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Nach YomiI Kings · מלכים א׳Chapter 18

I Kings 18

מלכים א׳ פרק י״ח

Section: נביאים · נביאים ראשונים | Book: I Kings | Chapter: 18 of 22 | Day: 118 of 742

Date: June 9, 2026

קלאוד על הנ״ך

Chapter 18 is the climactic confrontation of Eliyahu’s career and one of the most theologically charged set-pieces in all of Tanakh: a single prophet of the Lord standing against four hundred fifty prophets of Baal on the summit of Mount Carmel, with the people of Israel watching from below to learn at last which God is God. The drama unfolds in five movements — the divine command to break the drought, the encounter with Ovadyahu, the verbal confrontation with Ahab, the great trial by fire, and the breaking of the drought — each carefully constructed to undo the previous three chapters’ theological erosion. Where chapter 16 ended with Ahab leading Israel into Baal-worship as the official state cult and chapter 17 saw Eliyahu hidden away in private miracles of sustenance and resurrection, chapter 18 brings the prophet back to the public stage to wage open war on the cult that has taken over the kingdom.

The opening verses (1-16) center on a remarkable secondary figure: Ovadyahu, the steward of Ahab’s palace, who is described as having feared the Lord exceedingly. Radak (and Chazal, cited by Rashi) supply the dramatic backstory: during Jezebel’s persecution of the prophets, Ovadyahu hid one hundred prophets in two caves, fifty each, feeding them bread and water at his own peril — a feat of moral courage made all the more remarkable by his location at the very heart of Ahab’s idolatrous court. The Gemara (Sanhedrin 39b) compares his strategy of splitting the prophets between two caves to Yaakov’s strategy of splitting his camp before Esav. When Eliyahu suddenly appears and sends Ovadyahu to announce his return to Ahab, Ovadyahu’s terrified protests reveal the depth of Ahab’s three-year manhunt — the king has scoured every neighboring kingdom and forced sworn oaths from each that the prophet could not be found. Ovadyahu fears that if Eliyahu vanishes again, Ahab will execute him as the messenger of a hoax. The dialogue establishes that what is about to happen is a deliberately staged public confrontation, requested by God Himself.

The trial on Mount Carmel (verses 17-40) is structured to expose Baal-worship as systematically vacuous. Eliyahu opens by reframing Ahab’s accusation — “are you the troubler of Israel?” — with the inverted truth: it is the king and his father’s house, by abandoning God’s commandments and chasing the Be’alim, who have troubled Israel. He then proposes the test on equal terms: two bulls, two altars, no fire applied by human hands; the God who answers by fire is God. Rashi, citing the midrash, preserves the striking detail that the bull chosen for Baal initially refused to walk to the Baal’s altar and had to be sworn by Eliyahu that the name of Heaven would be sanctified through both animals before it would go. The Baal-prophets call from morning to noon, hop around the altar in their ritual frenzy (verse 26), and gash themselves with knives and spears according to their custom — a vivid depiction of pagan practice contrasted with the contemplative silence of Eliyahu’s own approach. Eliyahu’s mockery at noon (verse 27) is one of the great moments of biblical satire: perhaps Baal is in conversation, perhaps he is occupied, perhaps he is traveling — Rashi explains the euphemism as the lavatory — or perhaps he is asleep and needs waking. The Baal prophets’ frenzy reaches its peak with no response, and as the hour of the afternoon Tamid sacrifice approaches, Eliyahu takes his turn.

The construction of Eliyahu’s altar (verses 30-35) is dense with symbolic resonance. He repairs the broken-down altar of God — which Rashi, citing a midrash, identifies as one originally built by King Shaul on Mount Carmel and later torn down by Baal-worshippers. He takes twelve stones, one for each tribe, deliberately invoking the unified Israel as it should be even though only Yehudah and Binyamin are loyal to God; Rashi cites the Bereishit Rabbah tradition that on the day God renamed Yaakov as Yisrael, He also promised that his descendants would one day build an altar during the era when private altars were prohibited, and God would consent to it — precisely sanctioning what Eliyahu does here on Carmel. The deliberate drenching of the sacrifice with twelve jars of water (three jars times four, corresponding again to the tribes, and per Rashi sourced from Elisha pouring water that turned to springs from his fingers) is designed to make the miracle of the fire categorically beyond any natural explanation — the fire must consume not only the offering and wood but also the stones, the dust, and the water in the trench. Eliyahu’s prayer (verses 36-37) is the quiet center of the chapter: brief, theological, addressed to the God of Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yisrael (the patriarchal triad recapitulating his use of twelve stones), asking that this people know that the Lord is God, that Eliyahu Himself is His servant, and that he has done all these things at God’s word. Chazal read the doubled “answer me, answer me” as asking for two miracles: answer me with fire, and answer me so that the people will not say this is sorcery. The fire descends and consumes everything, and Israel falls on their faces with the chapter’s most famous declaration — repeated in the daily Ne’ila of Yom Kippur — ה’ הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים, ה’ הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים.

The chapter’s denouement (verses 40-46) closes the loop opened in chapter 17. The Baal prophets are seized and slaughtered at Nahal Kishon (Radak: the people’s hands were with Eliyahu after the great sign, so he was empowered to act). Eliyahu sends Ahab to eat and drink because rain is coming, and climbs alone to the top of Carmel to crouch in prayer, his face between his knees — a position Chazal cite as the paradigmatic posture of urgent prayer. Seven times he sends his servant (Chazal: this servant is Yonah, the same boy he revived in chapter 17, who will become Yonah ben Amitai the prophet) to look toward the Mediterranean. On the seventh look, a small cloud the size of a man’s hand is reported, and Eliyahu instantly sends word to Ahab to harness his chariot before the storm overtakes him. The chapter’s final image is unforgettable: the spirit of God descends on Eliyahu, he girds his loins, and runs ahead of Ahab’s chariot all the way to Yizre’el — some seventeen miles in the downpour. Chazal derive from this the rule “let the awe of kings always be upon you” (Zevachim 102a): even Eliyahu, the prophet who had just defeated the king’s religion on Carmel and slaughtered the king’s prophets, runs before the royal chariot as a sign of due respect for the office, while the man who holds that office watches his entire religious world come undone in a single afternoon.

פרק י״ח · Chapter 18

פסוק א׳ · Verse 1

Hebrew:

וַֽיְהִי֙ יָמִ֣ים רַבִּ֔ים וּדְבַר־יְהֹוָ֗ה הָיָה֙ אֶל־אֵ֣לִיָּ֔הוּ בַּשָּׁנָ֥ה הַשְּׁלִישִׁ֖ית לֵאמֹ֑ר לֵ֚ךְ הֵרָאֵ֣ה אֶל־אַחְאָ֔ב וְאֶתְּנָ֥ה מָטָ֖ר עַל־פְּנֵ֥י הָֽאֲדָמָֽה׃

English:

Much later, in the third year,ain the third year Of the drought; see 17.1. the word of GOD came to Elijah: “Go, appear before Ahab; then I will send rain upon the earth.”

In the third year of the drought, God's word comes to Eliyahu: 'Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the face of the earth.' Metzudat David draws out the providential staging: since Eliyahu had sworn that rain would come only by his word, God arranged events so that Eliyahu would intercede on Ahab's behalf to bring it. Radak adds the reason God now ends the drought: many had repented under the pressure of famine, and seven thousand in Israel had refused to bow to Baal -- their merit had accumulated.
▶Commentaries (1)
רד״קRadak
ויהי בשנה השלישית. לעצירת הגשמים: ואתנה מטר. כי מפני הרעב שבו רבים בתשובה והטיבו דרכיהם ועוד שהיו בישראל ז' אלפים אשר לא כרעו לבעל:
Because of the drought many people repented and improved their ways. additionally, there were 7 thousand people in Israel who did not bow down to Baal.

פסוק ב׳ · Verse 2

Hebrew:

וַיֵּ֙לֶךְ֙ אֵֽלִיָּ֔הוּ לְהֵרָא֖וֹת אֶל־אַחְאָ֑ב וְהָרָעָ֥ב חָזָ֖ק בְּשֹׁמְרֽוֹן׃

English:

Thereupon Elijah set out to appear before Ahab.The famine was severe in Samaria.

פסוק ג׳ · Verse 3

Hebrew:

וַיִּקְרָ֣א אַחְאָ֔ב אֶל־עֹבַדְיָ֖הוּ אֲשֶׁ֣ר עַל־הַבָּ֑יִת וְעֹבַדְיָ֗הוּ הָיָ֥ה יָרֵ֛א אֶת־יְהֹוָ֖ה מְאֹֽד׃

English:

Ahab had summoned Obadiah, the steward of the palace. (Obadiah revered GOD greatly.

