"Elijah and the Fire From Heaven" -- ENGLISH (EN) Subtitles

Subtitles for:  "IcBible5of8_ElijahAndTheFireFromHeavenEN.---"

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"Ken Anderson Films" Presents|(Distributed by "InterComm Media")

"Elijah and the Fire From Heaven"

The Bible tells us about Elijah, the prophet of the Lord.

He lived long ago in the Kingdom of Israel, in the days of King Ahab.

Ahab was a very wicked king in God's sight.  He worshiped false gods.

And he tried to make the people of Israel -

God's own special people - do the same!

King Ahab married an evil woman named Jezebel.

She was the daughter of another King.

Queen Jezebel was even more wicked than King Ahab.  She worshiped idols.

An idol is what we call a false god.  Jezebel's idol was named Baal.

Jezebel brought 450 of Baal's false prophets with her from her place,

which was called Sidon.

She wanted to make God's people worship Baal, too.

I will make them stop worshiping their Lord, she said.

Then, to please Queen Jezebel, King Ahab himself commanded -

that an altar and a temple for Baal be built in his capital city of Samaria.

The King and Queen were very proud of what they had done ...

until one day Elijah suddenly stood before them.

Because you have not kept the Lord's commandments and have worshiped Baal,

Elijah shouted,

the Lord God of Israel says there will be no rain until I say the word!

And just as suddenly as Elijah had come, he was gone.

Who was that ugly man?  Screamed Jezebel.

Elijah, the prophet of the Lord, murmured King Ahab, who was badly frightened.

He is a man of mystery.  He comes and goes like the wind!

I wonder if he spoke the truth?

Nonsense!, growled Jezebel, and then she said to the guards,

Find that fool and kill him!

But even though the guards searched the palace from top to bottom,

they found no sign of Elijah.

When the guards told this to the Queen, she said,

Well, bring me all the other prophets of the Lord you can find.

And kill them!  Do you hear?

There'll be no more worship of the Lord around here!

Now it happened that Obadiah, King Ahab's helper,

heard the Queen's terrible order!

To kill all of God's faithful prophets.  Obadiah loved the Lord.

Even though many of the people of Israel had turned away from God,

Obadiah was still secretly faithful.

You can imagine how sick at heart this news made him.

I must save them!  He said to himself.

Obadiah smuggled 100 prophets of the Lord out of the city.

And he hid them in caves in the countryside.

All during the years of no rain and almost no food, Ahab's helper, Obadiah,

secretly supplied those prophets with food and water.

That was a very brave thing to do, for if Ahab or Jezebel had found out,

they would have killed Obadiah, too.

But Obadiah continued to worry about Elijah.

(Elijah was God's special prophet, remember?)

I wonder where he is?  I pray the Lord will take care of him!

What had become of Elijah?

Jezebel was so angry she made Ahab search ...

from one end of the country to the other for him.

All she could think about was to kill Elijah!

The days grew hotter and hotter.  No rain fell.

The fields were all dry.  There was hardly any food.

Jezebel made King Ahab, her husband,

send men to other countries in search of Elijah.

We must kill him!, she said.  It is Elijah who has caused us all this trouble!

But no human being knew where Elijah was, only the Lord God of Israel knew!

God always knows where his children are!

O yes!  God knew!

Elijah was hiding in the wilderness by a stream named Cherith.

Mean old Ahab never thought to look there!

God had told the birds about Elijah.

These birds were blackbirds, called ravens.  The ravens knew where to find Elijah.

God had told Elijah to hide by the brook and wait for the ravens to bring him food.

Even today when you and I need help,

the Lord will take care of us if we are his children.

We may never be fed by ravens in the wilderness,

but God still watches over and cares for those who love Him.

Elijah lived by the brook for many days, with only the ravens for company.

After a while, though, the brook began to dry up.

As the dryness spread, the brook slowed down to a trickle,

until at last all that was left was mud.

What would you have done if you were Elijah?

I hope you said - pray, because I'm sure that's what Elijah did.

Lord, what should I do now?, that was what he asked.

You probably know that when there isn't any rain, soon there isn't enough food.

Well, that's exactly what happened.  Such a time is called a famine.

And the famine wasn't just in Israel where wicked Ahab was king.

In Sidon - where the King's wife, Jezebel, came from -

the poor people were already beginning to starve.

But the Lord spoke to Elijah and said,

Go to the city of Zarephath in the country of Sidon, and live there.

I have commanded a lady, whose husband is dead, to fix your food.

Why do you think the Lord would send Elijah to Jezebel's country?

Almost everyone there worshiped Baal or some other false god.

But Elijah didn't question the Lord's wisdom or goodness.

He knew that whatever happened it would be for his own good and God's glory.

Elijah knew that the Lord takes care of his own children.

When Elijah arrived at Zarephath,

he found the very woman God had told him about.

Please, may I have a little water in a cup?  I'm very thirsty.

He was hot and tired from his long walk in the sun.

The kind-hearted woman started off at once to get the water.

But Elijah quickly called out again and asked,

Please, may I also have a piece of bread?  I'm very hungry.

