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- [00:00]
Narrator
Previously on the Chosen People.
- [00:06]
Elijah
There is one man, Micaiah, son of Imla. But I hate him. Hate him. He never prophesies good concerning me. Only evil.
- [00:23]
Messenger/Prophet
Very well. Hear ye. Hear ye. I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep with no shepherd. And lo, Yahweh himself did speak, saying, these have no master. Let them return to their homes in peace.
- [00:41]
Elijah
What did I tell you, Jehoshaphat? His proclamations are never good. Always evil.
- [00:48]
Messenger/Prophet
The Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours. Yahweh has decreed your ruin.
- [00:58]
Elijah
Insolent whelp.
- [01:00]
Narrator
Tell me, which way did the spirit.
- [01:03]
Elijah
Of Yahweh go when he left me.
- [01:05]
Narrator
To speak to you?
- [01:06]
Messenger/Prophet
If you return in victory? God has not spoken through me. Mark my words. The only one who will be victorious in this story is Yahweh, not you.
- [01:23]
Elijah
Hold the line. It won't be long now before the dogs come.
- [01:31]
Narrator
I suppose I mourn him as one would a lost sandal. Less sorrowful, more perturbed. That now I have to find a new one. This is an I Heart podcast.
- [01:48]
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- [02:59]
Yael Eckstein
Shalom, my friends. From here in the holy land of Israel, I'm Yael Eckstein with International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. And welcome to the chosen people. Each day we'll hear a dramatic story inspired by the Bible. Stories filled with timeless lessons of faith, life, love, and the meaning of life. Through Israel's story, we will find this truth that we are all chosen for something great. So take a moment today to follow the podcast. If you're feeling extra grateful for these stories, we would love it if you left us a review I read every single one of them. And if you're interested in hearing more about the prophetic life saving work of the fellowship, you can visit ifcj.org Lets begin.
- [03:49]
Narrator
Ahaziah had never been meant to wear the crown. Not really. It was supposed to go to one of Ahab's stronger sons, the ones with their father's wits and their mother's teeth. But war had taken them and disease had claimed others. And so the crown of Israel had passed to him not by merit, not by strength, but by the cold, cruel lottery of survival. Ahaziah was not his father. He had none of Ahab's determination, none of his wit. He certainly had none of Jezebel's ruthless cunning. And worst of all, he knew it. The people whispered it in the markets. His own servants muttered it when they thought he couldn't hear his enemies. Syria Moab. Judah saw Israel's new king and sharpened their swords. And now he had fallen through the lattice of his own upper room like an idiot, like a drunken court jester. The wounds were deep. He lay on his bed, sweat pooling at his collarbone, his ribs a ruined mess beneath the bandages. Every breath was a labor. He lay there, whimpering commands at his servant.
- [05:21]
Elijah
Go to Ekron. Ask Beelzebub if. If I will recover my Lord.
- [05:31]
Messenger/Prophet
Should we not inquire of y'?
- [05:34]
Elijah
All? Do. Do not speak that name to me.
- [05:39]
Narrator
Yahuwah. The God of his ancestors, the God of the prophets, the God who had hounded his father to the grave. He could not bow to that God, even in his pathetic state, because to do so would be to admit what everyone already whispered. That his kingdom was a dying ember, that he ruled only by the lingering fumes of his mother's terror and his father's blood.
- [06:11]
Elijah
Go. Go now.
- [06:14]
Narrator
They left. The doors slammed behind them. Ahaziah lay back, panting, swallowing the taste of bile and dread. The messengers rode hard for Ekron, dust rising in the torchlight. The road stretched ahead, winding through the hills, silent but for the whisper of wind through the trees. Suddenly they saw him. Not emerging from the darkness, not stepping onto the road. Just there. A figure rooted to the earth, cloak heavy around his shoulders, the staff in his hand, planted like an anchor. There could be no mistake. It was Elijah, the Prophet of Fire. Beside him stood his apprentice, Elisha, arms crossed, studying the approaching riders like a gambler sizing up a rigged game. But it was the third figure that made the air crackle. He stood just behind Elijah, his form shimmering as if the very air around him bent in reverence. A man, but not a man. When he moved, the dust did not stir beneath his feet. Elijah sighed, rubbing his temple like a man enduring a familiar headache.
