Biography of elijah

That was a foreshadowing of Elias's fiery character and his God-given fiery power. He spent his entire youth in divine contemplation and prayer, frequently withdrawing into the wilderness to contemplate and pray in tranquility. At that time, the Jewish kingdom was divided into two unequal parts: the kingdom of Judah, consisting of only two tribes--the tribes of Judah and Benjamin, with their capital in Jerusalem; and the kingdom of Israel, consisting of the remaining ten tribes, with their capital in Samaria.

The descendants of Solomon governed the former, and the descendants of Jeroboam, a servant of Solomon, governed the latter. The greatest confrontation that the prophet Elias had was with the Israelite King Ahab and his evil wife Jezebel, for they worshipped idols and were turning the people away from serving the One Living God. In addition, Jezebel, a Syrian, persuaded her husband to erect a temple for the Syrian god Baal and appointed many priests to the service of this false god.

Through great miracles, Elijah displayed the power and authority of God. He closed up the heavens so that there was no rain for three years and six months; he called fire down from heaven to consume the sacrifice to God, which the pagan priests were unable to do for the false god, Baal; he brought rain by his prayer; he miraculously multiplied flour and oil in the home of the widow in Zarephath, and resurrected her son; he prophesied to Ahab that the dogs would lick up his blood, and to Jezebel that the dogs would consume her flesh--all of which came to pass; and he performed many other miracles, and prophesied other events as well.

He spoke with God and heard the voice of God in the calm after the wind, earthquake, and fire on Mount Horeb. Before his death, he designated Elisha as his successor in the prophetic calling; with his mantle, he divided the waters of the Jordan. Finally, he was taken up into the heavens in a fiery chariot drawn by fiery horses. At the end of the world, Elijah will appear again to put an end to the power of the Antichrist Revelation Sourced from the Prologue of Ochrid, July 20th.

Or take four minutes and read the main part of the story in 1 Kings Quick references to Elijah appear in 2 Kings , 2 Kings , 2 Kings , and 2 Kings And he shows up at the end of the Old Testament in Malachi prophecy about John the Baptist as the forerunner of the Messiah. Yes, we typically think of Elijah as an old man, but that may or may not have been the case.

Elijah never has anything good to say about wicked tyrants. Elisha requested a double portion of the spirit of his master and Elijah replied that this would be granted if Elisha saw him as he left. The chariots of Israel and its horsemen! They kept urging that a search be made for Elijah; Elisha reluctantly permitted fifty men to go, but they returned without finding him.

Elijah had prophesied that the house of Ahab would be destroyed 1 Kings ; when Jehu became king he used this prophecy as a basis for the annihilation of all of the relatives of Ahab 2 Kings , When Jehoram, the son of Jehoshaphat, made high places and led Judah astray, Elijah sent him a letter informing him that catastrophe would occur to the nation and to him because of his apostasy 2 Chron ff.

Elijah and Baalism. The life of Elijah centers around the conflict between the worship of the Lord and the religion of Baalism. Ahab married Jezebel, the daughter of Ethbaal, king of Tyre and Sidon; she persecuted the prophets of the Lord 1 Kings , 13 ; , 14 and promoted the cult of Baal in Israel Carmel brought the nation of Israel to a place of decision and the subsequent flight of Elijah took him to the scene of earlier revelation at Mt.

The Naboth affair demonstrated the superior moral content of revealed religion, and the encounter between Ahaziah and Elijah showed that there was a God in Israel superior to Baal-zebub of Ekron. Elijah was throughout the man of God, the prophet and the spokesman of God, and his life testified to the reality and power of the one true God.

Elijah in later Scriptures. Malachi foretold that Elijah would appear again before the day of the Lord; this prediction has both NT and future fulfillment cf. Rev Paul, arguing for the principle of a remnant of Israel, referred to the 7, faithful worshipers in the time of Elijah Rom The two witnesses of Revelation 11 are not mentioned by name, but the powers ascribed to them are those of Moses and Elijah, e.

Bibliography F. Krummacher, Elijah the Tishbite ; J. Lowrie, Translated Prophet ; A. Peake, Elijah and Jezebel ; R. Wallace, Elijah and Elisha ; B. Bible Gateway logo. As related in Kings 2, after Elijah hands over his duties to his successor Elisha, Elijah is spirited to heaven on a flaming chariot. Tradition holds that Elijah never died and that he will return before the final judgment by God—a key belief of traditional Christians.

In fact, years later, some early Christians would even believe that Elijah had returned in the form of John the Baptist. In the historical period represented by Elijah, each tribal religion of the area worshipped its own god, and the concept of an overall single God did not yet exist. The primary significance of Elijah lies in the fact that he was an early champion of the idea that there is one god and one god only.

Significantly, Elijah did not initially proclaim that the true God was Jehovah, only that there could be only one true God, and that He would make himself known to those who opened their hearts. Elijah is quoted as saying:. The story of Elijah is key to the historical development of monotheism itself and to the belief that mankind can and should have a personal relationship with that monotheistic God.

This is a clear statement of monotheism that was historically revolutionary at the time, and one that would change history. Elijah's teachings established the idea that a higher moral law should be the basis for earthly law. The question of whether Elijah was in heaven or elsewhere on earth depends partly on the view of the letter Jehoram received from Elijah in 2 Chronicles after Elijah had ascended.

Some have suggested that the letter was written before Elijah ascended, but only delivered later. For Christians this prophecy was fulfilled in the gospel. After Elijah appears during the Transfiguration alongside Moses, Jesus explains to his disciples that John the Baptist, recently beheaded by Herod Antipas, [ ] had been Elijah reincarnate.

