fear vs. confidence (1 Kgs 18:1-16)

18:1 “After a long time, the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year: ‘Go and present yourself to Ahab. I will send rain on the surface of the land’.” (HCSB)

A long time after the widow’s son had been raised from the dead, the Lord directs Elijah to the next step in his ministry. Consider how much Elijah’s faith and character must have been strengthened during his quiet and peaceful stay with the widow and her son. Off in this seemingly insignificant corner, far away from the center stage and where all the action was, his faith was being sharpened as he learned to rely daily on the provisions of the Lord. As he shared the simple blessings of food and shelter with this humble widow and her son, what must he have learned from them?

Consider also how much these few years would have impacted the widow and her son as well. When Elijah first met the widow, she was out gathering sticks to make a fire for their last meal, with no one to support and provide for her. Now she had experienced several years of grace and mercy at the hand of God, the capstone being the raising of her only son from the dead. How immeasurably distant was their parting, from where they met!

We see in this verse that the Lord spoke to Elijah “in the third year.” In the third year of what? Does this mean that he lived with the widow and her son for three years, the last significant milestone during his absence from Israel, or does this refer all the way back to his initial appearance before Ahab, meaning in the third year of the drought? This has been the subject of much debate, as the New Testament clearly indicates that the full duration of the drought was 3 ½ years:

Luke 4:25 “But I say to you, there were certainly many widows in Israel in Elijah’s days, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months while a great famine came over all the land.”

James 5:17 “Elijah was a man of like passions with us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain; and it rained not on the earth for three years and six months.” (ASV)

How to reconcile the 3 ½ years in the New Testament with this “in the third year?” There are two primary schools of thought:

1) Elijah’s drought was three years. The rains in Palestine typically fall twice a year – the early rains in March, and the latter rains in October. The heavy, at times nearly fog-like dew helped to keep some vegetation alive during the hot months between the rains. So the first theory is that the three years in this verse is reconciled with the 3 ½ years in the New Testament by starting Elijah’s drought with the latter rains. The early rains in March must have happened, and sometime soon before the latter rains in October were to happen, Elijah appears on the scene and proclaims there would be no rain or dew for some years. Note that the New Testament references only speak of the rains, with no mention of the withholding of the dew. When the latter rains failed to materialize, this was the first indication that his prophesy was holding true, validated by the subsequent rains failing to appear as well. Then if you take into account that by the time Elijah’s prophesy went into effect, there had already been six months with no rain, therefore the full duration of time the land of Israel was without rain was 3 ½ years. This would mean that Elijah likely spent roughly six months at the Wadi Cherith, and approximately 2 ½ years with the widow and her son, and therefore the statement “in the third year” reflects all the way back to the date of Elijah’s pronouncement of the drought during his initial appearance before Ahab.

2) Elijah’s drought was 3 ½ years. In this school of thought, “in the third year” must be reflective of the duration of his stay with the widow and her son, the most recent episode in his narrative, as there is nothing in the text to indicate winding the clock all the way back to Ahab. Accordingly, given Elijah’s prophesy was both that there would be no rain and that there would be no dew, he must have appeared before Ahab shortly after the early rains in March. The dews following the early rains never appeared to satiate the thirsty land, and after six months of hot, dry weather, the drought took an even firmer hold when the latter rains failed to fall from the heavens onto the parched and barren land. This then would allow for him to have been at Cherith for roughly six months, and with the widow and her son for the three years mentioned in verse one.

Interesting as these debates may be and perhaps greatly stimulating intellectually, either one or both would seem to have sufficient merit to reconcile the two time periods, and given God’s Word cannot contradict itself, clearly the numbers must tie out. However, rather than debating this matter, there is a far greater value in spending the time looking more closely at the reference in James to this account.

To the Hebrews, the miracle of securing rain eventually came to be viewed as equivalent to raising the dead, two of the keys of power possessed by God. Given Elijah wielded these powers, it has been believed that his piety clearly has set him apart from other humans. However, to ensure no one would elevate him beyond the true identify of who he was, James affirms that Elijah, the greatest model for such miracle workers, was a person like James’ readers and is a model for all believers. James writes that “Elijah was a man of like passions with us.” Elijah was no superman. He was no demigod. He was a human, possessing the same elemental strengths and weaknesses as do all of us, a man of “like passions.” The Greek here is homoiopathēs (ha-ma-yo-poth-ACE), meaning “like or similarly afflicted,” that he was capable of suffering the same things, or being affected in the same manner as any of us. In other words, he was a just a mortal man, subject to the same weaknesses and limitations as any other human being. As an aside, this Greek term is where we derive our modern term, homeopathic.

