In this article about prayer, we are seeking to learn a lesson about Elijah’s prayer on Mount Carmel.

Modern media would probably call the confrontation on Mount Carmel possibly Elijah’s finest hour. In a direct confrontation with the priests of Baal, it shows that Elijah’s prayer gets an answer by fire from heaven. At this crucial moment, when Elijah prays, not his heroism or anything like that predominates. On the contrary, we are struck by Elijah’s simple, pleading, and dependent prayer. In this second article of four about prayer, we want to try again to learn a lesson for our own prayer life — this time, from Elijah’s prayer for fire.

Simple⤒🔗

The first thing you notice about Elijah’s prayer is its simplicity. What a difference from the priests of Baal! They are looking for power in numbers; they come with 450 men. Elijah is alone. The priests of Baal shout together with all their might; Elijah, on the other hand, prays a simple prayer. On the one side you see the priests of Baal performing a kind of worship dance. to get Baal’s attention, but you do not see any of that with Elijah. The big difference is that the priests of Baal look for help in outward appearances, in what they can do themselves, while Elijah looks for it in the living God, whom he is addressing.

Actually, we do know that our prayer should be simple. But we can be tempted to look for the extraordinary — especially, perhaps, when it concerns a public prayer, as with Elijah. Simple prayer is always difficult, but praying simply in public is extremely difficult, because we can be so aware of the people who listen and hopefully pray along. We can think of the words from the Lord Jesus: “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words." (Matthew 6:7). Let our prayers be simple.

Pleading←⤒🔗

A second special feature of Elijah’s prayer is its pleading nature. Elijah pleads for the covenant made by the Lord which he made with Israel. Remarkable enough, Elijah addresses the Lord as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. That claim is quite rare; the Lord is most often called the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. That Elijah is calling on the Lord in this way is probably because Elijah made the altar on Mount Carmel with twelve stones, which referred to the twelve children of Jacob, to whom word of the Lord came that his name would be Israel (1 Kings 18:31). That reminds us of Peniel, where Jacob wrestled with God and where he got a new name. From Jacob, meaning “deceiver,” he became Israel: “warrior of God.” History has now unfolded as a history of Israel’s disloyalty, why the kingdom is broken and is a ten-tribe and a two-tribe kingdom. In fact, the people have made the name “Jacob” a fitting description of the nation again. But Elijah makes a strong appeal to God’s covenant of faithfulness. What Elijah pleads for is that people will know that the Lord is God in Israel is (verse 37). It is about God’s name and God’s glory. On this Elijah bases his hope, that the Lord for the sake of his holy name will reveal his power to Israel.                       

It is also true in our time that many children of the covenant disobey the Lord. If the Lord should find reasons in us to answer our prayers, what reason would he find? Let us learn that the basis of our prayer should not be found in ourselves, but in the gracious faithfulness of the Lord. This does mean that we will also pray for what befits his glory.

Dependent←⤒🔗

A third characteristic of Elijah’s prayer is the dependence that resonates in it. Elijah prays almost precisely the same as the priests of Baal—namely, “Answer me,” yet he prays it otherwise. The priests of Baal make that compelling sound; not so with Elijah. Elijah declares himself dependent on the Lord. Actually, he does not say much more than what the Lord asked of him through his Word, and that he is now waiting for God’s mercy.

Perhaps that is the most difficult thing in prayer. Also, in our time there are people who try to “force” the Lord by means of a certain prayer, spoken by a certain special person, sometimes with a constant repetition of what is asked. We can and may never force the Lord. Persistent prayer is something else. That does not take on a coercive character but becomes — if all goes well — constantly more dependent and humble. Even the Lord Jesus Christ showed dependence in his prayer, in that night in Gethsemane, in which he thus dreaded what was to come. He prayed, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39). He who was the King himself. Should we then not declare our dependence on the Lord?

When we look at Elijah this way, we should ask ourselves whether our prayers are real “declarations of dependence”: whether we actually expect anything of the Lord and wait for his salvation. We are often so impatient and so little dependent. In fact, by nature we only want to be independent: “Let us break their bonds” (Psalm 2). But how blessed you are when you learn how to pray, and keep on learning. Simple, pleading and dependent.