1 Kings 19
1599 Geneva Bible
19 5 Elijah fleeing from Jezebel, is nourished by the Angel of God. 15 He is commanded to anoint Hazael, Jehu, and Elisha.
1 Now Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had slain all the [a]prophets with the sword.
2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, [b]The gods do so to me and more also, if I make not thy life like one of their lives by tomorrow this time.
3 ¶ When he saw that, he arose, and went [c]for his life, and came to Beersheba, which is in Judah, and left his servant there.
4 But he went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a Juniper tree, and desired that he might die, and said, It is now enough: O Lord, [d]take my soul, for I am no better than my fathers.
5 And as he lay and slept under the Juniper tree, behold now, an Angel touched him, and said unto him, Up, and eat.
6 And when he looked about, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a pot of water at his head: so he did eat and drink, and returned and slept.
7 And the Angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Up, and eat: for [e]thou hast a great journey.
8 ¶ Then he arose, and did eat and drink, and walked in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights, unto Horeb the mount of God.
9 And there he entered into a cave, and lodged there: and behold, the Lord spake to him, and said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?
10 And he answered, I have [f]been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, broken down thine altars, and slain thy Prophets with the sword, (A)and I only am left, and they seek my life to take it away.
11 And he said, Come out, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And behold, the Lord went by, and a mighty strong wind rent the mountains, and brake the rocks before the Lord: but the Lord was [g]not in the wind: and after the wind came an earthquake: but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
12 And after the earthquake came fire: but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire came a still and soft voice.
13 And when Elijah heard it, he covered his face with his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering of the cave: and behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?
14 And he answered, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts, [h]because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, cast down thine altars, and slain thy Prophets with the sword, and I only am left, and they seek my life to take it away.
15 And the Lord said unto him, Go, return by the wilderness unto Damascus, and when thou comest there, anoint Hazael king over [i]Aram.
16 And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint King over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel Meholah shalt thou anoint to be Prophet in thy room.
17 And (B)him that escapeth from the sword of Hazael, shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu, shall Elisha slay.
18 Yet will (C)I leave seven thousand in Israel: even [j]all the knees that have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth that hath not kissed him.
19 ¶ So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and was with the twelfth: and Elijah went towards him, and cast his mantel upon him.
20 And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, [k]Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee. Who answered him, Go, return: for what have I done to thee?
21 And when he went back again from him, he took a couple of oxen, and slew them, and sod their flesh with the [l]instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat: then he arose and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 19:1 To wit, of Baal.
- 1 Kings 19:2 Though the wicked rage against God’s children, yet he holdeth them back that they cannot execute their malice.
- 1 Kings 19:3 Or, whither his mind led him.
- 1 Kings 19:4 So hard a thing it is to bridle our impatience in affliction, that the Saints could not overcome the same.
- 1 Kings 19:7 He declareth that except God had nourished him miraculously, it had not been possible for him to have gone this journey.
- 1 Kings 19:10 He complaineth that the more zealous that he showed himself to maintain God’s glory, the more cruelly was he persecuted.
- 1 Kings 19:11 For the nature of man is not able to come near unto God, if he should appear in his strength and full majesty, and therefore of his mercy he submitteth himself to our capacity.
- 1 Kings 19:14 We ought not to depend on the multitude in maintaining God’s glory, but because our duty so requireth, we ought to do it.
- 1 Kings 19:15 Or, Syria.
- 1 Kings 19:18 He declareth that wicked dissemblers and idolaters are not his.
- 1 Kings 19:20 Though this natural affection is not to be contemned, yet it ought not to move us when God calleth us to serve him.
- 1 Kings 19:21 He would not stay till wood was brought, so great was his desire to follow his vocation.
1 Kings 19
EasyEnglish Bible
Elijah runs away
19 King Ahab told Jezebel about everything that Elijah had done. He told her how Elijah had killed all Baal's prophets with a sword. 2 So Jezebel sent someone with this message to Elijah: ‘By this time tomorrow, I will make sure that you are dead, the same as Baal's prophets! If I do not do that, I pray that the gods will kill me instead.’
