Or me

Sometimes, at the place of birth in the city of Fisva, the prophet Elijah is called Elijah the Fesvitan .

Eliyahu means “My God” ( אלי “my God”; the short form of the name of God יהו in the synodal translation is translated as the Lord).

In Hebrew, directly in relation to the prophet Elijah, two spellings are used: אֵלִיָּהוּ [Eliyahu] (1 Kings 2:27 , 17-19 ) and אֵלִיָּה [Elijah] ( Mal. 4: 5 ). In the name Eliyahu ( al-Heb. אֵלִיָּהוּ ) the letter ה [x] ("hey") is pronounced glottal [h] . Due to the dissimilarity of languages ​​and the imperfection of the translation into Ancient Greek, Greek, Old Slavonic, and then Russian, the name Eliyahu was transformed into Elijah .

Elijah was a zealous champion of the purity of faith in the kingdom of Israel and a formidable denouncer of idolatry and wickedness. His activity dates back to the reign of Ahab , when the proud and power-hungry wife of the weak-minded king, the Phoenician Jezebel , decided to establish the cult of Baal and Astarte .

Tradition says that true zealots of piety were expelled from the country, and a staff of the priests of Baal was established at the court. A terrible exposer for trampling the shrine was the prophet Elijah, who performed many miracles to enlighten the wicked king. The history of his life and work is set forth in the Third and Fourth Books of Kings (1 Kings 17–20 and 4 Kings 1-3 ).

When the wickedness of Ahab reached an extreme degree, the prophet announced to the king that for his wickedness the country would suffer famine for several years ( 1 Kings 17: 1 ) ^[4] . But Ahab did not repent, the struggle between the king and the prophet began, ending with the triumph of the latter. During the sacrifice on Mount Carmel (Carmel) , designed to test and compare the power of Yahweh and Baal, the priests of the latter suffered a complete defeat and were personally executed by the prophet (1 Kings 18:40 ). This infuriated Jezebel, who vowed to kill Elijah.

But the prophet went into the wilderness. Having visited Mount Sinai , Elijah returned to the kingdom of Israel , by the will of the Lord chose a disciple and successor in the person of Elisha , exposed Ahab to dishonest seizure of the vineyard at Naboth , and finally humbled Ahab and exposed his successor Ahaziah for his appeal to Akkaron’s idol Beelzebub .

In both Judaism and Christianity, it is believed that Elijah was taken alive to heaven: “suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared, and they were parted, and Elijah carried away in a whirlwind into heaven” (2 Kings 2:11 ). According to the Bible, only Enoch , who lived before the Flood ( Gen. 5:24 ), was taken alive to heaven before him. However, in Orthodox theology there is an opinion that Elijah was not ascended to heaven, but to some secret place, in which he awaits the day of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ ^[5] . According to church tradition, Elijah, together with Enoch, is one of the apocalyptic “ two witnesses ” ( Rev. 11: 3 ), who, at the end of their testimony, will be killed by a beast “emerging from the abyss ” ( Rev. 11: 7 ) ^[6] .

In the book of the Wisdom of Jesus, the son of Sirach, the event of the ascension of Elijah is described as follows: “Elijah was hidden by a whirlwind, and Elisha was filled with his spirit” ( Sirach. 48:12 ). According to the fourth book of Kings , Elijah left his outer garment (“grace”) to the prophet Elisha , dropping it to him already from the chariot of fire ( 2 Kings 2: 11-13 ).

