33. He put the wood in order, butchered the bull, and placed the bull on the wood. "Fill four jars with water and pour it on the sacrifice and on the wood," he commanded.
34. "Do it a second time!" he said. So they did it a second time. "Do it a third time!" And so they did it a third time.
35. The water flowed around the altar, and even the trench filled with water.
36. At the time of the evening offering, the prophet Elijah drew near and prayed: "Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant. I have done all these things at your instructions.
37. Answer me, Lord! Answer me so that this people will know that you, Lord, are the real God and that you can change their hearts."
38. Then the Lord’s fire fell; it consumed the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, and the dust. It even licked up the water in the trench!
39. All the people saw this and fell on their faces. "The Lord is the real God! The Lord is the real God!" they exclaimed.
40. Elijah said to them, "Seize Baal’s prophets! Don’t let any escape!" The people seized the prophets, and Elijah brought them to the Kishon Brook and killed them there.
41. Elijah then said to Ahab, "Get up! Celebrate with food and drink because I hear the sound of a rainstorm coming."
42. So Ahab got up to celebrate with food and drink. But Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel. He bowed down to the ground and put his face between his knees.
43. He said to his assistant, "Please get up and look toward the sea."So the assistant did so. He said, "I don’t see anything."Seven times Elijah said, "Do it again."
44. The seventh time the assistant said, "I see a small cloud the size of a human hand coming up from the sea."Elijah said, "Go and tell Ahab, ‘Pull yourself together, go down the mountain, and don’t let the rain hold you back.’"
45. After a little while, the sky became dark with clouds, and a wind came up with a huge rainstorm. Ahab was already riding on his way to Jezreel,
46. but the Lord’s power strengthened Elijah. He gathered up his clothes and ran in front of Ahab until he came to Jezreel.