579
T h e
K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
September 1927
V. 6. His reply was, “ Because 1 spoke unto Naboth, the Jezreelite'.’’ Before his wife came in he evidently had been pon dering over the offer which he had made to Naboth and was able to quote himself very accurately, with, however, the ex ception that he omitted to her his reason for the purchase of the vineyard (cf. v. 2 with this one). Regardless of the mo tive which prompted this omission it is well for everyone to realize the respon sibility and mutual obligation of husband and wife. Marriage is a partnership, each of the contracting parties having an equal duty. The husband, however, by divine appointment is head of the house and should love his wife as his own body, while the wife, in turn, should be in sub jection to the husband (Eph. 5:22-32). Furthermore, the children ought to be taught respect for parents, and obedience to them. The God-imposed responsibility of parents towards their children is that they be brought dp in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Eph: 6:1-3). V. 6. “Naboth the Jezreelite.” “Naboth” comes from the root which means “to spring, to bear fruit.” God Would have all of his people to be Na boths in that they bear fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22) and fruit in every good work (cf. 2 Thess. 2:16, 17; John 15:1-15). “Jezreelite” means “God sows or will sow.” This word, however, is the name of the plain just east of the plain of Esdraelon. Hosea, in speaking of the day of Israel’s regathering and restora tion to fellowship with God in their own land, says: “For great shall be the day of Jezreel” (Hosea 1:10). "And Jezebel said, Dost thou now gov ern the kingdom of Israel?” This ques tion is a kind of taunt at Ahab, for in reality he did not govern the kingdom, she being the power behind the throne. It is needless to remind a Bible student of a woman’s : place in the home. Originally God made man the head of the house and has never changed His plan. The woman who is not in subjection to her husband is surely outside of the will of God. He commands the wife to.be in subjection to the husband, assuming, of course, that the husband will fulfill his obligations and responsibilities as head of the house. When there was no man whom God could use, He used a woman (Judges 4:4, 5), but the universal rule has been throughout history, that whenever a wo man got in the lead, having stepped out of her rightful place, dire results have followed, especially in religion. Immediately she- encouraged Ahab to dismiss his blues, for she would procure the vineyard. He, knowing her unscrup ulous character and determined will, was confident that she could make good her promise. V. 8. In order to accomplish her de sign she wrote letters, sealing them with the King’s seal, and sent them unto the elders and nobles that were in the city and that dealt with Naboth. These let ters, of course, were official when sealed with the King’s seal and were held in very high respect. She thoroughly un derstood the technicalities of court pro cedure, as is shown by her handling of the case. The elders were the elderly men of the city in whose hands we find all the municipal affairs were placed and given as were given to the senators in Graeco-Roman times. The “Nobles” were probably the freemen who constituted a caste or social circle about the court.
