Elijah Flees to Horeb
1Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”
3Elijah was afraid19:3 Or Elijah saw and ran for his life. When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.
All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.
7The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9There he went into a cave and spent the night.
The Lord Appears to Elijah
And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
10He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
11The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.”
Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. 13When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.
Then a voice said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
14He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.”
15The Lord said to him, “Go back the way you came, and go to the Desert of Damascus. When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram. 16Also, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet. 17Jehu will put to death any who escape the sword of Hazael, and Elisha will put to death any who escape the sword of Jehu. 18Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.”
The Call of Elisha
19So Elijah went from there and found Elisha son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him. 20Elisha then left his oxen and ran after Elijah. “Let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,” he said, “and then I will come with you.”
“Go back,” Elijah replied. “What have I done to you?”
21So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his servant.
以利亞逃亡
1亞哈把以利亞做的一切事以及他怎樣殺掉所有巴力先知的經過，都告訴了耶洗別， 2耶洗別就派人去告訴以利亞，說：「明天這個時候，我若不使你像那些人一樣喪命，願神明重重地懲罰我。」
3以利亞很害怕，連忙逃命，來到猶大的別示巴。他讓僕人留在那裡， 4自己在曠野走了一天的路程，來到一棵羅騰樹下，坐下來禱告求死，說：「耶和華啊，我受夠了，求你取走我的性命吧，我不比我的祖先強。」 5他躺在樹下睡著了。有一位天使拍醒他，說：「起來吃東西吧。」 6他睜開眼睛，見頭邊有用炭火烤好的餅和一瓶水。他吃喝完畢，又躺下來。 7耶和華的天使第二次來拍醒他，說：「起來吃東西吧，你還要走很遠的路。」 8以利亞起來吃喝，就有了力氣，走了四十晝夜，來到上帝的山——何烈山。
9他進了一個山洞，在裡面過夜。耶和華就問他：「以利亞，你在這裡做什麽？」 10以利亞回答說：「我一向熱心事奉萬軍之上帝耶和華。但以色列人背棄你的約，拆毀你的祭壇，殘殺你的先知。現在只剩下我一個人，他們還要殺我。」 11耶和華說：「你出來站在山上，站在我面前。」耶和華從那裡經過時，疾風大作，劈山碎石，但耶和華不在風中。疾風過後又有地震，但耶和華不在其中。 12地震之後又有火，但耶和華也不在火中。之後，傳來微小的聲音。 13以利亞聽見後，就用外袍蒙著臉出去站在洞口。那聲音問他：「以利亞，你在這裡做什麽？」 14以利亞回答說：「我一向熱心事奉萬軍之上帝耶和華。但以色列人背棄你的約，拆毀你的祭壇，殘殺你的先知。現在只剩下我一個人，他們還要殺我。」 15耶和華吩咐他說：「你原路返回，前往大馬士革附近的曠野，到了之後要膏立哈薛做亞蘭王。 16然後，再膏立寧示的孫子耶戶做以色列王，還要膏立亞伯·米何拉人沙法的兒子以利沙做先知來接替你。 17將來從哈薛刀下逃生的，必被耶戶殺死；從耶戶刀下逃生的，必被以利沙殺死。 18此外，我在以色列留下七千人，他們未曾跪拜巴力，也未曾親吻巴力。」
呼召以利沙
19於是，以利亞離開那裡，找到沙法的兒子以利沙，他正在耕田。他前面有十二對牛，他正趕著第十二對。以利亞走過以利沙身邊時，將自己的外袍搭在他身上。 20以利沙就撇下牛，追上以利亞說：「請你讓我先回去與父母親吻道別，再跟你走吧。」以利亞說：「你回去吧，別忘了我剛才對你做的事。」 21以利沙就回去了。他宰了兩頭耕牛，用耕具作柴煮肉分給眾人，然後去跟隨以利亞，服侍他。
