Limitless Word
Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. The famine was severe in Samaria.
1 Kings 18:2 · World English Bible
Parallel translations
  • KJV And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria.
  • BSB So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab. The famine was severe in Samaria,
  • NKJV So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab; and there was a severe famine in Samaria.
  • NASB So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria.
  • NLT So Elijah went to appear before Ahab. Meanwhile, the famine had become very severe in Samaria.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Elijah obediently goes to meet Ahab while the famine grips Samaria severely.

Overview

Elijah courageously sets out to face the king who has been hunting him, trusting God's command. The note that the famine was severe underscores the depth of the crisis the drought has caused. Elijah's obedience in the face of danger again models the faith that acts on God's word regardless of risk.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 11

  • Jer 14:2–6“Judah mourns, and its gates languish, they sit in black on the ground; and the cry of Jerusalem goes up.
  • Lev 26:26When I break your staff of bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver your bread again by weight. You shall eat, and not be satisfied.
  • Deut 28:23–24Your sky that is over your head will be brass, and the earth that is under you will be iron.
  • 2 Kgs 6:25There was a great famine in Samaria. Behold, they besieged it, until a donkey’s head was sold for eighty pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove’s dung for five pieces of silver.
  • Joel 1:15–20Alas for the day! For the day of Yahweh is at hand, and it will come as destruction from the Almighty.
  • Jer 14:18If I go out into the field, then, behold, the slain with the sword! If I enter into the city, then, behold, those who are sick with famine! For both the prophet and the priest go about in the land, and have no knowledge.’”
  • Ps 51:4Against you, and you only, I have sinned, and done that which is evil in your sight; that you may be proved right when you speak, and justified when you judge.
  • Isa 51:12“I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you, that you are afraid of man who shall die, and of the son of man who will be made as grass?
  • Ps 27:1By David. Yahweh is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Yahweh is the strength of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid?
  • Prov 28:1The wicked flee when no one pursues; but the righteous are as bold as a lion.
  • Heb 13:5–6Be free from the love of money, content with such things as you have, for he has said, “I will in no way leave you, neither will I in any way forsake you.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — 1 Kings videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on 1 Kings 18:2YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on 1 KingsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Solomon's glory, wisdom, and temple where God's presence dwells are a shadow of the greater Son of David — 'one greater than Solomon is here' — and of the true Temple, Christ himself.

How 1 Kings 18:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.