This is that Ahab who thought that he would make little progress in the new religion [i.e., idolatry] if he worshiped only the gods introduced by Jeroboam. Therefore he established rites for Baal, the god of the Sidonians, built his temple in the royal city, erected altars and planted sacred groves. And these actions bitterly enraged the prophets and the other worshipers of the true God. ^[1] AHAB’S INSOLENCE IN REBUILDING JERICHO. ISHO‘DAD OF MERV: Jericho remained in ruins as a sign and memory of the power of God and the victory of the people of Israel. But the insolent Ahab decided to refute the words of Joshua^[1] and said, As the words of his master Moses, who said, ‘The sky over your head shall be bronze and the earth under you iron’^[2] did not happen, so the words of his disciple will not happen. However, when [the city] was re-established at the cost of Abiram’s death, his firstborn, the people feared God and showed him that he was not allowed to rebuild the city, so he stopped. But, a bit later, he attributed all these events to chance and resumed his work by setting the gates of the city. Then Segub, his youngest son, died. For this reason Elijah burned with zeal and stopped heaven for three and a half years. ^[3]

Exactly at the time when the prophet and father of the prophets Elijah appeared, the rebellion of Ahab and his wife Jezebel had increased to such an extent that they not only trampled the law and fear of God underfoot, nor were content to promote the worship of idols, but even persecuted and killed the prophets and the saints.

Elijah was sent to prevent Ahab’s insane rage and to show with words and actions of power and vigor the truth of the curses that the fathers had proclaimed against the transgressors of the law of God, as they were not vain threats. . . . Moses wrote a large book of curses and ordered Joshua to proclaim them before the assembly of all the tribes of Israel with great clamor and loudly. He especially mentions the harsh famine and the other evils that follow it, the deprivation of the rain, the aridity and infertility of the land. Ahab despised and laughed at them, because he saw how abundant his sup-plies were, thanks to his father who was an impious king like him. Therefore, that arrogant king necessarily had to be punished for his arrogance.

But the main reason why Elijah was sent was Jezebel, whose pride the Lord wanted to humiliate and whose falsehood he wanted to disclose. She had actually appointed herself as minister of Baal and had entrusted herself with the religious service for this god. She also proclaimed that Baal was the supreme god who ruled over those living in heaven and on earth and sent rain, watered the skies and gave fertility to the ground. She took as witnesses her fellow citizens, the Sidonians and the Tyrians and the other peoples of Phoenicia who were prosperous in those days in wealth and possessions more than any other of the neighboring nations and were also the most fervent worshipers of Baal. It was with good reason and according to justice that Elijah rose and came at that time of distress, and finally issued a stern rebuke against Ahab and his leaders and threatened to bring on them a sky of iron, as Moses had predicted, and a land of bronze.^[1]

Great is the virtue of fasting; in short so splendid is the warfare that it delighted even Christ to fast; and so mighty that it raised people to heaven. And, that we may use human rather than divine examples, a word sent from the fasting mouth of Elijah closed heaven to the sacrilegious people of the Jews. For when an altar had been set up to an idol by Ahab, at the word of the prophet for three years and six months dewy rain did not fall on the earth. A worthy punishment fittingly to check insolence, that heaven should be closed to the impious who had polluted the things of earth! It was also right that a prophet, for the condemnation of a sacrilegious king, was sent to a widow in Zarephath of Sidonia, who, since she preferred piety to food, merited that she alone should not feel the distress of the general drought. And so the urn of barley meal did not fail^[1] when the water of the torrent failed. Why should I present the rest of this history? While fasting he raised the widow’s son from the dead,^[2] while fasting he brought down rain at his word,^[3] while fasting he drew down fire from heaven, while fasting he was snatched in a chariot to heaven,^[4] and by a fast of forty days he gained the presence of God.^[5] Then finally, he deserved more when he fasted more. With fasting mouth he caused the waters of the Jordan to stand, and with dusty footsteps he passed over the channel of the overflowing stream suddenly become dry.^[6] The divine will judged him to be just and worthy of heaven, so that with his very body he was snatched up, since he lived the heavenly life in the body and exemplified on earth the manner of living above.

From the typological point of view this symbol has two meanings. The stream [wadi] of Elijah prefigures that, at the fullness of time, the Messiah will come and will send the sinners to the stream that comes out of the sanctuary, just like the one that Ezekiel saw.^[1] That is the stream that gives healing to the sick when its waters are applied. The [second meaning is that] the stream is the baptism of the Messiah. ^[2] WHY WAS ELIJAH NOURISHED WITH THE HELP OF RAVENS? ISHO‘DAD OF MERV: It is taught: When the priests, his brothers, saw that he had escaped the anger of Ahab, they saved for him a part of the food and bread reserved [to them], and a raven brought it to him through divine intervention.

