April 13

21 And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.

22 Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men. 23 Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under; and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under.

24 And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD; and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.

25 And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.

26 And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar which was made.

27 And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud; for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleeps, and must be awakened.

28 And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon them.

29 And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.

30 And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down.

31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:

32 And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD; and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.

33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood.

34 And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time.

35 And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water.

36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word.

37 Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.

38 Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.

39 And when all the people saw it, they fell

on them faces; and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is the God

40 And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape. And they took them; and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and slew them there.

"Here is brought before us the grand question which faces every man: 'Who is your God—Baal, or Jehovah? sin, or the Holy One? self, or God? mammon, or Christ?'" This is the question which each one of us has to settle for himself. It is needless to disguise the matter, or to shut our eyes to it, or to attempt to ignore it. This is the question which every man finds confronting him when he awakes to moral consciousness and responsibility, and which every day and every action calls upon him to solve. How have you solved it? . . . . There is a battle waging on the earth between good and evil, between God and Satan, between Christ and antichrist; and it is cowardly in the extreme for you to linger on the outskirts of the field, shrouded in the smoke that is issuing from the conflict, and waiting only till victory declares itself, that then you may come down and claim the honors of a triumph which you did nothing to win. Come forth, and quit you like men in this great fight. Take the one side or the other; and, oh, take the side of the Lord Jesus Christ!" W. M. Taylor, D. D.

The servant of Elisha did not at the first see the mighty hosts gathered along the mountain slope, all ready to vanquish the enemies of God; so, in the early hours of bereavement, one may not have that joyous vision of the spiritual, or that perfect resignation to the Father's will, which will surely come to the soul through its patient waiting. Fainting heart, look upward amid thy tears! Thy faith will speedily discern the unchangeableness of thy Father's love, piercing even the thickest clouds of sorrow.

Closet Promise.—Let Israel hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is plenteous redemption.—Psalm cxxx. 7.

We hope in Thee, O God! The day wears on to night, Thick shadows lie across our world, In Thee alone is light.

We hope in Thee, O God! The fading-time is here, But Thou abelest strong and true Though all things disappear

We hope in Thee, O God! Our joys go one by one,

But lonely hearts can rest in Thee When all besides is gone.

We hope in Thee, O God! Hope falls as other where; But since Thou art in all that is, Peace takes the hand of care.

We hope in Thee, O God! In whom none hope in vain; We cling to Thee in love and trust, And joy succeeds to pain —Marianne Farmingham.