What is the significance of Elijah and the prophets of Baal?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

Elijah lived during the time of the idolatrous king Ahab. At the end of a three-year drought, God sent Elijah to Ahab. Ahab called Elijah a “troubler” (1 Kings 18:17), blaming him for the drought, but Elijah said it was Ahab who brought it upon himself by leading Israel into idolatry (1 Kings 18:18). He then set a challenge: send the 450 prophets of Baal to face Elijah to see whose God was greater. Two bulls were set up, one for the prophets and one for Elijah. Whoever’s God set the bull on fire would be the true God (1 Kings 18:22–24). The prophets tried first, crying, cutting themselves, and pleading, all to no avail (1 Kings 18:25–29), as Elijah mocked them (1 Kings 18:27). When it was Elijah’s turn, he drenched his bull and altar in water until it was flooded (1 Kings 18:30–35). Praying, he asked God to show His power to Israel (1 Kings 18:36–37). Fire came, consuming the entire altar (1 Kings 18:38). Elijah commanded that the false prophets be slaughtered (1 Kings 18:40). This account demonstrated that God was real in contrast to the false gods that Israel followed and marked the beginning of the end of the wicked Ahab and Jezebel. This account is not suggesting we test God—Elijah was a prophet with a special calling and mission. However, it teaches us that only God is the true God, and we must therefore guard ourselves from placing anything or anyone in His place.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• King Ahab was a wicked king married to the even more wicked Jezebel, who both worshiped Baal and killed anyone, particularly the prophets of Yahweh, who didn’t (1 Kings 18:4). Together, they led Israel into idolatry and abandoned their God, Yahweh (1 Kings 16:30–33).
• God judged Israel with a severe drought, such that by the end, Ahab was looking for even a small amount of land to feed his animals (1 Kings 18:5). At that time, God sent Elijah to face Ahab, who had already been trying to find and kill him (1 Kings 18:10).
• When they met, Ahab said, “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?” (1 Kings 18:17), referring to the drought. Elijah corrected Ahab, replying, “I have not troubled Israel, but you have, and your father’s house, because you have abandoned the commandments of the LORD and followed the Baals” (v. 18).
• Elijah then offered a challenge. He told Ahab, “Send and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, and the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table” (1 Kings 18:19).
• When they came, Elijah spoke to everyone, particularly Israel, saying, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him” (1 Kings 18:21). The challenge was that they couldn’t have two gods. They needed to pick one: Yahweh or Baal.
• Elijah then explained the rules of the challenge: “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the LORD, but Baal’s prophets are 450 men. Let two bulls be given to us, and let them choose one bull for themselves and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it. And I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood and put no fire to it. And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the LORD, and the God who answers by fire, he is God” (1 Kings 18:22–24). The challenge was for each side to have one altar and to pray to their God. The true God was the one who set the altar on fire.
• The prophets of Baal went first. They cried for about 6 hours, to no avail (1 Kings 18:25–26). Elijah then mocked them, suggesting their god was busy, going to the bathroom, or even asleep, so they should try harder so he could hear them (1 Kings 18:26–27). They did, cutting themselves, crying out, but “No one answered; no one paid attention” (1 Kings 18:28–29).
• When it was Elijah’s turn, he raised the bar, calling for his altar, wood, and bull to be soaked in water until it was flooded (1 Kings 18:30–35). Then Elijah prayed a simple prayer: “O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel, and that I am your servant, and that I have done all these things at your word. Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back” (1 Kings 18:36–37).
• Immediately, “fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench” (1 Kings 18:38). Despite the water, nothing was left after God set it on fire. “And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces and said, “The LORD, he is God; the LORD, he is God” (1 Kings 18:39).
• Elijah then commanded that all the false prophets currently in attendance be captured and slaughtered (1 Kings 18:40), in accordance with the Mosaic Law’s punishment for false prophets (Deuteronomy 13:1–5). This marked the end of their influence over Israel and the beginning of the end for both Ahab and Jezebel.

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• The account of Elijah and the prophets of Baal is not found in the New Testament.

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

This account doesn’t teach us to test God (Deuteronomy 6:16) or to presume on Him! Elijah was a prophet with a unique calling, sent by God to draw Israel’s attention (1 Kings 18:21). This account teaches that God is truly the only God. Worshiping anything or anyone other than Him is, therefore, a fool’s errand.

False gods aren’t just limited to religious symbols, like Baal. Anything that you love more than God is an idol. That is because you are valuing that thing, person, or activity more than God. An easy test for idols is whether you’d sin to get what you want. Your willingness to disobey God for something or someone else reveals what reigns in your heart.

Even believers get captured by idolatry. We can love good things, like education or our children or even theological studies, so much that they overtake our heart. Oftentimes this happens without realizing it! Why? As Jeremiah said, the human heart is desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9). Even for believers, the human heart is so sinfully depraved that we don’t realize just how bad it is! It deceives us, and we are slow to catch on.

What can we do? We cannot defeat idolatry if we fight sins in our own power. Instead, as believers, we fight by renewing our minds with Scripture (Romans 12:2) and walking in the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). The more we are conformed to the image of Christ, the less we love the world and the more we obey God.

Israel loved the world and allowed itself to be enslaved by idolatry. Let us learn from that by clinging to God in His Word through Jesus!

UNDERSTAND

• The confrontation at Carmel was God's direct response to Israel's idolatry under King Ahab, with Elijah forcing the nation to choose between Yahweh and Baal.
• God's fire consuming a water-drenched altar removed all human explanation for the miracle, and the people's immediate response confirmed that the confrontation achieved its purpose.
• The slaughter of Baal's prophets was the correct application of the Mosaic Law, which prescribed death for any who led Israel into idolatry.

REFLECT

• How does Elijah's question, "How long will you go limping between two different opinions?" challenge you to reconsider areas of your life where you are divided between God and the world?
• In what ways might Elijah's soaking of the altar discourage you from assuming everything has a natural explanation?
• What do you need to address in your life now so that you never get to the point where God needs to dramatically and painfully correct your course?

ENGAGE

• What modern “Baal” can compete for people’s worship today, and how can we recognize when a good thing has become an idol?
• What does it teach us about God in the way He confronted Baal, who was supposedly the god of storms and rain?
• What does Elijah’s simple, confident prayer, compared with the prophets of Baal’s frantic efforts, teach us about the difference between trusting God and trying to manipulate Him?