Ahab summons Ovadyahu, the steward of the palace, who 'feared the Lord exceedingly.' Radak unpacks just how exceptional this fear was: Ovadyahu literally put his life in his hands to rescue and sustain prophets of God under Ahab's nose. Chazal (cited by Radak) preserve the specific detail that he hid one hundred prophets in two caves of fifty each -- the next verse will make this explicit.

פסוק ד׳ · Verse 4

Hebrew:

וַֽיְהִי֙ בְּהַכְרִ֣ית אִיזֶ֔בֶל אֵ֖ת נְבִיאֵ֣י יְהֹוָ֑ה וַיִּקַּ֨ח עֹבַדְיָ֜הוּ מֵאָ֣ה נְבִיאִ֗ים וַֽיַּחְבִּיאֵ֞ם חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים אִישׁ֙ בַּמְּעָרָ֔ה וְכִלְכְּלָ֖ם לֶ֥חֶם וָמָֽיִם׃

English:

When Jezebel was killing off the prophets of GOD, Obadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them, fifty to a cave, and provided them with food and drink.)

The narrative pauses to record the specific act that proved Ovadyahu's fear of Heaven: during Jezebel's purge of God's prophets, he hid one hundred of them, fifty to a cave, and provided them with bread and water. Rashi notes the verse comes here precisely to demonstrate how deep his fear of God ran. The Gemara (Sanhedrin 39b) reads the split between two caves as borrowed from Yaakov's strategy before meeting Esav -- divide so that if one camp falls, the other survives. Radak adds that water was prized during the famine, making the gift all the more costly.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיְהִי בְּהַכְרִית אִיזֶבֶל. לְהַגִּיד בָּא אֵיךְ הָיָה עוֹבַדְיָהוּ יָרֵא אֶת ה'. חֲמִשִּׁים אִישׁ בִּמְעָרָה אַחַת. וַחֲמִשִּׁים אִישׁ בִּמְעָרָה אַחֶרֶת.
And when Ezevel killed. [Scripture] comes to tell [us] how Ovadyahu feared God. Fifty men in a cave. And fifty men in another cave.

פסוק ה׳ · Verse 5

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אַחְאָב֙ אֶל־עֹ֣בַדְיָ֔הוּ לֵ֤ךְ בָּאָ֙רֶץ֙ אֶל־כׇּל־מַעְיְנֵ֣י הַמַּ֔יִם וְאֶ֖ל כׇּל־הַנְּחָלִ֑ים אוּלַ֣י ׀ נִמְצָ֣א חָצִ֗יר וּנְחַיֶּה֙ ס֣וּס וָפֶ֔רֶד וְל֥וֹא נַכְרִ֖ית מֵהַבְּהֵמָֽה׃

English:

And Ahab had said to Obadiah, “Go through the land, to all the springs of water and to all the wadis. Perhaps we shall find some grass to keep horses and mules alive, so that we are not left without beasts.”

Ahab dispatches Ovadyahu to scour the land's springs and wadis for any patches of grass to keep the royal horses and mules alive, so they will not 'be cut off from beasts.' The famine, three years deep, has reduced even the king to personal expeditions for fodder.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וְלוֹא נַכְרִית מֵהַבְּהֵמָה. לֹא תִכָּרֵת כָּל בְּהֶמְתֵּנוּ מִמֶּנּוּ.
And we will not be bereft of [our] animals. All our animals will not be cut off from us.

פסוק ו׳ · Verse 6

Hebrew:

וַֽיְחַלְּק֥וּ לָהֶ֛ם אֶת־הָאָ֖רֶץ לַעֲבׇר־בָּ֑הּ אַחְאָ֞ב הָלַ֨ךְ בְּדֶ֤רֶךְ אֶחָד֙ לְבַדּ֔וֹ וְעֹבַדְיָ֛הוּ הָלַ֥ךְ בְּדֶרֶךְ־אֶחָ֖ד לְבַדּֽוֹ׃

English:

They divided the country between them to explore it, Ahab going alone in one direction and Obadiah going alone in another direction.

פסוק ז׳ · Verse 7

Hebrew:

וַיְהִ֤י עֹבַדְיָ֙הוּ֙ בַּדֶּ֔רֶךְ וְהִנֵּ֥ה אֵלִיָּ֖הוּ לִקְרָאת֑וֹ וַיַּכִּרֵ֙הוּ֙ וַיִּפֹּ֣ל עַל־פָּנָ֔יו וַיֹּ֕אמֶר הַאַתָּ֥ה זֶ֖ה אֲדֹנִ֥י אֵלִיָּֽהוּ׃

English:

Obadiah was on the road, when Elijah suddenly confronted him. [Obadiah] recognized him and flung himself on his face, saying, “Is that you, my lord Elijah?”

On the road, Ovadyahu suddenly meets Eliyahu. Metzudat David notes that he falls on his face in genuine homage -- not the gesture of a startled servant but of a man recognizing a true prophet of God.

פסוק ח׳ · Verse 8

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֥אמֶר ל֖וֹ אָ֑נִי לֵ֛ךְ אֱמֹ֥ר לַאדֹנֶ֖יךָ הִנֵּ֥ה אֵלִיָּֽהוּ׃

English:

“Yes, it is I,” he answered. “Go tell your lord: Elijah is here!”

פסוק ט׳ · Verse 9

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֖אמֶר מֶ֣ה חָטָ֑אתִי כִּֽי־אַתָּ֞ה נֹתֵ֧ן אֶֽת־עַבְדְּךָ֛ בְּיַד־אַחְאָ֖ב לַהֲמִיתֵֽנִי׃

English:

But he said, “What wrong have I done, that you should hand your servant over to Ahab to be killed?

Ovadyahu protests in alarm: what have I done that you should give me to Ahab to kill me? Rashi quotes Eliyahu's own later explanation -- the spirit of God will carry the prophet to an unknown place, and Ovadyahu's announcement will look like a hoax. The man who risked his life for one hundred prophets now fears he is being asked to die for nothing.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
לַהֲמִיתֵנִי. כְּמוֹ שֶׁמְּפָרֵשׁ וְאוֹמֵר: וְרוּחַ ה' יִשָּׂאֲךָ עַל אֲשֶׁר לֹא אֵדַע.
To kill me. As it [continues and] explains and states, "a wind from Adonoy will carry you away to where I do not know."1The Gemara in Maseches Sanhedrin 39b states that he followed the same strategy used by Yaakov to protect his family from Eisav. Yaakov divided his household into two groups so that some would survive if Eisav were to attack. Alternatively, each cave could accommodate only 50 people.

פסוק י״ · Verse 10

Hebrew:

חַ֣י ׀ יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֗יךָ אִם־יֶשׁ־גּ֤וֹי וּמַמְלָכָה֙ אֲ֠שֶׁ֠ר לֹא־שָׁלַ֨ח אֲדֹנִ֥י שָׁם֙ לְבַקֶּשְׁךָ֔ וְאָמְר֖וּ אָ֑יִן וְהִשְׁבִּ֤יעַ אֶת־הַמַּמְלָכָה֙ וְאֶת־הַגּ֔וֹי כִּ֖י לֹ֥א יִמְצָאֶֽכָּה׃

English:

As the ETERNAL your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom to which my lord has not sent to look for you; and when they said, ‘He is not here,’ he made that kingdom or nation swear that you could not be found.

Ovadyahu describes the depth of Ahab's three-year manhunt: there is no nation or kingdom to which the king has not sent looking for Eliyahu, and from each one Ahab demanded a sworn oath that the prophet was not present. Radak treats this as Ahab using the leverage of friendly diplomacy with surrounding nations and traveling merchants. Radak also raises a puzzle: how did Ahab fail to find Eliyahu in Tzarfat, which was close at hand? -- perhaps the widow hid him, or the townspeople protected him from the king's agents.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
כִּי לֹא יִמְצָאֶכָּה. שֶׁאֵין הָעָם יָכוֹל לִמְצֹא אוֹתְךָ.
That they did not find you. For the nation was unable to find you.2Below v. 12.

פסוק י״א · Verse 11

Hebrew:

וְעַתָּ֖ה אַתָּ֣ה אֹמֵ֑ר לֵ֛ךְ אֱמֹ֥ר לַאדֹנֶ֖יךָ הִנֵּ֥ה אֵלִיָּֽהוּ׃

English:

And now you say, ‘Go tell your lord: Elijah is here!’

