Amplified Bible
1 Kings 19:9
9There he came to a cave and spent the night in it; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
1 Kings 19:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?
- New International Version (NIV)There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
- English Standard Version (ESV)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?"
- New King James Version (NKJV)And there he went into a cave, and spent the night in that place; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
Context of 1 Kings 19:9
7Then the angel of the Lord came again a second time and touched him and said, “Get up, and eat, for the journey is too long for you [without adequate sustenance].” 8So he got up and ate and drank, and with the strength of that food he traveled forty days and nights to Horeb (Sinai), the mountain of God. There he came to a cave and spent the night in it; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10He said, “I have been very zealous (impassioned) for the Lord God of hosts (armies) [proclaiming what is rightfully and uniquely His]; for the sons of Israel have abandoned (broken) Your covenant, torn down Your altars, and killed Your prophets with the sword. And I, only I, am left; and they seek to take away my life.” 11So He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord was passing by, and a great and powerful wind was tearing out the mountains and breaking the rocks in pieces before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind, [there was] an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.
Read all of 1 Kings 191 Kings 19:9 word by word
וַיָּבֹא־שָׁ֥ם אֶל־הַמְּעָרָ֖ה וַיָּ֣לֶן שָׁ֑ם וְהִנֵּ֤ה דְבַר־יְהוָה֙ אֵלָ֔יו וַיֹּ֣אמֶר ל֔וֹ מַה־לְּךָ֥ פֹ֖ה אֵלִיָּֽהוּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And he cameבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- thither unto a caveמְעָרָהme‛ârâh · caveH4631
- and lodgedלוּןlûn lîyn · to lodgeH3885
- there; and, behold, the wordדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697
- of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- to him, and he saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- unto him, What doest thou here, Elijahאֵלִיָּה'êlîyâh 'êlîyâhû · ElijahH452
Cross-references for 1 Kings 19:9
- Exodus 33:21Then the Lord said, “Behold, there is a place beside Me, and you shall stand there on the rock;
- Jeremiah 9:2Oh that I had in the wilderness A lodging place (a mere shelter) for wayfaring men, That I might leave my people And go away from them! For they are all adulterers [worshiping idols instead of the Lord], [They are] an assembly of treacherous men [of weak character, men without integrity].
- Hebrews 11:38(people of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and [living in] caves and holes in the ground.
- 1 Kings 19:13When Elijah heard the sound, he wrapped his face in his mantle (cloak) and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave. And behold, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”
- Genesis 3:9But the Lord God called to Adam, and said to him, “Where are you?”
- Genesis 16:8And He said, “Hagar, Sarai’s maid, where did you come from and where are you going?” And she said, “I am running away from my mistress Sarai.”
- Jeremiah 2:18Now what are you doing by going to Egypt [in search of an ally], To drink the [muddy] waters of the Nile? Or what are you doing by going to Assyria [in search of an ally], To drink the [muddy] waters of the Euphrates?
- Jonah 1:3But Jonah ran away to Tarshish to escape from the presence of the Lord [and his duty as His prophet]. He went down to Joppa and found a ship going to Tarshish [the most remote of the Phoenician trading cities]. So he paid the fare and went down into the ship to go with them to Tarshish away from the presence of the Lord.
Commentaries on 1 Kings 19:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9He came thither unto a cave - Conjectured by some to be the same cave in which God put Moses that he might give him a glimpse of his glory. See Exodus 33:22. What doest thou here, Elijah? - Is this a reproach for having fled from the face of Jezebel, through what some call unbelieving fears, that God would abandon him to her rage?Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9A cave - Rather, “the cave.” Some well-known cave must be intended - perhaps the “cliff of the rock” Exodus 33:22. The traditional “cave of Elijah” which is shown in the secluded plain immediately below the highest summit of the Jebel Mousa, cannot, from its small size, be the real cavern.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 9-13Verses 9-13 The question God put, What doest thou here, Elijah? is a reproof. It concerns us often to ask whether we are in our place, and in the way of our duty. Am I where I should be? whither God calls me, where my business lies, and where I may be useful? He complained of the people, and their obstinacy in sin; I only am left. Despair of success hinders many a good enterprise. Did Elijah come hither to meet with God? he shall find that God will meet…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 9-10a cave (literally the cave): Some suggest Elijah came to the same place where God appeared to Moses (Exodus 33:21–23). What are you doing here, Elijah?: The Lord's question might mean two things: Why had Elijah come? And did he grasp the importance of the place where he stood? Elijah answered the first part of the question. He had bravely declared he was alone in his commitment to the Lord (1 Kings 18:22). Now, that feeling had turned into self-pity.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-184-18. went a day's journey into the wilderness--on the way from Beer-sheba to Horeb--a wide expanse of sand hills, covered with the retem (not juniper, but broom shrubs), whose tall and spreading branches, with their white leaves, afford a very cheering and refreshing shade. His gracious God did not lose sight of His fugitive servant, but watched over him, and, miraculously ministering to his wants, enabled him, in a better but not wholly right frame of…Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Kings 19:9
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 1 Kings 19
- 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
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