Follow Him: A Come, Follow Me Podcast - 1 Kings 17-19 -- Part 1 : Dr. Camille F Olson

Episode Date: June 25, 2022

Do the Israelites respond to prophetic and scriptural calls for reform? Dr. Camille Fronk Olson returns to explore the ministry of Elijah, the pantheon of foreign gods, and the purpose of miracles.Please rate and review the podcast!Show Notes (English, French, Spanish, Portuguese): https://followhim.co/old-testament/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/followhimpodcastInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/followhimpodcastYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/FollowHimOfficialChannelThanks to the followHIM team:Steve & Shannon Sorensen: Executive ProducersDr. Hank Smith: Co-hostJohn Bytheway: Co-hostDavid Perry: ProducerKyle Nelson: Marketing & SponsorLisa Spice: Client Relations, Show Notes/TranscriptsJamie Neilson: Social Media, Graphic DesignWill Stoughton: Rough Video EditorAriel Cuadra: Spanish TranscriptsKrystal Roberts: French TranscriptsIgor Willians: Portuguese Transcripts"Let Zion in Her Beauty Rise" by Marshall McDonaldhttps://www.marshallmcdonaldmusic.com/products/let-zion-in-her-beauty-rise-piano

Welcome to Follow Him, a weekly podcast dedicated to helping individuals and families with their Come Follow Me study. I'm Hank Smith, and I'm John by the way. We love to learn, we love to laugh, we want to learn and laugh with you. As together, we follow him. Hello everyone, welcome to another episode of Follow Him. My name is Hank Smith, I'm your host. I'm here with my still small co-host, John by the way.

John. John, now that doesn't sound like a compliment, but it is. It is. Well, in the resurrection, I'll be bigger, hopefully. Yeah. I'm going to have that. I'm going to have those arms in the resurrection. I'm not in any Arnold Friedberg paintings.

That's true. I wouldn't have made the cut. John, there's a great part of our lesson today that talks about a still small voice. And so I thought I'd call you my still small co-host. Now we are in the book of First Kings today and we have a Bible scholar returning and I think everyone's excited. Yes, we're all excited. Camille Fronkelson is back. Thank you so much for coming back. If you didn't hear her first episode and even if you did, I want to remind you she's a retired now professor and former chair of Brigham Young University's Department of Ancient Scripture. She's written multiple books on the role of women in the

scriptures. In fact, I'm holding my women of the Old Testament right here that's not only great text, but it's beautiful. Gorgeous full-color art in it and everything. As she spoke on widely in various forums on Latter-day St. Beliefs, especially as they relate to women, she was born and raised in the area of Tremont and Utah. And I love this part. She served a mission in the France to lose mission because my daughter and my son-in-law went to France. She has a bachelor's degree in education from Utah State, a master's in West Asian studies and a PhD in sociology of the Middle East from BYU. She began her educational career as a full-time seminary teacher and she was on the faculty

of LDS Business College where she served as dean of students. And as I mentioned before, she's the first woman who was the chair of BYU's Department of Ancient Scripture. She's also served on the Young Women General Board and is a professor at the B.O. Jerusalem Center. She's married to Paul F. Olson, who is an ophthalmologist, which is someone who really sees well and knows how to help others see well. And Camille's going to help us see well today.

Thank you for coming back. It's great to be back. We love having you. For those of you who have not heard Camille's first episode with us, pause, whatever you're doing right now, go back. You want to hear Camille talk about Rebecca. Oh, it was a, it was a life-changing day for me, really changed that story for me. This is just a personal note. There's a gas station right by Colville, Utah. Would I put my hand over my heart? Because that is where I took a phone call from Camille and she told me I was joining

the faculty at BYU. So I don't know if I said that last time, John, but Camille's got a special place in my heart. I have a similar story. I would not be teaching the cornerstone courses at the BYU Salt Lake Center if it weren't for Camille. And I know that she'll be held accountable. I mean, I'm grateful to her. You know, I know how to choose good ones.

That's it. That's one of my gifts as finding quality. Well, we are both very grateful as our children because they get to eat. Camille, we're in first Kings today, but as we approach this, let's give our audience kind of a some background here. What do they need to know leading up to these chapters? I've got to just do one little shout out for you too

before I start into this. I just want to thank you for what you're doing with this podcast. From my limited perspective, I can just tell you, I think there are more people in the church studying the Old Testament this year than has ever happened in the past and really engaged in it. And it isn't solely because of your podcast, but I believe your podcast has made a major contribution in that way and several other podcasts. It seems like a people

and several other podcasts. It seems like old people find it much more accessible to hear a podcast than even to read books. You have made it very not only accessible to them, but we're no longer afraid of the Old Testament and we find connections with us and it is brought some tremendous insight and peace and love for God. We see the merciful God in the Old Testament, like I think a lot of people have not in the past. So I just want to thank you. You've helped me a lot. I listened to it very frequently. Thank you very much.