פסוק י״ב · Verse 12

Hebrew:

וְהָיָ֞ה אֲנִ֣י ׀ אֵלֵ֣ךְ מֵאִתָּ֗ךְ וְר֨וּחַ יְהֹוָ֤ה ׀ יִֽשָּׂאֲךָ֙ עַ֚ל אֲשֶׁ֣ר לֹֽא־אֵדָ֔ע וּבָ֨אתִי לְהַגִּ֧יד לְאַחְאָ��ב וְלֹ֥א יִֽמְצָאֲךָ֖ וַהֲרָגָ֑נִי וְעַבְדְּךָ֛ יָרֵ֥א אֶת־יְהֹוָ֖ה מִנְּעֻרָֽי׃

English:

When I leave you, the spirit of GOD will carry you off I don’t know where; and when I come and tell Ahab and he does not find you, he will kill me. Yet your servant has revered GOD from my youth.

Ovadyahu names his specific fear: the spirit of God will carry Eliyahu away to a place no one knows, and when Ahab cannot find him, the king will kill the messenger. Radak draws the parallel to II Kings 2, where the sons of the prophets later search for Eliyahu's body fearing 'the spirit of God has cast him on a mountain' -- the prophet's tendency to vanish was an established legend. Ovadyahu also pleads his lifelong fear of Heaven as the reason he deserves better than to be sacrificed in this scheme.

פסוק י״ג · Verse 13

Hebrew:

הֲלֹֽא־הֻגַּ֤ד לַֽאדֹנִי֙ אֵ֣ת אֲשֶׁר־עָשִׂ֔יתִי בַּהֲרֹ֣ג אִיזֶ֔בֶל אֵ֖ת נְבִיאֵ֣י יְהֹוָ֑ה וָאַחְבִּא֩ מִנְּבִיאֵ֨י יְהֹוָ֜ה מֵ֣אָה אִ֗ישׁ חֲמִשִּׁ֨ים חֲמִשִּׁ֥ים אִישׁ֙ בַּמְּעָרָ֔ה וָאֲכַלְכְּלֵ֖ם לֶ֥חֶם וָמָֽיִם׃

English:

My lord has surely been told what I did when Jezebel was killing the prophets of GOD, how I hid a hundred of the prophets of GOD, fifty to a cave, and provided them with food and drink.

פסוק י״ד · Verse 14

Hebrew:

וְעַתָּה֙ אַתָּ֣ה אֹמֵ֔ר לֵ֛ךְ אֱמֹ֥ר לַאדֹנֶ֖יךָ הִנֵּ֣ה אֵלִיָּ֑הוּ וַהֲרָגָֽנִי׃ {ס}        

English:

And now you say, ‘Go tell your lord: Elijah is here.’ Why, he will kill me!”

Ovadyahu reminds Eliyahu of the hundred prophets he is still feeding in the caves, sealing his appeal with a practical concern: if Ahab kills him, who will keep those prophets alive? Have mercy on them, if not on me.

פסוק ט״ו · Verse 15

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ אֵֽלִיָּ֔הוּ חַ֚י יְהֹוָ֣ה צְבָא֔וֹת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָמַ֖דְתִּי לְפָנָ֑יו כִּ֥י הַיּ֖וֹם אֵרָאֶ֥ה אֵלָֽיו׃

English:

Elijah replied, “As GOD of Hosts lives, whom I serve, I will appear before him this very day.”

פסוק ט״ז · Verse 16

Hebrew:

וַיֵּ֧לֶךְ עֹבַדְיָ֛הוּ לִקְרַ֥את אַחְאָ֖ב וַיַּגֶּד־ל֑וֹ וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ אַחְאָ֖ב לִקְרַ֥את אֵלִיָּֽהוּ׃

English:

Obadiah went to find Ahab, and informed him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah.

פסוק י״ז · Verse 17

Hebrew:

וַיְהִ֛י כִּרְא֥וֹת אַחְאָ֖ב אֶת־אֵלִיָּ֑הוּ וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אַחְאָב֙ אֵלָ֔יו הַאַתָּ֥ה זֶ֖ה עֹכֵ֥ר יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃

English:

When Ahab caught sight of Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is that you, you troubler of Israel?”

When Ahab sees Eliyahu, his greeting is an accusation: 'Is that you, troubler of Israel?' Metzudat David spells out the charge: 'you who troubled them by swearing to shut up the rain.' Ahab still cannot recognize that the prophet was symptom, not cause.

פסוק י״ח · Verse 18

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֗אמֶר לֹ֤א עָכַ֙רְתִּי֙ אֶת־יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל כִּ֥י אִם־אַתָּ֖ה וּבֵ֣ית אָבִ֑יךָ בַּעֲזׇבְכֶם֙ אֶת־מִצְוֺ֣ת יְהֹוָ֔ה וַתֵּ֖לֶךְ אַחֲרֵ֥י הַבְּעָלִֽים׃

English:

He retorted, “It is not I who have brought trouble on Israel, but you and your father’s House, by forsaking the commandments of GOD and going after the Baalim.

Eliyahu reverses the accusation: I have not troubled Israel -- you and your father's house have, by abandoning God's commandments and following the Be'alim. Metzudat David captures the prophet's logic: I am not the first cause of the trouble; you are, because you abandoned the Lord. The drought is consequence, not origin.

פסוק י״ט · Verse 19

Hebrew:

וְעַתָּ֗ה שְׁלַ֨ח קְבֹ֥ץ אֵלַ֛י אֶת־כׇּל־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל אֶל־הַ֣ר הַכַּרְמֶ֑ל וְאֶת־נְבִיאֵ֨י הַבַּ֜עַל אַרְבַּ֧ע מֵא֣וֹת וַחֲמִשִּׁ֗ים וּנְבִיאֵ֤י הָאֲשֵׁרָה֙ אַרְבַּ֣ע מֵא֔וֹת אֹכְלֵ֖י שֻׁלְחַ֥ן אִיזָֽבֶל׃

English:

Now summon all Israel to join me at Mount Carmel, together with the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”bwho eat at Jezebel’s table I.e., who are maintained by Jezebel.

Eliyahu commands Ahab to assemble all Israel at Mount Carmel along with the four hundred fifty prophets of Baal and four hundred prophets of Asherah who eat at Jezebel's table. Metzudat David explains the implicit deal: if Ahab wants the rain, he must convene the public confrontation. Radak notes a textual subtlety: the phrase 'who eat at Jezebel's table' likely refers specifically to the Asherah prophets, which is why she refused to release them for the trial -- only the Baal prophets actually came.

פסוק כ׳ · Verse 20

Hebrew:

וַיִּשְׁלַ֥ח אַחְאָ֖ב בְּכׇל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וַיִּקְבֹּ֥ץ אֶת־הַנְּבִיאִ֖ים אֶל־הַ֥ר הַכַּרְמֶֽל׃

English:

Ahab sent orders to all the Israelites and gathered the prophets at Mount Carmel.

Ahab sends throughout Israel and assembles the people and the prophets at Carmel. Both Metzudat David and Radak draw the same distinction: the people gathered willingly when they heard a great test was coming, while the prophets had to be forcibly summoned by royal compulsion, since they knew their oracles were fraudulent. Jezebel kept her own Asherah prophets back, since they ate at her table; Ahab could compel only the Baal prophets.

פסוק כ״א · Verse 21

Hebrew:

וַיִּגַּ֨שׁ אֵלִיָּ֜הוּ אֶל־כׇּל־הָעָ֗ם וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ עַד־מָתַ֞י אַתֶּ֣ם פֹּסְחִים֮ עַל־שְׁתֵּ֣י הַסְּעִפִּים֒ אִם־יְהֹוָ֤ה הָאֱלֹהִים֙ לְכ֣וּ אַחֲרָ֔יו וְאִם־הַבַּ֖עַל לְכ֣וּ אַחֲרָ֑יו וְלֹא־עָנ֥וּ הָעָ֛ם אֹת֖וֹ דָּבָֽר׃

English:

Elijah approached all the people and said, “How long will you keep hopping between two opinions?cbetween two opinions Lit. “on the two boughs.” If the ETERNAL is God, then follow [the ETERNAL]; and if Baal, follow [Baal]!” But the people answered him not a word.

Eliyahu addresses the people: 'How long will you keep hopping between two opinions (סְעִפִּים)? If the Lord is God, follow Him; if Baal, follow him.' Rashi reads סְעִפִּים as 'two thoughts' -- the people cannot decide. Metzudat David draws out the image: like a lame man limping sometimes to the right, sometimes to the left, you keep swaying between God and Baal. The people answer nothing -- because, Radak explains, they were genuinely uncertain and could not commit either way until they saw the test.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
שְׁתֵּי הַסְּעִפִּים. שְׁתֵּי הַמַּחֲשָׁבוֹת, שֶׁאֵינְכֶם מְבִינִים לְהַכְרִיעַ מִי הָאֱלֹהִים. וְאִם הַבַּעַל. הָאֱלֹהִים, לְכוּ אַחֲרָיו. וְלֹא עָנוּ הָעָם אוֹתוֹ דָּבָר. שֶׁלֹּא הָיוּ יוֹדְעִין לְהַבְחִין.
Two concepts. Two thoughts, because you do not know how to decide who is God. And if it is the Baal. Is God, then go after him. And the people did not answer him a word. Because they did not know how to distinguish [between the two].3After being unable to find Eliyahu in Eretz Yisroel, Achov sent messengers to other kingdoms and nations to search for him. He made them swear that they are unable to find him.—Radak.

