Elijah
Elijah (Standard Hebrew אֱלִיָּהוּ Eliyyáhu'), also Elias (NT Greek Hλίας), also Ilia (NT Bulgarian Илия), is a prophet of the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament. His name has been variously translated as "the Lord is God," "whose God is the Lord," "God the Lord," "the strong Lord," "God of the Lord," "my God is the Lord," "the Lord is my God," and "my God is Jehovah." He is sometimes known as "The Tishbite," being from the town of Tishbe.
In the Hebrew Bible
The prophet Elijah was first introduced in 1 Kings 17:1, where he is seen delivering a message from God to King Ahab, who ruled Israel in the first half of the ninth century B.C.E. King Ahab is notable for his rejection of the Israelite temple tradition in favor of devotion to Baal, a Canaanite / Mesopotamian fertility god. His reign is characterized by a period of droughts, epidemics and famines - all presumed to be caused by an aggrieved YHVH (following the Deuteronomistic theology of the Book of Kings).
After having delivered his message to the apostate king, Elijah retired at the command of God to a hiding-place by the brook Cherith, beyond Jordan, where he was fed by ravens. When the brook dried up, God sent him to the widow of Zarephath, a city of Sidon, from whose scanty store he was supported for two years. During this period, the widow's son died and was restored to life by Elijah (1 Kings 17:2-24).
At the close of this period of retirement and preparation, Elijah met Obadiah (who was one of King Ahab's officers) and bade him go and tell his master that Elijah was there. The king came to meet Elijah, and reproached him as the "troubler of Israel" for criticizing his public conversion to the religion of Baal. To settle this challenge, it was then proposed that sacrifices should be publicly offered for the purpose of determining whether Baal or the Israelite God was the true God. The contest took place on Mount Carmel, where the Baalite priests were, due to divine intervention, unable to light their sacrificial fire and Elijah was able to light soaking wet wood at the altar to YHWH. This miracle convinced those watching that Baal was false and that the Israelite God YHWH(יהוה) was the only true God. The prophets of Baal were then put to death by the order of Elijah.
Jezebel, the wife of Ahab and chief proponent of the religion of Baal, became enraged at the fate that had befallen her priests and threatened to put Elijah to death (1 Kings 19:1-13). Elijah escaped to Beersheba and was visited in the night by an angel, who offered him heavenly food for his flight into the wilderness. Having partaken of the divine provision, he went forward on his way for forty days to Horeb, a journey that numerically and thematically paralleled Noah's forty day sojourn in the ark and Moses's forty years of wandering in the desert. After his trek, Elijah was visited by the Divine, who ordered him to return to civilization in order to anoint Hazael (king over the Arameans (Syria)), Jehu (king over Israel), and Elisha (his divinely chosen prophetic successor) (1 Kings 19:13-21; compare 2 Kings 8:7-15; 9:1-10).
Some six years after this, he warned Ahab and Jezebel of the violent deaths they would die (1 Kings 21:19-24; 22:38). He also, four years afterwards, warned Ahaziah, who had succeeded his father Ahab, of his approaching death (2 Kings 1:1-16). During these intervals he probably withdrew to some quiet retirement, no one knew where. His interview with Ahaziah's messengers on the way to Ekron, and the account of the destruction of his captains with their fifties, suggest the idea that he may have been in retirement at this time on Mount Carmel. The Carmelites have a tradition that they were founded by Elijah at this time.
The time now drew near when he was to be taken up into heaven (2 Kings 2:1-12). He went down to Gilgal, where there was a school of the prophets, and where his successor Elisha, whom he had anointed some years before, resided. Elisha was solemnized by the thought of his master's leaving him, and refused to be parted from him. "They two went on", and came to Bethel and Jericho, and crossed the Jordan, the waters of which were "divided hither and thither" when smitten with Elijah's mantle. Arrived at the borders of Gilead, which Elijah had left many years before, it "came to pass as they still went on and talked" they were suddenly separated by a chariot and horses of fire; and "Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha saw him go up and cried "The Chariots and horses of Israel!" "Elisha receiving his mantle, which fell from him as he ascended.
Elijah's chosen successor was the prophet Elisha; Elijah designated Elisha as such by leaving his mantle with him (2 Kings 2:13-15), so that his wish for "a double portion" of the older prophet's spirit (2:9), in allusion to the preference shown the first-born son in the division of the father's estate (Deuteronomy 21:17), had been fulfilled.
