1 Kings 18

This chapter stands at the center of the Elijah narrative in the latter part of 1 Kings. It recounts events in the third year of the drought that Elijah had announced in 1 Kings 17.

Outline

• Verses 1–6 In the third year of the drought, the LORD commands Elijah to present himself before Ahab. Amid the famine, Ahab and Obadiah, the steward of his household, set out in search of grass for the animals. When Jezebel was killing the prophets, Obadiah had hidden one hundred prophets in caves, fifty to a cave.
• Verses 7–16 Elijah meets Obadiah and tells him to inform Ahab. When Obadiah fears he will be killed, Elijah assures him with an oath.
• Verses 17–20 Ahab calls Elijah "he that troubleth Israel." Elijah replies that it is Ahab's house, by following Baal, that has troubled Israel, and he has Ahab assemble the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah on Mount Carmel.
• Verses 21–24 Elijah rebukes the people for their wavering and proposes a test: the god who answers by fire is God.
• Verses 25–29 The prophets of Baal cry out and cut themselves until the time of the evening offering, but there is no answer.
• Verses 30–35 Elijah rebuilds the broken-down altar of the LORD with twelve stones and has four barrels of water poured on it three times.
• Verses 36–40 When Elijah prays, the fire of the LORD falls and consumes the burnt sacrifice and even the water in the trench. The people fall on their faces and confess the LORD, and Elijah has the prophets of Baal killed at the brook Kishon.
• Verses 41–46 Elijah bows down in prayer on the top of Mount Carmel. The seventh time, his servant sees a cloud the size of a man's hand, and a great rain falls. Elijah runs ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.

Key Verses

• 1 Kings 18:21 "How long halt ye between two opinions?" — the central question of the chapter.
• 1 Kings 18:39 "The LORD, he is the God" — the people's confession that concludes the contest.
• 1 Kings 18:44 "A little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand" — frequently cited as a symbol of persistent prayer and its answer.

Characters and Places

• Elijah The prophet, a Tishbite.
• Ahab King of the northern kingdom of Israel. Together with his wife Jezebel, he spread the worship of Baal (Ahab and Jezebel).
• Obadiah Steward of Ahab's household and a man who feared the LORD.
• Baal, Asherah Canaanite deities.
• Mount Carmel The mountain where the contest took place.
• The brook Kishon A stream flowing below Mount Carmel.
• Jezreel The city where Ahab's palace was located.

Points for Reflection

• Verse 1 speaks of "the third year," but Luke 4:25 and James 5:17 give the length of the drought as three years and six months. Several explanations have been offered to reconcile the two; a common one distinguishes the period counted from the start of the drought from the period of Elijah's stay in Zarephath.
• In verse 22 Elijah says, "I, even I only, remain." Yet this chapter mentions the one hundred prophets hidden by Obadiah, and chapter 19 mentions seven thousand.
• The execution of the prophets of Baal (v. 40) is read against the background of the laws concerning false prophets in Deuteronomy 13. It is generally held that the passage cannot be used to justify religious violence today.
• The Catholic Carmelite Order has a tradition of honoring Elijah as its spiritual forefather. This is a later tradition, not part of the biblical text.
• The New Testament presents John the Baptist as one who comes "in the spirit and power of Elias" (Luke 1:17), and the Epistle of James holds up Elijah's prayer for rain as an example of the prayer of a righteous man.

In the Korean Church

In Sunday schools, this chapter is taught as the story of the contest on Mount Carmel. In preaching, verse 21 is often used as a text calling for a decision of faith, and verses 42–44 as a text on persistent prayer.