Ochozias sendeth to consult Beelzebub: Elias foretelleth his death: and causeth fire to come down from heaven, upon two captains and their companies.
Ochozias King of Israel consulting Beelzebub, for his sicknes, is blamed by Elias, and fortold, that he shal die. 9. Fire from heauen deuoureth two capitaines with ech of them fiftie men. 13. The third by his more modestie escapeth the like danger, 15. With him Elias cometh to the King. 17. The same King dieth, and his brother Ioram succedeth.
1And Moab rebelled against Israel, after the death of Achab.Or dopo la morte di Achab, si ribellò Moab contro Israele.AND Moab moued warre agaynst Israel, after that Achab was dead.Prævaricatus est autem Moab in Israël, postquam mortuus est Achab. 2And Ochozias fell through the lattices of his upper chamber, which he had in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, saying to them: Go, consult Beelzebub, the god of Accaron, whether I shall recover of this my illness.E Ochozia cadde dalla finestra di un appartamento, che egli avea in Samaria, e ne resto ammalato; e spedì dei messi, a' quali disse: Andate a consultare Beelzebub dio di Accaron, se io possa riavermi da questa mia malattia.And Ochozias fel through the •anchions of his vpper chamber which he had in Samaria, and was sicke: and he sent messengers, saying to them: Goe, consult Beelzebub the god of Accaron, whether I may liue of this my infirmitie.Ceciditque Ochozias per cancellos cœnaculi sui, quod habebat in Samaria, et ægrotavit: misitque nuntios, dicens ad eos: Ite, consulite Beelzebub deum Accaron, utrum vivere queam de infirmitate mea hac. 3And an angel of the Lord spoke to Elias, the Thesbite, saying: Arise, and go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them: Is there not a God in Israel, that ye go to consult Beelzebub, the god of Accaron?Ma l'Angelo del Signore parlò ad Elia Thesbite, e gli disse: Parti, e va incontro ai messi del re di Samaria, e dirai loro: Non v'ha egli Dio in Israele, che voi andate a consultare Beelzebub dio di Accaron?And an Angel of our Lord spake to Elias the Thesbite, saying: Arise, and goe vp to meete the messengers of the king of Samaria, and thou shal say to them: What is there not a God in Israel, that ye goe to consult Beelzebub the god of Accaron.Angelus autem Domini locutus est ad Eliam Thesbiten, dicens: Surge, et ascende in occursum nuntiorum regis Samariæ, et dices ad eos: Numquid non est Deus in Israël, ut eatis ad consulendum Beelzebub deum Accaron ? 4Wherefore, thus saith the Lord: From the bed, on which thou art gone up, thou shalt not come down, but thou shalt surely die. And Elias went away.Per la qual cosa così dice il Signore: Dal letto, in cui ti se' messo, non uscirai, ma assolutamente morrai. Ed Elia se n'andò.Wherfore thus saith our Lord: From the bed on which thou art ascended, thou shalt not goe downe, but dying thou shalt die. And Elias went away.Quam ob rem hæc dicit Dominus: De lectulo, super quem ascendisti, non descendes, sed morte morieris. Et abiit Elias.
5And the messengers turned back to Ochozias. And he said to them: Why are you come back?E i messi tornarono ad Ochozia, il qual disse loro: Perchè siete tornati indietro?And the messengers returned to Ochozias. Who said to them: Why are you returned?Reversique sunt nuntii ad Ochoziam. Qui dixit eis: Quare reversi estis ? 6But they answered him: A man met us, and said to us: Go, and return to the king, that sent you, and you shall say to him: Thus saith the Lord: Is it because there was no God in Israel, that thou sendest to Beelzebub, the god of Accaron? Therefore thou shalt not come down from the bed, on which thou art gone up, but thou shalt surely die.E quelli risposero: Ci si è fatto innanzi un uomo, e ci ha detto: Andate, e tornate al re, che vi ha mandati, e ditegli: Queste cose dice il Signore: Forse perchè non havvi Dio in Israele, tu mandi a consultar Beelzebub dio di Accaron? Per questo dal letto, in cui ti sei messo non uscirai, ma morrai indubitatamente.But they answered him: A man mette vs: and sayd to vs: Goe, and returne to the king, that sent you, and you shal say to him: Thus saith our Lord: Doest thou therfore send to consult Beelzebub the god of Accaron, because there was no God in Israel? Therfore from the bed, which thou art vpon, thou shalt not goe downe, but dying thou shalt dye.At illi responderunt ei: Vir occurrit nobis, et dixit ad nos: Ite, et revertimini ad regem qui misit vos, et dicetis ei: Hæc dicit Dominus: Numquid quia non erat Deus in Israël, mittis ut consulatur Beelzebub deus Accaron ? idcirco de lectulo, super quem ascendisti, non descendes, sed morte morieris. 7And he said to them: What manner of man was he who met you, and spoke these words?Ed egli disse loro: Qual è la figura, e l'abito di quell'uomo, che è venuto incontro a voi, e vi ha dette queste parole?Who said to them: What shape and habite had that man, which mette you, and spake these wordes?Qui dixit eis: Cujus figuræ et habitus est vir ille, qui occurrit vobis, et locutus est verba hæc ? 8But they said: A hairy man, with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said: It is Elias, the Thesbite.E quelli dissero: Egli è un uomo peloso, e che si cinge i fianchi con una cintola di cuoio. Ed egli disse: Questi è Elia di Thesbe.But they said: A hearie man, and girded about his raines with a girdle of lether: Who said: It is Elias the Thesbite.At illi dixerunt: Vir pilosus, et zona pellicea accinctus renibus. Qui ait: Elias Thesbites est. 9And he sent to him a captain of fifty, and the fifty men that were under him. And he went up to him, and as he was sitting on the top of a hill, he said to him: Man of God, the king hath commanded that thou come down.E mandò a lui un capitano di cinquanta uomini, co' cinquanta, che gli eran subordinati. E questi andò a trovarlo, mentre sedea sulla cima di un monte, e gli disse: Uomo di Dio, il re comanda, che tu venga a basso.And he sent vnto him a captaine of fiftie men, and the fiftie that were vnder him. Who went vp and sayd to him sitting in the toppe of the mount: Man of God, the king hath commanded that thou come downe.Misitque ad eum quinquagenarium principem, et quinquaginta qui erant sub eo. Qui ascendit ad eum: sedentique in vertice montis, ait: Homo Dei, rex præcepit ut descendas.