- [07:40]
Elijah
You always show up when things are.
- [07:43]
Narrator
About to get interesting, and yet you still act surprised.
- [07:49]
Elijah
Not surprised. Just exhausted.
- [07:55]
Narrator
So, are we just going to not talk about the glowing man or show.
- [08:01]
Elijah
Some respect, Boy, he's no man. He's a Elohim of the Lord. An ancient One. The one who speaks for Yahweh himself.
- [08:10]
Narrator
Elisha raised an eyebrow. The angel smirked. He will understand in time. Elijah exhaled through his nose. There was a weight in those words, a current beneath them that Elisha could not yet feel. Well, Master, I can see where you get your affection for the cryptic. Elijah ignored him. He turned to the angel with a resigned expression.
- [08:38]
Elijah
My time is nearly up, isn't it?
- [08:42]
Narrator
The angel did not answer. He did not need to.
- [08:47]
Elijah
I assume I don't get a say in the matter.
- [08:50]
Narrator
You never did. Wait, what are you two talking? Elijah, it is time for one last assignment. Ahaziah has forsaken the Covenant. You must put the fear of the Lord in him and in those who serve him. Tell him of the judgment to come. Elijah's expression was unreadable, but for the first time, Elisha caught something beneath the iron. Something deep. Something final. The realization hit like a blade between the ribs. His master was leaving soon. The angel smiled warmly at the prophets. And then light. A flash that tore through the air like a blade of pure radiance. And then he was gone. In his place, a mighty wind rushed, rippling towards the king's incoming messengers. Elisha exhaled, blinking against the afterimage burned into his sight. What a dramatic exit. Seems excessive, don't you think? No subtlety. Elijah ignored his apprentice. His jaw was set, his eyes already locked on the messengers who sat frozen in their saddles, gripping their reins as if they might keep them tethered to reality. Elijah shouted at them, tell me, is.
- [10:17]
Elijah
It because there is no God in Israel that you fools go to inquire of baal Sabab?
- [10:23]
Narrator
The leader flinched.
- [10:25]
Messenger/Prophet
We were ordered.
- [10:28]
Elijah
Don't give me that. We are just following commands. Horse Don. You know the Lord, Moses. If you want to listen to that, listen to me. Speak from the Lord himself. You will not reach Ekron, and your king will not rise from his bed.
- [10:50]
Narrator
The wind rose. Elisha watched the messengers shudder, watched the way their hands trembled on the reins. The messengers did not argue. They turned their horses and rode back the way they came. Elisha searched a look at his Master. For a long while, it looked as though a weight was slowly falling from his chest. You're really going to, aren't you? Elijah did not answer. The messengers returned, pale, hollow eyed, looking as if they had glimpsed something they were never meant to see. Ahaziah forced himself upright, pain screaming through his ribs.
- [11:36]
Messenger/Prophet
Well, my Lord, we never reached Acheron. What a man, a prophet intercepted us.
- [11:45]
Elijah
A prophet?
- [11:47]
Messenger/Prophet
Well, three prophets, then two, strangely. They said that you will not rise from your bed. That you will die.
- [11:59]
Narrator
The room went silent. Ahaziah's breath was ragged, fury simmering just beneath the surface. He clenched his jaw.
- [12:09]
Elijah
Elijah.
- [12:13]
Narrator
A name like an old wound reopened. His father's ghost lurked at the edges of the room. Elijah. The storm that Ahab could never outrun. The prophet who defied kings and called down fire. The executioner of his mother's priests. Ahaziah took a breath, then rage.
- [12:38]
Elijah
Just send men. A battalion, 50 soldiers. Bring him to me now.