3 Elijah became very afraid. He ran away to save his life. He arrived at Beersheba in Judah.[a] He left his servant there. 4 Then Elijah went into the desert by himself. He travelled for about a day. He found a small tree there and he sat down under it. He prayed that he might die. He said, ‘Lord, I have had enough trouble! Take my life from me. It is no better for me here than to be with my dead ancestors.’ 5 Then he lay down under the tree and he slept. Suddenly, an angel came and touched him. The angel said, ‘Get up and eat something.’ 6 When Elijah looked, he saw some bread near his head. Someone had baked it on a fire. There was also a jar of water. So he ate the bread and he drank the water. Then he lay down again to sleep. 7 The angel of the Lord came back a second time. He touched Elijah and he said, ‘Get up and eat more food. Then you will be strong enough to go on a long journey.’ 8 So Elijah got up. He ate the food and he drank the water. The meal made him strong enough to travel for 40 days and 40 nights. He travelled to Sinai, the mountain of God.[b]
The Lord appears to Elijah
9 Elijah went into a cave on Sinai mountain and he stayed there all night. Suddenly, the Lord spoke to Elijah. He asked Elijah, ‘Elijah, why have you come here?’ 10 Elijah replied, ‘The Israelites have turned away from the covenant that you made with them. They have destroyed your altars.[c] They have killed your prophets with swords. But I have always served the Lord God Almighty faithfully. Now I am the only prophet that is still alive and they are trying to kill me too.’ 11 The Lord said, ‘Go out from the cave and stand on the mountain, in front of me. I, the Lord, will pass in front of you.’
Then a very strong wind broke the mountain apart. It broke the rocks into pieces as the Lord came near. But the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind, there was an earthquake. But the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake, there was a fire. But the Lord was not in the fire. After the fire, there was a very quiet voice. 13 When Elijah heard that, he covered his face with his robe. He went out and he stood at the entrance of the cave. Then a voice said to him, ‘Elijah, why have you come here?’[d] 14 Elijah said, ‘The Israelites have turned away from the covenant that you made with them. They have destroyed your altars. They have killed your prophets with swords. But I have always served the Lord God Almighty faithfully. Now I am the only prophet that is still alive and they are trying to kill me too.’
15 The Lord said to Elijah, ‘Go back again along the way that you came. Go to the desert which is near Damascus. When you arrive there, anoint Hazael to make him king of Syria. 16 You must also anoint Nimshi's grandson Jehu to make him king of Israel. Then anoint Shapat's son Elisha from Abel Meholah to be my prophet after you. 17 Jehu's army will kill anyone that Hazael's army does not kill. Then Elisha will kill anyone who escapes from Jehu. 18 But remember this: I still have 7,000 people in Israel who have not worshipped Baal. They have not kissed his idols.’
Elisha becomes Elijah's servant
19 Elijah went away from Sinai. He found Shaphat's son, Elisha. Elisha was ploughing a field with 12 pairs of oxen. Elisha himself was using the 12th pair of oxen to plough. Elijah went to Elisha and he threw his robe over him.[e] 20 So Elisha left his oxen in the field and he ran after Elijah.
Elisha said, ‘Let me go home first to kiss my father and my mother and say “goodbye”. Then I will come with you.’ Elijah replied, ‘Yes, go back home. But do not forget about what I have done to you.’
21 So Elisha went back to his field. He took his pair of oxen and he killed them as a sacrifice. He burned wood from the plough to cook the meat. He gave the meat to the people who were there and they ate it. Then he left home to go with Elijah and to become his helper.
Footnotes
- 19:3 Beersheba was in the south of Judah.
- 19:8 Sinai was the mountain where God met Moses. See Exodus 3:1. Moses, Elijah and Jesus all lived without food for 40 days and 40 nights. See Deuteronomy 8:3; Matthew 4:4.
- 19:10 The covenant that they turned away from is in Exodus 20:3. It says, ‘You must not have any other gods except me.’ One of the altars that they destroyed was in Carmel, 1 Kings 18:30.
- 19:13 The question in verse 13 is the same as the question in verse 9. Elijah's answer is also the same.
- 19:19 Elijah's robe was a prophet's robe. He put it on Elisha to show him that he would now be a prophet.
1 Kings 19
King James Version
19 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword.
2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.
3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there.
4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.
5 And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.
6 And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again.
7 And the angel of the Lord came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee.
8 And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.
9 And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?
10 And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.
11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
12 And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
13 And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?
14 And he said, I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.
15 And the Lord said unto him, Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king over Syria:
16 And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room.
17 And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay.
18 Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.
19 So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him.
20 And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee. And he said unto him, Go back again: for what have I done to thee?