So I appreciate your contributions to my study of the Old Testament this year. Wow. Thank you. And I'm always just, I agree. I'm taking notes the whole time. You can always find new insights because there's so many different angles you can take. And just because one person, as much as they've studied at season one way, you can find other things, but it helps you to think about some other possibilities. And that's what I'm hoping. Because the stories and

the chapters, we only have three chapters for this week. These three chapters are better known than a lot of them in the Old Testament. But I really hope what we will think about some different angles and help us to think more deeply because of that in some ways than we might have done otherwise because we can always learn more. There's always more. ways than we might have done otherwise because we can always learn more. There's always more. Awesome. Well, tell us where you want to start. Big picture. We've just come in our last lesson finishing up with Solomon, but just think what's happened. There's Moses that takes the children of Israel out of Egypt. They come. Joshua leads them into the Promised Land. You have a time of judges and all kind of disunity going on.

Then we have Samuel, who anoints Saul as the first king. And then David is the second king. And under David, you really unite the tribes of Israel in an incredible empire. And it starts this Davidic line of kings that follows after what Jacob had promised Judah that this line would be through his tribe and then we get Solomon, David's son, and it's under Solomon that Israel is the most remarkable powerful empire in the ancient Near East. It got to its largest dimensions. And then as we saw at the end of last lesson, Solomon goes downhill, he dies and his son, Reabome takes over, but Reabome picks up

where his father left off in taxing the people, but then even adds more taxes. And it makes so many of the people upset, especially in the North. And I do kind of like some numbers once in a while, just to help me get some framework. But let's say about 950 BC, the Kingdom of Israel splits in half. And that's going to be a major thing through a lot of what we'll be studying in the near future. The Northern Kingdom is with ten tribes and Jeroboam is the one that starts that and Ephraim is the main tribe within that, those ten tribes. And so sometimes Isaiah will call that Northern Kingdom Ephraim,

but it is most frequently called Israel, because that's where most of Israel is. Ten tribes are up there, and it's the biggest geographical area, and the southern kingdom is named after its head tribe, which is Judah. Jerusalem is the capital of Judah, the kingdom of Judah, or the southern kingdom it's sometimes called. And you see this split and kings in either one, it's in the southern kingdom

that we have the Davidic line of kings. Most of them are wicked, it's not a happy time. That power corrupts and it seems like so many of those kings are, but they do have a few that are remarkable. Just really great ones. The northern kingdom never has one good king. That's easy to remember. They are all problematic and we're going to see one of them today tremendously. But you watch that division happen and the kings up in the northern kingdom are changing much more frequently.

It's very unstable. We get down to the seventh king that will be focused on today named Ahab. And in the southern kingdom, they're only on the third king when Ahab comes to the throne. So you can see it's much more stable in the southern kingdom. It's Ahab's father that makes the capital for the Northern Kingdom's Samaria. So we'll later see the Samaritans and that comes from that name of Samaria. Clear back to this time period where Jerusalem is the capital of the Southern Kingdom. That hatred is going to still be around when Jesus is born.

Yeah. When the people of Judah or Jews as the Greeks will call them, come back after the Persians take over, they come back into the land, they don't want anything to do with anyone that's still around from the Northern Kingdom. There's conflict and that will be still down to the time of Christ.

When 10 of the 12 tribes revolt, that's a pretty low approval rating. The only one who stuck around is Benjamin, and I just don't think they could leave. Judah said, you're staying put. Benjamin's pretty intertwined with Judah there, and that's what you get. So you'll see through the pattern of first and second kings, this idea of telling you who the king in the southern kingdom is and who's the king of the northern kingdom about the same time.

Or Israel or Judah. So I want to go to chapter 16. Our reading assignment starts on 17, but we got to introduce this new dynasty of kings of the northern kingdom. Omnory is the first one and chapter 16 verse 24. He bought the hill, Samaria of Shemur of Tutellan. So that's where he establishes the capital of Samaria. And verse 25, Omnory, wrought evil in the eyes of the Lord and did worse

than all that were before him. Which you got to say, that's pretty bad, because there's been some pretty bad ones before him and then he dies And let's pick up with verse 29 now you get the 38th year of Asa king of Judah there's talking about the southern kingdom king, but look he's been king for 38 years It's much more secure Leadership down there and Asa was one of the good guys. He seems to have been a good king. But the son of Omri begins to rule in the Northern Kingdom in Israel. And his name is Ahab, and look how long he rules with his capital in Samaria, 22 years. And even more, verse 30, Ahab, the son of Omri, did evil in the side of the Lord above all that

were before him. So if Omri was bad, Ahab is even worse and he's going to be worse for 22 years. So it makes a huge difference. And now this is one of the explanations that we're going to live with in these next three chapters of why it makes him so evil. Verse 31, it came to pass as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam. He's the one that split off, remember, and started the northern kingdom that he took to wife Jezebel, the daughter of F. Baal, king of the Scydonians, and went and served Baal and worshiped him. This is what really introduces

the worship of Baal in Israel. And it spreads and it takes root. It is because Ahab marries the daughter of the king. Siden is up there, they call it Phoenicia. We would call it the border of Lebanon today, but they had that same Canaanite worship, same language related to Hebrew. So they're Canaanites, but Canaanite Phoenicians, I guess. The capital is Sidon up there north of Tyre. That's where she's from. No doubt Ahab is marrying her because that cement connection, treaty, so to speak, with

the two kingdoms, an alliance. That's a better word. Look what he does immediately here in Israel. Ahab reared up an altar for Baal and the house of Baal. He makes a house for Baal and has an altar there which he built in Samaria. And he made a grove and he did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that had been before him. I think there is some little things in there that make a lot more sense when we better understand this pantheon of deities that the Canaanites had.