- [12:46]
Narrator
The messenger bowed, retreating. Ahaziah sat in the thick silence, his ribs aching, his pulse a thud, thud, thud of fury. Elijah had delivered his verdict. Ahaziah would deliver his king. Ahaziah's men came like thunder. Elijah stood at the crest of the hill, unmoving, unblinking, his cloak coiling in the wind like a living thing. Below him, Elisha shifted his weight, fingers twitching as he stroked his short beard. That's a lot of men.
- [13:28]
Elijah
Yes.
- [13:29]
Narrator
They're armed.
- [13:31]
Elijah
Most soldiers are.
- [13:33]
Narrator
Then they saw them. 50 men, steel catching the last light of the day. Faces set like stone. A captain at the front, his stance wide, his hand never straying far from the hilt of his sword. The wind was rising, an unnatural thing pulling at cloaks and banners, hissing and through the dried grass, like the whisper of something vast and unseen. The captain stepped forward, chin raised.
- [14:05]
Elijah
Man of God, by order of King.
- [14:08]
Narrator
Aziah, you are to come down at once. Elijah turned his head slightly, just enough for Elisha to see his face. Elisha felt a shudder pass through his bones. There was rage in Elijah's eyes. Not mere annoyance, not the dry exasperation he so often showed. This was real, holy fury. Because this was not just about the king. This was about Ahab's legacy. This was about Israel bleeding out under the weight of its own rebellion. About Jezebel's corruption still festering in the heart of the kingdom. About a people who had seen fire fall from heaven and the Red Sea split in two and still chose to bow to lesser gods. Elijah's jaw tightened.
- [15:04]
Elijah
So the son of Ahab sends men to Seize me. As if the Lord were some court magician he could summon.
- [15:13]
Narrator
Master, maybe we should go with them.
- [15:17]
Elijah
Come now, Elisha. Where is your faith? If the Lord could handle the entire Egyptian army at the red Sea, surely 50 men is no large task. Have you not read the writings of Moses?
- [15:30]
Narrator
Yes, master, of course. But I just think. Before the apprentice could finish his thought, Elijah stepped forward. The wind caught the edge of his cloak, sent it billy glowing like smoke. The sky, already dimming, darkened further, clouds thickening like ink spilling across parchment. Elisha could feel it now, the weight in the air, the hum beneath his feet, like the very ground was waiting. The captain's hand tightened around his sword. Come down, man of God. Elijah's voice cracked through the air like a thunderclap.
- [16:12]
Elijah
You fools. If I am a man of God, let fire fall from heaven and consume you and your 50 men.
- [16:21]
Narrator
Elijah's words echoed rolling down the hill like a shockwave, carving silence into the world. For a moment, there was nothing. The captain's sneer faltered for half a breath. He glanced up. Just for a moment, just to check the sky was still. One soldier let out a chuckle, then another. Then a ripple of laughter spread through the ranks. The captain exhaled through his nose, shaking his head. That's what I thought. His grip tightened on his sword. If you won't come down on your own, we will drag you. The men moved, boots scraping against dirt, armor clanking, swords lifting. Elisha inhaled sharply, bracing for the worst. Then it happened. All at once. The sky tore open. Not like a storm, not like rain breaking through heavy clouds. This was violence. Lightning split the heavens, a wound of searing white that burned the shape of its fury into the retinas of all who dared look upon it. And from that wound, the fire came. Not drifting down, not falling. Like an earthly flame. It plunged a spear of raw, undiluted judgment, a river of white, hot wrath. It did not flicker, did not waver, did not spread like mortal flames seeking something to devour. It simply erased. One moment there were men standing on the hill below, the next, nothing. The smell of ozone and burning flesh filled Elisha's nostrils, but the flesh was already gone. No screams, no bodies. Just ash whipping through the wind like the remnants of a dead civilization. Elisha had seen fire fall before, but this was different. It was not a sign to prove a point. This was judgment. I saw what you did on Carmel. But this. Elijah turned to him, and for the first time, Elisha saw something beyond the fury, the weight of it, the massive burden of this calling. Elijah took no joy in watching men perish. In his eyes burned twin fires of righteousness and sorrow.
