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OLD TESTAMENT BIBLE STUDY TEMPLATE
INSTRUCTIONS
For this assignment in three parts, you will be studying the Old Testament story of “Elijah and
the Prophets of Baal” found in 1 Kings 17:1; 18:1–46. You will use the template below in order
to complete a study of this passage. In your study, you will use the skills of Observation,
Interpretation, Correlation, and Application that you have learned through your reading in
Everyday Bible Study (EBS). You will complete this template in three parts and submit the same
document each time, incorporating feedback from the instructor for each submission.
I. Observation
A. I have read 1 Kings 17:1; 18:1–46 in both a formal translation (KJV, NKJV, NASB, ESV,
or CSB) and a functional translation (NIV, NLT, or NCV). Highlight the correct answer. You
can find various Bible translations by searching for them online (EBS ch. 16).
oYes
oNo
B. Identify the basic elements of the story you are studying (EBS chs. 15 & 33).
Main characters: (List them)
Elijah
King Ahab
God
Obadiah
2. Plot: (50–100 words)
Elijah tells Ahab that there will be a drought during this drought, the king loses most of
his animals because of the lack of grass. Ahab sends Obadiah to find Elija to end the drought, so
Elijah tells them and baal 450 prophets to conduct a test to see whose god is real. He prohibits
failing to get their god to light the altar while Elijia mocks them, but God sends a bolt of fire to
light the altar Elija prepared for him, proving the true God's existence and power. Elija has all the
false prophets rounded up and killed all 450 of them! Then, God sends a rainstorm to the land
and gives Elija the strength to run ahead of the king's chariots the whole way to Jezreel.
3. Story structure: (50–100 words)
A. Introduction: Description of the severe famine.
B. Inciting Incident: Elijah told the king to have every one of Israel go to Mount
Carmel.
C. Rising action: Elijah told the people of Israel to either follow the Lord or to
follow Baal.
D. Climax: Elijah restores the alter for the Lord
E. Resolution: God gives a sign by burning the wood and sacrifice
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C. List basic observations about this passage using the Key Questions from EBS ch. 17.
ch. 17.
1.
Who:
A. Elijah
B. Ahab
C. Obadiah
D. Jezebel
E. People of Israel
F. Prophets of Baal
G. The Lord is mentioned
2. What:
During a famine, King Ahab sent Obadiah to find grass
throughout Israel to save some of his animals. Elijah told the king to gather all of Israel,
including all of the prophets of Asherah and Baal, to Mt. Carmel. Once they congregated at Mt
Carmel, Elija stated that there were 450 prophets of Baal, and only Elija was a prophet of the
Lord who was left. He directed them to build an altar and cut up a bull, and he would do the
same, and they would see whose god would light the altar, proving the one true god. Baal
prophets cut themselves and cried out while Elija edged them on to call out louder. Maybe he is a
way and cannot hear you. Ultimately, they failed, but Elija built the Lord's altar and wet it three
times and prayed, so God sent a fire bolt to light it and burn not just the altar but the water and
dust, proving he is the one true God. Elijah climbed Mt. Carmel with his servant and sent him
seven times to look for a cloud. On the seventh time, he saw a small cloud and the Lord made it
rain.
3. Where:
a.
Israel
b.
Mount Carmel
c.
Samaria
4. When: During king Ahab's rule (874–c.H853 bce)
5. Why: To show the followers of Baal they were worshiping a false idol and to rebuild the alter
of the Lord in Israel
6. How: Elijah built the alter with 12 stones and sacrificed a bull on it
II. Interpretation
A. Determine the author’s main point. In 1–2 paragraphs (100–400 words) explain what you
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think the author is trying to communicate in this passage. Remember, the Old Testament
narratives frequently communicate truth by showing it to us in story form instead of
telling it to us by way of teaching or sermon. See EBS ch. 28.
This story shows us that there s one true God. This also communicates the power of God
to control the rain and that the power of a human king is subject to God's will. and despite
the betrayal of the people turning their backs on God and worshiping a false idol, God
used his power to demonstrate that he can do more with one man than a false idol can.