And I think this is a good place to do it because they're little hints all the way through these chapters and then more as we go through the Old Testament. One of my Hebrew teachers at BYU was John Twetness. And he wrote an article in the end sign. It is. I brought a copy of it. July 1990. I would recommend this is great background for the Canaanite pantheon of deities. July 1990, enzyme. John Tvettness, TVEDT NES. Hebrew professor at BYU at the time. What he explains in it is that we know a little bit from the Bible about this religious practices and beliefs of the Canaanites, but there was a lot we didn't. And about a hundred years ago, I think it was 1927, they found a 13 to 14th century BC library in modern-day Syria, which is the

Ugritic texts. So these texts talk about beliefs in that area before the Israelites arrive there. 13th, 14th century BC. It's a whole library. And so it's from that that we get much more of an idea So let me can I just go run run through this and if you have anything you want to add in here to any of these gods I think it really is really helpful John was telling me just the other day he was thinking about pre-Israelite Canaanite pantheons were you John? I was saying if only we could discover a library full I was saying, if only we could discover a library full of stuff about it. I was saying.

I mean, that's kind of amazing. Finding a book or a text, but finding a library, how much are we talking about? I mean, it's big. It is big. Paul Hoskasen, who was, you know, on our faculty in ancient scripture, was a great, ugaritic scholar. Get him on and he'll tell you even more about that ugaritic language. Paul's my cousin and that library. Is that right? Yeah. There's a fast track to the celestial kingdom for you right there being related to Paul Hoskison. Okay.

L is the head god and you think that is the same word for God that the Hebrew should. You can see that relationship. He is likened as a bull, King of the Gods. And his consort is a goddess named Ashra. She's a fertility goddess. Her name, Ashra, actually means grove. So when you see them building groves and worshiping in groves, fertility rituals that are done in groves, because

that's evidence of so much vegetation and fertility that God looks kindly upon that part of the world, because with all these trees, usually, oh, can terabence trees is evidence that God is pleased with what is going on there, and he blesses it. But you also see how much profits for Jehovah condemns. They're tearing down groves all the time. This used to confuse me when I was a teenager, just reading Old Testament seminary for the first time, because everything up until then I'd heard about groves was the sacred grove and aspen grove and pleasant grove. And to have God coming down on the groves or condemning the groves, and I had to learn,

oh, there was some pretty bad worship stuff that went on in these groves because they had a different meaning form. So yeah, keep going. Yeah, he wrote of four of their children that we can see evidence as of in these chapters we're looking at today. Baal is one of them

and kind of it seems like the favorite son. His name means Lord or husband, but he's also called Hadad, which means thunder because he is the sky god, he's the weather god, he's the one that sends lightning and thunder and wind, but also rain. So he's life-giving, he's a little life-giving god. His consort, and maybe his sister, you know, his kind of sister consort, is a knot. She's sometimes called the virgin.

I mean, you start thinking about how some of these, especially the goddesses, it seems like get intertwined with the true heroines of God, that God's daughters that make a difference. She's called the mother of nations, but she is represented in her name means surface, like surface of the earth. So the dirt, the soil, the rocks. So can you see when Baal reigns upon a knot, that's where we get vegetation. So this is this fertility ritual that will bring life. So she's a fertility goddess like her mother is. And oftentimes, I think by the time you get down to the time of Jezebel

and Ahab, and not and Ashara kind of get blended together as fertility goddesses and almost the consort of Baal there. You see groves and Baal the lightning god very often. Then there's another brother called Yam, which means see. He's the God of the waters on the earth and under the earth. And you see him in conflict with Baal very often. So the storms come from the sky and the sea revolts and fights against him with these waves that crash upon the sea. Sounds like the Canaanite Pantheon has a little dysfunctional. Oh, it's highly dysfunctional. And because they hate each other, these brothers hate each other by fighting each other all the time. And Mott, their other brother, means death. He's the God of the underworld, and he doesn't like Baal either, because he gets power from those that die, and Baal

is more life-giving. Once there was a duel between Yom and Baal. So the Sea God and the life-giving sky god, Yom killed Baal. L, they had God mourns over his dead son Baal. He sat in ashes, but also he made incisions in his body to bring blood with a sharp stone. That was part of the way of capturing the attention of showing mourning. You'll remember in the love Moses, it spoke against that. Almost a mockery or a echo perhaps might be better with Christ bleeding from every poor, that his blood is sacred and all the blood in sacrifice that is sacred, but they do it by cutting themselves. That'll come up again. So I bring that up. The head got mourns, the consequences for all of this is that there's more drought and famine because Boll is dead.

