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As the summer comes to an end, 
we'll be returning to our exposition of Galatians. I wanted to look 
at First Kings 21 tonight. On Wednesday evening, we considered 
a section in Hebrews where the author calls his readers, his 
hearers, to recall their former days in which after they were 
illuminated, probably a reference to their conversion to Christ, 
it says, you endured a great struggle with sufferings, partly 
while you were made a spectacle, both by reproaches and tribulations, 
and partly while you became companions of those who were so treated. 
He says, for you had compassion on me in my chains and joyfully 
accepted the plundering of your goods, knowing that you have 
a better and an enduring possession for yourselves in heaven. We 
observed there that when they had first come into a saving 
relationship with Christ, they suffered persecution. I toyed 
with bringing that message tonight, but I realized there were many 
here tonight that were here on Wednesday and I didn't want to 
be repetitious. So I thought we'd carry on with 
that theme and see that oftentimes God's people suffer injustice 
in this world. And First Kings chapter 21 is 
a textbook example of that. The murder of Naboth by Ahab. Since we looked at Ahab and Elijah 
more specifically last Sunday night, thought to maintain some 
continuity, we'd skip ahead just a few chapters in 1 Kings and 
pick up at 1 Kings chapter 21. I'll begin reading in verse 1. And it came to pass after these 
things that Naboth, the Jezreelite, had a vineyard which was in Jezreel 
next to the palace of Ahab, king of Samaria. So Ahab spoke to 
Naboth saying, Give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable 
garden, because it is near, next to my house. And for it I will 
give you a vineyard better than it. Or, if it seems good to you, 
I will give you its worth in money. But Naboth said to Ahab, 
The Lord forbid that I should give the inheritance of my fathers 
to you. So Ahab went into his house sullen 
and displeased because of the word which Naboth, the Jezreelite, 
had spoken to him. For he had said, I will not give 
you the inheritance of my father's. And he laid out on his bed and 
turned away his face and would eat no food. Jezebel, his wife, 
came to him and said to him, Why is your spirit so sullen 
that you eat no food? He said to her, Because I spoke 
to Naboth, the Jezreelite, and said to him, Give me your vineyard 
for money, or else, if it pleases you, I will give you another 
vineyard for it. And he answered, I will not give you my vineyard. 
Then Jezebel, his wife, said to him, you now exercise authority 
over Israel. Arise, eat food, and let your 
heart be cheerful. I will give you the vineyard 
of Naboth, the Jezreelite. And she wrote letters in Ahab's 
name, sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters to the elders 
and the nobles who were dwelling in the city with Naboth. She 
wrote in the letters saying, proclaim a fast and seat Naboth 
with high honor among the people. and seat two men scoundrels before 
him to bear witness against him, saying, You have blasphemed God 
and the king. Then take him out and stone him 
that he may die. So the men of his city, the elders 
and nobles who were inhabitants of his city, did as Jezebel had 
said to them, had sent to them, as it was written in the letters 
which she had sent to them. They proclaimed the fast and 
seated Naboth with high honor among the people. And two men, 
scoundrels, came in and sat before him. And the scoundrels witnessed 
against him, against Naboth, in the presence of the people, 
saying, Naboth has blasphemed God and the king. Then they took 
him outside the city and stoned him with stones, so that he died. 
Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth has been stoned and is 
dead. And it came to pass, when Jezebel 
heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, that Jezebel said 
to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the 
Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money, for Naboth 
is not alive but dead. So it was, when Ahab heard that 
Naboth was dead, that Ahab got up and went down to take possession 
of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. Then the word of 
the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Arise, go down to meet 
Ahab, king of Israel, who lives in Samaria. There he is in the 
vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone down to take possession 
of it. You shall speak to him, saying, 
Thus says the Lord. Have you murdered and also taken 
possession? And you shall speak to him, saying, 
Thus says the Lord. In the place where dogs lick 
the blood of Naboth, Dogs shall lick your blood, even yours. So Ahab said to Elijah, Have 
you found me, O my enemy? And he answered, I have found 
you because you have sold yourself to do evil in the sight of the 
Lord. Behold, I will bring calamity on you. I will take away your 
posterity and will cut off from Ahab every male in Israel, both 
bond and free. I will make your house like the 
house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and like the house of 
Basha, the son of Ahijah, because of the provocation with which 
you have provoked me to anger and made Israel sin. And concerning 
Jezebel, the Lord also spoke, saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel 
by the wall of Jezreel. The dogs shall eat whoever belongs 
to Ahab and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall 
eat whoever dies in the field. But there was no one like Ahab 
who sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord, because 
Jezebel, his wife, stirred him up. And he behaved very abominably 
in following idols, according to all that the Amorites had 
done, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel. 
