Sometimes, when we get to know someone in the Bible, we expect some sort of background or context. For the prophet Elijah, though, he seems to simply appear on the scene of history.
Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”
1 Kings 17:1 NIV
https://bible.com/bible/111/1ki.17.1.NIV
We learn that Elijah was “the Tishbite”, which sounds like a description of where he was from. From the footnotes in a couple of Bible translations, there’s a bit of a question about the term, “Tishbe”, though. Most commentaries that I found treated this as the name of the place where Elijah was from, but footnotes suggest that this might be a reference to “settlers” (whether as a translation or a textual variant). I don’t think that it matters much, either way.
From this verse, we would call Elijah a prophet, since he delivered a message from God. (A commentator, cited below, makes the case for similarities to both Joshua and Jesus. I don’t disagree with that imagery, but those were likely planned by God ahead of time, and not something that Elijah was necessarily aware of during his ministry.)
When we meet Elijah, though, he is delivering a message to Ahab. Now, this isn’t “Ahab the Arab” from the old Ray Stevens novelty song. Instead, Ahab was a king of Israel, as described in the preceding chapter of 1 Kings (see 1 Kings 16:29-33), just a few verses earlier.
Now, Ahab (whose reign intersects with Elijah’s ministry on multiple occasions, but not always in a good way) was specifically king of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. The nation of Judah (the “Southern Kingdom of Israel”) was separate from the other tribes that Ahab ruled over, and the two nations had split after the reign of King Solomon. 1 Kings 16:29 refers to Ahab reigning over Israel in Samaria, which – as I understand it – was the name of both a region and a specific city . We might recognize the region as the land of the Samaritans mentioned in the New Testament (the ones who the Jewish people typically didn’t get along with in Jesus’ era, even though He showed countercultural kindness to Samaritans).
Ahab was married to Jezebel, whose name still carries negative connotations today. And, at least partly due to Jezebel’s influence, Ahab did a terrible job of leading the people of Israel towards God. Instead, Ahab set up various altars for pagan, false gods. And, when it comes to the true, holy God, serving any other god “in addition to” or “besides” Him is a bad idea!
As a result, while the specific reason for Elijah’s message to Ahab isn’t necessarily spelled out here, it seems logical that the impending drought was “corrective action”, we might say, from God. Whether this was discipline from God (meant to bring Ahab – and the Israelites – back to Himself), punishment for breaking their covenant, or a warning about what would happen, the warning or curse here follows shortly after accounts of Ahab’s sinful behavior. Like Newtonian motion, this was probably the “reaction” to a series of “actions” that Ahab had done. And, as we continue to read from here in the book of 1 Kings, God’s resolution to Ahab’s wandering allegiances would achieve more than just reminding a wayward king that He was the only true God.
So, how about you and me? Are we like Elijah here, with a message from God (one that aligns with His word, His nature, and His character)? If so, let’s be bold and share it with those who need to hear it, even if they are politically powerful. Are we like Ahab here, having moved away from God and diluting our respect for Him with other things that capture our attention? If so, let’s listen to wisdom from others who are sharing the truth, and end up better than Ahab did in the end.
From Sunday School lesson prepared for May 4, 2025
References:
- Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
- The College Press NIV Commentary – 1 & 2 Kings, by Jesse C. Long, Jr. © 2002 College Press Publishing Co.
Those Who Sin Differently 