5. Jairus’ daughter, raised by Jesus Luke 8:52–56
6. Lazarus of Bethany, brother of Mary and Martha, raised by Jesus John 11
7. Dorcas, raised by Peter Acts 9:40
8. Eutychus, raised by Paul Acts 20:9–12
13:18 He was lying to him. Why the old prophet deceived the man of God the text does not state. It may be that his own son’s were worshipers at Bethel or perhaps priests, and this man wanted to gain favor with the king by showing up the man of God as an imposter who acted contrary to his own claim to have heard from God. Accustomed to receiving direct revelations, the Judean prophet should have regarded the supposed angelic message with suspicion and sought divine verification of this revised order.
13:20 the word of the LORD. The lie arose from his own imagination (cf. Jer. 23:16; Ezek. 13:2, 7), but the true prophecy came from the Lord (cf. Ex. 4:16; Deut. 18:18; Jer. 1:9).
13:22 your corpse shall not come to the tomb of your fathers. Israelites buried their dead with the bones of ancestors in a common grave (Judg. 8:32; 2 Sam. 2:32). The lack of such a burial was considered in Israel a severe punishment and disgrace. See note on Eccl. 6:3–6.
13:24 donkey…lion. Both the donkey and the lion acted unnaturally: The donkey did not run and the lion did not attack the donkey or disturb the man’s body. Unlike the disobedient prophet, the beasts bent their wills to God’s sovereignty.
13:32 will surely come to pass. The old prophet instructed his sons to bury him beside the Judean prophet (v. 31). The old prophet was finally willing to identify himself with the message that the man of God from Judah had given against worship at Bethel.
13:33 again he made priests. Unlike the old prophet, Jeroboam did not change his evil ways, but continued appointing priests outside the tribe of Levi to serve the high places (12:30–32).
1 Kin. 13:34
The Ministries of Elijah and Elisha
1 Kings 14
14:1 At that time. Probably indicating a time shortly after the incident recorded in chap. 13. Abijah. Meaning “my father is the Lord,” Jeroboam’s son’s name implies that his father desired to be regarded as a worshiper of the Lord at the time of his son’s birth. Abijah was referred to as a “child” (vv. 3, 12, 17), a term which can be used from childhood through young adulthood. Of all of Jeroboam’s family, Abijah was the most responsive to the Lord (v. 13). Jeroboam’s son, Abijah, should not be confused with Rehoboam’s son of the same name (see note on 15:1–8).
14:2 disguise yourself. Probably for the avoidance of recognition by the people. Jeroboam did not want his subjects to know that he was consulting a prophet of the Lord. Shiloh. See note on 11:29.
14:3 take…ten loaves. A simple ordinary food gift added to the disguise (cf. 1 Sam. 9:7, 8; 2 Kin. 8:8). Ten loaves of bread, some cakes, and a jar of honey reflected the means of a common person, not royalty.
14:9 more evil. Jeroboam had not only failed to live up to the standard of David, but his wickedness had surpassed even that of Saul and Solomon. He had installed a paganized system of worship for the entire population of the northern kingdom (cf. 16:25, 30; 2 Kin. 21:11).
14:11 dogs…birds. The covenant curse of Deut. 28:26 was applied to Jeroboam’s male descendants.
14:13 the grave. See note on 13:22.
14:14 a king. I.e., Baasha (15:27–30).
14:15 Ahijah announced God’s stern judgment on Israel for joining Jeroboam’s apostasy. Struck by the Lord, Israel would sway like a reed in a rushing river, a biblical metaphor for political instability (cf. Matt. 11:7; Luke 7:24). One day, the Lord would uproot Israel from Palestinian soil and scatter it in exile E of the Euphrates. The fulfillment of this prophecy is recorded in 2 Kin. 17:23.
14:17 Tirzah. Jeroboam had apparently moved his capital from Shechem to Tirzah (cf. 12:25), located in the tribal region of Manasseh, about 7 mi. NE of Shechem and 35 mi. N of Jerusalem. Tirzah was famous for its beauty (Song 6:4).
14:20 twenty-two years. 931–910 B.C.
14:21 seventeen years. 931–913 B.C.
14:22–24 Judah outdid her ancestors in evil, provoking the Lord to jealous anger (v. 22). Signs of idolatrous practice were everywhere (vv. 23, 24). She even practiced sacred prostitution to promote fertility (v. 24). Judah had begun the downward slide toward doom that Israel was in.
14:25 fifth year. 927/926 B.C. Shishak. See note on 11:40.
14:27 bronze shields. These bronze shields replaced Solomon’s gold shields, which were used as a ransom paid to Shishak. The bronze shields illustrate the sharp decline from the reign of Solomon to Rehoboam.
