Metaphysical Bible Interpretation of I Kings Chapter 19
Metaphysically Interpreting I Kings 19:1-10
19:1And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. 19:2Then Jezebel send a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to-morrow about this time. 19:3And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.
19:4But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper-tree: and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is enough; now, O Jehovah, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. 19:5And he lay down and slept under a juniper-tree; and, behold, an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat. 19:6And he looked, and, behold, there was at his head a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. 19:7And the angel of Jehovah came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for thee. 19:8And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.
19:9And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of Jehovah came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah? 19:10And he said, I have been very jealous for Jehovah, the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword: and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.
August 28, 1904: I Kings 19:1-8
In soul development there is often a reaction after a great effort. In modern mental therapeutics it is called “chemicalization.” This is the name given it by Mrs. Eddy, whose system of treating disease by denials and affirmations is widely used by modern mind healers. The claim is that the Truth in erasing error causes a commotion similar to that of the union of acid and alkali in chemistry. Many healers affirm that “chemicalization” is evidence of amateur healing, that the one who understands and applies the Absolute Truth should leave no remnant of error to cause a reaction. This is good logic, and it is a wise healer who constantly holds in his treatments that there shall be no “chemicalization” or reaction of any kind. If you anticipate this battle between Truth and error, you will help it to manifest. Again, those healers who have eliminated from their own minds the error which they seek to destroy for another seldom have “chemicalizations” in their patients. So it is found that the purer the mind of the healer, the easier it is for the patient.
However, the soul is not transformed by a single overcoming. We do not attain heaven at a single bound. Too many factors enter into its construction to admit of such a radical change. The development is similar to that of transforming ice into steam. The ice is first melted into water, then raised to a higher vibration in steam. So the material thoughts in man have to be spiritualized, and the process is something more than the healing of a specific disease.
Elijah had called down the fire of heaven and consumed all his false concepts of God, yet he had other errors. He was violent in his methods. This violence is represented by “Jezebel,” “the ruling emotions” on the physical planes of consciousness. This one is in sympathy with external nature and, when the I AM has denied away all these “prophets of Baal,” and planted himself square on the One Formless Mind, this queen of the body fills the vacuum with her vibrations. There is in consequence a feeling of discouragement. The ecstasy of the Spirit gives way to a negative depression, which flows into consciousness from the “wilderness” of mortal thought.
This depression of Elijah after a great exaltation is paralleled by that of Jesus. After the baptism of the Spirit he was driven into the wilderness, where he was tempted by the adverse consciousness, ministered to by angels and fasted for forty days. This is all symbolical of mental activities that go on in the souls of those who are cleansing themselves from error consciousness.
The sleeping of Elijah under the juniper tree represents the abiding of the soul under the shadow of the “everlasting arms.” If, when you are depressed after you have done all that you know to do in self-purification, you should withdraw into the silence and abide there in confidence and security. Then one of the invisible springs of light in the depths of your soul will open and the angel will touch you and bid you “arise and eat.”
The eating of spiritual things is the affirmation of spiritual sustenance. The “cake on the coals and cruse of water at the head,” are the thoughts, or words, which these things represent. When in this soul-silence you affirm that you are sustained and nourished by the Spirit, you are following the command of the angel, and are eating the cake and drinking the water. These are “at the head,” place of intelligence. This eating of the “hidden manna” is to be done the “second time.” In fact, it should become a daily habit.
“The strength of that meat “lasts “forty days and forty nights,” which is symbolical of completeness, four-square. Mount Horeb is a state of high spiritual realization, which is attained through this inner affirmation of invisible sustenance and nourishment.
– UNITY magazine.
July 15, 1934: I Kings 19:1-8
Explain the significance of Elijah's sleeping under the juniper tree. Trees may be likened to nerves, and nerves are expressions of thoughts of unity. Elijah's sleeping under the tree typifies the I AM gathering in through the nervous system a supply of energy for future demands.
Of what is the angel that touched Elijah as he slept a symbol? The pure thought substance of Being is symbolized by the angel that aroused Elijah.
What does Horeb signify? Horeb represents the high spiritual realization that may be gained by affirming the one presence and the one power.