Having clearly acknowledged Elijah’s humanness, James quickly points to why and how Elijah showed such superhuman powers: “and he prayed fervently.” Take a look at how this looks in the Greek – proseuchē prosēyxato (pross-yoo-KHAY pross-YOU'-khoh-my) – literally reading, “prayer with prayer.” This was a Hebrew way of expressing he “prayed intensely.” In today’s vernacular we might say, “He didn’t just pray, he PRAYED!” The emphasis being on the intense faith that drove such impassioned prayers, faith in the One for whom nothing is impossible. That is why such phenomenal works were accomplished in and through Elijah – not because of him, but because of the One in whom he trusted. Elijah was a human. We are humans. His God is our God. God hasn’t changed, He’s still the God of the impossible. So where’s the disconnect? Why don’t we see today what we see here in Elijah? An intense faith that drives “prayer with prayer,” fervent prayer.

Having now spent three pages on just the first half of verse one, let’s move on to the second half of verse one: “Go and present yourself to Ahab. I will send rain on the surface of the land.”

What seems to be missing here? Elijah couldn’t simply present himself to Ahab and say the drought was over. What would that prove? That Ahab had won. He had successful held out during an intensely rough time, and won out over Yahweh. For these Baal worshippers, the drought and famine would have been a visible manifestation that Baal was absent or dead for a longer than usual time period, but if the rains suddenly came back, that would only prove he was alive and vibrant again, ready to bless his followers once more. They could then simply continue on their merry, idolatrous ways.

Throughout the entire Bible, there is a very consistent theme of God sending judgment and punishment onto Israel for their turning away from Him to worship idols. In each instance, what was the singular factor that led to His withholding His anger and restoring His blessings? Repentance. Yet God clearly says here, “I will send rain” – not Baal. The Lord declares the drought and famine to be over, but just as clearly this is not a capitulation or surrender on His part. If He’s going to restore His blessings, that could only mean that the people will finally repent of their idolatrous ways and return to Him. His will never fails to be accomplished.

Yet what could possibly happen to dent the stubbornness and lack of repentance, that 3 ½ years of drought and famine thus far had seemed to only stiffen? If 3 ½ years of drought and famine didn’t shake these people out of their spiritual stupor, what could? Something remarkable and earth-shattering would be needed to jolt these stiff-necked people to turn from their sinful ways, for the Lord to renew His blessing of rain and dew onto the land. The 3 ½ years of drought and famine were not the shock and awe to clear the Baal-webs out of their minds, eyes and hearts, they were nothing more than simply setting the stage for an unequivocal wake-up call. For the Lord to say “I will send rain,” clearly something big was imminent, and clearly the strangle-hold of Baal was about to be shattered.

18:2 “So Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria.”

Elijah continues to follow the directions of the Lord. He had seen and experienced first-hand the value and blessings of obedience, even when the directions didn’t appear to make any sense. Consider how going to Ahab this second time would be much harder to do than the first time. “If much boldness had been required when he was called upon to announce the awful drought, what intrepidation was needed for him to now face the one who sought him with merciless rage?” (Pink). However, increased difficulty does not diminish one iota the responsibility to obey, and Elijah, having the utmost confidence in his Lord, obeyed promptly. “The Lord said, ‘Go,’ and Elijah went! Not, Elijah objected; Elijah reasoned; Elijah pointed out the difficulties; but simply Elijah went” (Joseph Parker).

Note the emphasis on the severity of the famine in Samaria. Elijah had first appeared before Ahab in this proud and opulent capital city of Israel. Ahab and Jezebel had turned this cosmopolitan and wealthy city into the center of Baal worship. This proud and idolatrous capital was dealt a severe blow during these years of drought and famine, in mockery of the god who was believed to control the rains. The effect of 3 ½ years of drought on the already dry and arid land would be to reduce the entire people to the verge of starvation. The severity of the famine was likely mitigated, as before (Gen 41:57), by the importation of corn from Egypt and other surrounding countries that were not so terribly impacted by the extended drought, otherwise the Israelites would not have survived.

