Who was Elijah in the Bible?
Here's the answer:
Elijah was one of God's prophets.
Elijah is one of the most well known prophets of the Lord. He was alive during a time of great evil in the world. Through Elijah's lifetime, he helped to end the false worship of Baal. Elijah had a difficult life and struggled with depression at times. Despite these obstacles, God uses Elijah to do great things.
Elijah is most well-known for his face-off with Baal's false prophets on the top of Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:17-40). The false prophets of Baal called upon Baal to show his greatness by causing fire to rain down from heaven. To their disappointment, nothing happened. They called upon Baal all day, but nothing happened. Elijah calls upon God and God sends fire from Heaven, which burns up sacrifice, the wood, and the stones.
This proved to the Baal worshippers that there is only one God and He is the God Elijah served. Despite the many great things Elijah did, he struggled with depression and even had thoughts of ending his life. He cried out to God and God provided him with comfort. Through God's constant support, Elijah accomplishes all that God needs him to do. Elijah doesn't die. Instead, he is taken up into heaven and leaves Elisha to fill his place.
Bible Truth
"Elijah was from Tishbe in the land of Gilead. He said to Ahab, 'I serve the LORD. He is the God of Israel. You can be sure that he lives. And you can be just as sure that there won’t be any dew or rain on the whole land. There won’t be any during the next few years. It won’t come until I say so'" (1 Kings 17:1).
"'I haven’t made trouble for Israel,' Elijah replied. 'But you and your father’s family have. You have turned away from the LORD’s commands. You have followed gods that are named Baal. Now send for people from all over Israel. Tell them to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the 450 prophets of the god named Baal. Also bring the 400 prophets of the female god named Asherah. All of them eat at Jezebel’s table'" (1 Kings 18:18-19).
"Elijah was afraid. So he ran for his life. He came to Beersheba in Judah. He left his servant there. Then he traveled for one day into the desert. He came to a small bush. He sat down under it. He prayed that he would die. LORD, I’ve had enough,” he said. 'Take my life. I’m no better than my people of long ago.' Then he lay down under the bush. And he fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him. The angel said, 'Get up and eat.' Elijah looked around. Near his head he saw some bread. It had been baked over hot coals. A jar of water was also there. So Elijah ate and drank. Then he lay down again" (1 Kings 19:3-6).
