,,the ,,man ,,who ,,did ,,not ,,die     
,,altemus' ,,beautiful ,,stories        
,,series   ,,the ,,man ,,who ,,did ,,not
 ,,die  ,,the ,,story ,,of ,,elijah     
,,by  ,j4 ,h4 ,,willard4   ,,illustrated
  ,,philadelphia ,,henry ,,altemus      
,,company   ,altemus' ,illustrated      
,beautiful ,stories ,series  ,,the      
,,first ,,christmas4 ,,the ,,first      
,,easter4 ,,once ,,in ,,seven ,,years4  
,the ,story of the ,jubilee ,,with      
,,hammer ,,and ,,nail4           ,the   
,story of ,jael and ,sisera ,,five      
,,kings ,,in ,a ,,cave4          ,the   
,story of a ,great ,battle ,,the        
,,wisest ,,man4          ,the ,story of 
,solomon ,a ,,farmer',s ,,wife4         
,the ,story of ,ruth ,,the ,,man ,,who  
,,did ,,not ,,die4          ,the ,story 
of ,elijah ,,when ,,iron ,,did ,,swim4  
,the ,story of ,elisha ,,what ,,is      
,,sweeter ,,than ,,honey4          ,the 
,story of ,samson  ,twenty-five ,cents  
,each  ,copyright1 #aijf ,by ,henry     
,altemus    ,,the ,,man ,,who ,,did     

,,not ,,die4  ,,after the death of ,king
 ,solomon1 his son ,rehoboam became     
ruler of the ,israelites4 ,the          
prodigality and magnificence of         
,solomon's court1 and his lavish way of 
living had been met by heavy taxation4  
,seeing the vast revenues of the kingdom
 employed in this way1 the people had   
grown discontented1 and then disloyal4  
,after ,rehoboam had become king1 the   
,israelites appealed to him to lighten  
the taxes and other heavy burdens which 
oppressed the poor4 ,instead of         
following the advice of his older       
counsellors1 and releasing the people   
from some of their burdens1 the new king
 hearkened to the counsel of the younger
 men who had grown up with him and      
scornfully rejected the petition of his 
subjects4  ,image3 ,,the ,,king         
,,scornfully ,,rejected ,,their         
,,petition4  ,a very ambitious man named
 ,jeroboam presented the petition to    
,rehoboam1 and upon its rejection1 ten  
tribes revolted and made ,jeroboam their

 ruler under the title of ,king of      
,israel4  ,the remainder of the         
,israelitish nation from this time were 
known as the ,kingdom of ,judah4        
,jerusalem remained its capital1 and    
,god was worshipped in the magnificent  
temple built by ,king ,solomon4 ,it also
 maintained the regular priesthood1 its 
officers descending as formerly from    
father to son4  ,among the twenty       
sovereigns of ,judah1 there were a few  
who served ,god sincerely4 ,the best    
four of the kings were ,asa1            
,jehosaphat1 ,hezekiah and ,josiah4 ,asa
 fought against the worship of idols    
which had corrupted the people1 yet he  
made an alliance with the ,king of      
,syria1 who was an idolater4            
,jehosaphat1 his son1 ruled the kingdom 
of ,judah for twenty-five years1 and1   
although he did not always do right1 his
 reign was a quiet one4  ,image3 ,,asa  
,,read ,,the ,,law ,,of ,,god ,,to ,,the
 ,,people4  ,hezekiah waged a vigorous  
war against the worship of idols1 and1  

as far as he was able1 restored the     
worship of ,god in the temple4 ,the     
,bible says of everything he undertook  
for the glory of ,god that he did it    
with all his heart1 and prospered4      
,image3 ,,hezekiah ,,destroyed ,,the    
,,idols ,,in ,,the ,,temple4  ,hezekiah 
was a very brave man1 and when          
,sennacherib1 the ,king of ,assyria1    
sent an army against ,jerusalem1 his    
speech to the people1 telling them to be
 strong and courageous1 for ,god would  
help them and fight for them1 was not   
unlike that of ,joshua when he exhorted 
the ,israelites to trust in ,god1 at the
 time when they were about to enter the 
land of ,canaan4  ,image3 ,,sennacherib1
 ,,king ,,of ,,assyria4  ,the prophet   
,isaiah lived during the reign of       
,hezekiah4 ,at one time when the king   
was very sick he prayed to ,god that his
 life might be spared4 ,god told ,isaiah
 to tell him that ,he had heard his     
prayer1 and that ,he would heal him1 and
 prolong his life for fifteen years4    

