Ordinary Prayers of a Legend

Lam Chi-yeung

Assistant Professor of Christian Education

The Legendary Life of Elijah

  When we read about Elijah’s story in chapters 17 and 18 of 1 Kings, we discover that Elijah is a complete legend. The name of Elijah first appears in 1 Kings 17:1—“Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, ‘As the LORD, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.’” Elijah’s appearance and the first sentence he utters provide us with a vivid image of a prophet with a powerful presence that becomes deeply embedded in the hearts of readers.

  What Elijah experienced afterward also took place in a legendary atmosphere. First of all, he had to hide himself by the brook of Cherith and live on the provisions supplied by ravens. When the drought became so severe that the brook of Cherith dried up, God told him to go and stay at a widow’s place in Zarephath. During his stay there, the family did not run out of flour or oil. When the widow’s son was taken ill and finally died, Elijah prayed to God, who brought the widow’s son back to life. What cheers the readers and made them dwell upon 1 Kings 18 with great relish, is the scene in which Elijah rose to a challenge against the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. In a single attempt, he got rid of 450 false prophets. Afterward, when Queen Jezebel went after Elijah with a deadly chase, he ran for his life until he became so exhausted that he asked to die under a juniper tree; after that, he came across a great and powerful wind, an earthquake, and a fire but the LORD was not there (1 Kgs 19). When it came to the last scene of his life, Elijah saw a chariot of fire appearing with horses of fire, and then he went up by a whirlwind to heaven (2 Kgs 11-12). Elijah was a legend but the purpose of this article is not to examine the legendary side of Elijah. On the contrary, this article aims to study his ordinary side.

The Ordinary Side of an Extraordinary Prophet

  We can understand the personality and character of Elijah by studying his story from various perspectives. When the brook of Cherith dried up, God told Elijah to stay at the place of a widow in Zarephath. Elijah obeyed and went to Zarephath according to the LORD’s will. When he came to the gate of the city, he saw a widow gathering sticks there; and he said to her, “Please get me a little water in a jar, that I may drink” (1 Kgs 17:10). As she was going to get it, he said to her, “Please bring me a piece of bread in your hand” (v. 11). In the translation provided in English Bibles like NASB and NET, the word “please” is used to express that Elijah was making “requests.” On the surface, Elijah asked to stay at the widow’s place, but actually, he came to save the widow and her son. Elijah obeyed God and concerned himself with the underprivileged. Such an act revealed the down-to-earth personality of Elijah and showed his friendly side through his words.

  When we read 1 Kings 18:41, we can see Elijah saying to Ahab after getting rid of the prophets of Baal at Kishon, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of the roar of a heavy shower.” The consecutive verbs “go,” “eat” and “drink” are all in the imperative. Elijah spoke to Ahab in a straightforward way, with an authoritative and commanding tone. We need to note that Ahab was the ruler of the society, who stood in stark contrast to the underprivileged. Elijah sounded neither supercilious nor obsequious before authority, and he was warm and gentle when speaking to the underprivileged. From the scenes above, readers can see a multidimensional Elijah.

In Search of Room for a Prayer

  After speaking to Ahab, Elijah returned to the top of Mount Carmel, “crouched down on the earth and put his face between his knees” (1 Kgs 18:42). What we have to ask is: Why did Elijah go up to Mount Carmel? How long did the journey take? What were the surroundings like when Elijah walked up Mount Carmel? Why did he have to crouch down on the earth?

  If we search on the Internet, there are many pictures of Mount Carmel, which is scenic and surrounded by green grass. We may also acquire a general understanding of what Mount Carmel looked like in the old days by studying two texts in the Old Testament: Song of Solomon 7:5 (“Your head crown you like Carmel”) and Isaiah 35:2 (“It will blossom profusely and rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it. The majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the LORD. The majesty of our God”). The texts describe Mount Carmel with expressions of beauty. Both ancient and modern information reveals that Mount Carmel is a place with a beautiful environment.

  Currently, the height of Mount Carmel is 546 meters above sea level, which is roughly the same as Victoria Peak in Hong Kong. If we walk from MTR Admiralty Station on Hong Kong Island to the top of Victoria Peak, it takes more than an hour (depending on one’s age and ability). When Elijah intentionally went up to the top of Mount Carmel, what was actually on his mind during the journey? The verse does not provide an answer to us directly but it is clear that after Elijah reached the top of Mount Carmel, “he crouched down on the earth and put his face between his knees.” This obviously describes the act of praying. If we are to understand the inner world of a person from the description in the Bible, we need to have a good grasp of their behavior and action. We believe that Elijah was praying while walking on his journey up to the top of Mount Carmel. He was doing his best to seize the time for getting strength from God. Besides, Elijah was deliberately looking for a special space for praying to God, which was the top of Mount Carmel.

