1 Kings 18
1 For almost three years there was no rain in Samaria. Then Yahweh said this to Elijah: “Go and meet with King Ahab and [tell him that] I will soon send rain.”
And it came to pass [after] many days, that the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, show thyself to Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.
2 So Elijah went to talk to Ahab. In Samaria there was almost no food for anyone to eat.
And Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. And [there was] a grievous famine in Samaria.
3 There was a man there named Obadiah. He was in charge of the king’s palace. He greatly revered Yahweh.
And Ahab called Obadiah who [was] the governor of [his] house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly:
4 One time when [Queen] Jezebel had [tried to] kill all Yahweh’s prophets, Obadiah hid 100 of them in two caves. He put 50 prophets in each cave, and he brought food and water to them.
For it was [so], when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah took a hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.)
5 [By this time, the (famine/lack of food and water) had become very severe in Samaria]. So Ahab summoned Obadiah and said to him, “We must check/look near every spring and in every valley to see if we can find enough grass to give to some of my horses and mules, so that they will not all die.”
And Ahab said to Obadiah, Go into the land, to all fountains of water, and to all brooks: it may be we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts.
6 So they both started walking throughout the land. Obadiah went in one direction by himself, and Ahab went in another direction by himself.
So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
7 While Obadiah was walking along, he saw Elijah coming toward him. Obadiah recognized Elijah and bowed down in front of him and said, “Is it really you, Elijah, my master?”
And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, [Art] thou that my lord Elijah?
8 Elijah replied, “Yes. Now go and tell [Ahab, ] your master, that I am here.”
And he answered him, I [am]: go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah [is here].
9 Obadiah objected. He said, “Sir, I have not [RHQ] harmed you at all. So why are you sending me back to Ahab? He will kill me!
And he said, What have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab to slay me?
10 Yahweh your God [knows that I am telling the truth when] I solemnly declare that King Ahab has searched in every kingdom all over the world [HYP] to find you. Each time that some king said to him, ‘Elijah is not here,’ Ahab demanded that the king of that country solemnly swear/declare that the king was telling the truth.
[As] the LORD thy God liveth, there is no nation nor kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee: and when they said, [He is] not [there]; he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found thee not.
11 Now you say to me, ‘Go and tell your master that Elijah is here!’
And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah [is here].
12 But as soon as I leave you, the Spirit of Yahweh will carry you away, and I will not know where he will take you. So when [I tell] Ahab [that you are here and he] comes to me and he does not find you here, he will kill me! But [I do not deserve to die because] I have revered Yahweh since I was a boy.
And it will come to pass, [as soon as] I have gone from thee, that the Spirit of the LORD will carry thee whither I know not; and [so] when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he will slay me: but I thy servant fear the LORD from my youth.
13 My master, have you not heard about what I did when Jezebel wanted to kill all of Yahweh’s prophets? I hid 100 of them in two caves and took food and water to them.
Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the LORD, how I hid a hundred men of the LORD'S prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water?
14 Now, sir, you say, ‘Go and tell your master that Elijah is here.’ But if I do that, [and he comes and you are not here, ] he will kill me!”
And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah [is here]: and he will slay me.
15 But Elijah replied, “Yahweh, the Almighty One whom I serve [IDM], knows that [I am telling the truth as] I solemnly declare that I will go to meet with Ahab today.”
And Elijah said, [As] the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him to-day.
16 So Obadiah went to tell Ahab that Elijah had come. Ahab went to meet with him.
So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.
17 When he saw Elijah, he said to him, “Is that you, the one who causes trouble for [the people of] Israel?”
And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said to him, [Art] thou he that troubleth Israel?
18 Elijah replied, “It is not I who have caused trouble for the people of Israel! You and your family are the ones who have caused trouble! You have refused to obey Yahweh’s commands, and you have worshiped the idols of Baal instead.
And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim.
19 So now, command all the Israeli people to come to Carmel Mountain, and [be sure to] bring all the 450 prophets who worship Baal and the 400 prophets who worship [the goddess] Asherah, the ones to whom [your wife] Jezebel brings food and water.”
Now therefore send, [and] gather to me all Israel to mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, who eat at Jezebel's table.
20 So Ahab summoned all his prophets and all the other [Israeli] people to the top of Carmel Mountain, [and Elijah went up there too.]
So Ahab sent to all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets to mount Carmel.
21 Then Elijah stood in front of them and said, “How long [RHQ] are you going to be undecided [about who is truly God]? If Yahweh is [truly] God, then worship/serve him. If Baal is truly God, then worship/serve him!” But the people said nothing [in reply, because they were afraid of what Jezebel would do to them if they admitted that they worshiped Yahweh].
And Elijah came to all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD [is] God, follow him: but if Baal, [then] follow him. And the people answered him not a word.
22 Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only true prophet of Yahweh who is left, but Baal has 450 prophets.
Then said Elijah to the people, I [even] I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal's prophet's [are] four hundred and fifty men.
23 Bring two bulls. The prophets of Baal may choose the one that they want. They must [kill it and] cut it into pieces and lay the pieces on the wood that is on the altar that they have made. But they must not light a fire [under the wood]. [I will kill the other bull and cut it in pieces and lay the pieces on the altar that I make].
Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay [it] on wood, and put no fire [under]: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay [it] on wood, and put no fire [under]:
24 Then they must call to their god [MTY], and I will call to Yahweh. The god who answers by lighting a fire [to the wood that is on that altar] is [the true] God!” Then all the people thought that Elijah’s suggestion was good.