10And Elias answering, said to the captain of fifty: If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume thee, and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven and consumed him, and the fifty that were with him.Ed Elia rispose, e disse al capitano di cinquanta: Se io son uomo di Dio, scenda il fuoco dal cielo, e divori te, e i tuoi cinquanta uomini. E venne il fuoco dal cielo, e divorò colui te e i cinquanta uomini, che eran con lui.And Elias answering, sayd to the captaine of fiftie men: If I be a man of God, let fyre come downe from heauen, and deuoure thee, and thy fiftie. Fyre therfore came downe from heauen, and deuoured him and the fiftie men that were with him.Respondensque Elias, dixit quinquagenario: Si homo Dei sum, descendat ignis de cælo, et devoret te, et quinquaginta tuos. Descendit itaque ignis de cælo, et devoravit eum, et quinquaginta qui erant cum eo. 11And he again sent to him another captain of fifty men, and his fifty with him. And he said to him: Man of God: Thus saith the king: Make haste and come down.E di nuovo (Ochozia) mandò da lui un altro capitano di cinquanta uomini, e con esso i cinquanta. E questi gli disse: Uomo di Dio, il re dice così: a presto, discendi.And he sent againe vnto him an other captaine of fiftie men, and his fiftie with him. Who spake to him: Man of God, Thus saith the king: Make hast, come downe.Rursumque misit ad eum principem quinquagenarium alterum, et quinquaginta cum eo. Qui locutus est illi: Homo Dei, hæc dicit rex: Festina, descende. 12Elias answering, said: If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee, and thy fifty. And fire came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.Elia rispose, e disse: Se io son uomo di Dio, scenda il fuoco dal cielo, e divori te, e i tuoi cinquanta. Venne pertanto il fuoco dal cielo, e lo divorò co' suoi cinquanta.Elias answering said: If I be a man of God, let fyre come downe from heauen, and deuoure thee, and thy fiftie. Fyre therfore came downe from heauen, and deuoured him, and his fiftie.Respondens Elias, ait: Si homo Dei ego sum, descendat ignis de cælo, et devoret te, et quinquaginta tuos. Descendit ergo ignis de cælo, et devoravit illum, et quinquaginta ejus. 13Again he sent a third captain of fifty men, and the fifty that were with him. And when he was come, he fell upon his knees before Elias, and besought him, and said: Man of God, despise not my life, and the lives of thy servants that are with me.Di nuovo quegli mandò un terzo capitano di cinquanta uomini, co' suoi cinquanta. Il quale in arrivando si inginocchiò dinanzi ad Elia, e pregollo, e disse: Uomo di Dio, ti raccomando la mia vita, e le vite de' tuoi servi, che sono con me.Agayne he sent a third captaine of fiftie men, and the fiftie that were with him. Who when he was come, bowed his knees toward Elias, and prayed him and sayd: Man of God despise not my life and the liues of thy seruantes that are with me.Iterum misit principem quinquagenarium tertium, et quinquaginta qui erant cum eo. Qui cum venisset, curvavit genua contra Eliam, et precatus est eum, et ait: Homo Dei, noli despicere animam meam, et animas servorum tuorum qui mecum sunt.
