14 Days in the Company of Elijahনমুনা

Day 7: Flight! (1 Kings 19:1–9; Jonah 4:1–8)

1 Kings 19 opens with a royal conversation—King Ahab tells his wicked wife Jezebel everything that happened on Mount Carmel (probably including the story of unexpectedly finding Elijah waiting for him at the city gate when he got home), and she goes ballistic! The furious queen sends messengers to Elijah, who is presumably still close by, threatening to do to him what he did to her prophets of Baal. That royal hostility sets the stage for a beautiful story of the deeply personal interaction between the prophet and his God.

Despite the astonishing display of God’s power through him just hours earlier and despite the drought-ending storm that went from prophetic word to palpable reality, Elijah becomes afraid and immediately runs for his life. After a day’s flight into the wilderness, this mighty man of God sits down under the shade of a scrubby bush and prays to die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he prays. “Take my life!” (1 Ki. 19:4, NLT). We’re surprised by his seeming petulance (he sounds a lot like grumpy Jonah here)—although we understand completely how exhaustion and hunger can weaken one’s capacity to see straight. The Lord understands as well, and instead of chastising Elijah, he grants him some long, restorative naps and more wilderness provision—this time brought by an angel, rather than ravens (1 Ki. 19:5–8).

On the strength of those two cycles of naps and meals, Elijah heads deeper into the wilderness, walking 40 days and 40 nights to reach Mount Sinai, the mountain of God (v. 8). Elijah is no longer running from Jezebel; he is walking purposefully into a holy place, apparently expectant of encountering the Lord’s presence in a special way. After his first night in a cave on the mountain, the Lord shows up and asks Elijah a loaded question, “What are you doing here?” (1 Ki. 19:9, NLT). God is graciously allowing his prophet to reflect on his current reality and prepare for his next assignment.