1 Kings 18:35-46

18:35 The water flowed down all sides of the altar and filled the trench. 18:36 When it was time for the evening offering,¹ Elijah the prophet approached the altar² and prayed: “O Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, prove³ today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. 18:37 Answer me, O Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, O Lord, are the true God⁴ and that you are winning back their allegiance.”⁵ 18:38 Then fire from the Lord fell from the sky.⁶ It consumed the offering, the wood, the stones, and the dirt, and licked up the water in the trench. 18:39 When all the people saw this, they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground and said, “The Lord is the true God!⁷ The Lord is the true God!” 18:40 Elijah 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 executed⁸ them there.

18:41 Then Elijah told Ahab, “Go on up and eat and drink, for the sound of a heavy rainstorm can be heard.”⁹ 18:42 So 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. 18:43 He 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.”¹⁰ Seven times Elijah sent him to look.¹¹ 18:44 The seventh time the servant¹² said, “Look, a small cloud, the size of the palm of a man’s hand, is rising up from the sea.” Elijah¹³ then said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up the chariots and go down, so that the rain won’t overtake you.’”¹⁴ 18:45 Meanwhile the sky was covered with dark clouds, the wind blew, and there was a heavy rainstorm. Ahab rode toward¹⁵ Jezreel. 18:46 Now the Lord energized Elijah with power;¹⁶ he tucked his robe into his belt¹⁷ and ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.

¹tn Heb “at the offering up of the offering.”

²tn The words “the altar” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

³tn Heb “let it be known.”

⁴tn Heb “the God.”

⁵tn Heb “that you are turning their heart[s] back.”

⁶tn The words “from the sky” are added for stylistic reasons.

⁷tn Heb “the God” (the phrase occurs twice in this verse).

⁸tn Or “slaughtered.”

⁹tn Heb “for [there is] the sound of the roar of the rain.”

¹⁰sn 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.

¹¹tn Heb “He said, ‘Return,’ seven times.”

¹²tn Heb “he”; the referent (the servant) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹³tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁴tn Heb “so that the rain won’t restrain you.”

¹⁵tn Heb “rode and went to.”

¹⁶tn Heb “and the hand of the Lord was on Elijah.”

¹⁷tn Heb “and girded up his loins.” The idea is that of gathering up the robes and tucking them into the sash or belt so that they do not get in the way of the legs when running (or working or fighting).