May 13, 1945: I Kings 19:1-4
We work out our salvation from sense consciousness with the help of the I AM. This is represented in today's lesson by Elijah. The I AM in realization of its unfettered power may prove destructive instead of constructive, but its work in the cause of Truth is thorough and conscientious. Sense consciousness (Jezebel) would destroy the I AM, but it evades the danger of dominion by the senses and submits itself to the control of the higher law. Elijah feared death at the hands of Jezebel, but in the wilderness, out of sheer weariness, asked Jehovah to take away his life, thinking that he could bear no more: “It is enough; now, O Jehovah, take away my life.”
– UNITY magazine.
Metaphysically Interpreting I Kings 19:11-18
19:11And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before Jehovah. And, behold, Jehovah passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before Jehovah; but Jehovah was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but Jehovah was not in the earthquake:19:12and after the earthquake a fire; but Jehovah was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.19:13And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entrance of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah? 19:14And he said, I have been very jealous for Jehovah, the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away. 19:15And Jehovah said unto him, Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, thou shalt anoint Hazael to be king over Syria; 19:16and Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel; and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room. 19:17And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth from the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay; and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay. 19:18Yet will I leave me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.
September 4, 1904: I Kings 19:9-18
When the realization of our spiritual origin first makes its advent in the mind, and we affirm our dominion over all the thoughts of the mentality, there is established a very unusual power. We find that we can bring to pass the desired wish for ourselves or others with most marvelous alacrity, simply by affirming it, or speaking it aloud in the name of God. This new-found ability leads up to an enthusiasm, and sometimes a domineering state of mind, and we become loud and boisterous in our championship of the Lord. If there has been a natural tendency to leadership, and an ambition to reform the world religiously, this descent of the Spirit augments it tremendously. This is Elijah. It is the perpetuation of the Elijah state of consciousness that makes popery possible. Nearly all who are illumined by the Power of the Spirit in its early stages pass through this exaltation of the personality.
But this is not of the Lord, although great religious movements are set going by such enthusiasts and good ultimately ensues. Paul was possessed by this Spirit and went contrary to the expressed and, according to his own admission, plainly understood, guidance of the Spirit. He was so determined to explain his illumination to the Jews that he went up to Jerusalem in spite of warning, and suffered the consequences in years of imprisonment. He is also responsible for the ecclesiastical machinery of the orthodox church, which is no part of Jesus' philosophy. Paul's innate ambition took a religious turn, and he made an institution of what Jesus intended should liberate men from the institution.
Elijah championed the cause of God with such enthusiasm that he became violent and destructive. This was the Jezebel side of his character. But he was willing to be instructed. He slowly learns the lesson that the kingdom of God is to be received as a little child. He starts out with the roar of the whirlwind and ends up with the whisper of the still small voice.
“He came hither unto the cave” not A cave. This means the secret, inner recesses of the soul. The power of the Spirit penetrates the most secret chambers of the mind, and sheds light upon all the dark caverns within. We sometimes think we have lost our Elijah power because we have not the old time impetuosity and ability to speak the healing, or other words, and see the quick results. But there is no loss in Spirit; the power is penetrating the inner man and some dark cave is its abiding place.
The law of our being is activity. Be doing something. If your spiritual power has struck in and is sulking in a seeming bondage of materiality, and claiming that it has done a great deal of good, and got no reward, and that it is the only pious one left on earth, it is safe to say the Lord is right now calling, “What doest thou here?”
The command is, “Go forth and stand upon the mount before the Lord.” That is, go up into the mount of Spiritual Understanding and analyze the situation. We are to discriminate between cause and effect. The Lord is standard; all things must conform to it. The breath of Spirit sets up a standard of activity, and if there are states of consciousness that resist, they are broken in pieces. Yet the Lord is not the process that pulverizes, though remotely its cause. Terribly destructive armies were raised at the command of the tender-hearted Lincoln, but he was not in them. God is not in the throes of pain and disease in the body, yet the life established at its center is asserting itself and the effect without is trying to avoid the law of that standard, and the result is a great commotion. But the Lord is not in the commotion.
A Hebrew scholar gives this as a literal translation of this magnificent passage: “Wind great and strong, rending mountains, shivering rocks before the face of Jehovah, not in storm Jehovah! And after the wind earthquake, not in earthquake Jehovah! And after the earthquake fire, not in fire Jehovah! And after the fire sound of soft silencing (audible gentle stilling).”
– UNITY magazine.
June 20, 1915: I Kings 19:1-16
“Be still, and ye stall know that I am God indeed,”
All wisdom is in silence giv'n for ev’ry hourly need.
All mighty works of power are wrought in silence deep;
The earth-sown seed in stillness grows, e'er harvest we can reap.”