פסוק כ״ב · Verse 22

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֵלִיָּ֙הוּ֙ אֶל־הָעָ֔ם אֲנִ֞י נוֹתַ֧רְתִּי נָבִ֛יא לַיהֹוָ֖ה לְבַדִּ֑י וּנְבִיאֵ֣י הַבַּ֔עַל אַרְבַּע־מֵא֥וֹת וַחֲמִשִּׁ֖ים אִֽישׁ׃

English:

Then Elijah said to the people, “I am the only prophet of GOD left, while the prophets of Baal number four hundred and fifty.

פסוק כ״ג · Verse 23

Hebrew:

וְיִתְּנוּ־לָ֜נוּ שְׁנַ֣יִם פָּרִ֗ים וְיִבְחֲר֣וּ לָהֶם֩ הַפָּ֨ר הָאֶחָ֜ד וִינַתְּחֻ֗הוּ וְיָשִׂ֙ימוּ֙ עַל־הָ֣עֵצִ֔ים וְאֵ֖שׁ לֹ֣א יָשִׂ֑ימוּ וַאֲנִ֞י אֶעֱשֶׂ֣ה ׀ אֶת־הַפָּ֣ר הָאֶחָ֗ד וְנָֽתַתִּי֙ עַל־הָ֣עֵצִ֔ים וְאֵ֖שׁ לֹ֥א אָשִֽׂים׃

English:

Let two young bulls be given to us. Let them choose one bull, cut it up, and lay it on the wood, but let them not apply fire; I will prepare the other bull, and lay it on the wood, and will not apply fire.

Eliyahu proposes the test: two bulls, two altars, two sets of dry wood; the prophets of Baal choose one bull, the prophet of God prepares the other; neither side applies fire. Metzudat David captures the asymmetry: 'I am alone, they are many; let us see whose prayer is accepted.'

פסוק כ״ד · Verse 24

Hebrew:

וּקְרָאתֶ֞ם בְּשֵׁ֣ם אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֗ם וַֽאֲנִי֙ אֶקְרָ֣א בְשֵׁם־יְהֹוָ֔ה וְהָיָ֧ה הָאֱלֹהִ֛ים אֲשֶׁר־יַעֲנֶ֥ה בָאֵ֖שׁ ה֣וּא הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וַיַּ֧עַן כׇּל־הָעָ֛ם וַיֹּאמְר֖וּ ט֥וֹב הַדָּבָֽר׃

English:

You will then invoke your god by name, and I will invoke GOD by name; and let us agree:dand let us agree Lit. “and it shall be.” the god who responds with fire, that one is God.” And all the people answered, “Very good!”

Each side will call on its god by name, and the god who answers with fire is God. The crowd accepts the proposal: 'the matter is good.' The terms are simple, public, and decisive.

פסוק כ״ה · Verse 25

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר אֵלִיָּ֜הוּ לִנְבִיאֵ֣י הַבַּ֗עַל בַּחֲר֨וּ לָכֶ֜ם הַפָּ֤ר הָאֶחָד֙ וַעֲשׂ֣וּ רִאשֹׁנָ֔ה כִּ֥י אַתֶּ֖ם הָרַבִּ֑ים וְקִרְאוּ֙ בְּשֵׁ֣ם אֱלֹהֵיכֶ֔ם וְאֵ֖שׁ לֹ֥א תָשִֽׂימוּ׃

English:

Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one bull and prepare it first, for you are the majority; invoke your god by name, but apply no fire.”

Eliyahu lets the Baal prophets go first 'because you are the many' -- Metzudat David reads this as a courtesy of common manners: the majority customarily chooses and acts first. The setup is also psychologically devastating -- they go first and exhaust themselves with no result, before Eliyahu even begins.

פסוק כ״ו · Verse 26

Hebrew:

וַ֠יִּקְח֠וּ אֶת־הַפָּ֨ר אֲשֶׁר־נָתַ֣ן לָהֶם֮ וַֽיַּעֲשׂוּ֒ וַיִּקְרְא֣וּ בְשֵׁם־הַ֠בַּ֠עַל מֵהַבֹּ֨קֶר וְעַד־הַצׇּהֳרַ֤יִם לֵאמֹר֙ הַבַּ֣עַל עֲנֵ֔נוּ וְאֵ֥ין ק֖וֹל וְאֵ֣ין עֹנֶ֑ה וַֽיְפַסְּח֔וּ עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ אֲשֶׁ֥ר עָשָֽׂה׃

English:

They took the bull that was given them; they prepared it, and invoked Baal by name from morning until noon, shouting, “O Baal, answer us!” But there was no sound, and no one who responded; so they performed a hopping dance about the altar that had been set up.

The Baal prophets take their bull, prepare it, and call on Baal's name from morning until noon: 'Baal, answer us!' There is no voice and no answer. They perform a hopping dance (וַיְפַסְּחוּ -- the same root as 'limping' from verse 21, now turned satirically against them) around the altar they had set up. Rashi cites a striking midrash: the bull that was given to the Baal prophets initially refused to walk to the altar of idolatry and ran under Eliyahu's cloak; Eliyahu had to tell the bull, 'go, the Place will be sanctified through both of you,' before it would go.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
אֲשֶׁר נָתַן לָהֶם. שֶׁהָיָה נִשְׁמַט מֵהֶם, שֶׁלֹּא יִקָּרֵב לַעֲבוֹדָה זָרָה, וּבָרַח לוֹ תַּחַת כְּנָפָיו שֶׁל אֵלִיָּהוּ, אָמַר לוֹ: לֵךְ, בִּשְׁנֵיכֶם יִתְקַדֵּשׁ הַמָּקוֹם. וַיִּפְסְחוּ עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ אֲשֶׁר עָשָׂה. תִּרְגֵּם יוֹנָתָן: וְאִשְׁתַּטּוּ, הָיוּ מְרַקְּדִין כְּמִשְׁפָּטָן עַל מִזְבְּחוֹתָם. וַיִּפְסְחוּ. כְּמוֹ וַיִּפְסְעוּ.
That he gave them. For it slipped away from them so that it would not be offered to the idol, and it ran under Eliyahu's cloak.4I.e., they were undecided. He said to the ox, "Go, for through the both of you the Omnipresent will be sanctified."5And ultimately it was Eliyahu who "gave" the ox to the prophets of the Baal. Alternatively, Achov supplied the oxen, and they chose the one they wanted. Achov then "gave" them the ox they chose.—Radak And they jumped on the altar that he had made. [Targum] Yonoson rendered, "and they raved [ואשתטו], [i.e.,] they were dancing according to their custom, on their altar. And they jumped. [ויפסחו means] the same as ויפסעו6Bamidbar Rabboh 23:9. [=they stepped].

פסוק כ״ז · Verse 27

Hebrew:

וַיְהִ֨י בַֽצׇּהֳרַ֜יִם וַיְהַתֵּ֧ל בָּהֶ֣ם אֵלִיָּ֗הוּ וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ קִרְא֤וּ בְקוֹל־גָּדוֹל֙ כִּֽי־אֱלֹהִ֣ים ה֔וּא כִּ֣י שִׂ֧יחַ וְכִי־שִׂ֛יג ל֖וֹ וְכִי־דֶ֣רֶךְ ל֑וֹ אוּלַ֛י יָשֵׁ֥ן ה֖וּא וְיִקָֽץ׃

English:

When noon came, Elijah mocked them, saying, “Shout louder! After all, he is a god. But he may be in conversation, he may be detained, or he may be on a journey,eBut he may be … on a journey Meaning of Heb. uncertain. or perhaps he is asleep and will wake up.”

At noon Eliyahu mocks them: 'Call louder -- after all, he is a god! Perhaps he is in conversation, or busy with affairs, or traveling, or perhaps he is asleep and must be woken.' Rashi's reading of 'or has matters' is fearsome in its irreverence -- perhaps Baal is in the bathroom. The satire is theological: a god who needs to be roused like a man is no god at all. Metzudat David adds that Eliyahu plays out their own logic to its absurd conclusion: if he really is a god, surely shouting louder will reach him.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
כִּי אֱלֹהִים הוּא. (תַּרְגּוּם:) אֲרֵי אַתּוּן אָמְרִין דַּחֲלָא הוּא. כִּי שִׂיחַ וְכִי שִׂיג לוֹ. שֶׁמָּא יֵשׁ לוֹ דָּבָר עִם יוֹעֲצָיו עַכְשָׁיו, אוֹ מַשִּׂיג וְרוֹדֵף הוּא עַכְשָׁיו בַּמִּלְחָמָה. וְכִי דֶרֶךְ לוֹ. לְבֵית הַכִּסֵּא.
For he is a god. [Targum Yonoson rendered,] "for you say he is one to be feared." Perhaps he is conversing or pursuing. Maybe he is conferring with his advisors now, or he is overtaking and pursuing [his enemies] in war. Or is traveling. To the bathroom.