So it was when Ahab heard those words that he tore his clothes 
and put sackcloth on his body and fasted and lay in sackcloth 
and went about mourning. And the word of the Lord came 
to Elijah, the Tishbite, saying, See how Ahab has humbled himself 
before me because he has humbled himself before me. I will not 
bring the calamity in his days, in the days of his son. I will 
bring the calamity on his house. Amen. Father, we just thank you 
that you here and are concerned with the affairs of your people. 
We just pray now that you would encourage our hearts. We pray, 
Father, that you would cause us to reflect on passages like 
these, to see your faithfulness and your commitment to justice. 
And God, as well, help us to see that it is common for your 
people to suffer in a world that is opposed to the Lord Jesus 
Christ. We just ask now that you would fill us with your spirit, 
and we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen. Well, in the space 
between First Kings chapter 18 and First Kings or toward the 
end, basically describes the failure of Ahab and how God's 
word stands against him. He spared Ben Hadad of Syria. according to chapter 20. Therefore, 
Ahab and Israel stand under doom because of his heartless murder 
and oppression of Naboth. His whole household will be exterminated. And because of his refusal to 
hear God's prophet, Ahab is destroyed on the field of battle. And what 
was spoken here by Elijah comes to pass. The dogs licked up his 
blood. Later in 2 Kings 9, we see the 
account of Jehu, who was the one who took out Jezebel. And then the dogs ate her dead 
body. But as we look at this particular 
passage, it's obvious what's going on here. Government oppression. state control, confiscation of 
property. And we see that God is actually 
concerned about these things. In our studies in the book of 
Proverbs, we've seen that God is about justice. He looks at 
the scales to make sure they are weighted properly. Certainly, 
when He sees our brothers and sisters in other lands having 
their goods plundered and their things taken from them, He is 
aware of that. He will render justice ultimately 
to those offenders of his holy law. And so tonight I want to 
just draw out four lessons from this particular account. Four 
lessons that I hope is instructive for us as Christians in a world 
that is opposed to Jesus Christ. And the first is simply this. 
God's people often suffer injustice in this world. God's people often 
suffer injustice in this world. Now, I know that's a bit of a 
difficult proposition for those of us living in Canada. But it 
is very often that we receive prayer letters or updates from 
voice of the martyrs where they are all too familiar with this 
proposition that God's people often suffer injustice in this 
world. We saw it in the book of Hebrews 
chapter 10 the initial first primary enemy of the Church of 
God. was the unbelieving Jews. They targeted the people of God. 
They persecuted them. They chased them down. They did 
all manner of evil against them. And so God's people often suffer 
injustice in this world. Notice the text very specifically. The desire of Ahab. Ahab kept 
another palace in Jezreel and he wanted Naboth's vineyard. 
It would make a good annex. It would make a good piece of 
property to grow his vegetables in. Never mind that this was 
Naboth's livelihood, that this had been bequeathed to him, that 
there was property laws within Israel, that he had a title to 
this. Ahab wanted a bigger vegetable 
garden, and so he makes this generous offer to Naboth. He says, give me your vineyard, 
that I may have it for your vegetable garden, because it is near, next 
to my house, and for it I will give you a vineyard better than 
it. Or if it seems good to you, I will give you its worth in 
money. Now notice the response of Naboth. Naboth says to Ahab, the Lord 
forbid that I should give the inheritance of my fathers to 
you. Now, it might sound like that's 
a bit of a harsh statement. I mean, after all, it was quite 
generous what Ahab said. I'll give you one in like value 
or I'll give you money even exceeding it. But Nabal says, Lord forbid 
it. Again, there were property rights. 
Tribes got certain things. When you read the book of Joshua, 
it is very specific when they went into the land that God apportioned 
the land and He gave certain portions to various tribes. It was a right. It was ingrained. It was something given to them. 