The book of the prophet Malachi says that God will send the prophet Elijah back to earth: “Behold, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord” ( Mal. 4: 5 ). In Christianity, it is believed that we are talking about the Second Coming of Jesus Christ , although many believe that it was said about the prophet John the Baptist ( Matthew 17:12 ), ( Matthew 11:14 ), who came in the spirit of Elijah and which preceded the First the coming of Christ. Before the second coming of Jesus Christ, the prophet Elijah will descend from heaven to expose the false messiah ^[7] and turn the remnant of Israel to the true God - persuading the Jews to accept Christ. ^[eight]

• By the prayer of the prophet Elijah, the sky “came” and did not rain ( 1 Kings 17: 1 ), which caused a famine.
• According to the word of God, crows brought him food ( 1 Kings 17: 6 ) and an angel ( 3 Kings 19: 5-6 ). Later translators assumed that the word could mean not ravens, but Arabs, especially since it was a desert (both of these words were written in Hebrew the same way, but with different vowels: orvim - arabim) ^[9] .
• According to the prophet, the food in the house of the Sarept widow did not end ( 1 Kings 17: 13-16 ).
• He resurrected the youth of the Sarept widow ( 1 Kings 17: 21-22 ), who, presumably, later became the prophet Jonah - see the Sarept widow .
• He brought down fire on the altar ( 1 Kings 18: 36-38 ).
• Through his prayer, God gave rain to the earth after a three-year “imprisonment” of heaven ( 1 Kings 18: 41-45 ).
• He spoke with God face to face while covering his face ( 1 Kings 19: 9-14 ).
• He made fire from heaven both for the punishment of sinners and for the sign of true worship of God ( 2 Kings 1: 10-12 ).
• He divided the river Jordan like Moses, striking it with his clothes ( 2 Kings 2: 8 ).
• He was lifted up alive to heaven for special righteousness before God ( 2 Kings 2:11 ).

The prophet Elijah is mentioned several times in the New Testament. So, the episode is described as elders and people asked John the Baptist when he preached on the banks of the Jordan in the spirit and power of Elijah and even looked like him in appearance, is he Elijah? Also, the disciples of Jesus Christ, according to the Gospel of Matthew, asked Him if Elijah should come before the Messiah. To which Christ replied: “True, Elijah must come first and arrange everything; but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but did to him as they wanted; so the Son of Man will suffer from them ” ( Matt. 17: 11-12 ). Then the disciples realized that Jesus was talking about John the Baptist, who was beheaded ( Mark 6:28 ).

During the Transfiguration of Jesus Christ, Elijah the prophet appeared with Moses , and they talked with Jesus “ about His exodus, which he was to accomplish in Jerusalem ” ( Luke 9:31 ). According to John Chrysostom , " one dead and the other, not yet experienced death, " appeared to show that " Christ has power over life and death, dominates heaven and earth " ^[10] . It is assumed that he is one of two lamps facing God and must appear before the second coming of Christ to earth ( Rev. 11: 3-12 ). During the sufferings of Christ on the cross, some of the people thought that Christ was calling the prophet Elijah to help , and were waiting for him to come ^[11] .

In Jewish tradition, it is believed that Elijah must return to earth before the coming of the Messiah . Messiah (Messiah) in Hebrew means "anointed", that is, "anointed to the kingdom." The first king was anointed by the prophet (as directed from above) to reign. In the future, the kings were not required to be anointed by the prophet to reign. However, in a period of turmoil and turmoil, when it was not unambiguously clear who should be the next king, they resorted to the help of a prophet. For nearly two thousand years now there have been no prophets and kings. Obviously, the new king must be an anointed prophet, as this is the only way to find out who he should be. Before the arrival of Mashiach, Elijah will have to come down from heaven in order to anoint him to the kingdom.

Ilyas ( Arabic: إلياس ) is an Islamic prophet ( nabi ) sent to the people of Israel. Mentioned in the Quran twice. In the Qur'an he is called a messenger ( mursal ) ^[12] , a righteous man ( salih ) ^[13] , a believer ( mumin ) ^[14] .

Ilyas was sent to the Israelites, who retreated from the commandments of Allah , and began to worship idols. He was guided by the Shariah of Musa (Moses). The tribe of the prophet Ilyas erected in Baalbek, to his main idol Baal, a giant monument 8-10 meters high ^[15] . Ilyas urged his fellow tribesmen to renounce the worship of Baal, but his preaching was not accepted by his people. Ilyas’s fellow tribesmen considered his words a lie and expelled him, for which they suffered a severe punishment. The ongoing drought caused crop failure, livestock death and famine. The Israelites returned Ilyas, and they again began to obey him and worship Allah. Thanks to the prayers of the Prophet, it rained and the life in the tribe returned to normal. Over time, people again returned to idolatry, for which they became doomed to the eternal torment of hell ^[15] .

