¹⁹ Now summon all Israel to meet me at Mount Carmel,^(A) along with the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah^(B) who eat at Jezebel’s table.’

Elijah at Mount Carmel

²⁰ So Ahab summoned all the Israelites and gathered the prophets at Mount Carmel. ²¹ Then Elijah approached all the people and said, ‘How long will you waver between two opinions?^[a](C) If the Lord is God, follow him. But if Baal, follow him.’^(D) But the people didn’t answer him a word.

²² Then Elijah said to the people, ‘I am the only remaining prophet of the Lord,^(E) but Baal’s prophets are 450 men. ²³ Let two bulls be given to us. They are to choose one bull for themselves, cut it into pieces, and place it on the wood but not light the fire. I will prepare the other bull and place it on the wood but not light the fire. ²⁴ Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord.^(F) The God who answers with fire, he is God.’

All the people answered, ‘That’s fine.’

²⁵ Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, ‘Since you are so numerous, choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first. Then call on the name of your god but don’t light the fire.’

²⁶ So they took the bull that he gave them, prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, ‘Baal, answer us! ’ But there was no sound;^(G) no one answered. Then they danced^[b] around the altar they had made.

²⁷ At noon Elijah mocked them. He said, ‘Shout loudly, for he’s a god! Maybe he’s thinking it over; maybe he has wandered away;^[c] or maybe he’s on the road. Perhaps he’s sleeping and will wake up! ’^{(H) 28} They shouted loudly, and cut themselves^(I) with knives and spears, according to their custom, until blood gushed over them. ²⁹ All afternoon they kept on raving until the offering of the evening sacrifice,^(J) but there was no sound; no one answered, no one paid attention.^(K)

³⁰ Then Elijah said to all the people, ‘Come near me.’ So all the people approached him. Then he repaired the Lord’s altar that had been torn down:^{(L) 31} 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 will be your name’^(M) –  ³² and he built an altar^(N) with the stones in the name of the Lord. Then he made a trench round the altar large enough to hold about seven litres.^{[d][e] 33} Next, he arranged the wood, cut up the bull, and placed it on the wood. He said, ‘Fill four water pots with water and pour it on the offering to be burned and on the wood.’ ³⁴ Then he said, ‘A second time! ’ and they did it a second time. And then he said, ‘A third time! ’ and they did it a third time. ³⁵ So the water ran all round the altar; he even filled the trench with water.

³⁶ At the time for offering the evening sacrifice,^(O) the prophet Elijah approached the altar and said, ‘Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel,^(P) today let it be known^(Q) that you are God in Israel and I am your servant, and that at your word I have done all these things.

⁴ Then Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim,^(A) which is in the hill country of Ephraim, and said, ‘Jeroboam and all Israel, hear me. ⁵ Don’t you know that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingship over Israel to David and his descendants for ever^(B) by a covenant of salt?^{(C) 6} But Jeroboam son of Nebat, a servant of Solomon son of David, rose up and rebelled against his lord.^{(D) 7} Then worthless and wicked men gathered around him to resist Rehoboam son of Solomon when Rehoboam was young, inexperienced, and unable to assert himself against them.

⁸ ‘And now you are saying you can assert yourselves against the Lord’s kingdom, which is in the hand of one of David’s sons. You are a vast number and have with you the golden calves that Jeroboam made for you as gods.^{[a](E) 9} Didn’t you banish the priests of the Lord, the descendants of Aaron and the Levites, and make your own priests like the peoples of other lands do?^(F) Whoever comes to ordain himself^(G) with a young bull and seven rams may become a priest^(H) of what are not gods.^(I)

¹⁰ ‘But as for us, the Lord is our God. We have not abandoned him; the priests ministering to the Lord are descendants of Aaron, and the Levites serve at their tasks. ¹¹ They offer a burnt offering and fragrant incense to the Lord every morning and every evening,^(J) and they set the rows of the Bread of the Presence on the ceremonially clean table.^(K) They light the lamps of the gold lampstand every evening. We are carrying out the requirements of the Lord our God, while you have abandoned him.^{(L) 12} Look, God and his priests are with us at our head. The trumpets are ready to sound the charge against you. Israelites, don’t fight against the Lord God of your ancestors, for you will not succeed.’^(M)