- [19:03]
Elijah
Look, son, being a prophet is not about spectacles. It is not about miracles. It is about carrying the weight of God's justice.
- [19:18]
Narrator
Elisha exhaled sharply, grounding himself, trying to shake the trembling from his hands. The captain emerged, face half melted and armor singed.
- [19:31]
Elijah
Please.
- [19:32]
Narrator
Please, man of God, have mercy.
- [19:36]
Elijah
Go back to your king. Tell him what you have seen. Tell him Yahweh has spoken.
- [19:44]
Narrator
The captain did not hesitate. He stumbled to his feet, barely able to stand, and fled. Elisha watched him go, the fire still burning in his vision long after it had vanished from the sky.
- [20:01]
Elijah
Foreign.
- [20:05]
Narrator
Elijah entered King Ahaziah's halls like a storm. His bones were older, but the fire in his belly still burned hot. Elisha followed, keeping silent. Behind him, Ahaziah lay sprawled in his bed, propped up by pillows that did nothing to disguise the sweat pooling at his collarbone, the waxy pallor creeping across his skin. He was failing. His ribs ached with every breath. His lips were dry, but the cup of wine beside him sat untouched. And yet his voice still carried its old petulance, its old arrogance, like a boy refusing to acknowledge the coming night.
- [20:53]
Elijah
Elijah, finally, you've come to face me.
- [21:00]
Narrator
Elijah stopped at the foot of the bed. He did not bow. He did not greet the king. Ahaziah's fingers twitched against the sheets, but he lifted his chin, desperate to hold onto the illusion that he was still the ruler of this place.
- [21:19]
Elijah
Tell me, Prophet, who will I live? Shut up.
- [21:27]
Narrator
Ahaziah blinked. His mouth twitched as if he wanted to argue, but Elijah was already shaking his head, already moving, already cutting him down before he could rise.
- [21:40]
Elijah
You dare to summon me here with your breath as short as your time to ask if you will live? You, son of Ahab, son of Jezebel, who saw the fire fall at Carmel, who tongued your father's robes as the one true God turned your mother's priests to ash?
- [22:02]
Narrator
There was no satisfaction in Elijah's voice, no playful teasing as he had with Ahab. No righteous glee. Just disgust. Elijah took a step closer to Ahaziah.
- [22:18]
Elijah
I remember you, boy. I remember the way you trembled in the shadow of your father. I remember the way you saw the truth that day and still turned your back on it.
- [22:32]
Narrator
The king opened his mouth, some feeble attempt at a defense. Elijah didn't let him.
- [22:39]
Elijah
You could have bowed. You could have repented. Instead, you ran to the shrines of BAAL like your witch mother. Instead, you built altars to silence. Instead, you threw in your lot with a corpse. God that cannot even keep you from falling through the floor of your home.
- [23:03]
Narrator
Elijah leaned in closer, voice dropping to something almost too gentle.
- [23:10]
Elijah
They still sing songs about the greatness of King David, when the nation had a real king, a real leader, a man, not a shriveling and entitled brat. You shamed the ancestors who came before you and bled for the throne. You. You wrought upon.
- [23:36]
Narrator
Ahaziah was breathing hard now. He wanted to speak, to rise, to throw back some semblance of control, but Elijah stopped him.
- [23:46]
Elijah
Do not speak. Only listen. You will not leave this book. You will not rise again. You will die.
- [24:00]
Narrator
The silence pressed the down, thick and suffocating. Ahaziah's lips parted, a whisper of something. Fear, maybe, a plea. But Elijah was already turning, already gone. Elijah and Elisha had left the king's presence, widening the distance between them and the palace walls. The sun was setting, painting crimson hues over the dry hills of summer. They sat on a stone resting upon a hill. Elisha sat beside his master, looking out over the city. What fuels your rage?
