Thought: "A
testimony is more like a dimmer switch that makes possible an almost infinite
number of settings between total light and total darkness. Just as there are
levels of light, there are levels of testimony as well. I know-I believe-I
desire to believe-I wonder-I doubt-I don't believe" (John Bytheway)
Book of the Week: Verse By Verse-The Old
Testament II, D. Kelly Ogden,
Andrew C. Skinner
1 Kings 17-2 Kings 13-(19 chapters)
Elijah: Ancient Sources - Encyclopedia
of Mormonism Author: WERBLOWSKY, R. J. ZVI - Elijah in Jewish tradition was an Israelite prophet who was active in the
northern kingdom during the reigns
of King Ahab-22 years (and his consort
Jezebel) and King Ahaziah 2 years(9th
cent. B.C.). His name may be a cognomen:
(extra or 3rd name or title) Eli-yahu (Yhwh, or Jehovah, is God),
expressing the main emphasis of his prophetic ministry: the exclusive and pure
worship of Yhwh, and uncompromising opposition to the Canaanite pagan cult of
Baal. His activities are described in 1
Kings 17-
2 Kings 2,and account for his
becoming in Jewish tradition the symbol of uncompromising religious zeal. The
latter came to a dramatic climax in his confrontation with the priests of Baal, after a long period of
drought which Elijah had prophesied would come as punishment for the idolatrous
Baal-worship, on Mount Carmel.
Unlike the later "literary" prophets, Elijah is also described as a
worker of miracles, but he shares with them the strong emphasis on social
justice, as evidenced by his other great clash with the king and queen in the
matter of Naboth's vineyard (1 Kgs.
21), which the royal couple desired for themselves. Elijah did not die an ordinary death but was taken up into heaven in a whirlwind by a chariot of fire drawn by
horses of fire. Hence, a large number of
legends and beliefs concerning him developed. He is said to return frequently
to earth, -unrecognized-to help those in distress or danger, disappearing as
suddenly as he appeared. A chair is set and a cup of wine poured for Elijah at
every Passover celebration. He is also believed to be present at every
circumcision ceremony, and a special chair ("Elijah's chair") for his
invisible presence is placed next to that of the godfather holding the male
baby. More important,
however, than all the other aspects is Elijah's
eschatological (end of the world) role in Jewish tradition. (Mal.
4:5). (We'll discuss the "post
mortal" role of Elijah when we get to Malachi.
1 Kings- read
chapter heading to 16
Chapter 17- VS. 1- GILEAD 3
great things: 1) a 3 year famine 2) the Lord provides birds to feed the prophet
3) the Lord blesses a faithful widow and her son.
The
Lord often teaches using extreme circumstances to illustrate a principle. The
story of the widow of Zarephath is an example of extreme poverty used to teach
the doctrine that mercy cannot rob sacrifice any more than it can rob justice.
In fact, the truer measure of sacrifice isn’t so much what one gives to
sacrifice as what one sacrifices to give (see Mark 12:43). Faith isn’t tested
so much when the cupboard is full as when it is bare. In these defining
moments, the crisis doesn’t create one’s character—it reveals it.
The
widow of Zarephath lived in the days of the prophet Elijah, by whose word the
Lord brought a drought upon the land for three and a half years (see Luke 4:25). The famine grew so
severe that many were finally at the point of death. This is the circumstance
in which we find the widow. The Lord
says to Elijah, “Arise, get thee to Zarephath … : behold, I have commanded a
widow woman there to sustain thee” (1 Kgs. 17:9). It is interesting
that Elijah is not told to go to Zarephath until the widow and her son are at
the point of death. It is at this extreme moment—facing starvation—that her
faith will be tested.
As
he comes into the city he sees her gathering sticks.
