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Prophets and Kings
worship. Many in the throng are weary of the exhibitions of demonism,
and they now await with deepest interest the movements of Elijah.
It is the hour of the evening sacrifice, and Elijah bids the people,
“Come near unto me.” As they tremblingly draw near, he turns to the
broken-down altar where once men worshiped the God of heaven,
and repairs it. To him this heap of ruins is more precious than all the
magnificent altars of heathendom.
In the reconstruction of this ancient altar, Elijah revealed his respect
for the covenant that the Lord made with Israel when they crossed the
Jordan into the Promised Land. Choosing “twelve stones, according
to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, ... he built an altar in
the name of the Lord.”
The disappointed priests of Baal, exhausted by their vain efforts,
wait to see what Elijah will do. They hate the prophet for proposing a
test that has exposed the weakness and inefficiency of their gods; yet
they fear his power. The people, fearful also, and almost breathless
with expectancy, watch while Elijah continues his preparations. The
calm demeanor of the prophet stands out in sharp contrast with the
fanatical, senseless frenzy of the followers of Baal.
The altar completed, the prophet makes a trench about it, and,
having put the wood in order and prepared the bullock, he lays the
victim on the altar and commands the people to flood the sacrifice and
the altar with water. “Fill four barrels,” he directed, “and pour it on the
burnt sacrifice, and on the wood. And he said, Do it the second time.
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And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And
they did it the third time. And the water ran round about the altar; and
he filled the trench also with water.”
Reminding the people of the long-continued apostasy that has
awakened the wrath of Jehovah, Elijah calls upon them to humble
their hearts and turn to the God of their fathers, that the curse upon
the land of Israel may be removed. Then, bowing reverently before
the unseen God, he raises his hands toward heaven and offers a simple
prayer. Baal’s priests have screamed and foamed and leaped, from
early morning until late in the afternoon; but as Elijah prays, no sense-
less shrieks resound over Carmel’s height. He prays as if he knows
Jehovah is there, a witness to the scene, a listener to his appeal. The
prophets of Baal have prayed wildly, incoherently. Elijah prays simply