^17:1Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As certainly as the Lord God of Israel lives (whom I serve),¹ there will be no dew or rain in the years ahead unless I give the command.”²^17:2The Lord told him:³^17:3“Leave here and travel eastward. Hide out in the Kerith Valley near the Jordan. ^17:4Drink from the stream; I have already told⁴ the ravens to bring you food⁵ there.” ^17:5So he did⁶ as the Lord told him; he went and lived in the Kerith Valley near the Jordan. ^17:6The ravens would bring him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he would drink from the stream.

^17:7After a while,⁷ the stream dried up because there had been no rain in the land. ^17:8The Lord told him,⁸^17:9“Get up, go to Zarephath in Sidonian territory, and live there. I have already told⁹ a widow who lives there to provide for you.” ^17:10So he got up and went to Zarephath. When he went through the city gate, there was a widow gathering wood. He called out to her, “Please give me a cup¹⁰ of water, so I can take a drink.” ^17:11As she went to get it, he called out to her, “Please bring me a piece of bread.”¹¹^17:12She said, “As certainly as the Lord your God lives, I have no food, except for a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. Right now I am gathering a couple of sticks for a fire. Then I’m going home to make one final meal for my son and myself. After we have eaten that, we will die of starvation.”¹²^17:13Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go and do as you planned.¹³ But first make a small cake for me and bring it to me; then make something for yourself and your son. ^17:14For this is what the Lord God of Israel says, ‘The jar of flour will not be empty and the jug of oil will not run out until the day the Lord makes it rain on the surface of the ground.’ ” ^17:15She went and did as Elijah told her; there was always enough food for Elijah and for her and her family.¹⁴^17:16The jar of flour was never empty and the jug of oil never ran out, just as the Lord had promised¹⁵ through Elijah.

^17:17After this¹⁶ the son of the woman who owned the house got sick. His illness was so severe he could no longer breathe. ^17:18She asked Elijah, “Why, prophet, have you come¹⁷ to me to confront me with¹⁸ my sin and kill my son?” ^17:19He said to her, “Hand me your son.” He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him down on his bed. ^17:20Then he called out to the Lord, “O Lord, my God, are you also bringing disaster on this widow I am staying with by killing her son?” ^17:21He stretched out over the boy three times and called out to the Lord, “O Lord, my God, please let this boy’s breath return to him.” ^17:22The Lord answered Elijah’s prayer; the boy’s breath returned to him and he lived. ^17:23Elijah took the boy, brought him down from the upper room to the house, and handed him to his mother. Elijah then said, “See, your son is alive!” ^17:24The woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a prophet and that the Lord really does speak through you.”¹⁹

Elijah Meets the King’s Servant

^18:1Some time later, in the third year of the famine, the Lord told Elijah,¹ “Go, make an appearance before Ahab, so I may send rain on the surface of the ground.” ^18:2So Elijah went to make an appearance before Ahab.

Now the famine was severe in Samaria.²^18:3So Ahab summoned Obadiah, who supervised the palace. (Now Obadiah was a very loyal follower of the Lord.³^18:4When Jezebel was killing⁴ the Lord’s prophets, Obadiah took one hundred prophets and hid them in two caves in two groups of fifty. He also brought them food and water.) ^18:5Ahab told Obadiah, “Go through the land to all the springs and valleys. Maybe we can find some grazing areas⁵ so we can keep the horses and mules alive and not have to kill⁶ some of the animals.” ^18:6They divided up the land between them; Ahab went⁷ one way and Obadiah went the other.