Now, under certain emergencies, an Israelite might sell the land, 
but these conditions did not apply in Naboth's case. He wanted 
his property. That's OK. Ralph Davis comments 
here, he says, he treasures Yahweh's land gift passed down via his 
ancestors more than making bucks or placating kings. Naboth is 
not nasty, but definite. His refusal is couched in strong 
language, but one cannot say he is obnoxious. He had a perfect 
right to refuse Ahab's offer. He did so because his thinking 
was covenantal rather than pragmatic. Note that in his reply, Naboth 
identifies himself as a man subject to Yahweh and caring for his 
law. So that's what's at stake here. 
It's not that Naboth just being a bit of a stubborn fellow. No, 
he has a right to this. It has been bequeathed to him. 
It is a tribal inheritance and he insists on keeping it. And 
then what happens? Jezebel comes in. Actually, even 
before Jezebel comes in, what's Ahab do? He goes home and he 
pouts. That's what he does. He's a whining, 
crying baby. You wouldn't think that this 
would be legitimate activity for a king. I don't think it's 
legitimate activity for a five-year-old, let alone a man in a position 
of authority as king over Israel. Look at what it says in verse 
four. Ahab went into his house sullen and displeased because 
of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him. He is so set on having this land 
for his vegetable garden that when he is met with opposition, 
he's going to go home and pout. He's going to go home and whine. 
He's going to go home and grumble and complain. And then enters 
Jezebel. Jezebel is a real piece of work. 
She asks him, what are you doing? Why are you whining? Why are 
you sullen? Why are you complaining? What's 
the deal? So Ahab rehearses what had happened. And she's just flabbergasted. 
That's a word we don't hear often, is it? She's just rocked out 
of her little world. You've got to remember something 
about Jezebel. Her daddy was the king of Phoenicia. That included both Tyre and Sidon. He became the king of Phoenicia 
by having his predecessor murdered. So Jezebel was reared in the 
context of, if you want something, you get it. If you want something, 
you seize it. It doesn't matter if we have 
to crack a few eggs in order to make the omelet. Jezebel is 
comforting Ahab here. She says, you are the king or 
you now exercise authority over Israel. Arise, eat food and let 
your heart be cheerful. I will give you the vineyard 
of Naboth, the Jezreelite. Ahab tells her what went on and 
then she responds. You can hear the wheels clicking. 
Daddy didn't let things roll this way. If daddy wanted something, 
daddy took it. So Ahab, you just eat, take care 
of yourself and let Jezebel make everything right. That does not 
excuse Ahab. We might think, well, the real 
culprit, the real wicked one in this is Jezebel. I like what 
Ralph Davis says, the fact that Jezebel incited Ahab to evil 
does not lessen, but aggravates Ahab's guilt for it shows he 
was not only wicked, but weak, not only not simply sinful, but 
spineless. He's going to let his wife do 
his bidding no matter what the cause. But we need to see this, 
and we need to understand this. In this particular instance, 
you have the king and the queen conspiring against one man who 
owns one parcel of land in all of Palestine. It is a very unjust 
thing that is taking place. It was unjust what occurred to 
those first Hebrew Christians when they joyfully accepted the 
plundering of their goods. It is never right for men to 
confiscate your goods. It is never right for men to 
punish you and to inflict those sorts of things upon you. But 
realize, in a world filled with opposition to Jesus, because 
they can't get to God, because they can't strip him off his 
throne and kill him, they will seek to inflict pain, punishment, 
and persecution upon his people. If men could, they would run 
right up into heaven and throw God off of His throne and destroy 
Him. Since they cannot do that, they 
go after His people. The book of Revelation highlights 
this fact very vividly, very specifically in Revelation chapter 
12. When the dragon could not kill 
the sun, when he ascended on high, when he sat down at the 
right hand of the Majesty on high, the dragon then turns its 
wicked attention against the people of God. That is a common 
theme beginning in Genesis all the way to the book of Revelation. 
And we need to understand that. It may not always be the case 
that in Canada we have freedom, we have liberty, we have all 
these blessings and benefits. You know, quite frankly, this 
liberty and these benefits and this freedom isn't really inculcating 
us a great, zealous, fervent service to the Lord God Almighty. 
Very often when you see countries that are being persecuted, you 
see believers that are seeing persecution. The people of God 
get fired up. They start getting more zealous. 
