THE SERVICE OF ELIJAH (2)
THE SERVICE OF ELIJAH (2)
JT We might say this is one of the greatest chapters recorded, furnishing us with the details of Elijah’s exploits, and affording much for us. As we had this morning, Elijah was to be maintained; that is a word that we do well to notice, that the servants of God are maintained, and we have to regard them accordingly. They are servants of God. He calls, we might say, on this brother, Obadiah, a faithful man, who feared Jehovah greatly, as it says in verse 3. He is characterised by care for the Lord’s servants, and it says, “And it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of Jehovah, that Obadiah took a hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and maintained them”. I think we have often noticed this numeral fifty as a measure of a local meeting, fifty is enough to form a meeting and afford all that is necessary. Obadiah is a very good testimony to us, affording protection for the prophets of Jehovah. And another thing that is to be noticed especially is the presence of Jezebel here. Her name will come up presently and will link on with Revelation. We know how serious and solemn the declarations of a certain system are in deceiving people. We do well to take account of it especially because of the certain doctrine promulgated at a certain time, the Roman Catholic system propagating this terrible doctrine that the virgin Mary was caught up into heaven without dying. Mary the mother of the Lord — a terrible blasphemy. We do well to take account of the terrible times we are in. We have this terrible thing called trade unionism; that is another feature that the enemy is using strongly against the Lord’s people, and we have to be sympathetic with the Lord’s people who have to do with it. They need our prayers that [p. 329] the saints may be preserved in the midst of antagonism and apostasy.
SMcC You referred to Jezebel and the apostasy, would you go over that?
JT I think it is a dual apostasy that exists. Trade unionism is one of the worst features, pointing to Russia, and then there is the Romish system. We might as well speak the truth. That is what we have to deal with just now.
RWS One is political and the other religious.
JT Very good, I would say that fully. It is a most serious situation and the brethren should have it in their hearts at all times, especially at the prayer meetings. God answers prayers and the answers to our prayers should come on Tuesday morning if we watch for them.
HB They both seek world domination; is that the end in view?
JT Quite so. Rome has sought for this for fourteen centuries.
SMcC Your reference to the dual apostasy is interesting. Is there not a dual thought in the Revelation, chapter 13 in relation to the first and second beasts?
JT I should be glad to hear you on that — the first and second beasts. The political beast shall hate the harlot and make her desolate and eat her flesh, a remarkable thing, the flesh of Rome. The evidence of that could be seen in the French Revolution. The French Revolution was characterised by that sort of thing.
SMcC The second beast embodies a good deal of the first, does he not?
JT It is a subordinate idea and we have to understand what that subordinate feature means. Satan himself has to do with all of that. You know he is the agent of the whole [p. 330] matter.
SMcC I thought it was interesting that we should have the development of Romanism in its subtle power, and over against that the development of the assembly. You have the development of principles of evil over against the revelation of God. Is there not something for us in that?
JT It brings up the whole question of the four monarchies. The last one is Rome, the Roman empire, that is to come up yet; it was, and is not and shall be present.
RH Do you consider these recent doctrines, promulgated by Rome in relation to the fictitious ascension of Mary, an attack on the truth of the rapture, when the assembly will go up?
JT There is something that we have spiritually that they have satanically.
RH There would be a link in Elijah’s being taken up.
JT Elijah is a counterpart of all that, and enters into the book of Revelation. We were speaking about Elijah the prophet mentioned so frequently in the Scripture; in the last chapter of Malachi he is mentioned. “Behold, I send unto you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and terrible day of Jehovah. And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers”. This is before the revival and recovery on the earth, because the earth belongs to the Lord, and there must be something for God coming out of the earth. The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof. The fulness is the fulness of the gentiles that will come and is about to come in.
RWS I do not quite follow what you said as to the scripture you referred to in Malachi. You said the earth is the Lord’s.
JT Elijah is to prepare the way and restore all things. How it is to come about remains to be seen.
JAB Does that refer to [p. 331] John the baptist?
JT That is what we were saying this morning. John the baptist covers several things and Elijah covers several things. The Lord says, “This is Elias who is to come”. John the baptist represented that, that is to come, yet to come.
SMcC As regards this word in verse 2 of chapter 18, “Elijah went to show himself to Ahab”, would that not help in regard to the present issue of appearing in relation to the truth? A great many have difficulty about this matter of approaching the government.
JT Elijah will show himself to Ahab. It is remarkable, it would mean Ahab is more or less recognised in the empire. Presently we see how God has dealt with Ahab.
RWS I am not clear about Elijah personally.
