1 Kings 18:37 kjv
Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their heart back again.
1 Kings 18:37 nkjv
Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that You are the LORD God, and that You have turned their hearts back to You again."
1 Kings 18:37 niv
Answer me, LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again."
1 Kings 18:37 esv
Answer me, O LORD, answer me, that this people may know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you have turned their hearts back."
1 Kings 18:37 nlt
O LORD, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God and that you have brought them back to yourself."
1 Kings 18 37 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| God Reveals Himself / Proves Deity | ||
| Ex 6:7 | "I will take you as My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am the Lord your God..." | God proves Himself to His people. |
| Deut 4:35 | "To you it was shown that you might know that the Lord, He is God; there is no other besides Him." | Declaration of Yahweh's sole deity. |
| Isa 45:5-6 | "I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides Me there is no God...that they may know from the rising..." | God declares Himself as the only God. |
| Ezek 36:23 | "Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Lord God, when I prove Myself holy..." | God's acts for His name to be known. |
| Jn 17:3 | "This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." | Knowing God as eternal life. |
| God Turns Hearts / Calls to Repentance | ||
| Deut 30:6 | "The Lord your God will circumcise your heart...so that you may love the Lord your God..." | God's action in spiritual transformation. |
| 2 Chr 30:9 | "...for the Lord your God is gracious and compassionate, and will not turn His face from you if you return..." | God responds to a turning heart. |
| Jer 24:7 | "I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the Lord; and they will be My people..." | God gives the ability to know Him truly. |
| Ezek 11:19 | "I will give them one heart, and put a new spirit within them..." | Divine work of spiritual renewal. |
| Lk 1:17 | "...to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom..." | John the Baptist's mission to restore hearts. |
| Acts 3:19 | "Therefore repent and return, so that your sins may be wiped away..." | Call to repentance for forgiveness. |
| Phil 2:13 | "...for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." | God initiates and enables spiritual action. |
| Knowing/Acknowledging God | ||
| 1 Sam 17:46 | "...that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel." | God acts so His presence is acknowledged. |
| Psa 100:3 | "Know that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves..." | Imperative to know God as creator. |
| Hos 6:3 | "So let us know, let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord. His going forth is as certain as the dawn..." | Actively pursuing the knowledge of God. |
| Joel 2:27 | "Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the Lord your God..." | God's manifest presence for His people. |
| Divine Answer to Prayer / God's Power | ||
| Psa 145:18 | "The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth." | God hears and answers righteous prayer. |
| Jas 5:17-18 | "Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly...and it did not rain for three years..." | Example of Elijah's powerful prayer. |
| Isa 65:24 | "It will also come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear." | God's readiness to answer prayer. |
| God's Zeal for His Name / Covenant | ||
| Ex 20:3 | "You shall have no other gods before Me." | First commandment: exclusive worship. |
| Deut 6:4 | "Hear, O Israel! The Lord is our God, the Lord is one!" | Shema, foundational truth of Yahweh's unity. |
| Josh 24:15 | "...choose for yourselves today whom you will serve...as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." | Challenge to choose whom to serve. |
| Zech 8:16 | "...execute truth, justice, and peace in your gates..." (Context of returning hearts to God's ways) | Calls for righteous living after turning to God. |
1 Kings 18 verses
1 Kings 18 37 Meaning
1 Kings 18:37 is a fervent prayer by the prophet Elijah during the dramatic confrontation on Mount Carmel. It articulates his twofold plea to God: first, that the divine response (specifically fire) would unequivocally prove to the assembled Israelites that Yahweh, not Baal, is the one true God (אֱלֹהִים, Elohim). Second, and more profoundly, that this demonstration would lead to the spiritual repentance and restoration of the people’s hearts back to faithful covenant relationship with Him. The prayer underscores God's absolute sovereignty and His active role in the spiritual renewal of His people.
1 Kings 18 37 Context
First Kings chapter 18 records the climatic showdown between the prophet Elijah and the prophets of Baal and Asherah on Mount Carmel, initiated by Elijah to resolve the spiritual apostasy gripping Israel. For three and a half years, a divinely sent drought, declared by Elijah, had plagued the land as judgment for the widespread Baal worship championed by King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. The purpose of this grand confrontation was to compel Israel, which had been vacillating between Yahweh and Baal (1 Kgs 18:21), to choose decisively. Elijah's prayer in 1 Kings 18:37 follows the failed attempts of the Baal prophets to summon fire, and Elijah's preparation of the altar, drenching it with water, making the impending miracle undeniably divine. The immediate historical context is Israel's widespread spiritual rebellion, fueled by royal idolatry, against the covenant of Yahweh. It is a direct polemic against the fertility god Baal, asserting Yahweh's absolute supremacy over false deities.