One reason the Lord illustrates doctrines with
the most extreme circumstances is to eliminate excuses. If the Lord expects
even the poorest widow to pay her mite, where does that leave all others who
find that it is not convenient or easy to sacrifice? No bishop, no missionary should ever
hesitate or lack the faith to teach the law of tithing to the poor. The
sentiment of “They can’t afford to” needs to be replaced with “They
can’t afford not to.” One of the
first things a bishop must do to help the needy is ask them to pay their
tithing. Like the widow, if a destitute family is faced with the decision of
paying their tithing or eating, they should pay their tithing. The bishop can
help them with their food and other basic needs until they become self-reliant.
(Lynn G. Robbins -CR-April, 2005)
Chapter 18 - One vs. 450 and the 400
don't have a chance! You have got to love this Obadiah guy- King Ahab's own
chief steward. I especially love vs. 17, 21, 28, 38 & 46. (Elijah outruns a
chariot for 20 miles.
Chapter 19 -Even prophets can get
discouraged! vs. 7-8-That was some kind of meat. vs. 11-12 - "More importantly, please know that your
Father in Heaven loves you and so does His Only Begotten Son. When They speak
to you—and They will—it will not be in the wind, nor in the earthquake, nor in
the fire, but it will be with a voice still and small, a voice tender and kind."
(JFHolland CR. Oct. 89) "I am occasionally asked by those not of our faith
why it is that our Church grows so rapidly, in both membership and activity,
while other churches are reportedly declining in both. The answer to that
question is simply a still, small voice and then a throbbing heart. In this
busy, tumultuous, and noisy world, it is not like a wind, it is not like a
fire, it is not like an earthquake; but it is a still, small, but a very
discernible voice, and it causes a throbbing heart. It is a quiet burning
within that this is the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, with all of its
doctrine, priesthood, and covenants that had been lost through the many
centuries of darkness and confusion. Yes, it is a still, small voice and a
throbbing heart that testifies of the miracle of the Restoration."
(RCEdgley - CR-Apr. 2010) 15 - Elijah walked over 600 miles in this chapter. vs.
15-18 - ELIJAH GET A SHOPPING LIST; Hazael, Jehu, Elisha - The Lord has his
followers named and numbered. Vs. 19-21- Elisha forsook all and followed the
prophet. Is this where we get the
statement, "the mantel of the prophet?"
Chapter 20 - Ben-hadad means son of
Hadad (the storm god) and is a frequent name for Syrian leaders. See chapter
heading. I like verse 11 as Ahab tells
Ben-hadad not to get ahead of himself. God helps Ahab-but not because of Ahab-
Ahab doesn't obey the prophets and (vs. 42)
is promised death.
Chapter 21 - Thou shalt not covet thy
neighbor's vineyard. (see 1 Sam. 8:14-Samuel tells Israel what a King will do) Vs. 19- This is the same thing David had
done- He killed to take possession. Vs. 20 - Elijah and Ahab have a
history. Vs. 27-29 - I never would have guessed
that Ahab would have humbled himself. Ahab will die as promised, but the loss
of the dynasty will happen with his posterity.
Chapter 22 - (2 Chron. 18:1-34;
20:31-21:1) - We note the rise of the Assyrian empire and 12 kings defending
themselves against it. Also a righteous king from Judah (Jehoshaphat) joining
forces with Ahab of Israel and 1 righteous prophet in Israel who refuses to
prophecy in favor of Ahab. King Ahab's
attempt to set up Jehoshaphat and his own prophesied death. Vs. 8 quoted by Elder
Holland in April Conference 2014.
2 Kings
Chapter 1 -Vs. 2-4- Ahab's son Ahaziah
reigned for 2 years and lost two groups of 50 soldiers and his life as he
followed his father's ways of following Baal (Baal-zebub a Philistine god whose
name means lord of the flies) rather than Jehovah.
Chapter 2 - vs. 9 - Elisha asking for a
double portion should be understood in connection with the law of inheritances.
See Dt. 21:17. Elijah is translated and
his mantle falls upon Elisha. The
location is the same place where Moses had been translated 400+ years before. Vs.
