| New Living Translation | NET Bible |
| 1Later on, in the third year of the drought, the LORD said to Elijah, “Go and present yourself to King Ahab. Tell him that I will soon send rain!” | 1Some time later, in the third year of the famine, the LORD told Elijah, "Go, make an appearance before Ahab, so I may send rain on the surface of the ground." |
| 2So Elijah went to appear before Ahab. Meanwhile, the famine had become very severe in Samaria. | 2So Elijah went to make an appearance before Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria. |
| 3So Ahab summoned Obadiah, who was in charge of the palace. (Obadiah was a devoted follower of the LORD. | 3So Ahab summoned Obadiah, who supervised the palace. (Now Obadiah was a very loyal follower of the LORD. |
| 4Once when Jezebel had tried to kill all the LORD’s prophets, Obadiah had hidden 100 of them in two caves. He put fifty prophets in each cave and supplied them with food and water.) | 4When Jezebel was killing 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.) |
| 5Ahab said to Obadiah, “We must check every spring and valley in the land to see if we can find enough grass to save at least some of my horses and mules.” | 5Ahab told Obadiah, "Go through the land to all the springs and valleys. Maybe we can find some grazing areas so we can keep the horses and mules alive and not have to kill some of the animals." |
| 6So they divided the land between them. Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself. | 6They divided up the land between them; Ahab went one way and Obadiah went the other. |
| 7As Obadiah was walking along, he suddenly saw Elijah coming toward him. Obadiah recognized him at once and bowed low to the ground before him. “Is it really you, my lord Elijah?” he asked. | 7As Obadiah was traveling along, Elijah met him. When he recognized him, he fell facedown to the ground and said, "Is it really you, my master, Elijah?" |
| 8“Yes, it is,” Elijah replied. “Now go and tell your master, ‘Elijah is here.’” | 8He replied, "Yes, go and say to your master, 'Elijah is back.'" |
| 9“Oh, sir,” Obadiah protested, “what harm have I done to you that you are sending me to my death at the hands of Ahab? | 9Obadiah said, "What sin have I committed that you are ready to hand your servant over to Ahab for execution? |
| 10For I swear by the LORD your God that the king has searched every nation and kingdom on earth from end to end to find you. And each time he was told, ‘Elijah isn’t here,’ King Ahab forced the king of that nation to swear to the truth of his claim. | 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 them swear an oath that they could not find you. |
| 11And now you say, ‘Go and tell your master, “Elijah is here.”’ | 11Now you say, 'Go and say to your master, "Elijah is back."' |
| 12But as soon as I leave you, the Spirit of the LORD will carry you away to who knows where. When Ahab comes and cannot find you, he will kill me. Yet I have been a true servant of the LORD all my life. | 12But when I leave you, the LORD's spirit will carry you away so I can't find you. If I go tell Ahab I've seen you, he won't be able to find you and he will kill me. That would not be fair, because your servant has been a loyal follower of the LORD from my youth. |
| 13Has no one told you, my lord, about the time when Jezebel was trying to kill the LORD’s prophets? I hid 100 of them in two caves and supplied them with food and water. | 13Certainly my master is aware of what I did 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. |
| 14And now you say, ‘Go and tell your master, “Elijah is here.”’ Sir, if I do that, Ahab will certainly kill me.” | 14Now you say, 'Go and say to your master, "Elijah is back,"' but he will kill me." |
| 15But Elijah said, “I swear by the LORD Almighty, in whose presence I stand, that I will present myself to Ahab this very day.” | 15But Elijah said, "As certainly as the LORD who rules over all lives (whom I serve), I will make an appearance before him today." |
| 16So Obadiah went to tell Ahab that Elijah had come, and Ahab went out to meet Elijah. | 16When Obadiah went and informed Ahab, the king went to meet Elijah. |
| 17When Ahab saw him, he exclaimed, “So, is it really you, you troublemaker of Israel?” | 17When Ahab saw Elijah, he said to him, "Is it really you, the one who brings disaster on Israel?" |
| 18“I have made no trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “You and your family are the troublemakers, for you have refused to obey the commands of the LORD and have worshiped the images of Baal instead. | 18Elijah replied, "I have not brought disaster on Israel. But you and your father's dynasty have, by abandoning the LORD's commandments and following the Baals. |
| 19Now summon all Israel to join me at Mount Carmel, along with the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah who are supported by Jezebel. ” | 19Now send out messengers 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. |
| 20So Ahab summoned all the people of Israel and the prophets to Mount Carmel. | 20Ahab sent messengers to all the Israelites and had the prophets assemble at Mount Carmel. |
| 21Then Elijah stood in front of them and said, “How much longer will you waver, hobbling between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!” But the people were completely silent. | 21Elijah approached all the people and said, "How long are you going to be paralyzed by indecision? If the LORD is the true God, then follow him, but if Baal is, follow him!" But the people did not say a word. |
| 22Then Elijah said to them, “I am the only prophet of the LORD who is left, but Baal has 450 prophets. | 22Elijah said to them: "I am the only prophet of the LORD who is left, but there are 450 prophets of Baal. |
| 23Now bring two bulls. The prophets of Baal may choose whichever one they wish and cut it into pieces and lay it on the wood of their altar, but without setting fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood on the altar, but not set fire to it. | 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. |
| 24Then call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by setting fire to the wood is the true God!” And all the people agreed. | 24Then you 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." All the people responded, "This will be a fair test." |
