I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.

Today, I am reading and commenting on 1 Kings 15-17.

Today’s passage begins a section where it can be difficult to follow as the writer recounts a few generations of Judah’s kings then a few generations of Israel’s (the Northern Kingdom) kings. We learn that Rehoboam’s son did evil in God’s sight, just as Rehoboam had done. However, Rehoboam’s grandson, Asa, did what was pleasing in God’s sight. He got rid of the shrine prostitutes and destroyed the idols they worshiped, He even went so far as to depose his grandmother from the position of authority which she had held under his father because she had built an Asherah pole. It is worth noting that Asherah was the queen consort of the chief deity of Sumer and extra-biblical sources suggest that the Israelites worshiped her as the chief consort to God. The Asherah worship mentioned here shows us that humans have always attempted to sexualize God. Part of this effort to sexualize God is part of a wish to give sex a central role in our lives that God never intended for it to have.

The writer switches over to the kings of Israel, telling us that they went from bad to worse. Omri becomes king and builds the city of Samaria, making it his capital. Omri’s son, Ahab then institutionalizes Baal worship as the official religion of Israel, the Northern Kingdom. My reading of the Biblical passages about Ahab lead me to believe that Ahab wanted to treat Baal as just another name for God and Baal worship as a legitimate alternative to worship of God. All of this brought him into conflict with Elijah, a prophet of God who knew the difference.

Our first encounter with Elijah occurs when he confronts King Ahab and tells him that there would be drought in the land for the next several years, until Elijah would announce its end. As James tells us Elijah was a man just like us, yet he prayed that it would not rain and it did not rain for 3 1/2 years until he prayed once more for it to rain. So, we learn the power of prayer from Elijah. We also learn another lesson from this story. When Elijah went to the widow near Sidon and asked her for food she told him she had only enough food for herself and her son for one last meal. Elijah tells her that if she makes him a bit of bread first, she will not run out of food until the drought was over and crops were harvested. The woman did as Elijah instructed and indeed she did not run out of food. despite only having enough for one last meal when she did so. From this we learn that if we do God’s will, He will provide for our needs.