#486 Cloaked

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.

3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.

4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.

5 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.

6 And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again.

7 And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee.

8 And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.

9 And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?

10 And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.

11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lordwas not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lordwas not in the earthquake:

12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.

13 And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?

14 And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.

15 And the Lord said unto him, Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king over Syria:

16 And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room.

17 And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay.

18 Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.

19 So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him.

20 And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee. And he said unto him, Go back again: for what have I done to thee?

21 And he returned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him. 1 Kings 19 KJV

Ahab told his wife what Elijah had done, like it was all him. She is steadfast in her beliefs and makes an oath by the gods, which isn't much of an oath at all, since they haven't brought rain in 3.5 years or fire after a long day of cutting and dancing. He has something to fear in her since she does have rule and people willing to obey her. She threatens his life, and the man who was willing to face her husband is not willing to stick around for the retaliation promised by Jezebel. It is a difficult situation, frustrating for him, for anyone, she is not phased by the facts and seems to only strengthen her husband's resolve to do nothing. He could have attacked the prophet earlier, thrown a spear through him as he ran before the chariot, or had him arrested for following the God Who responded by fire. I think Ahab is infatuated with darkness, his wife is that of which we crave when we are far from God, when the Creator does not fit our fancy. I was always more about the progressive girls when I was young. I grew up in the 80's, you would call it goth maybe now, you know, "being myself", just like everyone else who was being their punk self. If you gave me a choice between the nice, moral, plain girl or the dark and wild witch, I would pick Elvira every time. I think Ahab is no different, faced with the facts and a token god, it doesn't matter that it's not the truth, it's what he wants, it's what makes his wife happy. Lucifer stood before the glory and majesty of the Creator, and he, a created being, would seek to elevate himself above the position of being made. It is an impossibility, insanity, but Jezebel would worship such things herself, and Ahab would follow such vanity. Look, this is what happened, tell me it doesn't matter, just tell me it's going to be okay; I saw all this, but if you say we're good, then I will follow you, like that pretty song, "into the dark."

Elijah runs, and I am not so sure except of this point, that some courage is only that which is from above. Like the fire from heaven, so the Spirit of God, that Comforter, was also his encouragement. That faith which comes from hearing was bright when it was being spoken, but when the vision plaid out, and his mind was only searching, then he was sure he was alone. He did not wait, but of his own power he ran. I find much stress and anxiety this way, first in playing out what should happen, then planning and preparing, seeing thus far, but not being able to see the craziness of others in advance. This person will do this part for it is their job and so on, but now one has not, yet argues as though they have or that they didn't understand. He must feel like he has laid out a compelling argument, that he has respected God's anointed, and may even now be suspecting reciprocation, to be carried upon the shoulders of Israel and approved by Ahab. He is instead running, and may even feel a bit betrayed, but who can even fathom the offense that the least sinner is to the purist Light? He begs to let it be done, he is exhausted, I am ready to die, and I am stoic about it. The angel feeds him twice, because he must be prepared against 40 more days, that this man will live by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God, that he will no longer be sustained of meat past these last two meals. There is great temptation to see ourselves as the suffering servants of the Lord, but like Paul, in the end, we should count the present as nothing. Christ was 40 days in the wilderness to be tempted and show His flesh under submission, for man cannot live by bread alone, there is a part of him which is spiritual. Bread did not create man, nor did any part of nature in him, but rather through His Word were all things created. 

I was irritated by this at first, but this is beautiful, after all of this, it is the child that still remains, even in the chief of prophets. Lord, I fought hard for You, I was jealous for You, when others would not stand, I thought Your honor was worth everything. Sometimes it is good to have our running to look back upon, and it is wonderful to have a mirror of high quality, true definition. "What doest thou here, Elijah?" I am no better than my fathers, look, I can't blame this on You, because You're God, Holy, and I am not, but look how it has turned out. What did I do wrong? They are still unconvinced, and if I ran, I know who I am now, it would hurt more to me I probably boast, but I hope because of the honor of God, the smear campaign that my fear and unbelief may impress. We forget that we do not see so far and that substance is of things not seen, the evidence was enough, for Who alone can make the rocks split, the earth tremble, the fire come down? Yet, this is not where the voice of God is heard. Remember, they loved the miracles, but they couldn't hear, wouldn't listen to what would save them. It is not by might, like the signs and wonders ministries would have you believe, nor by power, but by my Spirit says the Lord. When all of that is settled, the crowd will be gone, and Elijah sees it all again, but now it is quiet, so still the silence becomes audible, not my will, but Yours be done. My mind is quiet, the ears of my heart are listening. I cover my face for I fear I am at the very edge of Your Holiness, and it is beyond humbling, undeserved, beautiful, grace. "What doest thou here?" You are not here to die for sure, you will anoint and train your replacement and it is revealed that this is not over, it is just waiting on God's time. He will judge Israel, but quit saying you are all that is left of God's elect, for there are 7000, His remnant still remaining, who have not bowed the knee to Baal. You are here because God brought you here, alive because He says so, and a funny thing about Elijah, he won't die till much later.

As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. 19“Come, follow Me, Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.” 20And at once they left their nets and followed Him.…Matthew 4:19