JT It is how God will bring things out mystically, that is the idea. It says many of the saints arose and appeared to many when the Lord Jesus died. What has become of them? What has become of Elijah and Enoch? We have to search out to see if we understand these things from the actual scriptures. I think the answer is the mystical power in the operations of God — things in mystery. God is not obliged to tell us everything. There is a great deal He tells us, but He is not obliged to tell us everything. He holds things in mystery. No one has seen God at any time. We have to accept that. On the other hand we find in the Old Testament and in the New Testament that God is to be seen in some sense, and we have to understand how He is to be seen. Am I speaking what is intelligible to you?
RWS It is a challenge to us as to our spirituality, as to whether we understand.
JT Just so. What do you think, Mr. McC. ?
SMcC I think what you are saying is very important as to inquiring into all these matters as to Elijah — where he is and how God [p. 332] operates.
JT Then the inquiry as to the beast that was, and is not, and is about to come. How is that to appear? That is the last monarchy beginning with Babylon, and it exists today. The laws of Rome, we might say, have come to this country even; they are used because God allows it. We have to follow all these things and be intelligent about them.
SMcC Do you not feel how we need the help of the Spirit in these matters? The world does not understand these things.
JT Take any of our readings ordinarily — we know more than the politicians. They do not know nearly as much as we do, and these matters have to be understood by us. He says he “was, and is not, and shall be present”. There are seven heads to the monarchy and that is to come up yet, a most solemn thing to speak of; are we prepared for it? It is for the brethren to answer, whoever has liberty to answer for the benefit of all of us.
WMcK Do the two witnesses in Revelation 11 connect with what you remarked as to Elijah appearing mystically at the time of restoring all things?
JT That is another phase we must pay attention to — the two witnesses. They were taken up to heaven. Do we understand that? They had power to withhold rain; God had given them that power.
— S. Is there something for us in Obadiah’s recognition that the Spirit of God might catch away Elijah? It was a matter of the operations of the Spirit, whether he is hidden or showed himself. This time God would have him show himself. There is the mystical side of the testimony, is there not?
JT He says to Elijah, “The Spirit of Jehovah shall carry thee whither I know not”. That is the truth, it could happen at any moment and in a mysterious way. Elijah enters into all of that. He is a mystical man.
— [p. 333] S. I was thinking of the importance of recognising all that, and this was the time that God would have him to show himself.
JT These things you are speaking of are mystical in themselves. The enemy has power but God’s power is greater. He that is in you is greater than he that is in them. We do not deny that the enemy has power. He can do things. We see that in Egypt; they did the things Moses and Aaron did, except for the gnats. Solemn thing, but it actually happened.
RWS Why are you viewing Obadiah in such a favourable light?
JT It is plainly stated. It says in verse 3, “Now Obadiah feared Jehovah greatly”. That is a statement of the Spirit of God. It further states that he “took a hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and maintained them”. That is recorded of him. It is clear he is a remarkably good man, and you thank God there was such a man and are such men now in our relations with the world.
CCT He not only hid them, but was able to maintain them. Is that what we find in our localities in regard to the man of God, as we had this morning in regard to maintenance?
JT The idea of being hidden is in Colossians. “Your life is hid with the Christ in God”. A remarkable thing.
JLF Would you say Obadiah was also prepared to give scope to the truth in a remarkable way? He says the Spirit of God will catch you up.
JT That is what the Spirit of God would do, showing the power He had.
JLF I thought that added to the thought of what was mystical.
JT It is miraculous really, a better word in that sense; and then he brings up later on in the chapter the idea of the cloud and the pour of rain. God in a miraculous way causes it to come to pass. He is a [p. 334] man of like passions with ourselves and he prayed again and the rain came, a very great volume of water, too.
SMcC Would it be right to say (this morning you were stressing the testimony line) that in this chapter we have the testimony to power?
JT The testimony to power, quite true.
SMcC It is needed in our minds and souls, the idea of power over against what obtains, the power of God to effect things.
JT God is greater than all around us. That is what came out in the history of Elijah, the great power that came out in this chapter, eight hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the Asherah destroyed. That comes in at the end of the chapter. It is the great point in the chapter. The great thing that God gave to His people is the destruction of the prophets of Baal. They were actually able to do it, the people themselves. God did not do it miraculously, but the people themselves do it, I do not know if you follow.
SMcC I do, and one has often thought of your word at Glasgow that we should arise in the morning with the sense that God’s glory is all around us. We need that, do we not?
JT “Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world”. The Spirit of God is greater than he that is in the world — the wickedness of the world, the Spirit of God is greater than that. That is very comforting in view of what has been brought out of late in regard to the Spirit of God, the great place He is acquiring among the saints of God. “Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world”.
EJM I was wondering if Obadiah would represent one who had a secret with God throughout, representing a system of reality. He is working with Elijah and the whole people is affected.
[p. 335] JT We come on to that in this meeting, the power that there is with God is wonderful, and we can prove it; it is for us to learn to realise how great it is. “Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world”.
EJM Then are you offering us encouragement that in the day of small things, we stand for what we know to be of God? There were only two men at one time, but the result is the victory of God publicly and the establishment of it in the power of God.