What is the cause of the mental reaction, sometimes called “chemicalization”? Violent denials or affirmations.
Should this condition appear where the Divine Law has been rightly used? No. It is a sign of the work of an amateur, or the use of the Law by Personal Will.
What does Jezebel represent? Emotion, passion, anger, destruction.
What aroused these forces to action? Elijah's fiery destruction of the prophets of Baal.
What caused Elijah to be depressed and discouraged? The anguish that always follows thoughts of destruction.
What was the saving grace in Elijah's violent methods? His object, which was the effacement of evil.
Does the Lord acknowledge the motive, and atone the method, in one who is working for spiritual purity? Yes. The Lord does not condemn nor forsake the faithful one, although guilty of unlawfulness.
What does the retirement of Elijah under a juniper tree represent? Meditation in the Silence, under divine protection.
What do the protestations of loyalty to Jehovah, and the wailings about persecutions, represent? Personality exalting and trying to justify itself.
What is it to “Go forth and stand upon the mount before Jehovah”? To arise into the realization of Universal Truth.
What is the great wind that broke the rocks? Intellectual denials, which break up material conditions but do not remove them.
What does the earthquake represent? The throes of the soul seeking expression.
What is the fire? The consuming desire of man to purify himself before the Lord.
What is the “still, small voice”? The inner consciousness of God's presence. The communion is not in words but ideas. So still, so small, so quiet is this secret place where God dwells in man that it may be overlooked, unless one retires into silent meditation in solitude, and in meekness seeks the Lord.
June 20, 1915: I Kings 19:1-16
In soul development there is often a reaction after a great effort. In modern mental therapeutics it is called “chemicalization.” This is the name given it by Mrs. Eddy, whose system of treating disease by denials and affirmations, to the end that Truth may be realized, is widely used by modern mind healers. The claim is that the Truth in erasing error causes a commotion similar to that of the union of acid and alkali in chemistry. Many healers affirm that “chemicalization” is evidence of amateur healing, that the one who understands and applies the Absolute Truth should leave no remnant of error to cause a reaction. This is good logic, and it is a wise healer who constantly holds in his treatments that there shall be no “chemicalization” or reaction of any kind. If you anticipate this battle between Truth and error, you will help it to manifest. Again, those healers who have eliminated from their own minds the error which they seek to destroy for another seldom have “chemicalizations” in their patients. So it is found that the purer the mind of the healer, the easier it is for the patient.
However, the soul is not transformed by a single overcoming. We do not attain heaven at a single bound. Too many factors enter into its construction to admit of such a radical change. The development is similar to that of transforming ice into steam. The ice is first melted into water, then raised to a higher vibration in steam. So the material thoughts in man have to be spiritualized, and the process is something more than the healing of a specific disease.
Elijah had called down the fire of heaven and consumed all his false concepts of God, yet he had other errors. He was violent in his methods. This violence is represented by Jezebel, the ruling emotions on the physical planes of consciousness. This one is in sympathy with external nature, and when the I Am has denied away all these “prophets of Baal,” and planted himself squarely on the One Formless Mind, this queen of the body fills the vacuum with her vibrations. There is in consequence a reeling of discouragement. The ecstasy of the Spirit gives way to a negative depression, which flows into consciousness from the “wilderness” of mortal thought.
This depression of Elijah after a great exaltation is paralleled by that of Jesus. After the baptism of the Spirit he was driven into the wilderness, where he was tempted by the adverse consciousness, fasted for forty days, and was ministered to by angels. This is all symbolical of mental activities that go on in the souls of those who are cleansing themselves from error consciousness.
The sleeping of Elijah under the juniper tree represents the abiding of the soul under the shadow of the “everlasting arms.” If you are depressed after you have done all that you know to do in self-purification, you should withdraw into the silence and abide there in confidence and security. Then one of the invisible springs of light in the depths of your soul will open, and the angel will touch you and bid you “arise and eat.”
The eating of spiritual things is the affirmation of spiritual sustenance. The “cake on the coals and cruse of water at the head” are the thoughts, or words, which these things represent. When in this soul-silence you affirm that you are sustained and nourished by the Spirit, you are following the command of the angel, and are eating the cake and drinking the water. These are “at the head,” place of intelligence. This eating of the “hidden manna” is to be done the “second time,” In fact, it should become a daily habit.