18:3-4 “Ahab called for Obadiah, who was in charge of the palace. Obadiah was a man who greatly feared the Lord and took 100 prophets and hid them, 50 men to a cave, and provided them with food and water when Jezebel slaughtered the Lord’s prophets.” (HCSB)

For the first and only time in the Bible, we meet one of Ahab’s most senior officials, a man who as been highly praised as well as roundly condemned by scholars and preachers. Obadiah, a common Hebrew name meaning “Yahweh's servant” [equivalent to the modern Arabic name Abdullah], was in charge of the palace, the governor or royal chamberlain of the palace, one of the highest offices in the administration. Though this post later becomes the equivalent of prime minister, at this stage it most likely designates stewardship of royal lands and possessions, the king's personal representative and the bearer of the royal seal. It’s been postulated that Obadiah was “probably the second man in the kingdom” (Maclaren) or the “third ruler in the kingdom” (J. Hammond). Clearly this was an important individual to hold such a high position, and one who would have been very trusted by Ahab. While this Obadiah has been identified in Jewish tradition as being the minor prophet of the same name, such an identification is unlikely, the Obadiah here is quite clearly identified as an important official in the northern kingdom of Israel, whereas the Book of Obadiah indicates that its author belonged to the southern kingdom of Judah.

In verse three here we see that the writer of Kings considers Obadiah to have been “a devout believer in the Lord,” and Obadiah refers to himself as having “feared the Lord from my youth” in verse 12. Though serving under the dark mantle of a wicked king and even more evil queen, Obadiah maintains an underground life of devotion to the Lord. Risking literally life and limb, he somehow hides 100 prophets of the Lord from Jezebel’s systematic slaughter and attempts to purge the land of every prophet of Yahweh. Hiding these prophets 50 in a cave, he managed to supply them with food and water, a remarkable feat in the days of drought and famine.

While other men may have been found out for routinely carrying food and water to others, his role as the governor of the palace would have put him in an area of responsibility to oversee the portioning of the foodstuffs, so he was uniquely positioned to be able to undertake this extremely risky humanitarian endeavor. It should be noted that while some translations seem to indicate he supplied just “bread and water,” this is an expression that translates better into our modern culture as “food and water.”

Undoubtedly Obadiah knew why the drought and famine was plaguing the land. He likely had been present at Elijah’s first appearance before Ahab. He certainly must have been extremely well-versed in the evils and wickedness that were a part of Ahab and Jezebel’s lives, though Ahab, when Jezebel isn’t around, appears to have been less wicked. In spite of his high position in wicked Ahab's government, verse three clearly indicates he “was a man who greatly feared the Lord.” This paradox has led to his being an enigma for scholars and researchers: “Obadiah stands in Scripture as one of the most baffling and bewildering of all characters” (Phillip Keller). “It is startling to find such a man as Obadiah occupying so influential a position at Ahab's court” (F. B. Meyer). “There are few things in these books of Scripture more surprising and suggestive than the position of Obadiah in the palace of Ahab” (J. Hammond).

While one author credits Ahab: it “tells in favour of the monarch’s tolerance that he should have maintained an adherent of the old religion in so important an office” (Rawlinson), others laud Obadiah, claiming the expression “greatly feared the Lord” is one of the highest tributes which can be paid a man in the Bible. Obadiah supporters point out how God has often given His people favor in the eyes of heathen masters (as Joseph and Daniel), and He has placed His people in the midst of the most unpromising environments, as with Esther and the saints in “Caesar's household” (Phil 4:22).

However, many are not so impressed. Ahab and Jezebel were very, very wicked people. Obadiah's job called for him to work with them and keep company with them. To be in their presence in good graces and especially to be acceptably employed by them in a high, vital position would create some definite character problems. For one thing Obadiah would have to muffle his witness. He “could only have continued in this position by keeping silent as to his religious allegiance" (Leon Wood). Furthermore, he could not cry out in holy protest of their evil ways. To do so would have cost him his job and perhaps even his life. This silence, therefore, made him “an accomplice with Ahab and Jezebel in their diabolical deeds, for silence gives both consent and tacit endorsement to any action it does not oppose” (Phillip Keller). Thus Obadiah is to be strongly condemned. He had no business being so closely associated with Ahab and Jezebel. His job was one no follower of Yahweh should have touched. It would be like a believer being a close associate of the notorious gangster Al Capone. These jobs are totally incompatible to being a Christian. You cannot work these jobs without compromising your Christian beliefs.

