1W

1W

King Ahab made alliance with Jehoshapohat, chieftain of the tribe of Judah, to recapture the city of Ramoth-Gilead from the Arameans. The king was laid low by a stray arrow and died after he was carried back to the capital city. His son Ahaziah became king over Samaria.

King Ahaziah reigned one year and died when he fell through a railing from the upper floor of his palace. And his brother Jehoram became king over Samaria.

Queen Jezebel grew tired of the insolence of this Elijah and convinced Jehoram to bring matters to a head with a public demonstration. Two altars were prepared with slain bulls. The first priest who could get his god to set a bull on fire would prevail.

Jezebel thought it was likely that neither god would actually strike fire, in which case the arrangement was for Elijah to speak no more to the king of Yahweh and allow the people to choose which would be their god. And she was entirely confident the people would choose the gods of the Phoenicians.

Baal was much delayed in setting his bull aflame. His chief priest called in forty reinforcements to wail and plead and rip their garments and pluck hairs from their heads and beards.

Elijah, for his part, called for jugs of water and completely dowsed his bull. Then Bat-El opened a tiny fold-door inside the bull and allowed a small burst of sun fire to slip across. It was enough to kindle the fat in the bull to burn despite being entirely soaked in water.

The spirit of the crowd was raised such that Elijah was able to incite them to deadly violence against the priests of Baal who were standing there, but Bat-El never commanded this.

King Jehoram tore down the pillar of Baal in Jezreel but to keep the people from making pilgrimmage to the temple of Yahweh in Jerusalem he restored the golden calf at Beit-El and Dan which had been set up in the days of Jeroboam.

And the prophet Elisha, a disciple of Elisha, came before the king and said the idol was a great sin before God Most High, and that Yahweh would chastise the king by bringing the army of Damascus against Samaria.

The seige came to pass, and grew strait for the inhabitants of the city, such that the people contemplated cannibalism.