Paul rehearses something of that in Philippians chapter one. He 
says the things have actually turned up for the progress of 
the gospel. He says, now that I'm in chains, 
the whole praetorium guard is hearing about Jesus. And he also 
says the church, having heard about my chains and suffering, 
has become emboldened. A whiff of persecution at times 
is a great blessing or boon to the church to get us to get serious 
about the Lord God most high. So the Lord uses even those injustices 
for his glory and for the good of his people. Notice the second 
lesson that comes from verses 8 to 14. God's people should 
stand for what is right. God's people should stand for 
what is right. Notice the plan of Jezebel. She sends a letter to the elders 
and nobles of Jezreel in Ahab's name with very explicit instructions. Have Naboth become the center 
of attraction. Have him exalted. Have him paraded. Have him celebrated as a great 
and godly man. But I want you to hire a couple 
of scoundrels to give false testimony that he is a blasphemer. Notice, 
it's not just one scoundrel, it's two scoundrels. This is 
injustice, but it's going to be politically correct injustice. They're going to have the two 
or three witnesses necessary to execute a capital crime. Notice 
as well that she says to proclaim a fast. This is injustice, but 
it's going to be a religious injustice. She's got everything 
taken care of. Get the two or three witnesses 
to satisfy the law of God. Proclaim a fast to satisfy the 
cult, to satisfy worship, to be religious, to go under the 
guise of religion. It would be baptized with enough 
religion. It would be baptized with enough 
justice to satisfy the requirements of the law and to make it acceptable. And then notice after they had 
stated, you have blasphemed God and the king, then take him out 
and stone him that he may die. The leaders of Jezreel don't 
even question this. Do they? This is the most heinous thing 
in this passage. I mean, it's horrible that Ahab 
is being led around by his wife. It's horrible that Jezebel is 
this ungodly. It's horrible that the men of 
Jezreel, the nobles of Jezreel, didn't say why, didn't say what's 
going on. Why do you want us to execute 
a just man? You want us to hire two scoundrels? I just have this picture of guys 
hanging out on the road with a sign that says, scoundrel will 
work for deceit. Come on with us if we've got 
a job for you. There's this man named Naboth, 
and the king really wants his property, and so his wife has 
cooked up a plan in order to get rid of him. Good men should 
stand for what is right. Remember we saw that in Hebrews 
10. Not only were they made a spectacle, 
but you became companions of those who were so treated. You 
participated in it with them. If there is a believer who is 
under fire for religious, biblical convictions, it is just as wicked 
for good men to say nothing. And that's precisely what happened 
here. Verse 11. So the men of his city, 
the elders and nobles who were inhabitants of his city, did 
as Jezebel had sent to them, as it was written in the letters 
which she had sent to them. They proclaimed the fast, seated 
Naboth with high honor among the people, and two men, scoundrels, 
came in and sat before him. And the scoundrels witnessed 
against him, against Naboth, in the presence of the people, 
saying, Naboth is blasphemed, God and the king. Then they took 
him outside the city and stoned him with stones so that he died. Then they sent to Jezebel saying, 
Naboth has been stoned and is dead. When you look at Second 
Kings, chapter nine, they didn't just take out Naboth. They took 
out his sons as well. In order for Ahab to confiscate 
his land, there could be no other heir. There could be no other 
with entitlement to that piece of property. So it wasn't just 
Naboth, it was his sons with him that were executed based 
on wicked testimony of two scoundrels. Davis again says the appropriate 
penalty followed, Leviticus 24, a man who blasphemed was to be 
executed. He says that motionless form, 
speaking of Naboth, that pulverized mass of flesh and bone is mute 
testimony to what happens to those who won't play ball with 
the government. You resist them, you reject them, 
and that's precisely what's going to happen. And these men of Jezreel 
sat by, stood by, and were complicit in the wickedness itself. The 
elders and nobles of Jezreel should have opposed this wicked 
plan, even if it was mandated by the state. Good men stand 
for what is right. Albert Barnes says, the ready 
submission of the elders and nobles implies a deep moral degradation 
among the Israelites, the fruit of their lapse into idolatry. 
Davis says, the text is telling us that injustice flourishes 
not only by wickedness, but by weakness, not merely from a lack 
of goodness, but by a lack of guts. There's an instance similar 
to this in Judges 15. The Philistines want Samson. 
