As Ahab abetted by his wife went to possess Naboth’s vineyard, Elijah
was sent by God to meet him. First Kings 21:17-19 tell us that God instructed
the prophet to go meet him in the vineyard of Naboth in Jezreel in Samaria.
Elijah met Ahad and pronounced God’s judgment on him. He first asked a
rhetorical question, “Have you murdered and also taken possession?” Then he
went on to tell Ahab that “In the place where the dogs licked up the blood of
Naboth the dogs will lick up your blood, even yours.” In other words, Ahab
would not only pay with his own life but whoever was his would also have to
suffer the same outcome. For God saw everything. What Elijah told
him left the king without any excuse.
Ahab's
first response when he met Elijah was in a question. Calling Elijah his enemy,
he asked, “Have you found me, O my enemy?” The implication of his question
essentially was to ask the prophet why he was pursuing him. Elijah’s
response was straightforward. Not mincing any words, he told Ahab that he was
pursuing him because of all the evil he had done in the sight of the Lord. He
then went on to pronounce the judgment of God that would come upon him. Here
Elijah told him what would happen to him, Jezebel his wife, his family,
and Israel.
God
warned him that his family would end up like Jeroboam son of Nabat
and Baasha, son of Ahijah. Like them, Ahab had provoked the Lord to
anger by making all of Israel sin. Furthermore Jezebel his wife would be eaten
up by dogs in the district of Jezreel. God also warned him that none of his
family members would escape the impending judgment. There would be no place
where they could go to avoid the punishment. Those who died in the city dogs would
eat up, and for those who died in the field, the birds of the air would consume
them.
God
further highlighted the wickedness of Ahab in listening to his wicked wife
Jezebel. In 1 Kings 21:25-26, Ahab was said to have been more wicked than
anyone. For he had allowed his wife to influence him to venerate those
abominate Amorite idols which the Lord had cast out before the
sons of Israel. On hearing the impending judgment, Ahab unexpectedly humbled
himself and repented. Verse 27 said that “…he tore his clothes, …put on
sackcloth, …fasted, …lay in sackcloth, and went about despondently.” He
did the right thing here and the magnanimous God forgave him and postponed the
punishment. The judgment would take place on his family in the era of his sons.
Here
are a few thoughts for application. Firstly, the ill-gotten gain may bring
temporary pleasure but will cause us to lose our peace forever. Any happiness
that we derive from covetous gain will never last. It will bring temporary
delight, not everlasting peace and joy. Secondly, know that sin will render us
incapable of recognizing who are our true friends. Like Ahab, his sin had
rendered him incapable of seeing Elijah as a friend. He only saw him as his
enemy when he was his true friend. Remember Proverbs 27:6? We are
told that “Faithful are the wounds of a friend but deceptive are the kisses of
an enemy.” Thirdly, bear in mind that no sin escapes the notice of God. He is
all-seeing and all-knowing. Take heed to the warning that Moses gave to the
Reubenites who had sinned against the Lord. He told them in
Numbers 32:23 saying “…be sure our sin will find us out.” Finally, we learn
that God is gracious, even when the worst of sinners repents, God will have
mercy. What a marvelous God! Truly
there is none like Him!
No comments:
Post a Comment