14:30 war…all their days. Many border skirmishes erupted as the armies in the N/S maneuvered for tactical advantage and control of territory (14:19; 15:6). A major battle ultimately erupted during the reign of Abijam (cf. 2 Chr. 13:1–20).
1 Kings 15
15:1—16:22 Having documented the establishment of idolatry in both Israel and Judah (12:1–14:31), the text moves to a quick survey of the kings of Judah and Israel from 913 to 885 B.C. The author notes that the high places remained in Judah (15:14), and the sins of Jeroboam continued in Israel (15:26, 34; 16:13, 19).
15:1–8 Abijam. He was at first called Abijah in 2 Chr. 13:1, 2. Since Abijam means “father of the sea,” and Abijah, “my father is the LORD,” he may have had his name changed because of his sin. See notes on 2 Chr. 13:1–22.
15:2 three years. 913–911 B.C. Parts of years were considered as whole years in this reckoning (cf. v. 9).
15:3 his heart was not loyal. Cf. 11:4, where the same statement was made concerning Solomon. Cf. v. 14.
15:4 a lamp. See note on 11:36.
15:5 what was right in the eyes of the LORD. This commendation is frequently used in speaking of kings of Judah and means only that they did or did not do what was generally acceptable to God, e.g., v. 11.
15:7 war. See 14:30; 2 Chr. 13:1–20.
15:9–24 Asa. He was the first of the religiously good kings of Judah (cf. v. 11). See notes on 2 Chr. 14:1—16:14.
15:10 forty-one years. 911–870 B.C.
15:11–15 Asa did 4 good things: 1) he removed the “sacred” prostitutes (v. 12); 2) he rid the land of all the idols made by his predecessors (v. 12); 3) he removed the corrupt queen mother and burned the idol she had made; and 4) he placed “holy things,” items that he and his father had dedicated to the Lord, back in the temple (v. 15). Though he never engaged in idolatry, Asa’s failure was his toleration of “the high places” (v. 14).
15:13 obscene image. This term is derived from the verb “to shudder” (Job 9:6). “Horrible, repulsive thing” suggests a shocking, perhaps even a sexually explicit, idol. Asa removed his grandmother, Maacah, the official queen mother, because of her association with this idol. Brook Kidron. A seasonal river that ran through the Kidron Valley that marks the eastern boundary of Jerusalem.
15:16 Baasha. Asa, who ruled Judah (ca. 911–870 B.C.), enjoyed 10 years of peace after Jeroboam’s defeat by Abijam (2 Chr. 13:19, 20) until Baasha began attacking. See notes on 15:27—16:7; 2 Chr. 16:1–6.
15:17 Ramah. A strategic town in Benjamin, located about 5 mi. N of Jerusalem along the main N-S highway, built by Baasha, king of Israel, to effectively blockade the city of Jerusalem.
15:18 Ben-Hadad. Ben-Hadad I, the grandson of Hezion (probably Rezon; see note on 11:23–25, ca. 940–915 B.C.) and the son of Tabrimmon (ca. 912–890 B.C.). He was the powerful ruler of the Syrian kingdom (Aramea; see note on 10:29), centered in Damascus. The majority of historians think that Ben-Hadad reigned ca. 900–860 B.C. and was succeeded by a son or grandson, Ben-Hadad II, who ruled ca. 860–841 B.C. (cf. 20:34). Asa sent a sizable gift to influence Ben-Hadad I to break his treaty with Israel, enter instead a treaty with Judah, and invade Israel from the N.
15:20 Ijon…Naphtali. The army of Ben-Hadad I invaded Israel and took cities in the land N of the Sea of Galilee, a conquest giving Syria control of the trade routes to the Mediterranean coast and Israel’s fertile Jezreel Valley, and
also making Syria a great military threat to Israel. Baasha gave up fortifying Ramah and went to live in Tirzah, the capital of the northern kingdom.
15:22 Geba…Mizpah. With the threat to Judah from Israel removed, Asa conscripted a Judean labor force to fortify Geba, about 6 mi. NE of Jerusalem, and Mizpah, about 7 mi. N of Jerusalem, using the very building material for those fortifications that Baasha had used at Ramah.
15:25 Nadab…two years. 910–909 B.C.
15:27—16:7 Baasha. See note on 15:16.
15:27 Gibbethon. This city, located about 32 mi. W of Jerusalem, within the territory of Dan, was given to the Levites (Josh. 19:44) but controlled by the Philistines, on whose border it lay.
15:29 he killed all the house of Jeroboam. Baasha, the northern king, in a vicious practice too common in the ancient Near East, annihilated all of Jeroboam’s family. This act fulfilled Ahijah’s prophecy against Jeroboam (cf. 14:9–11). However, Baasha went beyond the words of the prophecy, since 14:10 specified judgment only on every male, while Baasha killed all men, women, and children.