| 25Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “You go first, for there are many of you. Choose one of the bulls, and prepare it and call on the name of your god. But do not set fire to the wood.” | 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." |
| 26So they prepared one of the bulls and placed it on the altar. Then they called on the name of Baal from morning until noontime, shouting, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no reply of any kind. Then they danced, hobbling around the altar they had made. | 26So they took a bull, as he had suggested, 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 jumped around on the altar they had made. |
| 27About noontime Elijah began mocking them. “You’ll have to shout louder,” he scoffed, “for surely he is a god! Perhaps he is daydreaming, or is relieving himself. Or maybe he is away on a trip, or is asleep and needs to be wakened!” | 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." |
| 28So they shouted louder, and following their normal custom, they cut themselves with knives and swords until the blood gushed out. | 28So they yelled louder and, in accordance with their prescribed ritual, mutilated themselves with swords and spears until their bodies were covered with blood. |
| 29They raved all afternoon until the time of the evening sacrifice, but still there was no sound, no reply, no response. | 29Throughout the afternoon they were in an ecstatic frenzy, but there was no sound, no answer, and no response. |
| 30Then Elijah called to the people, “Come over here!” They all crowded around him as he repaired the altar of the LORD that had been torn down. | 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. |
| 31He took twelve stones, one to represent each of the tribes of Israel, | 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 new name." |
| 32and he used the stones to rebuild the altar in the name of the LORD. Then he dug a trench around the altar large enough to hold about three gallons. | 32With the stones he constructed an altar for the LORD. Around the altar he made a trench large enough to contain two seahs of seed. |
| 33He piled wood on the altar, cut the bull into pieces, and laid the pieces on the wood. Then he said, “Fill four large jars with water, and pour the water over the offering and the wood.” | 33He arranged the wood, cut up the bull, and placed it on the wood. |
| 34After they had done this, he said, “Do the same thing again!” And when they were finished, he said, “Now do it a third time!” So they did as he said, | 34Then he said, "Fill four water jars and pour the water on the offering and the wood." When they had done so, 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. |
| 35and the water ran around the altar and even filled the trench. | 35The water flowed down all sides of the altar and filled the trench. |
| 36At the usual time for offering the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet walked up to the altar and prayed, “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant. Prove that I have done all this at your command. | 36When it was time for the evening offering, Elijah the prophet approached the altar and prayed: "O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, prove today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command. |
| 37O LORD, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God and that you have brought them back to yourself.” | 37Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are the true God and that you are winning back their allegiance." |
| 38Immediately the fire of the LORD flashed down from heaven and burned up the young bull, the wood, the stones, and the dust. It even licked up all the water in the trench! | 38Then fire from the LORD fell from the sky. It consumed the offering, the wood, the stones, and the dirt, and licked up the water in the trench. |
| 39And when all the people saw it, they fell face down on the ground and cried out, “The LORD—he is God! Yes, the LORD is God!” | 39When all the people saw this, they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground and said, "The LORD is the true God! The LORD is the true God!" |
| 40Then Elijah commanded, “Seize all the prophets of Baal. Don’t let a single one escape!” So the people seized them all, and Elijah took them down to the Kishon Valley and killed them there. Elijah Prays for Rain | 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 executed them there. |
| 41Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go get something to eat and drink, for I hear a mighty rainstorm coming!” | 41Then Elijah told Ahab, "Go on up and eat and drink, for the sound of a heavy rainstorm can be heard." |
| 42So Ahab went to eat and drink. But Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel and bowed low to the ground and prayed with his face between his knees. | 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. |
| 43Then he said to his servant, “Go and look out toward the sea.” The servant went and looked, then returned to Elijah and said, “I didn’t see anything.” Seven times Elijah told him to go and look. | 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." Seven times Elijah sent him to look. |
| 44Finally the seventh time, his servant told him, “I saw a little cloud about the size of a man’s hand rising from the sea.” Then Elijah shouted, “Hurry to Ahab and tell him, ‘Climb into your chariot and go back home. If you don’t hurry, the rain will stop you!’” | 44The seventh time the servant said, "Look, a small cloud, the size of the palm of a man's hand, is rising up from the sea." Elijah then said, "Go and tell Ahab, 'Hitch up the chariots and go down, so that the rain won't overtake you.'" |
| 45And soon the sky was black with clouds. A heavy wind brought a terrific rainstorm, and Ahab left quickly for Jezreel. | 45Meanwhile the sky was covered with dark clouds, the wind blew, and there was a heavy rainstorm. Ahab rode toward Jezreel. |
| 46Then the LORD gave special strength to Elijah. He tucked his cloak into his belt and ran ahead of Ahab’s chariot all the way to the entrance of Jezreel. | 46Now the LORD energized Elijah with power; he tucked his robe into his belt and ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel. |
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