So a not Boll sister comes to the rescue. She slays Yom and then goes makes a deal with Mott in the under world. She says, we'll both lose if Boll stays here forever because without him there is no life. And if without any life, you're not going to have any death. So you're not going to have any added power down here. So it's with this deal that Mott allows Boll to come and rule in the sky six months of the year. And then to Hess, he has to return to the sky six months of the year and then to have he has to return to the underground six months of the year. And that's the way the Canaanites explain the seasons and the rain cycle when ball has been released out of the underworld and can give life again. So there's a little background during the dry season. He's back in the end of the world.

He's dead. So does Jezebel bring all of this with her? So Jezebel brings all of this with her. Now you go back there again at the end of chapter 16 and you see that A-hab in verse 32, reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal. And verse 33, he makes a grove. And this provokes very much Java, as can be expected. That's our background. That leads us up now to what we're seeing here in

chapter 17. I have a feeling the Lord's going to send a prophet. That's usually what he does when things are going off the rails. And it's in the very first line, the very first verse. This is our introduction to one of the greatest prophets that Israel ever knew. Elijah, Elijah, whose name means, my God is Jehovah. It's wonderful. He's from Gilead, which is trans Jordan, just on the east side of the Jordan River and part of the tribes of the northern tribes. It's all part of the land given to Israel initially. And he comes to Ahab the King and says, as the Lord God of Israel, levithe, before whom I stand there shall not be due nor reign these years, but according to my word. Oh, okay. So he can control the reign, not by all. He's saying, look, yeah, this is going to be Jehovah.

This is Jehovah. He's going to do this. We're sealing up the heavens. It's not going to rain. I was looking in the the manual. It says on page 118, but all was known as the God of storms and rain. And I wanted to mention that in the Bible dictionary, it says he was the sun God, but I think the the later scholarship is printed here in the Bible dictionary, it says he was the sun God, but I think the later scholarship is printed here in the new manual. And I love that direct confrontation.

It's kind of like the plagues of Egypt, too, where the Niles not God, I am God. I'm going to turn the Nile to blood. Camille, because you lived in the Holy Land there at the Jerusalem Center, can you talk about the dew? Because idea, that's fascinating, the Mediterranean, and that it would not only not rain, but no dew. Yes, because the dew is so heavy, it is just, it's remarkable, what a gift.

The dews and the do's of Carmel, particularly, right? Mount Carmel is a fascinating topographical entity. If you look at the map of Israel along the Mediterranean, there's one little place at the northern part of it that it just juts out. There's a little loop right there. I'm drawing it, you know. But you think that is the farthest west side of Mount Carmel. And the water comes on three sides of it. So you just think Mt. Carmel is gonna be a favorite place for the Canaanites to worship. The dew is thick there.

A lot of fertility. The trees just grow up. Still, you go there today. It is just thick with trees. Oh, can terabint trees. And the water, the sea, you know, you can see their yam covers all around that. It is a very fertile area. It is much heavier do than typically I've seen around here.

It's life giving, right? Yes. Yeah, so I love that the verse mentions not only not rained, not even due, which would be really unusual there, because right off the Mediterranean, there's so much due every day. Yeah, yeah. And it's just wet. You can be just sopping wet after.

But what is interesting too, we find out that this famine is going to last more than three years. So you cannot see the six month cycle of rain and drought. Well, how important to know then to come here, what you taught us about all the six months, six months, six months. I really think that knowing that pantheon is really helpful. And I would really recommend your readers go back and find Brother Tweetness's article. You'll love it. It's very, very helpful.

Yeah, we'll link that in our show notes. Follow him dot, CO follow him dot co. What is interesting, the first act that we see a light to the prophet do is seal up the heavens. And we will later see him as the one who will restore ceiling power in the latter day to Joseph Smith, right, at Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple in 1836, that he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to the fathers. And to remember, when Moroni appeared to Joseph Smith that night, where he first told

him and taught him for three times. One of the scriptures he quoted was from Malachi, but a little differently. And he doesn't say, I will ordain you or set you apart or teach you. I will reveal unto you the priesthood by the hand of Elijah, not Peter, James, and John, not John the Baptist, by Elijah the prophet. And you see what an incredible role Elijah has played in our dispensation, but remember also at the amount

of transfiguration where Jesus went with Peter, James, and John, and Moses and Elijah were transfigured with physical bodies there and gave them keys on the mount, gave Peter keys on the mount of transfiguration. And Elijah is an important one to the Jews who always set a place for him at Passover because they know he will come again, highly regarded, but his first act is in sealing the heavens. And giving Jehovah the credit for that. Notice, as soon as he does this, what is the Lord tell, Elijah, verse three, get the hands and turn the eastward, get out of here because A-hab and Jezebel are mad. And they're gonna be searching for him all this time.

I think it's interesting. I think they know they don't admit it right out, but they know he's the key to bringing rain again. It isn't ball. It doesn't say it, but why are they searching for Elijah all this time? If they don't think he can do something about it, yeah. And so here he goes and he's affected by the famine as well, because he goes to the

Brook charit, which we're not really sure exactly where that is. Some of thought it's Wadi Kelt, not far from Jericho, but that's on the west side of Jordan, and that's the traditional place of the Brooke chariot. But it says before Jordan, which means the east side. So we really don't know, but it's a ways away. It gets away from Jezebel and Ahab. And the Lord sends Ravens to feed him there. And he has the Brooke to give him water. And verse six, the Ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning and the bread and flesh in the evening and he drank of the brook.