,when ,isaiah had delivered ,god's      
message1 ,hezekiah asked for a sign that
 these things should be done1 and       
,isaiah said that he might decide       
whether the shadow upon the sundial     
should go forward ten degrees or go     
backward ten degrees4  ,hezekiah replied
 that it was an easy thing for the      
shadow to go forward ten degrees1 and   
asked that it might go backwards4 ,god  
moved the shadow as the king had asked1 
and he accepted it as a sign that his   
life was to be spared and his days      
lengthened4  ,image3 ,,god ,,moved ,,the
 ,,shadow ,,backwards4  ,josiah was only
 eight years old when he came to the    
throne of ,judah4 ,he served ,god while 
yet a child1 and devoted his life to    
,his service4 ,he reigned for more than 
thirty years1 and was killed at last by 
an arrow while defending his kingdom    
against ,necho1 ,king of ,egypt4        
,image3 ,,josiah ,,was ,,only ,,eight   
,,years ,,old4  ,image3 ,,josiah ,,was  
,,killed ,,by ,,an ,,arrow4  ,in spite  

of the repeated warnings of ,god's      
prophets1 the people continued to       
worship idols1 until as a punishment the
 kingdom was entirely broken up4 ,after 
a siege lasting sixteen months1         
,nebuchadnezzar1 ,king of ,babylon1 took
 the city of ,jerusalem1 burned the     
,temple1 and carried away as prisoners  
all the inhabitants who had survived the
 horrors of the siege4 ,this was the end
 of the ,kingdom of ,judah1 and the     
beginning of the period known as the    
captivity4  ,for some time after the    
separation of ,israel from ,judah1 there
 was war between the two kingdoms1 but  
later they formed an alliance to prevent
 the ,king of ,syria from encroaching   
upon them4 ,still later the old enmity  
broke out again4 ,there were nineteen   
,kings of ,israel in all1 and city after
 city became the capital of the kingdom1
 until in the time of its sixth king    
,samaria became the seat of government4 
,omri was the ,king who built ,samaria1 
,the monarchs who preceded him were     

conspicuous for evil doing1 but ,omri   
exceeded them in wickedness4 ,the reign 
of his son ,ahab was still worse1 and of
 this ,king of ,israel the ,bible says1 
,ahab did more to provoke the ,lord ,god
 of ,israel to anger than all the ,kings
 of ,israel that were before him4       
,image3 ,,ruins ,,of ,,samaria4 ,from a 
photograph4  ,ahab married ,jezebel1 a  
,phnician princess1 and this was the    
crowning point of his sinful career4    
,jezebel was unprincipled and           
intolerant1 and as ,ahab was a weak man1
 he became little more than a tool in   
her hands4 ,she introduced at once the  
worship of ,baal and ,ashtoroth1 the    
male and female gods of her own country4
 ,she caused a great temple to be built 
on the brow of a hill1 and there the    
worship of these idols was carried on4  
,four hundred and fifty priests and     
attendants administered the services of 
,baal1 and four hundred those of        
,ashtoroth4  ,not content with          
introducing this heathen worship1       

,jezebel persecuted the few among the   
nation who remained faithful to the     
worship of ,god4 ,she caused their      
altars to be destroyed1 and to save     
their lives they fled to the wildest    
solitudes1 and hid in caves1 as their   
forefathers had done in the days of the 
,judges4  ,while all this was taking    
place1 and while ,ahab was occupying    
himself with the building of a splendid 
palace at ,jezreel1 a new and startling 
figure appeared upon the scene4 ,none   
knew whence the mysterious stranger     
came1 as1 wrapped in a rough cape1 or   
mantle1 of sheepskin1 he confronted the 
astonished king4  ,the name of this     
strange visitor was ,elijah1 a man of   
whom it has been said that he was the   
grandest and most romantic character    
that ,israel ever produced4 ,his long1  
thick hair indicated remarkable powers  
of endurance1 and in addition to his    
sheepskin mantle he wore a girdle made  
from the skin of some animal1 which in  
the fashion of the day he tightened when