15:30 This epitaph for wicked Jeroboam of Israel follows through the history of the northern kingdom relentlessly as the standard of sin by which judgment fell on the successive kings (see 15:34; 16:2, 19, 31; 22:52; 2 Kin. 3:3; 10:29, 31; 13:2, 11; 14:24; 15:9, 18, 24, 28).
15:33 twenty-four years. 909–886 B.C.
1 Kings 16
16:1 Jehu the son of Hanani. Cf. v. 7. This Hanani may have been the prophet who warned Judah’s King Asa (2 Chr. 16:7–9). Jehu, like Ahijah before him (14:7–16), delivered the Lord’s message of judgment to the king of Israel. The pattern emerges in the book of Kings that the Lord used His prophets as a legitimate means by which to confront the sin of Israel’s kings.
16:2–4 Baasha had angered the Lord by following the sinful paths of Jeroboam. Appropriately, he faced the same humiliating judgment Jeroboam had (14:10, 11). Though he waded through slaughter to his throne, he owed it to the permission of God, by whom all kings reign. His judgment was that no long line of heirs would succeed him; instead, his family would be totally annihilated and their corpses shamefully scavenged by hungry dogs and birds.
16:8–14 Elah…two years. Ca. 886–885 B.C.
16:11 friends. I.e., “relatives able to redeem.” Cf. Ruth 2:1. Zimri not only killed Elah and his immediate sons, but all of the extended relatives of Baasha who could help his family.
16:15 seven days. Zimri’s reign (885 B.C.) was the shortest of any king of Israel. Gibbethon. See note on 15:27.
16:16 Omri. When the soldiers of Israel in the field heard of Elah’s death, they immediately acclaimed Omri, the commander of Israel’s army, as the new king.
16:21 Tibni. The death of Zimri (vv. 17, 18) automatically placed the kingdom in Omri’s hands. Half of the population including the army, sided with Omri, but the other half backed Tibni. Nothing further is known of Tibni, but he was strong enough to rival Omri for about 4 years (cf. v. 15 with v. 23).
16:21–28 Omri. Ruled the northern kingdom ca. 885–874 B.C.
16:23-2 Kin. 13:25 This section is strategic in the book(s) of Kings and contains over one third of the total narrative of the book(s). The coming of the dynasty of Omri to the kingship of Israel brought with it the introduction of Baal worship with official sanction in Israel (16:31, 32). Through intermarriage with the house of Omri, Baal worship penetrated into Judah and corrupted the line of David (2 Kin. 8:18, 27), initiating a gigantic struggle before Baalism was officially eradicated in both Israel and Judah (2 Kin. 9:14—12:21).
16:23 twelve years. Omri ruled 12 years (ca. 885–874 B.C.), from Asa’s 27th year (16:15) to Asa’s 38th year (v. 29). This notice of his beginning to reign in Asa’s 31st year must be a reference to his sole rule.
16:24 Samaria. The hill of Samaria, named after its owner, Shemer, was located 7 mi. NW of Shechem and stood 300 ft. high. Though ringed by other mountains, it stood by itself so that attackers had to charge uphill from every side. This new capital amounted to the northern equivalent of Jerusalem. Its central location gave Israelites easy access to it.
16:29—22:40 Ahab…twenty-two years. Ca. 874–853 B.C.; see notes on 2 Chr. 18:1–34.
16:30 evil…more than all who were before him. With Ahab, Israel’s spiritual decay reached its lowest point. He was even worse than his father, Omri, who was more wicked than all before him (v. 25). Ahab’s evil consisted of perpetuating all the sins of Jeroboam and promoting the worship of Baal in Israel (vv. 31, 32). Of all Israel’s kings, Ahab outraged the Lord most (v. 33).
16:31 Jezebel. The wretched wife of Ahab became symbolic of the evil of false religion (cf. Rev. 2:20). Ethbaal. His name meant “Baal is alive.” The father of Jezebel was the king of Phoenicia (including Tyre and Sidon) who had murdered his predecessor and, according to Josephus, was a priest of the gods Melqart and Astarte.
16:31, 32 Baal. Meaning “lord, husband, owner,” Baal was the predominant god in Canaanite religion. He was the storm god who provided the rain necessary for the fertility of the land. The worship of Baal was widespread among the Canaanites with many local manifestations under various other titles, the Tyrians calling him Baal Melqart. The worship of Baal had infiltrated Israel long before the time of Ahab (Judg. 2:11, 13; 3:7; 10:6, 10; 1 Sam. 12:10). However, Ahab gave it official sanction in Samaria through building a temple for Baal (see 2 Kin. 3:2). As David had captured Jerusalem and his son Solomon had built a temple for the Lord there, so Omri established Samaria and his son Ahab built a temple for Baal there.
