THE MOST famous confrontation between a prophet of the Lord and prophets of a fallen lesser elohim is at the center of today's study. Of course we're referring to the showdown between Elijah and the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel.

This was a literal battle between Yahweh and the Baal worshipped by Jezebel and her pagan father, Ethbaal, king of Tyre. Ethbaal was a priest of Astarte, the Canaanite version of Ishtar, the Babylonian goddess of sex and war (which explains a lot about Jezebel). The kicker is that the Baal of Tyre was probably Melqart, which was the Phoenician name for Herakles — better known to us as Hercules.

Yes, God destroyed 400 prophets of Hercules on Mount Carmel. Click here to see Derek's presentation on this confrontation, YHWH vs. Hercules.

We also discussed the miracles God performed for Elijah, keeping him alive and away from Jezebel during the three-year drought in Israel, and the multiple chances God gave Ahab, by leading Israel to two miraculous victories over much larger Aramean armies. So Ahab had no excuse for continuing to serve foreign gods, a choice that ultimately led to the destruction of Ahab's entire family.

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Click here for the complete archive of our New Testament Bible studies to date, and click here for the Old Testament studies to date.