It is believed that the prophet Elijah shall return to foretell the coming of the Jewish Messiah, or the return of Jesus the Christ. He is also to believed to be one of the two Witnesses in the Book of Revelation.
The Elijah spoken of in 2 Chronicles 21:12-15 is by some supposed to be a different person from the foregoing. He lived in the time of Jehoram, to whom he sent a letter of warning (compare 1 Chr. 28:19; Jeremiah 36), and acted as a prophet in Judah; while the Tishbite was a prophet of the northern kingdom. But there does not seem any necessity for concluding that the writer of this letter was some other Elijah than the Tishbite. It may be supposed either that Elijah anticipated the character of Jehoram, and so wrote the warning message, which was preserved in the schools of the prophets till Jehoram ascended the throne after the Tishbite's translation, or that the translation did not actually take place until after the accession of Jehoram to the throne (2 Chr. 21:12; 2 Kings 8:16). The events of 2 Kings 2 may not be recorded in chronological order, and thus there may be room for the opinion that Elijah was still alive in the beginning of Jehoram's reign.
How deep the impression was which Elijah made "on the mind of the nation" of Israel may have been can be judged from the fixed belief, which rested on the words of Malachi (4:5, 6), which many centuries after, prevailed that Elijah would again appear for the relief and restoration of the country.
When Jesus asks who people say the Son of Man or Christ is, his disciples replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets" (Matthew 16:14), which was referring to the belief of some of the Jews at the time that Jesus was, in fact, Elijah returned from heaven.
New Testament references
No one of the old prophets is so frequently referred to in the New Testament. The priests and Levites said to John the Baptist (John 1:25), "Why, then, dost thou baptize, if thou art not the Christ, nor Elijah?" Paul (Romans 11:2) refers to an incident in his history to illustrate his argument that God had not cast away His people that He foreknew. James (5:17) finds in him an illustration of the power of prayer. (See also Luke 4:25; 9:54.)
Elijah was similar to John the Baptist in the sternness and power of his reproofs (Luke 9:8). According to Matthew 11:11, John the Baptist was the Elijah that "was to come" (Matt. 11:11, 14). In John the Baptist, one can see Elijah: we see "the same connection with a wild and wilderness country; the same long retirement in the desert; the same sudden, startling entrance on his work (1 Kings 17:1; Luke 3:2); even the same dress, a hairy garment, and a leathern girdle about the loins (2 Kings 1:8; Matthew 3:4)."
Jesus testified that the prophesied coming of Elijah was realized in none other than John the Baptist:
"I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not know him, but did to him whatever they pleased..." Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist.- Matt.17:12—13
Each remarkable person as he arrives on the scene, be his habits and characteristics what they may; the stern John equally with his gentle Successor, is proclaimed to be Elijah (Matt. 11:13, 14; 16:14; 17:10; Mark 9:11; 15:35; Luke 9:7, 8; John 1:21). Elijah's appearance in glory at the Transfiguration does not seem to have startled the disciples. They were "sore afraid", but not apparently surprised. Traditionally, Elijah is seen as a representative of the Prophets at the Transfiguration.
Some Christian theologians of a conservative, pre-millennial perspective, believe that Elijah must return to physically die here on earth eventually, perhaps as one of the 'two witnesses' in the Book of Revelation. This plays into many eschatological scenarios. Conservatives who come from amillennial or preterist positions would probably see John the Baptist as a fulfillment of this expectation, in the time of Jesus. Christian theologians of a more liberal persuasion would tend to interpret Elijah's eschatological significance in a less literal sense.
Elijah in other traditions
In the Qur'an, Elijah is a prophet known as Ilyas in Arabic. The Turks believe that Elijah and Job were buried at Eyyup Nebi, near Viranşehir.
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints also acknowledge Elijah as a prophet. Latter-Day Saints believe that in 1836 an angelic Elijah visited the founder of their church, Joseph Smith, Jr. in the Kirtland Temple in Kirtland, Ohio and gave him the sacred power to seal families together.
As Elijah was described as ascending into heaven in a fiery chariot, the Christian missionaries who converted Slavic tribes likely found him an ideal analogy for Perun, the supreme Slavic god of storms, thunder and lightning bolts. In many Slavic countries Elijah is known as Elijah the Thunderer (Ilija Gromovik), who drives the heavens in chariot and administers rain and snow, thus actually taking the place of Perun in popular beliefs.