With 450 men, he used his power and Elijah to show the people there is one God, and he
is almighty powerful. The drought and the killing of the 450 profits were a way to cement
that even though God is giving them a chance to come back to him there are
consequences to their actions.
B. Based on your answer above, write out one principle from this passage. You should be able
to express this principle in 1–3 sentences. See EBS ch. 33.
That God is always present. You might be so deep into your sin you can't notice his presence, but
he is always there and will welcome you back to his light. I personally see this as a way to
convince myself that when I felt like I was too bad of a person to have God care for me, this
passage proves that God loves me and I am welcome in his presence if I accept him as the one
true God.
III. Correlation
A. How does this Old Testament narrative fit within the metanarrative of the Bible? State what
type of story you believe this to be (creation, fall, redemption, or new creation) and
explain why you believe this to be so. Your explanation should be 1 paragraph (100–200
words) in length. See EBS chs. 1–2.
I believe this story is one of redemption as his people turned their backs on him. They
were warned what was going to happen, but they continued to worship false idols even
through the drought. When Elijah challenged them at Mt. Caramel, they continued to
worship Baal. When God showed his power and they came back to him, he let them
redeem themselves in his light. This story is something every child goes through with
their parents when the child thinks they know more than their parents and make mistakes
that they were warned about like my mom said growing up, sometimes the kid needs to
touch the woodstove to learn how dangerous it is God let the people learn through
hardship and a display of strength and forgiveness to get them to learn from their
mistakes.
B. How does your principle fit with the rest of the Scripture? This principle is the one you have
written out in 1-3 sentences in the Interpretation section. If your principle is a true
Biblical principle, it will be reflected throughout the Scriptures.HWhere is the principle
discovered in this Old Testament narrative found elsewhere in the Scriptures? Your
explanation should be 1 paragraph (100-200 words) in length. See EBS ch. 29.
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The Bible is filled with second chances that come after hardship. One story I think of is
when Moses was sent to free the Israelites from Egypt. At any point, God could have
ended the Pharo, but instead, he showed his strength through plagues and miracles using
one man to bring the news just like Christ brought the news that he was to fulfill the
covenant and create a new one with the people he performed miracles throughout his life
that were able to show people the power of God and prepare them for the crucifixion
which had to be so that we will always have the memory of what was paid to free us from
our sin.
C. How does this Old Testament narrative reflect the person and work of Jesus Christ? State
and explain at least one way that the principle of this narrative can be identified in the
person and work of Jesus Christ. Your explanation should be 1 paragraph (100–200
words) in length. See EBS ch. 30.
When Jesus traveled, he looked for the lost souls. He would sit with sinners. This story
reflects Jesus's work by using God's miracles to transform sinners' hearts and open their
minds to the one true God. Much like how in this story, God showed the people their sins
and still accepted them with them knowing the true God. The slaying of the Lord's
prophets and the worshiping of a false god but still being forgiven is an act of compassion
like Christ's crucifixion. To forgive our sins is an ultimate sacrifice of compassion like a
father saving his child but sacrificing his own in the same act. Knowing Christ and
knowing what he has done for us, it is hard to compare it with anything else but stories
like Christs can bee seen through the bible.
IV. Application
What points of application can be made using the Four Questions for Application (EBS ch.
31)? State and explain 1 point of application for each of these four questions. Your explanation
for each of these points should be 1 paragraph (100–200 words) in length.
