Elijah Encounters Yahweh at Horeb

⁹ He came to the cave there and spent the night there. Suddenly the word of Yahweh came to him and asked him, “Elijah, what are you doing here?”^{[a] 10} Then he said, “I have been very zealous for Yahweh the God of hosts, for the Israelites^[b] have forsaken your covenant. They have demolished your altars, and they have killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left over, and they seek to take my life. ¹¹ He^[c] said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before Yahweh.” Suddenly Yahweh was passing by, with a great and strong wind ripping the mountains and crushing rocks before Yahweh; but Yahweh was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake; but Yahweh was not in the earthquake. ¹² After the earthquake was a fire, but Yahweh was not in the fire. After the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. ¹³ It happened at the moment Elijah heard, he covered his face with his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him and said, “Elijah, why are you here?”^{[d] 14} He said, “I have been very zealous for Yahweh the God of Hosts, for the Israelites^[e] have forsaken your covenant, demolished your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword; I alone am left, and they seek to take my life!” ¹⁵ Then Yahweh said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus. Go and anoint Hazael as king over Aram; ¹⁶ and Jehu son of Nimshi you shall anoint as king over Israel. You shall also anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel-Meholah as prophet in your place. ¹⁷ It shall be that the one who escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu will kill; the one who escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall kill. ¹⁸ I will leave in Israel seven thousand, all of the knees that have not bowed down to Baal and all of the mouths that have not kissed him.”