Bible Strands
1 Kings 18:1
After a long time, in the third year of the drought, the word of the LORD came to Elijah: “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the face of the earth.”
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Lord speaks to Elijah at the beginning of the third year of the drought, commanding him to go and present himself to King Ahab.
The words — The Hebrew וַיְהִי (va/y.Hi) literally means "and it was" or "and it came to pass," marking the chronological shift. The phrase דְּבַר יְהוָה (de.var Yah.weh) translates directly as "the word of Yahweh," identifying the command's source.
The thread — The drought's duration is recorded in Luke 4:25 and James 5:17 to anchor Elijah's ministry in historical judgment, while Deuteronomy 28:12 establishes the covenant pattern where rain follows obedience.
Why it lands — The text explicitly states God will send rain upon the earth, requiring the reader to acknowledge that divine timing ends prolonged judgment and that obedience to a direct command initiates restoration.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
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.
Cross-references
- Luke 4:25 But I tell you truthfully that there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and great famine swept over all the land.
- James 5:17 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.
- Deuteronomy 28:12 The LORD will open the heavens, His abundant storehouse, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations, but borrow from none.
- 1 Kings 17:1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was among the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there will be neither dew nor rain in these years except at my word!”
- 1 Kings 18:15 Then Elijah said, “As surely as the LORD of Hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will present myself to Ahab today.”
- 1 Kings 18:2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab. The famine was severe in Samaria,
- Leviticus 26:4 I will give you rains in their season, and the land will yield its produce, and the trees of the field will bear their fruit.
- Joel 2:23 Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God, for He has given you the autumn rains for your vindication. He sends you showers, both autumn and spring rains, as before.
- 1 Kings 17:7 Some time later, however, the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land.
- 1 Kings 17:15 So she went and did according to the word of Elijah, and there was food every day for Elijah and the woman and her household.