The Bible In A Year
1 Samuel – 2 Kings
Week 4 of 8
Readings for the Week
October 8-13, 2018
Theme of the week: The united kingdom begins to unravel. This week we will begin to read some of the prophets. Great effort has been made to match up the readings of prophets with the various kings and/or events to which their books refer.
- Monday Leviticus chapters 1 & 3, 1 Kings chapters 3, 4, 5 & 6, Psalms 45, 72 & 84
- Tuesday 1 Kings chapters 7, 8 & 9, Psalm 68
Psalm 68 is possibly used in dedicating the temple - Wednesday 1 Kings chapters 10, 11, 12 & 13
- Thursday 1 Kings chapters 14 & 15
- Friday 1 Kings 16, 17 & 18
- Saturday 1 Kings 19, 20 & 21, Psalm 29
The Bible In A Year
1 Samuel – 2 Kings
Week 4 of 8
A Framework for Understanding
Elijah
The stories of the prophet Elijah are told in 1 Kings 17 through 2 Kings 2. The stories are exciting, filled with danger, bold confrontations, covert missions, and high drama. It is truly and action-adventure thriller of biblical proportions!
Though there is no “Book of Elijah,” Elijah is often understood to be the greatest of all prophets. He is mentioned in both the Old and New Testaments, the Talmud, the Mishnah, and the Qur’an. The book of Malachi (4:5) reports that Elijah will be sent ahead of the Messiah. The New Testament reports that Jesus and John the Baptist were each thought by some to be Elijah returned.
Elijah’s presence is invoked at the Passover seder by the presence of an empty chair – in anticipation of his arrival. The final cup of blessing in the Passover seder calls to mind Elijah’s coming to announce the arrival of the Messiah. Luke 22:20 reports that it is this cup – the one after dinner, the one to announce the coming of the Messiah – that Jesus blesses and passed to his disciples at his last meal.
As a prophet, Elijah was repeatedly called upon to confront the King Ahab of the Northern Kingdom, over his faithlessness and idolatry. However, Elijah’s most zealous opposition was actually Ahab’s wife, Jezebel. Jezebel was the daughter of the King of Sidon, and was quite likely also a priestess in the worship of Ba’al. Under Jezebel’s tutelage Ahab turned to Ba’al, building a temple for Ba’al and also establishing the sacred pole of Ahstart.
One of Elijah’s most famous adventures was the showdown between him and the large group of priests Jezebel brought with her to the capital city. When Elijah triumphs and her priests are consumed by fire, rather than recognizing Yahweh as the true God, Jezebel swears vengeance against Elijah.