Some may insist that Obadiah was no different than Daniel and Joseph who both also held high government posts in governments run by rulers hardly considered to be godly. But about the only similarity between these two men and Obadiah is that they were all three Jews. After that there is little, if any, similarity in their situations. Daniel and Joseph obtained their positions because of their outspoken and clear testimony for God, which was accepted by the kings who appointed them to their high office. And these kings, unlike Ahab and Jezebel, did not oppose the worship of Yahweh as ardently as Ahab and Jezebel. While in Daniel's experience, the king did indeed make a law which temporarily opposed worshipping Yahweh, but note that Daniel went to the lions' den rather than compromise his religious convictions. Obadiah did nothing of the sort! He was not a Daniel or a Joseph in character, and he did not have the employment situation Daniel and Joseph did, either. His employment by Ahab cannot be justified by Daniel's and Joseph's position in government.

According to Vance Havner, “Obadiah was out . . . looking for grass when he should have been praying for rain and calling men to repent and return to God. Sin was the trouble then as it is today, and when men turned to God the showers fell. What a waste of time then . . . trying to find a little grass when the real trouble is politely ignored!” Spurgeon mused, “I suspect that Elijah did not think very much of Obadiah. He does not treat him with any great consideration, but addresses him more sharply than one would expect from a fellow-believer.” Others hold Obadiah was a self-promoter, “His hiding the prophets seems, in his estimation, to have been such a remarkable thing that he wondered if all had not heard it” (Mackintosh).

Moving away from Obadiah debate, who were these prophets? Likely they were a part of a school of prophets that Samuel appears to have started and that continued on after his death (1 Sam 10:5; 2 Kgs 2:3-7, 6:1-2). The standard religious systems of the ancient Near East were typically polytheistic and therefore generally tolerant of the worship of any deities. To ignore a potentially powerful deity or to persecute his worshipers would make one vulnerable to divine anger and punishment. Religious intolerance or persecutions did not arise until much later in history. Purgings that may look like religious persecution in the ancient world were usually political in nature. When the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten took action against the priests of Amun-Re, it was because of their substantial political and economic influence. He was seeking to defuse their power. However, though Jezebel clearly manifests fanatic loyalty to Baal and a desire to enthrone Baal as the king and national god of Israel instead of Yahweh, the systematic butchering of the prophets by Jezebel was a concerted effort on her part to utterly eradicate the presence of the prophets, as an act of reprisal for the drought brought on by Elijah. He was making a mockery of her god. That could not be tolerated. The language in this passage would seem to indicate that the slaughtering of the prophets had taken place during his long absence.

It has been suggested that these caves were on the hillsides of Mount Carmel, as there are large caves under the western cliffs (Stanley) and reportedly over two thousand caves in total. Given the distance from Samaria to Mount Carmel, it’s unlikely Obadiah would have regularly transported food and water over that stretch, the terrain adding to the challenge. In general, Palestine is largely of limestone formation, abounding in caves, both large and small, so it’s more likely Obadiah would have picked caves that would have made for easier, undetected transport of the supplies, while still providing sufficient security from the butcher of Samaria.

18:5-6 “Ahab said to Obadiah, ‘Go throughout the land to every spring of water and to every wadi. Perhaps we’ll find grass so we can keep the horses and mules alive and not have to destroy any cattle.’ They divided the land between them in order to cover it. Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went the other way by himself.” (HCSB)

The severity of the drought had taken a firm hold of the land, yet there is little trace of repentance in the king or the people. Ahab’s reaction to the drought and famine was practical, to find water, and did not reach the heart of the issue: who is sovereign over nature and life and what was the root cause of the judgment. He revealed his plans for a sweeping survey of the land to see whether there was any fodder available at all for the herds and livestock in Israel, dividing the land between the two of them to search. In all of this, water and grass were all that occupied Ahab's thoughts, that is, relief from the Divine judgment was all he considered. It was so with Pharaoh: as each fresh plague descended upon Egypt he sent for Moses and begged him to pray for its removal, and as soon as it was removed he hardened his heart and continued to defy Yahweh. “And they gnawed their tongues for pain, and blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds” (Rev 16:10,11).

Some have noted that “This personal inspection by the king and one of his chief officers marks the extreme straits to which the Israelites were now reduced” (Rawlinson), and others have expressed surprise that the king was willing to leave the safety and comfort of the palace to scour the land for food for the animals. However, unlike the many lazy and self-centered monarchs of Europe, this is not without historical precedent, as in the agricultural regions of the East it is not considered beneath a ruler or chief to go at the head of such an expedition: “None (of the emirs of Arabia or the chiefs of central Asia) think it beneath them to lead an expedition in search of grass or water” (Kitto).

Ahab’s seeming concern for only the horses, mules and cattle has been vilified as showing an abject disregard for the sufferings of his subjects, or at least relegating them to a secondary level importance. However, there was a practical aspect, though clearly spiritually blinded, to this search. To the nations of the time, horses and mules were crucial to the strength of the military, and according to the records of Shalmaneser III of Assyria (859-824 B.C.), two thousand chariots were furnished by “Ahab the Israelite” to the Syrian coalition that opposed him at Qarqar. With the loss of his military backbone, Ahab’s kingdom would have been easily overrun by an enemy nation, subjecting the people of the land to even worse conditions and treatment. Furthermore, if they didn’t find enough grass and other foliage for the horses and mules, Ahab is obviously contemplating the need to begin slaughtering the cattle, as there would not be enough fodder to go around. However, such butchering of the livestock would further deteriorate the conditions in Israel.

18:7-8 “Now as Obadiah was on the way, behold, Elijah met him, and he recognized him and fell on his face and said, ‘Is this you, Elijah my master?’ He said to him, ‘It is I. Go, say to your master, 'Behold, Elijah is here’.’”

As Obadiah follows Ahab’s instructions, he finds far more than what he was looking for – Elijah. The Lord providentially led Elijah to the road that Obadiah was using and the two men met. Obadiah recognized Elijah and in a show of extreme fear and reverence, he fell on his face on the earth and called him, “My master/lord.” Elijah’s presence would have placed Obadiah in a precarious position, as undoubtedly he would not have been traveling throughout the countryside by himself. The desperate times during that famine would not have warranted a royal office, likely garbed as such, traveling throughout the county alone. In finding Elijah, what was Obadiah to do? He’s not given much time to consider, as in characteristic fashion, Elijah is short on words and formality. Showing no deference in turn to Obadiah, he simply instructs him to go back to his “master/lord” and tell him “behold Elijah.” The final “is here” is a textual add, softening the abruptness of Elijah’s words.

Note the contrast here in this encounter. Elijah has spent the past 3 ½ years in the desert, drinking from a brook and being fed by ravens, and living in the humble abode of a poor widow, in a Gentile land. Obadiah has been living in the capital city of Israel, overseeing the abundance of the palace. Though Elijah seemingly has nothing, and Obadiah is likely the second or third-highest ranking official in the land, who does the prostrating? The humble obeisance and the terms in which Obadiah addresses Elijah show the profound reverence with which Obadiah regarded him, though he was one of the chief men of the land. Obadiah’s reaction reveals who has the true power here. While Elijah’s position and conditions had been meager and humble physically speaking, yet consider the incredible power he wielded. The whole land was, so to speak, at his mercy.

Our personal occupation and financial, economic or social status may be humble and seemingly meager, yet consider who it is that calls us His children. The Lord who “who stretched out the heavens [100 billion galaxies made up of approximately 100 billion stars each] and laid the foundations of the earth” (Isa 51:13); who “holds the waters [340 quintillion gallons – that is 1+18 zeros] in the hollow of His hand or with the breath of his hand marked off the heavens [200 sextillion miles – that is 1 + 21 zeros]... [or] held the dust of the earth in a basket...or regards the nations as dust (sextillion metric tons) on the scales” (Isa 40:12,15).

What doesn’t belong to Him? “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it” (Psa 24:1).

What is beyond Him? “I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted” (Job 42:2). “The Lord does whatever pleases him, in the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all their depths” (Psa 135:6).

What are the greatest rulers or the most power people on this planet in comparison to Him? “He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing” (Isa 40:22-23).

If that is who we call “Lord,” then truly we are in a remarkable position, regardless of what the world may think of us. We can then say assuredly, “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in Him.” (Jer 17:7) and “It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man” (Psa 118:8).

18:9-12 “He said, ‘What sin have I committed, that you are giving your servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death? As the LORD your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent to search for you; and when they said, 'He is not here,' he made the kingdom or nation swear that they could not find you. And now you are saying, 'Go, say to your master, ‘Behold, Elijah is here’.’ It will come about when I leave you that the Spirit of the LORD will carry you where I do not know; so when I come and tell Ahab and he cannot find you, he will kill me, although I your servant have feared the LORD from my youth.” (NASB)

In stark contrast to Elijah’s confidence and few words, Obadiah is completely discombobulated and running at the mouth. He’s obviously completely at a loss and lives in great fear of Ahab. Obadiah reveals how Ahab had searched high and low for Elijah, both within Israel and in the surrounding nations, even to the extent of extracting an oath to support their claims of “no Elijah.” Ahab must have had considerable power and authority among the neighboring nations to require and exact such an oath. Obadiah himself utters an oath to support the veracity of what he is saying. Note how his oath is identical to the oath the widow uttered, when she first met Elijah, and before her spiritual growth:

Obadiah – “As the LORD your God lives” (18:10)
Widow – “As the LORD your God lives” (17:12)

This attribution of the Lord as “your God” has also led some to question whether Obadiah was a true follower of Yahweh.

It’s easy to understand Obadiah's concern lest the king come back and not find the prophet. During the three years Ahab had been searching for Elijah, no doubt he had followed up many false leads, and should Obadiah not be able to produce Elijah, after declaring his presence, Obadiah's head would be in jeopardy. Ahab had so long and so systematically sought for Elijah, that Obadiah could only imagine the prophet had been miraculously removed from shelter to shelter, just in time to save him from being detected by the messengers of Ahab. The sudden, mysterious disappearance and the long concealment of the prophet couldn’t be explained otherwise. His words suggest that some believed that the Lord had hid Elijah, and it is not improbable that during his long absence rumors had gained credence that he had been seen and had suddenly disappeared, just as later Jews have held that he “has appeared again and again as an Arabian merchant to wise and good Rabbis at their prayers or in their journeys” (Stanley).

18:13-16 “‘Has it not been told to my master what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the LORD, that I hid a hundred prophets of the LORD by fifties in a cave, and provided them with bread and water? And now you are saying, 'Go, say to your master, ‘Behold, Elijah is here;’ he will then kill me.’ Elijah said, ‘As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today’. So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.”

Notice how Obadiah repeats again, “Behold, Elijah” in his panic and in his shock, terrified that Elijah would vanish again before a meeting with Ahab could be arranged, and that he would be held responsible and executed. To convince Elijah that his concern was sincere, Obadiah related proof that he was a devout believer in the Lord since his youth. Obadiah appears to think Elijah would have heard about his hiding and feeding the prophets of the Lord. Perhaps this was known among many of the faithful in Israel, especially the prophets, though of course not by Jezebel or her sympathizers. In other words, he is essentially saying, “and this is to be the reward of my devotion, that you’re going to have me killed by Ahab?”

Elijah reassured him, using an oath to underline his words, that he would meet with Ahab before the day was out. In contrast to Obadiah’s oath, look at Elijah’s oath: “As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand” (18:15). “Lord of hosts” (YHWH sebaot) signifies that the Lord stands as a mighty ruler at the head of a vast retinue of heavenly powers that are ready to act at His command. With such a vision of who the Lord is, Elijah has no need to fear Ahab. King Ahab may indeed have been a mighty ruler with a strong army behind him, but what is an earthly ruler when compared to Yahweh Sabaoth? Secure and supremely confident in his Lord, Elijah would stand firm and wait to speak with Ahab, just as the Lord had commanded. With this reassurance, Obadiah goes to find Ahab.