Time's up Elijah?

[Maxelcat]

Been reading 1 kings 18/19. After all the priests of Baal are killed Elijah seems to get very low. The Still, Small voice says to him in vs16 'Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet.' Niv. and the Esv has 'in your place' for succeed.

For some reason I am reminded of how Saul was pulled up several times in his behaviour, which eventually ended with the kingdom being taken from him. Is there a sense here that the same is happening to Elijah. To suggest to a person, who is (allegedly) depressed that it's time to hunt for his replacement has often seemed quite cruel to me.

Anyone got any thoughts?

 

[football5680]

I don't see any similarities. Elijah is being sent to find his successor, not his replacement because he hasn't done anything wrong. He was depressed because he was one of the few people who remained faithful in a Kingdom full of paganism and he had numerous enemies which put a lot of pressure on him. If anything, finding his successor would be a relief because it meant the work that he had been doing would carry on into the next generation seamlessly.

 

[Maxelcat]

I don't see any similarities. Elijah is being sent to find his successor, not his replacement because he hasn't done anything wrong. He was depressed because he was one of the few people who remained faithful in a Kingdom full of paganism and he had numerous enemies which put a lot of pressure on him. If anything, finding his successor would be a relief because it meant the work that he had been doing would carry on into the next generation seamlessly.

yes, that's how I have been taught it. but the 'in your place' of the ESV does carry a negative tone. The link to Saul was a bit stretched perhaps, but I wonder to what extent Elijah actually carried things out the way God wanted. You say he 'didn't do anything wrong'. I just wonder to what extent God not being in the dramatic earthquake, wind and fire, but in the still, small (can be translated 'silence') voice suggests that a power confrontation which ended with mass slaughter was actually contrary to God's preferred outcome in the situation? This raises all sorts of questions of course. I just wonder if the 'we off to find your successor' that was said to Elijah would have been heard as a critique? It does carry that inflection to me.

 

[Strong in Him]

Been reading 1 kings 18/19. After all the priests of Baal are killed Elijah seems to get very low. The Still, Small voice says to him in vs16 'Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet.' Niv. and the Esv has 'in your place' for succeed.

For some reason I am reminded of how Saul was pulled up several times in his behaviour, which eventually ended with the kingdom being taken from him. Is there a sense here that the same is happening to Elijah. To suggest to a person, who is (allegedly) depressed that it's time to hunt for his replacement has often seemed quite cruel to me.

As I see it, Elijah was being shown that a) he was not alone, there were 7000 others who did not worship Baal, b) that there was still work for him to do; anoint various people and c) that the work would continue after he had died, with his successor.
I think it's very encouraging.

Elijah wasn't told, "you have sinned and now I'm going to take your ministry from you and give it to someone else", as Saul was. I think "in your place" means, "to continue your work after death", and not "you're fired and being replaced now". And the former is what happened - Elijah continued his work and anointed Elisha, who later continued and furthered it.

 

[Paidiske]

Elisha was Elijah's companion before Elijah was taken up. Maybe companionship for a depressed man (even the companionship of his "apprentice") is a source of emotional sustenance?