פסוק כ״ח · Verse 28

Hebrew:

וַֽיִּקְרְאוּ֙ בְּק֣וֹל גָּד֔וֹל וַיִּתְגֹּֽדְדוּ֙ כְּמִשְׁפָּטָ֔ם בַּחֲרָב֖וֹת וּבָרְמָחִ֑ים עַד־שְׁפׇךְ־דָּ֖ם עֲלֵיהֶֽם׃

English:

So they shouted louder, and gashed themselves with knives and spears, according to their practice, until the blood streamed over them.

The Baal prophets escalate: they shout louder and gash themselves with knives and spears according to their custom, until blood runs down their bodies. Rashi notes that this self-laceration was an established part of pagan cultic practice; Radak suggests they believed the bleeding would compel the god's attention or was simply part of the standard ritual repertoire. The Torah's prohibition לֹא תִתְגֹּדְדוּ targets exactly this practice.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיִּתְגֹּדְדוּ. לְשׁוֹן שְׂרִיטָה בִּכְלִי, וְכֵן הָיָה נִימוּסֵיהֶן.
And they gashed themselves. An expression of tearing the flesh with an instrument, for such was their custom.

פסוק כ״ט · Verse 29

Hebrew:

וַֽיְהִי֙ כַּעֲבֹ֣ר הַֽצׇּהֳרַ֔יִם וַיִּֽתְנַבְּא֔וּ עַ֖ד לַעֲל֣וֹת הַמִּנְחָ֑ה וְאֵֽין־ק֥וֹל וְאֵין־עֹנֶ֖ה וְאֵ��ין קָֽשֶׁב׃

English:

When noon passed, they kept ravingfkept raving In contrast to others “prophesied.” until the hour of presenting the grain offering. Still there was no sound, and no one who responded or heeded.

Noon passes; they continue raving (וַיִּתְנַבְּאוּ -- the targum renders it as 'they raved madly') until the time of the afternoon Tamid offering -- but there is no voice, no answer, no one paying attention. Rashi, Metzudat David, and Radak all read the doubled phrasing as the verse's verdict: there is no one to hear because there is no one home.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיִּתְנַבְּאוּ. (תַּרְגּוּם:) וְאִשְׁתַּטִּיאוּ.
They continued to prophesy. [Targum Yonoson rendered,] "and they raved."

פסוק ל׳ · Verse 30

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֨אמֶר אֵלִיָּ֤הוּ לְכׇל־הָעָם֙ גְּשׁ֣וּ אֵלַ֔י וַיִּגְּשׁ֥וּ כׇל־הָעָ֖ם אֵלָ֑יו וַיְרַפֵּ֛א אֶת־מִזְבַּ֥ח יְהֹוָ֖ה הֶהָרֽוּס׃

English:

Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come closer to me”; and all the people came closer to him. He repaired the damaged altar of GOD.

Eliyahu now calls all the people to come close to him -- Metzudat David adds: so they can see there is no deception in what he is about to do. He repairs the broken-down altar of the Lord. Rashi offers two readings: the plain sense is that he built an altar to remind Israel that the altar of the Lord should be on their minds again, since the ten tribes had let it slip from their lips entirely; the midrashic reading (which Radak also cites) identifies this as Shaul's altar from his Carmel campaign in I Shmuel 15:12, which the kings of Israel had subsequently torn down. Either way, what Eliyahu rebuilds is a literal monument to the God of Israel on a mountain that had become contested ground.
▶Commentaries (2)
רש״יRashi
וַיְרַפֵּא אֶת מִזְבַּח ה' הֶהָרוּס. בָּנָה מִזְבֵּחַ, וְהִזְכִּיר לְיִשְׂרָאֵל לִהְיוֹת מִזְבַּח ה' עוֹלֶה עַל לִבָּם וְשָׁגוּר בְּפִיהֶם, שֶׁהָיָה הָרוּס וְנִפְגָּר וּבָטֵל שְׁמוֹ וְהַזְכָּרָתוֹ מִפִּי כָּל עֲשֶׂרֶת הַשְּׁבָטִים, כָּךְ שָׁמַעְתִּי פְּשׁוּטוֹ. וּמִדְרָשׁוֹ שָׁמַעְתִּי, שֶׁשָּׁאוּל בָּנָה מִזְבֵּחַ בְּהַר הַכַּרְמֶל, וְזֶהוּ שֶׁאָמַר: בָּא שָׁאוּל הַכַּרְמֶלָה וְהִנֵּה מַצִּיב לוֹ יָד, וּלְהַלָּן הוּא אוֹמֵר: וַיַּצֵּב שָׁם מִזְבֵּחַ, וּמַלְכֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל הָרְסוּ כָּל הַמִּזְבְּחוֹת וְהַבָּמוֹת שֶׁבְּאַרְצָם שֶׁנַּעֲשָׂה לְשֵׁם שָׁמַיִם, וּבָנָה אֵלִיָּהוּ מִזְבֵּחַ זֶה שֶׁל שָׁאוּל, שֶׁהָיָה הָרוּס.
And he repaired the altar of Adonoy that had been broken down. He built an altar7A 'ח' and an 'ע' are both guttural letters and are therefore interchangeable. and reminded Yisroel that God's altar should enter their thoughts and should be oft mentioned, for it was torn down and destroyed, and its name and its mention had ceased from the mouth of all the ten tribes. Thus I heard is its plain interpretation.8Although once the Beis Hamikdosh was built private altars were not permitted, however, extraordinary circumstances allow for the suspension of certain laws in cases of dire necessity, such as this. See Maseches Sanhedrin 89b and Tosafos there. Also see footnote on v. 36 below. And its Midrashic interpretation I heard, is that Shaul built an altar on Mount Carmel, and that is what it states, "Shaul came to Carmel, and is setting up a place for himself,"9Alternatively, as a result of the miracle on Mount Carmel, many people repented and went to Yerusholayim to offer sacrifices in the Beis Hamikdosh. Thus he reactivated [וירפא] the altar which had been dormant [ההרוס].—Radak and there it states, "and he erected an altar there."10I Shmuel 15:12. But the kings of Yisroel tore down all the altars and high places in their land that were made in the Name of Heaven, and Eliyahu built this altar of Shaul that had been torn down.
רד״קRadak
וירפא. דרך השאלה אמר לשון רפואה לבנות הריסת הבנין וכן כי עלתה ארוכה לחומת ירושלם וכן ויואב יחיה את שאר העיר: את מזבח ה' ההרוס. אמר כי מזבח היה שם מקדם שנבנה לשם ה', ואמרו בדרש כי זה המזבח בנה אותו שאול והוא מה שאמר והנה מציב לו יד והיה זה המזבח הרוס כי הרסו עובדי הבעל לכל המזבחות שנבנו לשם ה' בשעת היתר הבמות ועתה משעה שעשה ירבעם העגלים מנע מהקריב במקום אחר אלא או בבית אל או בדן והרסו המזבחות כמו שאמר אליהו את מזבחותיך הרסו ובנה אליהו מזבח והקריב עליו בשעת איסור הבמות לצורך שעה ויש מפרשים וירפא את מזבח ה' ההרוס כי בנס שנעשה על ידו שבו בני ישראל בתשובה וזבחו זבחים במזבח ה' שהיה הרוס ונמנע מהם:
And he healed By way of borrowing [from its original meaning], it used the term, healing, [to mean] building a destroyed building. And likewise (Nehemiah 4:1), "that healing had come to the walls of Jerusalem"; and likewise (I Chronicles 11:8), "and Yoav resuscitated the rest of the city."

