1 Kings 18
18
Elijah and Obadiah
1It was now three years since it had rained. A message came to Elijah from the Lord. He said, “Go. Speak to Ahab. Then I will send rain on the land.” 2So Elijah went to speak to Ahab.
There wasn’t enough food in Samaria. The people there were very hungry. 3Ahab had sent for Obadiah. He was in charge of Ahab’s palace. Obadiah had great respect for the Lord. 4Ahab’s wife Jezebel had been killing off the Lord’s prophets. So Obadiah had hidden 100 prophets in two caves. He had put 50 in each cave. He had supplied them with food and water. 5Ahab had said to Obadiah, “Go through the land. Go to all the valleys and springs of water. Maybe we can find some grass there. It will keep the horses and mules alive. Then we won’t have to kill any of our animals.” 6So they decided where each of them would look. Ahab went in one direction. Obadiah went in another.
7As Obadiah was walking along, Elijah met him. Obadiah recognized him. He bowed down to the ground. He said, “My master Elijah! Is it really you?”
8“Yes,” he replied. “Go and tell your master Ahab, ‘Elijah is here.’ ”
9“What have I done wrong?” asked Obadiah. “Why are you handing me over to Ahab to be put to death? 10My master has sent people to look for you everywhere. There isn’t a nation or kingdom where he hasn’t sent someone to look for you. Suppose a nation or kingdom would claim you weren’t there. Then Ahab would make them give their word that they couldn’t find you. And that’s just as sure as the Lord your God is alive. 11But now you are telling me to go to my master. You want me to say, ‘Elijah is here.’ 12But the Spirit of the Lord might carry you away when I leave you. Then I won’t know where you are. If I go and tell Ahab and he doesn’t find you, he’ll kill me. But I’ve worshiped the Lord ever since I was young. 13My master, haven’t you heard what I did? Jezebel was killing the Lord’s prophets. But I hid 100 of them in two caves. I put 50 in each cave. I supplied them with food and water. 14And now you are telling me to go to my master Ahab. You want me to say to him, ‘Elijah is here.’ Ahab will kill me!”
15Elijah said, “I serve the Lord who rules over all. You can be sure that he lives. And you can be just as sure that I will speak to Ahab today.”
Elijah on Mount Carmel
16Obadiah went back to Ahab. He told Ahab that Elijah wanted to see him. So Ahab went to where Elijah was. 17When he saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you? You are always stirring up trouble in Israel.”
18“I haven’t made trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “But you and your father’s family have. You have turned away from the Lord’s commands. You have followed gods that are named Baal. 19Now send for people from all over Israel. Tell them to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the 450 prophets of the god named Baal. Also bring the 400 prophets of the female god named Asherah. All of them eat at Jezebel’s table.”
20So Ahab sent that message all through Israel. He gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel. 21Elijah went there and stood in front of the people. He said, “How long will it take you to make up your minds? If the Lord is the one and only God, worship him. But if Baal is the one and only God, worship him.”
The people didn’t say anything.
22Then Elijah said to them, “I’m the only one of the Lord’s prophets left. But Baal has 450 prophets. 23Get two bulls for us. Let Baal’s prophets choose one for themselves. Let them cut it into pieces. Then let them put it on the wood. But don’t let them set fire to it. I’ll prepare the other bull. I’ll put it on the wood. But I won’t set fire to it. 24Then you pray to your god. And I’ll pray to the Lord. The god who answers by sending fire down is the one and only God.”
Then all the people said, “What you are saying is good.”
25Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one of the bulls. There are many of you. So prepare your bull first. Pray to your god. But don’t light the fire.” 26So they prepared the bull they had been given.
They prayed to Baal from morning until noon. “Baal! Answer us!” they shouted. But there wasn’t any reply. No one answered. Then they danced around the altar they had made.
27At noon Elijah began to tease them. “Shout louder!” he said. “I’m sure Baal is a god! Perhaps he has too much to think about. Or maybe he has gone to the toilet. Or perhaps he’s away on a trip. Maybe he’s sleeping. You might have to wake him up.” 28So they shouted louder. They cut themselves with swords and spears until their blood flowed. That’s what they usually did when things really looked hopeless. 29It was now past noon. The prophets of Baal continued to prophesy with all their might. They did it until the time came to offer the evening sacrifice. But there wasn’t any reply. No one answered. No one paid any attention.
30Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” So they went to him. He rebuilt the altar of the Lord. It had been torn down. 31Elijah got 12 stones. There was one for each tribe in the family line of Jacob. The Lord’s message had come to Jacob. It had said, “Your name will be Israel.” 32Elijah used the stones to build an altar to honor the Lord. He dug a ditch around it. The ditch was large enough to hold 24 pounds of seeds. 33He arranged the wood for the fire. He cut the bull into pieces. He placed the pieces on the wood. Then he said to some of the people, “Fill four large jars with water. Pour it on the offering and the wood.” So they did.
34“Do it again,” he said. So they did it again.
“Do it a third time,” he ordered. And they did it the third time. 35The water ran down around the altar. It even filled the ditch.
36When it was time to offer the evening sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward. He prayed, “Lord, you are the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. Today let everyone know that you are God in Israel. Let them know I’m your servant. Let them know I’ve done all these things because you commanded me to. 37Answer me. Lord, answer me. Then these people will know that you are the one and only God. They’ll know that you are turning their hearts back to you again.”
38The fire of the Lord came down. It burned up the sacrifice. It burned up the wood and the stones and the soil. It even dried up the water in the ditch.
39All the people saw it. Then they fell down flat with their faces toward the ground. They cried out, “The Lord is the one and only God! The Lord is the one and only God!”
40Then Elijah commanded them, “Grab the prophets of Baal. Don’t let a single one of them get away!” So they grabbed them. Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley. There he had them put to death.
41Elijah said to Ahab, “Go. Eat and drink. I can hear the sound of a heavy rain.” 42So Ahab went off to eat and drink. But Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel. He bent down toward the ground. Then he put his face between his knees.
43“Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. So he went up and looked.
“I don’t see anything there,” he said.
Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”
44The seventh time the servant said, “I see a cloud. It’s as small as a man’s hand. It’s coming up over the sea.”
Elijah said, “Go to Ahab. Tell him, ‘Tie your chariot to your horse. Go down to Jezreel before the rain stops you.’ ”
45Black clouds filled the sky. The wind came up, and a heavy rain began to fall. Ahab rode off to Jezreel. 46The power of the Lord came on Elijah. He tucked his coat into his belt. And he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.
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1 Kings 18: NIrV
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Holy Bible, New International Reader’s Version®, NIrV®
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1 Kings 18
18
Elijah and the Prophets of Baal
1During the third year without rain, the Lord spoke his word to Elijah. The Lord said, “Go and meet King Ahab. I will soon send rain.” 2So Elijah went to meet Ahab.
By this time there was no food in Samaria. 3So King Ahab sent for Obadiah. Obadiah was in charge of the king’s palace. (Obadiah was a true follower of the Lord. 4One time Jezebel was killing all the Lord’s prophets. So Obadiah took 100 of them and hid them in two caves. He put 50 in one cave and 50 in another cave. And he brought them food and water.) 5King Ahab said to Obadiah, “Let’s look at every spring and valley in the land. Maybe we can find enough grass to keep our horses and mules alive. Then we will not have to kill our animals.” 6So each one chose a part of the country to search. Ahab went in one direction. Obadiah went in another direction.
7While Obadiah was walking along, Elijah met him. Obadiah knew who Elijah was. So he bowed down to the ground before Elijah. He said, “Elijah? Is it really you, master?”
8Elijah answered, “Yes. Go tell your master the king that I am here.”
9Then Obadiah said, “If I tell Ahab that, he will kill me! I have done nothing wrong that I should be killed! 10As surely as the Lord your God lives, the king has looked everywhere for you! He has sent people to every country to look for you. If the ruler said you were not there, that was not enough. Ahab then forced the ruler to swear you could not be found in his country. 11Now you want me to go to my master and tell him, ‘Elijah is here’? 12The Spirit of the Lord may carry you to some other place after I leave. If I go tell King Ahab you are here, he will come. If he doesn’t find you, he will kill me! I have followed the Lord since I was a boy. 13Haven’t you heard what I did? When Jezebel was killing the Lord’s prophets, I hid 100 of them. I put 50 prophets in one cave and 50 prophets in another cave. I brought them food and water. 14Now you want me to go and tell the king you are here. He will kill me!”
15Elijah answered, “I serve the Lord of heaven’s armies. As surely as the Lord lives, I will stand before Ahab today.”
