It is enough….
—1 Kings 19:4
Read 1 Kings 19:1-8
After the climax we saw in the previous chapter, we now find Elijah in a deep valley. Clearly, after the great triumph for the God of Israel, the people ignored Elijah. After receiving the needed rain, they did not need him or his God any more.
Verse 1 tells us that Ahab gave a report to his wife Jezebel about what had occurred on Mount Carmel. In telling her what Elijah had done, he did not use the name of the Lord. Was this deliberately defiant? Or did he not want to believe what had actually happened?
As a result, Jezebel threatened to put Elijah to death. This was an empty threat merely to frighten God’s servant. She announced his death sentence, but the next thing we read is that he walked around freely. What Jezebel really hoped for was that Elijah would just disappear, and that did happen.
In the wilderness, under a juniper tree, the prophet complained that all was lost. Jezebel had sworn to kill him, and then Elijah actually prayed that he would die. Even through all this, the Lord is still his refuge, for it is to Him that he prays, “Oh Lord, take away my life.”
Do you understand the helplessness Elijah experienced?