New English Translation
1 Kings 18:24
24Then you will invoke the name of your god, and I will invoke the name of the Lord. The god who responds with fire will demonstrate that he is the true God.” All the people responded, “This will be a fair test.”
1 Kings 18:24 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.
- New International Version (NIV)Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire—he is God.” Then all the people said, “What you say is good.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)And you call upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of the Lord, and the God who answers by fire, he is God." And all the people answered, "It is well spoken."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, He is God.” So all the people answered and said, “It is well spoken.”
Context of 1 Kings 18:24
22Elijah said to them: “I am the only prophet of the Lord who is left, but there are 450 prophets of Baal. 23Let them bring us two bulls. Let them choose one of the bulls for themselves, cut it up into pieces, and place it on the wood. But they must not set it on fire. I will do the same to the other bull and place it on the wood. But I will not set it on fire. Then you will invoke the name of your god, and I will invoke the name of the Lord. The god who responds with fire will demonstrate that he is the true God.” All the people responded, “This will be a fair test.” 25Elijah told the prophets of Baal, “Choose one of the bulls for yourselves and go first, for you are the majority. Invoke the name of your god, but do not light a fire.” 26So they took a bull, as he had suggested, and prepared it. They invoked the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, “Baal, answer us.” But there was no sound and no answer. They jumped around on the altar they had made.
Read all of 1 Kings 181 Kings 18:24 word by word
וּקְרָאתֶ֞ם בְּשֵׁ֣ם אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֗ם וַֽאֲנִי֙ אֶקְרָ֣א בְשֵׁם־יְהוָ֔ה וְהָיָ֧ה הָאֱלֹהִ֛ים אֲשֶׁר־יַעֲנֶ֥ה בָאֵ֖שׁ ה֣וּא הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיַּ֧עַן כָּל־הָעָ֛ם וַיֹּאמְר֖וּ ט֥וֹב הַדָּבָֽר׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And callקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call toH7121
- ye on the nameשֵׁםshêm · nameH8034
- of your godsאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
- of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- that answerethעָנָה‛ânâh · to answerH6030
- by fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
- And all the peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
- and saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- It is wellטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
- spokenדָּבָרdâbâr · word: speakingH1697
Cross-references for 1 Kings 18:24
- 1 Kings 18:38Then fire from the Lord fell from the sky. It consumed the offering, the wood, the stones, and the dirt, and licked up the water in the trench.
- Leviticus 9:24Then fire went out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar, and all the people saw it, so they shouted loudly and fell down with their faces to the ground.
- Judges 6:21The Lord’s messenger touched the meat and the unleavened bread with the tip of his staff. Fire flared up from the rock and consumed the meat and unleavened bread. The Lord’s messenger then disappeared.
- 1 Chronicles 21:26David built there an altar to the Lord and offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings. He called out to the Lord, and the Lord responded by sending fire from the sky and consuming the burnt sacrifice on the altar.
- 2 Chronicles 7:1When Solomon finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the Lord’s splendor filled the temple.
- 2 Samuel 14:19The king said, “Did Joab put you up to all of this?” The woman answered, “As surely as you live, my lord the king, there is no deviation to the right or to the left from all that my lord the king has said. For your servant Joab gave me instructions. He has put all these words in your servant’s mouth.
- Isaiah 39:8Hezekiah said to Isaiah, “The Lord’s word which you have announced is appropriate.” Then he thought, “For there will be peace and stability during my lifetime.”
Commentaries on 1 Kings 18:24
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 24The God that answereth by fire - Elijah gave them every advantage when he granted that the God who answered by fire should be acknowledged as the true God; for as the Baal who was worshipped here was incontestably Apollo, or the sun, he was therefore the god of fire, and had only to work in his own element.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 24The God that answereth by fire - God had frequently before consumed offerings with supernatural fire Leviticus 9:24; Judges 6:21. The Baal-worshippers were no doubt in the habit of attributing thunder and lightning to their gods - the great Nature-power - and thus had no excuse for declining Elijah‘s challenge.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. 23-24Fire showed the Lord's presence (Exodus 9:23; 19:18; 40:38; Deuteronomy 4:24; 2 Chronicles 7:1; Isaiah 66:15; Amos 7:4), which could have been lightning (see Psalm 18:12–13; Ezekiel 1:13–14; Zechariah 9:14). The contest aimed to prove if Baal, the Canaanite storm god, or the God of Israel was the true God. Only the true God could ignite the wood (see Leviticus 9:24).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 18:24
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
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
Commentaries