 about to move quickly4  ,image3 ,,the  
,,name ,,of ,,this ,,strange ,,visitor  
,,was ,,elijah4  ,elijah was one of     
,god's prophets1 and his mission was to 
announce to ,ahab that a judgment was   
about to fall upon the land1 because the
 people had forsaken the worship of     
,god1 and bowed down to idols instead4  
,this punishment was to be in the shape 
of a drought1 at all times a terrible   
infliction1 but especially so in        
,eastern countries where all vegetation 
quickly dries up when there is a        
scarcity of water4  ,image3 ,,result    
,,of ,,drought ,,in ,,palestine4 ,from a
 photograph4  ,elijah's message was very
 brief1 and before the king had         
recovered from his astonishment1 the    
prophet had departed as abruptly as he  
had appeared4  ,we have no record that  
,elijah had any settled home4 ,the wild 
paths of the wilderness and the         
mountains were familiar to him1 and he  
dwelt where some spreading tree would   
afford him a leafy shelter4 ,he moved   

from place to place1 according to ,god's
 commands4 ,now1 as he left the presence
 of ,ahab1 ,god's word came to him1     
directing him to turn to the eastward1  
and hide by the brook ,cherith4  ,elijah
 stayed in this retreat as long as the  
falling stream afforded water to quench 
his thirst1 and during this time he was 
fed by ravens1 who1 twice each day1     
brought him bread and meat4 ,after a    
while the brook dried up1 and the leaves
 which had protected him from the fierce
 sun shriveled and fell to the ground1  
for the promised drought was upon the   
land4  ,image3 ,,elijah ,,was ,,fed     
,,twice ,,each ,,day ,,by ,,ravens4     
,again the word of ,god came upon       
,elijah1 telling him what road to take  
to his next shelter4 ,across the        
mountains of ,lebanon1 where the brooks 
were as dry as that of ,cherith1 the    
prophet made his way4 ,descending their 
further slopes1 he crossed the plains at
 their feet1 and with his face still    
towards the sea1 approached the village 

or town of ,zarephath4 ,the modern      
village of ,sura-flud is supposed to    
occupy its site1 and the ruins of the   
ancient town are to be seen there4      
,image3 ,,the ,,site ,,of ,,zarephath4  
,from a photograph4  ,elijah was now in 
,phnicia1 the native country of         
,jezebel1 the wife of ,king ,ahab4 ,it  
would seem to be the last place in which
 an enemy of ,baal would seek refuge1   
but ,elijah knew that ,god had a purpose
 in sending him there4 ,ethbaal1 the    
father of ,jezebel1 was the ,king of    
,phnicia1 and the famine which followed 
the drought had reached that country1   
and was causing terrible suffering4     
,just outside ,zarephath1 ,elijah found 
a woman gathering sticks for firewood4  
,she was a widow1 and in such poverty   
that all the food she had in the world  
was a handful of meal and a little oil  
in a bottle or jar4 ,consumed with      
thirst1 ,elijah asked her for water1    
and1 as she turned to bring it1 he asked
 her also for a piece of bread4  ,sadly 

the woman told him she had no bread4    
,she was gathering sticks to make a fire
 over which she would cook the handful  
of meal and the little oil remaining in 
the bottle4 ,when she and her son had   
eaten this1 they would have no more     
food1 and in consequence would die of   
hunger4  ,image3 ,a ,,woman ,,gathering 
,,sticks ,,for ,,firewood4  ,it is      
probable that this woman was an         
,israelite1 and not a worshipper of     
,baal1 for1 when ,elijah told her to mix
 the meal and oil into a cake and bake  
it for him1 adding1 ,for thus saith the 
,lord ,god of ,israel1 the barrel of    
meal shall not waste1 neither shall the 
cruse of oil fail1 until the day that   
the ,lord sendeth rain upon the earth1  
the woman did as she was told1 evidently
 recognizing him as a prophet of ,god4  
,she fed him before she and her son     
tasted of food1 and gave him the shelter
 of her house as well2 and during all   
the time of drought and famine1 the     
supply of meal and oil never failed4    