“The strength of that meat” lasts “forty days and forty nights,” which is symbolical of completeness, “four square.” Mount Horeb represents a state of high spiritual realization, which is attained by affirming the power and presence of the One Inner Sustenance and Nourishment.
– UNITY magazine.
December 15, 1918: I Kings 19:1-16
Who was “Ahab” and what in man’s consciousness does he represent? “Ahab” was king of Israel, and represents error states of consciousness based on false intellectual reasoning.
What does “Jezebel,” wife of “Ahab,” represent? “Jezebel,” wife of “Ahab, “ represents the counterpart in body sensations and desires of the false intellectual concepts.
What in consciousness does “Elijah” represent? “Elijah” represents man's spiritual I Am.
What is the meaning of “Jezebel” sending a messenger to “Elijah”? The I Am in man is the guardian of the Law and when the messenger of the sense mind (“Jezebel”) endeavors to rule, the man is impressed or warned through the I Am of impending danger.
What is man’s attitude when warning of the destructive activities of erroneous thoughts and sensations comes? Through the I Am (“Elijah”) the thoughts are turned to the spiritual life within; the “prophets of Baal” are denied away.
What causes the feeling of negation after “Elijah” sought to save his life? After denial of error there is sometimes a feeling of depression or emptiness. Through being meek to this feeling of emptiness, yet bold in the consciousness of the Presence and Power of God, the soul becomes receptive to the inflow of new ideas of life and substance.
What is the meaning of Elijah's staying in the wilderness and being fed by angels? “Angels” are pure thoughts. The soul that is making a demonstration or ascending into higher spiritual consciousness must completely relinquish all claims of power as related to outer consciousness, and establish faith and dependence in Spirit.
What is the significance of the “forty days and forty nights”? The “forty days and forty nights” signify a complete mind action. There must be a denial of sense satisfaction and affirmation of the presence and power of the One Inner Substance and Nourishment. During this fast and feast there may be more or less upheaval in the consciousness, but the ultimate demonstration is always higher spiritual realization.
December 22, 1918: I Kings 9-18
When the realization of our spiritual origin first makes its advent in the mind, and we affirm our dominion over all the thoughts of the mentality, there is established a very unusual power. We find that we can bring to pass anything desired for ourselves or others with most marvelous alacrity, simply by affirming it, or speaking it aloud in the name of God. This new-found ability leads up to an enthusiasm, and sometimes a domineering state of mind, and we become loud and boisterous in our championship of the Lord. If there has been a natural tendency to leadership, and an ambition to reform the world religiously, this descent of the Spirit augments it tremendously. This is Elijah. It is the perpetuation of the Elijah state of consciousness that makes religious leadership. Nearly all who are illumined by the Power of the Spirit in its early stages pass through this exaltation of the personality.
But this is not of the Lord, although great religious movements are set going by such enthusiasts and good ultimately ensues. Paul was possessed by this Spirit and went contrary to the expressed and, according to his own admission, plainly understood, guidance of the Spirit. He was so determined to explain his illumination to the Jews that he went up to Jerusalem in spite of warning, and suffered the consequences in years of imprisonment. He is also responsible for the ecclesiastical machinery of the orthodox church, which is no part of Jesus' philosophy. Paul's innate ambition took a religious turn, and he made an institution out of what Jesus intended should liberate men from the institution.
Elijah championed the cause of God with such enthusiasm that he became violent and destructive. This was the Jezebel side of his character . But he was willing to be instructed. He slowly learned the lesson that the kingdom of God is to be received as a little child. He starts out with the roar of the whirlwind and ends up with the whisper of the still, small voice.
“He came hither unto the cave,” not a cave. This means the secret, inner recesses of the soul. The power of the Spirit penetrates the most secret chambers of the mind, and sheds light upon all the dark caverns within. We sometimes think we have lost our Elijah power, because we have not the old time impetuosity and ability to speak the healing, or other words, of Truth, and see the quick results. But there is no loss in Spirit; the power is penetrating the inner man and some dark cave is its abiding place.
The law of our being is activity. Be doing something. If your spiritual power has struck in and is sulking in a seeming bondage of materiality, and claiming that it has done a great deal of good, and got no reward, and that it is the only pious one left on earth, it is safe to say the Lord is right now calling, “What doest thou here?”
