It was a fair afternoon in Jezreel when a letter came to the elders of the city to carry out a heinous crime against an innocent man. Without remonstrance, the elders of Jezreel proclaimed a fast in the name of the LORD, took this innocent man, and got false accusers to accuse him falsely of blasphemy. Leading him outside the city, the elders and people stoned him to death. Tidings reached Queen Jezebel, who wrote the letter and detailed the plan, that her wishes were done. Happily, she told her husband to go for the dead man’s beautiful vineyard that bordered his palace in Jezreel.
While the King happily went for “his” new vineyard, Elijah the prophet met him with the Divine sentence:
“Hast thou killed, and also taken possession”?
On hearing the Divine sentence, King Ahab humbled himself and fasted for days. Like Naboth, Mary Magdalene was also set up into adultery by the Rulers and Pharisees, just to get a chance to condemn Christ. Casting her before Him, they detailed her sins and sought her death, but unlike Naboth, Christ saved her by a simple judgement:
” He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her “
He that saved Mary Magdalene from death, also had mercy on Ahab. When Ahab repented, God delayed His judgments until Ahab’s death. Oh, merciful Father. Behold the mercy of God, who easily and freely pardons the erring, but repentant. How many of us, given the chance, would have freely killed Ahab in return for his heinous crime against Naboth? How many of us can freely forgive when offended?
Yet God is so merciful that he freely saved the accused and mercifully forgave the murderer. Oh that we had such a forgiving heart. How many unnecessary murders, broken homes, pain, tears, etc., would have been avoided?
Isn’t it wonderful, that God easily forgave Ahab for his murder? Even more wonderful is His pardon of David for killing Uriah and taking his wife. Oh, that we would have such a merciful and forgiving heart. For blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
As Naboth was stoned outside the city through false accusations, so was Christ also killed outside the city by the elders through false accusations. Yet he easily forgave them, even on the cross, and saved the thief.
Nothing touches my heart as the love and mercy of God. That is my utmost desire and wish on this beautiful Sabbath. That all may be imbued with the love and mercy of God is my prayer… Happy Sabbath to all.
