Elijah (The Prophet), the Tishbite, said, “As The Lord God of Israel Lives, before whom I
stand.”
Elijah’s
Mount Carmel Victory
Then it happened, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said
to him (Elijah), “Is that YOU,
O Troubler of Israel?” And he (Elijah)
answered, “I have NOT troubled Israel, but YOU and your father’s house have, in that YOU have forsaken The
Commandments of The Lord and have followed the Baals. Now therefore, send and gather All Israel to me (Elijah), on Mount Carmel, the four
hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of Asherah,
who eat at Jezebel’s table.” So, Ahab
sent for All The Children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on
Mount Carmel. And Elijah came to All the
People, and said, “How long will YOU falter between two opinions? If The Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal,
follow him.” But the People answered him
NOT a word. Then Elijah said to the People,
“I (Elijah) alone, am left a Prophet of The Lord; but Baal’s
prophets are four hundred and
fifty men. Therefore let them give us
two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and
lay it on the wood, but put NO
fire under it; and I (Elijah) will
prepare the other bull, and lay it
on the wood, but put NO fire under it. Then YOU call on the name of your gods, and I
(Elijah) will Call on The Name of The Lord; and the
God who answers by fire, He is God.”
So all the People answered and said, “It is well
spoken.” Now
Elijah said, to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one bull for yourselves and
prepare it first, for YOU are many; and call on the name of
your god, but put NO fire under it.” So they took the bull which
was given them, and they prepared it,
and called on the name of Baal, from morning even till noon, saying, “O Baal,
hear us!” But there was no voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they
had made. And so
it was, at noon, that Elijah mocked them and said, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is meditating, or
he is busy, or he is on a journey, or
perhaps he is sleeping and must be awakened.”
So they cried aloud, and cut themselves, as was their custom, with
knives and lances, until the blood gushed out on them. And when midday was past, they prophesied
until the time of the offering
of the evening sacrifice. But there
was no voice; no one answered, no one paid attention. Then Elijah said to all the
People, “Come near to me (Elijah).” So,
all the People came near to him (Elijah).
And he (Elijah) repaired The Altar of The Lord that was broken down. And Elijah took Twelve Stones, according to
the number of The Tribes of The Sons of Jacob, to whom The Word of The Lord had come, saying, “Israel shall be your name.” Then with the stones he (Elijah) built an
Altar in The Name of The Lord; and he (Elijah) made a trench
around The Altar, large enough to hold two seahs of seed. And he (Elijah) put the wood in order, cut
the bull in pieces, and laid it
on the wood, and said, “Fill four waterpots with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the
wood.” Then he (Elijah) said, “Do it a second time,” and they did it a second time; and he (Elijah) said,
“Do it a third time,” and they
did it a third time. So, the water ran all around The Altar; and
he (Elijah) also filled the trench with water. 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 Israel, let it be known this Day, that YOU are God in Israel and I (Elijah) am Your Servant, and that I (Elijah) have done all these
things at Your Word. Hear me, O Lord, hear me, that this People may know, that YOU are The Lord God, and that YOU
have turned their hearts back to YOU
again.” Then The
Fire of The Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones
and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench. Now,
when all the People saw it,
they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!” And Elijah said to them,
“Seize the prophets of Baal! Do NOT let
one of them escape!” So they seized
them; and Elijah brought them down to the Brook, Kishon, and executed them there.
Elijah Ascends to Heaven
And it came to pass, when The Lord was about to take up Elijah into
Heaven, by a Whirlwind, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. Then Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here,
please, for The Lord has sent me (Elijah) on to Bethel.” But Elisha said, “As The Lord Lives, and as your Soul lives, I will NOT leave YOU!”
So they went down to Bethel. Now,
The Sons of The Prophets, who were
at Bethel, came out to Elisha, and said to him (Elisha), “Do YOU know, that The
Lord will take away your master (Elijah) from over YOU Today?” And he (Elisha) said, “Yes, I know; keep
silent!” Then Elijah said to him,
“Elisha, stay here, please, for The Lord has sent me
(Elijah) on to Jericho.” But he (Elisha)
said, “As The Lord Lives, and as your
Soul lives, I will NOT leave YOU!” So they came to Jericho. Now, The Sons of The Prophets, who were at Jericho, came to Elisha and
said to him, “Do YOU know, that The Lord will take
away your master (Elijah) from over YOU Today?”
So he answered, “Yes, I know; keep silent!” Then Elijah said to him (Elisha), “Stay here,
please, for The Lord has sent me (Elijah) on to the Jordan.” But he (Elisha) said, “As The Lord Lives, and as your Soul lives, I will NOT leave YOU!” So the two of
them went on. And fifty men of The Sons
of The Prophets went and stood facing them
at a distance, while the two of them stood by the Jordan. Now Elijah took his *mantle,
rolled it up, and struck the
water; and it was divided this way and that, so that the two of them crossed
over on dry ground. And so it was, when
they had crossed over, that Elijah said to Elisha, “Ask! What may I do for YOU, before I am taken away
from YOU?” Elisha said, “Please, let a
double portion of Your Spirit, be upon me.”
So he (Elijah) said, “YOU have asked a hard thing. Nevertheless,
if YOU see me, when I am taken
from YOU, it shall be so for YOU; but if NOT, it shall NOT be so.” Then it happened, as they continued on and
talked, that suddenly, a Chariot of Fire appeared
with Horses of Fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up, by a
Whirlwind into Heaven (Alive).
Question: Do YOU have the Faith, in God Almighty,
Elijah had?
*The
Mantle was the official garment of a Prophet.
The Mantle marked a man as a Prophet, a Spokesman of God. The Mantle represented a man’s gift, The Call
of God, and the purpose for which God had Called him. The Mantle was a Sign of God’s Gift, which
enabled a man to fulfill The Prophetic Office and Ministry.
No comments:
Post a Comment