Elijah's Third Anointee: Jehu

Elijah's Third Anointee: Jehu

Next, we look at Elijah’s third anointee, Jehu. Because of the extension of time God gave Ahab in his role—due to his humility and repentance before God—the assignment God gave Elijah was delayed. This probably meant he was a little confused about why such a seeming urgent instruction from God took so long to come to completion. In this delegation and anointing from God, we see his candidate, Jehu—under God’s hand and Elijah’s covering—achieve in a short time what Elijah couldn’t do himself: the complete removal of Baal worship and satanic government leadership. Elijah, Elisha, and his servant were all essential and necessary in this outcome. This passage is a long read, but so very well worth it:

(2 Kings 9:1-13 LITV) And Elisha the prophet called to one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, “Gird up your loins and take this vial of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead. (2) And you shall go there, and you shall see there Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. And you shall go in and cause him to rise up from among his brothers. And you shall bring him to an inner room. (3) And take the vial of oil and pour on his head, and say, ‘So says Jehovah, I have anointed you as king to Israel.’ And you shall open the door and flee, and shall not wait.”

(4) And the young man went, the servant of the prophet, to Ramoth-Gilead. (5) And he came in; and, behold, the army commanders were sitting. And he said, “I have a word to you, O commander.” And Jehu said, “To which of all of us?” And he said, “To you, O commander.” (6) And he rose up and came into the house, and poured the oil on his head, and said to him, “So says Jehovah, the God of Israel, ‘I have anointed you as king to the people of Jehovah, to Israel. (7) And you shall strike the house of your lord Ahab, that I may avenge the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of Jehovah from the hand of Jezebel. (8) And all the house of Ahab shall perish. Yea, I have cut off to Ahab those who urinate against the wall, both bound and free in Israel. (9) And I have given up the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah. (10) And the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the portion of Jezreel. And there shall be none to bury her.’” And he opened the door and fled.

(11) And Jehu went out to the servants of his lord. And one said to him, “Peace? Why did this madman come to you?” And he said to them, “You know the man, and his message.” (12) And they said, “A lie! Tell us now.” And he said, “This and this he said to me, saying, ‘So says Jehovah, I have anointed you king over Israel.’” (13) And they hurried, and each man took his garment and put it under him on the bare steps, and blew with the ram’s horn, and said, “Jehu reigns!”

This has to be one of my favorite parts of the Old Testament; not because of the violent detail, but because we see how God’s word to Elijah [eventually] happened exactly as He said it would.

In this passage, we see the next step of fulfillment of the word God spoke to Elijah in his still, small voice. That voice might not have shaken the earth with booming volume, but the ramifications of what God said certainly shook history. Jehu was the third of the next generation of leaders that God told Elijah to anoint.

We note that although God told Elijah to do it, not only did this not come directly through Elijah; it didn’t even come through his successor, Elisha. No, the person who actually carried out this command was a second level of delegation—an unnamed “son of the prophets.” Obedience to God’s initial command came down through two generations. This shows a corporate and generational ownership of God’s instructive word sent through his prophet.

In the Bible, we see Elijah operating in God’s Spirit and in power. Then we see Elisha, this “son of the prophets,” and John the Baptist all operating in the same spirit and power—which the angel called the “spirit and power of Elijah” (Luke 1:17 ESV). This is one of the reasons I believe God wants us to receive and operate in it today. Elijah’s mandate still exists, and the spirit and power under which he operated is transferable. We can take it up for our generation and the one following (should Jesus’s return be delayed that long).

Naturally, in the New Testament church we operate in the spirit and power of Jesus. This transferred in full to the church at Pentecost, as described in Acts 2. Yet, all the anointings seen in the Old Testament—whether priest, prophet, king, Psalmist, Samson, warrior, wisdom, etc.—are all facets of Jesus’s anointing. So this vital aspect of it—the spirit and the power of Elijah—is part of our heritage and potential in Christ.

In the final two verses of the Old Testament, God promised that he would re-send Elijah the prophet:

(Malachi 4:5-6 ESV) “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. (6) And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.”

The New Testament begins with God’s angel promising Zechariah that his son, John the Baptist, would operate in the spirit and power of Elijah. Then, even though John wouldn’t say he was Elijah, Jesus did:

(John 1:21 ESV) And they asked him, "What then? Are you Elijah?" He said, "I am not." "Are you the Prophet?" And he answered, "No."

(Matthew 11:14 ESV) “and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come.”

Malachi promises, and John the Baptist’s ministry confirms, that this Elijah-type ministry is essential in preparing the way for Jesus: John prepared for the beginning of his ministry in human form; those in our day, who are prepared to operate in the same spirit and power, will prepare for his second coming. The Old Testament narrative conclusively confirms through Elisha and the un-named “son of the prophets,” that this anointing is transferrable from person to person and down through the generations. You can operate in this facet of Jesus’s anointing today.

God confided in Elijah, and through his faith released revelation into his heart that could change his world. Through Elijah, God then delegated and transferred the responsibility to deliver this word and anointing to Elisha and the “son of the prophets.” Then, ultimately it was released onto Hazael and Jehu who fulfilled it. This in itself is an illustration of the heart of this book. One of the keys to the spirit and power of Elijah is releasing the ministry of others. Elijah did some of the ministry himself—drought, fire, false prophet elimination, etc.—but complete success came in his mission when he heard God tell him to anoint another generation.

However, the new generation of anointed leaders could not have fulfilled their call without Elijah’s intercessory covering and relationship with God. He wasn’t able to complete his ministry without them; in part, they were his ministry. God prepared Elijah for his part by bringing him through the highs of success and the lows of complete brokenness and isolation. As a result, God brought him to a place of being ready and able to participate in the most significant and powerful aspect of his calling—an intimate, yielded relationship with God. As a result, God was able to reveal powerful revelations into a receptive, pure heart that He could trust.

Does this describe you? Has God brought you to a place where he trusts enough you to reveal to you his still small voice and intention—to release his word and thus his anointing through you onto those he shows you? You could do this as a prophet or a leader; but without that level of recognition, you can release what God shows you in prayer and prophetic intercession. If your mouth works, and if your heart is pure, God can use you in this today.