At this, the widow almost cried.

As the Lord your God lives, she said, for she could plainly see he was a prophet.

I have no bread, only a handful of flour and a little cooking oil in a jar.

My son and I are just gathering a few sticks for the fire ...

to make one last little bread cake.

Then we shall eat it and die!

Elijah said something really important.

Don't be afraid!  Do what you have said.

But give the little cake to me to eat - then make one for yourself and your son.

For this is what the Lord God of Israel says,

'€˜Your flour barrel shall not be used up, nor your jar of oil be emptied ...

until the day the Lord sends rain again on the face of the earth.'

That widow of long ago believed what the prophet of the Lord had told her.

Even though the whole city was hungry and she was sure ...

that she and her little boy would soon starve to death,

she trusted in what God had said.

The Bible says that she took her last handful of flour.

And her last drop of cooking oil.  And made a hotcake for Elijah.

Her little boy was very hungry himself by this time.

No doubt he could smell the delicious hotcake.

Mama, may I please have one, too?

No, my little boy, his mother said.  I'm afraid there's no more flour or oil left.

Can't you imagine it. Can't you just imagine it?

Perhaps that little fellow ran inside ...

and stretched himself to look down to the bottom of that flour barrel.

Mama!  There is too flour left.  Lots of it!

And all so nice and new. Where did you get it?

The lady hurried to see the jar of oil, too!  It was just what Elijah said.

The Lord had tested her faith and now was taking care of her and her son.

So she and Elijah and the little boy ate for many days.

And the barrel of flour was not used up,

nor was the jar of oil emptied, just as the Lord had promised!

One day the widow's son became sick.

He couldn't run and play.  He didn't want to eat.

His mother was very worried about him.

She put him to bed, but that didn't seem to help at all.

His breathing became very hard, and soon there wasn't any breath at all.

The little head that had been burning with fever was now growing cold!

Her little son was dead.

Through her tears the lady could see Elijah come into the room.

What is the matter?  He asked in a kind voice.  Why are you crying?

What do I have to do with you, Oh man of God?, she scolded.

Why did you come here?

The Lord can see that I am a sinner,

and now he has put my son to death to punish me!

Of course, this wasn't true.

The Lord had chosen to help her, especially by sending Elijah.

But just now the heartbroken mother didn't understand.

The faith that she had shown before was gone.

Give me your son, the Prophet Elijah said,

and he took the little boy from her arms.

The prophet tenderly carried the boy's body up the stairs to the guest bedroom,

where he was living and laid him on his own bed.

O Lord my God, Elijah prayed earnestly,

Why have you brought tragedy to this kind lady ...

with whom I am staying by causing her son to die?

Then Elijah stretched himself over the boy's body 3 times as he prayed.

Oh, Lord, my God, I pray you, let this child's life come back to him.

The Lord heard the prayer of Elijah.  The dead boy became alive again!

See!  Elijah exclaimed with joy to the mother, your son is alive!

The mother was very, very happy.

Now I know for sure that you are a man of God ...

and that the Word of the Lord from you is the Truth!

God talked again to Elijah after many days, in the third year of the famine.

God said, Go and stand before Ahab, for I will send rain on the face of the earth.

So Elijah went to tell King Ahab.

Now by this time the famine was very bad in Israel,

especially in the capital city of Samaria.

And King Ahab called Obadiah, his helper.

And he said, You must go through all my kingdom ...

and see if you can find any springs of water.

Or valleys with grass in them so that we can keep the horses ...

and mules alive, and also my cattle.

So Obadiah set out to do what the King had said.

As Obadiah was traveling, Elijah met him on the road.

And when Obadiah saw who it was, he bowed down and asked,

Is this you, Elijah, my master?

And Elijah answered, It is I.  Go now to King Ahab and tell him that I am here.

But at this Obadiah became frightened.

Please don't make me do that!  King Ahab will kill me!

King Ahab has searched everywhere for you.

And now you want me to say to him '€˜Elijah is here?'

As soon as I go to tell him, God may hide you again - the way He did before.

And when the King Ahab can't find you, he will kill me!

Remember how I saved 100 prophets of the Lord when Jezebel was killing them?, Obadiah said.

I have loved the Lord since I was a child.  Please don't let King Ahab kill me now!

Poor Obadiah was really afraid, and who can blame him?

But he needn't have worried.

Elijah said, As the Lord of hosts lives, I will surely go to the King this day!

So Obadiah hurried off to tell the King.

King Ahab was both angry and frightened.

Is that you, Elijah?  You ... you, you troubler of Israel!

I have not troubled Israel, Elijah said bravely, but you have!

You and your family have disobeyed the Lord's commandments ...

and followed Baal!

Now then, gather all the people of Israel together on Mt. Carmel.

And bring all Jezebel's prophets of Baal!

So all the people of Israel, and King Ahab,

and all the false prophets gathered to meet Elijah on Mt. Carmel.

Now there was an altar of Baal already on Mt. Carmel.

In fact, this mountain was a place where people came to worship Baal.

There had once been an altar for the Lord, but Baal's prophets had torn that down!

