Daring Deeds and Death Threats

Elijah had just wrought 2 great miracles before the King Ahab and the people of Israel on Mt. Carmel. First, he called down fire from heaven and consumed the sacrifice that was laid upon the altar of God. Second, he prayed for rain after a 7 year drought and God sent it that very afternoon. On the power of those miracles he called for capital punishment of the prophets of Baal who used human and especially child sacrifices to worship their God.

Elijah had to believe that after such miracles Israel and the royal house of Ahab and Jezebel would repent. The nation would destroy their idols and return to worshipping Jehovah the one true God. But that is not what happened at all.

Instead we read in 1 Kings 19:1–2. 1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.

Elijah hit a three-stage crisis in his life. Nationally, spiritually and personally everything seemed to crash at the same time.

Nationally his country was morally bankrupt, corrupt, idolatrous and hypocritical. Proclaiming that Jehovah is God but not changing any idolatrous practice or immoral lifestyle.

Personally, he saw himself as a failure, the great miracle working prophet of Israel, a man that God had used to show more miracles than any other man since Moses and yet those miracles or perhaps his leadership as a prophet had not resulted in a true revival within Israel.

And spiritually he was simply spent, he was emptied out. He had been on the run from Ahab and Jezebel for 7 years, the same seven years that had brought a terrible famine in Israel, he had lived as an outlaw hiding out with a widow and her son, consisting mainly on nothing more than ground meal and olive oil.

Finally, after all those years, the Lord says its time o put in motion the great battle of faith on Mt. Carmel, there was a great, undeniable victory. The fire of God fell from heaven, the sacrifice was miraculously accepted by God and then 850 child sacrificing prophets of Baal had been slain, the rains returned and Elijah receives … not thanks from the King, not a revival from the people but instead an oath of death from the evil Queen Jezebel, the real power behind the throne of Israel.

1 Kings 19:2-3 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.

What kind of shape do you think you would be in, after all that?