Prophet Elijah was introduced in the Books of Kings when he defended the worship of God of Israel over the Phoenician god Baal. He brought fire down from the sky. The prophet Elijah was born in the tribe of Aaron from the city of Tishbe. That is why he was called the Troubler of Israel. When Elijah was born, his father, Sobach saw the angels of God, around the child, how they wrapped the child in fire and gave him flame to eat. That would be a sign of Elijah’s fiery character and his divine firepower. He spent all his youth in worship and prayer, often retreating to the desert to meditate in silence and pray.
At that time, the Jewish kingdom was two unequal parts: the kingdom of Judah, which included only two tribes, Judah and Benjamin, with its capital in Jerusalem, and the kingdom of Israel, which included the other ten tribes with its capital in Samaria. The descendants of Solomon ruled with the first kingdom, and the second by the descendants of Jeroboam, Solomon’s servants. The prophet Elijah had the most prominent conflict with King Ahab of Israel and his wicked wife, Jezebel. For these worshiped idols and dissuaded the people from serving the Lord. At the same time, Jezebel, as a Syrian woman, persuaded her husband to build a temple to the Syrian god Baal. She appointed many priests to serve Baal.
Elijah’s miracles
By great miracles, Elijah proved the power and authority of God: he closed the Heavens so that it would not rain for three years and six months; He sent down fire from heaven and burnt the sacrifice of his God until the priests of Baal could do it. Prophet Elijah broth down rain from heaven with prayer. He miraculously multiplied flour and oil in the widow’s house in Zarephath and raised her dead son. He prophesied to Ahab the dogs would lick his blood, and to Jezebel that the dogs would eat it, which happened. He did many other miracles and prophesied the events.
On Horeb, he talked with God and heard the voice of God in a quiet bright breeze. The dead man took Elisha and appointed him heir to the prophetic title; with his cloak, he cut the water in the Jordan: and at last, he was taken to heaven in a chariot of fire with fiery horses. He appeared at Tabor together with Moses to our Lord Jesus Christ. Before the end of the world, Elijah will appear again to suppress the power of the Antichrist. (Rev 11)
A brief history of events before the prophet Elijah
The chosen people of God were from the twelve sons of Israel, twelve tribes all initially formed one indivisible, common, unanimous kingdom, ruled by one leader. From Moses and Joshua through the judges of Israel to King David and Solomon. After Solomon, his son Rehoboam came to the throne as a young man. He was not following the good advice of experienced elders. He was listening to the ungodly advice of young men like himself. Therefore, he became a burden to his subjects, burdening them with excessive dues and labors and punishing them with beatings and persecution. Then the ten tribes of Israel separated themselves from him and chose another king, named Jeroboam.
Jeroboam was formerly a servant of Solomon. Once Solomon wanted to kill Jeroboam because of his guilt, he fled to Egypt, where he remained until Solomon’s death. However, after Solomon’s death, he returned to the land of Israel when he was elected king by ten tribes that separated from Rehoboam. Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, reigned in Jerusalem over two tribes, Judah and Benjamin while, Jeroboam, the servant of Solomon, reigned over the ten tribes of Israel, dwelling in the city Sikkim, which he restored out of the ruins. The two tribes that remained faithful to Solomon’s son were called the kingdom of Judah, and the ten tribes that passed over to Solomon’s servant were called the kingdom of Israel.
But since all the tribes of Israel, although divided into two kingdoms, all together served one God, and could not have another temple except Jerusalem, built by Solomon, and no other priests, therefore at all times a lot of people of the kingdom of Israel went up to Jerusalem to worship and to bring sacrifice unto the LORD their God. When Jeroboam, the king of Israel, saw this, he was troubled. His thoughts were, if these people always go to Jerusalem to worship God, then they will want to go over to their first king, Solomon’s son, and kill Jeroboam. Thinking deeply about this, he began to look for ways to turn the Israelites away from Jerusalem so that they would not go to Jerusalem.
The chosen people of God were from the twelve sons of Israel, twelve tribes all initially formed one indivisible, common, unanimous kingdom, ruled by one leader. From Moses and Joshua through the judges of Israel to King David and Solomon. After Solomon, his son Rehoboam came to the throne as a young man. He was not following the good advice of experienced elders. He was listening to the ungodly advice of young men like himself. Therefore, he became a burden to his subjects, burdening them with excessive dues and labors and punishing them with beatings and persecution. Then the ten tribes of Israel separated themselves from him and chose another king, named Jeroboam.
Jeroboam was formerly a servant of Solomon. Once Solomon wanted to kill Jeroboam because of his guilt, he fled to Egypt, where he remained until Solomon’s death. However, after Solomon’s death, he returned to the land of Israel when he was elected king by ten tribes that separated from Rehoboam. Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, reigned in Jerusalem over two tribes, Judah and Benjamin while, Jeroboam, the servant of Solomon, reigned over the ten tribes of Israel, dwelling in the city Sikkim, which he restored out of the ruins. The two tribes that remained faithful to Solomon’s son were called the kingdom of Judah, and the ten tribes that passed over to Solomon’s servant were called the kingdom of Israel.