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Elijah statue on Mt. Carmel |
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Mt. Carmel
Mount Carmel is the probable location of Elijah's contest with the prophets of Baal. You can read this entire fascinating story in 1 Kings 20:14 of the Old Testament. Basically what happened is that Elijah was claiming that his God was the only true God, while the prophets of Baal said that Baal was the only true god. So they had a contest to see which god could prove himself. Whichever god sent fire to ignite a bull sacrifice would be the only true god. The prophets of Baal prayed as hard as they could, even slashing themselves to get Baal's attention, but nothing happened to their sacrifice. Elijah taunted them along the way saying, "Shout louder! Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened." After the failure of Baal to ignite the sacrifice, it was Elijah's turn to call on God. Before he did so, however, he had his sacrifice drenched with water. He then called on the name of the Lord and fire came down and burned not only the bull, but also stones of the altar and the soil on the ground. |