14Behold fire came down from heaven, and consumed the two first captains of fifty men, and the fifties that were with them: but now I beseech thee to spare my life.Ecco, che il fuoco venuto dal cielo ha divorati i primi due capitani di cinquanta uomini, e i cinquanta, che eran con essi; ma ora, ti prego, abbi pietà di me.Behold fyre came downe from heauen, and hath deuoured the two first captaynes of fiftie men, and the fifties, that were with them: but now I besech the that thou haue mercie on my life.Ecce descendit ignis de cælo, et devoravit duos principes quinquagenarios primos, et quinquagenos qui cum eis erant: sed nunc obsecro ut miserearis animæ meæ. 15And the angel of the Lord spoke to Elias, saying: Go down with him, fear not. He arose therefore, and went down with him to the king,Or l'Angelo del Signore parlò ad Elia, e disse: Va con lui, non temere. Egli allora si alzò, e andò con lui a trovare il re.And an Angel of our Lord spake to Elias, saying: Goe downe with him, feare not. He therfore arose, and went downe with him to the king,Locutus est autem angelus Domini ad Eliam, dicens: Descende cum eo: ne timeas. Surrexit igitur, et descendit cum eo ad regem, 16And said to him: Thus saith the Lord: Because thou hast sent messengers to consult Beelzebub, the god of Accaron, as though there were not a God in Israel, of whom thou mightest inquire the word; therefore, from the bed on which thou art gone up, thou shalt not come down, but thou shalt surely die.E dissegli: Queste cose dice il Signore: Perchè tu hai spediti de' messi a consultar Beelzebub dio di Accaron, come se non fosse Dio in Israele, cui tu potessi consultare, per questo dal letto, in cui ti se' messo, non uscirai, ma assolutamente morrai.and spake to him: Thus saith our Lord: Because thou hast sent messengers to consult Beelzebub the god of Accaron, as though there were not a God in Israel, of whom thou mightest aske the word, therfore from the bed, which thou art ascended vpon, thou shalt not descend, but dying thou shalt die.et locutus est ei: Hæc dicit Dominus: Quia misisti nuntios ad consulendum Beelzebub deum Accaron, quasi non esset Deus in Israël a quo posses interrogare sermonem, ideo de lectulo super quem ascendisti, non descendes, sed morte morieris. 17So he died, according to the word of the Lord, which Elias spoke; and Joram, his brother, reigned in his stead, in the second year of Joram, the son of Josaphat, king of Juda, because he had no son.Egli adunque morì secondo la parola del Signore pronunziata da Elia, e gli succedette nel regno Joram suo fratello, l'anno secondo di Joram figliuolo di Josaphat re di Giuda: perocché quegli non avea verun figliuolo.He died therfore according to the word of our Lord which Elias spake, & Ioram his brother reigned for him, in the second yeare of Ioram the sonne of Iosaphat the king of Iuda: for he had no sonne.Mortuus est ergo juxta sermonem Domini quem locutus est Elias, et regnavit Joram frater ejus pro eo, anno secundo Joram filii Josaphat regis Judæ: non enim habebat filium.
18But the rest of the acts of Ochozias, which he did, are they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?Il resto poi delle azioni fatte da Ochozia non son elleno scritte nel diario de' fatti dei re d'Israele?But the rest of the wordes of Ochozias, which he wrought, are not these written in the Booke of the wordes of the daies of the kinges of Israel?Reliqua autem verborum Ochoziæ quæ operatus est, nonne hæc scripta sunt in libro sermonum dierum regum Israël ?
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Year of the World 3108, Year before Christ 896.
Haydock
Rebelled: literally, "prevaricated." (Haydock)
Tirinus
The kings of Israel kept some of the nations, which David had conquered, in subjection, while the kings of Juda ruled over the others. In consequence of the late disaster, these people began to throw off the yoke. (Tirinus)
Calmet
Joram made war upon Moab, 4 Kings 3:5. God began to punish the house of Achab, by these means. (Calmet)
Haydock
The Moabites refused to pay tribute, (Menochius) as the Israelites would not acknowledge the divine authority. (Haydock)
1:2
Lattices, by a skylight, (Haydock) or trap-door, designed to give light to the room below, into which the king fell. The roofs are generally flat in the East, and covered with earth mixed with straw, with the light at the top, to prevent the excessive heats.
Calmet
Of. Hebrew, etc., "into." (Calmet)
Menochius
If the lattices be understood to mean the rails, which were ordered to be placed round the roof, (Deuteronomy 22:8.) Ochozias might fall into the street. (Menochius)
Tirinus
Josephus thinks he fell from the staircase. At any rate, he was much hurt, (Haydock) and thus was made to feel the indignation of God. (Tirinus)
God. Septuagint, "Baal, the god-fly;" (Calmet) the Jupiter of the Greeks, or their chief god; and the prince of devils, Matthew xii.
Haydock
Accaron. Hence Pliny ([Natural History?] 8:29.) styles the god Achor, (Tirinus) and Myiodis, (B. xxxvi.) which is the name given to him by Josephus, 9:2. (Haydock)
Vatable
He was supposed to free the people of the country from being infested with flies; or the many victims offered up to him, drew those insects together. (Vatable)
Du Hamel
Grotius supposes that the Phoenicians styled their god, Beelsemen, (Bálssomin) "God of heaven;" and that the Hebrews called him, Bálzobub, "god of flies," out of contempt. But perhaps he is too favourable to the idolaters. (Du Hamel)
Haydock
Selden is convinced that Ochozias gives the idol its real name. Scaliger rather thinks that Balzobéim, "the lord of victims," was the original title. (Haydock)
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Away; probably to his usual abode, at Carmel, where the king sent to seize him.