The command is, “Go forth and stand upon the mount before the Lord.” That is, go up into the mount of Spiritual Understanding and analyze the situation. We are to discriminate between cause and effect. The Lord is standard; all things must conform to it. The breath of Spirit sets up a standard of activity, and if there are states of consciousness that resist, they are broken into pieces. Yet the Lord is not the process that pulverizes, though remotely its cause. Terribly destructive armies were raised at the command of the tender-hearted Lincoln, but he was not in them in spirit. God is not in the throes of pain and disease in the body, yet the life established at its center is asserting itself and the effect without is trying to avoid the law of that standard, and the result is a great commotion. But the Lord is not in the commotion.
A Hebrew scholar gives this as a literal translation of this magnificent passage: “Wind great and strong, rending mountains, shivering rocks before the face of Jehovah, not in storm Jehovah! And after the wind earthquake, not in earthquake Jehovah! And after the earthquake fire, not in fire Jehovah! And after the fire sound of soft silencing (audible gentle stilling)!”
– UNITY magazine.
January 22, 1922: I Kings 19:9-18
After the I AM is established in Truth and has even done wonderful things through the power of the word, is it always able openly to withstand the adversary? No. In this lesson, Elijah means “I AM,” or “God is God.” Ahab and Jezebel symbolize the ruling powers in idolatrous states of consciousness. Through fear of them, Elijah fled into the wilderness and hid in a cave.
What is the metaphysical meaning of this seemingly cowardly act? It is the I AM seeking a deeper hold on God. The cave symbolizes secret inner recesses of the soul, where power is stored.
To metaphysicians what step in unfoldment does this represent? It represents that step in unfoldment where the first flush of spiritual enthusiasm is waning, and a deeper understanding of spiritual law is in the throes of birth.
What is the law of life in the various steps of unfoldment? The law of life is activity. Activity has back of it a law of Spirit that is sure to dispel the darkness and bring forth the light.
When Spirit meets resistant states of consciousness what happens? The result may be described in the words: “A great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before Jehovah.”
Is the Spirit of the Lord really in the commotion that takes place? No. “Jehovah was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but Jehovah was not in the earthquake: and after the earthquake a fire; but Jehovah was not in the fire.”
Where do we find the Spirit of the Lord? After chemicalization has spent its force, we are able to hear and to understand the still, small voice of Spirit within.
Explain: “Return on thy way ... and ... anoint Hazael to be king over Syria.” The meaning is to “right about” and face the situation, and in the name of the Lord, reclaim the ground lost. To anoint Hazael (all-seeing eye) king of Syria (confusion) means to restore order in the confused consciousness.
Explain: “And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel.” Jehu, son of Nimshi, means “rescued,” or “saved.” The spiritual thoughts are to be affirmed and restored to supremacy.
Who is to be prophet in this new realm where Spirit rules? Elisha, the prophet who affirms that the peace, harmony, and love of God shall be made manifest.
October 9, 1927: I Kings 19:9-18
After the I AM is established in Truth and has even done wonderful things through the power of the word, is it always able openly to withstand the adversary? No. In this lesson. Elijah means “I AM,” or “God is God.” Ahab and Jezebel symbolize the ruling powers in idolatrous states of consciousness. Through fear of them, Elijah fled into the wilderness and hid in a cave.
What is the metaphysical meaning of this seemingly cowardly act? It is that the I AM is seeking a deeper hold on God. The cave symbolizes secret inner recesses of the soul, where power is stored.
To metaphysicians what step in unfoldment does this represent? It represents that step in unfoldment where the first flush of spiritual enthusiasm is waning, and a deeper understanding of spiritual law is in the throes of birth.
What is the law of life in the various steps of unfoldment? The law of life is activity. Activity has back of it a law of Spirit that is sure to dispel the darkness and bring forth the light.
When Spirit meets resistant states of consciousness what happens? The result may be described in the words: “A great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before Jehovah.”
Is the Spirit of the Lord really in the commotion that takes place? No. “Jehovah was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but Jehovah was not in the earthquake: and after the earthquake a fire; but Jehovah was not m the fire.”
Where do we find the Spirit of the Lord? After chemicalization has spent its force, we are able to hear and to understand the still, small voice of Spirit within.
Explain: “Return on thy way ... and ... anoint Hazael to be king over Syria.” The meaning is to “right about” and face the situation, and in the name of the Lord, reclaim the ground lost. To anoint Hazael (all-seeing eye) king of Syria (confusion) means to restore order in the confused consciousness.
Explain: “And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel.” Jehu, son of Nimshi, means “rescued,” or “saved.” The spiritual thoughts are to be affirmed and restored to supremacy.