,after a while1 trouble came upon the   
little household4 ,the widow's son      
suddenly became very sick and then died4
 ,the heart-broken mother demanded of   
,elijah why he had come to them only to 
slay her son4 ,the prophet replied1     
,give me thy son1 and taking the boy    
from his mother's arms1 carried him into
 his own chamber and laid him on the    
bed4  ,then ,elijah called upon ,god1   
and prayed that the child might be made 
alive again1 and ,god heard his prayer1 
for the boy sat up alive and well4      
,taking him in his arms1 the prophet    
carried the child to his mother1 who was
 so happy that she exclaimed1 ,now by   
this ,i know that thou art a man of     
,god1 and that the word of the ,lord is 
in thy mouth4  ,image3 ,,elijah         
,,carried ,,the ,,child ,,to ,,his      
,,mother4  ,the drought continued1 and  
the horrors of famine caused by the     
failure of all crops1 was felt in       
,samaria4 ,ahab was in despair4         
,everywhere horses and other animals    

were dying1 for there was not the       
scantiest grass or herbage of any kind  
for them to eat1 and everywhere the     
streams were dry4  ,the chief officer of
 ,ahab's household was a man named      
,obadiah4 ,he was a faithful servant of 
,god1 and during the bitter persecutions
 of ,jezebel1 had hidden an hundred     
persons who worshipped ,god1 in a cave  
and fed them there4 ,ahab now took      
,obadiah1 and set out on a desperate    
search for pasturage and water for the  
animals1 the king going one way and his 
servant the other1 on what seemed a     
hopeless errand4  ,before ,obadiah had  
gone very far1 ,elijah suddenly stood   
before him4 ,quickly the prophet told   
him to go to ,ahab and tell him ,elijah 
is here4 ,obadiah feared that ,elijah   
would disappear before he could bring   
the king to him1 but1 reassured by      
,elijah1 he set forth to find ,ahab4    
,image3 ,a ,,field ,,in ,,palestine     
,,to-,,day4 ,from a photograph4  ,now   
,ahab had been searching throughout his 

kingdom for the mysterious stranger who 
had warned him of the coming drought1   
three years before2 so1 as soon as he   
learned from ,obadiah that the stranger 
had reappeared1 he went to meet him4    
,when he saw the prophet1 he asked him1 
,art thou he that troubleth ,israel8    
,elijah answered that he had not        
troubled ,israel1 but that ,ahab's evil 
reign1 and that of his father before    
him1 had been the cause of the drought4 
,then ,elijah denounced the idolatry of 
,ahab1 and followed this with a command 
to assemble his people on ,mount        
,carmel1 and bring also all the priests 
and attendants of ,baal and ,ashtoroth4 
,ahab did not dare to disobey1 and a    
great1 weary1 listless crowd assembled  
on the sun-burned slopes of the         
mountain4 ,the priests were there in    
gorgeous vestments1 and the king1       
himself1 all eager and expectant4 ,a    
spring of water1 apparently undiscovered
 before1 flowed not far away4  ,elijah  
appeared with only one attendant1 and   

soon his voice rang out4 ,how long halt 
you between two opinions8 ,if the ,lord 
be ,god1 follow him2 but if ,baal1 then 
follow him4  ,the amazed people stood   
speechless4 ,then ,elijah spoke again1  
saying he was hut one prophet1 while    
before him were four hundred and fifty  
of ,baal's prophets4 ,then he proposed a
 test of powers4  ,image3 ,,cultivating 
,,the ,,land ,,in ,,palestine           
,,to-,,day4 ,from a photograph4  ,he    
asked that two bullocks might be        
provided4 ,the priests of ,baal should  
take one1 and prepare it for sacrifice  
by laying it on the wood upon the altar 
to their god1 but they were to put no   
fire tinder it4 ,the other bullock he   
would prepare in the same way4  ,then   
the priests of ,baal were to call upon  
their god1 and he would call upon his   
,god1 and the ,god1 that answered by    
sending fire to consume the sacrifice   
offered to him1 was to be the ,god of   
the people4 ,the answer of the people1  
dejected with long endurance of misery1 

