And it came to pass in a little while, that the heaven grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel. And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel. THE MEANING OF THE STORY 301. In the beautiful city of Florence in Italy there was once a great prince named Lorenzo, whose reign was very splendid, but who oppressed the people and lived an evil life. The people followed his bad example and there was great immorality in Florence. But a fearless preacher came to the city who told the prince and the people plainly of their sins. Great crowds went to hear him and he became the most influential man in Florence. By his stirring words he compelled the government to give back the liberties to the people, and he led the citizens to promise to serve God with good lives. His enemies finally proved too strong for him and killed him, but this noble Italian preacher, Savonarola, left an influence that has lasted to this day. Among the heroes of Israel were some bold preachers, called prophets, who did not hesitate to denounce the sins of kings and people. One of the greatest of these was Elijah. 302 (§81A). Ahab was a very wicked king who married a princess from Sidon. Locate the city on the coast of Palestine. The Sidonians worshipped a god called Baal, and so the king built a temple for this idol in his capital. He thought he could go on serving the Lord and serve Baal also. Suddenly a man appeared in the court. He was roughly clad, not a man of the city. What startling message did he bring? 303 (§81B). While the drought came upon Israel the prophet was taken care of. Tell the story of Elijah at the brook. What happened to the brook at last? 304 (§81C). Elijah was east of the Jordan. He was sent to Zarephath near Sidon. Locate it. Tell the story of his conversation with the widow. The "cruse" was a flask or small jug for holding liquids. 305 (§81D). Many wonderful stories were told of this great prophet. Tell the story of the widow's son. Think of the prophet waiting all this time till he should be sent back to the king. 306 (§82A). At last Elijah's message came. How long had he waited? Meantime what was the condition in Israel, and Samaria the capital? Who was Obadiah? What had he done? What did the king and Obadiah undertake? 307 (§82B). Tell the story of Elijah's conversation with the timid Obadiah. This man was good, but he was having a hard time as the servant of a bad king. What bold answer did Elijah make to the king? What is a challenge? What challenge did Elijah make?