16:34 Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. The re-fortification of Jericho was forbidden by God, who had supernaturally destroyed it. But Joshua predicted that a man and his sons would violate God’s restriction (see note on Josh. 6:26). Two of Hiel’s sons died when they sought to assist him to fortify the city (see marginal note).
1 Kings 17
17:1 Elijah. His name means “the LORD is God.” The prophet Elijah’s ministry corresponded to his name: He was sent by God to confront Baalism and to declare to Israel that the Lord was God and there was no other. Tishbite. Elijah lived in a town called Tishbe, E of the Jordan River in the vicinity of the Jabbok River. not be dew nor rain. The autumn and spring rains and summer dew were necessities for the crops of Israel. The Lord had threatened to withhold these from the Land if His people turned from Him to serve other gods (Lev. 26:18, 19; Deut. 11:16, 17; 28:23, 24). Elijah had prayed for the drought (cf. James 5:17) and God answered. It lasted 3 years and 6 months according to James (5:17). The drought proved that Baal, the god of the rains and fertility, was impotent before the Lord.
17:3 Brook Cherith. Probably this was a seasonal brook that flowed during the rainy season but dried up when the weather turned hot. It was located E of the Jordan River.
17:6 ravens brought. God’s supernatural provision, much like the manna and quail during Israel’s wilderness wanderings (Ex. 16:13–36).
17:9 Zarephath. A town on the Mediterranean coast about 7 mi. S of Sidon. Elijah was sent to live there, in a territory controlled by Ahab’s father-in-law, Ethbaal. In this way, he showed the power of God in the very area where the impotent Baal was worshiped, as He provided miraculously for the widow in the famine (vv. 10–16).
17:23 your son lives. Canaanite myths claimed that Baal could revive the dead, but here it was the Lord, not Baal, who gave back the boy’s life. This conclusively demonstrated that the Lord was the only true God and Elijah was His prophet (v. 24).
17:24 a man of God. See note on 12:22. A man of God has a true word from God.
1 Kings 18
18:1 third year. Cf. James 5:17.
18:2 famine. This was to give Ahab opportunity to repent. He was the cause of national judgment in the famine. If he repented, rain would come.
18:3 Obadiah. His name means “servant of the LORD.” He was the manager of Ahab’s royal palace and a devout worshiper of the Lord, who had demonstrated his devotion to the Lord by protecting 100 of the Lord’s prophets from dea
th by Jezebel (vv. 4, 13) which had put him on tenuous ground with Ahab.
18:12 the Spirit of the LORD will carry you. The servant had been asked to tell Ahab that Elijah was present to speak with him (vv. 7, 18), but he was afraid because Ahab was seeking Elijah so intensely. Since Elijah had disappeared from sight earlier (17:5), Obadiah was afraid that the Holy Spirit would carry Elijah away again (cf. 2 Kin. 2:16) and the irrational Ahab would kill him for the false report of Elijah’s presence.
18:17 troubler. Such was one who brought misfortune on a community by breaking an oath or by making a foolish one (Josh. 6:18; 7:25).
18:18 Baals. These were the local idols of Baal (cf. Judg. 2:11). The prophet boldly told Ahab that the calamity of drought and famine was traceable directly to his and his family’s patronage and practice of idolatry.
18:19 Mount Carmel. The Carmel range of mountains, rising to 1,800 ft. at its highest point, extends about 30 mi. to the SE from the shores of the Mediterranean Sea into the S of the Jezreel Valley. A series of rounded peaks and valleys, it became a symbol of beauty and fruitfulness because of its lush tree cover (Song 7:5; Is. 35:2). It is not known at exactly what point along this ridge the contest between Elijah and the prophets of Baal took place. The queen cared for 850 false prophets who were associated with her.
18:21 falter between two opinions. Lit. “limp along on or between two twigs.” Israel had not totally rejected the Lord, but was seeking to combine worship of Him with the worship of Baal. The issue posed by Elijah was that Israel had to choose who was God, the Lord or Baal, and then serve God wholeheartedly. Rather than decide by his message, Elijah sought a visible sign from heaven.
18:24 the God who answers by fire. Since Baal’s followers believed that he controlled the thunder, lightning, and storms, and the Lord’s followers declared the same (Pss. 18:14; 29:3–9; 104:3), this would prove to be a fair test to show who was God.
18:27 mocked. The myths surrounding Baal portrayed him as musing on actions to take, fighting a war, traveling, and even dying and coming back to life. Elijah’s sarcastic advice to the prophets of Baal played on these beliefs.
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