The American founded Nation of Islam believes Elijah returned as Elijah Muhammad , black separatist religious leader who claimed to be a "messenger", not a prophet. This is considered less important than their belief that Allah himself showed up in the person of Fard Muhammad , the founder of the group. It differs notably from most beliefs about Elijah, in that his re-appearance is usually the precursor to a greater one's appearance, rather than an afterthought.

Contents move to sidebar hide. Article Talk. Read Edit View history. Tools Tools. Download as PDF Printable version. In other projects. Wikimedia Commons Wikiquote Wikisource Wikidata item. Biblical prophet. This article is about the prophet. For other uses, see Elijah disambiguation. Not to be confused with Elisha or Elishah. Judaism Christianity Islam Druze faith [ 2 ].

Biblical accounts [ edit ]. Books of Kings [ edit ]. Widow of Zarephath [ edit ]. Main article: Raising of the son of the widow of Zarephath. Challenge to Baal [ edit ]. Mount Horeb [ edit ]. Vineyard of Naboth [ edit ]. Ahaziah [ edit ]. Departure [ edit ]. Books of Chronicles [ edit ]. Main article: Books of Chronicles. In Malachi [ edit ].

Historicity [ edit ]. In the Aggadah, Talmud, and extra-canonical books [ edit ]. Origin [ edit ]. Zeal for God [ edit ]. Ecclesiasticus [ edit ]. In Judaism [ edit ]. Elijah's chair [ edit ]. See also: Brit milah. Elijah's cup [ edit ]. See also: Passover Seder. Havdalah [ edit ]. See also: Havdalah. In Jewish folklore [ edit ]. Rabbi Joshua ben Levi [ edit ].

Rabbi Eliezer [ edit ]. Lilith [ edit ]. In Christianity [ edit ]. New Testament [ edit ]. John the Baptist [ edit ]. Transfiguration [ edit ]. Other references [ edit ]. Prophet saint [ edit ]. Carmelite tradition [ edit ]. Liturgical commemorations [ edit ]. Pagan associations and mountaintops [ edit ]. In Islam [ edit ]. Main article: Elijah in Islam.

Prophets in the Quran. Listed by Islamic name and Biblical name. Main events. Stories of the Prophets The Three Messengers. Jews, Christians, and Muslims prophets Abrahamic prophets. Quran [ edit ]. Literature and tradition [ edit ]. In Druze religion [ edit ]. Controversies [ edit ]. Miracle of the ravens [ edit ]. Fire on Mount Carmel [ edit ].

Ascension into the heavens [ edit ]. Return [ edit ]. In arts and literature [ edit ]. See also [ edit ]. Notes [ edit ]. Since he is your lord, bow to him; the people of Tyre will sue your favor with gifts. He was a prophet of the desert, like John the Baptist, unlike our holy Prophet, who took part in, controlled, and guided all the affairs of his people.

Both Ahab and Azariah were prone to lapse into the worship of Baal, the sun-god worshipped in Syria. That worship also included the worship of nature-powers and procreative powers, as in the Hindu worship of the Lingam, and led to many abuses. King Ahab had married a princess of Sidon, Jezebel, a wicked woman who led her husband to forsake Allah and adopt Baal-worship.

Eventually, according to the Old Testament, [ ] he was taken up in a whirlwind to heaven in a chariot of fire after he had left his mantle with Elisha the prophet. Either the letter was written before he went to heaven and delivered by a messenger on earth unlikely , or Elijah was "caught away" as was Philip from the Gaza Road to Azotas, about 17 miles, [ ] for an unspecified purpose and returned to the earth.

Consider the evidence: 1. Elijah had been taken to heaven in a whirlwind. Elisha had taken over the duties of Elijah in the reign of Jehoshaphat.

Biography of elijah

Jehoram received a letter from Elijah, the prophet. References [ edit ]. Retrieved 17 July Historical Dictionary of the Druzes. ISBN Elijah the Prophet". Archived from the original on 3 June Waiting for the Dawn: An Autobiography. The University of Michigan Press. Perhaps this is because the patron saint of Haifa and Mount Carmel is a biblical figure recognised by the entire population of Palestine - Elijah.

Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. David In Skolnik, Fred ed. Encyclopaedia Judaica. Thomson Gale. The Oxford Bible Commentary. The Chosen People 5th ed. Archived from the original on 1 September In Jane Dammen McAuliffe ed. Boston: Brill. The Madaba Mosaic Map. Archived from the original on 27 July Retrieved 13 October In Schwarz, Leo W.

Great Ages and Ideas of the Jewish People. The History of the Religion of Israel. In Buttrick, George A. The Interpreter's Bible. Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press. A History of Ancient Israel and Judah. In Singer, Isidore ; et al. The Jewish Encyclopedia. Retrieved 8 April Jerusalem: Keter Publishing House. The Anchor Bible: I Kings.

New York: Doubleday, Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion. In Chisholm, Hugh ed. Cambridge University Press. Retrieved 7 September Editor in Chief. Encyclopedia of Religion. Archived from the original on 28 April Retrieved 28 April It is noteworthy that while there is agreement on the existence of Elijah as a religious figure, given the composite nature of the Elijah narratives, the legendary and fanciful character of some of the Elijah stories, and Elijah's paradigmatic portrayal as 'a prophet like Moses,' Deut , there is very little agreement on the historical reliability of the narratives about him.

Retrieved 25 July While few scholars doubt the existence of Elijah as a religious figure of great personal dynamism and conservative zeal and as the leader of resistance to the rise of Baal worship in Israel in the ninth century bce, the biblical presentation of the prophet cannot be taken as historical documentation of his activity.

His career is presented through the eyes of popular legend and subsequent theological reflection, which consider him a personality of heroic proportions. In this process his actions and relations to the people and the king became stereotyped, and the presentation of his behavior, paradigmatic. Wright, p.