through each other's ranks, always keeping up a circular motion, the head low bent, so that their long dishevelled hair

swept the ground. Ordinarily the madness now became infectious, and the onlookers joined in the frenzied dance. But

Elijah knew how to prevent this. It was noon - and for hours they had kept up their wild rites. With cutting taunts and

bitter irony Elijah now reminded them that, since Baal was Elohim, the fault it must lie with them. He might be

otherwise engaged, and they must cry louder. Stung to madness, they became more frantic than before, and what we

know as the second and third acts in these feasts ensued. The wild howl pas sed into piercing demoniacal yells. In their

madness the priests bit their arms and cut themselves with the two -edged swords which they carried and with lances.10

As blood began to flow the frenzy reached its highest pitch, when first one, then others, commenced to "prophesy,"

moaned and groaned, then burst into rhapsodic cries, accusing themselves, or speaking to Baal, or uttering incoherent

broken sentences. All the while they beat themselves with heavy scourges, loaded or armed with sharp points, and cut

themselves with swords and lances - sometimes even mutilated themselves - since the blood of the priests was

supposed to be specially propitiatory with Baal.

Two more hours had this terrible scene lasted - and their powers of endurance must have been all but exhausted. The

sun had long passed its meridian, and the time of the regular evening-sacrifice in the Temple of Jehovah at Jerusalem

had come. From the accounts of Temple -times left us we know that the evening sacrifice was offered "between the

evenings," as it was termed - that is, between the downgoing of the sun and the evening.11

In point of fact the service commenced between two and three p.m. It must have been about the same time when Elijah

began the simple yet solemn preparations for his sacrifice. Turning from the frantic priests to the astonished people, he

bade them draw nigh. They must gather around him, not only in order to be convinced that no deception was practiced,

but to take part with him, as it were, in the service. And once more Israel was to appear as the Israel of old in happier

times, undivided in nationality as in allegiance to Jehovah. This was the meaning of his restoring the broken place of

former pious worship by rolling to it twelve of the large pieces of rock that strewe d the ground, according to the

number of the tribes. And as he built the altar, he consecrated it by prayer: "in the name of Jehovah." Next, the soft

crumbling calcareous soil around the altar was dug into a deep and wide trench. Then the wood, and upon it the pieces

of the sacrifice were laid in due order. And now, at the prophet's bidding, willing hands filled the pitchers from the well

close by.12 Once, twice, thrice he poured the water over the sacrifices, till it ran down into the trench, which he also

filled. This, as we suppose, not merely to show the more clearly that the fire, which consumed the sacrifice in such

circumstances, was sent from heaven, but also for symbolic reasons, as if to indicate that Israel's penitent confession

was poured upon the offering.

And now a solemn silence fell on the assembly. The sun was going down, a globe of fire, behind Carmel, and covered

it with purple glow. It was the time of the evening sacrifice. But Jehovah, not Elijah, would do the miracle; the Hand of

the living God Himself must be stretched out. Once more it was prayer which moved that Hand. Such prayer was not

heard before - so calm, so earnest, so majestic, so assured, so strong. Elijah appeared in it as only the servant of

Jehovah, and all that he had previously done as only at His Word: but Jehovah was the covenant -God, the God of

Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, manifesting Himself as of old as the Living and True, as Elohim in Israel: the

conversion of Israel to Him as their God being the great object sought for.13

He had said it, and, as when first the Tabernacle was consecrated (Leviticus 9:24), or as when King Solomon (1

Chronicles 21:26; 2 Chronicles 7:1) brought the first offering in the Temple which he had reared to Jehovah, so now

the fire of Jehovah leaped from heaven, consumed the sacrifice and the wood, enwrapped and burnt up the limestone

rocks of which the altar was constructed, and with burning tongue licked up even the water that was in the trench. One

moment of solemn silence, when all who had seen it fell in awe -stricken worship on their faces; then a shout which

seemed to rend the very air, and found its echo far and wide in the glens and clefts of Carmel: "Jehovah, He the

Elohim! Jehovah, He the Elohim!"

And so Israel was once more converted unto God. And now, in accordance with the Divine command in the Law

(Deuteronomy 13:13; 17:2, etc.), stern judgment must be executed on the idolaters and seducers, the idol-priests. The

victory that day must be complete; the renunciation of Baal-worship beyond recall. Not one of the priests of Baal must

escape. Down the steep mountain sides they hurried them, cast them over precipices, those fourteen hundred feet to the

river Kishon, which was reddened with their blood.14