21 And he returned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him.
1 Re 19
Conferenza Episcopale Italiana
2. ELIA SULL'OREB
In cammino verso l'Oreb
19 Acab riferì a Gezabele ciò che Elia aveva fatto e che aveva ucciso di spada tutti i profeti. 2 Gezabele inviò un messaggero a Elia per dirgli: «Gli dei mi facciano questo e anche di peggio, se domani a quest'ora non avrò reso te come uno di quelli». 3 Elia, impaurito, si alzò e se ne andò per salvarsi. Giunse a Bersabea di Giuda. Là fece sostare il suo ragazzo. 4 Egli si inoltrò nel deserto una giornata di cammino e andò a sedersi sotto un ginepro. Desideroso di morire, disse: «Ora basta, Signore! Prendi la mia vita, perché io non sono migliore dei miei padri». 5 Si coricò e si addormentò sotto il ginepro. Allora, ecco un angelo lo toccò e gli disse: «Alzati e mangia!». 6 Egli guardò e vide vicino alla sua testa una focaccia cotta su pietre roventi e un orcio d'acqua. Mangiò e bevve, quindi tornò a coricarsi. 7 Venne di nuovo l'angelo del Signore, lo toccò e gli disse: «Su mangia, perché è troppo lungo per te il cammino». 8 Si alzò, mangiò e bevve. Con la forza datagli da quel cibo, camminò per quaranta giorni e quaranta notti fino al monte di Dio, l'Oreb.
L'incontro con Dio
9 Ivi entrò in una caverna per passarvi la notte, quand'ecco il Signore gli disse: «Che fai qui, Elia?». 10 Egli rispose: «Sono pieno di zelo per il Signore degli eserciti, poiché gli Israeliti hanno abbandonato la tua alleanza, hanno demolito i tuoi altari, hanno ucciso di spada i tuoi profeti. Sono rimasto solo ed essi tentano di togliermi la vita». 11 Gli fu detto: «Esci e fermati sul monte alla presenza del Signore». Ecco, il Signore passò. Ci fu un vento impetuoso e gagliardo da spaccare i monti e spezzare le rocce davanti al Signore, ma il Signore non era nel vento. Dopo il vento ci fu un terremoto, ma il Signore non era nel terremoto. 12 Dopo il terremoto ci fu un fuoco, ma il Signore non era nel fuoco. Dopo il fuoco ci fu il mormorio di un vento leggero. 13 Come l'udì, Elia si coprì il volto con il mantello, uscì e si fermò all'ingresso della caverna. Ed ecco, sentì una voce che gli diceva: «Che fai qui, Elia?». 14 Egli rispose: «Sono pieno di zelo per il Signore, Dio degli eserciti, poiché gli Israeliti hanno abbandonato la tua alleanza, hanno demolito i tuoi altari, hanno ucciso di spada i tuoi profeti. Sono rimasto solo ed essi tentano di togliermi la vita».
15 Il Signore gli disse: «Su, ritorna sui tuoi passi verso il deserto di Damasco; giunto là, ungerai Hazaèl come re di Aram. 16 Poi ungerai Ieu, figlio di Nimsi, come re di Israele e ungerai Eliseo figlio di Safàt, di Abel-Mecola, come profeta al tuo posto. 17 Se uno scamperà dalla spada di Hazaèl, lo ucciderà Ieu; se uno scamperà dalla spada di Ieu, lo ucciderà Eliseo. 18 Io poi mi sono risparmiato in Israele settemila persone, quanti non hanno piegato le ginocchia a Baal e quanti non l'hanno baciato con la bocca.
La chiamata di Eliseo
19 Partito di lì, Elia incontrò Eliseo figlio di Safàt. Costui arava con dodici paia di buoi davanti a sé, mentre egli stesso guidava il decimosecondo. Elia, passandogli vicino, gli gettò addosso il suo mantello. 20 Quegli lasciò i buoi e corse dietro a Elia, dicendogli: «Andrò a baciare mio padre e mia madre, poi ti seguirò». Elia disse: «Và e torna, perché sai bene che cosa ho fatto di te». 21 Allontanatosi da lui, Eliseo prese un paio di buoi e li uccise; con gli attrezzi per arare ne fece cuocere la carne e la diede alla gente, perché la mangiasse. Quindi si alzò e seguì Elia, entrando al suo servizio.
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