Mesa Valley Church of Christ Grand Junction, Colorado
Illustration for Elijah on Mount Carmel

Old Testament people Ages 6–11 Story 11 of 25

1 Kings 18 · ESV memory verse below

Elijah on Mount Carmel

Who is this?

Elijah was a prophet of the LORD when King Ahab and many in Israel limped between the LORD and Baal.

What happened?

On Mount Carmel Elijah asked the people to choose. Baal was silent. The LORD answered with fire.

The story

Ahab’s day was full of Baal worship. Elijah stood before the people and asked, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” The people did not answer.

Baal’s prophets put a bull on their altar. They cried from morning until noon. They cut themselves. Elijah said Baal must be busy—or asleep. Still no voice answered.

Elijah repaired the LORD’s altar with twelve stones. He laid the wood and the bull. He dug a trench and had water poured until the wood was soaked and the trench was full.

Then he prayed a short prayer: “O LORD, let it be known that You are God in Israel.” Fire from the LORD fell. It burned the offering, the wood, the stones, and licked up the water. The people fell on their faces and said, “The LORD, he is God.”

Memory verse (ESV)

How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.

1 Kings 18:21

Talk about it

Ages ~4–7

  1. Who answered by fire—Baal, or the LORD?
  2. What did the people say when the fire fell?

Ages ~8–12

  1. Why did Elijah pour water on the altar?
  2. What does “limping between two opinions” look like today?
  3. How can our family choose the LORD with a whole heart?

Family activity

Adult lights a candle briefly, then blows it out. Say: Baal was silent; the LORD answers. Read 1 Kings 18:39 together and thank God that He is the true God.

Parent take-home

Read 1 Kings 18:20–39. Elijah asked the people to stop limping between two opinions; Baal was silent, and the LORD answered with fire. Practice a wholehearted prayer: “The LORD, he is God”—and choose one small way to follow Him without mixing loyalties.

Talk on the way home

  1. What question did Elijah ask about two opinions?
  2. Did Baal answer his prophets?
  3. What does it look like to follow God with your whole heart?

Longer family guide: Week 11 on the family page.

Print coloring and activities (PDF) All children’s stories

In the PDF: coloring page, memory verse with blanks, plus kid activities (match). Draw lines from left to right. Younger kids can point while a parent draws.

For parents and teachers

This chapter is about who is God, not about fire as a spectacle. Read Elijah’s prayer in 18:36–37. Help children see the people’s confession: The LORD, he is the God. Talk about undivided loyalty.