The Schools say,^[1] A raven stole the [food] from houses, inns, markets and peasants, since it is an impudent, wild and merciless bird by nature. It has no natural love for its young and does not feed them, but another bird adopts them and feeds them. Through this [the Scripture] shows that animals of such a nature performed what God ordered them to do and provided for the necessities of the prophet, whereas the children of Israel, even though they were endowed with reason, did not want to observe the law of God.

At the same time, the fact that [Elijah] was nourished by ravens, and then that the wadi dried up, occurred through the mercy of God in order to induce the prophet to pity and compassion toward the people, so that his spirit might relent and he might pray God to send rain. But when, in spite of this, his anger against the people was not appeased, [God] ordered him to go among the nations, in order to show him that the plague of famine has spread among them as well, and that he had at least to show compassion for the nations, if he could show any for the people; but [this happened] also because there was nobody among the people who was worthy of receiving Elijah.

Other [authors]^[2] say, The bread and the food were made from the elements every day through an angelic operation, just like the manna had been made from air and the quails from the sea, and just like the half cake was brought to Paul the anchorite,^[3] and the bunch of dates was brought by a lion to the anchorite of the desert of Sodom.^[4] But [the food was not brought to Elijah] by an angel, as it was to John,^[5] nor by a man, as Daniel received it by Habakkuk,^[6] but by a raven, in order to show that there is nothing impure in the creation of God—just as God gave to Samson water to drink from the jaw of a donkey^[7]—and in order to signify, at the same time, the abrogation of the prescriptions of the Law. According to other authors, the angels were disguised as ravens. ^[8]

The ravens brought him bread in the morning and meat in the evening.^[1] The bread represents perfection and justice accomplished together. This is the bread about which Isaiah says that it is given to those who will live on the heights, and whose refuge will be the fortress of the rocks, and whose eyes will see the king in his beauty.^[2] Indeed, bread, which is the principal nourishment of human beings, indicates quite appropriately their main good. With regard to meat, the fact that it was brought in the evening shows two things: the first is the mourning of penitence, as the psalmist says: Weeping may linger for the night,^[3] and the mortification of flesh and the hard toils, which the penitents marching toward perfection suffer. But their grief will become joy in the morning when the sun of justice, which dispels the darkness of sin, rises.

And these words have an even higher meaning, because they are also referred to God the Word, who clothed himself with the flesh of our humanity and came to us in the evening, that is, at the consummation of times, and filled with good things the hungry^[4] through the Holy Spirit, which God poured out on them richly through the Messiah, our Savior.^{[5] [6]} A FIGURE OF THE CHURCH OF THE GENTILES. AUGUSTINE (CAESARIUS OF ARLES): Blessed Elijah typified our Lord and Savior. Just as Elijah suffered persecution by the Jews, so our Lord, the true Elijah, was condemned and despised by the Jews. Elijah left his own people, and Christ deserted the synagogue; Elijah departed into the wilderness, and Christ came into the world. Elijah was fed in the desert by ministering ravens, while Christ was refreshed in the desert of this world by the faith of the Gentiles. Truly, those ravens that took care of blessed Elijah at the Lord’s bidding prefigured the Gentiles, for on this account it is said concerning the church of the Gentiles, I am dark and beautiful, O daughter of Jerusalem.^[1] Why is the church dark and beautiful? It is dark by nature, beautiful by grace. Why dark? Indeed, in guilt I was born, and in sin my mother conceived me.^[2] Why beautiful? Cleanse me of sin with hyssop, that I may be purified; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.^[3] Why dark? The apostle says, I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind and making me prisoner to the law of sin.^[4] Why beautiful? Who will deliver me from the body of this death? The grace of God through Jesus Christ our Lord.^[5] Truly, the church of the Gentiles was like a raven, when it despised the living and before receiving grace served idols as dead bodies. ^[6]

Therefore do not boast when you fast, do not glory lest fasting profit you nothing; for those things that are done for ostentation will not prolong their fruit into the future, but they consume the reward for present deeds. Elijah was in the desert that no one might see him fast except the ravens alone, when they supplied him with food. Elisha was in the desert where no food except poisonous wild gourds could be found.^[1] John was in the desert, where he could find only locusts and wild honey.^[2] Feasts were served to those fasting by the holy ministry of angels. Daniel dined among fasting lions. He dined on the dinner of another; the wild beasts did not taste theirs.^[3] Feasts fly to those who fast, the feet stagger of those who dine: manna descended from heaven to those who were fasting,^[4] the sin of prevarication ascended from those who were banqueting.