Ovadyahu Saving the Prophets

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1. Eliyahu on His Way to Appear before Ahav

   Part 3

   Rabbi Elchanan Samet

   A subtle criticism of Ovadya is apparent in Eliyahu’s claim that Ahav – not he – is Ovadya’s master. Ovadya insists that his life-risking activity - not cowardice – leave him in Ahav’s service and unworthy of a punishment of death. The literary structure of Ovadya’s speech to Eliyahu sheds light on the apparent repetitiveness of his words.

2. Eliyahu on His Way to Appear Before Ahav

   Part 4

   Rabbi Elchanan Samet

   Why does the text eternalize Ovadyahu's mistake and record his speech in such detail? Ovadyahu's emotional speech is a condemnation of Eliyahu and his approach. It expresses how Eliyahu was perceived by the righteous people of his generation. The parallels that exist between Ovadya’s speech and Eliyahu’s experiences during the drought magnify the destructiveness of Eliyahu’s decree. Eliyahu has chosen the path conflict followed by cutting off contact. Ovadyahu has chosen precisely the opposite path: a path of brave cooperation with the wicked king in an attempt to influence from the inside.

3. The Test at Mount Carmel

   Rabbi Alex Israel

   Before the showdown at Mt. Carmel there is a lengthy description of Eliyahu's meeting with Ovadya. Ovadia personifies the dilemma of the nation and foreshadows the outcome of the showdown.  Just like the nation feels that it has two masters - God and Ba'al - so too Ovadya is Ahav's closest minister, but he is also God fearing.  Eliyahu forces Ovadya to make a choice.

   At Mount Carmel, Eliyahu seeks to broadcast a message to the entire nation and to activate them. Mount Carmel is chosen as the location for the test between Eliyau and the prophets of the Ba'al as it was a revered site for the worshippers of the Ba'al and because it overlooks the Ba'al culture of Phoenicia to the North and the Kingdom of Israel to the South. The killing of the prophets of Ba'al after Eliyahu's victory raises questions as to Ahav's allegiances in the aftermath of the showdown.

4. Espionage in the House of Ahab

   Rabbi Dr. Aharon Adler

   תאריך פרסום: תשע"ד | |

   Beginning with the “oil miracle” for the wife of one of the “Bnei ha-Neviim” in the stories of Elisha the prophet, we ask a number of questions that lead us to the individual Ovadya mentioned in the stories of Eliyahu. Who is Ovadya? Ovadya is a senior official of Ahab, but he also secretly hides and sustains hundreds of prophets-in-training. How did he come to be so trusted by King Ahab, whose fault it was that the prophets feared for their lives? Classic commentators assist us in painting a portrait of Ovadya, who becomes the insider agent who connects the dots between seemingly unrelated stories, personalities and events.