So he said, “How have I sinned, that you are delivering your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me?
Parallel translations
- WEB He said, “How have I sinned, that you would deliver your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me?
- KJV And he said, What have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me?
- BSB But Obadiah replied, “How have I sinned, that you are handing your servant over to Ahab to put me to death?
- NASB But he said, “What sin have I committed, that you are handing your servant over to Ahab, to put me to death?
- NLT “Oh, sir,” Obadiah protested, “what harm have I done to you that you are sending me to my death at the hands of Ahab?
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
Obadiah protests, fearing that delivering this message will get him killed. He dreads being caught between the prophet and the murderous king.
Overview
Obadiah's question reveals how dangerous Ahab's regime was for anyone associated with Elijah. His fear is genuine, not faithless, given Jezebel's slaughter of Yahweh's prophets. The exchange highlights the real cost of serving God under a wicked government and frames Elijah's coming victory as deliverance for the faithful.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Exod 5:21and they said to them, “May Yahweh look at you, and judge, because you have made us a stench to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us.”
- 1 Kgs 18:12It will happen, as soon as I leave you, that Yahweh’s Spirit will carry you I don’t know where; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he can’t find you, he will kill me. But I, your servant, have feared Yahweh from my youth.
- 1 Kgs 17:18She said to Elijah, “What have I to do with you, you man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to memory, and to kill my son!”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 18:9 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.