Ahab
is still the unhappy subject of the sacred history; from the great affairs
of his camp and kingdom this chapter leads us into his garden, and gives us
an account of some ill things (and ill indeed they proved to him) relating
to his domestic affairs. I. Ahab is sick for Naboth's vineyard, ver. 1-4.
II. Naboth dies by Jezebel's plot, that the vineyard may escheat to Ahab,
ver. 5-14. III. Ahab goes to take possession, ver. 15-16. IV. Elijah meets
him, and denounces the judgments of God against him for his injustice, ver.
17-24. V. Upon his humiliation a reprieve is granted, ver. 25-29.
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Naboth's
Vineyard Refused to Ahab.
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B.
C. 899.
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1 And it came to pass after these things, that
Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by
the
palace
of
Ahab
king of
Samaria. 2 And Ahab spake unto Naboth,
saying, Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs,
because it is near unto my house: and I will give thee for it a
better vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give
thee the worth of it in money. 3 And Naboth said to Ahab, The LORD
forbid it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto
thee. 4 And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased
because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him: for he
had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid
him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread.
Here is, 1. Ahab coveting his neighbour's vineyard, which unhappily lay near
his palace and conveniently for a kitchen-garden. Perhaps Naboth had been
pleased that he had a vineyard which lay so advantageously for a prospect of
the royal gardens, or the vending of its productions to the royal family;
but the situation of it proved fatal to him. If he had had no vineyard, or
it had lain obscure in some remote place, he would have preserved his life.
But many a man's possessions have been his snare, and his neighbourhood to
greatness has been of pernicious consequence. Ahab sets his eye and heart on
this vineyard, v. 2. It will be a pretty addition to his demesne, a
convenient out-let to his palace; and nothing will serve him but it must be
his own. He is welcome to the fruits of it, welcome to walk in it; Naboth
perhaps would have made him a lease of it for his life, to please him; but
nothing will please him unless he have an absolute property in it, he and
his heirs for ever. Yet he is not such a tyrant as to take it by force, but
fairly proposes either to give Naboth the full value of it in money or a
better vineyard in exchange. He had tamely quitted the great advantages God
had given him of enlarging his dominion for the honour of his kingdom, by
his victory over the Syrians, and now is eager to enlarge his garden, only
for the convenience of his house, as if to be penny wise would atone for
being pound foolish. To desire a convenience to his estate was not evil
(there would be no buying if there were no desire of what is bought; the
virtuous woman considers a field and buys it); but to desire any
thing inordinately, though we would compass it by lawful means, is a fruit
of selfishness, as if we must engross all the conveniences, and none must
live, or live comfortably, by us, contrary to the law of contentment, and
the letter of the tenth commandment, Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's
house. 2. The repulse he met with in this desire. Naboth would by no
means part with it (v. 3): The Lord forbid it me; and the Lord
did forbid it, else he would not have been so rude and uncivil to his prince
as not to gratify him in so small a matter. Canaan was in a peculiar manner
God's land; the Israelites were his tenants; and this was one of the
conditions of their leases, that they should not alienate (no, not to one
another) any part of that which fell to their lot, unless in case of extreme
necessity, and then only till the year of jubilee, Lev. xxv. 28. Now Naboth
foresaw that, if his vineyard were sold to the crown, it would never return
to his heirs, no, not in the jubilee. He would gladly oblige the king, but
he must obey God rather than men, and therefore in this matter desires to be
excused. Ahab knew the law, or should have known it, and therefore did ill
to ask that which his subject could not grant without sin. Some conceive
that Naboth looked upon his earthly inheritance as an earnest of his lot in
the heavenly Canaan, and therefore would not part with the former, lest it
should amount to a forfeiture of the latter. He seems to have been a
conscientious man, who would rather hazard the king's displeasure than
offend God, and probably was one of the 7000 that had not bowed the knee to
Baal, for which, it may be, Ahab owed him a grudge. 3. Ahab's great
discontent and uneasiness hereupon. He was as before (ch. xx. 43) heavy
and displeased (v. 4), grew melancholy upon it, threw himself
upon his bed, would not eat nor admit company to come to him. He could by no
means digest the affront. His proud spirit aggravated the indignity Naboth
did him in denying him, as a thing not to be suffered. He cursed the
squeamishness of Naboth's conscience, which he pretended to consult the
peace of, and secretly meditated revenge. Nor could he bear the
disappointment; it cut him to the heart to be crossed in his desires, and he
was perfectly sick for vexation. Note, (1.) Discontent is a sin that is its
own punishment and makes men torment themselves; it makes the spirit sad,
the body sick, and all the enjoyments sour; it is the heaviness of the heart
and the rottenness of the bones. (2.) It is a sin that is its own parent. It
arises not from the condition, but from the mind. As we find Paul contented
in a prison, so Ahab discontent in a palace. He had all the delights of
Canaan, that pleasant land, at command the wealth of a kingdom, the
pleasures of a court, and the honours and powers of a throne; and yet all
this avails him nothing without Naboth's vineyard. Inordinate desires
expose men to continual vexations, and those that are disposed to fret, be
they ever so happy, will always find something or other to fret at.