23 - not the footnote correction of the translation of little children. The
Hebrew is na'arim=youths. baqa means to lacerate or tear
Chapter 3 - Jehoram, the not as wicked
as his father Ahab, king of Israel and the righteous Jehoshaphat won a battle
against Moab as predicted by Elisha and aided by the Lord.
Chapter 4 - Vs. 1-7 - Chapter heading
Chapter 5 - Naaman the Syrian leper
captain. Some Great Thing - James E. Faust CR- Oct. 2001-
Contrasts Oliver Cowdery with Hyrum Smith and tells great story of President
Eyring's father on the welfare farm.
Vs. 20-27- Gehazi's disease.
Chapters 6-7 - Vs. 1-7- An ax head floats! Vs. 16- "Let us, therefore, be like the young man
with Elisha on the mount. At first intimidated by the surrounding enemy
chariots, the young man’s eyes were mercifully opened, and he saw “horses and
chariots of fire,” verifying “they that be with us are more than they that be
with them” Brothers and sisters, the spiritual arithmetic has not changed!
(NAMaxwell-CR-April 2003)
6:24-7:20- A siege laid by Syria caused food
to be so scarce the Israelites turned to cannibalism. Elisha promised plenty,
The Syrian army was spooked and ran off leaving their bounty of provisions.
Chapter
8 - Vs. 1-6- Bad news, (7
yr. famine) good news (avoided famine by going to the Philistines), bad news (when
she returned she couldn't get her house back)then good news (king gives her
land back) for the Shunammite woman whose son Elisha raised from the dead. Vs.
7-15- Good news (you'll get better)then
bad news (you're going to die)for the king of Syria and worse news as a result
of his replacement. (Hazael-the servant
who became the replacement) The son of
Jehoshaphat (Jehoram) married the daughter of Ahab and reigned more like his
in-laws. In an apparent effort to confuse us the names Jehoram and Joram are
interchangeable AND we have a king in Israel and a king in Judah with that same
name and they happen to be brothers-in-law.
Chapter
9 - Elisha sent one of the
children of the prophets to anoint Jehu to be a new king to the northern
tribes.. Vs. 13 - See Luke 19:36. Jehu went to Jezreel and ended the Ahab
dynasty by killing Ahab's son Joram the king of Israel and Ahaziah the King of
Judah who was Ahab and Jezebel's grandson through their daughter Athaliah. He
then had Jezebel thrown out the window who died a pretty gross death herself. This
is a pretty good example of a prophet involving himself in political affairs.
If you wonder if it is appropriate, take a look at HBL in CR. Oct. 1970 and
President Benson's talk given at BYU April 26, 1980 called, 14 Principles for
Following the Prophet." Seventh:
The prophet tells us what we need to know, not always
what we want to know. “Thou has declared unto us hard things, more than
we are able to bear,” complained Nephi’s brethren. But Nephi answered by
saying, “The guilty taketh the truth to be hard, for it cutteth them to the
very center.” (1 Ne.
16:1–2.)
Said President Harold B. Lee: “You may not like what comes from the authority
of the Church. It may conflict with your political views. It may contradict
your social views. It may interfere with some of your social life … Your safety
and ours depends upon whether or not we follow … Let’s keep our eye on the
President of the Church.” (Conference Report, October 1970, p. 152–153.) But it
is the living prophet who really upsets the world. “Even in the Church,” said
President Kimball, “many are prone to garnish the sepulchers of yesterdays
prophets and mentally stone the living ones.” (Instructor,
95:527.) Why? Because the living prophet gets at what we need to know now, and
the world prefers that prophets either be dead or worry about their own
affairs. Some so-called experts of political science want the prophet to keep
still on politics. Some would-be authorities on evolution want the prophet to
keep still on evolution. And so the list goes on and on. Said President Marion
G. Romney, “It is an easy thing to believe in the dead prophets, but it is a
greater thing to believe in the living prophets.” And then he gives this illustration:
“One day when President Grant was living, I sat in my office across the street
following a general conference. A man came over to see me, an elderly man. He
was very upset about what had been said in this conference by some of the
Brethren, including myself. I could tell from his speech that he came from a
foreign land. After I had quieted him enough so he would listen, I said, ‘Why
did you come to America?’ ‘I am here because a prophet of God told me to come.’
