1Ki 18 | TNotes

18:2 ^a Elijah continued to obey the Lord’s commands (see 17:5 ^b, 10 ^c), despite the personal danger of appearing before Ahab.
Summary for 1Kgs 18:3-6: 18:3-6 ^d Due to the severity of the continuing drought, Ahab and Obadiah, his chief officer (cp. 4:6 ^e; 16:9 ^f), set out to locate sufficient water and grass for the king’s horses. These provisions were crucial for military preparedness. Assyrian king Shalmaneser III wrote that Ahab put some 2,000 horse-drawn chariots into the Battle of Qarqar (853 BC). Solomon had also had many horses and chariots (10:26 ^g).
18:4 ^h Obadiah’s care for 100 of the Lord’s prophets may indicate a group of prophets such as had existed since Samuel’s time (1 Sam 10:5-18 ⁱ; 19:20 ^j, 24 ^k). Such groups met together for study and mutual spiritual encouragement and are mentioned several times (2 Kgs 4:1 ^l, 38 ^m; 9:1 ⁿ). Elijah and Elisha apparently exercised leadership in some of these groups (2 Kgs 2:3-7 ^o, 15 ^p; 6:1-7 ^q).
18:10 ^r every nation and kingdom: Ancient Near Eastern protocol called for the extradition of fugitives or runaway slaves, as noted in the famous treaty between Pharaoh Ramses II and the Hittite king Hattusilis (see ANET 200b, 203a). But Elijah had not had to seek asylum with a foreign king. God provided for his safety at Kerith Brook (17:3 ^s) and with the widow at Zarephath (17:9 ^t).
Summary for 1Kgs 18:12-15: 18:12-15 ^u As a true believer, Obadiah recognized that the Spirit of the Lord operated within God’s prophets (Judg 6:34 ^v; Ezek 3:12 ^w, 14 ^x; 11:1 ^y). Obadiah feared that the Lord’s Spirit would carry Elijah away while he was reporting Elijah’s whereabouts to Ahab. The king would then interpret his inability to produce Elijah as a sign that he was hiding Elijah, and he would kill him.
Summary for 1Kgs 18:16-18: 18:16-18 ^z troublemakers: Although Elijah announced the onset of the drought (17:1 ^aa), it was Ahab and his family who brought God’s judgment upon Israel by their violations of the covenant and their sponsorship of Baal worship (see Lev 26:19 ^ab; Deut 28:15 ^ac, 23 ^ad; 2 Chr 7:13 ^ae; Jer 14:1-7 ^af; Amos 4:7-8 ^ag).
Summary for 1Kgs 18:19-20: 18:19-20 ^ah Mount Carmel lies on a ridge dividing the coastal plain of Palestine. The site was known for Canaanite idol worship; an altar to the Lord had also been built there earlier (18:30 ^ai). It was a natural location for the contest with Baal. Although the Septuagint (a Greek translation of the Old Testament) may indicate that the prophets of Asherah attended the ensuing contest on Mount Carmel, the Hebrew text does not (cp. 18:22 ^aj).
18:21 ^ak The Hebrew word translated waver means “to be lame” or “to limp.” Elijah compared the people’s hobbling between the worship of the Lord and of Baal to a person who limps awkwardly from one foot to the other. Elijah may have also been referring to the ritual dance performed by Baal’s prophets as they attempted to gain the storm-god’s attention (18:26 ^al).
18:22 ^am the only prophet of the Lord: Obadiah had previously hidden two groups of fifty prophets to protect them from Jezebel’s purge (18:4 ^an, 13 ^ao). However, Elijah’s public stature must have left him feeling alone in his struggle against false religion (see 19:10 ^ap, 14 ^aq); certainly, he did stand alone in confronting the 450 prophets of Baal.
Summary for 1Kgs 18:23-24: 18:23-24 ^ar The Lord’s presence was attested by fire (Exod 9:23 ^as; 19:18 ^at; 40:38 ^au; Deut 4:24 ^av; 2 Chr 7:1 ^aw; Isa 66:15 ^ax; Amos 7:4 ^ay), which could have been lightning (cp. Ps 18:12-13 ^az; Ezek 1:13-14 ^ba; Zech 9:14 ^bb). The contest would demonstrate whether the Canaanite storm-god Baal or the God of Israel was the true God; only the true God could set fire to the wood (cp. Lev 9:24 ^bc).
18:27 ^bd is relieving himself: Elijah’s sarcastic taunts mocked the personification of the gods as having human needs. Egyptian priests awakened their god, then fed, washed, and dressed the idol in fresh clothing. They even put rouge on the idol’s face and placed the proper emblem of royalty on it.
Summary for 1Kgs 18:28-29: 18:28-29 ^be shouted ... cut themselves ... raved: The prophets of Baal demonstrated ecstatic behavior common in ancient pagan religions, but their efforts produced no response. Of course, there is only one true God (Deut 4:35 ^bf; 6:4 ^bg; Isa 44:8 ^bh); all other hopes are doomed to failure (Isa 45:22 ^bi).
Summary for 1Kgs 18:31-32: 18:31-32 ^bj The twelve stones that Elijah used to rebuild the altar in the name of the Lord should have reminded the people that God had a prior claim as the redeemer of all Israel (cp. Josh 4:1-11 ^bk; see Isa 41:14 ^bl; 49:26 ^bm).
Summary for 1Kgs 18:33-35: 18:33-35 ^bn Elijah avoided any hint of deception by dousing the offering and the wood with great quantities of water, perhaps taken from the nearby Mediterranean Sea or Kishon River.
18:36 ^bo At the appointed time of sacrifice to the Lord, Elijah prayed. He did not imitate the ecstatic behavior of the prophets of Baal but simply prayed to God in light of his promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Gen 50:24 ^bp; Exod 3:6 ^bq, 15 ^br; 4:5 ^bs; Num 32:11 ^bt; Deut 9:27 ^bu).
18:37 ^bv The call-answer motif appears frequently in the Old Testament, often depicting the petitioner’s intimate relationship to the Lord (Job 14:15 ^bw; Pss 4:1 ^bx; 91:15 ^by; 102:2 ^bz; Isa 65:24 ^ca; Jer 33:3 ^cb).
Summary for 1Kgs 18:38-39: 18:38-39 ^cc Whether by lightning strike or more supernatural means, the Lord sent fire to consume everything, including all the water in the trench. This was convincing proof that the Lord is God. The continuing story demonstrates conclusively that the Lord, not Baal, has control over fire, water, and the weather.
Summary for 1Kgs 18:41-45: 18:41-45 ^cd The servant ... saw a little cloud on the horizon that appeared to be the size of a hand. Yet it heralded the approach of a terrific rainstorm.
18:46 ^ce He tucked his cloak into his belt so he could run more easily ahead of Ahab’s chariot. The Hebrew idiom refers to doing anything vigorously or enthusiastically (2 Kgs 4:29 ^cf).

• Jezreel was between Megiddo and Beth-shan in the southeastern portion of the valley of Jezreel, about seventeen miles from Mount Carmel.