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Menochius
Messengers. They were perhaps citizens of Accaron, who had extolled the sagacity of their god, but were totally unacquainted with Elias. Yet as he shewed his knowledge of secret things, by telling them what they were going about, (Salien) and spoke with such assurance, (Haydock) they thought proper to return, lest they should incur a similar punishment. (Menochius)
1:8
Man. Hebrew ish bahal sehar, "a man lord of hair," or all covered with it, having a long beard, like the ancient sages, (St. Jerome, in Ezechiel xxxv.) and clothed with a skin, (Bochart) as the first inhabitants of the earth, the heroes, prophets and St. John the Baptist, are described, Hebrews 11:37., and Matthew 3:4. So Statius (ii., and iv.) says: Tiresiae vultus, voces et vellera nota Induitur.
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Calmet
Under him; his own guards. The captain was to request him to pray for the king's recovery; (Calmet) or rather, (Haydock) to punish him for what he had said to the messengers. (Calmet)
Menochius
Of God. Procopius and others think that he spoke contemptuously, and was therefore punished. (Menochius)
Grotius
Down. The prophets are not bound to obey kings, in the exercise of their ministry. (Grotius)
Calmet
Elias complies as soon as he had orders from God. (Calmet)
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Challoner
Let fire, etc. Elias was inspired to call down fire from heaven upon these captains, who came to apprehend him; not out of a desire to gratify any private passion, but to punish the insult offered to religion, to confirm his mission, and to shew how vain are the efforts of men against God and his servants, whom he has a mind to protect. (Challoner)
St. Thomas Aquinas
The Roman laws authorize a person, in authority, to punish those who refuse to obey. (Ulpin 1 D.) Si quis jus dicenti non obtemperaverit, omnibus concessum est suam jurisdictionem defendere poenali judicio. Elias acted as God's envoy, and the insult reverted upon him. (St. Thomas Aquinas, 2. 2. q. 108, a. 2.)
Haydock
The Manichees have blamed the conduct of the prophet: but the miracle justifies him, as God would never countenance the private revenge of any one; and the Holy Ghost places this transaction on a level with that when Elias shut up the heavens, Ecclesiasticus 48:3. St. Peter was moved with the like zeal, Acts 5:5. The sons of Zebedee gave way to some private indignation, when they wished our Saviour to call down fire from heaven upon a city of Samaria, Luke 9:54. But he reprimanded them for it; as the citizens might not be so well acquainted with him, as these soldiers must have been with Elias: and he came to display the spirit of mildness, (Calmet) to attract all to his holy religion; while Elias had manifested the severity of the divine judgments, conformably to the law of terror, under which he lived. (Haydock)
Worthington
In zeal of justice, Elias procured fire to burn these wicked men, as he had done for the holocaust. (St. Augustine) (Worthington)
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Menochius
Another, not knowing what was become of the first, or why he did not return; as Ochozias was eager to have the prophet in his power. (Menochius)
If he were acquainted with his fate, (Haydock) this second captain was guilty of greater insolence. But there are such generally to be found at courts; men who are ready to execute the king's orders, without considering whether they be contrary to God's law or not.
1:13
Calmet
Again. This third captain is commonly supposed to be Abdias, (3 Kings 18:3.) though without much reason. (Calmet)
Menochius
John of Jerus, (c. 15) says he left the court, and became a disciple of Elias, and a prophet. (Menochius)
Calmet
But he is very different from the prophet, whose writings are still extant. (Calmet)
Menochius
The report of the two miracles had come to his ears, and filled him with fear. (Menochius)
Despise not. Hebrew, "let my life....be precious in thy sight," 1 Kings 26:21., and Psalm 115:15.
1:17
Year of the World 3108, Year before Christ 896.
Calmet
The second year of Joram, etc., counted from the time that he was associated to the throne of his father Josaphat; (Challoner) so that it is said that he reigned also in the 18th year of Josaphat, 4 Kings 3:1. See also 4 Kings 8:16. To obviate these apparent contradictions, chronologists suppose that Joram reigned over Israel in the 18th of Josaphat, king of Juda, and in the second year after the latter had appointed his son Joram viceroy. He was associated with his father on the throne two years before his death, and in the 5th of Joram, king of Israel. Examples of this kind are frequent among the Hebrews, and particularly among the Persians, whose chronology is thus rendered very difficult. Why should we allow that the numbers are erroneous, when this explanation will suffice? (Calmet)
Du Hamel
Grotius leaves the matter undecided. (Du Hamel)
Haydock
Capel (Crit. p. 414.) maintains that the numbers have been ill transcribed; and so does Houbigant, who asserts that such a mode of writing would not be tolerated in a profane author; thus to mention different dates, without intimating how they are to be reconciled. If we should read, that Heraclius began to reign "in the 18th year of Chosroes," and a little after, that he ascended the throne "in the second year of the son of Chosroes," without ever specifying how Heraclius began his reign at two different periods, who would not suspect a mistake? Is it not more rational to throw the blame on the transcriber, than on the author? The modern chronologists seem to have invented the idea of viceroys and simultaneous kings, among the Hebrews, merely to get over difficulties; though the Scripture be entirely silent on this head. Houbigant would therefore read, "in the 22d year of Josaphat," as the mention of Joram seems here improper, (absurda) his father reigning 25 years. Ochozias began to reign when Josaphat had almost completed his 17th year. See 3 Kings 22:52. (Haydock)
Capel
His brother is not specified in Hebrew, Chaldean, Arabic, and in some copies of the Septuagint, but it is in most others, as well as in the Syriac, (Calmet) Josephus, etc., (Haydock) and this is the common opinion. The Roman edition here inserts (Calmet) after Elias spoke, (18) "And the, etc....and Joram," etc., nearly as 4 Kings 3:1, 2, 3; only for father, it substitutes, "not like his brothers;" and adds, "the wrath of the Lord was enkindled against the house of Achab." No mention is made of the second year of Joram, etc., (Haydock) in any edition of the Septuagint. (Capel)
In the mean time Josaphat, being returned from the unfortunate expedition with Achab, set his kingdom in order, purifying it from all the vestiges of idolatry, as much as he was able, and appointing proper judges, 2 Paralipomenon xix.
