Thomson(i)
21 to them, How long will you halt between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him: but if Baal; follow him. But the people made no reply.
22 Then Elias said to the people, I am left a prophet of the Lord myself alone. But the prophets of Baal are four hundred and fifty men, and the prophets of the Bower four hundred.
23 Let there be given to us two young bulls, and let them chuse one for themselves, and cut him in pieces, and lay them on wood, but put no fire; and I will prepare the other and put no fire.
24 And call ye on the name! of your gods, and I will invoke the name of the Lord my God. And the God who shall answer by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, The proposal thou hast made is fair.
25 Then Elias said to the prophets of shame, Chuse for yourselves one young bull and prepare it first; for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire to it.
26 So they took the young bull, and prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning till noon, and said, Hearken to us, Baal! Hearken to us. But there was no voice. There was no answer; though they ran upon the altar which they had erected.
27 And when it was noon, Elias the Thesbite mocked them, and said, Call louder; for he is a god; for he is engaged in meditation, or perhaps he is busy, or perhaps he is asleep, and must be awaked.
28 Then they called with a loud voice, and according to their custom cut themselves with knives and lancets till there was a gush of blood upon them,
29 and prophesied till the approach of the evening. But when it was about the time when the sacrifice should ascend, Elias the Thesbite spoke to the prophets of the idols, and said, Desist now, and I will prepare my whole burnt offering. So they desisted, and went away.
30 Then Elias said to the people, Draw near to me. And when all the people came near before him,
31 Elias took twelve stones according to the number of the tribes of Israel, to whom the Lord had spoken, saying, Thy name shall be Israel;
32 and he built the stones in the name of the Lord, and repaired the altar which had been thrown down. Then he made a trench around the altar sufficient to contain two measures of seed,
33 and piled up the split wood upon the altar which he had made. He then divided the whole burnt offering in quarters, and laid it on the split wood. And when he had laid it in order upon the altar, he said, Bring me four pots of water and pour it on the whole burnt offering and on the split wood.
34 And when they had done so, he said, Do the same again. And when they had done this a second time, he said, Do it a third time. So they did it a third time,
35 and the water ran down about the altar and filled the trench with water.
36 Then Elias raised his voice to heaven and said, Lord, the God of Abraham and of Isaak and of Israel, hearken to me! Lord, hearken to me this day by fire, And let all this people know, that thou art the Lord God of Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that by thee I have done these works.
37 Hearken to me, Lord! Hearken to me; and let this people know, that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned the heart of this people back again.
38 Thereupon fire from the Lord fell down out of heaven and consumed the whole burnt offering, with the split wood and the water in the trench and the stones, and licked up even the dust.
39 Then all the people fell on their faces and said, Of a truth the Lord is God. He is very God.
40 Then Elias said to the people, Seize the prophets of Baal. Let none of them escape. So they seized them and brought them to Elias, down to the brook Kison and slew them there.