So much for human logic.

God's plan is always full of surprise and mystery. I have written of this at length elsewhere, so here I will only underscore the fact of the recurring, seemingly inexplicable plan of God. While we might have chosen to leave Elijah there, standing toe to toe with Ahab, such was not the Father's plan. He had things He wished to accomplish deep within His servant's inner life, things that would prepare Elijah for encounters that might destroy a less-obedient, less-committed, and less-prepared servant. Hence, God immediately sent him away to a place of isolation, hidden from everyone, where he would not only be protected from physical danger but would also be better prepared for a greater mission.

For the godly hero to be useful as an instrument of significance in the Lord's hand, he must be humbled and forced to trust. He must, in other words, be "cut down to size." Or, as A. W. Tozer loved to say, "It's doubtful that God can bless a man greatly until He has hurt him deeply."1 It has been my observation over the years that the deeper the hurt, the greater the usefulness.

Often in the Old Testament the original names of places carry symbolic meanings. This is certainly the case with this Hebrew term "Cherith." Although today no one can identify the location of that brook, we do know that it derived its name from the original verb Cha-rath, which means "to cut off, to cut down." The word is used both ways in the Old Testament: as in being cut off from others or from the blessings of a covenant; and also of being cut down, as one might cut down tall timber. Thus, while at Cherith, the man who had been spokesman for God as he stood before Ahab would be "cut off" from all involvement and activities that might prove stimulating to him. At the same time, Elijah would be "cut down" to size as his Lord used that uncomfortable situation to force him to trust Him for each day's needs.

You see, there was one problem at this point: Elijah was a spokesman, but he was not yet, truly, a man of God. Let's examine why I say that. In 1 Kings 17:1 the writer describes Elijah as simply "Elijah the Tishbite." He came out of nowhere and suddenly stood before the king to deliver God's message. But by verse 24, as a result of his basic training experiences at Camp Cherith, he is addressed as "a man of God."

At the beginning of the chapter he is simply Elijah from the town of Tishbeh, somewhere in Gilead. But by the end of the chapter he emerges as a man of God. In between verses 1 and 24 is what I like to call Elijah's boot camp experience. So let's look at what that experience meant in the prophet's life.

The Prolonged Drought

When he first comes on the scene, Elijah, as God's mouthpiece, stands before King Ahab and announces that a drought is coming. But this will be no ordinary drought.

"Now Elijah the Tishbite ... said to Ahab, 'As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word'" (1 Kings 17:1). This simple, unknown spokesman, the man from nowhere, stands before the most powerful man in the land, whose domineering wife, Jezebel -- the power behind the throne -- is determined to rid Israel of all the prophets of Jehovah. Jezebel "destroyed the prophets of the Lord," says 1 Kings 18:4, killing them off as carelessly as she would swat flies. Nevertheless, Elijah, standing in front of Ahab, states unequivocally, "There will be a famine for years." And by announcing his source of information as "the Lord, the God of Israel," he is clearly defying Ahab's self-appointed importance.