After leaving his tribe, Ilyas began to preach among other Israeli tribes, one of which received him well. Through prayer, Ilyas healed a young man named Al-Yasa , who became his faithful disciple and the next Israeli prophet. ^[15]

Islamic tradition tells the story of the righteous Ilyas, to whom Allah granted power over the rain, and then ascended to heaven. He travels the world all the time with Khidr , regularly visits Jerusalem and Mecca ^[14] . When he and Khidr part, they utter blessings to each other, repeating which people can protect themselves from fire, drowning, theft, bites of poisonous snakes and insects, etc. Sometimes Ilyas is identified with Khidr or the prophet Idris ^[16] .

The Prophet Ilya in the Slavic folk tradition is the lord of thunder, heavenly fire, rain, the patron saint of crops and fertility. Ilya is a “ formidable saint” ^[17] . In Russia, he was associated with his predecessor - the pagan Perun, the Thunder ^[18] . The notion that Ilya is riding a chariot across the sky, rattling and letting lightnings chase a snake is not a Slavic innovation. Their widespread existence even among the Byzantines is evidenced by the Life of Andrei the Holy One , written no later than the 10th century ^[19] . According to S. A. Ivanov , “the image of Elijah as a thunderer, traveling around the sky in a chariot, is the fruit of a late folk religious rethinking” ^[20] . N. M. Galkovsky claims that in connection with the introduction of Christianity in Russia, ancient beliefs in Perun mixed with new Christian ones, where many features of Perun were transferred to the Prophet Elijah ^[21] . The concept of lasting obscuration in Christian time by the prophet Elijah the god Perun is also expressed by B.A. Fishermen . Ilyin’s day was solemnly celebrated throughout Russia on July 20 and was celebrated with all the signs of an ancient pagan cult ^[22] . It is believed that this thunderstorm day was the original day of the thunder Perun. The substitution of Perun by Elijah took place even before the baptism of Russia, when only part of the Kiev nobility converted to Christianity: the treaty of Russia with Byzantium of 945 refers to pagan Rus sworn by Perun, and Christian Rus who took the oath in the cathedral church of the prophet Elijah ^[22] .

According to Slavic folk legends based on the book (biblical, Bogomil) tradition, Ilya was taken alive to heaven ^[17] . Until the age of 33, Ilya sat with a sydney and was healed and endowed with tremendous power by God and St. Nicholas (cf. Bogatyr ), after which he was ascended to heaven (eagles.), Cf. an epic story about Ilya Muromets ^[17] . The saint travels through the sky in a fiery (golden) chariot ^[23] . According to Ukrainian beliefs, the sun is a wheel from the chariot of Elijah the prophet, the Milky Way is the road that a prophet rides on, harnessed by fiery (white, winged) horses (v. Glories), or on a white horse (bulgarian), which thunder occurs. In winter, Ilya rides on a sleigh, so there is no thunder and thunder (eagles.). The strength of Ilya the Thunderer is so great that it has to be restrained: God laid a stone of 40 tithes on the head of Ilya (Orlov.), Bound him with one arm and leg (Carpathians); the sister of Ilya of Fire Maria hides from him the day of his holiday, otherwise he will beat the whole world with lightning (Serb.); at sv. Ilya has only his left hand; if he had both hands, he would have killed all the devils on earth ( banat ger). Before the end of the world, Ilya will go down to the earth and go round the world three times, warning of the Last Judgment (eagles.); will appear on earth to die or suffer martyrdom by cutting off his head on the skin of a huge ox that grazes on seven mountains and drinks seven rivers of water; the blood of the prophet spilled during this will burn the earth (Carpathians). According to a legend from Galicia, the end of the world will come when Ilya “so burns with thunder, then the earth is rosypitsi i spalitsi”; Wed Russian spiritual verse “On the Last Judgment”, in versions of which the saint acts as an executor of the will of the Lord, punishing the sinful human race ^[17] .

