1 Kings 18:6-36

⁶And they divided the countries between them, that they might go round about them: Achab went one way, and Abdias another way by himself.

⁷And as Abdias was in the way, Elias met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said: Art thou my lord Elias?

⁸And he answered: I am. Go, and tell thy master: Elias is here.

⁹And he said: What have I sinned, that thou wouldst deliver me thy servant into the hand of Achab, that he should kill me?

¹⁰As the Lord thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee: and when all answered: He is not here: he took an oath of every kingdom and nation, because thou wast not found.

¹¹And now thou sayest to me: Go, and tell thy master: Elias is here.

¹²And when I am gone from thee, the spirit of the Lord will carry thee into a place that I know not: and I shall go in and tell Achab, and he not finding thee, will kill me: but thy servant feareth the Lord from his infancy.

¹³Hath it not been told thee, my lord, what I did when Jezabel killed the prophets of the Lord, how I hid a hundred men of the prophets of the Lord, by fifty and fifty in caves, and fed them with bread and water?

¹⁴And now thou sayest: Go, and tell thy master: Elias is here: that he may kill me.

¹⁵And Elias said: As the Lord of hosts liveth, before whose face I stand, this day I will shew myself unto him.

¹⁶Abdias therefore went to meet Achab, and told him: and Achab came to meet Elias.

¹⁷And when he had seen him, he said: Art thou he that troublest Israel?

¹⁸And he said: I have not troubled Israel, but thou and thy father’s house, who have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and have followed Baalim.

¹⁹Nevertheless send now, and gather unto me all Israel, unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the groves four hundred, who eat at Jezabel’s table.

²⁰Achab sent to all the children of Israel, and gathered together the prophets unto mount Carmel.

²¹And Elias coming to all the people, said: How long do you halt between two sides? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people did not answer him a word.

²²And Elias said again to the people: I only remain a prophet of the Lord: but the prophets of Baal are four hundred and fifty men.

²³Let two bullocks be given us, and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces and lay it upon wood, but put no fire under: and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under it.

²⁴Call ye on the names of your gods, and I will call on the name of my Lord: and the God that shall answer by fire, let him be God. And all the people answering said: A very good proposal.

²⁵Then Elias said to the prophets of Baal: Choose you one bullock and dress it first, because you are many: and call on the names of your gods, but put no fire under.

²⁶And they took the bullock which he gave them, and dressed it: and they called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying: O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered: and they leaped over the altar that they had made.

²⁷And when it was now noon, Elias jested at them, saying: Cry with a louder voice: for he is a God, and perhaps he is talking, or is in an inn, or on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep, and must be awaked.

²⁸So they cried with a loud voice, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till they were all covered with blood.

²⁹And after midday was past, and while they were prophesying, the time was come of offering sacrifice, and there was no voice heard, nor did any one answer, nor regard them as they prayed:

³⁰Elias said to all the people: Come ye unto me. And the people coming near unto him, he repaired the altar of the Lord, that was broken down:

³¹And he took twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying: Israel shall be thy name.

³²And he built with the stones an altar to the name of the Lord: and he made a trench for water, of the breadth of two furrows round about the altar.

³³And he laid the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid it upon the wood.

³⁴And he said: Fill four buckets with water, and pour it upon the burnt offering, and upon the wood. And again he said: Do the same the second time. And when they had done it the second time, he said: Do the same also the third time. And they did so the third time.

³⁵And the water run round about the altar, and the trench was filled with water.

³⁶And when it was now time to offer the holocaust, Elias the prophet came near and said: O Lord God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Israel, shew this day that thou art the God of Israel, and I thy servant, and that according to thy commandment I have done all these things.