was ready1 and as one man they shouted1 
,it is well spoken4  ,the altar to ,baal
 was prepared1 with the sacrifice       
arranged upon it in proper form4 ,only  
fire was lacking4 ,loudly the priests of
 ,baal prayed4 ,wildly they leaped      
around the altar1 crying again and      
again1 ,o ,baal1 hear us4 ,the morning  
wore away1 and there was no response2 no
 fire appeared to consume the sacrifice4
  ,about noon1 ,elijah mocked the       
frantic priests1 saying to them1 ,cry   
aloud1 for he is a god2 either he is    
talking1 or he is pursuing1 or he is in 
a journey1 or peradventure he sleepeth1 
and must be awakened4  ,the priests of  
,baal accepted this advice in earnest4  
,they supplicated and raved more wildly1
 and wounded themselves in their frenzy1
 continually calling on ,baal to hear   
them4 ,and so the afternoon passed4     
,image3 ,,summit ,,of ,,mount ,,carmel  
,,to-,,day4 ,from a photograph4  ,as the
 sun was sinking1 ,elijah came near the 
altar which he had built with twelve    

stones--one for each of the tribes of   
,israel4 ,the sacrifice1 carefully      
prepared1 lay upon the wood4 ,all around
 the altar a trench had been dug1 and it
 was now filled with the water which had
 been poured upon the sacrifice4  ,then 
,elijah prayed to ,god1 asking him to   
let the people know that day that ,he   
was the ,god of ,israel1 and that it was
 by ,his command that he had done these 
things4 ,at the close of his prayer1    
fire unkindled by mortal hands broke    
out4 ,unchecked by the water1 it wrapped
 sacrifice and altar in flames and      
consumed them1 even licking up the water
 in the trench with its heated breath4  
,at this sight the people prostrated    
themselves as they cried out1 ,the      
,lord1 he is the ,god1 the ,lord1 he is 
the ,god4  ,image3 ,,elijah',s          
,,sacrifice ,,on ,,mount ,,carmel4  ,the
 priests of ,baal1 who were largely     
responsible for the idolatry of the     
nation1 stood trembling and confounded4 
,quickly ,elijah ordered them to be     

destroyed1 and this was done4 ,next he  
turned to ,ahab1 and told him to eat and
 drink in haste1 for the long deferred  
rain was at hand1 although no sign of   
its approach was in sight4  ,attended   
only by his servant1 ,elijah then went  
to the top of ,mount ,carmel1 and       
crouched upon the ground in the position
 of meditation commonly assumed in      
,eastern countries4 ,he sent his servant
 to a spot which commanded a view of the
 ,mediterranean ,sea1 bade him look     
around1 and bring him word of what he   
saw4  ,six times the servant returned   
with the word that he saw nothing4 ,the 
seventh time his report was that he     
could see a little cloud1 not larger    
than a man's hand1 coming out of the    
sea4 ,sending the man to warn ,ahab that
 the rain was fast approaching1 and that
 he must start at once for home1 ,elijah
 then hastened down the mountain to meet
 the king at its foot4  ,image3 ,a      
,,little ,,cloud ,,coming ,,out ,,of    
,,the ,,sea4  ,with all the speed he    

could command1 ,ahab barely reached his 
palace at ,jezreel in time to escape the
 fury of the storm4 ,elijah ran before  
the royal chariot the entire distance of
 sixteen miles1 but he did not enter the
 palace4  ,thus far the triumph was with
 ,elijah4 ,the people were convinced1   
the priests of ,baal were dead1 the king
 was awe-struck4 ,but ,jezebel was      
relentless in her hatred of the prophet4
 ,so furious was she when ,ahab told her
 what had been done that day1 that she  
sent a message to ,elijah1 telling him  
that before another day had passed she  
would have his life4 ,prophet though he 
was1 ,elijah quailed before the threat  
of the idolatrous queen1 and fled for   
his life4  ,leaving his servant at      
,beer-sheba1 ,elijah went a day's       
journey into the wilderness1 threw      
himself down under a solitary bush1 and 
in a fit of despair1 prayed that he     
might die4 ,worn out with excitement and
 fatigue1 he fell asleep1 but woke to   
find food and water beside him1 and an  

