1 Kings 18:24
New International Version
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.”

New Living Translation
Then call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by setting fire to the wood is the true God!” And all the people agreed.

English Standard Version
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.”

Berean Standard Bible
Then you may 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.” And all the people answered, “What you say is good.”

King James Bible
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 King James Version
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.”

New American Standard Bible
Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD; and the God who answers by fire, He is God.” And all the people replied, “That is a good idea.”

NASB 1995
“Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD, and the God who answers by fire, He is God.” And all the people said, “That is a good idea.”

NASB 1977
“Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD, and the God who answers by fire, He is God.” And all the people answered and said, “That is a good idea.”

Legacy Standard Bible
Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of Yahweh, and the God who answers by fire, He is God.” And all the people answered and said, “That is a good word.”

Amplified Bible
Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD; and the god who answers by fire, He is God.” And all the people answered, “It is well spoken.”

Christian Standard Bible
Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The God who answers with fire, he is God.” All the people answered, “That’s fine.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of Yahweh. The God who answers with fire, He is God.” All the people answered, “That sounds good.”

American Standard Version
And call ye on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of Jehovah; and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.

Contemporary English Version
The prophets of Baal will pray to their god, and I will pray to the LORD. The one who answers by starting the fire is God. "That's a good idea," everyone agreed.

English Revised Version
And call ye on the name of your god, 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.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"You call on the name of your gods, but I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by fire is the real God." All the people answered, "That's fine."

Good News Translation
Then let the prophets of Baal pray to their god, and I will pray to the LORD, and the one who answers by sending fire--he is God." The people shouted their approval.

International Standard Version
Then you can call on the name of your god, and I'll call on the name of the LORD. Let the God who answers by fire be our God!" "That's a good idea!" all the people shouted.

Majority Standard Bible
Then you may 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.” And all the people answered, “What you say is good.”

NET Bible
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."

New Heart English Bible
You call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD, and the god who answers by fire, he is God." All the people answered, "It is well said."

Webster's Bible Translation
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.

World English Bible
You call on the name of your god, and I will call on Yahweh’s name. The God who answers by fire, let him be God.” All the people answered, “What you say is good.”
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
and you have called in the name of your god, and I call in the Name of YHWH, and it has been, the god who answers by fire—He [is] the God.” And all the people answer and say, “The word [is] good.”

Young's Literal Translation
and ye have called in the name of your god, and I -- I call in the name of Jehovah, and it hath been, the god who answereth by fire -- He is the God.' And all the people answer and say, 'Good is the word.'

Smith's Literal Translation
And call ye upon the name of your god, and I will call upon the name of Jehovah, and the God who shall answer by fire, he shall be God. And all the people will answer and say, Good the word.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Call ye on the names of your gods, and I will call on the name of my Lord: and the God that shall answer by fire, let him be God. And all the people answering said: A very good proposal.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Call upon the names of your gods. And I will call on the name of my Lord. And the God who will have heeded with fire, let him be God.” And in response, all the people said, “Excellent proposition.”

New American Bible
You shall call upon the name of your gods, and I will call upon the name of the LORD. The God who answers with fire is God.” All the people answered, “We agree!”

New Revised Standard Version
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 is indeed God.” All the people answered, “Well spoken!”
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD my God; and the God who answers by fire, he is God. And all the people answered and said, You have spoken well.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And call on the name of your gods, and I shall call on the name of LORD JEHOVAH my God, and that god which answers by fire is God!” And all the people answered and they said: “You have spoken well!”
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And call ye on the name of your god, 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.'

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And do ye call loudly on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord my God, and it shall come to pass that the God who shall answer by fire, he is God. And all the people answered and said, The word which thou hast spoken is good.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Elijah on Mount Carmel
23Get two bulls for us. Let the prophets of Baal choose one bull for themselves, cut it into pieces, and place it on the wood but not light the fire. And I will prepare the other bull and place it on the wood but not light the fire. 24Then you may 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.” And all the people answered, “What you say is good.” 25Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Since you are so numerous, choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first. Then call on the name of your god, but do not light the fire.”…

Cross References
James 5:17-18
Elijah was a man just like us. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. / Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth yielded its crops.

Matthew 17:20
“Because you have so little faith,” He answered. “For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.”

Mark 11:22-24
“Have faith in God,” Jesus said to them. / “Truly I tell you that if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and has no doubt in his heart but believes that it will happen, it will be done for him. / Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Hebrews 11:32-34
And what more shall I say? Time will not allow me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, / who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, / quenched the raging fire, and escaped the edge of the sword; who gained strength from weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight.

Luke 9:54
When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do You want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?”

Acts 4:29-31
And now, Lord, consider their threats, and enable Your servants to speak Your word with complete boldness, / as You stretch out Your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of Your holy servant Jesus.” / After they had prayed, their meeting place was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

Romans 10:13
for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

John 14:13-14
And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. / If you ask Me for anything in My name, I will do it.