פסוק ל״א · Verse 31

Hebrew:

וַיִּקַּ֣ח אֵלִיָּ֗הוּ שְׁתֵּ֤ים עֶשְׂרֵה֙ אֲבָנִ֔ים כְּמִסְפַּ֖ר שִׁבְטֵ֣י בְנֵֽי־יַעֲקֹ֑ב אֲשֶׁר֩ הָיָ֨ה דְבַר־יְהֹוָ֤ה אֵלָיו֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל יִהְיֶ֥ה שְׁמֶֽךָ׃

English:

Then Elijah took twelve stones, corresponding to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob—to whom the word of GOD had come: “Israel shall be your name”gIsrael shall be your name See Gen. 35.10.—

Eliyahu takes twelve stones, corresponding to the tribes of the sons of Yaakov 'to whom the word of the Lord had come: Yisrael shall be your name.' Rashi cites the famous midrash from Bereishit Rabbah: on the day God named Yaakov 'Yisrael' at Beit-El, He also told him 'a nation and assembly of nations will come from you,' meaning that his descendants would one day need to assemble like the other nations and build an altar during a time when private altars were prohibited -- and God consented in advance. The twelve stones therefore activate this ancient covenant promise, sanctioning Eliyahu's exceptional sacrifice. Radak adds the educational point: showing the tribes that twelve are meant to be one, gathered around the altar of the Lord.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
אֲשֶׁר הָיָה דְּבַר ה' אֵלָיו לֵאמֹר יִשְׂרָאֵל יִהְיֶה שְׁמֶךָ. לָמָּה נֶאֱמַר כָּאן, לְפִי שֶׁבְּיוֹם שֶׁנִּגְלְתָה שְׁכִינָה עַל יַעֲקֹב בְּבֵית אֵל וּקְרָאוֹ יִשְׂרָאֵל, בּוֹ בַּיּוֹם אָמַר לוֹ: גּוֹי וּקְהַל גּוֹיִם יִהְיֶה מִמֶּךָּ, עֲתִידִין בָּנֶיךָ לְהִקָּהֵל כִּשְׁאָר עַמִּים, וְלִבְנוֹת מִזְבֵּחַ לְהַקְטִיר עָלָיו בִּשְׁעַת אִסּוּר הַבָּמוֹת, וַאֲנִי מִתְרַצֶּה בַדָּבָר, בִּבְרֵאשִׁית רַבָּה.
To whom the word of Adonoy had come, saying, "Yisroel will be your name." Why is this stated here? Because on the day that the Divine Presence was revealed to Yaakov in Beis Eil and named him Yisroel, on that day He said to him, "A nation and a community of nations will come from you,"11Bereishis 33:20. i.e., your children are destined to congregate like other nations and build an altar upon which to burn sacrifices during the period of the prohibition [of offering sacrifices on] the high places. Nevertheless, I will consent to it. [Thus is stated] in Bereishis Rabboh.12Bereishis 35:11.

פסוק ל״ב · Verse 32

Hebrew:

וַיִּבְנֶ֧ה אֶת־הָאֲבָנִ֛ים מִזְבֵּ֖חַ בְּשֵׁ֣ם יְהֹוָ֑ה וַיַּ֣עַשׂ תְּעָלָ֗ה כְּבֵית֙ סָאתַ֣יִם זֶ֔רַע סָבִ֖יב לַמִּזְבֵּֽחַ׃

English:

and with the stones he built an altar in the name of GOD. Around the altar he made a trench large enough for two seahs of seed.hlarge enough for two seahs of seed I.e., an area that would require two seahs of seed if sown. Cf. Lev. 27.16; Isa. 5.10.

Eliyahu builds the altar from the twelve stones in the name of God and makes a trench around it large enough for two se'ah of seed. Rashi specifies the area: 100 by 50 cubits, the dimensions of the Tabernacle courtyard. Metzudat David explains the purpose: the trench will hold the water that is about to be poured, magnifying the miracle to come.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
תְּעָלָה. פושאד"ו בְּלַעַ"ז (חֲפִירָה). כְּבֵית סָאתַיִם. רָחְבּוֹ בֵּית סָאתַיִם, מֵאָה עַל חֲמִשִּׁים, כַּחֲצַר הַמִּשְׁכָּן.
A ditch. Fosse, in O.F. Which would contain two se'ah. Its width [i.e., capacity] was as great as to hold two se'ah,13 82:5. [i.e.,] one hundred amohs by fifty amohs,14An area that accommodates the sowing of two se'ah of seed. like [the area of] the Tabernacle's courtyard.15Alternatively, an area whose dimensions are 50 amohs by 50 amohs.—Radak

פסוק ל״ג · Verse 33

Hebrew:

וַֽיַּעֲרֹ֖ךְ אֶת־הָעֵצִ֑ים וַיְנַתַּח֙ אֶת־הַפָּ֔ר וַיָּ֖שֶׂם עַל־הָעֵצִֽים׃

English:

He laid out the wood, and he cut up the bull and laid it on the wood.

פסוק ל״ד · Verse 34

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֗אמֶר מִלְא֨וּ אַרְבָּעָ֤ה כַדִּים֙ מַ֔יִם וְיִֽצְק֥וּ עַל־הָעֹלָ֖ה וְעַל־הָעֵצִ֑ים וַיֹּ֤אמֶר שְׁנוּ֙ וַיִּשְׁנ֔וּ וַיֹּ֥אמֶר שַׁלֵּ֖שׁוּ וַיְשַׁלֵּֽשׁוּ׃

English:

And he said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it over the burnt offering and the wood.” Then he said, “Do it a second time”; and they did it a second time. “Do it a third time,” he said; and they did it a third time.

Eliyahu commands the people: fill four jars with water and pour it on the offering and the wood. Then a second time. Then a third time -- twelve jars in all, corresponding again to the twelve tribes. Rashi preserves the famous Chazal that the water came from Elisha pouring water on Eliyahu's hands, and Elisha's fingers became springs filling the trench (this is why II Kings 3:11 will describe Elisha as 'he who poured water on the hands of Eliyahu'). Radak notes that the water came in three rounds, parallel to the three patriarchs Eliyahu invoked in his upcoming prayer.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
כַּדִּים מַיִם. לְהַגְדִּיל אֶת הַנֵּס. וְיִצְקוּ. אֱלִישָׁע (יָצַק) עַל יָדָיו, וְנַעֲשׂוּ אֶצְבְּעוֹתָיו כְּמַעְיָנוֹת וְנִתְמַלְּאָה הַתְּעָלָה, הוּא שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: פֹּה אֱלִישָׁע בֶּן שָׁפָט אֲשֶׁר יָצַק מַיִם עַל יְדֵי אֵלִיָּהוּ, וְנַעֲשָׂה נֵס בַּמַּיִם עַל יָדָיו, רָאוּי הוּא שֶׁיֵּעָשֶׂה הַנֵּס בַּמַּיִם עַל יָדָיו.
Pitchers with water. To make the miracle even greater. And pour them. Elisha (poured) on his hands, and his fingers became like springs,16See Maseches Eruvin 23b. and the ditch became full. This is the meaning of what is stated, "Here is Elisha the son of Shofot who poured water on Eliyahu's hands,"17Rashi explains from where they got the water to fill the entire ditch. and a miracle took place with the water through him, [i.e.,] he is worthy that a miracle should take place with water through him.18II Melochim 3:11.

פסוק ל״ה · Verse 35

Hebrew:

וַיֵּלְכ֣וּ הַמַּ֔יִם סָבִ֖יב לַמִּזְבֵּ֑חַ וְגַ֥ם אֶת־הַתְּעָלָ֖ה מִלֵּא־מָֽיִם׃

English:

The water ran down around the altar, and even the trench was filled with water.

The water runs all around the altar, and the trench too is filled. Whether Eliyahu poured it himself or commanded it poured, Radak notes, the trench-water is in addition to the twelve jars on the offering itself -- making the conditions for ignition utterly impossible by natural means.

פסוק ל״ו · Verse 36

Hebrew:

וַיְהִ֣י ׀ בַּעֲל֣וֹת הַמִּנְחָ֗ה וַיִּגַּ֞שׁ אֵלִיָּ֣הוּ הַנָּבִיא֮ וַיֹּאמַר֒ יְהֹוָ֗ה אֱלֹהֵי֙ אַבְרָהָם֙ יִצְחָ֣ק וְיִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל הַיּ֣וֹם יִוָּדַ֗ע כִּֽי־אַתָּ֧ה אֱלֹהִ֛ים בְּיִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל וַאֲנִ֣י עַבְדֶּ֑ךָ (ובדבריך) [וּבִדְבָרְךָ֣] עָשִׂ֔יתִי אֵ֥ת כׇּל־הַדְּבָרִ֖ים הָאֵֽלֶּה׃

English:

When it was time to present the grain offering, the prophet Elijah came forward and said, “O ETERNAL One, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel! Let it be known today that You are God in Israel and that I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your bidding.

At the moment of the afternoon Tamid offering, Eliyahu approaches and prays: 'Lord, God of Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yisrael, let it be known today that You are God in Israel and that I am Your servant, and that by Your word I have done all these things.' Rashi reads 'by Your word' as referring specifically to sacrificing on a private altar during the era when bamot were prohibited -- Eliyahu is declaring that God Himself authorized this exception. Metzudat David emphasizes the prayer's logic: I deserve this miracle because all my acts to magnify it (the water, the trench, the twelve stones) were done to honor Your word, not to glorify myself.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וּבִדְבָרְךָ עָשִׂיתִי. שֶׁהִקְרַבְתִּי בַּבָּמָה בִּשְׁעַת אִסּוּר הַבָּמוֹת.
And at Your word have I done. That I sacrificed on a private altar during the period of the prohibition of [offering sacrifices on] private altars.19This verse implies that God commanded Eliyahu to offer the sacrifice on Mount Carmel even though private altars were not permitted once the Beis Hamikdosh had been built. See footnote on v. 30 above and Tosafos in Maseches Sanhedrin 89b.