- [24:46]
Elijah
At first it was the blatant corruption, the taxes, the way the kings paid. Little regard for the people.
- [24:57]
Narrator
Injustice. Elijah pursed his lips, searching his heart for the right words to answer his apprentice.
- [25:05]
Elijah
Ahab Jezebel. Ahaziah are not the true enemy. They were never the disease, Elisha.
- [25:14]
Narrator
They.
- [25:16]
Elijah
They were only symptoms.
- [25:18]
Narrator
What do you mean?
- [25:20]
Elijah
The true enemy is older than Israel, older than his kingdom, older than the altars of baal. Ancient evil. It slithered into the garden. It whispered to our first mother and coiled around our first father.
- [25:44]
Narrator
Elisha swallowed hard. The words stirred something in him, something deep, something older than his own lifetime memories. Sitting at his father's feet as a boy, his father's voice, low and steady, reading from the words of Moses, the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field. Did God really say, you will not surely die? They seemed like stories, but Elijah knew they weren't fairy tales. Elijah exhaled, his gaze fixed on the darkened horizon.
- [26:24]
Elijah
The people refused to see it. They refused to listen. The Lord brought us out of Egypt. He split the sea, fed us in the wilderness, and covenant with us in fire and blood. He has shown himself again and again and again. And still. Still they run to the gods of the nations, to the empty idols, to the tombs. Same lies, different skins.
- [27:00]
Narrator
Elijah's hands tightened into fists. They could not see Elisha.
- [27:06]
Elijah
They cannot see that the Lord is doing something with our people. He led us to this land for a reason. The story is much bigger than what is front of our eyes. They are like our forefathers in the wilderness. They are blind.
- [27:24]
Narrator
The wind pressed against them, cold and restless. Then Elijah turned, and for the first time in all their years together, Elisha saw something in his master's eyes he had never seen before. Not rage, not even sorrow. Hope.
- [27:45]
Elijah
But you. You will show them, my apprentice.
- [27:52]
Narrator
Elisha's chest tightened. Elijah exhaled, looking up toward the sky. The clouds were parting, silver light breaking through, illuminating the tired, weathered lines of his face.
- [28:09]
Elijah
Your time is soon.
- [28:11]
Narrator
Elisha looked up at him. The wind howled and the night held its breath.
- [28:28]
Yael Eckstein
If your faith has been kindled by this podcast and it has affected your life, we'd love it if you left a review. We read them and me personally, I cherish them. As you venture forth boldly and faithfully, I leave you with the biblical Blessing from Numbers 6. May the Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine upon you. May he be gracious to you. May the Lord turn His face towards you and give you peace. Amen.
- [29:11]
Producer/Announcer
You can listen to the Chosen People with Yael Eckstein ad free by downloading and subscribing to ThePray.com app today. This prey.com production is only made possible by our dedicated team of creative talents. Steve Catena, Max Bard, Zach Shellevaga and Ben Gammon are the executive producers of the Chosen People with Yael Eckstein. Edited by Alberto Avila Narrated by Paul Coltofianu Characters are voiced by Jonathan Cotton, Aaron Salvato, Sarah Seltz, Mike Reagan, Stephen Ringwald, Steven Sylvia zaradoc, Thomas Copeland Jr. Rosanna Pilcher, and Mitch Lashinsky and the opening prayer is voiced by John Moore. Music by Andrew Morgan Smith. Written by Aaron Salvato, Bree Rosalie, and Chris Baig. Special thanks to Bishop Paul Lanier, Robin Van Etten, Caleb Burrows, Jocelyn Fuller, Rabbi Edward Abramson and the team at International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. You you can hear more pre.com productions on the prey.com app available on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. If you enjoyed the Chosen People with Yael Eckstein, please rate and leave a review.
- [30:24]
Narrator
This is an iHeart podcast.