EasyEnglish Bible 2018
1 Kings 18:44
44The seventh time, the servant said, ‘I can see a small cloud above the sea that is coming this way. It is only as big as a man's hand.’ So Elijah said, ‘Go and tell Ahab, “Prepare your chariot now! Go back down quickly before the rain stops you.” ’
1 Kings 18:44 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man’s hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not.
- New International Version (NIV)The seventh time the servant reported, “A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.” So Elijah said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’ ”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And at the seventh time he said, "Behold, a little cloud like a man's hand is rising from the sea." And he said, "Go up, say to Ahab, 'Prepare your chariot and go down, lest the rain stop you.'"
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then it came to pass the seventh time, that he said, “There is a cloud, as small as a man’s hand, rising out of the sea!” So he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot, and go down before the rain stops you.’ ”
Context of 1 Kings 18:44
42So Ahab went away to eat and to drink. But Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel. He bent low down towards the ground. He put his face between his knees. 43He said to his servant, ‘Go up and look towards the sea.’ So his servant did that. He said to Elijah, ‘There is nothing to see there.’ Elijah told his servant seven times, ‘Go back and look again.’ The seventh time, the servant said, ‘I can see a small cloud above the sea that is coming this way. It is only as big as a man's hand.’ So Elijah said, ‘Go and tell Ahab, “Prepare your chariot now! Go back down quickly before the rain stops you.” ’ 45As Elijah said this, the sky became very dark with black clouds. The wind started to blow and there was a heavy storm of rain. King Ahab rode away towards Jezreel. 46Then the Lord gave Elijah special power. Elijah tied his robe into his belt and he ran all the way to Jezreel. Ahab followed him.
Read all of 1 Kings 181 Kings 18:44 word by word
וַֽיְהִי֙ בַּשְּׁבִעִ֔ית וַיֹּ֗אמֶר הִנֵּה־עָ֛ב קְטַנָּ֥ה כְּכַף־אִ֖ישׁ עֹלָ֣ה מִיָּ֑ם וַיֹּ֗אמֶר עֲלֵ֨ה אֱמֹ֤ר אֶל־אַחְאָב֙ אֱסֹ֣ר וָרֵ֔ד וְלֹ֥א יַעַצָרְכָ֖ה הַגָּֽשֶׁם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And it came to pass at the seventh timeשְׁבִיעִיshebîy‛îy shebi‛îy · seventhH7637
- that he saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Behold, there arisethעָלָה‛âlâh · to ascend: riseH5927
- a littleקָטָןqâţân qâţôn · smallH6996
- cloudעָב‛âb · cloudH5645
- out of the seaיָםyâm · seaH3220
- like a man’sאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- handכַּףkaph · palmH3709
- unto Ahabאַחְאָב'ach'âb 'echâb · AhabH256
- Prepareאָסַר'âsar · to bindH631
- and get thee downיָרַדyârad · to go downH3381
- that the rainגֶּ֫שֶׁםgeshem · rainH1653
- stopעָצַר‛âtsar · to restrainH6113
Cross-references for 1 Kings 18:44
- Job 8:7You will be successful in the future, with more riches than you had before.
- Zechariah 4:10Everyone should know that the day of small things is important. Men will see Zerubbabel. Then they will sing and they will be happy. They will see him with a line in his hand to measure the walls. The Lord sees everything in the whole earth. (The seven lights are the seven eyes of the Lord.)
- 1 Samuel 6:7You must make a new cart. Find two cows that have just given birth to calves. It must be the first time that those cows have pulled a cart. Tie them to the cart with ropes so that they can pull it. Then take their calves away from them.
- Micah 1:13You people who live in Lachish, get your chariots and horses ready to go! You were the first people in Judah to do what is wrong. You are exactly like Israel's people, because, like them, you refused to obey God.
Commentaries on 1 Kings 18:44
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 44There ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. - איש ככף kechaph ish, like the hollow of a man's hand. In the form of the hand bent, the concave side downmost. I have witnessed a resemblance of this kind at sea previously to a violent storm, a little cloud the size of a man's hand first appearing, and this increasing in size and density every moment, till at last it covered the whole heavens, and then burst forth with incredible fury. Mr…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 44A little cloud - Sailors know full well that such a cloud on the far horizon is often the forerunner of a violent storm.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 41-46Verses 41-46 Israel, being so far reformed as to acknowledge the Lord to be God, and to consent to the execution of Baal's prophets, was so far accepted, that God poured out blessing upon the land. Elijah long continued praying. Though the answer of our fervent and believing supplications does not come quickly, we must continue earnest in prayer, and not faint or give over. A little cloud at length appeared, which soon overspread the heavens, and watered…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 41-45The servant saw a small cloud on the horizon, about the size of a hand. It signaled the coming of a huge rainstorm.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4444. Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand--The clearness of the sky renders the smallest speck distinctly visible; and this is in Palestine the uniform precursor of rain. It rises higher and higher, and becomes larger and larger with astonishing celerity, till the whole heaven is black, and the cloud bursts in a deluge of rain. Prepare thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not--either by the river Kishon…Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Kings 18:44
In the dictionaries
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
EasyEnglish Bible 2018 — Copyright © MissionAssist 2018
Commentaries