And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.
25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “You call to Baal first, because there are many of you. Choose one of the bulls and prepare it, and then call to your god. But do not light a fire under the wood!”
And Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress [it] first; for ye [are] many; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire [under].
26 So they killed one of the bulls and cut it up and placed the pieces on the altar. Then they called out to Baal all morning. They shouted, “Baal, answer us!” But no one answered. There was no reply at all [DOU]. Then they danced wildly around the altar that they had made.
And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed [it], and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But [there was] no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.
27 About noontime, Elijah started to make fun of them. He said, “[Surely] Baal is a god, so it seems that you must shout louder! Perhaps he is thinking about something, or perhaps he has gone to the toilet. Or perhaps he is traveling somewhere, or perhaps he is asleep and you need to wake him up!”
And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he [is] a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is on a journey, [or] perhaps he sleepeth, and must be awaked.
28 So they shouted louder. Then, doing one of the things that they frequently did [when they worshiped Baal], they slashed/cut themselves with knives and swords until a lot of blood flowed.
And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.
29 They continued calling out to Baal all afternoon. But there was no reply, no answer, no god who paid attention.
And it came to pass, when mid-day was past, and they prophesied until the [time] of the offering of the [evening] sacrifice, that [there was] neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.
30 Then Elijah called to the people saying, “Come closer!” So they all crowded around him. Then Elijah repaired the altar of Yahweh that had previously been (ruined/torn down) [by the prophets of Baal].
And Elijah said to all the people, Come near to me. And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD [that was] broken down.
31 Then he took twelve [large] stones, each one to represent one of the Israeli tribes. The names of those tribes were given to them by their ancestor Jacob.
And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:
32 With these stones he rebuilt Yahweh’s altar. Then around the altar he dug a little ditch that was large enough to hold about (three gallons/12 liters) of water.
And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD: and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.
33 He piled wood on top of the stones. He killed the bull and cut it in pieces. Then he laid the pieces on top of the wood. Then he said, “Fill four large jars with water, and pour the water on top of the pieces of meat and the wood.” So they did that.
And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid [him] on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour [it] on the burnt-sacrifice, and on the wood.
34 Then he said, “Do the same thing again!” So they did it again. Then he said “Do it a third time!” So they did it again.
And he said, Do [it] the second time. And they did [it] the second time. And he said, Do [it] the third time. And they did [it] the third time.
35 As a result, the water flowed down below the altar and filled the ditches.
And the water ran around the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.
36 When it was time to offer the evening sacrifices, Elijah walked close [to the altar] and prayed. He said, “Yahweh, you who are the God that [our ancestors] Abraham and Isaac and Jacob [worshiped], prove today that you are the God whom the Israeli people [should worship], and prove that I am your servant. Prove that I have done all these things because you told me to do them.
And it came to pass at [the time of] the offering of the [evening] sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou [art] God in Israel, and [that] I [am] thy servant, and [that] I have done all these things at thy word.
37 Yahweh, answer me! Answer me in order that these people will know that you, Yahweh God, [have the power to do what you say that you will do], and that you have caused them to trust in [IDM] you again!”
Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou [art] the LORD God, and [that] thou hast turned their heart back again.
38 Immediately a fire from Yahweh flashed down from the sky. The fire burned up the pieces of meat, the wood, the stones, and the dirt [that was around the altar]. It even dried up all the water in the ditch!
Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt-sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that [was] in the trench.
39 When the people saw that, they prostrated themselves on the ground and shouted, “Yahweh is God! Yahweh is God!”
And when all the people saw [it], they fell on their faces: and they said, The LORD, he [is] the God; the LORD, he [is] the God.
40 Then Elijah commanded them, “Seize all the prophets of Baal! Do not allow any of them to escape!” So the people seized all the prophets of Baal, and took them down the mountain to the Kishon Valley, and Elijah killed them all there.
And Elijah said to them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.
41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go and get something to eat and drink. [But do it quickly, because] it is soon going to rain very hard!”
And Elijah said to Ahab, Go up, eat and drink; for [there is] a sound of abundance of rain.
42 So Ahab [and his men] left to prepare a big meal. But Elijah went back up to the top of Carmel Mountain and prayed.
So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees,
43 Then he said to his servant, “Go and look out toward the sea, [to see if there are any rain clouds.]” So his servant went and looked, [and came back] and said, “I do not see anything.” This happened six times.
And said to his servant, Go up now, look towards the sea. And he went up and looked, and said, [There is] nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.
44 But when the servant went the seventh time, he came back and said, “I saw a very small cloud above the sea. [As I extend my arm, ] the cloud is about the size of my hand/fist.” Then Elijah shouted to him, “Go and tell King Ahab to get his chariot ready and go home immediately! If he does not do that, the rain will stop him!”
And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say to Ahab, Prepare [thy chariot], and go down, that the rain may not hinder thee.
45 Very soon the sky was full of black clouds. There was a strong wind, and then it began to rain very hard. Ahab got into his chariot and started to return to Jezreel [city].
And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.
46 Yahweh gave extra strength to Elijah. He tucked his cloak into his belt [in order to run fast], and he ran ahead of Ahab’s [chariot] all the way [17 miles/26 km.] to Jezreel.
And the hand of the LORD was on Elijah; and he girded his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