I put a cross reference in my scriptures this time as I did it because of my study this time of the Old Testament. I put Deuteronomy 8-3. Can we go back to that? Moses teaches that man shall not eat by bread alone, but it gives the explanation of why. When Christ quotes that on the mount of temptation to Satan, we don't usually put it with the rest of the story here.

Look at verse 3, Deuteronomy 8, God humbled the Israel and suffered the to hunger and fed the with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know, that he might make thee know that man did not live by bread alone, but every word that preceded that of the mouth of the Lord, does man live. I think in some ways, isn't Elijah being taught the same thing that, yeah, he's competing by a raven. This cannot be huge feast.

This is more like man of food, right? His survival depends on him relying on the Lord. Do we have that with fast Sunday? I mean, I've been just thinking of that more. And reminders that it is not bread alone, that we need to sustain us. I remember one of my seminary students used to quote, you don't have to read the scriptures every day, just on the days that you eat.

And there's something about a reminder in that, our souls, our spirits need nourishment. That's straight out of the book of Mormon, right? My soul hungered. And I think that's the be attitude, hunger and thirst after righteousness. When I attempt to teach the be attitudes I always like to ask now how often do you hunger and thirst? Are you pretty much done with that or? Is it every single day every ever ever done eating in the same way?

Spiritual food. Are you ever just done? This is a strengthening for Elijah as well because he has some very important work strengthening for Elijah as well because he has some very important work that will be part of his ministry. So when the Brook dries up, he can't stay there any longer. And this now opens up this fabulous story. He says verse nine, arise, get thee to Zeraath, which belonged to Sidon. Remember who else lived in Sidon? That's our Jezebel. That's where she came from. This is the heart of Baal Ism. And there's a widow woman, he says, and she will sustain the. So he's going far south. We don't know how far south in Israel. far south in Israel. Zarafath is about 50 miles north of Mount Carmel. He's traveling close to 100 miles to find her. Remember it's in Luke 4 that Jesus is teaching in the synagogue where he grew up in Nazareth. And he's taught and the people his neighbors are saying, wait a minute, isn't this Joseph son?

Ah, this doesn't seem right when he has just born a witness. Spirit of the Lord is upon me and he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor to heal the broken art. I mean, it is fabulous. And they go, but wait a minute. No. And Jesus says to them, no man is a prophet in his own country. Remember, then they start turning away from him. And he brings up two Old Testament stories about widows. Yes, weren't there many widows in Israel? But the Lord sent Elijah the prophet

not to a widow in Israel. He sent him to a widow in Zerafaph. What is he saying? Sometimes the people in Gentile territory, non-Israelite territory, can have greater faith than even those in Israel. The reaction of the Jews in Nazareth, they try to take Jesus' life afterwards. Don't tell us that Gentiles are more righteous than we are.

He's referring to this story. The Lord sends Elijah clear up to Venetia, Gentile territory, that ball territory to find a widow and she will take care of you. She is about as opposite of Jezebel as you can possibly find. We don't even know her name. We have Jezebel's name. Jezebel lives in luxury. Her palace in Samaria. We found some pieces. I mean, some might be part of foundation of that. Even parts of ivory. I just think how did they get ivory in Samaria? But it was a luxurious palace that she lives in.

And here is this widow woman. We don't have her name. She says, slow down. It seems like as you can get the only thing we know, she has this little sun. It's know, she has a little son. It's the fact she has a little son. How old is she? Usually we think of widows as older women, right?

But she's got a young son. It's a tragic story. So, verse 10, he lied your rice's up, goes to Zerafath, and when he came to the gate of the city, which is the busiest part of the city, behold, the widow woman was their gathering sticks. You wonder, I keep asking, how did he recognize her? Had she been told something before?

But she is gathering sticks, she's ready to make her last meal. And he just stops her and just very matter of factly, what does he say? Fetch me, I pray, the little water in a vessel that I may drink. The famine has hit up there as well. The drought has hit up there at well. You just think this is some minor little request. And she was going to fetch it. I mean, look at her. She didn't say, um, sir, do you realize we're in a drought? I don't have extra water. She was on her way to fetch it and he called to her

as if that wasn't enough. He's got to give her a bigger test. Bring me, I pray, the Immorsal of Bread in Nine-Hand. Hey, as you're coming back, why don't you bring me something to eat as well? Take me this sandwich on your way back. Yeah. And she said, as the Lord thy God,

Liveth, she lives among the pantheon of the Canaanites. And she knows who Elijah's God is. As the Lord thy God, Liveth, I promise you, I don't have any cake, but I have a handful of meal or flour in the barrel and a little oil in a cruise and behold, I'm gathering two sticks that she can start a little fire.

And I may go in and dress it for me and my son that we may eat and die. This is it. We have nothing more. And Elijah, whose name means my God is Jehovah, says, fear not. And do as thou has said, but make me a little cake first and bring it unto me and after make thee and for thee and thy son. Oh, fear not. I mean, it would be one thing if this woman was alone and it was just for her, but the fact she has a son. Now, you think about that.