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Naboth
Murdered by Jezebel.
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B.
C. 899.
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5 But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said
unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread? 6
And he said unto her, Because I spake unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said
unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money; or else, if it please thee, I will
give thee another vineyard for it: and he answered, I will not give
thee my vineyard. 7 And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost
thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let
thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.
8 So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal,
and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in
his city, dwelling with Naboth. 9 And she wrote in the letters,
saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people:
10 And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him,
saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king. And then carry him
out, and stone him, that he may die. 11 And the men of his city,
even the elders and the nobles who were the inhabitants in his city,
did as Jezebel had sent unto them, and as it was written in
the letters which she had sent unto them. 12 They proclaimed a
fast, and set Naboth on high among the people. 13 And there came
in two men, children of Belial, and sat before him: and the men of Belial
witnessed against him, even against Naboth, in the presence of the
people, saying, Naboth did blaspheme God and the king. Then they carried him
forth out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died.
14 Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned, and is dead.
15 And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was
dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of
Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money: for Naboth
is not alive, but dead. 16 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard
that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth
the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.
Nothing but mischief is to be expected when Jezebel enters into the story--that
cursed woman, 2 Kings ix. 34.
I. Under pretence of comforting her afflicted husband, she feeds his pride
and passion, and blows the coals of his corruptions. It became her to take
notice of his grief and to enquire into the cause of it, v. 5. Those
have forgotten both the duty and affection of the conjugal relation that
interest not themselves in each other's troubles. He told her what troubled
him (v. 6), yet invidiously concealed Naboth's reason for his
refusal, representing it as peevish, when it was conscientious--I will
not give it thee, whereas he said, I may not. What! says Jezebel
(v. 7), Dost thou govern Israel? Arise, and eat bread. She
does well to persuade him to shake off his melancholy, and not to sink under
his burden, to be easy and cheerful; whatever was his grief, grieving would
not redress it, but pleasantness would alleviate it. Her plea is, Dost
thou now govern Israel? This is capable of a good sense: "Does it
become so great a prince as thou art to cast thyself down for so small a
matter? Thou shamest thyself, and profanest thy crown; it is below thee to
take notice of so inconsiderable a thing. Art thou fit to govern Israel, who
hast no better a government of thy own passions? Or hast thou so rich a
kingdom at command and canst not thou be without this one vineyard?" We
should learn to quiet ourselves, under our crosses, with the thoughts of the
mercies we enjoy, especially our hopes of the kingdom. But she meant it in a
bad sense: "Dost thou govern Israel, and shall any subject thou
hast deny thee any thing thou hast a mind to? Art thou a king? It is below
thee to buy and pay, much more to beg and pray; use thy prerogative, and
take by force what thou canst not compass by fair means; instead of
resenting the affront thus, revenge it. If thou knowest not how to support
the dignity of a king, let me alone to do it; give me but leave to make use
of thy name, and I will soon give thee the vineyard of Naboth; right
or wrong, it shall be thy own shortly, and cost thee nothing." Unhappy
princes those are, and hurried apace towards their ruin, who have those
about them that stir them up to acts of tyranny and teach them how to abuse
their power.
