1 Kings 18

¹ After many days, the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year: "Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth."

² So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria.

³ Ahab summoned Obadiah, who was over the household. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly.

⁴ When Jezebel was cutting off the prophets of the LORD, Obadiah took a hundred prophets, hid them fifty to a cave, and provided them with bread and water.)

⁵ Ahab said to Obadiah, "Go through the land to all the springs and all the wadis. Perhaps we can find grass to keep the horses and mules alive, so we will not lose any of the livestock."

⁶ They divided the land between them to pass through it. Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.

⁷ While Obadiah was on the road, Elijah met him. Obadiah recognized him, fell on his face, and said, "Is it you, my lord Elijah?"

⁸ He said to him, "It is I. Go, tell your master, 'Elijah is here.'"

⁹ He said, "How have I sinned, that you would hand your servant over to Ahab to kill me?

¹⁰ As the LORD your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent to search for you. When they said, 'He is not here,' he made that kingdom or nation swear that they could not find you.

¹¹ And now you say, 'Go, tell your master: Elijah is here.'

¹² When I leave you, the Spirit of the LORD will carry you off to who knows where. I will go tell Ahab, but when he cannot find you, he will kill me. Yet your servant has feared the LORD from my youth.

¹³ Was my lord not told what I did when Jezebel was killing the prophets of the LORD—how I hid a hundred of the LORD's prophets, fifty to a cave, and provided them with bread and water?

¹⁴ And now you say, 'Go, tell your master: Elijah is here.' He will kill me!"

¹⁵ Elijah said, "As the LORD of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely present myself to him today."

¹⁶ So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah.

¹⁷ When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, "Is it you, you troubler of Israel?"

¹⁸ He said, "I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father's house have, by abandoning the commandments of the LORD and following the Baals.

¹⁹ Now send and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, along with the four hundred fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah who eat at Jezebel's table."

²⁰ Ahab sent throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets at Mount Carmel.

²¹ Elijah approached all the people and said, "How long will you limp between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, follow him." The people did not answer him a word.

²² Elijah said to the people, "I alone am left as a prophet of the LORD, but Baal's prophets are four hundred fifty men.

²³ Let them give us two bulls. Let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it up, and put it on the wood but set no fire. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but set no fire.

²⁴ Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by fire—he is God." All the people answered, "The word is good."

²⁵ Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one bull for yourselves and prepare it first, for you are the many. Call on the name of your god, but set no fire."

²⁶ They took the bull that was given to them and prepared it, and they called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, "O Baal, answer us!" But there was no voice and no one answering. They limped around the altar they had made.

²⁷ At noon Elijah mocked them and said, "Cry louder! Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or has wandered off, or is on a journey. Perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened!"

²⁸ They cried louder and cut themselves with swords and lances, as was their custom, until the blood flowed over them.

²⁹ Midday passed, and they raved on until the time of the evening offering, but there was no voice, no one answering, no one paying attention.

³⁰ Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come near to me." All the people came near to him, and he repaired the altar of the LORD that had been torn down.

³¹ Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, "Israel shall be your name."

³² He built the stones into an altar in the name of the LORD. Then he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed.

³³ He arranged the wood, cut up the bull, and laid it on the wood. Then he said, "Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the wood."

³⁴ He said, "Do it a second time," and they did it a second time. He said, "Do it a third time," and they did it a third time.

³⁵ The water flowed around the altar, and he also filled the trench with water.

³⁶ At the time of the evening offering, the prophet Elijah came near and said, "O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel, that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word.

³⁷ Answer me, LORD, answer me, so that this people may know that you, LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back."

³⁸ The fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt offering, the wood, the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water in the trench.

³⁹ When all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, "The LORD—he is God! The LORD—he is God!"

⁴⁰ Elijah said to them, "Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let a single one of them escape!" They seized them, and Elijah brought them down to the Wadi Kishon and slaughtered them there.

⁴¹ Elijah said to Ahab, "Go up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of the rushing of rain."

⁴² Ahab went up to eat and drink. But Elijah went up to the top of Carmel, crouched down to the ground, and put his face between his knees.

⁴³ He said to his servant, "Go up and look toward the sea." He went up and looked and said, "There is nothing." Elijah said, "Go back seven times."

⁴⁴ On the seventh time he said, "A cloud as small as a man's hand is rising from the sea." Elijah said, "Go up, say to Ahab: Hitch up and go down before the rain stops you."

⁴⁵ Meanwhile the sky grew dark with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. Ahab rode and went to Jezreel.

⁴⁶ The hand of the LORD was on Elijah. He tucked his garment into his belt and ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.