1 Kings 19:3

"When he saw that!" Everything depends upon what our eyes see, whether we are strong or weak. The sight of the glorified Christ strengthened Stephen to suffer and die, and Paul to suffer and live. Elijah could no longer say, "As Jehovah the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand." For the time being, his eyes were not upon God. His departure from Jezreel was not a quiet withdrawal, like the time our Lord went into the country in John 11:54. It was panic! It did not even occur to him to seek shelter in the territory of godly King Jehoshaphat. He rushed through the kingdom to Beersheba in the far south. There he left his servant, and went still further, right outside God's land altogether!

We see here how far the energy of the outward life of faith may continue to exist, while the inward life grows weak. His faith fails altogether at a mere threat from Jezebel. Yet this comes at the moment of the most striking testimony to the presence of God among the rebellious people, just after Elijah had made the people kill all the prophets of Baal among them with their own hands. This faith did not sustain his inner life in proportion to the outward testimony. His testimony stirs up the enemy in a way for which his personal faith was not prepared. This is a solemn lesson.

"He went for his life." It was not for his God, or for the people of God, or for the testimony of God — but for his life he went. Having only himself in view he fled as far as possible from the place of testimony. He leaves the land of promise, turns his back on the people of God, and flees to Beersheba.

But Elijah's faith faltered. He could stand before Ahab with no tremor of fear, but now a woman frightened him! He fled from Jezreel to Beersheba (v.3). The very name "Beersheba" should have stopped him, because it means "the well of the oath." Why did he not stop to think of depending on the refreshment of God's oath? God could not fail him. He did not even consult God about going away and when to go. God had led him before. Why did he not depend on Him to lead him now?

A time of special blessing often comes just before a period of great spiritual weakness. Satan is always on the lookout, and he makes us treat the blessings themselves as a reason for pride and for exalting the flesh. Such is in part the reason for Elijah's discipline... Notice again that Satan attacks the side we guard least, because it seems the least open to attack. Who would expect a man whose courage had stood up to a whole nation to run from a mere threat?

Only one time does Elijah go where his own heart directs him (1 Kings 19:3), and this breaks the thread of his career. No doubt he then arises and sets out at the angel's word. But he does so in order to come into God's presence and there learn to judge himself. Later we shall see that, despite this, God does not set His servant aside altogether. The experience of learning to know himself bears fruit. We find him again in 1 Kings 21 before Ahab, and in 2 Kings 1 standing without fear before Ahaziah's messengers.