They track him down. He's with the men of Judah. The 
early chapters of Judah record the men or the early chapters 
of Judges record the men of Judah going into battle. They wade 
into battle after battle, fighting for their land, fighting for 
their rights, fighting, fighting, fighting. When the Philistines 
come and ask for Samson, you know what the Judahites do? They 
give him right up. Hand him right over. It's wicked. Cicero, Cicero, not even a Christian 
man. Cicero said there are two kinds 
of injustice. The first is found in those who 
do an injury. The second in those who fail 
to protect another from injury when they can. We, as Christians, 
need to show camaraderie. We, as Christians, need to show 
solidarity. We, as Christians, when a brother 
or a sister is being persecuted, we need to come to their aid. 
either by prayer, with giving, or however tangibly we may be 
able to show that solidarity. These men of Jezreel said an 
example of just that kind of wickedness. Those who fail to 
protect another from injury when they can. So the first, God's 
people often suffer injustice in this world. Second, God's 
people should stand for what is right. Thirdly, verses 17 
to 26, God will intervene to bring justice to his wronged 
people. God will intervene to bring justice to his wronged 
people. If you read through verses 8 
to 14, it's pretty heartless. It's pretty grim. It's pretty 
sad. You're reading and you're understanding, 
you're thinking, man, that's just not right. That's horrible. Why do such bad things happen 
to good people in this world? I mean, that is just wretched. 
Then the Word of God comes and disturbs the peace, as Davis 
says. Notice verse 15. It says, It 
came to pass when Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and 
was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession 
of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused 
to give you for money. For Naboth is not alive, but 
dead. You see her with a twinkle in her eye, can't you? As Davis 
says, her Maybelline blushed eyes, you know, winking at him 
for what she's accomplished. It's all done. You wanted a new 
vegetable garden, Daddy? You got it. He's probably thinking, 
this is great. Glad I married such a deceitful, 
conniving, wicked, wretch of a woman. Notice in verse 16, 
So it was, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab got 
up and went down to take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the 
Jezreelite. The perfect crime, right? If 
the text stopped there, it would be the perfect crime. He got 
what he wanted. He was sullen, he whined, he 
complained, his wife heard him and delivered up Naboth, hired 
scoundrels, his whole plan went on without a hitch. Isn't that 
how we sometimes interpret things? We think it's the perfect crime. 
We think that these people are getting away with a wholesale 
execution of Christians and they're getting away with it. We see 
gross injustice and we think they're getting away with it. 
We see imbalanced scales and we think they're getting away 
with it. We see Hindus and Muslims and Buddhists. We start to freak 
out. We begin to think that Islam is so rapidly growing. It's so 
big. It's so massive. It's going to 
win the day. Nothing escapes the eye of God. 
You need to understand that God will intervene to bring justice 
to his wrong people. Verse 17. Then the word of the 
Lord came to Elijah, the Tishbite saying. It almost appears as 
if the perfect crime has been pulled off, but God takes notice 
and sends Elijah to Ahab. And don't you love Ahab's statement? In chapter 18, he calls him the 
troubler of Israel. Now he says, have you found me, 
O my enemy? Elijah had thick skin. He didn't 
cry. He didn't say, oh, that's too 
bad that the king would treat me thus. No, God sends Elijah 
to make things right. He dispatches him and Elijah 
takes to it. And then notice Elijah announces 
the judgment that God would bring upon Ahab's whole household. Verse 21. Behold, I will bring 
calamity on you. I will take away your posterity 
and will cut off from Ahab every male in Israel, both bond and 
free. I will make your house like the 
house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and like the house of 
Basha, the son of Ahijah, because of the provocation with which 
you have provoked me to anger and made Israel sin. Concerning 
Jezebel, the Lord also spoke, saying, The dog shall eat Jezebel 
by the wall of Jezreel. The dog shall eat whoever belongs 
to Ahab and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall 
eat whoever dies in the field. While it may appear that injustice 
flourishes, While it may appear that the Ahabs and the Jezebels 
win, while it may appear that the sons of Jezreel or the men 
of Jezreel make it in this life, God sees, God knows, and God 
will bring justice. We need to be encouraged about 
that. We need to be strengthened by that, not in some vindictive, 
ungodly, unholy, and unhealthy way. But we are not to take vengeance 
into our own hands, but as Paul tells us, we are to give place 
to wrath. Why? Because God will repay. And in this particular instance, 
