1 Kings 18
1 After many days, in the third year, the word of the LORD came to Elijah: “Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the face of the land.”
2 Elijah went to present himself to Ahab. The famine was severe in Samaria.
3 Ahab summoned Obadiah, who was in charge of the palace. Obadiah greatly feared the LORD.
4 When Jezebel was killing off the prophets of the LORD, Obadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them, fifty men in a cave, and had provided them with bread and water.
5 Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go through the land, to every spring and every stream. Perhaps we can find grass to keep the horses and mules alive, so we will not have to slaughter some of the animals.”
6 They divided the land between them to travel through it. Ahab went alone one way, and Obadiah went alone another way.
7 As Obadiah was on the road, Elijah came to meet him. He recognized him, fell facedown, and said, “Is it really you, my lord Elijah?”
8 He answered, “It is I. Go, tell your master, ‘Elijah is here.’”
9 Obadiah said, “What have I done wrong, that you are handing your servant over to Ahab to be killed?
10 As surely as the LORD your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to look for you. When they said, ‘He is not here,’ he made that kingdom and nation swear that they had not found 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 somewhere I do not know. I will go and tell Ahab, he will not find you, and he will kill me. Yet your servant has feared the LORD from my youth.
13 “Has no one told my lord what I did when Jezebel was killing the prophets of the LORD? I hid a hundred of the LORD’s prophets, fifty at a time, in 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 surely as the LORD of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, today I will present myself to him.”
16 Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him. Ahab went to meet Elijah.
17 When Ahab saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, you troublemaker of Israel?”
18 He answered, “I have not troubled Israel; you and your father’s house have. You have abandoned the LORD’s commands and followed the Baals.
19 Now send word and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, along with the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
20 Ahab sent word to all the Israelites and gathered the prophets at Mount Carmel.
21 Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you limp between two sides? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is, follow him.” The people did not answer him a word.
22 Elijah said to the people, “I alone remain as a prophet of the LORD, while Baal’s prophets number 450 men.
23 “Give us two bulls. Let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it into pieces, and lay it on the wood, but not set a fire to it. I will prepare the other bull, lay it on the wood, and not set a fire to it.”
24 “You will call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers with fire is God.” All the people answered, “That is a good proposal.”
25 Elijah said to Baal’s prophets, “Choose one bull for yourselves and prepare it first, since you are many. Call on the name of your god, but do not set a fire to it.”
26 They took the bull that had been given to them and prepared it. They called on Baal’s name from morning until noon, saying, “Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice and no answer. They kept leaping around the altar they had made.
27 At noon Elijah mocked them, saying, “Shout louder, for he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or has gone aside, or is on a journey. Perhaps he is asleep and will wake up.”
28 They shouted louder and cut themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until blood poured over them.
29 After noon they kept prophesying until the time of the evening offering, but there was no voice, no answer, and no response.
30 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 will be your name.”
32 With the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD, and he dug a trench around it, large enough to hold two seahs of seed.
33 He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces, and laid it on the wood.
34 Then he said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it over the offering and the wood.” He said, “Do it again.” They did it again. He said, “Do it a third time.” They did it a third time.
35 The water ran all around the altar, and he filled the trench with water too.
36 At the time of the evening offering, the prophet Elijah came near and said, “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 these people may know that you, LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back.”
38 Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the offering, the wood, the stones, and the soil, and licked up the water in the trench.
39 When all the people saw it, they fell facedown and said, “The LORD is God! The LORD is God!”
40 Elijah said to them, “Seize Baal’s prophets; let none of them escape.” They seized them, and Elijah brought them down to the Kishon stream and slaughtered them there.
41 Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of heavy rain.”
42 Ahab went up to eat and drink. Elijah went up to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground, and put his face between his knees.
43 Then he said to his servant, “Go up and look toward the sea.” He went up, looked, and said, “There is nothing.” Elijah said, “Go back seven times.”
44 On the seventh time, he said, “Look, a small cloud, as small as a man’s hand, is rising from the sea.” Elijah said, “Go up and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down, so the rain will not stop you.’”
45 Meanwhile, the sky grew dark with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. Ahab rode in his chariot and went to Jezreel.
46 The hand of the LORD came upon Elijah. He girded up his waist and ran ahead of Ahab all the way to the entrance of Jezreel.
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