II. In order to gratify him, she projects and compasses the death of Naboth.
No less than his blood will serve to atone for the affront he has given to
Ahab, which she thirsts after the more greedily because of his adherence to
the law of the God of Israel.
1. Had she aimed only at his land, her false witnesses might have sworn him
out of that by a forged deed (she could not have set up so weak a title but
the elders of Jezreel would have adjudged it good); but the adulteress
will hunt for the precious life, Prov. vi. 26. Revenge is sweet. Naboth
must die, and die as a malefactor, to gratify it.
(1.) Never were more wicked orders given by any prince than those which
Jezebel sent to the magistrates of Jezreel, v. 8-10. She borrows the
privy-seal, but the king shall not know what she will do with it. It is
probable this was not the first time he had lent it to her, but that with it
she had signed warrants for the slaying of the prophets. She makes use of
the king's name, knowing the thing would please him when it was done, yet
fearing he might scruple at the manner of doing it; in short, she commands
them, upon their allegiance, to put Naboth to death, without giving them any
reason for so doing. Had she sent witnesses to inform against him, the
judges (who must go secundum allegata et probata--according to
allegations and proofs) might have been imposed upon, and their sentence
might have been rather their unhappiness than their crime; but to oblige
them to find the witnesses, sons of Belial, to suborn them themselves, and
then to give judgment upon a testimony which they knew to be false, was such
an impudent defiance to every thing that is just and sacred as we hope
cannot be paralleled in any story. She must have looked upon the elders of
Jezreel as men perfectly lost to every thing that is honest and honourable
when she expected these orders should be obeyed. But she will put them in a
way how to do it, having as much of the serpent's subtlety as she had of his
poison. [1.] It must be done under colour of religion: "Proclaim a
fast; signify to your city that you are apprehensive of some dreadful
judgment coming upon you, which you must endeavour to avert, not only by
prayer, but by finding out and by putting away the accursed thing; pretend
to be afraid that there is some great offender among you undiscovered, for
whose sake God is angry with your city; charge the people, if they know of
any such, on that solemn occasion to inform against him, as they regard the
welfare of the city; and at last let Naboth be fastened upon as the
suspected person, probably because he does not join with his neighbours in
their worship. This may serve for a pretence to set him on high among the
people, to call him to the bar. Let proclamation be made that, if any
one can inform the court against the prisoner, and prove him to be the Achan,
they shall be heard; and then let the witnesses appear to give evidence
against him." Note, There is no wickedness so vile, so horrid, but
religion has sometimes been made a cloak and cover for it. We must not think
at all the worse of fasting and praying for their having been sometimes thus
abused, but much the worse of those wicked designs that have at any time
been carried on under the shelter of them. [2.] It must be done under
colour of justice too, and with the formalities of a legal process. Had
she sent to them to hire some of their banditti, some desperate ruffians, to
assassinate him, to stab him as he went along the streets in the night, the
deed would have been bad enough; but to destroy him by a course of law, to
use that power for the murdering of the innocent which ought to be their
protection, was such a violent perversion of justice and judgment as
was truly monstrous, yet such as we are directed not to marvel at,
Eccl. v. 8. The crime they must lay to his charge was blaspheming God and
the king-- a complicated blasphemy. Surely she could not think to put a
blasphemous sense upon the answer he had given to Ahab, as if denying him
his vineyard were blaspheming the king, and giving the divine law for the
reason were blaspheming God. No, she pretends not any ground at all for the
charge: though there was no colour of truth in it, the witnesses must swear
it, and Naboth must not be permitted to speak for himself, or cross-examine
the witnesses, but immediately, under pretence of a universal detestation of
the crime, they must carry him out and stone him. His blaspheming God
would be the forfeiture of his life, but not of his estate, and therefore he
is also charged with treason, in blaspheming the king, for which his
estate was to be confiscated, that so Ahab might have his vineyard.
