Finally the word of the Lord came to Elijah saying “Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth.” Yes, the second part sounds good but are you absolutely sure about the first part?
Ahab has spent the last three years hunting for Elijah. Ahab has traveled the kingdom and beyond hunting for Elijah, the man he deems responsible for all his problems. Ahab has been so obsessed with finding Eljah that he made all other nations and kingdoms swear that they had never seen Elijah. Ahab single greatest objective is to find and eliminate Elijah.
The word of the Lord came to Elijah saying, “Go show yourself to Ahab . . .” No Moses moment for Elijah (I can’t do it, I’m not good with words, send someone else). No Jonah moment for Elijah (I’m on my way, the other way).
Courage to obey even at great risk. Perhaps that’s why Elijah meets Obadiah first instead of Ahab. Was God using Obadiah as a buffer? So that Ahab couldn’t take credit for finding Elijah?
The first words from the mouth of Ahab ‚ÄúIs it you–the biggest troublemaker in Israel?” Considering the damage Ahab has done, considering the damage Jezebel has done it makes for a curious statement.
Ahab is basically saying “we were doing just fine until you opened your big mouth about how what we were doing was against God.”
Ah yes, shooting the messenger.
If you watch 24 and are a fan of Jack, you know sometimes you just gotta shoot somebody! Why not the messenger?