Who is to be prophet in this new realm where Spirit rules? Elisha, the prophet who affirms that the peace, harmony, and love of God shall be made manifest.
July 22, 1934: I Kings 19:9-18
What is the Elijah state of consciousness? This is the state that follows realization of the power of our word to produce the effects that we desire in the external world. It is intensified by a natural tendency towards leadership and an ambition to reform the world.
Why is spiritual illumination sometimes characterized by exaltation of the personality? This is true only of the first stages of spiritual illumination, and is the initial reaction of personality to spiritual influences.
How did Elijah express his religious zeal? Elijah was so zealous that he became violent and destructive. Because the Hebrew prophets had been put to death, he slew the priests of Baal in retaliation.
Why could not Elijah perceive the omnipresence of God? Because he indulged in self-justification instead of listening for divine guidance. When the turmoil of his emotions subsided, he heard the still, small voice in his own soul.
What is the significance of the statement “He came thither unto a cave”? The cave signifies the secret, inner recesses of the soul. The power of Spirit penetrates the most secret chambers of the mind, and sheds light upon inner darkness.
In what way is man related to activity? Activity is a law of man’s being. “Whosoever would save his life shall lose it.”
Explain the command “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before Jehovah.” This means that we are to analyze our situation in the light of spiritual understanding. Only by so doing can we tell whether we are making our life worthwhile.
What did John the Baptist restore that Elijah had failed to preserve? John put nonresistance above destructiveness in his conduct, and courage above fear. In speech he was sometimes negative, as when he addressed the Pharisees, but his actions were in harmony with divine law.
What does thus difference in the two men prove? Since Jesus recognized John as Elijah come again, the differences in character between the two proves that good is eternal and that its nature is to increase, while evil is transient and must diminish.
May 13, 1945: I Kings 19:13-18
How is sense consciousness overcome? By the right use of the I AM (represented by Elijah). As we claim our true nature in the name of the I AM, realizing that all things are ours through the power of Truth (“seven thousand in Israel ... which have not bowed unto Baal”), we know freedom from the domination of the sense nature.
May 13, 1945: I Kings 19:13-18
The spiritual I AM stirs us to self-examination in order to account for the adverse state or circumstances in which we find ourselves involved. The inner voice inquires what we are doing in adverse circumstances. If we are true to the principles that we believe and by which we profess to live, why should we be overtaken by adversity? We may be zealous for the triumph of Truth (“very jealous for Jehovah”), but we may not realize that the “still small voice” is the controlling power over our inner world and not the calling down of fire from heaven in the world of intellect or the world of sense. The issue cannot be forced. We must review our course (“Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus”) until we understand that our consciousness has been founded on a material concept of life heretofore. The name Damascus signifies such a state of consciousness. At all cost we need to wipe out materiality as a governing concept.
Hazael, Jehu, and Elisha each in turn was to be anointed with the idea of destroying by degrees the evil that held sway over the kingdom of Israel. That the first two of these were themselves evil did not detract from the importance of the work to be accomplished. “If Satan casteth out Satan . . . how then shall his kingdom stand?” Error is to be eradicated by all means, but chiefly by denial. Order is to be restored to our confused thoughts by consecutive stages of realization, not all at once.
– UNITY magazine.
Metaphysically Interpreting I Kings 19:19-21
19:19So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing, with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed over unto him, and cast his mantle upon him. 19:20And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee. And he said unto him, Go back again; for what have I done to thee? 19:21And he returned from following him, and took the yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him.
October 23, 1927: I Kings 19:19-20
What is the theme of today's lesson? The theme of today's lesson is the calling to action of man's innate prophetic ability. A true prophet is one who foretells effects from causes, or one who can perceive that certain thoughts will bring forth certain effects.
What type of man a represented Elijah? Elijah represents one who has received I AM illumination and power and interprets it from a personal standpoint rather than from a universal standpoint. Elijah was zealous for the enforcement of the law of Jehovah, but his methods were destructive. He thought that he was the only prophet, the only one in all Israel, who had kept the law.
What does Elisha represent? The name Elisha means “God is Savior” and is almost identical in character with the word “Jesus;” both the names represent the love, the tenderness, and the forgiveness of Jehovah.
What do the twelve yoke of oxen represent? Oxen represent physical strength, the bulwark of the natural man. The twelve yoke indicate a very substantial hold upon physical strength.
Transcribed by Lloyd Kinder on 02-08-2014