You fathers, think about your wives. If they had enough food for one meal, do you give it to this stranger? Or do you give it to your son? Two young kids. We think of those, the handcart pioneers, that no, I'm not gonna eat, but I'm gonna feed my ration to my wife or my children

and 17 miracles. I'm thinking of that man who didn't eat. Can I just go back because I think that for those who are just listening, remember that when you see Lord in all caps, that is Jehovah. So in verse 12, and she said, as the Lord, okay, so he's saying as Jehovah thy God, live it. It's important because Lord can be a title for a lot of us in English, but this is Jehovah thy God, live it. And so I love that you pointed that out. Thy God, she is a worshiper of Jehovah and somehow Elijah knows that.

And she knows that. And I think recognizing that, yes, that Lord, I think thank you for bringing that. That she knows that. And I think recognizing that. Yes, that Lord. I think, thank you for bringing that. That is so true. First, King 1710 reminds me of Jesus and the woman at the well, right? Give me a little water to drink. Give me a little water to drink. He's almost replaying the story. That is true. That is true. And then he says, ah, but I will give you water that you won't have to come back to the well, that you'll never thirst again. It sets that up. You know, I think I did see this in the Come Follow Me manual.

They refer you to a talk given by Elder Linge Robbins. And I used a quote in my chapter on the widow of Zerafeth. I just think this quote is a really good one. He gave it a general conference in April 2005. Here's what he taught. At speaking of that, right there, but we just read of Eli just saying, oh no, you give me first, you know, he said quote. Now doesn't that sound selfish, asking not just for the first piece, but possibly the

only piece? Didn't our parents teach us to let other people go first, and especially for a gentleman to let a lady go first? Let alone a starving widow? Her choice. Does she eat or does she sacrifice her last meal and hastened death? Perhaps she will sacrifice her own food, but could she sacrifice the food meant for her starving son. Elijah understood the doctrine that blessings come after the trial of our faith. He wasn't being selfish, as the Lord's servant Elijah was there to give, not to take. One reason the Lord illustrates doctrines with the most extreme circumstances is to eliminate

excuses. If the Lord expects even the poorest widow to pay her might, where does that leave all others who find that it is not convenient or easy to sacrifice? Elder Robinson has always been very thoughtful and very poignant to me. And it's going to be a sacrifice for her, but I'm thinking to what is it going to teach Elijah from this example? Will it strengthen him because of her willingness? And we don't have her name, isn't that so interesting?

Yeah, just the widow of Zareffeth, we always refer to her as, right? Yes, in Greek it's Syrepta as it shows up in Luke chapter 4. So verse 14, thus, sayeth the Lord God of Israel, Jehovah God of Israel. Here's Elijah quoting Jehovah to her. The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the crews of oil fail until the day that the Lord send a thrain upon the earth. And so she went and did according to the say of Elijah, and she and he and her house did

eat many days. I mean, how often every day she goes back and whoops, yep, there's more. Remember that talk that Elder Maxwell gave called the inexhaustible Messiah? There's always more. You feed a multitude of 5,000. And you take up 12 baskets of fragments. And you take 12 baskets more afterwards. He is inexhaustible. There's always more.

It is wonderful. And the barrel wasted not, neither the crews of oil, according to the word of the Lord. And Elijah's face with her, he remains there. I just think very interesting right there in the heart of Baal worship. Camille, here's a quote from Elder Jeffrey Arh Holland. This is from October 2014, General Conference. He's talking about being generous and giving and sacrificing. And he says, I bear witness of the miracles, both spiritual and temporal, that come to those who live the law of the fast. I bear witness of the miracles that have come to me.

Truly, as Isaiah recorded, I have cried out in the fast more than once, and truly God has responded, here I am, cherished that sacred privilege, at least monthly, and be as generous as circumstances permit in your fast offering and other humanitarian, educational, and missionary contributions. I promise that God will be generous to you. And those who find relief at your hand will call your name blessed forever. What a story of faith here. Oh, to hand that little meal over to Elijah is an earth-shattering moment in my mind. Like, wow. And whatever background she had with Jehovah,

you just think it couldn't be tremendous. I mean, not like the Israelites have had. And you can see why the Savior would bring this up as an example there, and answer it later. There were many widows in Israel, but the Lord sent Elijah to a widow in Zarafath. It is strong, but you know, challenges come. And just because she has food in the barrel and the crews, verse 17, that the sun, hersel, sun, fell sick. And he dies. I just think this is reality.

We can be so filled and so committed and so rock solid in our covenant with the Lord, and feel so good. And then something happens completely. I mean, it's terrible and it's so unexpected and it's so undeserved. And it's so, and you go, wait a minute. I thought God liked me. I thought he was on my side. And she says in verse 18, what have I to do with it?

I mean, what's going on here? What have you done? Oh, thou man of God, art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance and to slay my son. And he said to her, give me thy son. And he took him up. This is so much like the houses back then. They usually had just the four rooms on the main floor

with a courtyard and then you go upstairs and that was a sleeping chamber sometimes, you know, cooler up there on the roof. And that's where he took him and where he would have slapped. It says, he has a boat and he laid him on his own bed and he cried to the Lord and said, oh Lord, my God, has that also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn? Why did you do it to her? Look what she has done. She's been so good to me.