Elijah spoken of in 2 Chronicles 21:12-15 is by some supposed to be a different person from the foregoing. He lived in the time of Jehoram, to whom he sent a letter of warning (compare 1 Chr. 28:19; Jeremiah 36), and acted as a prophet in Judah; while the Tishbite was a prophet of the northern kingdom. But there does not seem any necessity for concluding that the writer of this letter was some other Elijah than the Tishbite. It may be supposed either that Elijah anticipated the character of Jehoram, and so wrote the warning message, which was preserved in the schools of the prophets till Jehoram ascended the throne after the Tishbite's translation, or that the translation did not actually take place until after the accession of Jehoram to the throne (2 Chr. 21:12; 2 Kings 8:16). The events of 2 Kings 2 may not be recorded in chronological order, and thus there may be room for the opinion that Elijah was still alive in the beginning of Jehoram's reign.
How deep the impression was which Elijah made "on the mind of the nation" of Israel may have been can be judged from the fixed belief, which rested on the words of Malachi (4:5, 6), which many centuries after, prevailed that Ilia (Elijah) would again appear for the relief and restoration of the country.
When Jesus asks who people say he is, his disciples replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets" (Matthew 16:14), which was referring to the belief of some of the Jews at the time that Jesus was, in fact, Ilia returned from heaven.
The Endtime Elijah (Ilia)
Daniel the prophet was told that certain prophecies given to him could not be understood until the time of the end. The "endtime" would be characterized by three unique things: an extraordinary increase in, and acceleration of travel back and forth; an unequalled explosion of knowledge; and many people becoming purified spiritually. See Daniel 12:1-13. Only one time in history fits this unique period—the 20th Century— which saw the unprecedented event of powered flight, space travel, and a huge increase in travel worldwide; plus the computerization of knowledge, and a unique move back to the faith once delivered.
Since God does nothing without first revealing it to his own prophets (Amos 3:7), the understanding of Daniel's sealed prophecies would have to be first understood by a prophet of God. And when it happened, it would signal that the endtime had started. Thus, the final Ilia must be sought in the 20th Century.
In the closing verses of Malachi, the last book of prophets in the Hebrew Scriptures—-and the last book of the Old Testament—God promised to send Ilia the prophet in the endtime, before Heaven visibly intervenes in world affairs. This Ilia would have to be the one to introduce the explosion of Bible knowledge.
After John the Baptist (who was also a type of Ilia) was dead, Jesus agreed with the Jewish scribes that a then yet future Ilia—would "restore all things" (Matthew 17:11). That prophecy also showed that after Jesus, and the disciples whom he trained, were off the scene, there would come a great falling away from what they taught, which would necessitate a restoration by the final Ilia.
The New Testament shows there was a progressive departure from God's truth taught by his "little flock". The elderly and last of the original first century Apostles, John, wrote in his last epistle, that Diotrophes disfellowshipped genuine members from the true Church, while promoting heresy. Long after that first century falling away from truth, Ilia's Restoration, would only come in the endtime, prior to the Day of the Lord.
It couldn't be in the Tribulation when the Tribes of Israel (not just the Jews) are prophesied to be in captivity. Since the Book of Malachi is addressed to all 12 Tribes of Israel, the endtime Ilia would have to first identify them before prophesying to them as a messenger of God. Therefore, no rabbi or Christian minister who didn't know where Israel's Lost Tribes were found during the 20th Century, could be the final Ilia.
Three different Ilias are referred to in Scripture. The original Ilia; John the Baptist who paved the way for the Messiah's first coming; and the final Ilia who prepares the way for the Messiah's second coming, by getting a people ready, spiritually—-through proclaiming primarily to the Tribes of Israel the nature of the glorious Kingdom of God to be established on earth, and how they can be part of it. Unless the final Ilia came, God predicted that he would utterly destroy the Earth, as the Hebrew in Malachi states:
3,22 Remember ye the law of Moses My servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, even statutes and ordinances. 3,23 Behold, I will send you Ilia (Elijah) the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. 3,24 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers; lest I come and smite the land with utter destruction."