^18:7As Obadiah was traveling along, Elijah met him.⁸ When he recognized him, he fell facedown to the ground and said, “Is it really you, my master, Elijah?” ^18:8He replied, “Yes,⁹ go and say to your master, ‘Elijah is back.’ ”¹⁰^18:9Obadiah¹¹ said, “What sin have I committed that you are ready to hand your servant over to Ahab for execution?¹²^18:10As certainly as the Lord your God lives, my master has sent to every nation and kingdom in an effort to find you. When they say, ‘He’s not here,’ he makes them¹³ swear an oath that they could not find you. ^18:11Now you say, ‘Go and say to your master, “Elijah is back.” ’¹⁴^18:12But when I leave you, the Lord’s spirit will carry you away so I can’t find you.¹⁵ If I go tell Ahab I’ve seen you, he won’t be able to find you and he will kill me.¹⁶ That would not be fair,¹⁷ because your servant has been a loyal follower of¹⁸ the Lord from my youth. ^18:13Certainly my master is aware of what I did¹⁹ when Jezebel was killing the Lord’s prophets. I hid one hundred of the Lord’s prophets in two caves in two groups of fifty and I brought them food and water. ^18:14Now you say, ‘Go and say to your master, “Elijah is back,” ’²⁰ but he will kill me.” ^18:15But Elijah said, “As certainly as the Lord who rules over all²¹ lives (whom I serve),²² I will make an appearance before him today.”

Elijah Confronts Baal’s Prophets

^18:16When Obadiah went and informed Ahab, the king went to meet Elijah.²³^18:17When Ahab saw Elijah, he²⁴ said to him, “Is it really you, the one who brings disaster²⁵ on Israel?” ^18:18Elijah²⁶ replied, “I have not brought disaster²⁷ on Israel. But you and your father’s dynasty have, by abandoning the Lord’s commandments and following the Baals. ^18:19Now send out messengers²⁸ and assemble all Israel before me at Mount Carmel, as well as the 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah whom Jezebel supports.²⁹

^18:20Ahab sent messengers to all the Israelites and had the prophets assemble at Mount Carmel. ^18:21Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long are you going to be paralyzed by indecision?³⁰ If the Lord is the true God,³¹ then follow him, but if Baal is, follow him!” But the people did not say a word. ^18:22Elijah said to them:³² “I am the only prophet of the Lord who is left, but there are 450 prophets of Baal. ^18:23Let them bring us two bulls. Let them choose one of the bulls for themselves, cut it up into pieces, and place it on the wood. But they must not set it on fire. I will do the same to the other bull and place it on the wood. But I will not set it on fire. ^18:24Then you³³ will invoke the name of your god, and I will invoke the name of the Lord. The god who responds with fire will demonstrate that he is the true God.”³⁴ All the people responded, “This will be a fair test.”³⁵

^18:25Elijah told the prophets of Baal, “Choose one of the bulls for yourselves and go first, for you are the majority. Invoke the name of your god, but do not light a fire.”³⁶^18:26So they took a bull, as he had suggested,³⁷ and prepared it. They invoked the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “Baal, answer us.” But there was no sound and no answer. They jumped³⁸ around on the altar they had made.³⁹^18:27At noon Elijah mocked them, “Yell louder! After all, he is a god; he may be deep in thought, or perhaps he stepped out for a moment or has taken a trip. Perhaps he is sleeping and needs to be awakened.”⁴⁰^18:28So they yelled louder and, in accordance with their prescribed ritual,⁴¹ mutilated themselves with swords and spears until their bodies were covered with blood.⁴²^18:29Throughout the afternoon they were in an ecstatic frenzy,⁴³ but there was no sound, no answer, and no response.⁴⁴

