More tales of Eli. The first chapter we find out that the king of Israel, Ahaziah has fallen and he can't get up. He sends for a messenger to ask Baal, if he shall be better soon. God sends Eli to intercept the messenger and tell him that it it because there is no God in Israel that they must send for Baal. AND because he sent for Baal, he will lay there and die. (So God is there? He has to be there if he is able to control when he will die, right?....or maybe he just won't help him to live....)
Ahaziah doesn't like this one little bit and he asks the messenger to describe this bearer of bad news. "he's a hairy fella, wearing a girdle of leather around his loins"......."ELIJAH" (said like newman)
The king sends a captain and 50 men to bring him in. They find him calmly sitting on a hill. I love the visual of this entire scene. They tell him that they are there to bring him in. He says "if I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you" and it does....all but the captain.
The king sends a captain and 50 more....same thing.
The king sends a captain and 50 more....this time the captain ain't no dummy, he falls to his knees and asks that the lives of his men be saved, and they are. BUT there's a fire, a fire that consumes the other two captains.
Eli once a gain tells of the impending doom of their king. When it finally happens, Ahaziah's bro Joram takes over.
Chapter 2 has many strange things happening. First of all Eli is dying, and in his death march, he parts the Jericho, such a tired trick now, why did Moses get ALL the glory? Then when he dies a Chariot of FIRE comes down from heaven and takes him?! WHAT?! No one else has gotten this kind of treatment? Moses died in the desert? And has there ever been any mention of the dead going to heaven until now? I've been watching for it and I don't think there has...maybe I'm wrong though?
Elisha takes Eli's mantel and is now the prophet. His first couple of orders of business:
A. make the drinking water clean....check
B. take out some guys who are making fun of his bald head, by bear mauling.....check
Joram is leading Israel and is another bad guy, but he doesn't worship Baal. At least that's something. He goes to war with the Mobites. The kings of Israel, Judah and Edom all band together, but they need a prophet. They send for Elisha, he sends for a minstrel. He apparently needs a little calming music to feel Gods wishes.
God sends his orders. They attack, the Moab king freaks out and offers his young son up for a burnt offering?! This thus freaks out the 3 kings and they get outta there.
Elisha pulls the "never ending jar of oil" trick, in order to help a woman out of debt. So, that's nice I think. Then he copies the "laying on the child and bringing him back to life" trick, which A GAIN is good, I just wish he could be a tad more original. Here's what strange about this story though. The kid becomes warm....sneezes seven times and then wakes up. Randomly oddddd.
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He wasn't saying there was no God in Israel as a statement, but as a question. Like, You're sending an inquiry to Baal because there's no God in Israel? That's his point, there is a God in Israel so why is he inquiring of Baal.
Yes, Elijah is the only person in the Bible who went to Heaven without dying. I think it's evident by this preferential treatment and his incredible power that he was truly a mighty man of God. Other than Jesus, Himself, I don't know of anyone in the Bible, save maybe Elisha his protege, that had Elijah's power. I can't help, though, and feel like we got the Cliff's Notes version of Elijah. I'd have like to known more. I guess, if you're Godly as he was, there's a little less drama. I don't know.
I wanted to bring up something about the multiplying oil thing. If you notice that the lady not only had enough to pay off her debts, but had enough left over to live on. God is a god of MORE than enough, not JUST enough. Also, that's why in Ps. 23 it says that, my cup runs over. Not that it is half full, not that there's enough to wash down those tasty morsels, not even full, or to the brim, but running over...more than your cup can hold....that's abundance.
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