And then he stretched himself upon the child three times. This is the only time in the whole Hebrew Bible that that Hebrew words translated stretched himself appears. So we're not really sure what it means. Don Perry, who's a Hebrew professor at B.W. you told me, he thinks it could mean more like season prayer. So in some way stretching his arms out over the body or above his head in ways that the Hebrews did pray sometimes, it seems to be just extending himself as far as he could go in prayer upon the child three times as he cried, oh Lord my God, Jehovah, my God, I pray thee, let this child soul come into him again. And it does. And the child revives. He takes the child down and gives him to his mother. And the widow now says in

verse 24, now by this, I know that thou art a man of God and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is true. I just think it is interesting. We think we have a testimony, but sometimes it takes even greater challenges and the way the Lord rescues us in those challenges to say, okay, I think I got it now. I got it. I thought I knew before, but now that I've been through this. It's a wonderful example of here. Elijah, you could argue is the greatest person. He is filled with more of God's gifts at that time on the earth than probably anyone else.

He is endowed with his power, with sealing power that he has given its Melchistic priesthood, isn't it? And he is filled with that. And yet he goes to a woman who is of another lineage in an environment of another faith and asks her for help to him. There's a humbling on his part. And the way the Lord often answers our prayers is some by someone that we might not

ever expect. And then he turns around and blesses her in return. It's the way the gospel works, isn't it? Camille, I know you've taught this earlier, and I love this thought that this woman, because of her faith, the Lord has taken her to a place in her life where no one else can help her but him. And the Lord will do that for us. Those are soul stretching moments. We're using the word stretched here. But if you follow the Lord, he can take you places in life where you'll come to a relationship with him because he'll be the only one who can help you. Do you remember teaching that? I thought of that so often because it's stories like this that teach me that and how we change, how we become more like him and that we trust and lean on him more than we would

ever have before because in our extremities, he is there. Yeah. If we let him, he'll take us to where no one else can help us. And then we turn completely with him. I think I've heard Sherry do use the phrase is not just our last hope. He's our only hope. And we go to those places where he's our only hope. And I say if we let him, because I think we can play it safe a lot of times and just go in an opposite direction and say, it's too much, I can't handle that. But boy, if we will allow ourselves to go to those places, we find power.

And I would say Camille that there's gonna be someone who reads this and says, she got her son back and I never got my family member back But remember she's a widow. She's already lost a family member I don't know if this is so much about her Getting the blessing she was after but finding out that God was the only Person who could help her in this moment whether the sun comes back or not. That's a really good point I think that is very important. And that's what she bears witness. You see her being solid there afterwards, don't you? She's a rock there in Zaraath.

And I think the Lord knows that. That's why he uses Zara as an example. Hundreds and hundreds of years later. Chapter 17. It sets us up, for chapter 18 because remember the drought is still going on. And verse 1 of chapter 18, we think Elijah had what's different from the last time he saw a hab in Jezebel, he had not met the widow. We never know if the widow and Jezebel ever met, but Elijah knew him both. And verse one, it came to pass after many days that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year. This is the third year of the famine. Luke force says that famine lasted three years and six months. And now the Lord is saying to him, go show thyself unto Ahab. And I will send rain upon the earth.

He's ready to stop the famine, but he's got to go face Ahab. And remember, before he did not want to see Ahab, he ran away. But verse two, he goes to show himself, and there's this sore famine in Samaria. It hit there too, of course. But he ran into Obadiah, who is like the chief steward or servant of Ahab.

And we learn in parentheses in verse 3 something about Obadiah. Obadiah feared the Lord greatly. And it's Jehovah. It's the Lord Jehovah. Yes, yes. So it seems like Ahab has no idea that his chief servant is a worshiper of Jehovah. So, Obediah has kind of kept this down. You notice his last of his name is even Jehovah. I was going to say, what does Obediah mean because that Yah in there means servant of the Lord? Servant of Jehovah. He is kind of a clandestine, worshipper and believer. This is kind of frightening to be overt in this, in a half-palace.

You keep it quiet, not in this neighborhood. But look at verse four, that you learn that he is the one when Jezebel cut off the profits of the Lord. Just cross reference that over to verse 13, he explains it in another way. He is the one when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the Lord. Just cross reference that over to verse 13. He explains it in another way. When Jezebel slew the prophets of Jehovah. Here Jezebel killed prophets of Jehovah. And so, Obediah took a hundred of the remaining prophets of Jehovah and hid them by 50 in a cave and

fed them with bread and water. You think about, that's pretty remarkable that he had to, in a time of famine, feed that man, he find enough bread and water to keep them hidden so Jezebel wouldn't kill them. But this again is a context where we see big P-profit and little P-profits. Do your listeners, have we done enough with this? Do they know the distinction between profits and profitices that Moses said that all of you would be profits? I don't think so. Go ahead. Because see, there's hundreds of profits for Jehovah that are on the earth at the time,

and we've seen other places there are Prophetices and these are ones who have a testimony of Jesus as Revelation 1910 says I think they know that Jehovah and they bear witness of him, but it's not the same as The head prophet that the Lord works through. I'll tell you a good cross reference for understanding that. It would be Numbers 12. See how fun it is when we've got more of the Old Testament in background that we can help us to go back to stories.