(This meaning is correctly translated in Zechariah 14:11 King James Version). The reason for this threatend destruction is, because just as in the days of Noah—there would then be so few righteous people left, that God would be compelled to destroy almost everyone, as in Noah's Flood.
Therefore, the identity of the final Ilia is of importance to everyone on Earth.
Elijah (Ilia) In Other Traditions
In the Qur'an, Ilia is a prophet known as Ilyas in Arabic. The Turks believe that Ilia (Elijah) and Job were buried at Eyyup Nebi, near Viranşehir.
Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints also acknowledge Ilia (Elijah) as a prophet. Latter-Day Saints believe that in 1836 an angelic Ilia (Elijah) visited the founder of their church, Joseph Smith, Jr. in the Kirtland Temple in Kirtland, Ohio and gave him the sacred power to seal families together.
As Ilia was described as ascending into heaven in a fiery chariot, the Christian missionaries who converted Slavic tribes likely found him an ideal analogy for Perun, the supreme Slavic god of storms, thunder and lightning bolts. In many Slavic countries Ilia is known as Ilia the Thunderer (Ilija Gromovik), who drives the heavens in chariot and administers rain and snow, thus actually taking the place of Perun in popular beliefs.
Ilia (Ilyas) In Islam
Ilia (Ilyas) (Arabic إلياس) is a prophet of Islam mentioned in the Qur'an.
Ilia (Ilyas) was descended from Harun, and was a prophet sent to the Israelites.
After the death of Sulayman, his kingdom fell apart. This allowed the influence of Satan to become widespread among the people of Israel. The religious people were mocked. The ruler of Samaria killed a large number of learned people. When the evil reached a boiling point, God sent Ilia (Ilyas) to reform mankind during the reign of King Ahab of Israel. He tried his best to save the people from polytheism. He forbade them to worship the Tyrian Baal. He advised the people to ward off evil and worship One God.
However his efforts bore no fruit. He suddenly appeared before the king and foretold that a severe drought and famine would overtake the kingdom. Ilia (Ilyas) added that the Tyrian Baal would be powerless to avert it. The people paid no heed to his warnings and did not mend their ways. The prophecy of Ilia (Ilyas) turned out to be true and whole of the kingdom experienced famine.
The people began to starve. After three years Ilia (Ilyas) prayed to God to show mercy to the famine stricken people. They acknowledged the authority of God and felt regret. Soon after the rain ended the drought, God lifted his curses. After this Ilia (Ilyas) was directed by God to call upon Al-Yasa to be his successor. Ilia (Ilyas) did this and disappeared mysteriously.
Ilia (Elias) in Mormonism
In Latter-day Saint theology, the name-title Elias is not synonymous with Elijah and is often used for people other than the biblical prophet. According to Joseph Smith, "The spirit of Elias is first, Elijah second, and Ilia (Messiah) last. Elias is a forerunner to prepare the way, and the spirit and power of Ilia (Elijah) is to come after, holding the keys of power, building the Temple to the capstone, placing the seals of the Melchizedek Priesthood upon the house of Israel, and making all things ready; then Messiah comes to His Temple, which is last of all" (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 340).
People to whom the title Elias is applied in Mormonism include Noah, the angel Gabriel (considered to be the same person as Noah), Elijah, John the Baptist, John the Apostle, and an unspecified man who was a contemporary of Abraham. (See LDS Bible Dictionary s.v. Elias.)
Elijah Unificationist Viewpoint
Elijah ascended into Heaven in a whilrwind & a fiery chariot before he could complete his divine mission. Satan's power revived & continued to plague God's providence. The way of the Messiah could not be made straight until Satan's influence was removed. Hence, before Jesus could realize the ideal of the incarnate Temple, another prophet should inherit & complete Elijah's unfinished mission of breaking people's ties with Satan. Due to this providential necessity, the prophet Malachi foretold that Elijah would come again.
"Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great & terrible day of the Lord comes." Malachi 4:5
Because God had clearly promised thru the prophet Malachi that He would send the prophet Elijah prior to the advent of the Messiah to prepare the way of the Lord, the Jews of Jesus' day were looking up at the sky, anxiously awaiting the coming of Elijah.