פסוק ל״ז · Verse 37

Hebrew:

עֲנֵ֤נִי יְהֹוָה֙ עֲנֵ֔נִי וְיֵֽדְעוּ֙ הָעָ֣ם הַזֶּ֔ה כִּֽי־אַתָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה הָאֱלֹהִ֑ים וְאַתָּ֛ה הֲסִבֹּ֥תָ אֶת־לִבָּ֖ם אֲחֹרַנִּֽית׃

English:

Answer me, O ETERNAL One, answer me, that this people may know that You, O ETERNAL One, are God; for You have turned their hearts backward.”ifor You have turned their hearts backward Meaning of Heb. uncertain.

Eliyahu's plea reaches its rhetorical heart: 'Answer me, Lord, answer me, that this people may know that You, Lord, are God, and that You have turned their heart back.' Rashi cites Chazal that the doubled 'answer me' asks for two miracles -- answer me with fire, answer me so they will not say this was sorcery; another midrash reads it as 'answer me in my own merit, answer me in the merit of my disciple.' The phrase about turning their heart 'back' is read variously: that God arranged today's miracle to turn their hearts back to Him (Metzudat David, Saadia), or that Eliyahu is asking God to undo what He had previously permitted by giving them free rein to stray (Rashi, with Rambam adding that this echoes Moshe's 'if these die a natural death, the Lord did not send me' -- the prophet stakes his own credibility on the answer).
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
עֲנֵנִי ה' עֲנֵנִי. עֲנֵנִי בָּאֵשׁ, עֲנֵנִי בַּמָּטָר, כָּךְ תִּרְגֵּם יוֹנָתָן. וְרַבּוֹתֵינוּ אָמְרוּ: עֲנֵנִי בָּאֵשׁ (וּבַמַּיִם), עֲנֵנִי שֶׁלֹּא יֹאמְרוּ מַעֲשֵׂה כְשָׁפִים הֵם. וְיֵדְעוּ וְגוֹ' כִּי אַתָּה ה' וַאֲנִי עַבְדֶּךָ. וּכְשֶׁתִּשְׁלָחֵנִי לְבַשְּׂרָם לֶעָתִיד לָבֹא, יַאֲמִינוּ בִּי אִם הַיּוֹם תַּעֲנֵנִי. וְאַתָּה הֲסִבֹּתָ אֶת לִבָּם. נָתַתָּ לָהֶם מָקוֹם לָסוּר מֵאַחֲרֶיךָ, וּבְיָדְךָ הָיָה לְהָכִין לְבָבָם אֵלֶיךָ. וּמִדְרַשׁ אַגָּדָה: אִם לֹא תַּעֲנֵנִי, אַף אֲנִי אֶהְיֶה כּוֹפֵר וְאוֹמֵר, אַתָּה הֲסִבּוֹתָ אֶת לִבָּם, וְכֵן אָמַר משֶׁה: אִם כְּמוֹת כָּל הָאָדָם יְמוּתוּן אֵלֶּה, אַף אֲנִי כּוֹפֵר וְאוֹמֵר, לֹא ה' שְׁלָחַנִי לְדַבֵּר אֶת הַתּוֹרָה וְהַמִּצְוֹת, וְכָךְ אָמַר מִיכַיְהוּ: אִם שׁוֹב תָּשׁוּב בְּשָׁלוֹם, לֹא דִּבֵּר ה' בִּי.
Answer me, Adonoy, answer me. Answer me with fire, answer me with rain.20Rashi is explaining why he said "ענני" twi ce. So did [Targum] Yonoson render this. But our Rabbis said, "Answer me with fire, (and water) answer me so that they do not say that this deed was accomplished by sorcery."21Maseches Berachos 9b. 22Alternatively, it is not unusual for one who prays to repeat his request.—Radak [And this people] will know that You are Adonoy. And I am Your servant, and when You will send me to bring them tidings [of the redemption] that is forthcoming, they will believe me, if You will answer me today. And You have turned their hearts away. You gave them an opportunity to turn away from following You, although You could have directed their hearts toward You.23See Maseches Berachos 31b. Alternatively, "You misled them by occasionally allowing their idolatrous prayers to be effective."—Ralbag Or, Eliyahu is referring to the future and is saying, "When You answer my prayer and send down fire, You will have turned their hearts away from the Baal and back to You."—Radak in the name of Rav Sa'adyah Gaon And according to Midrash Aggadah, if You do not answer me, I will deny and say that You turned their hearts. And so did Moshe say, "If as all men die will these men meet their death,"24Bamidbar 16:29. I, too, will deny and say, "then Adonoy has not sent me,"25Ibid. to speak [the words of] the Torah and the commandments, and so did Michoyhu say, "If you really return in peace, Adonoy did not speak to me."26Below 22:28.

פסוק ל״ח · Verse 38

Hebrew:

וַתִּפֹּ֣ל אֵשׁ־יְהֹוָ֗ה וַתֹּ֤אכַל אֶת־הָעֹלָה֙ וְאֶת־הָֽעֵצִ֔ים וְאֶת־הָאֲבָנִ֖ים וְאֶת־הֶֽעָפָ֑ר וְאֶת־הַמַּ֥יִם אֲשֶׁר־בַּתְּעָלָ֖ה לִחֵֽכָה׃

English:

Then fire from GOD descended and consumed the burnt offering, the wood, the stones, and the earth; and it licked up the water that was in the trench.

Fire from the Lord falls and consumes the offering, the wood, the stones, the dust, and licks up the water in the trench. Radak emphasizes: the fire dried the trench so completely that no moisture remained. The miracle exceeds every conceivable natural cause: even the stones and earth were consumed.

פסוק ל״ט · Verse 39

Hebrew:

וַיַּרְא֙ כׇּל־הָעָ֔ם וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ עַל־פְּנֵיהֶ֑ם וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ יְהֹוָה֙ ה֣וּא הָאֱלֹהִ֔ים יְהֹוָ֖ה ה֥וּא הָאֱלֹהִֽים׃

English:

When they saw this, all the people flung themselves on their faces and cried out: “the ETERNAL One alone is God, the ETERNAL One alone is God!”

All the people see, fall on their faces, and declare: 'The Lord, He is God! The Lord, He is God!' Rashi captures the implicit completion: 'and the Baal is not God.' Metzudat David and Radak read the doubled declaration as a self-strengthening of belief -- by repeating, the people seal the conviction into their hearts. The verse becomes the climactic line of the Yom Kippur Ne'ila service, where Jewry repeats it seven times to close the day of judgment.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
ה' הוּא הָאֱלֹהִים. וְלֹא הַבַּעַל הָאֱלֹהִים.
Adonoy He is God. And the Baal is not God.27They repeated the declaration to reinforce their belief.—Metzudas Dovid.

פסוק מ׳ · Verse 40

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֩אמֶר֩ אֵלִיָּ֨הוּ לָהֶ֜ם תִּפְשׂ֣וּ ׀ אֶת־נְבִיאֵ֣י הַבַּ֗עַל אִ֛ישׁ אַל־יִמָּלֵ֥ט מֵהֶ֖ם וַֽיִּתְפְּשׂ֑וּם וַיּוֹרִדֵ֤ם אֵלִיָּ֙הוּ֙ אֶל־נַ֣חַל קִישׁ֔וֹן וַיִּשְׁחָטֵ֖ם שָֽׁם׃

English:

Then Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal, let not a single one of them get away.” They seized them, and Elijah took them down to the Wadi Kishon and slaughtered them there.

Eliyahu orders the Baal prophets seized: 'let no man of them escape.' They are taken down to Nahal Kishon and slaughtered. Radak explains how this was possible: with the people now wholly on Eliyahu's side after the public sign, he had the political power to act decisively. The slaughter at Kishon (a wadi at the foot of Carmel where Devorah's victory over Sisera had also taken place) is the practical execution of the Torah's law for false prophets and Baal-worshippers.

