1 Kings 19:8-13
"8 And he arose and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of God.
9 There he came to a cave and lodged in it. 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 jealous for the Lord, the 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, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.” 11 And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper. 13 And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak 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?”"
One wonders whether this incident was the answer of God to the secret thoughts of Elijah's heart about the work in which he was engaged. Was Elijah disappointed that God had not accomplished an even more decisive victory over Baal-worship and above all over Jezebel? Was there a desire in Elijah’s heart for a once-for-all vindication of righteousness that would establish the kingdom without further delay? And was the parable of the still small voice an indication to the fiery prophet that God accomplishes his purposes in other, less obtrusive ways? It is true that Jezebel continued to be a sinister influence for evil in Israel, and that Ahab soon shook off the effects of the great demonstration of divine power at Carmel; but it is also true that the less obvious, long-term influence of Elijah proved in the end to be far more significant than he could have then realised, for what his ministry did was to create a conscience in the life of Israel to which all his successors in the prophetic office made their appeal with such devastating force in after days. At the end of the day, when the full story is told, that may prove to have been the great and abiding contribution Elijah was enabled to make to the strategic purposes of God in the redemption of the world. But that is much more in affinity with the idea of the still small voice than of the earthquake or the fire. This should hearten and encourage those who sometimes think they 'have laboured in vain and spent their strength for nought' when they do not see a speedy regeneration in the spiritual life of the nation. The fact is, God uses such men at two levels, the obvious and evident one on which men are blessed and victories are won on a limited scale, and also - and this can be seen only by the discerning, and that often only after the passing of the years - on the deeper and hidden plane where influence is decisive. Elijah not only routed the prophets of Baal at Carmel, in earthquake, wind and fire; his whole ministry speaking in a still small voice made possible the prophetic ministry for the next three hundred years. That was the real measure of the divine purposes in and through him.