The Dance of Passover
In 1 Kings 18, Elijah assembled Israelites on Mount Carmel in what was to be an epic showdown between Yahweh and Baal, whom Israel was following at the time. Ahab and Jezebel had led Israel into deep Baal worship, much like America’s ungodly, immoral leaders have done. The Democratic Convention in 2012 literally booed God “off the stage” and out of their platform. Why not? They had already expelled Him from their schools. The homosexual movement in America mocked God, using His symbol of covenant, the rainbow (Genesis 9:13-16), as their symbol. Obama followed suit, again mocking God’s covenant - marriage, this time - by lighting the White House in the colors of the rainbow when the Supreme Court made homosexual “marriage” the law of the land. Biden hung their rainbow flag front and center at the White House, pushing aside Old Glory to do so, as transvestites bared their “breasts” on the White House lawn. Ahab and Jezebel would have been proud.
In Elijah’s day, Israel was experiencing judgment for their idolatry and accompanying perversions, a three-year drought that was ravaging the land. America’s troubles, too, are from our rejection of God and His Word. Israel’s judgment was doing its work, and a turning was now possible. Thus, the showdown on Mount Carmel. I’m confident America’s shaking will turn us, as well.
Elijah prophesied that rain was coming (18:1) and then called for the contest. As preparations were being made, he challenged Israel, “How long will you halt between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him” (18:21; KJV). But the people said nothing. They still couldn’t decide between Yahweh and Baal. The word for “halt” (pasach)(1) is fascinating. The Hebrew language is pictorial. A word or number presents a picture that can represent several things; the meaning and/or application of the picture is determined by the context.
For example, picture the up and down movement of someone jumping or hopping; that is pasach. Therefore, it is the word for hop, skip, or dance. At other times, the up and down movement may not be celebratory, but painful, Thus, it is the word for limping, lame, halt (a synonym for limp), or hesitate (because to hesitate is to move backward and forward, mentally or physically, while trying to decide something). Pasach is also the word for “pass over”(Exodus 12:13, 23, 27), “When I see the blood I will pass over you.” The spirit of death “leapt” or “passed over” the Israelite homes that had the blood of lambs on the lintels of the doors. And a derivative, pesach, (2) is the word for “Passover.”
Putting this back into Elijah’s question to Israel, the Lord was asking them in 1 Kings 18:21, “Why are you hesitating, halting about who you honor, serve, and trust? You could and should be dancing the dance of covenant with Me, the dance of Passover. Instead, you are limping the limp of Baal.” The Complete Jewish Bible translates verse 21: "Elijah stepped forward before all the people and said, ‘How long are you going to jump back and forth between two positions? If Adonai is God, follow Him; but if it’s Baal, follow him!’ The people answered him not a word.”
Then the showdown began; Baal’s prophets went first. They tried to get him to answer by fire, but God had paralyzed the demons behind Baal. They couldn’t perform. His followers tried many things to get him to respond, including leaping and dancing (pasach). Don't miss the revealing irony that Holy Spirit is bringing by using the same word for their dancing worship of Baal as He uses for Israel’s limp. The dance of Baal always becomes the limp of Baal. Then, they cut themselves until blood “gushed” forth. Baal demands pain; he craves and demands bloodshed.
Meet America.
We in America danced the dance of Passover for many years. As a result, We were protected, given wealth and prosperity, and made the envy of the world. Then, we traded partners. We’ve been dancing with Baal for years now, mocking Adonai and His covenant, partying away. But like the Pied Piper, His “services” aren’t free. Baal required a price for the party, demanding the sacrifice of our children; now, he also wants their mutilation. He provoked our children to cut themselves, seeking peace they could not find. He then unleashed further violence and death in our land - murder, rape, riots, child abuse and more. We now stumble along with Baal’s painful limp, as he plays his bloody songs.
God is saying to America, just as He did Israel, “How long will you hesitate between opinions, limping Baal’s limp? Return to Me. We’ll celebrate the Passover Lamb again, dancing together in the joyous dance of freedom and victory. I’ll heal your wounds, restore your families, revive the land, and reinstate your destiny. We’ll run together, taking My salvation to the nations of the earth, healing the broken, freeing the oppressed.”
May 2024 be the breakthrough year for this! Join me, please, in asking.
Pray with me:
Father, we in America have sown the wind, and are now reaping the whirlwind. Like Israel, we traded the Passover dance for the limp of Baal. The death toll from this is in the tens of millions, and were it not for Your redemptive power and love, would ultimately be total annihilation. Mercy is being offered to us, however, not because we deserve it, but through the only appeal You accept, the blood of Your Son, Jesus.
Forgive us for spurning You for demons. Forgive us for sacrificing our children and families on the altar of pleasure and depravity. Forgive us for mocking You and Your covenant of marriage. We ask for the salvation of all who have been deceived into turning away from You and rejecting Your ways.
Lord, You broke the power of Baal off Israel, and You can do so for America. We ask for a reviving of America’s heart and soul, a deliverance from evil, and a return to good. You told us to ask for spiritual rain when we discerned it was possible (Zechariah 10:1). We are asking, and the rain is coming.
We believe 2024 can be a breakthrough year. We ask You for this, and all we have prayed for today, in Christ’s name. Amen.
Our decree:
We decree that in 2024, America will choose the dance of Passover, rejecting the limp of Baal.
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James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no. 6452.
Ibid., ref. no. 6453.
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