2 Corinthians 6:16
What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people.”

1 John 5:14-15
And this is the confidence that we have before Him: If we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. / And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we already possess what we have asked of Him.

Exodus 15:25
And Moses cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a log. And when he cast it into the waters, they were sweetened. There the LORD made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there He tested them,

Numbers 16:28-30
Then Moses said, “This is how you will know that the LORD has sent me to do all these things, for it was not my own doing: / If these men die a natural death, or if they suffer the fate of all men, then the LORD has not sent me. / But if the LORD brings about something unprecedented, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them and all that belongs to them so that they go down alive into Sheol, then you will know that these men have treated the LORD with contempt.”

Deuteronomy 4:35-39
You were shown these things so that you would know that the LORD is God; there is no other besides Him. / He let you hear His voice from heaven to discipline you, and on earth He showed you His great fire, and you heard His words out of the fire. / Because He loved your fathers, He chose their descendants after them and brought you out of Egypt by His presence and great power, ...

Joshua 24:15-18
But if it is unpleasing in your sight to serve the LORD, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD!” / The people replied, “Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods! / For the LORD our God brought us and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and performed these great signs before our eyes. He also protected us throughout our journey and among all the nations through which we traveled. ...

1 Samuel 12:16-18
Now, therefore, present yourselves and see this great thing that the LORD will do before your eyes. / Is it not the wheat harvest today? I will call on the LORD to send thunder and rain, so that you will know and see what a great evil you have committed in the sight of the LORD by asking for a king.” / So Samuel called to the LORD, and on that day the LORD sent thunder and rain. As a result, all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel.


Treasury of Scripture

And call you on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the LORD: and the God that answers by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken.

answereth by fire

1 Kings 18:38
Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench.

Leviticus 9:24
And there came a fire out from before the LORD, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat: which when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces.

Judges 6:21
Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the LORD departed out of his sight.

and said

2 Samuel 14:19
And the king said, Is not the hand of Joab with thee in all this? And the woman answered and said, As thy soul liveth, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from ought that my lord the king hath spoken: for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thine handmaid:

Isaiah 39:8
Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken. He said moreover, For there shall be peace and truth in my days.

Jump to Previous
Answers Clear Fire Gives Gods Good Idea Prayer Prayers
Jump to Next
Answers Clear Fire Gives Gods Good Idea Prayer Prayers
1 Kings 18
1. In the extremity of famine Elijah, sent to Ahab, meets good Obadiah
9. Obadiah brings Ahab to Elijah
17. Elijah, reproving Ahab, by fire from heaven convinces Baal's prophets
41. Elijah, by prayer obtaining rain, follows Ahab to Jezreel














Then you may call
The phrase "you may call" invites the prophets of Baal to invoke their deity, suggesting a challenge. The Hebrew root for "call" is קָרָא (qara), which means to call out, proclaim, or summon. This word is often used in the context of prayer or invocation, highlighting the act of seeking divine intervention. In the historical context, calling upon a deity was a common practice in ancient Near Eastern religions, where gods were believed to have power over natural elements.

on the name of your god
The "name" in Hebrew, שֵׁם (shem), signifies more than just a label; it represents the character and authority of the deity. The phrase "your god" refers to Baal, a prominent Canaanite deity associated with storms and fertility. This sets the stage for a confrontation between the God of Israel and the Canaanite god, emphasizing the exclusivity and supremacy of Yahweh.

and I will call on the name of the LORD
Here, Elijah contrasts the prophets' invocation with his own. "The name of the LORD" refers to Yahweh, the covenant name of God, which signifies His eternal, self-existent nature. This phrase underscores the personal relationship between God and His people, as well as His faithfulness to His covenant. Elijah's confidence in calling upon Yahweh highlights his faith and the expectation of divine response.

The God who answers by fire
The phrase "answers by fire" is pivotal, as fire is a symbol of divine presence and power throughout the Bible. The Hebrew word for "answers," עָנָה (anah), implies a response or reply, often in the context of prayer. Fire, in this context, is a test of divine authenticity and power, reminiscent of God's previous manifestations, such as the burning bush (Exodus 3) and the pillar of fire (Exodus 13:21).

He is God
This declaration serves as the ultimate criterion for determining the true God. The Hebrew word for "God" here is אֱלֹהִים (Elohim), a plural form used singularly to denote the one true God, emphasizing His majesty and sovereignty. This statement challenges the prevailing polytheistic beliefs and asserts the monotheistic faith of Israel, affirming that the true God is the one who actively intervenes in the world.