A. The question of duty
The first commandment is to have no other gods before Me.(Exodus 20:3) The people in this
story clearly were not aligned with the First Commandment, and they did not fulfill their duty. A
younger me would say it is unbelievable that they could break this commandment, but the older I
got, the more I realized I was not fulfilling my duty. I put everything above God for a long time,
whether it be alcohol or even my phone. I realized I spent more time doing things that kept me
from honoring God than I did, even thinking of him, and I am blessed enough to have access to
the Bible and know these stories. I see how this story depicts our current society and how we are
not so different than the people of Isreal in this story; people like me are blessed enough to have
a community of Christians who helped me find my way home just like Elija and Obadiah but
without the persecution of Christians and slaying of false prophets. My takeaway from this, as
far as duty goes, is God allows us to have free will, and he allows us to turn our backs on him,
but he holds us accountable to our duties, and it is up to us to be dutiful and truly be alive or to
not be steadfast and be killed by our sins. Even Elija would have been a target for the king to kill
had the Lord not shown his power through the drought, forcing the king to consider the
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consequences of his actions. Elija fulfilled his duty by standing against the entire kingdom, not
just the people but the king and a false god. He could have given in and followed the rend as we
do in today's society, but instead, he stood fast, knowing his duty to the true God.
B.The question of character
God, though ever present in our lives, can be overlooked when we are placed in a situation that
requires us to choose punishment here on earth by other humans, like when the king had the
Lord's prophets killed people who had a relationship with God must have known it was not the
right thing to do however Obadiah chose to hind fifty of them and feed them at significant risk to
himself and the ones he loved reading this story and though it is a small part of the overall story
this part touched me the most he believed so much in his duty that he risked everything to save a
few and stayed in the presence of the king who would be his enemy. In my time as a
communicator for the S.E.A.Ls, I have seen this kind of character over and over from strangers
in Afghanistan, and I have seen the repercussions for them, and I know this is nothing to be taken
lightly. Yes, Elijah showed great character by following God's will despite being the odd man in
the story and confronting nations with a false god and all its false prophets, but Obediah did as
well, and it shows that even though he was in fear for his life, he did what was asked of him
despite it.H
C. The question of goals
For me, the Goal is to make sure that I make time for God and the Bible in my everyday life. I
am working to make it a habit to have God and read my Bible as the focus of my mornings. Not
putting anything over him and reducing my dependency on distractions like my phone and the
television. Giving thanks for the blessings he has given us and, trying to reflect his teachings and
living in my own life so that I can help others. Even though I don't always feel qualified, I know
that God rarely uses qualified people to grow his kingdom, and when looking at my place in
God's vast creation, no human could ever be qualified enough to do God's work. Understanding
this empowers me to ignore the barriers I lack because I lack self-confidence, and it gives me to
help in his kingdom.H
H
D. The question of discernment
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This is where our current society is a great example, just like Israelites in this story. Despite all
the teachings, the world twists our views slowly into what we are today. As a Christian
committed to Christ and always striving to be a better Christian, I see myself struggling to
decipher right and wrong because what might feel suitable as a person of flesh doesn't mean it is
right in the eyes of the Lord. Our society is no different from the societies of the biblical age.
The only difference is we can see parts of history and we can read the Bible, so we should be
better, but we are a sinful creature, and sin is more accessible than faith. To me, the ability to
break from what society would call the norm and have a Christ-centered life is hard, but with
great discernment and surrounding you with others who have great discernment, it will help
break from the norm of putting God at the bottom of a long list of thing to do
V. Teaching
Create an opportunity to teach this passage in a Bible-study setting of your choosing. Examples
could include a church setting, a family Bible study, or discussing the passage with a friend or
roommate. Use the interpretive method learned above to study the passage (Observe), derive a
principle (Interpretation), compare it with other Scriptures (Correlation), and apply it to
everyday living (Application). Write a report below of at least 250 words. Comment on what
went well, what was challenging, and what you learned overall through this experience.
I was able to speak about this lesson this week with a friend of mine who is struggling with
their business. They had a lack of confidence, didn’t feel qualified, and felt alone. I was able to
remind them that God doesn’t move through groups like that I told them about Eijah and
Obediah and how they were just two people who were not “qualified” to help bring the nation
of Israel back to God, but because they stayed true to Gods will through the thick and thin of
the plan they were able to accomplish something great that the bettered all of Israel. God didn’t
choose to use hundreds of prophets he chose one man to deliver the challenge to hundreds of
false prophets and I was able to help her see that despite.
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