(2.) Never were wicked orders more wickedly obeyed than these were by the
magistrates of Jezreel. They did not so much as dispute the command nor make
any objections against it, though so palpably unjust, but punctually
observed all the particulars of it, either because they feared Jezebel's
cruelty or because they hated Naboth's piety, or both: They did as it was
written in the letters (v. 11, 12), neither made any difficulty
of it, nor met with any difficulty in it, but cleverly carried on the
villany. They stoned Naboth to death (v. 13), and, as it should seem,
his sons with him, or after him; for, when God came to make inquisition for
blood, we find this article in the account (2 Kings ix. 26), I have seen
the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons. Perhaps they were
secretly murdered, that they might not claim their father's estate nor
complain of the wrong done him.
2. Let us take occasion from this sad story, (1.) To stand amazed at the
wickedness of the wicked, and the power of Satan in the children of
disobedience. What a holy indignation may we be filled with to see wickedness
in the place of judgment! Eccl. iii. 16. (2.) To lament the hard case of
oppressed innocency, and to mingle our tears with the tears of the
oppressed that have no comforter, while on the side of the oppressors
there is power, Eccl. iv. 1. (3.) To commit the keeping of our lives and
comforts to God, for innocency itself will not always be our security. (4.)
To rejoice in the belief of a judgment to come, in which such wrong
judgments as these will be called over. Now we see that there are just
men to whom it happens according to the work of the wicked (Eccl. viii.
14), but all will be set to rights in the great day.
III. Naboth being taken off, Ahab takes possession of his vineyard. 1. The
elders of Jezreel sent notice to Jezebel very unconcernedly, sent it to her
as a piece of agreeable news, Naboth is stoned and is dead, v.
14. Here let us observe that, as obsequious as the elders of Jezreel were to
Jezebel's orders which she sent from Samaria for the murder of Naboth, so
obsequious were the elders of Samaria afterwards to Jehu's orders which he
sent from Jezreel for the murder of Ahab's seventy sons, only that was not
done by course of law, 2 Kings x. 6, 7. Those tyrants that by their wicked
orders debauch the consciences of their inferior magistrates may perhaps
find at last the wheel return upon them, and that those who will not stick
to do one cruel thing for them will be as ready to do another cruel thing
against them. 2. Jezebel, jocund enough that her plot succeeded so well,
brings notice to Ahab that Naboth is not alive, but dead; therefore,
says she, Arise, take possession of his vineyard, v. 15. He
might have taken possession by one of his officers, but so pleased is he
with this accession to his estate that he will make a journey to Jezreel
himself to enter upon it; and it should seem he went in state too, as if he
had obtained some mighty victory, for Jehu remembers long after that he and
Bidkar attended him at this time, 2 Kings ix. 25. If Naboth's sons were all
put to death, Ahab thought himself entitled to the estate, ob defectum
sanguinis--in default of heirs (as our law expresses it); if not,
yet, Naboth dying as a criminal, he claimed it ob delictum criminis--as
forfeited by his crime. Or, if neither would make him a good title, the
absolute power of Jezebel would give it to him, and who would dare to oppose
her will? Might often prevails against right, and wonderful is the divine
patience that suffers it to do so. God is certainly of purer eyes than to
behold iniquity, and yet for a time keeps silence when the wicked
devours the man that is more righteous than he, Hab. i. 13.
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Ahab's
Doom Foretold.
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B.
C. 899.
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17 And the word of the LORD
came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 18 Arise, go down to meet
Ahab king of Israel, which is in Samaria: behold, he is in the
vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it. 19
And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD,
Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him,
saying, Thus saith the LORD,
In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy
blood, even thine. 20 And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found
me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou
hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the LORD.
21 Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity,
and will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that
is shut up and left in Israel, 22 And will make thine house like
the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son
of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to
anger, and made Israel to sin. 23 And of Jezebel also spake the
LORD,
saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel. 24
Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat; and him that dieth in
the field shall the fowls of the air eat. 25 But there was none
like unto Ahab, which did sell himself to work wickedness in the sight of
the LORD,
whom Jezebel his wife stirred up. 26 And he did very abominably
in following idols, according to all things as did the Amorites, whom
the LORD
cast out before the children of Israel. 27 And it came to pass,
when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth
upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.
28 And the word of the LORD
came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 29 Seest thou how Ahab
humbleth himself before me? because he humbleth himself before me, I will
not bring the evil in his days: but in his son's days will I bring
the evil upon his house.
