1 Koningen 19:3

3 Toen hij dat zag, maakte hij zich op, en ging heen, om zijns levens wil, en kwam te Ber-seba, dat in Juda is, en liet zijn jongen aldaar.

1 Koningen 19:3 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 19:3

And when he saw that
That her design and resolution were to take away his life; the Septuagint, Vulgate Latin, and Syriac versions read, "and he was afraid"; or frightened; he that had such courage as not to be afraid to meet Ahab, and contend with four hundred and fifty priests of Baal, and in the face of all Israel, who at first were not inclined to take his part, is now terrified at the threats of a single woman; which shows that the spirit and courage he had before were of the Lord, and not of himself; and that those who have the greatest zeal and courage for religion, for God, and his worship, his truths and ordinances, if left to themselves, become weak and timorous; and whether this is the true reading, or not, it was certainly his case by what follows:

he arose and went for his life;
fled to save his life, at a time when he was much wanted to encourage and increase the reformation from idolatry, and to preserve the people from relapsing who were converted; and through the miracles that had been wrought by him, and for him, he had great reason to trust in the Lord: or "he went unto", or "according to his own soul" ^F13; according to his own mind and will, not taking counsel of God, or any direction from him; and so Abarbinel interprets it:

and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah;
to the tribe of Judah; for though it was in the inheritance of Simeon, yet that was within the tribe of Judah, ( Joshua 19:1 Joshua 19:2 ) , or to the kingdom of Judah, over which Jehoshaphat reigned, and so might think himself safe, being out of the dominions of Ahab, and reach of Jezebel; but yet he did not think so, his fears ran so high that he imagined she would send some after him to search for him, and slay him privately, or make interest with Jehoshaphat to deliver him up, there being friendship between him and Ahab; for though this place was eighty four miles from Jezreel, as Bunting ^F14 computes it, he left it:

and left his servant there;
he took him not with him, either lest he should betray him, or rather out of compassion to him, that he might not share in the miseries of life that were like to come upon him.

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FOOTNOTES:

F13 (wvpn la) (kata thn quchn autou) , Sept. "secundum animam suam", Vatablus, Pagninus.
F14 Travels, ut supra. (p. 204.)

1 Koningen 19:3 In-Context

1 En Achab zeide Izebel aan al wat Elia gedaan had, en allen, die hij gedood had, te weten al de profeten, met het zwaard.

2 Toen zond Izebel een bode tot Elia, om te zeggen: Zo doen mij de goden, en doen zo daartoe, voorzeker, ik zal morgen omtrent dezen tijd uw ziel stellen, als de ziel van een hunner.

3 Toen hij dat zag, maakte hij zich op, en ging heen, om zijns levens wil, en kwam te Ber-seba, dat in Juda is, en liet zijn jongen aldaar.

4 Maar hij zelf ging henen in de woestijn een dagreis, en kwam, en zat onder een jeneverboom; en bad, dat zijn ziel stierve, en zeide: Het is genoeg; neem nu, HEERE, mijn ziel, want ik ben niet beter dan mijn vaderen.

5 En hij legde zich neder, en sliep onder een jeneverboom; en ziet, toen roerde hem een engel aan, en zeide tot hem: Sta op, eet;