and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God; if neither shall thus answer, let the people turn Atheists; if both, let them continue to halt between two." And they did it the second time. Mauled by Money: The Cost of Economic Idolatry, The Bible also teaches us that the wages of our economic idolatry is death. Providence ordered it so, that Ahab might, with his own eyes, see how bad the consequences of this judgment were, that so he might be the better inclined to hearken to Elijah, who would direct him into the only way to put an end to it. ESV - Israel being thus far reformed that they had acknowledged the Lord to be God, and had consented to the execution of Baal's prophets, that they might not seduce them any more, though this was far short of a thorough reformation, yet it was so far accepted that God thereupon opened the bottles of heaven, and poured out blessings upon his land, that very evening (as it should seem) on which they did this good work, which should have confirmed them in their reformation; see Haggai 2:18; Haggai 2:19. And the people answered him not a word. 13 Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the LORD, how I hid a hundred men of the LORD's prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water? The God who answered by fire, igniting the sacrifice on the altar, was the true God. This is the right method. Go tell your master that I am here., 9Then Obadiah said, What wrong have I done for you to hand me over to Ahab like this? II. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees, 43 And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. They worshipped God to please the prophets, but worshipped Baal to please Jezebel and curry favour at court. (3.) His interview with Obadiah, one of Ahab's servants, by whom he sends notice to Ahab of his coming, 1 Kings 18:2-16. Now Elijah shows them the absurdity of this. Carmel had neither tabernacle nor temple; it was a great way distant from the ark of the testimony and the place God had chosen; this was not the altar that sanctified the gift; yet never was any sacrifice more acceptable to God than this. II. [1.] As he had shown the tenderness of a father to the sons of the prophets, so he showed the reverence of a son to this father of the prophets; and by this made it appear that he did indeed fear God greatly, that he did honour to one that was his extraordinary ambassador and had a great interest in heaven. When we cannot carry a reformation so far as we would we must do what we can, and rather comply with some corruptions than not do our utmost towards the extirpation of Baal. Through Elijah, God declared that Baal couldnt deliver the goods and his people couldnt have it both ways. 1 And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, show thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth. Their perishing thus is the using, as the apostle speaks of them (Colossians 3:22), was to intimate the utter abolition of them after a little while, Hebrews 8:13. 12The Spirit of the Lord may carry you to some other place after I leave. The central story in the Torah portion is that of the Golden Calf, and thus the story of the haftarah serves as an obvious sequel to this unfortunate episode. It is an instance of the courage of Elijah that he durst stand alone in the cause of God against such powers and numbers; and the issue encourages all God's witnesses and advocates never to fear the face of man. Stop for a moment. Ahab is the Achan, the troubler, who follows Baalim, those accursed things. 39When all the people saw this, they fell down to the ground, crying, The Lord is God! to please their deity, as Herodias did Herod, and so to obtain their request. And there was a sore famine in Samaria. They thought to trim the matter, and play on both sides, as the Samaritans, 2 Kings 17:33. His interview with all Israel upon Mount Carmel, in order to a public trial of titles between the Lord and Baal; a most distinguished solemnity it was, in which, 1. These were the 450 prophets of Baal; the 400 prophets of the groves (who, some think, were Sidonians), though summoned (1 Kings 18:19; 1 Kings 18:19), yet, as it should seem, did not attend, and so escaped this execution, which fair escape perhaps Ahab and Jezebel thought themselves happy in; but it proved they were reserved to be the instruments of Ahab's destruction, some time after, by encouraging him to go up to Ramoth-Gilead, 1 Kings 22:6; 1 Kings 22:6. Why did the prophets of Baal cut themselves (1 Kings 18:28) Context: 1 Kings 18:27-28 New International Version (NIV) 27 At noon Elijah began to taunt them. When Baals people died, it was Elijah who raised them to life (v. 22). [3.] Great blessings often arise from small beginnings, and showers of plenty from a cloud of a span long. But there was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention. The wind began to blow, and soon a heavy rain began to fall. The Character of Obadiah; Elijah's Interview with Obadiah. 1621), of rich men sent to hell for their failure to let go of their wealth for the sake of their neighbor (see Luke 16:1931), and of eternal judgment declared on the basis of ones willingness to share with those in need (Matt. God and Elijah were honoured, 1 Kings 18:21-39. 2. From Genesis to Revelation, we see that one of our Creator Kings primary qualities is his lavish generosity. Having built his altar in the name of the Lord (1 Kings 18:32; 1 Kings 18:32), by direction from him and with an eye to him, and not for his own honour, he prepared his sacrifice, 1 Kings 18:33; 1 Kings 18:33. Perhaps Jezebel persecuted God's prophets under pretence that they were the cause of the judgment, because Elijah had foretold it. It was strange that either he did not reform Ahab or Ahab corrupt him; but it seems they were both fixed; he that was filthy would be filthy still, and he that was holy would be holy still. I will prepare the other bull, putting the meat on the wood but not setting fire to it. We are made in the image of this generous King, wired to reflect his generosity to the rest of creation. They got their sacrifices ready; and we may well imagine what a noise 450 men made, when they cried as one man, and with all their might, O Baal! No, he waives the prescription, and enters upon the merits of the cause:--"There can be but one God, but one infinite and but one supreme: there needs but one God, one omnipotent, one all-sufficient. III. 6 So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself. This was not as a morning cloud, which passes away (though Israel's goodness was so), but one that produced a plentiful rain (Psalms 68:9), and an earnest of more. As for why the worship of Baal and Asherah specifically was such a problem for Israel, there are several reasons we can cite: first, the worship of Baal and Asherah held the allure of illicit sex, since the religion involved ritual prostitution. 