A HOMILY FOR THE FEAST OF THE HOLY, GLORIOUS PROPHET ELIJAH
(Elias)
(July 20/Aug. 2)
About How God Punishes Evildoers
Brothers and sisters!
Some people are so fixated on worldly gain that they will resort to almost any means, including even murder, to acquire what does not belong to them. It is about such people that the holy prophet Habakkuk writes, He is a proud man who enlargeth his desire as hades, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied,[1] and, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his.[2]
Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his… Is it really true that woes must befall the man who commits theft and other grievous sins? Yes, dear brothers and sisters; it is true – true indeed. To verify this, we have no further to look than the word of God, which tells the life of the great and holy prophet Elijah (or Elias), whose memory we celebrate today. In this connection, I would like to read to you a story from the Life of Saint Elijah, taken from Saint Demetrius of Rostov’s abbreviated recounting of the scriptural narrative. It concerns two bitter enemies of the prophet: Ahab, the wicked King of Israel, and his even more wicked wife Jezebel, as well as a certain Israelite landowner named Naboth. The story goes like this:
“An Israelite named Naboth owned a vineyard next to property owned by the King in Samaria. Ahab proposed, ‘Give me your vineyard. I wish to make it my garden, since it is close to my palace. In return, I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee worth of it in money.’
“And Naboth said, The Lord God forbid it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.
“And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word that Naboth had spoken to him, and would eat no bread. But when Jezebel learned the reason for his sadness, she mocked him, saying, ‘Dost thou, being King of Israel, thus now govern, that you cannot bend one man to your will? Arise, and eat bread, and let thine heart be merry. Wait a little, and I will deliver the vineyard of Naboth into your hands.’
“Jezebel then wrote letters in Ahab’s name unto the elders of the city, and sealed them with the royal seal. The elders were told to accuse Naboth of blaspheming God and cursing the King, and to produce false witnesses who would confirm this. Naboth was condemned to be stoned outside the city walls. After the sentence was carried out, Jezebel said to her husband, ‘Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth. There is no need to pay for it. Naboth is no longer among the living.’
“When Ahab heard about Naboth’s stoning, he was briefly saddened, but nevertheless betook himself to the vineyard, intending to take possession of it. On the way, by divine command, he met the holy prophet Elijah, who announced, ‘Since you have caused the death of Naboth, an innocent man, and stolen his vineyard, the Lord has deigned that dogs lick your blood in the very place they licked Naboth’s. Likewise, your wife Jezebel shall become food for dogs, and your house shall be utterly destroyed.’
“Hearing these words, Ahab wept. He cast off his royal robes and, putting on sackcloth, undertook a fast. The Lord recompensed this modest repentance by postponing fulfillment of the sentence hanging over Ahab’s household until after the King’s death. ‘Because Ahab humbleth himself before Me, I will not bring the evil upon his house in his days, but in his son’s days,’ said the Lord to His prophet Elijah.
“After this, Ahab lived for three years, then was slain in battle. His chariot was brought back to Samaria and, as the prophet foretold, dogs licked up the blood dripping from it. Everything Elijah prophesied concerning Jezebel and Ahab’s house came to pass, after the saint was taken up to heaven.”
Jezebel survived Ahab for fourteen years, and as queen-mother remained a great personage in the court of her two sons, who succeeded to the throne. She finally met death at the hand of the usurper Jehu. While Jezebel was looking down from a window at Jehu in his chariot, two or three eunuchs of the royal harem showed their faces at the window, and at Jehu’s command dashed the old Queen to the ground in front of the conqueror’s chariot. Blood flew from her mangled corpse, spattering over the palace wall behind and the advancing horses in front. The last remains of Jezebel’s life were trampled out by the horses’ hoofs. Her corpse was cast from the city walls onto the mound outside where rubbish was thrown, and the dogs pounced upon this unexpected prey, leaving nothing but scraps of the skeleton. Jehu also put to death the seventy sons of Ahab, exacting a high price indeed from the house of Ahab for the theft and for Naboth’s murder, not to say for Ahab and Jezebel’s many other crimes.
And so, dear Christians, true are the prophet Habakkuk’s words, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his or commits other grave offenses against his neighbor. Besides this, the story of Naboth teaches us not to be overly concerned when we are unable to right a wrong done either to ourself or another. Of course, if we are in a position to intervene directly to hinder or prevent evildoing, we should take advantage of the opportunity. Otherwise, we ought not fret, but remember that it is written, Vengeance is Mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.[3] Sooner or later, in this life or the next, “what goes around, comes around,” as the saying has it. Both the transgressor and the wronged will have their just reward. Amen.
[1]Hab. 2:5
[2] Hab. 2:6
[3] Rom. 12:19
