1 Kings 18:21

1 Kings 18:21 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.
• New International Version (NIV)Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people said nothing.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And Elijah came near to all the people and said, "How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him." And the people did not answer him a word.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word.

Context of 1 Kings 18:21

19Now then, send word and gather to me all Israel at Mount Carmel, together with the 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of [the goddess] Asherah, who eat at [Queen] Jezebel’s table.” 20So Ahab sent word to all the Israelites and assembled the [pagan] prophets together at Mount Carmel. Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you hesitate between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people [of Israel] did not answer him [so much as] a word. 22Then Elijah said to the people, “I alone remain a prophet of the Lord, while Baal’s prophets are 450 men. 23Now let them give us two oxen, and let them choose one ox for themselves and cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it. I will prepare the other ox and lay it on the wood, and I will not put a fire under it.

1 Kings 18:21 word by word

וַיִּגַּ֨שׁ אֵלִיָּ֜הוּ אֶל־כָּל־הָעָ֗ם וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ עַד־מָתַ֞י אַתֶּ֣ם פֹּסְחִים֮ עַל־שְׁתֵּ֣י הַסְּעִפִּים֒ אִם־יְהוָ֤ה הָֽאֱלֹהִים֙ לְכ֣וּ אַחֲרָ֔יו וְאִם־הַבַּ֖עַל לְכ֣וּ אַחֲרָ֑יו וְלֹֽא־עָנ֥וּ הָעָ֛ם אֹת֖וֹ דָּבָֽר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And Elijahאֵלִיָּה'êlîyâh 'êlîyâhû · ElijahH452
• cameנָגַשׁnâgash · to approach: approachH5066
• unto all the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• and saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• How longעַל‛al · uponH5921
• haltפָּסַחpâsach · to limpH6452
• ye between twoשְׁנַ֫יִםshenayim shettayim · twoH8147
• opinionsסְעִפָּהsâ‛iph ώâ‛iph · divisionH5587
• if the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• follow him: but if Baalבַּעַלba‛al · BaalH1168
• followאַחַר'achar · afterH310
• followיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• answeredעָנָה‛ânâh · to answerH6030
• him not a wordדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697

Cross-references for 1 Kings 18:21

• Deuteronomy 4:35It was shown to you so that you might have [personal] knowledge and comprehend that the Lord is God; there is no other besides Him.
• 2 Kings 17:41So these nations [superficially] feared the Lord; they also served their idols, as did their children and their children’s children, just as their fathers did, so do they to this day [the date of this writing].
• Zephaniah 1:5And those who bow down and worship the host of heaven [the sun, the moon, and the stars] on their housetops And those who bow down and swear [oaths] to [and pretend to worship] the Lord and [yet also] swear by [the pagan god called] Milcom [god of the Ammonites],
• Matthew 6:24“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon [money, possessions, fame, status, or whatever is valued more than the Lord].
• Luke 6:13When day came, He called His disciples and selected twelve of them, whom He also named apostles (special messengers, personally chosen representatives):
• Romans 6:16Do you not know that when you continually offer yourselves to someone to do his will, you are the slaves of the one whom you obey, either [slaves] of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness (right standing with God)?
• 1 Corinthians 10:21You cannot drink [both] the Lord’s cup and the cup of demons. You cannot share in both the Lord’s table and the table of demons [thereby becoming partners with them].
• 2 Corinthians 6:14Do not be unequally bound together with unbelievers [do not make mismatched alliances with them, inconsistent with your faith]. For what partnership can righteousness have with lawlessness? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?
• Revelation 3:15‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold (invigorating, refreshing) nor hot (healing, therapeutic); I wish that you were cold or hot.
• 1 Kings 18:39When all the people saw it, they fell face downward; and they said, “The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!”
• Exodus 5:1Afterward Moses and Aaron came and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let My people go, so that they may celebrate a feast to Me in the wilderness.’ ”
• Joshua 24:15If it is unacceptable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you live; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
• 1 Samuel 7:3Then Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, remove the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth (pagan goddesses) from among you and direct your hearts to the Lord and serve Him only; and He will rescue you from the hand of the Philistines.”
• 1 Chronicles 17:26And now, O Lord, You are God, and you have spoken and promised this good thing to Your servant.
• 2 Chronicles 33:13When he prayed to Him, He was moved by his entreaty and heard his pleading, and brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that the Lord is God.
• Psalms 100:3Know and fully recognize with gratitude that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, not we ourselves [and we are His]. We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Commentaries on 1 Kings 18:21

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21How long halt ye between two opinions? - Literally, "How long hop ye about upon two boughs?" This is a metaphor taken from birds hopping about from bough to bough, not knowing on which to settle. Perhaps the idea of limping through lameness should not be overlooked. They were halt, they could not walk uprightly; they dreaded Jehovah, and therefore could not totally abandon him; they feared the king and queen, and therefore thought they must embrace the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21The people were mute. They could not but feel the logical force of Elijah‘s argument; but they were not prepared at once to act upon it. They wished to unite the worship of Yahweh with that of Baal - to avoid breaking with the past and completely rejecting the old national worship, yet at the same time to have the enjoyment of the new rites, which were certainly sensuous, and probably impure.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 21-40Verses 21-40 Many of the people wavered in their judgment, and varied in their practice. Elijah called upon them to determine whether Jehovah or Baal was the self-existent, supreme God, the Creator, Governor, and Judge of the world, and to follow him alone. It is dangerous to halt between the service of God and the service of sin, the dominion of Christ and the dominion of our lusts. If Jesus be the only Saviour, let us cleave to him alone for every…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 21The Hebrew word translated waver means “to be lame” or “to limp.” Elijah compared the people's indecision between worshiping the Lord and Baal to someone limping awkwardly from one foot to the other. Elijah might have also referred to the ritual dance performed by Baal's prophets as they tried to get the storm-god's attention (1 Kings 18:26).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 21-4021-40. Elijah said unto all the people, How long halt ye?--They had long been attempting to conjoin the service of God with that of Baal. It was an impracticable union and the people were so struck with a sense of their own folly, or dread of the king's displeasure, that they "answered not a word." Elijah proposed to decide for them the controversy between God and Baal by an appeal, not to the authority of the law, for that would have no weight, but by a…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Kings 18:21

• Ahab
• Carmel
• Choice
• Decision
• Indecision
• Instability
• Reproof
• Revivals

In the dictionaries

• Baal
• Elijah
• God
• Ahab
• Answer
• Carmel
• Cut
• Either
• Follow
• Halt

Commentaries on 1 Kings 18

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings