Enough Is Enough!

At this point in our story on the life and times of the prophet Elijah, Ahab and Jezebel have been given every opportunity to see God’s work and recognize His reality. They have been given every opportunity to respond in faith and repentance, but they refused, especially Jezebel. Ahab feigns acceptance, but in truth they both refuse to believe and they just walk away from God.

Let’s follow Ahab for a moment: In 1 Kings 20 Ahab defeats Syria twice. The first time the Lord promised Ahab victory through an unnamed prophet (v. 13) and Ahab indeed won the battle (vs. 19-21). The prophet then told Ahab to be ready in the spring for round two (v. 22).

The second time the Syrians brought the battle “in the plain” (20:25) and Israel was greatly outnumbered (v. 27). Another “man of God” came and declared that God would again deliver the Syrians into their hand so that “you shall know that I am the LORD” (v. 28). And again the victory was won (vs. 29-30). Both times God did as He said He would.

Then Ahab entered into a treaty with the Syrian king Ben-Hadad and let him live (20:31-34). As a result, a “man of the sons of the prophets” (v. 35) confronted Ahab and delivered God’s message: “Thus says the LORD: ‘Because you have let slip out of your hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life, and your people for his people’” (v. 42). Ahab stands condemned.

After this, Ahab gives way to Jezebel and gets himself into more hot water in 1 Kings 21:1-16. It is all over a piece of real estate: namely, Naboth’s vineyard. Enter Elijah to confront Ahab (vs.17-29).

In this passage, three principles are revealed concerning the power of sin. These principles are at work in the life of Ahab as he is confronted by Elijah. But our series is all about the life and times of Elijah. So alongside of God’s confrontation of Ahab concerning his sin, we will follow a parallel outline concerning Elijah’s spiritual walk and God’s work through him.

The first principle from Romans 6:23 is that “the wages of sin is death.” As to Elijah's spiritual walk, here we see Elijah receive God's Word (1 Kings 21:17-19).

Concerning sin, the unrepentant sinner faces death, eternal spiritual death. In 1 Kings 21:1-16, Jezebel, in Ahab’s name, commits murder and steals a vineyard. For that heinous act, Ahab faces God’s judgment, and thus faces the prophet Elijah again. Elijah finds him in the garden that had belonged to Naboth, just as God had said.

Elijah delivers God’s Word to Ahab, saying, “Thus says the LORD: ‘Have you murdered and also taken possession?’" (1 Kings 21:19a). And he added, “Thus says the LORD: ‘In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth, dogs shall lick your blood, even yours’” (v. 19b).

Ahab, an unrepentant sinner, faced certain judgment. His sin would not go unpunished, and neither will our sin. Romans 6:23 pronounces God’s judgment on sin: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” A faithful servant like Elijah surely held out to Ahab the prospect of life, but the sinner with an unrepentant heart still reaps death, eternal separation from God, every time.

Elijah is a faithful servant. He received God's Word and delivered it to the king. It saddened Elijah’s heart to hear that the king had not yet repented and believed in the Lord. In fact, the word was that things had only gotten worse for Ahab. Now judgment had to be proclaimed. The time had come for God’s sentence to be handed down.

We had not heard from Elijah for some time. But now he is back in center stage. God gave him the message to deliver and even told him where to find the king: “Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ‘Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who lives in Samaria. There he is, in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone down to take possession of it’” (1 Kings 21:17-18). Elijah heard God’s Word and was faithful to do God’s Word. The faithful servant hears the Word of God, listens to it, and is certain to live by it.

The second principle concerning the sinner, found in Genesis 6:5, is that "every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." As to Elijah's spiritual walk, here we see Elijah deliver God's message (1 Kings 21:20-26).

The unrepentant sinner simply does evil. It is his way of life. Ahab once called Elijah “O troubler of Israel” (18:17). Now he makes it more personal. He calls Elijah, “my enemy” (21:20a). “Have you found me, O my enemy?” asked Ahab. His guilt weighed so heavy on his conscience that he knew Elijah had come to condemn him. After all, he was a sinner who did only evil all the time.

Elijah replied, “I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do evil in the sight of the LORD: ‘Behold, I will bring calamity on you. I will take away your posterity, and will cut off from Ahab every male in Israel, both bond and free. I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, because of the provocation with which you have provoked Me to anger, and made Israel sin’” (vs. 20b-22).

By fighting against God, he was his own worst enemy. He had brought down on himself the very sentence Elijah had come to pronounce. He would die for his sins in a most dishonorable way. Even the dogs would lick up his blood. And the same would go for Jezebel (v. 23) and all his household (v. 24). Ahab and Jezebel enjoyed many years of doing whatever they felt like and running roughshod over the people. Now those days were over. Judgment awaited.

For Elijah, everything was different. God gave him a special message for Ahab (vs. 19-22). Elijah was faithful to deliver the message exactly as God intended, and he did so in a timely manner.

While “the intent of the thoughts of” Ahab’s “heart was only evil” all the time, “the intent of the thoughts of” Elijah’s “heart was only” seeking to please God and to do the Father’s will. The faithful servant seeks to do the works God has prepared for him to do.

The third princicple concerning the power of sin is that "unless you repent you will all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3, 5). As to Elijah's spiritual walk, here Elijah see's God's mercy (1 Kings 21:27-29).

The unrepentant sinner will certainly perish. “So it was, when Ahab heard those words, that he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his body, and fasted and lay in sackcloth, and went about mourning” (21:27). Ahab reacted rather strongly to the Lord’s rebuke through Elijah. He put on sackcloth, fasted, and went into mourning. He humbled himself before the Lord.

Ahab actually repented! “And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ‘See how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he has humbled himself before Me, I will not bring the calamity in his days. In the days of his son I will bring the calamity on his house’” (vs. 28-29).

The judgments were not canceled, just postponed until the reign of his son Joram. (You can find the story in 2 Kings 9:14-37). Ahab, however, was killed on the battlefield and the dogs licked his blood at the pool of Samaria (1 Kings 22:37-38). Because the judgment was postponed, it was his son Joram’s blood that the dogs licked up on Naboth's property, just as Elijah said (cf. 2 Kings 9:14-37).

Ahab's repentance proved to be short-lived. He put on a good front but his repentance was on the surface. HIe never trusted the Lord. Speaking with Jesus, some people sought to name events where someone’s sin was greater and more deserving of punishment than their sins (Luke 13:1-2). Jesus then suggested another scenario (Luke 13:4). In both cases His answer was the same, “I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3, 5). Apart from repentance no man can be saved.

 When there is repentance coupled with genuine faith, salvation occurs—a sinner is saved by grace. We cannot see into the heart of the sinner. Only God can do that. The faithful servant presents the Word of God, seeking repentance, and lets God take it from there, because He knows the heart and He will act according to the heart of the repentant sinner.

The faithful servant receives God’s Word, delivers God’s message, and when a sinner repents, he sees God’s mercy at work—another sinner saved by grace! It is a beautiful thing to behold, as well as a blessing to experience. Repent. Believe. Seek to be that faithful servant. Amen.