Elijah’s Message to Ahab
1 And it came to passaftermany days that the word of theLordcame to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, present yourself to Ahab, andI will send rain on the earth.”
2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab; andtherewasa severe famine in Samaria.
3 And Ahab had called Obadiah, whowasin charge ofhishouse. (Now Obadiah feared theLordgreatly.
4 For so it was, while Jezebel massacred the prophets of theLord, that Obadiah had taken one hundred prophets and hidden them, fifty to a cave, and had fed them with bread and water.)
5 And Ahab had said to Obadiah, “Go into the land to all the springs of water and to all the brooks; perhaps we may find grass to keep the horses and mules alive, so that we will not have to kill any livestock.”
6 So they divided the land between them to explore it; Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
7 Now as Obadiah was on his way, suddenly Elijah met him; and herecognized him, and fell on his face, and said, “Isthat you, my lord Elijah?”
8 And he answered him, “ItisI. Go, tell your master, ‘Elijahishere.’ ”
9 So he said, “How have I sinned, that you are delivering your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me?
10 AstheLordyour God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to hunt for you; and when they said, ‘Heisnothere,’ he took an oath from the kingdom or nation that they could not find you.
11 And now you say, ‘Go, tell your master, “Elijahishere” ’!
12 And it shall come to pass,assoonasI am gone from you, thatthe Spirit of theLordwill carry you to a place I do not know; so when I go and tell Ahab, and he cannot find you, he will kill me. But I your servant have feared theLordfrom my youth.
13 Was it not reported to my lord what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of theLord, how I hid one hundred men of theLord’s prophets, fifty to a cave, and fed them with bread and water?
14 And now you say, ‘Go, tell your master, “Elijahishere.” ’ He will kill me!”
15 Then Elijah said, “AstheLordof 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 Then it happened, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said to him,“Isthatyou, Otroubler of Israel?”
18 And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s househave,in that you have forsaken the commandments of theLordand have followed the Baals.
19 Now therefore, sendandgather all Israel to me onMount Carmel, the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal,and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
Elijah’s Mount Carmel Victory
20 So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, andgathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel.
21 And Elijah came to all the people, and said,“How long will you falter between two opinions? If theLordisGod, follow Him; but if Baal,follow him.” But the people answered him not a word.
22 Then Elijah said to the people,“I alone am left a prophet of theLord;but Baal’s prophetsarefour hundred and fifty men.
23 Therefore let them give us two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and layiton the wood, but put no fireunderit;and I will prepare the other bull, and layiton the wood, but put no fireunderit.
24 Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of theLord; and the God whoanswers by fire, He is God.”
So all the people answered and said, “It is well spoken.”
25 Now Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one bull for yourselves and prepareitfirst, for youaremany; and call on the name of your god, but put no fireunderit.”
26 So they took the bull which was given them, and they preparedit,and called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, “O Baal, hear us!” Buttherewasno voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they had made.
27 And so it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Cry aloud, for heisa god; either he is meditating, or he is busy, or he is on a journey,orperhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened.”
28 So they cried aloud, andcut themselves, as was their custom, with knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them.
29 And when midday was past,they prophesied until thetimeof the offering of theeveningsacrifice. Buttherewasno voice; no one answered, no one paid attention.
30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” So all the people came near to him.And he repaired the altar of theLordthatwasbroken down.
31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of theLordhad come, saying,“Israel shall be your name.”
32 Then with the stones he built an altarin the name of theLord; and he made a trench around the altar large enough to hold two seahs of seed.
33 And heput the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laiditon the wood, and said, “Fill four waterpots with water, andpouriton the burnt sacrifice and on the wood.”
34 Then he said, “Doita second time,” and they didita second time; and he said, “Doita third time,” and they didita third time.
35 So the water ran all around the altar; and he also filledthe trench with water.
36 And it came to pass, atthetimeofthe offering of theeveningsacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “LordGod of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel,let it be known this day that YouareGod in Israel and IamYour servant, andthatI have done all these things at Your word.
37 Hear me, OLord, hear me, that this people may know that YouaretheLordGod, andthatYou have turned their hearts backtoYouagain.”
38 Thenthe fire of theLordfell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water thatwasin the trench.
39 Now when all the people sawit,they fell on their faces; and they said,“TheLord, HeisGod! TheLord, HeisGod!”
40 And Elijah said to them,“Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let one of them escape!” So they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the BrookKishon andexecuted them there.
The Drought Ends
41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; forthereisthe sound of abundance of rain.”
42 So Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel;then he bowed down on the ground, and put his face between his knees,
43 and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.”
So he went up and looked, and said, “Thereisnothing.” And seven times he said, “Go again.”
44 Then it came to pass the seventhtime,that he said, “There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!” So he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepareyourchariot,and go down before the rain stops you.’ ”
45 Now it happened in the meantime that the sky became black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab rode away and went to Jezreel.
46 Then thehand of theLordcame upon Elijah; and hegirded up his loins and ran ahead of Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.