he dispatches Elijah, Elijah brings the heat, and Ahab hears 
the word of the Lord. So the lesson here is that God 
will intervene to bring justice to his wronged people. It may 
not be in this life. He didn't raise Naboth from the 
dead, did he? He didn't give him that piece 
of land back, did he? He didn't restore his sons to 
full health and life, did he? God did not do it in this life, 
but we can rest assured, even as those Hebrew Christians joyfully 
accepted the plundering of their goods because they considered 
the lasting reward that was stored up for them in heaven. Christians, 
God has promised us great things. We read of it at the end of chapter 
21 and beginning of chapter 22 in the book of Revelation. You 
think there's any accident as to the fact that God's name is 
written on their foreheads? The counterfeit, the beast himself 
in Revelation 13, you bear the mark of the beast. It's not some 
physical number. You don't have to search your 
head with a mirror. You don't have to be afraid if 
666 comes up at the grocery store. The idea is spiritual, not physical. The idea is that Satan, or the 
beast, possesses his people. By the same token, God possesses 
his people. And though they suffer, and though 
they're tried, and though there's travail, They will one day sit, 
or stand rather, before the presence of God Most High and the Lamb 
who sits on the throne. We can't forget that. That's 
what Hebrews 10, the latter part, 11 and 12 are filled with. Why did Moses refuse all the 
riches in Egypt, or the passing pleasures of sin, and choose 
rather to be suffering affliction with the people of God? Just 
because he knew suffering was a virtue? We talked about this 
on Wednesday night. Suffering in and of itself is 
not a virtue. He considered the reward of heaven 
to be greater. He looked beyond the cross to 
the crown and he saw that it was great. Jesus does the same 
thing according to chapter 12. Who for the joy set beforehand 
despised the shame endured the cross and is sat down at the 
right hand of the majesty on high. Never forget that the Lord 
God most high has great things in store for his people. And 
the fourth and final lesson in this section is the most surprising 
of all. You shouldn't be surprised that 
God's people suffer injustice. You shouldn't be surprised that 
God's people should stand for what is right. You should stand 
for what is right. You shouldn't be surprised that 
God will intervene to bring justice to his wrong people. What is 
most surprising in this passage is what goes on in verses 27 
to 29. Well, verse 25 provides a bit 
of background. There was no one like Ahab who 
sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord. This 
guy was a wretch. There's a lot of bad guys that 
served as kings in Israel and in Judah. You just read about 
it and almost turn your stomach to see how wicked some of these 
guys were. So when a man under the inspiration 
of the Holy Spirit says, there was no one like Ahab who sold 
himself to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord. You better 
understand this is a bad guy. He's horrible. He's wretched. He's the benchmark for evil in 
Israel. Right? You think of a bad guy 
in our generation, you think of Hitler, he's the benchmark 
for bad guys. You think of Stalin, benchmark 
for bad guys. Mussolini, benchmark, bad guy. Pol Pot, benchmark, bad guy. Charles Manson, if you think 
about serial killers, bad guy. Ahab in Israel, bad guy. Kids 
today in Sabbath school, we're going to learn about bad guys. 
Oh, it's Ahab, right? Look at what the author is doing. 
He wants us to appreciate how bad Ahab is. He says, but there 
was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in the 
sight of the Lord, because Jezebel, his wife, stirred him up. Again, 
that doesn't alleviate the wickedness of Ahab. It just shows his spinelessness. It shows that he's a wimp. It 
shows that he's not only godless, he is gutless. And it says in 
verse 26, he behaved very abominably in following idols according 
to all that the Amorites had done, whom the Lord had cast 
out before the children of Israel. Go back up to verse 22 for just 
a moment. I will make your house like the 
house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat. Another bad guy. What did Jeroboam do? The division 
of the kingdom. He's operating in the north. 
He knows that if his people go down to the city of David, if 
they go to Bethlehem, they might remember Jehovah. So what does 
he do? He makes two calves and he says, 
this is your God. This is who led you out of Egypt. 
Bad guy. But he says Ahab is even worse 
than Jeroboam. Now notice verse 27. So it was 
when Ahab heard those words that he tore his clothes and put sackcloth 
on his body and fasted and lay in sackcloth and went about mourning. It's amazing. The benchmark bad 
guy. This is like saying Hitler tore 
his clothes, put on sackcloth and humbled himself. And the 
word of Jehovah came to Elijah the Tishbite, verse 28, saying, 
See how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled 
himself before me, I will not bring the calamity in his days. 
