Year One, November 28

Our God Is a Consuming Fire1

2 Kings 1:2-13; 15-17

We now return to the history of the kingdom of Israel.

2Now Ahaziah (the son of Ahab) fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, “Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness.” (Shame on an Israelite for going to a Philistine god and leaving the God of heaven for the god of flies.) 3But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? 4Now therefore thus says the LORD, You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” So Elijah went. (He appeared to the messengers without warning, delivered his prophecy and left suddenly. The messengers of Ahaziah must have been astonished to meet with a man who knew their assignment and gave them an answer to a question they had never mentioned to him.)

5The messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, “Why have you returned?” 6And they said to him, “There came a man to meet us, and said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the LORD, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’” 7He said to them, “What kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?” 8They answered him, “He wore a garment of hair, with a belt of leather about his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”

Then, like a true son of Jezebel, he decided to have Elijah killed. Ahaziah was certain that he would never have rest as long as the troublesome prophet survived.

9Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’” 10But Elijah answered the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

We serve a prophet who is gentler than Elijah. The Lord Jesus rebuked his disciples when they talked about calling down fire from heaven on his enemies.2 Elijah lived in a different age. He answered the anger of a king by a calm act of faith and the soldiers who came to arrest him lay dead at his feet.

11And the king sent to him another captain of fifty men with his fifty. And he answered and said to him, “O man of God, this is the king’s order, ‘Come down quickly!’” (This captain was more insistent than the first one. He ordered Elijah to surrender immediately. His approach was virtually asking for destruction.) 12But Elijah answered them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

13Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up and came and fell on his knees before Elijah and entreated him, “O man of God, please let my life, and the life of these fifty servants of yours, be precious in your sight. (This captain was wise. Ahaziah had forced him to perform this dangerous mission, but he cast himself on the prophet’s mercy. Humility turns the sword of vengeance away. It is wise to be humble before the Lord.)

15Then the angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king (He came to the gates of Samaria with boldness. He entered the royal palace no longer afraid of Jezebel. The Lord had given his servant such a command of the situation that no one dared to stop him.) 16and said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone up, but you shall surely die.’”

17aSo he died according to the word of the LORD that Elijah had spoken.

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¹ Hebrews 12:29

² Luke 9:54-55