Mount Carmel

The Carmel ridge forms a major geographical barrier between the coastal plain and the Jezreel Valley. Its elevation and projection toward the Mediterranean make it a prominent landmark.

The Hebrew name Carmel is associated with fruitful or cultivated land, and biblical writers repeatedly use Carmel as an image of fertility and natural beauty.

The precise location on the extensive ridge where Elijah's confrontation occurred is not identified in Scripture. Later tradition associates the event with the southeastern end of the ridge at a location known as el-Muhraqa.

Mount Carmel is securely identified with the modern Carmel mountain range in northern Israel, extending southeastward from the Mediterranean coast near Haifa.

The identification of the range is certain, but the precise site of Elijah's altar and confrontation with the prophets of Baal cannot be demonstrated archaeologically.

El-Muhraqa is a longstanding traditional location and offers geographical features consistent with the narrative, but AVWJ should identify it as traditional rather than certain.