“Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind, and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake, and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire, and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.” (1 Kings 19:11-13)
So many stories in the Bible follow a predictable plotline. This is not one of them. The prophet, Elijah, was depressed. He’d lived an amazing life and seen so many miraculous things happen, and perhaps he’d been thinking that after so much hard work and after so much success, things would settle down for him and for his people. This didn’t happen, and the scene opens with the Queen of Israel – Jezebel – swearing that she’s going to see Elijah dead within 24 hours!
You might think that a warrior of Elijah’s status would laugh at a threat like that. He didn’t. He ran. He left his team behind and headed for the wilderness where he didn’t think anybody could find him. When he reached an isolated spot, he sat down under a solitary tree and asked God to take his life.
“It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” (1 Kings 19:5)
It’s hard to know which of Elijah’s failed ancestors he was referring to, but the message is clear enough, and we’ve all been there. Well … I certainly have, and I suspect that many of us have been there. Indeed, it’s hard not to read out own story into this narrative. Things used to be so great! Everybody loved me! God was working through me! What happened? Why am I suddenly alone?
If I’d been scripting this story, the next scene would have had God coming to Elijah, perhaps in the form of a motherly-looking angel, and give him a long, comforting embrace. If I’d scripted my own story, I would have likewise had graceful motherly angels coming and hugging me at various times when I felt I needed it. This isn’t always how it works though, and it didn’t work that way for Elijah. God sent an angel, but rather than embrace him, we’re told that the angel poked him, woke him up, and told him to have something to eat as he had a long walk ahead of him. Elijah was heading to Mount Horeb for an appointment with the Almighty!
Nothing about this story goes as we might have expected, and least of all Elijah’s climactic encounter with God. Elijah stands in the cleft of the mountain to get a good view of God. He then sees a series of astonishing signs and wonders – wind and earthquakes and fire – but he doesn’t’ see God, and then, after all the commotion has died down, God shows up in a very unexpected way – quietly and unobtrusively.
There has been a history of controversy amongst scholars over how we should translate 1 Kings 19:12. Does God show up as “a still small voice” (King James version), “a gentle whisper” (New International version) or, as translated above, in the “sound of sheer silence”? Perhaps it doesn’t matter. The point is that God shows up in a way that no one expected, and isn’t that so often the way?
We find ourselves at an auspicious time in human history. We are doing our best to read the signs of the times and work out exactly what God is up to amidst all the violence and political power-plays going on amongst our world leaders. Personally, I’ve been waiting for God to do something spectacular – something that will bring freedom to Palestine, resurrect Syria, and put all these pompous dictators in their respective places. I’m waiting for the wind, the earthquake and the fire!
So … should I be looking for God in the silence instead? I don’t think that’s necessarily the lesson here. Yes, in this case, God comes to Elijah in the silence, but there are plenty of other times when God does show up in fiery winds and earthquakes.
I’m reminded of a joke I heard when I was in high school:
Q: Where does a ten-tonne gorilla sit when it comes into a room?
A: Anywhere it likes.
That’s the promise. God will show up … in whatever way God chooses to show up.
I wish I could script my own life-story. I have so many great chapters I could add. What I have to come to terms with though is what Elijah had to come to terms with – namely, that it’s not really my story. God is not trying to squeeze into my narrative. It’s us who are being woven into God’s narrative. God’s is the Kingdom, the Power and the Story, for ever and ever. Amen!
As streamed on The Sunday Eucharist – June 22nd, 2025
