The Revelation of God to Elijah on Mount Horeb

The revelation of God to Elijah the prophet on Mount Horeb is one of the most famous and significant scenes in Elijah’s story. After years of struggling against the prophets of Baal and trying to bring the people of Israel back to the true worship of God, Elijah feels exhausted. He flees to Mount Horeb, where he enters a cave and waits for a divine revelation.

The passage:

9 He came there to the cave and lodged there. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

10 He said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.”

11 And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord. And behold, the Lord is passing by, and a great and strong wind is tearing the mountains and breaking the rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord is not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord is not in the earthquake.

12 And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord is not in the fire. And after the fire a still small voice.”

13 And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

14 And he said, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.”

The revelation itself takes place in three stages:

A great and strong wind: Elijah feels a mighty wind that can break mountains and crack rocks. But God is not in the wind.

A great earthquake: Then, a mighty earthquake comes, but God is not found in it either.

Fire: Finally, a blazing fire breaks out, but it is not the dwelling place of God either.

Only then comes the “still small voice”: a quiet and gentle voice, in which God reveals himself to Elijah.

Some believe that the revelation in the still small voice comes to teach Elijah that God is not found in power and destruction, but rather in humility and quietness. Others see the three previous stages as an expression of Elijah’s failure: he tried to fight the prophets of Baal and the sins of Israel with force and violence, but this approach did not succeed. Only when he opens his heart to the quiet and gentle voice does he succeed in truly connecting with God.

This revelation is a significant turning point in Elijah’s life. After that, he continues his prophetic mission, but he does so from a place of humility and inner confidence. He understands that God is with him, even in difficult and challenging times.