"After King Solomon's death, the Israelites were divided into the kingdoms of northern Israel & southern Judah by King Jeroboam & King Rehoboam. The Israelites were the chosen people, with one leader centered upon God, they were to act according to His commands. They were the people God had led thru a history of toil. We know the sorrowful fact that the Israelites were divided into the two kingdoms of north & south, contrary to Heaven's wish. All 12 Tribes of Israel should have united with Heaven centered on one altar, standing on Heaven's side. ~Exposition of the Divine Principle~
Looking at the pitiable situation, God sought out & set up a person called Elijah from the peasants living in Gilead. At that time there was a king of Israel as well as 10 Tribal chiefs. God put them all aside & elected Elijah, who was a mere peasant in Gilead. You must know how sorrowful is a fact like this.
The king of Israel should have stood guard over the holy temple of Heaven while ruling the nation. He forgot that responsibility. He rejected & reproached Heaven & trampled upon the people. He built an altar for Baal, the enemy of Heaven, & made Asherah poles. He put them up in front of the people & worshipped them. We must think about how Heaven could have hated King Ahab for doing such things. Because God could not control the anger & sorrow in His heart at seeing the chosen people being trampled by Satan, God chose one person. That chosen person was not the king of the nation, not royalty, not a tribal chief, but a commoner, Elijah. Heavenly Father was in the situation where He could not find the person He had to find, He could not have the person He had to have, He could not lead the people He had to lead. He went around looking for them, meeting the king, the tribal chiefs & numerous people without success. He sought ought & set up one person who knew & felt concern about the national grief & heavenly sorrow of that period, a person who prayed & cried out to Heaven. That person was Elijah. Elijah was set up in such a way. Elijah was not a person who had the backing of his tribe. He was not a person whose environment safefuarded him or his position or situation. He was a person who knew Heaven's heart & who came forth upon Heaven's calling. His environment was an enemy one under the sovereignty of King Ahab. Elijah, who received the call of Heaven in such an environment, had a stronger determination than anyone; he was determined that even if he were to die, he would die holding onto his people. Elijah tried to uphold the tradition of the prophets & sages who had represented the historical heart in the course of the national level providence. Elijah shed tears of concern about God's heart; he wept on behalf of the nation & it's history. You must reflect upon this. That is why Heaven sought out Elijah. God looked for Elijah to represent His sorrowful heart of three thousand plus years. Elijah was to represent the historical heart that numerous prophets & sages had felt, never forgetting the promise of God, the blessing He had given with uplifted hands upon those He named Israel. Because God was concerned about that promise, He sought out Elijah to embrace the heart with which He had unfolded the dispensation throughout the thousand years & more since the time of Jacob. We cannot help thinking that there were aspects of sadness as well as hope for God, who set up Elijah to restore the Israelites, who had been captured by the enemy. The chosen Israelites were being disgraced by worshipping Baal, a foreign god, & making Asherah poles. God called Elijah because He could not endure the sorrow of that." ~ "Heart of Heaven in Relation to Elijah" Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon 1959, March 15th
Ilia (Helios) In Paganism
The name Ilia may also have links and be derived from the pagan Greek name Helios/Elios, spelt Ηλιος in Greek, and which literally means "sun". It is known that the name existed for males in ancient Greece1 . At this time, the cult worshipping the sun God Helios was well established by all Greeks, despite being eventually replaced by Apollo. This implies the ancient name was derived from the god.
When Christianity was eventually made the official religion of the Roman Empire, a lot of pagan customs, names, and even gods were incorporated into the new religion. This was to ensure an easy transition into the new religion by subjects of the empire, which included modern day Greece. Aspects of Helios's imagery were incorporated into the religion, as well as the name.
One telling piece of evidence is how in pagan times, the peaks of mountains were reserved for temples to Helios, the sun god. This was because it was the closest point to his presence. However in modern Greece, the highest peaks of any region are named after Prophet Ilia or προφητης Ηλιας.
External links
- Elijah Details various events in the life of Elijah and relates Elijah to the Passover/Pesach story.
- Jewish Encyclopedia Entry on Elijah
- Catholic Encyclopedia Entry on Elijah
- Dictionary of the History of Ideas: Cosmic Voyages - Mentions (in passing) the story of Elijah being carried up to heaven in a flaming chariot as an inspiration for human flight
- Elijah by Rob Bradshaw Extensive dictionary style article.
- Biblaridion magazine: Elijah redivivus: The role of Elijah in New Testament eschatology
- "The Plain Truth why only Herbert W. Armstrong can be the Endtime Elijah" by Geoffrey R. Neilson
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