John Calvin Commentary James 5:17

"Elijah was a man of like passions with us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain; and it rained not on the earth for three years and six months." — James 5:17 (ASV)

Elias was a man. There are innumerable instances in Scripture of what he meant to prove, but he chose one that is remarkable above all others. It was a great thing that God should make heaven in a manner subject to the prayers of Elias, so as to obey his wishes. Elias kept heaven shut by his prayers for three years and a half; he again opened it, so that it poured down an abundance of rain. Thus appeared the wonderful power of prayer. Well known is this remarkable history, and is found in 1 Kings 17 and 1 Kings 18. And though it is not expressly said there that Elias prayed for drought, it may still be easily gathered that he did, and that the rain also was given to his prayers.

But we must notice the application of the example. James does not say that drought should be sought from the Lord because Elias obtained it, for we may by inconsiderate zeal presumptuously and foolishly imitate the Prophet. We must then observe the rule of prayer, so that it is by faith. He, therefore, thus applies this example—that if Elias was heard, so also we shall be heard when we rightly pray. For as the command to pray is common, and as the promise is common, it follows that the effect also will be common.

So that no one should object and say that we are far removed from the dignity of Elias, James places him in our own rank by saying that he was a mortal man and subject to the same passions as ourselves. For we profit less from the examples of saints because we imagine them to have been demigods or heroes who had special communion with God; thus, because they were heard, we gain no confidence. To shake off this pagan and profane superstition, James reminds us that the saints should be considered as having the weakness of the flesh, so that we may learn to ascribe what they obtained from the Lord not to their merits, but to the efficacy of prayer.

Thus it appears how childish the Papists are, who teach people to flee to the protection of saints because they had been heard by the Lord. For they reason in this way: “Because he obtained what he asked as long as he lived in the world, he will now after death be our best patron.” This kind of subtlety was altogether unknown to the Holy Spirit. For James, on the contrary, argues that as their prayers were so effective, so we should likewise pray today according to their example, and we will not do so in vain.