a striking contrast with Ahab? (20:43; cf. Phil. 4:11.) What were Naboth’s motives in refus ing Ahab’s request? (V. 3; cf. Josh. 22: 29; 24:16; 1 Sam. 12:23; 24:6-^26:9-11; 1 Chron. 11:19.> —o— G olden T ext I llustration Be sure your sin will find you out (Num. 32:23). The proprietor of a bakery tells how a rat was found one morning, imprisoned in a hole it had made in a loaf of bread. The rat had nibbled into the loaf and con tinued feasting until its whole body was inside the loaf. It became so fat as the result of eating so much of the soft bread that it could not get out again.. The baker found it in the morning, caught in the trap made by itself. Many a man has been caught in the same way! Bad habit has at last closed the trap on him, and struggle as he would, he could not escape. —o— r pHIS statement was made by Moses to the two and a half tribes who settled on the east side of the Jordan, when he was giving them instructions that they Heb. 4:13). All sin, in the last analysis, is against God and His holiness; since, therefore, He knows everything, and all sin is against Him, there is no such thing as evading the punishment which His' righteous indignation must inflict. Al though Christians, for whom the sin ques tion was settled on the cross by their ac cepting Christ as their substitute, are for given, cleansed, justified, yet they are chastised and punished for sin by the Lord (Gal. 6:7; Heb. 12:5-8). Now is the time when "judgment must begin at the house of G o d 'll Pet. 4:4, 7). The context of this passage shows that the judgment con cerning which he is speaking is the fiery trial of the 12th verse of this chapter. After Ahab’s signal victory over the Syrians and his return home, he decided that he would like to have the vineyard of Naboth, which was close to the royal palace. Immediately he interviewed Na both concerning the purchase of the same, but was disappointed by receiving the an swer that it was the ancestral estate, which could not, according to_ the Law, pass out of the family. Becoming de spondent over the disappointment, he re turned home, went to bed, and turned his face to the wall like a spoiled, pettish child. . V. 5. Jezebel, Ahab’s Wife. Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal, King of Sidon, who had murdered his predecessor on the Phoenician throne and seized the same. The principle, “like father, like son” (and like daughter) was especially true in her case. “Came to him, and said—Why is thy spirit so sad that thou eatest no bread?” Knowing his disposition, she sensed at once that there was some trouble; hence the question. should a rm them selves to assist in the conquest of the land west of Jordan. It is a warning that in the event they should fail to follow out God’s instruction He would punish ; them. O n e cannot hide anything from God (Psa. 139;
exclamation— "Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?” Thus men stumble about in the darkness of sin and unbelief, mis taking the faces of friends for the faces of foes. An awful day of disillusioning is coming. The best thing that can happen to a man is that God should not let him alone in his evil course. Thank God for messengers of His Gospel ! Thank God that He makes men feel the rod! Pity the Ahab and Jezebel who are so hard ened that they have “sold themselves to work evil in the sight of the Lord” (v. 20). Nothing but outer and eternal dark ness can await such souls. . The man who sells himself to the devil, will have to take his own medicine. It is a voluntary act. It is deliberately submit-*• ting to the dominion of sin. Let him re member that in the end, what he is giv ing for his unhallowed pleasure and dis honest gain is himself— forever. ^ The 25th verse is. a summary. "There was none like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness . . :. whom Jezebel, his wife, stirred up." A wife brings out either the best or the worst there is in a husband. Beware of Jezebels who play upon the weaknesses of men. Remember that there is to be a resurrection of acts as well as bodies. The Christ-rej ecting man who chooses to live his life independently of God, will find himself surrounded in the judgment day, by the ghosts of his own sins. . As each perhaps forgotten sin appears before his face, will he not cry out, as did Ahab to Elijah: "Hast thou found me, O mène enemy?” And will there not come the answer : “I have, because thou didst sell thyself to work evil in the sight of the Lord"? I—o— P ith and P oint There are plenty of tempters for spine less péople (v. 7). Some who haye no regard for God will make religion a cloak for selfish schemes (v. 9)'. Elevation has proved a death trap for many a man (v. .12). One may get possession of what it is not God’s will for him to have, but he will be certain to get a “lemon” with it. The fellow who thought he had gained a vineyard by craft, in reality had lost a throne. Some sell themselves (v. 20) to Satan ; others rent themselves out by the day. Pleasure won by sin is peace lost. A sinner is blind to his true friends and foes (v. 20). , Covetousness is the father of robbery and the mother of murder. S uggestive Q uestions Was the first sin in the human race anything like the sin of Ahab? (V. 5; cf. Gen. 3 :6.) Who is referred to in the New Testa ment as a type of the apostate church? (Rev. 2:20.) Was there any kind of evil too low for Jezebel to engage in? (V. 8 ; cf. 19:2.) What change do we see in Elijah since the last lesson? (V. 17; cf. 19:1-3.) What was the end of Ahab and his sons? (V. 19; cf. 2 Kgs. 9:7-10; 10:1-7, 1 1 .) What New Testament character forms
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