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Let fire, etc.... Elias was inspired to call for fire from heaven upon these captains, who came to apprehend him; not out of a desire to gratify any private passion; but to punish the insult offered to religion, to confirm his mission, and to shew how vain are the efforts of men against God, and his servants, whom he willeth to protect.
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1:1
The first part. Of thinges donne in both kingdomes, with the declination and ••ine of Israel.
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Elias was knowen by his much hayre, and distinct habite, from ordinary men.
1:10
In zele of iustice Elias procured fire from heauen to burne these proud capitaines and their men, as he procured fire to burne the holocaust, and then slew the falsprophetes. 3. Reg. 18. apud. Aug. li. 2. c. 20. de mirabil. •. Script.
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St Gregory of Nazianzus † AD 389 Select Orations of Saint Gregory Nazianzen 43.74
… the just man in the den, restraining the lions’ rage, and the struggle of the seven Maccabees, who were perfected with their father and mother in blood, and in all kinds of tortures. Their endurance he rivalled, and won their glory.
John Cassian † AD 435 The Twelve Books on the Institutes of the Cœnobia, and the Remedies for the Eight Principal Faults 1.1
… “An hairy man,” they said, “and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins;” and by this dress the king at once saw that it was the man of God, and said: “It is Elijah the Tishbite:”
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St John Chrysostom † AD 407 The Homilies on the Statues to the People of Antioch 2.26
… But so did he contemn the vanity of the life that now is, and regard all gold as clay cast into the street, that he possessed himself of nothing more than that covering. Therefore the king had need of the poor man, and he who had so much gold hung upon the words of him who had nothing more than a sheepskin. Thus was the sheepskin
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Origen † AD 254 Origen Against Celsus i.36
… And why should not those who desired to obtain auguries from idols be severely rebuked by the administrators of the law among the Jews?—as Elijah is found rebuking Ahaziah, and saying, “Is it because there is not a God in Israel that ye go to inquire of Baalzebub, god of Ekron?”
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Origen † AD 254 Origen's Commentary on the Gospel of John 6.7
… There was not more room for doubt about John, whether he was Elijah, than about the Saviour, whether He was John. Of the two, the question of the outward form of Elijah could be disposed of from the words of Scripture, though not from actual observation, for we read,
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 The Homilies on the Statues to the People of Antioch 2.26
… But so did he contemn the vanity of the life that now is, and regard all gold as clay cast into the street, that he possessed himself of nothing more than that covering. Therefore the king had need of the poor man, and he who had so much gold hung upon the words of him who had nothing more than a sheepskin. Thus was the sheepskin
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom 10
But why, it may be asked, did he use a girdle with his raiment? This was customary with them of old time, before men passed into this soft and loose kind of dress. Thus, for instance, both Peter appears to have been “girded,” and Paul; for it saith, “the man that owneth this girdle.” And Elijah
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 The Homilies of St. John Chrysostom on the Epistle to the Hebrews 28
… which [example] was appropriate to their case. And having spoken of what befell the Apostles, that “they were slain with the sword, were stoned,” he goes back again to Elijah, who suffered the same things with them. (See
St Jerome † AD 420 The Letters of St. Jerome 130.4
… she preferred to all these severe fasting, rough clothing, and frugal living. For she had read the words of the Lord: “they that wear soft clothing are in kings’ houses.” She was filled with admiration for the manner of life followed by Elijah and by John the Baptist; both of whom confined and mortified their loins with girdles of skin,
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Tertullian † AD 220 The Five Books Against Marcion 4.23
… The Creator, at the request of Elias, inflicts the blow of fire from heaven in the case of that false prophet (of Baalzebub).