angel who told him to refresh himself   
with the provisions ,god had sent him4  
,image3 ,,elijah ,,woke ,,to ,,find ,,an
 ,,angel ,,beside ,,him4  ,twice ,elijah
 ate and drank of the miraculous food1  
and then in its strength traveled forty 
days and forty nights until he came to  
,mount ,horeb1 the place where ,moses   
received the divine command to rescue   
the ,israelites from ,pharaoh4  ,elijah 
found shelter in a cave1 and there he   
heard the voice of ,god1 asking1 ,what  
doest thou here1 ,elijah8 ,the answer of
 the prophet was one of bitterness and  
depression1 but his complaints were cut 
short by a command to come out of the   
cave1 and behold the wonderful works of 
,god4 ,drawing his mantle about him1    
,elijah went out on the mountain side to
 watch4  ,as he stood there1 a mighty   
wind roared among the rocks and rent    
them to pieces4 ,then an earthquake     
shook the desert1 until the mountain    
itself trembled under the shock4 ,then  
fire as mysterious as that which        

illuminated the bush in the days of     
,moses1 played about the lonely heights4
 ,after a pause1 a still1 small voice   
whispered in the ear of the solitary    
watcher a revelation conveying comfort1 
and pointing out further duty4          
,strengthened and comforted1 ,elijah    
left the lonely mountain behind him1 and
 shortly came across the man who was to 
cheer him as a companion1 and succeed   
him as a prophet4  ,image3 ,a ,,storm   
,,in ,,palestine4 ,from a photograph4   
,this man was ,elisha1 the son of       
,shaphat4 ,he was ploughing the fields  
around his home with twelve yoke of     
oxen4 ,as he passed him1 ,elijah cast   
his well-known mantle upon ,elisha1 who 
recognized in the action that from that 
time he was to be the attendant and     
friend of the prophet4 ,bidding his     
father and mother goodbye1 ,elisha      
followed ,elijah1 thus beginning a long 
period of service and intercourse with  
him4  ,image3 ,,elisha ,,was ,,ploughing
 ,,his ,,fields4  ,the disappearance of 

,elijah after his triumph over the      
priests of ,baal1 probably caused ,ahab 
and ,jezebel to believe that they had   
seen the last of the prophet4 ,they     
certainly went on in their wicked ways1 
for soon we read that ,ahab coveted the 
vineyard of a man named ,naboth4 ,this  
vineyard was quite near the walls of    
,ahab's palace1 and he wished to turn it
 into a garden4  ,but ,naboth would not 
sell his vineyard or exchange it for    
another1 because it had belonged to his 
family for a very long time4 ,his       
refusal made ,ahab so angry and         
disappointed that he threw himself upon 
his bed1 and refused to eat or even to  
speak4 ,in this state ,jezebel found    
him1 and at once began to comfort him1  
telling him he should have his vineyard4
  ,the first thing this wicked woman did
 was to bribe witnesses to say that     
,naboth had spoken evil of ,god and also
 of the king4 ,naboth was condemned and 
stoned to death4 ,ahab then took        
possession of the vineyard1 and as he   

was walking in it one day1 he saw       
,elijah coming towards him4 ,tremblingly
 the wicked king exclaimed1 ,hast thou  
found me1 ,o my enemy8 ,elijah replied  
that he had sought him1 not because he  
was his enemy1 but to tell him he was to
 be punished1 because all his life he   
had done wrong4  ,image3 ,,false        
,,witnesses ,,testified ,,against       
,,naboth4  ,ahab was killed in battle   
three years afterwards1 and later1      
,jezebel met with a terrible death1 for 
she was thrown from a window by her own 
servants1 and crushed to death on the   
stones below4  ,image3 ,,the ,,death    
,,of ,,jezebel4  ,when the time came for
 ,elijah's work on earth to cease1 he   
took ,elisha with him to a place called 
,gilgal4 ,they crossed the ,river       
,jordan in a manner as wonderful as that
 of the passage of the ,israelites into 
,canaan1 many years before4 ,elijah     
struck the waters with his mantle and   
they parted1 leaving2 a pathway over    
which the two walked in safety4  ,image3

 ,,elijah ,,struck ,,the ,,waters ,,with
 ,,his ,,mantle4  ,there1 while these   
two men of ,god were talking together1 a
 chariot of fire and horses of fire     
appeared1 and parted them4 ,elijah was  
swept up into the chariot1 and was      
carried away into heaven4 ,but before he
 disappeared1 his mantle fell from him4 
,elisha took it up1 and with it received
 the power of performing miracles which 
,god had given to ,elijah1 the man who  
did not die4  ,image3 ,,elijah ,,was    
,,swept ,,up ,,into ,,the ,,chariot4