N. Veselovsky , referring to the Greek scholar Nicholas Politus , points out that some features of Helios and Zeus crossed the saint, as well as the similarity of the Greek customs of the day of Ilya the Prophet ( Ilya Gromovnik ) and the German-Slavic customs of Ivan the Day ^[24] .

The peaks of the Greek mountains often bear the name of St. Elijah, and in most of them rise the chapels dedicated to him. The most famous of them stands on the highest peak of Tayget, nicknamed "Mount St. Ilya ”already in the 18th century, according to the testimony of the laconic poet Nikita Nifaki. On the twentieth of July / [August 2], the day dedicated to the Eastern Church in memory of the prophet, pilgrims, having difficulty climbing to the top of the mountain, make many bonfires in the evening, which are thrown in honor of the holy incense. As soon as the surrounding residents envy these lights, they themselves start to burn heaps of hay and straw, dance around and jump over them. Great, next to the custom to burn bonfires in Taiget on the feast of St. Elijah, the absence of the same custom on June 24 / [July 7], known in other parts of Greece and throughout Europe ^[24] .

Often there is a confusion of Ilya of Muromets with Ilya the prophet. This confusion also occurred in the alleged epic homeland of Ilya Muromets, in the view of the peasants of the village of Karacharovo (near Murom), and in the stories of these peasants there was no connection between Ilya Muromets and Kiev and Prince Vladimir ^[25] .

• Ilyas - Ilya the Prophet in Islam
• Uatsilla - Ilya the prophet in the Ossetian epic and folk Orthodoxy
• Ilya the prophet in the mythology of Komi
• Folk christianity
• Tel Mar Ilyas - the hill with which Elijah ascended
• Cave of Elijah the Prophet ( Eng. Cave of Elijah ) - a cave in Mount Carmel , associated with Elijah.

• Ali-zade A. A. Ilyas // Islamic Encyclopedic Dictionary . - M .: Ansar , 2007 .-- 400 p. - (The Golden Fund of Islamic Thought). - ISBN 5-98443-025-8 .
• Ilya St. / O. V. Belova // Slavic antiquities : Ethnolinguistic dictionary: in 5 volumes / under the general. ed. N. I. Tolstoy ; Institute of Slavic Studies RAS . - M .: Int. Relations , 1999. - T. 2: D (Give) - K (Crumbs). - S. 405–407. - ISBN 5-7133-0982-7 .
• Veselovsky A. N. Favorites: Traditional spiritual culture. - M .: Russian Political Encyclopedia (ROSSPEN), 2009. - 624 p. - (Russian Propylaea). - ISBN 978-5-8243-1279-9 .
• Elijah // Orthodox Encyclopedia . - M .: Church Scientific Center "Orthodox Encyclopedia" , 2009. - T. XXII. - S. 236-259. - 752 s. - 39,000 copies. - ISBN 978-5-89572-040-0 .
• Lopukhin A.P. Elijah, the Prophet // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
• "The People's Bible": East Slavic etiological legends / Comp. and comment. O. V. Belova ; Repl. ed. V. Ya. Petrukhin. - M .: Indrik, 2004 .-- 576 p. - ( Traditional spiritual culture of the Slavs . Publication of texts). - ISBN 5-85759-290-9 .
• Piotrovsky M. B. Ilyas // Islam: Encyclopedic Dictionary / Otv. ed. S. M. Prozorov . - M .: Science ,GDVL , 1991 . - S. 93-94. - ISBN 5-02-016941-2 .

• Elijah - article from the Electronic Jewish Encyclopedia
• Cave of Elijah the Prophet in Haifa
• A selection of churches and chapels in Russia consecrated in the name of the holy prophet Elijah
• Alexander Valentinovich Amphitheaters. "Ilya the Thunder"