Tertullian † AD 220 Five Books in Reply to Marcion 3
So often from on high rushed fire; the stream
St John Chrysostom † AD 407 Treatise Concerning the Christian Priesthood 1.8
… For I would not call Phinees a murderer, although he slew two human beings with one stroke: nor yet Elias after the slaughter of the 100 soldiers, and the captain,
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St Athanasius of Alexandria † AD 373 Defence of His Flight. (Apologia de Fuga.) 20
… And the great Elijah, when he withdrew to mount Carmel, called upon God, and destroyed at once more than four hundred prophets of Baal; and when there were sent to take him two captains of fifty with their hundred men, he said, ‘Let fire come down from heaven
St Augustine of Hippo † AD 430 Our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount 1.20
… They did not judge rashly on whom God had bestowed such a power of judging. Hence it is that Elijah inflicted death on many, both with his own hand and by calling down fire from heaven;
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1. And Moab rebelled against Israel, that is against Ahaziah son of Ahab, who reigned in Israel, that is, as the Chaldean renders it, the Moabites rebelled against Israel. For when they saw Ahab struck down in battle, and his army scattered, and Ahaziah a youth, they took courage, and rebelled against him, to whom they had hitherto been subject, denying tribute, and setting up for themselves a king of their own: just as at the same time Edom, subdued by David, rebelled against Joram king of Judah, as we shall hear in chapter VIII. Thus Abulensis.
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2. AND OCHOZIAS (the son of Achab, king of Israel) FELL THROUGH THE LATTICES OF HIS UPPER CHAMBER, that is, through the latticed and reticulated windows of the floor, as Pagninus, Vatablus and others say. Or he calls "upper chamber" a roof or ceiling, which in Palestine was flat, so that they could walk upon it, dine, and sleep there. Moreover this roof was surrounded on all sides by a parapet or wall, lest anyone should carelessly fall from it, according to the law of Deuteronomy XXII, 8. This wall was latticed and barred, and from it, when the lattices became loose or broken, Ochozias fell. Thus Sanchez. Tropologically, Eucherius: "Ochozias," he says, "king of Samaria, who separated himself from the house of David, and fell through the lattices, seems to signify this: that heretics, or schismatics, even if they appear to ascend some fortress of good action, because nevertheless they do not have the structure of the unity of the Church, as if by open and not solid defenses of the sides, they always relapse into the weak things of vices, while destitute of divine aid they perish in the pride of their obstinacy." CONSULT BEELZEBUB THE GOD OF ACCARON. The Septuagint: consult Baal the fly, god of Accaron. Josephus: consult Myodis (for that was the name of the god) the oracle: μυῖα is fly, hence Myodes is the god of flies, who was namely invoked to drive away flies, with which the Accaronites abounded on account of the damp and warm soil, from the vicinity of the sea. The same was called Jupiter Myodes, as Pausanias testifies, book V, and Pliny, book XXIX, chapter VI, where he calls Myodes Achor, perhaps because he was worshipped in Accaron, as is said here. In a similar way the god Smintheus was worshipped, to drive away mice, for the Cretans call these Sminthas; and Parnopius to drive away parnopes, that is, gnats, or, as others wish, locusts, as Pausanias testifies in the Attics. For the gentiles placed gods over all things, and thus worshipped Fever, Cloacina, Fear and Pallor as divine powers, as St. Augustine testifies, book IV On the City of God, chapter XVI and XXIII. Thus Beelzebub in Hebrew is the same as Baal or Beel and Bel זבוב Zebub, that is, fly, or Baal Fly, as the Septuagint translates it; for this idol was fashioned in the likeness of a fly, says the Nazianzen, book II Against Julian, and Theodoret, Question III. Hence also Philastrius numbers among heresies "Myolaters," that is, worshippers of the fly, or "Fly-Accaronites," heresy 13. See what is said at Matthew X, 25. To which add that some with Serarius hold the opinion that Beelzebub or Myodes, that is, the God of the fly, was a god of lust, or some goddess, on account of the impudence and lust which is noted in flies; whence Lucian in the Praise of the Fly relates that there was once a beautiful harlot of the name of a fly. Furthermore all gods (demons) on account of their multitude, insolence, impudence, biting nature, filth, and stench, can be called flies: whence in this age a demon in the form of a great fly or hornet flying into him who, having abandoned the orthodox faith, professed Anabaptism, immediately made him, as if possessing him, learned in Holy Scripture, and deprived him of this learning if he returned from Anabaptism to the faith, as eyewitnesses relate. Again demons are called from the fly, because, as he says, in the book On Sacrifices, Lucian, they clung to the blood of victims like flies. Add, that in the pagan seers, demons like flies sometimes flew in, so that they might utter oracles; just as the Roman Pontifical relates, that he sometimes comes to besiege the possessed. Hence therefore among the Jews, who was contemptible and detestable, is called Beelzebub, Matthew chapter X. He himself the prince of demons, Matthew XII, as the most lustful of all, the most impudent, the most contemptible, says Serarius; or because Myodes was Jupiter ἀπόμυιος, as I said; but Jupiter is the first and prince of all gods. Tropologically, they worship Beelzebub, that is the god of the fly or of flies, the impudent, the lustful, the insolent, the restless, the litigious. Hear St. Gregory, book XVIII of the Morals, chapter XXV, explaining the fourth plague of Egypt, which was of flies, Exodus VIII, 21: "Egypt, which holds the image of this world, is struck with flies. For the fly is an excessively insolent and restless animal. In which, what else is designated than insolent cares of carnal desires? Whence it is also said elsewhere: Dying flies destroy the sweetness of the ointment; because superfluous thoughts, which are constantly both born and perish in the mind of one thinking carnally; they destroy that sweetness by which each one is inwardly through the spirit; because they do not permit him to enjoy its integrity. Egypt therefore is struck with flies; because the hearts of those who love earthly life, while they are struck by the restlessness of their desires, are pressed down by crowds of carnal thoughts to the depths, and are not lifted up to the desire of intimate peace. Whence when the work of piety comes to the heart, truth first drives out from it the heat of carnal thoughts, and afterwards disposes in it the wonderful gifts of virtues." I have said more about the symbols of flies at Ecclesiastes X, 1, at those words: "Dying flies destroy the sweetness of the ointment."
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4. FOR WHICH REASON (namely because, having abandoned God, thou hast consulted Beelzebub) etc., THOU SHALT SURELY DIE. Elias threatens death upon Ochozias on account of his consultation with a demon; let those take note who consult diviners and magicians; for God punishes these with eternal death and often with temporal death as well. Thus Saul was slain in battle, because he had consulted the Pythoness, I Kings XXVIII, 16. Thus Achab was pierced by a spear, because he had inquired of the false prophets of Baal concerning the outcome of the battle, III Kings, final chapter. For this consultation is a grave crime and most injurious to God; because through it the foreknowledge of future things and divination, which are proper to His divinity, are taken away from Him and delivered to the devil. Whence God shows how keenly He feels this affront to Himself, in that He punishes it so severely.
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8. A HAIRY MAN AND GIRDED WITH A LEATHER GIRDLE. For Elias went about unshorn, with long beard and hair, covered with rough and hairy garment, namely a melote, or sheepskin or goatskin unsheared, and girded with a leather girdle, that is, with untreated hide, still hairy and shaggy, as a hermit contemner of the world and lover of poverty and ancient simplicity. See Cassian, book I of the Institutes, chapter I. Rabbi Eliezer relates in chapter XXXI that this girdle belonged to Eliseus and was made from the skin of that ram which Abraham sacrificed in place of Isaac, Genesis XXII.
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9. MAN OF GOD, (he calls him thus ironically, as if to say, O Elias, who callest and boastest thyself a man of God) THE KING COMMANDED THAT THOU COME DOWN from the summit of Mount Carmel to us, that we may lead thee as a captive to King Ochozias, to whom thou hast foretold death, that thou mayest give account of this fatal oracle and pay the penalty. And so this captain of fifty sinned first by impiety, because he consented to the impiety of Ochozias who wished to punish Elias, and was his minister. Second, by pride, because he imperiously and haughtily, as executor of a royal command, ordered him to come down; and therefore by Elias, indeed by God, he was struck down by heavenly fire and perished.
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10. AND ELIAS ANSWERING SAID TO THE CAPTAIN OF FIFTY: IF I BE A MAN OF GOD, LET FIRE COME DOWN FROM HEAVEN AND DEVOUR THEE AND THY FIFTY. Elias makes serious the ironic title given to him, and turns it back upon the speaker's head with a serious vengeance. Whence note: the word for God in Hebrew is Elohim, which word signifies God as judge and avenger, as if to say, If I am a minister of Elohim, that is, of the supreme judge and avenger, as thou hast ironically said, let Elohim Himself, as my master, defend me, His minister, and punish thy insolence and violence by which thou seekest to seize me, His minister, and drag me unwilling to the king. For this violence redounds upon God Himself, who is my master and Lord. Wherefore Elias avenged this affront to Him, indeed to God, calling down fire from heaven with vehement spirit. He will do the same at the end of the world when contending with Enoch against the Antichrist and his followers; whence Apocalypse XI, 5, it is said of both: "And if any man will hurt them, fire shall come out of their mouths, and shall devour their enemies," and Ecclesiasticus cap. XLVIII, vers. 1: "Elias the prophet rose up like a fire, and his word burned like a torch," and vers. 3: "He brought down fire from heaven three times." See the remarks there. Symbolically, St. Ambrose, in the book On Those Initiated into the Mysteries, IX, compares the priest consecrating the Eucharist to Elias. For just as Elias consumed the captain of fifty with his men by heavenly fire, so the priest, by the divine power of the words of Christ, consumes the substance of bread and wine, and converts it into the body of Christ: for, as Lanfranc says Against Berengar: "If the word of Elias had such power as to bring down fire from heaven, will not the word of Christ have power to change the species of the elements?"
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11. MAKE HASTE, COME DOWN. This second captain of fifty was more shameless than the first; both because, having heard of his punishment, he did not repent, and because he increased his shamelessness by adding: make haste; and therefore, struck with the same penalty, he was consumed by heavenly fire.
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14. I BESEECH THEE TO HAVE MERCY ON MY SOUL. This third captain, terrified by the punishment of the two preceding and made wiser, becomes a suppliant to Elias: whence he does not dare to ask or say that he come down, but begs for mercy, namely that he spare him, and tell him what must be done: namely what he should report to the king. Wherefore Elias not only spared him, but also, at the angel's prompting, of his own accord joined himself as a companion to go to the king.