‘Who was the prophet?’ I continued. ‘Wilford Woodruff.’ ‘Do you believe Wilford
Woodruff was a prophet of God?’ ‘Yes, sir.’ “Then came the sixty-four dollar
question, ‘Do you believe that Heber J. Grant is a prophet of God?’ His answer,
‘I think he ought to keep his mouth shut about old-age assistance.’ “Now I tell
you that a man in his position is on the way to apostasy. He is forfeiting his
chances for eternal life. So is everyone who cannot follow the living prophet
of God.” (MGRomney, Conference Report, April 1953, p. 125.)
Chapter
10 - Jehu seems to have
felt he had a license to kill and could do it in the name of the Lord. He wiped
out the family Ahab and Jezebel from Israel and many from Judah and massacred
the followers of Baal. He then followed in the footsteps of Jeroboam in worshipping
the golden calves in Bethel & Dan. (See Hosea 1:1-4) The end of this chapters
tells of Hazael of Syria making war vs. Israel as Elisha had prophesied.
Chapter
11 - The bloodbath
continues. Athaliah the daughter of Ahab & Jezebel and the mother of the
recently deceased King Ahaziah of Judah had all of her family who might compete
with her to reign put to death and became queen of Judah. She introduced Baal
worship into Judah and vandalized the temple (2 Chron. 24:7). A sister of the
deceased king named Jehosheba saved a baby nephew, son of the deceased king
Ahaziah named Joash and hid him in the temple for six years. In the 7th year
the priest Jehoiada anointed Joash (also called Jehoash) king and arranged to
have the queen put to death. Jehoiada the priest and Joash, the king then led a
religious revival destroying Baal, but not doing totally away with worship in
the groves in the high places where the people offered sacrifices & burnt
incense-sometimes to idols and sometimes to the Lord.
Chapter
12 - See chapter heading.
Also 2 Chron. 24:20-27- Jehoiada, the priest died and Joash lost his religious
vigor. His worst deed was slaying the son of his old high priest advisor
Jehoiada. (See Matt. 23:35 & Luke
11:51. The king's downward slide seems to have led to his being killed by the
palace servants. His son Amaziah reigned in his stead.
Chapter
13 - (back to Israel)
Chapter heading - Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu reigned in wickedness for 17 years
followed by his son Jehoash who reigned for 16 wicked years. His son Jeroboam
II then reigned in the same way for 41 years.
The
Mantle of Elijah
- Bruce L. Andreason -Ensign - Aug. 2002 - Some six or seven
years before the end of Elijah’s mortal ministry, the Lord revealed to him that
Elisha would be his successor (see 1 Kgs. 19:16).
So Elijah went to meet him and found Elisha plowing a field. Elijah approached
him and threw his mantle (cloak) over Elisha’s shoulders, signifying Elisha’s
call to be his attendant and disciple. Elisha then kissed his parents good-bye,
gave away all he owned, and “arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto
him” (see 1 Kgs. 19:19–21). Elisha
served and matured spiritually under Elijah’s direction through several major
events. First, Elijah confronted King Ahab and Queen Jezebel and reproved them
for the murder of Naboth (see 1 Kgs. 21:1–29).
Then Elijah twice called down fire from heaven to consume 50 soldiers sent by the
king to arrest him (see 2 Kgs. 1:1–12).
Finally, Elijah rebuked Ahab’s son King Ahaziah for seeking counsel from false
gods, prophesying of Ahaziah’s imminent death (see 2 Kgs. 1:13–17).