1 Kings 18 37 Word analysis
- Answer me (עֲנֵנִי, anani): This imperative, repeated for emphasis and urgency, indicates Elijah's direct and confident plea for immediate divine intervention. It's a prayer for vindication and revelation, specifically requesting the miracle of fire. The repetition stresses both the desperate need and Elijah's faith in God's responsiveness.
- O Lord (יְהוָה, Yahweh): This is the covenant name of God, exclusive to the God of Israel. It emphasizes that Elijah is not addressing a generic deity, but the specific, personal, and true God who made a covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The use of "Yahweh" directly challenges the claim of Baal's power.
- that this people (הָעָם הַזֶּה, ha'am hazzeh): Refers to the Israelites gathered, caught between faith and apostasy. The miracle's ultimate audience and purpose is their spiritual awakening and turning. They are "this people" implying their immediate proximity and wavering allegiance.
- may know (יֵדְעוּ, yed'u): More than intellectual comprehension, this Hebrew term implies experiential knowledge, acknowledgment, and ultimately, allegiance and devotion. It's about deep conviction that leads to transformed behavior and loyalty. The goal is a covenantal relationship, not mere head knowledge.
- that You, O Lord, are God (כִּי־אַתָּה יְהוָה הָאֱלֹהִים, ki-’attah Yahweh ha’Elohim): This is the core theological assertion. Yahweh (the covenant name) is identified with ha’Elohim (the one, true God, emphasized by the definite article "ha"). It is a powerful declaration of exclusive deity, directly countering the pagan belief that Baal was "god." It posits Yahweh as the sole and supreme sovereign over creation and life, controlling even the elements like fire and rain that Baal supposedly governed.
- and that You have turned their hearts back again (וַאֲנִי תַּחְבֵין אֶת-לִבָּם אֲחֹרַנִּית, wa'ani taḥvein et-libbām ’akhōrannît): This crucial phrase reveals the deeper spiritual purpose of the miracle.
- "You have turned": The verb (a form of סוּב, suv, related to 'turning') signifies divine agency. God is not merely reacting but actively effecting the change in hearts. It's not just the people deciding to turn, but God enabling and drawing them.
- "their hearts": The "heart" (לִבָּם, libbām) in Hebrew thought is the seat of intellect, emotion, will, and conscience—the core of a person's being, their spiritual allegiance.
- "back again": (אֲחֹרַנִּית, ’akhōrannît). This indicates a return to a former, correct state of allegiance and covenant faithfulness from which they had strayed. It signifies repentance and spiritual restoration.
1 Kings 18 37 Bonus section
The phrase "You have turned their hearts back again" indicates that while human repentance is required, it is God who provides the impetus and ability for that turning. This echoes the concept seen throughout Scripture that true conversion is ultimately a work of divine grace (e.g., Jer 31:33, Ezek 36:26-27). This prayer, uttered in a moment of extreme spiritual desolation, reveals Elijah's profound faith not just in God's power to send fire, but in His sovereignty over the human heart. It directly confronts the pagan belief in various gods, demonstrating Yahweh's uniqueness and His intimate concern for His covenant people, even when they stray.
1 Kings 18 37 Commentary
Elijah's prayer in 1 Kings 18:37 is succinct yet profound, encapsulating the entire spiritual crisis and God's ultimate desire. It's a demonstration that God is not only the only true God, evidenced by miraculous power, but also a God actively involved in the restoration of His people's hearts. The purpose of the dramatic display is not simply spectacle, but conversion—a turning from idolatry to sincere devotion. The immediate public display (fire from heaven) serves a deeper private transformation (turned hearts). Elijah understood that merely seeing a miracle was insufficient; hearts had to be supernaturally touched and realigned with God's will. This verse is a microcosm of divine action: God reveals Himself unmistakably so that people might know Him, and by His power, He graciously enables them to return to Him in repentance and faithfulness. It highlights God's initiative in drawing people back to Himself and underscores that true knowledge of God always leads to allegiance of the heart.