^18:30Elijah then told all the people, “Approach me.” So all the people approached him. He repaired the altar of the Lord that had been torn down.⁴⁵^18:31Then Elijah took twelve stones, corresponding to the number of tribes that descended from Jacob, to whom the Lord had said, “Israel will be your new⁴⁶ name.”⁴⁷^18:32With the stones he constructed an altar for the Lord.⁴⁸ Around the altar he made a trench large enough to contain two seahs⁴⁹ of seed. ^18:33He arranged the wood, cut up the bull, and placed it on the wood. ^18:34Then he said, “Fill four water jars and pour the water on the offering and the wood.” When they had done so,⁵⁰ he said, “Do it again.” So they did it again. Then he said, “Do it a third time.” So they did it a third time. ^18:35The water flowed down all sides of the altar and filled the trench. ^18:36When it was time for the evening offering,⁵¹ Elijah the prophet approached the altar⁵² and prayed: “O Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, prove⁵³ today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. ^18:37Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, O Lord, are the true God⁵⁴ and that you are winning back their allegiance.”⁵⁵^18:38Then fire from the Lord fell from the sky.⁵⁶ It consumed the offering, the wood, the stones, and the dirt, and licked up the water in the trench. ^18:39When all the people saw this, they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground and said, “The Lord is the true God!⁵⁷ The Lord is the true God!” ^18:40Elijah told them, “Seize the prophets of Baal! Don’t let even one of them escape!” So they seized them, and Elijah led them down to the Kishon Valley and executed⁵⁸ them there.

^18:41Then Elijah told Ahab, “Go on up and eat and drink, for the sound of a heavy rainstorm can be heard.”⁵⁹^18:42So Ahab went on up to eat and drink, while Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel. He bent down toward the ground and put his face between his knees. ^18:43He told his servant, “Go on up and look in the direction of the sea.” So he went on up, looked, and reported, “There is nothing.”⁶⁰ Seven times Elijah sent him to look.⁶¹^18:44The seventh time the servant⁶² said, “Look, a small cloud, the size of the palm of a man’s hand, is rising up from the sea.”…