(24) And call ye on the name of your gods.--This gift of a "sign from heaven"--not unfamiliar to Israelite experience (see Leviticus 9:24; 1Chronicles 21:26; 2Chronicles 7:1)--which may not, as our Lord teaches us (Matthew 12:38-39; Matthew 16:1-4), be craved for or demanded as a ground of faith, is, like all other miracles, granted unasked when it is seen by God's wisdom to be needed, in order to startle an ignorant and misguided people into serious attention to a message from heaven. In this instance the worship of Baal was a worship of the power of Nature, impersonated perhaps in the sun; and the miracle therefore entered (so to speak) on the visible sphere, especially usurped in his name, in order to claim it for the Lord Jehovah.

Verse 24. And call ye on the name of your gods [As Elijah is still addressing the people, not the prophets of Baal (see ver. 25), this change of person is significant. He sorrowfully assumes that they have taken Baal and Astarte for their gods], and I will call on the name of the Lord: and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. [Heb. he shall be the God, i.e., the true God and their God. Cf. ver. 39. Not only was a "sign from heaven" (Mark 8:11) ever esteemed a more powerful and direct proof of Divine energy - perhaps as being less liable to be counterfeited, and as excluding the idea of the operation of infernal powers (Matthew 12:24) - but it must be remembered that Baal claimed to be the Sun god and Lord of the elements and forces of nature; while Jehovah bad already, according to the law, identified Himself with this token (Leviticus 9:24; 1 Chronicles 21:26; 2 Chronicles 7:1). Indeed, this sign had a double fit. ness as a test of the true religion. It would not only put the powers of the rival deities to the proof; it would also at the same time decide which of the rival systems of worship was acceptable to the Supreme Being. It is observable that there is no mention of rain. We might have expected, after the long drought, that this would be the test. But that could not be promised until the Lord had first been recognized as God.] And all the people answered and said, Is well spoken. [Heb. Good the word. They accepted Elijah's proposition, but whether eagerly or reluctantly it is difficult to say. The Hebrew merely conveys that they admitted its fairness and reasonableness. Having gained the assent of the people, for whose verdict he and the Baal prophets were now contending, and who were, consequently, entitled to be consulted as to the sign which would satisfy them, he turns to the band of 400 prophets, who, probably in all the bravery of their sacrificial vestments (2 Kings 10:22), occupied a separate position on the hill top, between the king and the people, and repeats his proposal to them.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Then you may call
וּקְרָאתֶ֞ם (ū·qə·rā·ṯem)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 7121: To call, proclaim, read

on the name
בְּשֵׁ֣ם (bə·šêm)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 8034: A name

of your god,
אֱלֹֽהֵיכֶ֗ם (’ĕ·lō·hê·ḵem)
Noun - masculine plural construct | second person masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

and I
וַֽאֲנִי֙ (wa·’ă·nî)
Conjunctive waw | Pronoun - first person common singular
Strong's 589: I

will call
אֶקְרָ֣א (’eq·rā)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 7121: To call, proclaim, read

on the name
בְשֵׁם־ (ḇə·šêm-)
Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 8034: A name

of the LORD.
יְהוָ֔ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

The God
הָאֱלֹהִ֛ים (hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

who
אֲשֶׁר־ (’ă·šer-)
Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

answers
יַעֲנֶ֥ה (ya·‘ă·neh)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 6030: To answer, respond

by fire,
בָאֵ֖שׁ (ḇā·’êš)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - common singular
Strong's 784: A fire

He
ה֣וּא (hū)
Pronoun - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1931: He, self, the same, this, that, as, are

is
וְהָיָ֧ה (wə·hā·yāh)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

God.”
הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים (hā·’ĕ·lō·hîm)
Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 430: gods -- the supreme God, magistrates, a superlative

And all
כָּל־ (kāl-)
Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 3605: The whole, all, any, every

the people
הָעָ֛ם (hā·‘ām)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5971: A people, a tribe, troops, attendants, a flock

answered,
וַיֹּאמְר֖וּ (way·yō·mə·rū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 559: To utter, say

“What you say
הַדָּבָֽר׃ (had·dā·ḇār)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1697: A word, a matter, thing, a cause

is good.”
ט֥וֹב (ṭō·wḇ)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 2896: Pleasant, agreeable, good


Links
1 Kings 18:24 NIV
1 Kings 18:24 NLT
1 Kings 18:24 ESV
1 Kings 18:24 NASB
1 Kings 18:24 KJV

1 Kings 18:24 BibleApps.com
1 Kings 18:24 Biblia Paralela
1 Kings 18:24 Chinese Bible
1 Kings 18:24 French Bible
1 Kings 18:24 Catholic Bible

OT History: 1 Kings 18:24 You call on the name of your (1Ki iKi i Ki 1 Kg 1kg)
1 Kings 18:23
Top of Page
Top of Page