Elisha was an eyewitness to the power of Elijah’s priesthood keys. In like
manner we can be assured that the Lord is preparing mighty leaders today to
move His latter-day kingdom forward through their service to the Master, Jesus
Christ. The Mantle Is Passed - Chapter 2 of 2 Kings records the final
dramatic events of Elijah’s mortal ministry. Elijah set out on a journey with
Elisha from Gilgal to Bethel, then from Bethel to Jericho, and finally from
Jericho across the Jordan River (see Bible Map 4). At each place Elijah
directed his faithful disciple, “Tarry here, I pray thee” (2 Kgs. 2:2, 4, 6).
But each time Elisha refused to leave his master’s side. He was determined to
follow his leader until the very end of his ministry. At each stopping place, Elisha was
questioned by the sons of the prophets, “Knowest thou that the Lord will take
away thy master from thy head today?” (2 Kgs. 2:3, 5).
Elisha’s simple reply each time was, “Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.” Elisha’s loyalty to Elijah and his
response to the sons of the prophets reminds us of the importance of sustaining
our leaders right up to the time they are formally released, even when we know
this may be soon. Elijah and Elisha approached the banks of the
Jordan River, Elijah took his mantle, rolled it up, and struck the water with
it. Then something occurred that hadn’t happened since the days of Joshua over
450 years before: the water “divided hither and thither, so that they two went
over on dry ground” (2 Kgs. 2:8;
see also Josh. 3:14–17).
This was witnessed by 50 of the sons of the prophets. Once across the river, Elijah and Elisha continued their
journey. Elijah asked his student-prophet what he would desire of him before
his departure. “I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me,”
Elisha replied (2 Kgs. 2:9).
The term double portion refers to Elisha’s desire
for the special inheritance that belongs to the worthy firstborn male in a
family (see Bible Dictionary, “Firstborn,” 675). Elijah deferred the granting
of this request to the will of the Lord, saying, “If thou see me when I am
taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee” (2 Kgs. 2:10). They continued to walk and talk, when
suddenly a chariot with horses of fire descended from heaven, sweeping Elijah
up off the ground toward heaven in a whirlwind. As they parted Elisha cried
out, “My father, my father!” Elijah then dropped his well-worn cloak to his
faithful follower. When Elijah had disappeared from view, Elisha was overcome
with grief, tearing apart his own outer garment (see 2 Kgs. 2:12).
The sense of sadness over the release of a leader is often felt deeply by those
who have been most affected by the leader’s ministry. Taking Elijah’s cloak, Elisha
began the journey back to Jericho. When he approached the Jordan River, he
struck the water as Elijah had and walked through again on dry ground.
Witnessing this, the sons of the prophets who had seen the earlier miracle of parting
the water exclaimed, “The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha,” and paid
appropriate respect to their newly chosen leader (see 2 Kgs. 2:15).
When we sustain a new leader, it is our privilege to pray and come to know by
revelation that those who have been called to lead us have indeed received
authority from God.
Elisha’s ministry
lasted more than 50 years and presents similarities and differences to that of
his master. Elijah’s mission brought word of the Lord’s judgment upon Israel’s
wicked kings, while Elisha’s ministry was primarily that of a supportive
adviser to well-intentioned kings. Both men were healers; both were men of many
mighty miracles, of kindness, and of mercy. When a newly called leader comes into our
lives, we need to recognize that no two leaders or their ministries are the
same. Yet they have one thing in common: they each are expected to bring all
that they are and have to the altar of God and offer it for the benefit and
blessing of those over whom they preside.
Sustaining Our New Leaders - President
Harold B. Lee (1899–1973) has said, “The measure of your true conversion … is
whether or not you are so living that you see the power of God resting upon the
leaders of this church and that testimony goes down into your heart like fire.”
See
Robert D. Hales, “The Mantle of a
Bishop, ”Ensign, May 1985, 28–30; Howard W.
Hunter, “Elijah the
Prophet,” Ensign, Dec. 1971, 70–72.