In the days of his son, I will bring the calamity on his house. Ahab humbles himself under Jehovah. This indictment through the prophet 
Elijah made an impression upon him. His repentance is sincere 
at the moment, but it's not lasting. But nevertheless, look at God's 
response. This is the most mind-blowing 
lesson in all of this. God delights to exercise mercy 
in the midst of displaying his justice. You see what God says 
to Elijah. Do you see Ahab? Do you see how 
he humbled himself? That's amazing. I don't think 
it was a humble repentance unto everlasting life. He ultimately 
dies in battle in chapter 23. And all of these bad things do 
come upon his family, as God had promised. But he at least 
gets a state of execution for a time. John Gill comments. He says this was not a pardon, 
only a reprieve. The sentence pronounced on him 
and his family was not taken off nor countermanded. Only the 
execution of it prolonged. It is promised that the destruction 
of his family should not be in his lifetime, but after his death 
in his son's days. Otherwise, he himself died a 
violent death and the dogs licked his blood as were foretold. However, 
This may be an encouragement to those who are truly humbled 
for their sins and really repent of them, that they shall receive 
forgiveness at the hand of God, since he showed so much regard 
to an outward humiliation and repentance. You hear what Gil's 
saying. If God sees Ahab and says to 
Elijah, see how Ahab has humbled himself before me, because he 
has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the calamity 
in his days. In the days of his son, I will 
bring the calamity on his house. How much more when a sinner, 
when someone in this room believes on the Lord Jesus Christ, When 
you hear of Christ and Him crucified and resurrected, when you believe 
what the Bible says concerning Him, will God not say, see, look 
at that? God is ready to show mercy. God 
is ready to show grace. God is ready to show kindness. 
Again, those first three lessons are not that mind blowing. But 
this fourth one is absolutely mind blowing that he would say 
of Ahab, see, see how Ahab has humbled himself before me. God 
does delight in mercy. If you don't know Christ tonight, 
believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved. The God who 
stayed execution from Ahab over this at least outward humbling 
of Himself will bless and receive you completely for coming to 
the Lord Jesus Christ, believing in the Gospel, believing in the 
truth, believing that Jesus is who He says He is, and that He's 
done what the Bible says He's done. He's lived for us, He's 
died for us, and He's rose again. You believe in him and you will 
see that God delights to exercise mercy. God delights in pouring 
out his grace. God delights in the salvation 
of sinners. I think sometimes we think God 
sort of saves grudgingly. All right, I'm going to save 
you. All right, I'll forgive you. That's not God. That's not 
the father of the prodigal. The father of the prodigal didn't 
get his bullhorn and yell out to the son, just stay out there, 
you smell like pig. Once you get cleaned up, then 
you can come and approach me. That's not what the father of 
the prodigal does. The father of the prodigal delights 
to show mercy. He runs while the son is a long 
way off. He falls on the son. He kisses 
the son. He puts a ring on the son's finger. 
He says to slay the fatted calf. He calls for rejoicing. He calls 
for feasting. He calls for celebration. Who 
is the God that we preach? Are we preaching just a little 
mercy, just a little grace? Are we preaching just a little 
bit of salvation? Or are we preaching that glorious 
truth that salvation is of the Lord, that Christ is both author 
and finisher, that the God who begins this work will complete 
it under the day of Christ? We have this idea that we remain 
justified insofar as our performance meets God's requirements. That 
is absolutely not the case. We are saved first to last by 
grace alone through faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. He is 
not a miser. He is not Ebenezer Scrooge. He 
delights to pour out mercy. He delights to give grace. This 
is what God is about. The church must preach that Jesus 
saves to the uttermost all who draw nigh unto God through Him. Not that He's a miser. Not that 
he is a grudge, not that he is just a little bit involved in 
this whole idea. Brethren, let us learn, even 
from this account with Ahab, that God delights to exercise 
mercy. Let us pray. Father, we thank 
you for the Holy Scriptures, and Father, we thank you for 
your mercy. God, even in this instance, displayed with such 
a wretch like Ahab. And God, we can all testify it's 
been displayed in such wretches like us. How we thank you that 
you have not dealt with us according to our sin. How we thank you 
that you have not counted our iniquity against us, but you 
have removed it. You have placed it upon your 
own dearly beloved son. It has been punished in him. 
And we thank you that he was raised up for our justification. 
And I pray that we would focus on these things, that we would 
focus as well on these other lessons, that we as your people 
would indeed be able to joyfully accept the plundering of our 
goods, that we would be companions of those who are ill-treated, 
and that in this we would bring glory to you. And we ask through 
Christ our Lord. Amen.