In these verses we may observe,
I. The very bad character that is given of Ahab (v. 25, 26), which
comes in here to justify God in the heavy sentence passed upon him, and to
show that though it was passed upon occasion of his sin in the matter of
Naboth (which David's sin in the matter of Uriah did too much resemble), yet
God would not have punished him so severely if he had not been guilty of
many other sins, especially idolatry; whereas David, except in that one
matter, did that which was right. But, as to Ahab, there was none
like him, so ingenious and industrious in sin, and that made a trade of
it. He sold himself to work wickedness, that is, he made himself a
perfect slave to his lusts, and was as much at their beck and command as
ever any servant was at his master's. He was wholly given up to sin, and,
upon condition he might have the pleasures of it, he would take the wages of
it, which is death, Rom. vi. 23. Blessed Paul complained that he was sold
under sin (Rom. vii. 14), as a poor captive against his will; but Ahab
was voluntary: he sold himself to sin; of choice, and as his own act
and deed, he submitted to the dominion of sin. It was no excuse of his
crimes that Jezebel his wife stirred him up to do wickedly, and made
him, in many respects, worse than otherwise he would have been. To what a
pitch of impiety did he arrive who had such tinder of corruption in his
heart and such a temper in his bosom to strike fire into it! In many things
he did ill, but he did most abominably in following idols, like the
Canaanites; his immoralities were very provoking to God, but his idolatries
were especially so. Israel's case was sad when a prince of such a character
as this reigned over them.
II. The message with which Elijah was sent to him, when he went to take
possession of Naboth's vineyard, v. 17-19.
1. Hitherto God kept silence, did not intercept Jezebel's letters, nor stay
the process of the elders of Jezreel; but now Ahab is reproved and his sin
set in order before his eyes. (1.) The person sent is Elijah. A prophet
of lower rank was sent with messages of kindness to him, ch. xx. 13.
But the father of the prophets is sent to try him, and condemn him, for his
murder. (2.) The place is Naboth's vineyard and the time just when he is
taking possession of it; then, and there, must his doom be read him. By
taking possession, he avowed all that was done, and made himself guilty ex
post facto--as an accessary after the fact. There he was taken in
the commission of the errors, and therefore the conviction would come upon
him with so much the more force. "What hast thou to do in this
vineyard? What good canst thou expect from it when it is purchased with
blood (Hab. ii. 12) and thou hast caused the owner thereof to lose
his life?" Job xxxi. 39. Now that he is pleasing himself with his
ill-gotten wealth, and giving direction for the turning of this vineyard
into a flower-garden, his meat in his bowels is turned. He shall not feel
quietness. When he is about to fill his belly, God shall cast the fury of
his wrath upon him, Job xx. 14, 20, 23.
2. Let us see what passed between him and the prophet.
(1.) Ahab vented his wrath against Elijah, fell into a passion at the sight
of him, and, instead of humbling himself before the prophet, as he ought to
have done (2 Chron. xxxvi. 12), was ready to fly in his face. Hast thou
found me, O my enemy? v. 20. This shows, [1.] That he hated him.
The last time we found them together they parted very good friends, ch.
xviii. 46. Then Ahab had countenanced the reformation, and therefore then
all was well between him and the prophet; but now he had relapsed, and was
worse than ever. His conscience told him he had made God his enemy, and
therefore he could not expect Elijah should be his friend. Note, That man's
condition is very miserable that has made the word of God his enemy, and his
condition is very desperate that reckons the ministers of that word his
enemies because they tell him the truth, Gal. iv. 16. Ahab, having
sold himself to sin, was resolved to stand to his bargain, and could not
endure him that would have helped him to recover himself, [2.] That he
feared him: Hast thou found me? intimating that he shunned him all he
could, and it was now a terror to him to see him. The sight of him was like
that of the handwriting upon the wall to Belshazzar; it made his countenance
change, the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees smote one against
another. Never was poor debtor or criminal so confounded at the sight of
the officer that came to arrest him. Men may thank themselves if they make
God and his word a terror to them.
(2.) Elijah denounced God's wrath against Ahab: I have found thee
(says he, v. 20), because thou hast sold thyself to work evil.
