1 kings 18:25 - Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one bull for yourselves, and dress it first; for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it.”
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What does "1 kings 18:25" mean?
This verse from 1 Kings 18:25 is a critical part of the famous showdown between Elijah, a prophet of the Hebrew God (Yahweh), and the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. Let's break down the meaning:
"Elijah said to the prophets of Baal...": This sets the scene. Elijah is challenging the prophets of Baal to a contest to prove which god is the true God.
"...Choose one bull for yourselves, and dress it first; for you are many...": Elijah is giving the advantage to the prophets of Baal. They have a larger number of prophets than he does (450 prophets of Baal vs. Elijah alone at this point). He allows them to choose the bull and prepare it for sacrifice first. "Dress it first" likely means to butcher the bull and prepare it for sacrifice according to their rituals.
"...and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it.": This is the core of the challenge. They are to call on Baal to send fire from the sky to ignite the sacrifice. Elijah explicitly forbids them from lighting the fire themselves. The point is to see if Baal has the power to respond. This highlights that the demonstration is not about human effort, but about divine power.
In essence, Elijah is saying: "Go ahead, you have the advantage of numbers. Prepare your sacrifice, pray to your god Baal, and ask him to prove his power by sending fire. I'm removing any possibility of trickery or human intervention."
The significance of this verse is that it sets the stage for a direct test of power. Elijah is confident that Baal will not respond, thereby demonstrating the powerlessness of Baal and the supremacy of Yahweh. The whole point of this test is to prove who the true God is in front of the people of Israel, who at this time were often swayed by the worship of other gods, including Baal.
1 kings 18:25 - Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one bull for yourselves, and dress it first; for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it.”
What does "1 kings 18:25" mean?
This verse from 1 Kings 18:25 is a critical part of the famous showdown between Elijah, a prophet of the Hebrew God (Yahweh), and the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel. Let's break down the meaning:
"Elijah said to the prophets of Baal...": This sets the scene. Elijah is challenging the prophets of Baal to a contest to prove which god is the true God.
"...Choose one bull for yourselves, and dress it first; for you are many...": Elijah is giving the advantage to the prophets of Baal. They have a larger number of prophets than he does (450 prophets of Baal vs. Elijah alone at this point). He allows them to choose the bull and prepare it for sacrifice first. "Dress it first" likely means to butcher the bull and prepare it for sacrifice according to their rituals.
"...and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it.": This is the core of the challenge. They are to call on Baal to send fire from the sky to ignite the sacrifice. Elijah explicitly forbids them from lighting the fire themselves. The point is to see if Baal has the power to respond. This highlights that the demonstration is not about human effort, but about divine power.
In essence, Elijah is saying: "Go ahead, you have the advantage of numbers. Prepare your sacrifice, pray to your god Baal, and ask him to prove his power by sending fire. I'm removing any possibility of trickery or human intervention."
The significance of this verse is that it sets the stage for a direct test of power. Elijah is confident that Baal will not respond, thereby demonstrating the powerlessness of Baal and the supremacy of Yahweh. The whole point of this test is to prove who the true God is in front of the people of Israel, who at this time were often swayed by the worship of other gods, including Baal.