JT You take up Matthew to deal with all of this. The Lord says, “If two of you shall agree on the earth concerning any matter, whatsoever it may be that they shall ask, it shall come to them from my Father who is in the heavens”. It is a question of two of the assembly — what power they have!
EJM I think that is wonderful. It is not only an encouragement to one personally, but it is an encouragement to what may appear to be a weak testimony in the local assembly.
JT Two or three, we have it, gathered “unto my name, there am I in the midst of them”. It is a remarkable thing.
EJM If there are two or three standing in a local setting, the situation will be saved.
JT That is our charter that we have, so to speak.
AH Does the real sense of that power in our souls put us among the ruling class?
JT The ruling class as in Genesis 1 — the sun and the moon and the stars. The sun rules the day and the moon the night and the stars. We are the stars.
AH That enlarges what I had in mind, it puts us among the luminaries. I am glad to hear what you say in the matter of two or three. We are so apt to think because the position numerically is small that weakness must attach to it.
JT [p. 336] There is the numeral five, a man has five fingers and five toes. The superman has six fingers and six toes, that is the antichrist. Instead of five he has six, that is the antichrist coming in. Even now, John says, there are many antichrists.
ADS Our brother spoke of the luminaries. It says “Among whom ye shine as lights in the world”.
JT “Among whom ye appear as lights in the world”. When we see Him we shall be like Him. There is nothing to overcome there. We must proceed further in the wonderful matter of the prophets of Baal being destroyed. It says in verse 19, Elijah said, “Gather to me all Israel”. Then in verse 30, “Draw near to me. And all the people drew near to him. And he repaired the altar of Jehovah”. It is to be noted that there is a lot to be repaired now, a great deal among the brethren. Note Elijah took “twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob”. And another thing, Paul says, “Our whole twelve tribes serving incessantly day and night”. Where are they that belong to our dispensation?
AH Would you be impressed with the matter of twelve as referring to the whole?
JT It comes out later in the passage. It is not a remnant in our times; it is the whole twelve tribes. There is just one assembly and the whole of it is in mind, and that comes in in the Lord’s supper. It involves the assembly, that is to say the whole idea of the one loaf. We are one loaf, the body of Christ. And the cup of the Lord is a “cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of the Christ?”.
EJM It says that Elijah took twelve stones, and with the stones he built an altar in the name of Jehovah. Why did he build an altar of stones instead of an altar [p. 337] of earth?
JT I think it is the durability of the stones. Perhaps you would enlarge on the idea of one body in 1 Corinthians 10, “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of the Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of the Christ?”. That makes it so dignified as entering into the reality of the Lord’s supper and the truth of christianity.
RWS The expression in our hymn, ‘That we, the church, to glory brought, should with the Son be blessed’ (92:1). Are we the church?
JT That is the liberty that we have, that we can speak of the whole church; that is the idea.
AH Would you say the position in which we stand through grace is the church position?
JT That is the ground we take. There is one body (one assembly), one Spirit, even as one Lord, one baptism, one God and Father. Do you follow that?
AH I think that helps.
JMcK The matter of twelve in administration is the thought of the whole; it is one idea.
JT Further to the idea of twelve, the word ‘twelve’ is used in Revelation 21. Please read that.
JMcK “And there came one of the seven angels which had had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues, and spoke with me, saying, Come here, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife. And he carried me away in the Spirit, and set me on a great and high mountain, and shewed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of the heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her shining was like a most precious stone, as a crystal-like jasper stone; having a great and high wall having twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names inscribed, which are those of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. On the east three gates; and on the north three gates and on the south three gates; and on the west [p. 338] three gates. And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb”.
JT That is the whole idea of the assembly in that sense. It is the twelve apostles of the Lamb. Paul is the greatest of the apostles, though not of the twelve, it would help us to get that into our souls. In the matter of administration we should have the full thought of God before us. It is a great principle with God.
JMcK So that one was added to the eleven to take Judas’s place.
JT In these latter days we have a broken number too, but the Spirit of God makes up that number.
EJM In full power, according to Acts 2. At the first gospel address, Peter stood up with the eleven, the twelve complete.
Rem So when the matter of ministration came up, it says, “And the twelve, having called the multitude of the disciples to them”, Acts 6: 2.
JT Just so, showing how divine thoughts are for good, you can count on them.
SMcC It is of note that verse 31 refers to the change made in Jacob’s name, in that remarkable way, “of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of Jehovah came saying, Israel shall be thy name”.
JT Reminding those in his hearing of the names.
SMcC The change from Jacob to Israel, princely dignity!
JT I suppose Jacob has a peculiar place.
RH Do you have something in mind in verse 30? Elijah says, “Draw near to me. And all the people drew near to him”.
