Elijah (Hebrew: אליהו, Eliyahu ; also known as Elias and Saint Elias) was a prophet in Israel in the 9th century BCE. He appears in the Hebrew Bible, Talmud, Mishnah, Christian Bible, and the Qur'an. According to the Books of Kings, Elijah raised the dead, brought fire down from the sky, and ascended into heaven on a whirlwind. In the New Testament, both Jesus and John the Baptist are on some occasions thought to be Elijah. Based on a prophecy in Malachi, many Jews still await his return as precursor to the coming of the Messiah.
Elijah's legacy continues on in many traditions and beliefs. He is a major part of the Jewish brit milah and Passover seder ceremonies, as well as traditions involving Lillith and the angel Sandalphon. In Christianity, he is expected to arrive either before the Second Coming of Jesus, or thought to have already arrived at the Mount of Transfiguration before the Crucifixion. In Eastern Europe, he is known as "Elijah the Thunderer" and is blamed in folklore for poor weather.
His name, Hebrew: אֵלִיָּהוּ / אֵלִיָּה, Standard Eliyáhu / Eliyáh Tiberian ʾĒliyyāhû / ʾĒliyyāh appears in the Greek of the Septuagint as Hλίού, Eliou but in the New Testament it is hellenized as Hλίας, Elias. In Arabic it is إلياس, Ilyaas. It has been variously translated as "Yah is God,” "YHWH is my El", "whose God is Yah,” "the strong Yah,” "God of Yah,” "Yah is my God,” and "my God is Yah.
Given the importance of Elijah in Jewish and Christian tradition, the story of his career occupies remarkably little space. The details are largely contained in 1st and 2nd Kings, with smaller references in 2nd Chronicles and Malachi.