פסוק מ״א · Verse 41

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֵלִיָּ֙הוּ֙ לְאַחְאָ֔ב עֲלֵ֖ה אֱכֹ֣ל וּשְׁתֵ֑ה כִּי־ק֖וֹל הֲמ֥וֹן הַגָּֽשֶׁם׃

English:

Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there is a rumbling of [approaching] rain,“

Eliyahu tells Ahab: go up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of approaching rain. Metzudat David reads the invitation as celebratory -- since the nation has returned to God, you may now eat your bread in joy and drink your wine with a glad heart. Radak adds that Ahab had apparently been fasting on account of the drought and is now released to break it -- and notes that the 'going up' is Eliyahu telling the king to mount his chariot and ride to Yizre'el, the route being mostly downhill from Carmel.

פסוק מ״ב · Verse 42

Hebrew:

וַיַּעֲלֶ֥ה אַחְאָ֖ב לֶאֱכֹ֣ל וְלִשְׁתּ֑וֹת וְאֵ֨לִיָּ֜הוּ עָלָ֨ה אֶל־רֹ֤אשׁ הַכַּרְמֶל֙ וַיִּגְהַ֣ר אַ֔רְצָה וַיָּ֥שֶׂם פָּנָ֖יו בֵּ֥ין בִּרְכָּֽו׃

English:

and Ahab went up to eat and drink. Elijah meanwhile climbed to the top of Mount Carmel, crouched on the ground, and put his face between his knees.

While Ahab goes to eat and drink, Eliyahu climbs to the very top of Carmel, prostrates himself on the ground, and puts his face between his knees. Rashi and Metzudat David identify this as the posture of urgent prayer for rain. Radak notes that even though God had promised the rain, Eliyahu still had to pray for it -- both to align the timing with the miracle on the mountain and to demonstrate that even guaranteed promises are realized through prayer. The face-between-the-knees pose Chazal later cite as the paradigm of complete bodily concentration in prayer.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וַיִּגְהַר אַרְצָה. (תַּרְגּוּם:) וּגְחִין לְאַרְעָא, לְהִתְפַּלֵּל עַל הַגְּשָׁמִים.
He bowed to the ground. [Targum Yonoson rendered,] "and he crouched on the ground," to pray for rain.28He put his face between his knees with the intention of remaining in this cramped position until a sign of rain appeared.—Radak

פסוק מ״ג · Verse 43

Hebrew:

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֶֽל־נַעֲר֗וֹ עֲלֵה־נָא֙ הַבֵּ֣ט דֶּֽרֶךְ־יָ֔ם וַיַּ֙עַל֙ וַיַּבֵּ֔ט וַיֹּ֖אמֶר אֵ֣ין מְא֑וּמָה וַיֹּ֕אמֶר שֻׁ֖ב שֶׁ֥בַע פְּעָמִֽים׃

English:

And he said to his servant, “Go up and look toward the Sea.” He went up and looked and reported, “There is nothing.” Seven times [Elijah] said, “Go back,“

Eliyahu sends his servant (the boy whom Chazal identify as Yonah ben Amitai) to climb higher and look toward the sea. He looks and reports nothing. Eliyahu sends him back seven times. Rashi explains the direction: look toward the Mediterranean for a cloud rising from the sea. The repeated sending captures the patience of believing prayer -- Eliyahu is sure of the answer, but he waits.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
דֶּרֶךְ יָם. אִם תִּרְאֶה עָנָן עוֹלֶה מִן הַיָּם.
To the sea. If you see a cloud rising from the sea.29The Mediterranean Sea is near Mount Carmel. Alternatively, דרך ים means westward.—Targum

פסוק מ״ד · Verse 44

Hebrew:

וַֽיְהִי֙ בַּשְּׁבִעִ֔ית וַיֹּ֗אמֶר ��ִנֵּה־עָ֛ב קְטַנָּ֥ה כְּכַף־אִ֖ישׁ עֹלָ֣ה מִיָּ֑ם וַיֹּ֗אמֶר עֲלֵ֨ה אֱמֹ֤ר אֶל־אַחְאָב֙ אֱסֹ֣ר וָרֵ֔ד וְלֹ֥א יַעֲצׇרְכָ֖ה הַגָּֽשֶׁם׃

English:

and the seventh time, [the servant] reported, “A cloud as small as a person’s hand is rising in the west.” Then [Elijah] said, “Go say to Ahab, ‘Hitch up [your chariot] and go down before the rain stops you.’”

On the seventh look, the boy reports a small cloud the size of a man's hand rising from the sea. Eliyahu immediately sends word to Ahab: 'harness your chariot and go down so the rain will not stop you.' Rashi explains practically: hurry off the mountain before the downpour pins you on the road. From the tiniest sign of clouds, Eliyahu reads the whole storm.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
אֱסֹר וָרֵד. אֱסֹר מַרְכְּבוֹתֶיךָ וְרֵד מַהֵר הַכַּרְמֶל לָשׁוּב לְבֵיתְךָ, פֶּן יִדְחַק אוֹתְךָ הַגֶּשֶׁם בַּדֶּרֶךְ.
Harness your [horses to the carriage] and go down. Harness your [horses to] your chariots and go down quickly from Mount Carmel, to return to your house, otherwise the rain will press you on the way.

פסוק מ״ה · Verse 45

Hebrew:

וַיְהִ֣י ׀ עַד־כֹּ֣ה וְעַד־כֹּ֗ה וְהַשָּׁמַ֙יִם֙ הִֽתְקַדְּרוּ֙ עָבִ֣ים וְר֔וּחַ וַיְהִ֖י גֶּ֣שֶׁם גָּד֑וֹל וַיִּרְכַּ֥ב אַחְאָ֖ב וַיֵּ֥לֶךְ יִזְרְעֶֽאלָה׃

English:

Meanwhile the sky grew black with clouds; there was wind, and a heavy downpour fell; Ahab mounted his chariot and drove off to Jezreel.

In the brief time it takes for the message to travel and Ahab to harness, the sky darkens with clouds and wind, and a great rain falls. Ahab mounts his chariot and drives off toward Yizre'el. Rashi and Metzudat David both emphasize the speed of the transition: between one moment and the next ('עד כה ועד כה') the three-year sky breaks open.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
עַד כֹּה וְעַד כֹּה. בְּתוֹךְ שֶׁהָלַךְ הַשָּׁלִיחַ וּבְתוֹךְ שֶׁאָסַר הַמֶּרְכָּבָה, וְהַשָּׁמַיִם הִתְקַדְּרוּ.
In the meantime. While the messenger went, and while he harnessed [he horses to] the chariot, the sky grew dark.

פסוק מ״ו · Verse 46

Hebrew:

וְיַד־יְהֹוָ֗ה הָֽיְתָה֙ אֶל־אֵ֣לִיָּ֔הוּ וַיְשַׁנֵּ֖ס מׇתְנָ֑יו וַיָּ֙רׇץ֙ לִפְנֵ֣י אַחְאָ֔ב עַד־בֹּאֲכָ֖ה יִזְרְעֶֽאלָה׃

English:

GOD’s hand had come upon Elijah. He tied up his skirtsjHe tied up his skirts Lit. “He bound up his loins.” and ran in front of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.

The hand of the Lord comes upon Eliyahu; he girds his loins and runs ahead of Ahab's chariot all the way to Yizre'el -- some seventeen miles in the downpour. Rashi reads 'hand of the Lord' as a 'spirit of might,' and explains the gesture: Eliyahu ran before the chariot so that Ahab would not arrive at Yizre'el alone -- granting honor to the king's office. Radak cites Chazal (Zevachim 102a): 'let the awe of kings always be upon you, for even Eliyahu girded his loins and ran before Ahab.' The same prophet who has just defeated the king's religion and slaughtered the king's prophets honors the institution of kingship by serving as its herald.
▶Commentaries (1)
רש״יRashi
וְיַד ה'. (תַּרְגּוּם:) רוּחַ גְּבוּרָה מִן קֳדָם ה', נִתְלַבֵּשׁ כֹּחַ לָרוּץ לִפְנֵי הַמֶּרְכָּבָה בְּרַגְלָיו, שֶׁלֹּא יֵלֵךְ אַחְאָב יְחִידִי, שֶׁחָלַק כָּבוֹד לַמַּלְכוּת. וַיְשַׁנֵּס מָתְנָיו. כְּמוֹ וַיֶּאֱזֹר, וְאֵין לוֹ דִמְיוֹן, וְאַף הוּא לֹא בָּא אֶלָּא לְלַמֵּד לְשׁוֹן זֵרוּז, נִזְדָּרֵז כְּגִבּוֹר.
And the hand [the spirit] of Adonoy. [Targum Yonoson rendered,] "a spirit of strength from before Adonoy," [i.e.,] he became endowed with strength to run on foot before the chariot, so that Achov would not go alone, for he treated royalty with respect.30See above 13:2 and Rashi and footnote there. And he girded his loins. [וישנס means] the same as ויאזור [=and he girded], but there is no similar word [in Scripture], and it came only to teach [us] an expression of acting quickly, [i.e.,] he was as quick as a mighty man.

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