7. Elijah: A Type of John The Baptist.

Introduction.

 “This is the testimony of John when the Jews sent to him priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” And he confessed and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.” They asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” And he said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.” Then they said to him, “Who are you, so that we may answer those who sent us? What do you say about yourself?” He said, “I am A VOICE OF ONE CRYING IN THE WILDERNESS, ‘MAKE STRAIGHT THE WAY OF THE LORD,’ as Isaiah the prophet said.” (John 1:19-24). John says that he is the fulfilment of a prophecy by Isaiah the prophet. Isaiah 40:3, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” John the Baptist is a type of Elijah for some of the following reasons:

1. Both Elijah and John Prepare the Way of Christ.

John the Baptist is the one who announced the first coming of Christ. Elijah, the prophet, will announce the second coming of Christ. Malachi 4:5. “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.” The Great and Dreadful Day of the Lord is also known as the Tribulation. Tribulation means hardships, sufferings, agony, misfortune, or pain that will come to the world after the rapture. The Tribulation is a future seven-year period when God judges the unbelieving world. Jesus mentioned it in the end-time message of Matthew 24. (See also, 1 Thess 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:51-53). The church is saved from the wrath to come. (1 Thess 5:9).

Throughout Scripture, the Tribulation is referred to by other names such as the great and dreadful day of the Lord or the Day of the Lord. Isaiah 2:12 says, “For the day of the Lord of hosts shall come upon everything proud and lofty, upon everything lifted up—and it shall be brought low.” Also, in Isaiah 13:6-9, “Wail, for the day of the Lord is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty. Therefore, all hands will be limp, every man’s heart will melt, and they will be afraid. Pangs and sorrows will take hold of them; they will be in pain as a woman in childbirth; they will be amazed at one another; their faces will be like flames. Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate, and He will destroy its sinners from it.” Joel 1:15 says, “Alas for the day! For the day of the Lord is at hand; It shall come as destruction from the Almighty.” 1 Thess 5:2 says, “For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. (See Joel 2:1-31). Zephaniah 1:2-18 talks about it. Zephaniah 1:7, “Be silent in the presence of the Lord God; for the day of the Lord is at hand, for the Lord has prepared a sacrifice; He has invited His guests.” It is sometimes known as Jacob’s trouble. Jeremiah 30:7 says, “Alas! For that day is great, so that none is like it, and it is the time of Jacob’s trouble, but he shall be saved out of it.” Daniel 12:1 “At that time Michael shall stand up, the great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that time. And at that time, your people shall be delivered, everyone who is found written in the book.” (Emp added).

A Study on the Tribulation will be for another day, but I needed to explain its Scriptures to those who do not know it. Elijah will come on the earth before the Tribulation, which will herald the second coming of Christ. John prepared the way before the first coming of Christ, and Elijah will prepare the way before the second coming of Jesus.

2) Similar destinies.

Concerning John, it was prophesied of him, “But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. For he will be great in the sight of the Lord and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” Elijah had a similar destiny. Malachi 4:6, “And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” John the Baptist was a Nazirite just as Samson was. The Nazirite/Nazarite vow is taken by individuals who have voluntarily dedicated themselves to God. The conditions for being a Nazarite can be found in Numbers 6.

3). Both Preached Repentance.

Matthew 3:1-2, “In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’” 1 Kings 18:21, “Elijah went before the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.’” Elijah was preaching about repentance.

4). Their Appearance.

Matthew 3:4. “Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist.’” Their wardrobe could identify Elijah and John even from a distance. Most people wore robes of some cloth, and not many wore animal hair. 2 Kings 1:7-8. “The King asked them, ‘What kind of man was it who came to meet you and told you this?’ They replied, ‘He had a hair garment and a leather belt around his waist.’ The king said, ‘That was Elijah the Tishbite.’”

5). Both Preached Against the Behaviour of Evil Kings.

Elijah confronted Ahab and warned him of his wicked ways. 1 Kings 18:18. “I have not made trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “But you and your father’s family have. You have abandoned the Lord’s commands and have followed the Baals.” John confronted Herod Antipas or Herod the Tetrarch. Matthew 14:3-4, “Now Herod had arrested John and bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, for John had been saying to him: ‘It is not lawful for you to have her.’” The Herod who wanted to kill Baby Jesus is not the same here. This Herod is the son of Herod the Great.

6). Both Had Their Lives Sought by Wicked Queens.

Queen Jezebel wanted to kill Elijah. 1 Kings 19:2, “So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, ‘May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.’” Herod secretly loved John because of his wisdom. (Mark 6:20). But Herodias didn’t like John for standing against their marriage. This made her have hatred for John as she masterminded his death. Matthew 14:8-11 “So she, having been prompted by her mother, said, “Give me John the Baptist’s head here on a platter.” And the king was sorry; nevertheless, because of the oaths and those who sat with him, he commanded it to be given to her. So, he sent and had John beheaded in prison. And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother.

7). Both Suffered from Depression and Doubt.

Elijah suffered from depression. 1 Kings 19:4, “He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, Lord,’ he said. ‘Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.’” When John was in prison, he was depressed and doubted the identity of his cousin Jesus. When you are lonely and frustrated, Satan attacks your mind. This is why it is essential to always fellowship with other believers. Matthew 11:2-3, “When John, who was in prison heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples to ask him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?’”

8) They lived or ate in the wilderness.

1 kings 17:3 “Get away from here, turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan.” Verse 6 says, “The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook.” Matthew 3:4 “Now John himself was clothed in camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist; and his food was locusts and wild honey. (According to Leviticus 11:21-22, a locust is a clean animal.)

9). Both were men of prayers and fasting.

1 kings 19:8, “So he arose, ate and drank; and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights as far as Horeb, the mountain of God. Mark 2:18, “Then they said to Him, “Why do the disciples of John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?” John the Baptist was fasting often and making prayers because Elijah did. James 5:17 says, “Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.

10). Both were Prophets.

Luke 1:76. “And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Highest; for you will go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways.” Luke 7:28, “For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist, but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” 1 kings 18:36 says, “And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant and that I have done all these things at Your Word.”