16So Obadiah went to Ahab and told him where Elijah was. Then Ahab went to meet Elijah.
17When he saw Elijah, he said, “Is it you—the biggest troublemaker in Israel?”
18Elijah answered, “I have not caused trouble in Israel. You and your father’s family have caused all this trouble. You have not obeyed the Lord’s commands. You have followed the Baals. 19Now tell all Israel to meet me at Mount Carmel. Also bring the 450 prophets of Baal there. And bring the 400 prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
20So Ahab called all the Israelites and those prophets to Mount Carmel. 21Elijah stood before the people. He said, “How long will you try to serve both Baal and the Lord? If the Lord is the true God, follow him. But if Baal is the true God, follow him!”
But the people said nothing.
22Elijah said, “I am the only prophet of the Lord here. But there are 450 prophets of Baal. 23So bring two bulls. Let the prophets of Baal choose one bull. Let them kill it and cut it into pieces. Then let them put the meat on the wood. But they are not to set fire to it. Then I will do the same with the other bull. And I will put it on the wood. But I will not set fire to it. 24You prophets of Baal, pray to your god. And I will pray to the Lord. The god who answers the prayer will set fire to his wood. He is the true God.”
All the people agreed that this was a good idea.
25Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “There are many of you. So you go first. Choose a bull and prepare it. Pray to your god, but don’t start the fire.”
26So they took the bull that was given to them and prepared it. They prayed to Baal from morning until noon. They shouted, “Baal, answer us!” But there was no sound. No one answered. They danced around the altar they had built.
27At noon Elijah began to make fun of them. He said, “Pray louder! If Baal really is a god, maybe he is thinking. Or maybe he is busy or traveling! Maybe he is sleeping so you will have to wake him!” 28So the prophets prayed louder. They cut themselves with swords and spears until their blood flowed. (This was the way they worshiped.) 29The afternoon passed, and the prophets continued to act wildly. They continued until it was time for the evening sacrifice. But no voice was heard. Baal did not answer. No one paid attention.
30Then Elijah said to all the people, “Now come to me.” So they gathered around him. Elijah rebuilt the altar of the Lord because it had been torn down. 31He took 12 stones. He took 1 stone for each of the 12 tribes. These 12 tribes were named for the 12 sons of Jacob. (Jacob was the man the Lord had called Israel.) 32Elijah used these stones to rebuild the altar in honor of the Lord. Then he dug a small ditch around it. It was big enough to hold about 13 quarts of seed. 33Elijah put the wood on the altar. He cut the bull into pieces and laid them on the wood. Then he said, “Fill four jars with water. Put the water on the meat and on the wood.”
34Then Elijah said, “Do it again.” And they did it again.
Then he said, “Do it a third time.” And they did it the third time. 35So the water ran off of the altar and filled the ditch.
36It was time for the evening sacrifice. So the prophet Elijah went near the altar. He prayed, “Lord, you are the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. I ask you now to prove that you are the God of Israel. And prove that I am your servant. Show these people that you commanded me to do all these things. 37Lord, answer my prayer. Show these people that you, Lord, are God. Then the people will know that you are bringing them back to you.”
38Then fire from the Lord came down. It burned the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the ground around the altar. It also dried up the water in the ditch. 39When all the people saw this, they fell down to the ground. They cried, “The Lord is God! The Lord is God!”
40Then Elijah said, “Capture the prophets of Baal! Don’t let any of them run away!” So the people captured all the prophets. Then Elijah led them down to Kishon Valley. There he killed all the prophets.
The Rain Comes Again
41Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Now, go, eat and drink. A heavy rain is coming.” 42So King Ahab went to eat and drink. At the same time Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel. There he bent down to the ground with his head between his knees.
43Then Elijah said to his servant, “Go and look toward the sea.”
The servant went and looked. He said, “I see nothing.”
Elijah told him to go and look again. This happened seven times. 44The seventh time, the servant said, “I see a small cloud. It’s the size of a man’s fist. It’s coming from the sea.”
Elijah told the servant, “Go to Ahab. Tell him to get his chariot ready and to go home now. If he doesn’t leave now, the rain will stop him.”
45After a short time the sky was covered with dark clouds. The wind began to blow. Then a heavy rain began to fall. Ahab got in his chariot and started back to Jezreel. 46The Lord gave his power to Elijah. Elijah tightened his clothes around him. Then he ran ahead of King Ahab all the way to Jezreel.
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