1 Kings 18:1

1 Kings 18:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.
• New International Version (NIV)After a long time, in the third year, the word of the Lord came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)After many days the word of the Lord came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, "Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the earth."
• New King James Version (NKJV)And it came to pass after many days that the word of the Lord came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, “Go, present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the earth.”

Context of 1 Kings 18:1

Later on, in the third year of the drought, the Lord said to Elijah, “Go and present yourself to King Ahab. Tell him that I will soon send rain!” 2So Elijah went to appear before Ahab. Meanwhile, the famine had become very severe in Samaria. 3So Ahab summoned Obadiah, who was in charge of the palace. (Obadiah was a devoted follower of the Lord.

1 Kings 18:1 word by word

וַיְהִי֙ יָמִ֣ים רַבִּ֔ים וּדְבַר־יְהוָ֗ה הָיָה֙ אֶל־אֵ֣לִיָּ֔הוּ בַּשָּׁנָ֥ה הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֖ית לֵאמֹ֑ר לֵ֚ךְ הֵרָאֵ֣ה אֶל־אַחְאָ֔ב וְאֶתְּנָ֥ה מָטָ֖ר עַל־פְּנֵ֥י הָאֲדָמָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• manyרַבrab · manyH7227
• daysיוֹםyôm · dayH3117
• that the wordדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• came to Elijahאֵלִיָּה'êlîyâh 'êlîyâhû · ElijahH452
• in the thirdשְׁלִישִׁיshelîyshîy · thirdH7992
• yearשָׁנָהshâneh shânâh · yearH8141
• sayingאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• Goיָלַךְyâlak · to walkH3212
• shewרָאָהrâ'âh · to see: seeH7200
• thyself unto Ahabאַחְאָב'ach'âb 'echâb · AhabH256
• and I will sendנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• rainמָטַרmâţâr · rainH4306
• uponפָּנֶהpânîym · face: surfaceH6440
• the earthאֲדָמָה'ădâmâh · land: countryH127

Cross-references for 1 Kings 18:1

• Luke 4:25“Certainly there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land.
• James 5:17Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years!
• Revelation 11:2But do not measure the outer courtyard, for it has been turned over to the nations. They will trample the holy city for 42 months.
• 1 Kings 17:1Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab, “As surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives—the God I serve—there will be no dew or rain during the next few years until I give the word!”
• 1 Kings 18:2So Elijah went to appear before Ahab. Meanwhile, the famine had become very severe in Samaria.
• Leviticus 26:4I will send you the seasonal rains. The land will then yield its crops, and the trees of the field will produce their fruit.
• Deuteronomy 28:12The Lord will send rain at the proper time from his rich treasury in the heavens and will bless all the work you do. You will lend to many nations, but you will never need to borrow from them.
• Psalms 65:9You take care of the earth and water it, making it rich and fertile. The river of God has plenty of water; it provides a bountiful harvest of grain, for you have ordered it so.
• Isaiah 5:6I will make it a wild place where the vines are not pruned and the ground is not hoed, a place overgrown with briers and thorns. I will command the clouds to drop no rain on it.
• Jeremiah 10:13When he speaks in the thunder, the heavens roar with rain. He causes the clouds to rise over the earth. He sends the lightning with the rain and releases the wind from his storehouses.
• Jeremiah 14:22Can any of the worthless foreign gods send us rain? Does it fall from the sky by itself? No, you are the one, O Lord our God! Only you can do such things. So we will wait for you to help us.
• Joel 2:23Rejoice, you people of Jerusalem! Rejoice in the Lord your God! For the rain he sends demonstrates his faithfulness. Once more the autumn rains will come, as well as the rains of spring.
• Amos 4:7“I kept the rain from falling when your crops needed it the most. I sent rain on one town but withheld it from another. Rain fell on one field, while another field withered away.

Commentaries on 1 Kings 18:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1After many days - in the third year - We learn from our Lord, Luke 4:25, that the drought which brought on the famine in Israel lasted three years and six months. St. James, James 5:17, gives it the same duration. Probably Elijah spent six months at the brook Cherith, and three years with the widow at Sarepta. I will send rain upon the earth - The word האדמה haadamah should be translated the ground or the land, as it is probable that this drought did not…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1The third year - i. e., in the third year of his sojourn with the widow. The whole period of drought was three years and a half Luke 4:25; James 5:17: of this, probably about one year was passed by Elijah in the torrent-course of Cherith, and two years and a half at Sarepta.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1Elijah sends Ahab notice of his coming. (1-16) Elijah meets Ahab. (17-20) Elijah's trial of the false prophets. (21-40) Elijah, by prayer, obtains rain. (41-46) Verses 1-16 The severest judgments, of themselves, will not humble or change the hearts of sinners; nothing, except the blood of Jesus Christ, can atone for the guilt of sin; nothing, except the sanctifying Spirit of God, can purge away its pollution. The priests and the Levites were gone to Judah…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-46The prophet Elijah's work was closely tied to his spiritual growth. Elijah challenged Israel's interest in Baal, the Canaanite storm god. During this conflict, Elijah saw God's power and support, unlike Baal's weakness. This was shown in Elijah's contest with Baal's prophets on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:1–46). After fleeing from Jezebel, God renewed Elijah's mission at Mount Sinai (1 Kings 19:1–18). Elijah's mission was finished by his successor, Elisha (1…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-161Ki 18:1-16. Elijah Meets Obadiah. 1. the third year--In the New Testament, it is said there was no rain "for the space of three years and six months" [Jas 5:17]. The early rain fell in our March, the latter rain in our October. Though Ahab might have at first ridiculed Elijah's announcement, yet when neither of these rains fell in their season, he was incensed against the prophet as the cause of the national judgment, and compelled him, with God's…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Kings 18:1

• Elijah
• Famine
• Israel
• Prayer

In the dictionaries

• Ahab
• Elijah
• Answer
• Carmel
• Cut
• Either
• Follow
• Halt
• Lord
• Quotations

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