Note, Those that give up themselves to sin will certainly be found out,
sooner or later, to their unspeakable horror and amazement. Ahab is now set
to the bar, as Naboth was, and trembles more than he did. [1.] Elijah finds
the indictment against him, and convicts him upon the notorious evidence of
the fact (v. 19): Hast thou killed, and also taken possession?
He was thus charged with the murder of Naboth, and it would not serve him to
say the law killed him (perverted justice is the highest injustice), nor
that, if he was unjustly prosecuted, it was not his doing--he knew nothing
of it; for it was to please him that it was done, and he had shown himself
pleased with it, and so had made himself guilty of all that was done in the
unjust prosecution of Naboth. He killed, for he took possession. If he takes
the garden, he takes the guilt with it. Terra transit cum onere--The land
with the incumbrance. [2.] He passes judgment upon him. He told him from
God that his family should be ruined and rooted out (v. 21) and all
his posterity cut off,--that his house should be made like the houses of his
wicked predecessors, Jeroboam and Baasha (v. 22), particularly that
those who died in the city should be meat for dogs and those who died in the
field meat for birds (v. 24), which had been foretold of Jeroboam's
house (ch. xiv. 11), and of Baasha's (ch. xvi. 4),-- that
Jezebel, particularly, should be devoured by dogs (v. 23), which was
fulfilled (2 Kings ix. 36),-- and, as for Ahab himself, that the dogs should
lick his blood in the very same place where they licked Naboth's (v.
19-- "Thy blood, even thine, though it be royal blood, though it
swell thy veins with pride and boil in thy heart with anger, shall ere long
be an entertainment for the dogs"), which was fulfilled, ch.
xxii. 38. This intimates that he should die a violent death, should come to
his grave with blood, and that disgrace should attend him, the foresight of
which must needs be a great mortification to such a proud man. Punishments
after death are here most insisted on, which, though such as affected the
body only, were perhaps designed as figures of the soul's misery after
death.
III. Ahab's humiliation under the sentence passed upon him, and the
favourable message sent him thereupon. 1. Ahab was a kind of penitent. The
message Elijah delivered to him in God's name put him into a fright for the
present, so that he rent his clothes and put on sackcloth, v.
27. He was still a proud hardened sinner, and yet thus reduced. Note, God
can make the stoutest heart to tremble and the proudest to humble itself.
His word is quick and powerful, and is, when the pleases to make it so, like
a fire and a hammer, Jer. xxiii. 29. It made Felix tremble. Ahab put
on the garb and guise of a penitent, and yet his heart was unhumbled and
unchanged. After this, we find, he hated a faithful prophet, ch. xxii.
8. Note, It is no new thing to find the show and profession of repentance
where yet the truth and substance of it are wanting. Ahab's repentance was
only what might be seen of men: Seest thou (says God to Elijah) how
Ahab humbles himself; it was external only, the garments rent, but not
the heart. A hypocrite may go very far in the outward performance of holy
duties and yet come short. 2. He obtained hereby a reprieve, which I may
call a kind of pardon. Though it was but an outside repentance (lamenting
the judgment only, and not the sin), though he did not leave his idols, nor
restore the vineyard to Naboth's heirs, yet, because he did hereby give some
glory to God, God took notice of it, and bade Elijah take notice of it: Seest
thou how Ahab humbles himself? v. 29. In consideration of this
the threatened ruin of his house, which had not been fixed to any time,
should be adjourned to his son's days. The sentence should not be
revoked, but the execution suspended. Now, (1.) This discovers the great
goodness of God, and his readiness to show mercy, which here rejoices
against judgment. Favour was shown to this wicked man that God might
magnify his goodness (says bishop Sanderson) even to the hazard of his other
divine perfections; as if (says he) God would be thought unholy, or untrue,
or unjust (though he be none of these), or any thing, rather than
unmerciful. (2.) This teaches us to take notice of that which is good even
in those who are not so good as they should be: let it be commended as far
as it goes. (3.) This gives a reason why wicked people sometimes prosper
long; God is rewarding their external services with external mercies. (4.)
This encourages all those that truly repent and unfeignedly believe the holy
gospel. If a pretending partial penitent shall go to his house reprieved,
doubtless a sincere penitent shall go to his house justified.
