1 Kings 21:27-29
“And when Ahab heard those words, he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his flesh and fasted and lay in sackcloth and went about dejectedly. And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster in his days; but in his son’s days I will bring the disaster upon his house.”
Unexpectedly (and shockingly!), Ahab humbles himself and responds to Elijah’s pronouncement of judgment. Apparently the cumulative impact of Elijah’s prophetic messages and actions finally got Ahab’s attention. Perhaps the memory of the sights and sounds of Mount Carmel were indelibly imprinted in his memory.
Whatever the reason, in response to Elijah’s pronouncement of God’s judgment, Ahab humbled himself for all to see. The Lord then spoke to Elijah and told him that because Ahab humbled himself, the judgment would not come during Ahab’s days, but rather would come during the days of Ahab’s son.
This is extraordinary. It is amazing that Ahab finally shows humility, and it is even more amazing that God shows mercy on Ahab. Certainly no one expected this, not even Elijah. The question is: Why did Ahab not humble himself at Mount Carmel? Why did he humble himself only after he heard Elijah’s somber prophecy? We will never know. But it does show that, despite all we have seen in Ahab, there was a spark of life in him. Who would have predicted that he would tear his clothes, wear sackcloth, and fast before the Lord?
This act of humility, however, would not change the prophecy. It did, however, postpone the disaster of cutting off all of Ahab’s male descendants until the days of Ahab’s son.
I certainly don’t claim to understand all this, but it does tell me with certainty that God is rich in mercy. It sends a message of amazing grace to anyone who feels they have sinned to the extreme, that there is no hope because of the evil they have done. God’s grace is bigger than anyone’s sin. At it’s core, the grace shown to Ahab is a foreshadow of Christ.
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God’s righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.” (Romans 3.23-25)
“For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6.23)
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1.9)
But — and there always seems to be a but with Ahab — this is not the end of the story. …
