Elijah vs the Prophets of Baal

Israel had abandoned the Lord under King Ahab and his wicked wife Jezebel, who promoted Baal worship throughout the land. God sent Elijah to announce a drought as judgment for Israel's idolatry—there would be no rain except at Elijah's word. After three years of devastating drought, God sent Elijah back to Ahab with a message: gather all Israel and the 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah at Mount Carmel for a showdown that would settle once and for all who the true God was.

When the people assembled, Elijah confronted their spiritual compromise: 'How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.' The people said nothing, paralyzed by indecision, trying to worship both the Lord and Baal. Elijah proposed a test: 'Get two bulls for us. Let Baal's prophets choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire—he is God.'

The people agreed this was a fair test. The prophets of Baal prepared their bull and called on Baal from morning till noon, shouting, 'Baal, answer us!' But there was no response; no one answered. They danced around the altar they had made, but nothing happened. At noon Elijah began to taunt them: 'Shout louder! Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened.' His sarcasm highlighted the absurdity of worshiping gods who cannot see, hear, or act.

The prophets shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed. They continued their frantic prophesying until the time for the evening sacrifice, but there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention. All their efforts, passion, and even self-mutilation couldn't make their false god appear. Baal was powerless because Baal was not real.

Then Elijah called the people to come near. He repaired the altar of the Lord that had been torn down—symbolizing the restoration of true worship. He took twelve stones, one for each tribe of Israel, and built an altar in the name of the Lord. He dug a trench around it, arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces, and laid it on the wood. Then, to remove any possibility of deception, Elijah did something astonishing: he had four large jars filled with water and poured over the offering and the wood. He did this three times until the water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench.

At the time of sacrifice, Elijah stepped forward and prayed: 'Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. Answer me, Lord, answer me, so these people will know that you, Lord, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again.' Notice Elijah's simple, confident prayer—no shouting, no self-mutilation, no frantic begging. He simply called on the living God who hears and answers.

Immediately, the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, and the soil, and even licked up the water in the trench. When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, 'The Lord—he is God! The Lord—he is God!' The demonstration was so overwhelming that the people's spiritual confusion ended instantly. At Elijah's command, they seized the prophets of Baal and executed them in the Kishon Valley. Then Elijah prayed seven times, and God sent rain, ending the three-year drought. The contest on Mount Carmel revealed that the Lord alone is God, and He proves it not through human effort or emotion but through His powerful response to faith.