So you see Elijah chose an important place for the meeting.

If Baal were a real god and could answer the people who prayed to him,

he should be able to do it on Mt. Carmel.

Everyone was excited, as the King and people waited for Elijah.

When he came, everyone became quiet to hear what he would say.

What are you waiting for?,  Elijah asked.

If the Lord is God, then love Him.  But if Baal is the true god, follow him!

Elijah stood and looked at the people.

But the people did not answer him one word.

No doubt they were feeling guilty about how ...

they had been trying to please Ahab and Jezebel, ...

by worshiping Baal, just a little, and forgetting the Lord more and more!

So Elijah continued, I am the last prophet of the Lord -

Jezebel has seen to that! - But Baal has 450 prophets!

Let's have a contest.

We will each put a sacrifice on our altar with the wood underneath it.

But do not light the fire yourselves.  (A sacrifice was an animal like a lamb.)

We must each pray to our God to set fire to His own sacrifice.

And then we will know who is the one true God because He will answer by fire!

By this time, all the people were very excited, and so they all shouted out,

That's a good idea!

But King Ahab and the prophets of Baal weren't so sure.

But, of course, they couldn't back down.

And so the contest began.

The prophets of Baal put wood on their altar,

and the animal they had killed for the sacrifice.

Then they prayed and said, Oh Baal, answer us!

And they danced around Baal's altar.

But the false God did not answer.

Not one word.  Not a spark.

Not so much as a whiff of smoke.

This went on a long time.  From morning until noon, in fact.

Then Elijah said, Maybe you should shout with a really loud voice!

Since you're so sure Baal is a real god,

then it must be that he is thinking about something else and doesn't hear you.

Or perhaps he has gone on a trip -

or maybe Baal is asleep and you must wake him up!

Elijah wanted the people of Israel to see just how foolish ...

the prophets of Baal were.

Of course, when Elijah made fun of them by saying these things, ...

the false prophets tried harder than ever to make Baal answer their prayer.

So they danced and leaped wildly around their altar.

They cried at the top of their voices.

They even cut themselves with knives and swords ...

so Baal would pay attention to them.

The false prophets did all this until late in the afternoon.

But no one answered them.  No god paid the slightest attention.

Finally, they were so tired they stopped.

Then Elijah called to the people, Come here.

And when all the people had come near him, Elijah fixed the altar of the Lord ...

which had been torn down by the prophets of Baal.

He took 12 large stones - 1 for each of the 12 tribes of Israel, ...

just as God had taught Moses many years before -

and so he built an altar in the name of the Lord.

Elijah then put wood on the altar, and the animal for the sacrifice.

But then he did a very unusual thing.  Elijah dug a ditch all around the altar.

Whatever for? The people wondered.  But they were too afraid to ask.

Elijah said, Go and fill 4 pitchers with water.

And the men who were helping Elijah ...

ran down the mountain to the sea which was nearby.

When they returned, Elijah said.

Now pour the water on the animal and on the wood!

Everyone was surprised and looked at Elijah to see if he really meant it.

We all know wet wood won't burn,

but when the men had finished pouring the water on the altar, ...

Elijah looked it over and said, This isn't nearly wet enough.  Do it again!

The people couldn't believe their ears!

But the men ran back down to the sea ...

and came back with more water and poured it over the altar again.

Do it a third time!  Elijah said.

By now the altar of the Lord was really wet,

and when Elijah's helpers splashed water on it the third time, ...

the altar was soaked - and the ditch around the altar was full, too.

Then Elijah began to pray in a loud, clear voice so that everyone would hear.

Oh Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and (Jacob) Israel -

let us know that you are the one true God in Israel.

And that I am your servant and have done all this because you told me to.

Answer me, Oh Lord, answer me.

Let the people know that you are God.  Turn their hearts back to you again!

Then, all at once, a very big fire came down from heaven!

The people were very frightened.

The fire was so hot that it even burned up the very stones of the altar itself!

The Lord is God!  The Lord is God!  They all cried out together.

And then Elijah shouted, Grab the prophets of Baal!

Do not let one of them get away!

And so all the prophets of Baal,

who had caused Israel to sin against God, were caught!

Because they had made the people worship Baal and ...

because many of the Lord's true prophets were murdered because of them,

they were also killed.

Then Elijah said to King Ahab, Now go, eat and drink and be happy.

For I hear the sound of heavy rain coming!

And so the king did as Elijah said, but Elijah went up the mountain to pray.

When he and his servant came to the top of Mt. Carmel,

Elijah bowed down on the ground before the Lord.

After a time he spoke to his servant and said,

Go look out toward the sea for a cloud.

But when the servant had looked, he said to Elijah, I see nothing.

Elijah prayed and prayed.  And 7 times his servant looked at the sky.

At last on the seventh time, he said to Elijah,

My master, I see a little cloud the size of a man's hand!

Soon the rain clouds had overspread the sky, and the life-giving rain ...

from the Lord made the Kingdom of Israel beautiful once again.

Do you trust in God, as Elijah did?

THE END  ---  "Elijah and the Fire From Heaven"

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