The Pulpit Commentary — 1 Kings — Section 410

exhibiting the habit of the me.n. He wns ably to the various images or statues of this the ready n.nd patient slave of Jehovah. god set up in the land (Gesenius). "This The ni~:i~ is apparently introduced not so boldness, this high tone, this absence of the much to' ;, ele~e.t~ the solemnity of the slightest indication of all\I'Ill, seems to he.ve oe.th" (Keil, Bahr)-for surely Elijah would completely discomfited Ahab, who ventured '\\ish to make the affirmation of eh. xvii. 1 on no reply," &o. (Rawlinson). It is prob- e.s strong and solemn as possible-nor yet able that, though he put on a bold front, he to convey the meaning the.t "it is not was from the first thoroughly oowed. Baal or Ashtaroth who are the rulers of the Ver. 19.-Now therefore send, and gather heavenly bodies" (Wordsworth), for Oba- to me all Israel [i.e., by representation, the diah knew tho,t perfectly well, but because heads of the people, elders, &o. Cf. oh. viii. it was thus better ado,pted for a believer. 2, 65 ; xii. 16, 18 ; xvi. 16, 17] unto Mount In addressing Ahe.b it suited Elije.h's pur- Carmel [Heb., as almost olwe.ys, the Carmel, pose better to give prominence to the ideo. i.e., the park. Cf. 1 So,m. xx.v. 1-6. It is that J eb ovah was " the God of Israel "] , I "the park of Palestine." It is indebted for will surely show myself nnto him to-day. this name to the luxuriant vegetation-" the excellency of Carmel" (Isa. xxxv. 2)-which Ver. 16.-So Oba.d.ia.b. went to meet Aha.b, clothes its southern slopes (Porter, p. 371; and told him : and Aha.b went [Very readily, Stanley, S. and P. pp. 352-64, and App. p. it would seem. Anything was better than 14; Van de Velde, i. pp. 317,318). It is now suspense and famine. And Elije.h's very generally ea.lied Mar (i.e., Lord. or Saint) return contained in it e. promise of rain] to Elyas, after the greo,t prophet. No one meet Elijah. who ho,s seen the loco,lity co,n have any Ver. 17.-And it ea.me to pa.ss, when doubts as to whioh p&rt of the mount&in Ahab sa.w Elijah, tha.t Ahab said nnto was the scene of the sacrifice, or can f&il to him, Art thou he [Rather, here : same be struck with the singular fitness of the words e.s in ver. 7. "Do I at last see place to be the theo,tre of this thrilling his- thee again? Hast thou ventured into my tory. Carmel is rather e. ridge than e. moun- presence?"] that troubleth Israel? [Heb. t&in, some twelve miles in length. Its thou troublcr of Israel. For the word western (or strictly N.N.W.) extremity is a (i;;lV) see Gen. uxiv. 30; Josh. vi. 18; vii. bold heo,dlo,nd, some 600 feet in height, 25; Prov. xi. 17; 1 Se.m. xiv. 29. When which dips almost directly into the waters Rawlinson says that this charge of troubling of the Mediterranean. Its highest point, Israel he.s "never been before brought 1728 feet above the sea level, is about four against any one but Achan," he apparently miles from its easrem extremity, which, &t forgets the passage last cited. " My father an elevation of 1600 feet, rises like e. wall hath troubled the land." Wordsworth from the greo,t plain of Esdre.elon. It is at pare.phrases, " Art thou the Achan of this point, there can be no question, we a.re Israel?" but it is very doubtful whether to place the scene of the burnt sa.crifice. this thought was in Ahab's mind.] The identifico,tion has only been effected in Ver. 18.-And he answered, I have not comparatively recent days (1852), but it is troubled Israel ; but thou, and thy father's beyond dispute. Not only does the Arab hoUBe [It has been supposed the.t Aho,b name which it bears-El Murahkah, "th8 "hoped to abash the Tishbite, perhaps to Burning," or II Sacrifice "-o,fford striking have him at his feet suing for pardon " witness to the identity, but the situation (Rawlinson). If so, he must have com- and surroundings e.do,pt themselves with pletely misjudged his man. And why the such wonderful precision to the require- prophet should sne for po,rdon, when he was ments of the ne.rro,tive as to leave no reason- so clearly master of the situo,tion, it is diffi- able doubt in the mind. For (1) it is a sort cult to imagine. It is quite as likely that of no,ture.l platform, or pulpit, raised 1000 Ahab expected denunciation and defiance feet above the adjoining pie.in, and therefore such as he now provokes], 1n that ye have well co,lcul&ted to afford a view of the pro- forsaken the commandments of the Lord, ceedings, or at least of the descent of the and thou [The change from plum! to sin- Holy Fire, to spectntors of 11ll Israel. The gular is instructive. Preceding kings flnme would probnbly be seen by Jezebel in and the people at large had broken her palace at Jezrcel. This eminence is God's commandments by the calf-worship, visible from Nazareth, some twenty miles but Ahab a.lone ho,d introduced the Bao,]. awny. 11 There is not ·a more conspicuous cultns into the land] ha.at followed [Heh. spot on all Carmel tho,n the abrupt, rocky goest after] Baallm. [The plural may either height of El Muro,hke.h, shooting up so refer to the various names and forms under suddenly on the east" (Van de Velda, i. pp. which Baal wo,s worshipped-Be.e.1-Berith, 322, 323). 11 The summit ..• oommands Baal-Zebub, &c. (Bii.hr, al.)-or more prob- the last view of the sea behind and the first CH. XVI1I, 1-46.) TI1E FIRST BOOK OF :KINGS. 421