39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God. They could say nothing to justify themselves, and they would say nothing to condemn themselves, but, as people confounded, let him say what he would. We may be sure it was not made necessary to qualify him for preferment that he should be of the king's religion, that he should conform to the statues of Omri, or the law of the house of Ahab. By this time there was no food in Samaria. Some, we hope, had their hearts thus turned back, but the generality of them were convinced only, not converted, yielded to the truth of God, that he is the God, but consented not to his covenant, that he should be theirs. 17 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel? Elijah did not interrupt them, but let them go on till they were tired, and quite despaired of success, which was not till the time of the evening sacrifice,1 Kings 18:29; 1 Kings 18:29. And they limped [they hobbled] around the altar that they had made." I don't think those two uses of the word limp or hobble are an accident. If we can find one that has more right to us, or will be a better master to us, than God, we may take him at our peril. God expressly forbade his worshippers to cut themselves, Deuteronomy 14:1. Our website uses cookies to store user preferences. By proceeding, you consent to our cookie usage. 40Then Elijah said, Capture the prophets of Baal! Vote Up "I love Jesus and it is the honor of my life to get to portray him," he said. Nothing creates more trouble to a land than the impiety and profaneness of princes and their families. THE PROPHETS OF BAAL,THE PROPHETS OF ASHERAH,AND THE LATTER RAIN. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly: 4 For it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah took a hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.) He that can give fire can give rain; see Matthew 9:2; Matthew 9:6. 20So Ahab called all the Israelites and those prophets to Mount Carmel. 3. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel. A good answer provides new insight and perspective. He put himself into a strange posture. They leaped up and down, or danced about the altar (so some): they hoped, by their dancing, to please their deity, as Herodias did Herod, and so to obtain their request. The Baalites are forced to give up their cause, and now it is Elijah's turn to produce his. This happened seven times. 43Then Elijah said to his servant, Go and look toward the sea.. 33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood. 1. The sad state of Israel at this time, upon two accounts:--. The prophets of Baal went first. Such living falls far short of the life Jesus invites us to experience. There he spoke with us. Turn them again to the Lord God of hosts, from whom they have revolted, and all will be well quickly; this must be Elijah's doing. Money becomes a spiritual power that too often uses us rather than the other way around. To report dead links, typos, or html errors or suggestions about making these resources more useful use the convenient. In a truly horrific passage, Jeremiah writes that our worship of idols consumes not only our flocks and herds but also our sons and daughters (Jer. Jezebel cut off the prophets of the Lord (1 Kings 18:4; 1 Kings 18:4), slew them,1 Kings 18:13; 1 Kings 18:13. When Jezebel was killing the Lords prophets, I hid a hundred of them, fifty in one cave and fifty in another. Has the book of Amos been fulfilled or is it a reference to end times? The glory of God: "Lord, hear me, and answer me, that it may be known (for it is now by the most denied or forgotten) that thou art God in Israel, to whom alone the homage and devotion of Israel are due, and that I am thy servant, and do all that I have done, am doing, and shall do, as thy agent, at thy word, and not to gratify any humour or passion of my own. 44 And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. Note, 1. 4. Wasnt killing too severe a punishment for the prophets of Baal? He ordered his servant to bring him notice as soon as he discerned a cloud arising out of the sea, the Mediterranean Sea, which he had a large prospect of from the top of Carmel. Does the devil have power to make us sick? Get the BEST VALUE in digital Bible study as you prepare for Easter. 4When Jezebel was killing all the Lords prophets, Obadiah hid a hundred of them in two caves, fifty in one cave and fifty in another. II. Obadiah therefore could with a good conscience enjoy the place, and therefore would not decline it, nor give it up, though he foresaw he could not do the good he desired to do in it. God never required his worshippers thus to honour him; but the service of the devil, though in some instances it pleases and pampers the body, yet in other things it is really cruel to it, as in envy and drunkenness. Idolatry is an economic issue. Is it really you, master?, 8Yes, Elijah answered. Their heart is divided (Hosea 10:2), whereas God will have all or none. When they called on their god, nothing happened. He tells Elijah what great search Ahab had made for him and how much his heart was upon it to find him out, 1 Kings 18:10; 1 Kings 18:10. Ahab, like himself, basely accused Elijah. These cookies collect information that is used either in aggregate form to help us understand how our website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are, or to help us customize our website and application for you in order to enhance your experience. There was a heavy rain: Gods word through Elijah was proved true. 16So Obadiah went to Ahab and told him where Elijah was. 36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. Enough to hold about thirteen quarts of seed cause, and in Ahab 's end times heart is divided Hosea! Was the true God other place after I leave one cave and fifty in another us... The convenient a land than the other bull, putting the meat on the wood but not fire. 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