Remember, this is Miriam, the prophetess. We've seen Miriam called a prophetess, and her brother Aaron is the high priest. Their younger brother Moses is the big pea prophet. But in verse 2, Maryam and Aaron are complaining against Moses and they're saying, half the Lord indeed spoken only by Moses. Hathy not spoken also by us. Have a we-received revelation. Have a we-born witness of Jehovah? Are you the only one that's a prophet? And the Lord heard it and look at his response in verse six. If there be a prophet among you, little P,

I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision and will speak unto him in a dream. That's the way we, as prophets and prophetesses, learn so much and receive through the Spirit, a testimony. But verse 7, my servant Moses, who they don't do capital peace, but that's how I distinguish in my mind. Moses it's not the same thing. With him, verse 8, will I speak mouth to mouth even apparently and not in dark speeches. It is face to face, mouth to mouth,

much more direct. We get Elijah who's going to be like the Moses, and the Lord is speaking directly in very clear terms. We hear President Nelson today talk to us about being awakened in the night and saying, write this down, very direct, very precise. I don't get revelation like that, but I must say like Miriam, I have received revelation. And like these prophets, they have. And they have been bearing witness of Jehovah,

so Obadiah hides them away before Jezebel can kill them. Really living up to his name as a servant because of feeding these profits. What does that mean by 50, but then it's 100 by 50. There's a, this is cave one and this is cave two and each there's 50. What do you think is that it? It seems like that's what it is. It is divided into maybe the cave wasn't big enough to hold all of them or you you had your bets and hope that if one gets discovered the other ones are still safe,

that's a servant. That's loyalty of love and faith. All the while working under the nose of Ahab. And so now Ahab gives Obedaya a mission. He said, this famine is so bad, we don't have even anything to feed our horses. Let's divide up. We'll go in two different directions. You can find anything you can find to feed our livestock. Go into the any fountains or brooks and find grass to save our beasts. So

they divide up. Ahab goes one way, Obadiah another and verse seven, Obadiah on his way comes face to face with Elijah. And as soon as he meets Elijah, he said, well, wait a minute, are thou my Lord? Notice it's little L. This is not capital Ls. In other words, I could say, are you the prophet, big P, Elijah too? It's not Jehovah, but are you my Lord Elijah?

And Elijah says, yep, I am. And you go tell by Lord. And so by Lord, it's all in little letters. So that is who's his Lord? A-hab. A-hab. That's King A-hab. You go tell King A-hab.

Now get this. Behold Elijah Elijah and then we get italics. Do your listeners know italics in the King James translation? We may have mentioned that before, but go ahead. Never bad to review. Okay, it's wonderful because the King James translators, when they added words that were not in the manuscript they were translating from, it's just not there, but they think they need more words to make the sentence make sense. They will put them in italics.

So they've added the words, behold, Elijah is here. You go tell Ahab, Elijah is here. I found him. And that makes sense. But I think there's something really cool, if you say, what does the manuscript say all by itself? If it's just behold Elijah, but you translate Elijah, what is the message?

You go back and tell Ahab what? You go tell Ahab, My God is Jehovah. Look at Obediah's answer. What have I seen that now she's delivered? I served it into the hands of A-hab. Just let me get you. I'd rather not say that. You're sending me to my death. Go bear your testimony. You're sending me to my death. Go bear your testimony. You go tell them, my God is joe. And he says, Oh, anyone, there's no nation or kingdom wither my Lord, Ahab, had sent, not sent to seek the,

there's not a place where he hasn't been sending people out to find you, Elijah. And when they say he's not here and they take an oath, they promise they haven't found him. But now you're telling me to go and tell him, my God is Jehovah. And verse 12, he goes, yeah, I just know what, as soon as I go leave and telling that the spirit will risk you away somewhere else. And so when he comes to find you, you won't be here. And so there I am saying, but he was here. I promise. He was here. I promise. And by the way, my God is job. And look at the end there. See that butt? Or never the less. Isn't that the same thing? But nevertheless, I know he'll take my life. But nevertheless, I, I servant fear the Lord, fear Jehovah. I have feared him from my youth.

And he tells again, remember, I was the one that hid those, those prophets in the cave and fed them. So verse 14, but now they'll say, let's go, tell thy Lord, behold, Jehovah, is my God, and he shall slay me. But okay, I'm gonna go, even though it's gonna happen. And Elijah answers as the Lord of hosts, Livoth. I know I keep doing inserts, but I think it's so cool. Do you know who the first one who said Lord of hosts in the Hebrew Bible, who called Jehovah the Lord of hosts in the Hebrew Bible who called Jehovah the Lord of hosts. It's Hannah in her prayer in 1 Samuel chapter 1. She's the first one to call him Lord of hosts as the Lord Jehovah of hosts

liveth. Behold whom I stand, I will surely show myself unto him today. He makes an oath. I promise by the name, the sacred name of Java. I'm not going away. So, Obadiah goes and meets Ahab tells him and Ahab went to meet Elijah. And there they get together here after three and a half years, you know. for three and a half years, you know? Please join us for part two of this podcast.