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Elijah is the prophet of fire
Elijah was indeed the prophet of fire, not for one reason, but for many reasons. This prophet really demonstrated the fiery power of God for all to see by performing some miracles with fire. We can say that fire was his favorite element. Before him and after him, no person did call fire from heaven anytime at will like Elijah. These are some biblical evidence to justify why he was the prophet of fire:
Elijah prays for fire to consume the sacrifice
History has it that during the days of King Ahab, the kingdom of Israel deteriorated into staunch idolatry, worshiping both Baal and the golden calves of King Jeroboam. Prophet Elijah appeared to confront King Ahab and condemned the kingdom to drought, prophesying that there would not be either rain or dew. By his prophecy, the fiery sun prevailed over the rainy seasons; for it dried up the waters and caused draught but there was no rain, not even during the rainy seasons, to replenish the land with water. Since that prophecy, Elijah went away and was not seen for years. Three and half years later, he appeared to Ahab again and threw a challenge to the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel, where they would prove whose deity was worthy of worship, God or Baal. Reference 1 Kings 18:1-19
On Mt. Carmel, both Elijah and the prophets of Baal would prepare a bull for sacrifice on the altar, but they would call on their deities to set the sacrifice on fire. And the deity who would be able to answer by fire is the one worthy of worship. The 450 prophets of Baal prepared their sacrifice and called upon Baal from morning to evening to no avail for Baal could not answer by fire. Elijah had the people come closer and gather around him. Then he prepared his sacrifice on the altar and had them drench it with plenty of water. Then Elijah prayed. The Lord immediately answered his prayer and set fire to consume the sacrifice on the altar for all to see. Then the people worship the Lord, acknowledging that He is the living God worthy of worship. This is one of the instances where Elijah’s nickname as the prophet of fire is justified. Reference 1 Kings 18:20-40
Elijah calls down fire on the soldiers
After the death of King Ahab, his son Ahaziah became the king. Just two years into this reign, Ahaziah fell from the balcony of his upstairs chamber and was injured and bedridden. Wanting to know what would happen to him, he sent messengers to Baal-zebub, the god of the Philistine city of Ekron, for him to enquire whether or not he would survive. On the way, his messengers were intercepted by Elijah who told them to return to the king and tell him that he would not recover from his condition but would die (2Ki 1:4). When the messengers returned and the king heard the information, He wanted to summon Elijah.
So he sent a platoon of 50 soldiers and their captain to fetch Elijah (2Ki 1:9). And they came to find Elijah sitting on top of a hill. Then the captain demanded that he get up and go with them to King Ahaziah. Then Elijah responded, saying, “If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty.” No sooner was he done speaking than fire came down from heaven to consume them. When the king heard that his soldiers had been destroyed, he sent another platoon and their captain. They also came to demand that Elijah should come with them (2Ki 1:11). And he called down fire from heaven to consume them like what he did to the first platoon. Then the king sent a third platoon (2Ki 1:13). When they came, they humbled themselves and pleaded for their lives and humbly asked Elijah to go with them and, this time, he did. The fact that Elijah rained down fire upon the two platoons of soldiers is also one of the events that justify that Elijah was indeed the prophet of fire. Reference 2 Kings 1:1-18
Elijah was carried by fire to heaven
After Elijah’s days were over, he had to depart from this earth as it is for all mankind. During his last days, Elisha his servant followed him around. Elijah and Elisha crossed the Jordan River to the east side. As they were walking along and talking together, suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and separated the two of them, and Elijah went up to heaven, carried by the chariot of fire and the horses of fire, in a whirlwind (2 Kings 2:11). Elisha saw this and cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Israel!” And Elisha saw Elijah no more. This is a contributing point to the fact that Elijah was a prophet of fire. Reference 2 Kings 2
Conclusion
Aside from the fact that Elijah earned the nickname the prophet of fire, God, whose fiery power Elijah harnessed, also earned the attribute the God of fire. There was no prophet since the beginning who consistently harnessed the fiery power of God as Elijah did. For through Elijah, the fiery sun prevailed over the rainy seasons, fire came down to consume his sacrifice and he rained fire upon soldiers, and, finally, he was taken up to heaven by fire. Indeed, he was the prophet of fire.