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Footnotes

1 Heb “before whom I stand.”
2 Heb “except at the command of my word.”
3 Heb “and the word of the Lord came to him, saying.”
4 Heb “commanded.”
5 Heb “to provide for you.”
6 Heb “So he went and did.”
7 Heb “And it came about at the end of days.”
8 Heb “And the word of the Lord came to him, saying.”
9 Heb “Look, I have commanded.”
10 Heb “a little.”
11 The Hebrew text also includes the phrase “in your hand.”
12 Heb “Look, I am gathering two sticks and then I will go and make it for me and my son and we will eat it and we will die.”
13 Heb “according to your word.”
14 Heb “and she ate, she and he and her house [for] days.”
15 Heb “out, according to the word of the Lord which he spoke.”
16 Heb “after these things.”
17 Heb “What to me and to you, man of God, that you have come.”
18 Heb “to make me remember.”
19 Heb “you are a man of God and the word of the Lord is truly in your mouth.” This episode is especially significant in light of Ahab’s decision to promote Baal worship in Israel. In Canaanite mythology the drought that swept over the region (v. 1) would signal that Baal, a fertility god responsible for providing food for his subjects, had been defeated by the god of death and was imprisoned in the underworld. While Baal was overcome by death and unable to function like a king, Israel’s God demonstrated his sovereignty and superiority to death by providing food for a widow and restoring life to her son. And he did it all in Sidonian territory, Baal’s back yard, as it were. The episode demonstrates that Israel’s God, not Baal, is the true king who provides food and controls life and death. This polemic against Baalism reaches its climax in the next chapter, when the Lord proves that he, not Baal, controls the elements of the storm and determines when the rains will fall.
1 Heb “the word of the Lord came to Elijah.”
2 For location see ; ; ; ; .
3 Heb “now Obadiah greatly feared the Lord.” “Fear” refers here to obedience and allegiance, the products of healthy respect for the Lord’s authority.
4 Heb “cutting off.”
5 Heb “grass.”
6 Heb “to cut off.”
7 The Hebrew text has “alone” here and again in reference to Obadiah toward the end of the verse.
8 Heb “look, Elijah [came] to meet him.”
9 Heb “[It is] I.”
10 Heb “Look, Elijah”; or “Elijah is here.”
11 Heb “he”; the referent (Obadiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
12 Heb “to kill me.”
13 Heb “he makes the kingdom or the nation swear an oath.”
14 Heb “Look, Elijah”; or “Elijah is here.”
15 Heb “to [a place] which I do not know.”
16 Heb “and I will go to inform Ahab and he will not find you and he will kill me.”
17 The words “that would not be fair” are added to clarify the logic of Obadiah’s argument.
18 Heb “has feared the Lord” (also see the note at ).
19 Heb “Has it not been told to my master what I did …?” The rhetorical question expects an answer, “Of course it has!”
20 Heb “Look, Elijah”; or “Elijah is here.”
21 Traditionally, “the Lord of Hosts.”
22 Heb “(before whom I stand).”
23 Heb “Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah.”
24 Heb “Ahab.”
25 Or “trouble.”
26 Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
27 Or “trouble.”
28 The word “messengers” is supplied in the translation both here and in v. 20 for clarification.
29 Heb “who eat at the table of Jezebel.”
30 Heb “How long are you going to limp around on two crutches?” (see סְעִפִּים). In context this idiomatic expression refers to indecision rather than physical disability.
31 Heb “the God.”
32 Heb “to the people.”
33 Elijah now directly addresses the prophets.
34 Heb “the God.”
35 Heb “The matter [i.e., proposal] is good [i.e., acceptable].”
36 The last sentence of v. 25 is absent in the .
37 Heb “and they took the bull which he allowed them.”
38 Heb “limped” (the same verb is used in v. 21).
39 The has “which he made,” but some medieval Hebrew and the ancient versions have the plural form of the verb.
40 Elijah’s sarcastic proposals would have been especially offensive and irritating to Baal’s prophets, for they believed Baal was imprisoned in the underworld as death’s captive during this time of drought. Elijah’s apparent ignorance of their theology is probably designed for dramatic effect; indeed the suggestion that Baal is away on a trip or deep in sleep comes precariously close to the truth as viewed by the prophets.
41 Or “as was their custom.”
42 Heb “until blood poured out on them.” mutilated … covered with blood. This self-mutilation was a mourning rite designed to facilitate Baal’s return from the underworld.
43 Heb “when noon passed they prophesied until the offering up of the offering.”
44 The Old Greek translation and include the following words here: “When it was time to offer the sacrifice, Elijah the Tishbite spoke to the prophets of the abominations: ‘Stand aside for the time being, and I will offer my burnt offering.’ So they stood aside and departed.” In 2 Kgs 4:31 the words “there was no sound and there was no response” are used to describe a dead boy. Similar words are used here to describe the god Baal as dead and therefore unresponsive.
45 Torn down. The condition of the altar symbolizes the spiritual state of the people.
46 The word “new” is implied but not actually present in the Hebrew text.
47 Israel will be your new name. See Gen 32:28; 35:10.
48 Heb “and he built the stones into an altar in the name of the Lord.”
49 A seah was a dry measure equivalent to about seven quarts.
50 The words “when they had done so” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
51 Heb “at the offering up of the offering.”
52 The words “the altar” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
53 Heb “let it be known.”
54 Heb “the God.”
55 Heb “that you are turning their heart[s] back.”
56 The words “from the sky” are added for stylistic reasons.
57 Heb “the God” (the phrase occurs twice in this verse).
58 Or “slaughtered.”
59 Heb “for [there is] the sound of the roar of the rain.”
60 So he went on up, looked, and reported, “There is nothing.” Several times in this chapter those addressed by Elijah obey his orders. In vv. 20 and 42 Ahab does as instructed, in vv. 26 and 28 the prophets follow Elijah’s advice, and in vv. 30, 34, 40 and 43 the people and servants do as they are told. By juxtaposing Elijah’s commands with accounts of those commands being obeyed, the narrator emphasizes the authority of the Lord’s prophet.
61 Heb “He said, ‘Return,’ seven times.”
62 Heb “he”; the referent (the servant) has been specified in the translation for clarity.