JT He would recover them; they were all with Baal. That is the idea that we come to, we want all the people, not only certain ones in fellowship, but we want all that belong to Him. The Lord knows those that are His. What a [p. 339] word!
RH I wondered if that would correspond to the idea of twelve abstractly; we expect to get all the people.
JT That is a great word, and it is well to keep them all in mind, the whole of the saints are in our minds, every one of them known to Him. That is the ground of our gathering.
RH He makes them do the things, does he not?
JT Just so, and they did it. They destroyed the prophets of Baal. “Elijah said to them, Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape! And they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the torrent of Kishon, and slaughtered them there”, and so forth. That is a wonderful victory, the sort of victory we count on.
CCT Is it the outcome of ministry that there is a seizing?
JT If the brethren do not want to walk in the truth and rebel, we have to withdraw from them, and we do.
JMcK What does the torrent of Kishon represent?
JT We had a torrent this morning. Torrents, I suppose, represent the power of water at a certain given time.
JMcK In the power of the Spirit?
RH The torrent of Kishon is spoken of in Judges 5, “From heaven was the fight; the stars from their courses fought with Sisera. The torrent of Kishon swept them away, that ancient torrent, the torrent Kishon. My soul, thou hast trodden down strength!”.
JT Deborah comes in there. The power of the torrent is present today. We could find these torrents in Palestine, we could see these things, but we have to wait for God to let us see them. We would dislike to be found sightseeing in Palestine, ashamed to be occupied with it. But we have them in the [p. 340] Spirit of God here to make them available to us in relation to the assembly.
SMcC In connection with the testimony to life we have the stretching three times and now we have the pouring of the water on three times.
JT The first, second and third time, showing the place the numerals have in the spiritual realm.
SMcC I wondered if there was not there a suggestion, not that you would put too much into it, that the thing is met by spiritual power.
JT The people were employed for the destruction of these prophets, and they are used in this too. It is a remarkable thing, Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape!”. The victory was complete.
CCT Could we connect in any way the thought of leadership with Elijah? He certainly was a leader, was he not?
JT He certainly was, he stood before Jehovah and things were done according to his word.
CCT In relation to what you were speaking about, the power of water, it says that the torrent was dried up. There is great power with water, but greater power with God.
JT Great power comes out of heaven. The Lord refers to the water as a type of the Spirit — “the water that I shall give him”.
RWS The prophet is very patient with Ahab, he is not slain with the prophets. Elijah says to Ahab “There is a sound of an abundance of rain”. Elijah was victorious and he is in an official position, “Elijah said to Ahab, Go up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain. And Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he bowed down on the earth, and put his face between his knees”. Paul said, “I bow my knees”. “And he said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up [p. 341] and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times. And it came to pass at the seventh time that he said, Behold, there is a cloud, small as a man’s hand, arising out of the sea. And he said, Go up, say to Ahab, Harness and go down, that the pour of rain stop thee not”. It is a remarkable victory God gives His people, even using a man like Ahab for the moment as we shall see later.
EJM What is the significance of the sea?
JT I think it is generally the idea of what the sea means: there is power in the sea; the ships and the commerce of the world are being carried on it.
EJM I think in Revelation the sea is never favourably mentioned.
JT That has been said in some recent ministry. The book of Revelation makes much of it in that sense.
RH What is the point of the personal exploit of Elijah in running before Ahab?
JT I think it is the power that is in him. He actually did it; he had the power to run, and it looks as if God qualified him for such an exploit, to bring out the power on behalf of His people, God honouring His servant. He loves to do it.
SMcC James alludes to this in regard to prayer and what may be effected through prayer, bringing it down to our day.
CCT What place has the servant in verse 43 as a young man in the service of Elijah? “Elijah went up to the top of Carmel and he bowed down on the earth, and put his face between his knees. And he said to his servant”. There is a reference in the note to a young man.
JT He said to his servant, “Look toward the sea”. He is ready to serve in any small way. The youths were sent to offer sacrifices instead of the priests. What a young man ought to do is be ready [p. 342] to do anything he is directed. He is not mature, and has no mature dignity about him. Let them do the things that have to be done.
AH Would this encourage the young to look for things? He does not seem to be impressed by what he sees.
JT The young men should be willing to do anything. The time will come for greater service, but we have to wait for it.
CCT Would it be on the line of the old and the young working together?
JT What we are dealing with is the younger brethren. They should be willing to do anything. It says he was a servant.
LES Would the word in the prophet Hosea help: “For great is the day of Jizreel”? The prophet refers to the name of the child as being Jizreel. I was referring to the greatness of the operations of God resulting in triumph and victory in power. I was wondering if it is in evidence in this chapter. It says, “And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint themselves one head, and shall go up out of the land: for great is the day of Jizreel”.
JT The prophet Hosea has a great place in the Scriptures, I am glad you brought it up.