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17. JORAM (in Israel) HIS BROTHER REIGNED IN HIS STEAD, IN THE SECOND YEAR OF JORAM THE SON OF JOSAPHAT KING OF JUDA, who namely reigned in Jerusalem while his father Josaphat was still living, but when he went with Achab to war against the Syrians, and therefore was absent. See cap. III, vers. 1. For when Achab was slain in battle, his son Ochozias immediately succeeded him in the kingdom, and in the first year of his reign dying of disease, his brother Joram succeeded him.
Machine translation from the Latin, not reviewed.
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1 and 2 (3 and 4) Book of Kings
AHAZIAH (2 years: 854-853), a worthy son of Ahab (22, 52 ff.; II Reg. 1, 1-2, 25).
Mesha (Hebrew Mēša', 2 Kings 3; Stele: Meša')
… His father, subjugated by Omri (v.), paid Israel an annual tribute of 100,000 lambs and as many wool-bearing rams (II Kings 3:4; cf. stele, lines 4 f., 7 f.). On the death of Ahab (854 B.C.), M. rebelled against Israel (II Kings 1:1), exploiting the precarious situation of Ahaziah. …
… his ancestress was a Moabitess (Ruth 4:13-22). After the death of Solomon, M. was again independent until Omri (v.), who made it tributary to the Kingdom of Israel, to which it owed every year 100,000 lambs and as many rams with wool (stele of Mesha; II Kings 1:1). King Mesha (9th cent.) in his stele enumerates the successes won against Jehoram (853-842), king of Israel, from whom he remained independent (II Kings 3). Jehu afterward recovered …
… Beelzebub): 2 Kings 1:1-16. But all these divinities were of Semitic origin.
… At the express request of his people, Yahweh institutes prophetism (Deut. 15, 22; v. A. Clamer, in h. l., in L. Pirot, La ste Bible, II [1946], pp. 633-35). Again out of condescension, to remove them from the temptation to turn to soothsayers and mediums (I Sam. 28, 5-20; II Reg. 1, 1-14, etc.), he authorizes them to consult him himself by means of the ephod (I Sam. 23, 6-13; 30, 6-8) and of the úrim and tumulm (Num. 27, 21, etc.; v. A. Clamer, loc. cit., p. 422).
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Accaron (Hebrew Egrān; Assyrian Amqarrāna)
ACCARON (Hebrew Egrān; Assyrian Amqarrāna). - The northernmost of the five Philistine cities (Josh. 13:3), famous for its sanctuary of Beelzebub (v.) (II Kings 1:2-16). It is commonly identified (after E. Robinson, 1838) with present-day Aqr, 10 km southwest of Ramle; J. Garstang (Jeshua, Judges, London 1931, pp. 330-36), on the other hand, …
… In II Kings 1:2 it is mentioned as the god of the Philistine city of Ekron (v.): it is to this deity that the idolatrous king of Israel Ahaziah (v.) turns.
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… A native, it seems, of Tishbe (modern el-Istib) in Gilead, in Transjordan, and therefore called the Tishbite, Vulgate Theobites, as the Septuagint interprets (θεοβίτης ὁ ἐκ θεοβῶν τῆς Γαλακῆς, I Kings 17:1). Roughly clothed (II Kings 1:8), like John the Baptist afterward (Mt. 3:4), accustomed to the harsh life of the desert (I Kings 17:5; 18:46; 19:3), he carried out his mission under the reign of Ahab (873-854 B.C.) and of Ahaziah.
… It was the ordinary dress of the prophets, preachers of penance (Is. 20:2; 2 Kings 1:8; Mt. 3:4). Along with the cilice, ashes were also used to sprinkle the head; hence the biblical expression: "to do penance in sackcloth and ashes" (Mt. 11:21). As an instrument …
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"Sons of thunder," that is, "thundering" ("to thunder" is said of God: I Sam. 2:10), could be understood of fervid eloquence (Origen, M. Chladen, F. Zorell is uncertain); one usually sees in it an allusion to the impetuous character of the two brothers, who (like Elijah: II Kings 1:10-14) wanted to bring down "fire from heaven" upon the inhospitable Samaritans (Lk. 9:54; cf. 9:49 and Mk. 9:38). The Fathers see in it an allusion to John's preaching, called by Origen …
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Eliseus ('Elīlā' = "God Saves")
… 19:16). A wealthy landowner (1 Kings 19:19), he joyfully responded to Elijah's symbolic gesture consecrating him prophet and his successor on the part of Yahweh (1 Kings 19:19-21). A devoted disciple of Elijah (2 Kings 3:11; cf. ch. 2) for about 6 years (2 Kings 1:17), at the latter's death he inherited his mantle and two thirds of the charismatic virtue (2 Kings 2:9 ff. Heb.), that is, the portion that in an inheritance belonged to the firstborn …
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · Vulgata Clementina · original Douay-Rheims (Douay 1609-10), transcription by EEBO-TCP (CC0) · La Sacra Bibbia, tradotta dalla Volgata da Antonio Martini (1769-1781) (LaParola (laparola.net), Martini OSIS text, Public domain (LaParola's electronic edition marks it 'Dominio pubblico')). Public domain.