Praying Persistently

  Elijah prayed while walking on his intentional journey up to the top of Mount Carmel, where he continued to pray. It can be seen that when Elijah had to focus on praying, he would not randomly seek out a place. Instead, he deliberately arranged a time and place in his effort to find a space where he could sanctify himself for praying—Mount Carmel. “He crouched down on the earth and put his face between his knees.” This action fully reflected his focused and dedicated attitude toward praying. He prayed six times, to no avail. Compared with his earlier challenge against the false prophets, in which fire came from heaven just after he prayed once, it seemed that his prayer for rain did not work as well. Nevertheless, Elijah continued to try with the seventh prayer (“seven” implies perfection). Elijah kept trying even when he could not see any effectiveness in the previous prayers. Such persistent prayers showed the steadfast faith of Elijah, who kept waiting for God’s deeds with a reverent heart.

Doubts in Prayers

  Let us continue to focus on the development of the incident by trying to experience what Elijah experienced in his prayers. Elijah kept praying, waiting for a heavy shower; however, nothing happened after six attempts. At that moment, what would be on his mind? Let us take a look at the scene in which Elijah asked for himself to die as he felt exhausted in his run for life during Queen Jezebel’s deadly chase after him. Let us also think about James 5:17, which describes Elijah as a man with a nature like ours. We may try to put ourselves in his shoes: Elijah prayed time and again but he did not get an answer from God. What kind of emotions and thoughts would emerge in his heart? He might think: Maybe I have mistaken God’s will; maybe I have made a mistake in listening to God’s voice; or it might be I who messed up the whole thing: God just told me to see Ahab and proclaim the fact that He was going to send rain to the earth. He did not tell me to take the chance to kill all of Baal’s prophets. Was I avenging a personal wrong in the name of public interests? (During this period, Queen Jezebel was pursuing the LORD’s prophets and so accordingly Elijah would have an intense hatred toward the prophets of Baal.) In short, Elijah’s situation was this: His prayers were unanswered and his purpose unachieved. He would have been likely to develop negative feelings at this moment.

  Once I heard the testimony of a Western missionary. He had to look for a church for an internship in his first year of studies at the seminary. On one hand, this was to meet the seminary’s requirement; on the other, he had to live on the internship subsidies from the church. However, without knowing why, he did not make it even after numerous attempts. Eventually, he went to work part-time for a private company in a remote place to make ends meet. Sadly, the meager salary was not much when considering the time and cost of traveling. Recalling the way back to the seminary dormitory from work, there always seemed to be a voice saying to him, “Is it really God’s will for me to study at the seminary? Does God really hear prayers? Why didn’t he give me even a chance to serve right at the start?” His heart was filled with doubts. At last, the missionary did not explain how he went through the difficult moments but there was one thing the audience could be sure of: He did have doubts but such doubts could never sow discord between God and him. He was faithful enough to persevere.

  There may be changes in the environment but our faith should not change with the environment. When the missionary shared the above testimony, he had completed and retired from his decades-long service in Hong Kong and was planning to return to his homeland. If we only focus on the result when we pray, without thinking of the need to experience being with God, a lot of questions will pop up easily yet needlessly in our hearts, once the result of the prayer goes against our will. When we pray, we have to believe that God has His own will and plans. Under His sovereignty, we would experience His presence and test and approve what His will is through prayers. Through prayers, we will take part in God’s plan and do His will.

Follow Elijah’s Example in Praying

  Elijah prayed seven times according to God’s will and saw things accomplished in God’s time. Although the servant told him, after the seventh prayer, that the cloud which was coming up from the sea was just as small as a person’s hand, he knew that it was the time the LORD planned to send the rain. When he said to Ahab, “Prepare your chariot and go down, so that the heavy shower does not stop you” (1 Kgs 18:44), he sounded so certain that one could see the faith and assurance that came from God.

  From the time of the drought to God’s sending heavy rain, Elijah knew perfectly how things would begin and end. At the beginning of 1 Kings 18, the LORD had already said to Elijah, “I will provide rain on the face of the earth” (v. 1). Obviously, Elijah knew that there would be a heavy shower sooner or later. Then why did he still pray for something that was bound to happen? I believe his answer would be: because praying is a way to experience God’s presence and is an assurance that I am working with God. There would still be a heavy shower even without prayers. The difference is I would not have partaken in any of God’s plans or work and I would not have had a part to play in the whole incident if I had not prayed. From this, therefore, we can see that Elijah prayed not just for the result (which he knew already). What mattered more to him was the experience of God’s presence and the experience of working with Him. This is “Elijah’s prayer” and also a reason why we have to keep praying to God.

  Elijah’s prayers reveal that praying is a precious experience because it can transform our lives and allow us to see more clearly the importance of God’s presence and feel that we are walking with God in our lives. The name “Elijah” means “Yahweh [the LORD] is my God.” I hope that we can thank the LORD wholeheartedly when our prayers are answered because the LORD is our God; but even when we do not see the desired results of the prayers, or even when things go contrary to what we have expected, this remains our prayer: the LORD is our God because He is with us.

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* All Scripture quotations are taken from the NASB.

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