(a) Trace the events that led to Elijah's pronouncement of draught in Israel. (b) What two lessons can be learnt fron the action of Elijah?

(a) Events leading to Elijah's pronouncement of drought in Israel (1 Kings 16:29 - 17:1)

• Ahab, son of Omri, became king over Israel and reigned in Samaria. He did evil in the sight of the Lord more than all who were before him.
• Ahab married Jezebel, daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, a foreign princess devoted to the worship of Baal.
• Under Jezebel's influence, Ahab served Baal and worshipped him. He built a house and an altar for Baal in Samaria and made an Asherah pole.
• Baal was regarded by his worshippers as the god who controlled rain, fertility and harvest, so Israel abandoned the Lord and turned to this fertility cult.
• Ahab thereby provoked the Lord God of Israel to anger more than all the kings of Israel before him, leading the nation into idolatry and covenant unfaithfulness.
• In response, God raised up the prophet Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead.
• Elijah came before Ahab and declared: "As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word."
• This pronouncement directly challenged Baal's supposed power over rain and fertility, demonstrating that the Lord alone controls nature.

(b) Two lessons from the action of Elijah

1. Courageous stand for God: Elijah shows that a true servant of God must boldly confront evil and idolatry, even before powerful rulers, without fear of the consequences.
2. God alone is sovereign over nature: The drought proves that the Lord, not Baal or any idol, controls the forces of nature; genuine faith must be placed in God alone, and sin and idolatry bring divine judgement upon a nation.