Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many, and call upon the name of your god, but put no fire to it.”
Mount Carmel has become a courtroom, and Elijah gives the opening move to the other side. Why would one man, facing four hundred and fifty opponents, hand them first choice of the animal and first turn at the altar? And why does he insist they light no fire of their own?
The First Turn Given Away
Elijah's terms sound generous, and they are. He lets the men who serve Baal pick their bull and go first. One writer finds the reason for his calm in the verse's last words: "but put no fire to it."
W. W. FeredayIt was important to stress that last clause when dealing with unprincipled villains. Priestly "miracles" have a bad reputation for fraud. In the calmness of faith, Elijah could afford to let Satan's agents move first. He knew well that the god they served had no power.
At the start, every outward advantage sat on Baal's side.
The Bible TreasuryAt the start the cause of Baal appeared at its best. Baal had his choice of the sacrifice and the sympathy of the court. He also had a large priesthood, zealous for his interests — that is, for their own.
Why the Test Was Fire
Both sides would build an altar. Both would lay out a bull. Seen from a distance, the two religions looked alike, so something had to separate them.
H. L. RossierTwo religions meet face to face: Elijah's and Baal's — for the third, Israel's, takes part in both. Publicly these two religions appear to offer the same sacrifice. How are they to be told apart? One of the bulls must be consumed by fire from heaven, and not the other. By this means people will be able to recognise the true God. By this means the people too will learn to know themselves, and so be turned to repentance.
The Verdict Taken Out of Human Hands
Elijah stood alone against four hundred and fifty. He asks for a test that no head count can settle.
Hamilton SmithElijah boldly proposes to put this great question to the trial by fire. "The God who answers by fire, He is God." The appeal is to God. The decision will not rest with the lone prophet of the Lord, nor with the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal. It will be no question of human reasoning, or of the opinion of one man against four hundred and fifty. God shall decide.
What Follows the Invitation
The prophets of Baal took the offer and called on their god.
W. T. P. WolstonLet us go back to Carmel and see how Elijah deals with the prophets. He gives them the first chance, and they prepare their sacrifice. What comes next? They cry, "O Baal, answer us!" But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped around the altar that they had made. He knew the whole thing was false, just as today everything that is not Christ is false. What you and I want is the truth. And Christ is the Truth.
Their effort was enormous.
The Bible TreasuryAll day long they tore their throats, if not the heavens, with their cries. But the sheer scale of their effort only showed how useless it all was. There was no reply. The mountain of zeal did not bring forth even a mouse.
No Fire of Our Own
The ban on human fire was not only a guard against cheating. One writer carries it further, to the sinner and his own efforts.
Samuel RidoutThey used up the day in useless cries and in cutting themselves, and there was no response. Ashamed and silent, they had to wait for the voice of God. Then the prophet took those special precautions to make clear that it was indeed God, and He alone, who was dealing with His people. Water is poured again and again over the sacrifice and over the altar, until it fills the ditch around it. Now no possibility of fire is left, and all of nature's heat is quenched. Then, in a few simple words, the prophet asks the Lord to show Himself. He cannot show Himself where the smouldering embers of nature's efforts are still glowing. It is good for the sinner to realise this.
Summary
- Fire decides. Two altars looked the same. Only fire from heaven could tell the true God from the false, and teach the people what they themselves were.
- Fire, not numbers. The opinion of one man against four hundred and fifty proves nothing. Elijah handed the verdict to God.
- Fire, not fraud. Elijah aimed "put no fire to it" at unprincipled men, since priestly "miracles" have a bad reputation for fraud. Faith could let them go first.
- Fire, not frenzy. A whole day of shouting produced nothing. Effort on that scale only exposed how powerless the object of it was.
- Fire, not our embers. God shows Himself once nature's own heat has died out. The sinner needs to learn this.