1 Kings 18:44

44 The seventh time the assistant said, "I see a small cloud the size of a human hand coming up from the sea." Elijah said, "Go and tell Ahab, ‘Pull yourself together, go down the mountain, and don't let the rain hold you back.'"

1 Kings 18:44 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 18:44

And it came to pass at the seventh time that he said, behold
there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand
Either about the size or in the form of it; rain water comes out of the sea, and, being strained through the clouds and air, becomes fresh:

and he said, go up:
the meaning seems to be, that he should first go down from the mount, and then go up to that part of it where Ahab was:

say unto Ahab, prepare thy chariot;
bind or fasten the horses to it, as the phrase seems to signify:

and get thee down;
from the mountain where he was, to go to Jezreel, which lay low in a valley:

that the rain stop thee not;
on the road, that might be made impassable by it, signifying that such abundance should fall as would make it so.

1 Kings 18:44 In-Context

42 So Ahab got up to celebrate with food and drink. But Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel. He bowed down to the ground and put his face between his knees.
43 He said to his assistant, "Please get up and look toward the sea." So the assistant did so. He said, "I don't see anything." Seven times Elijah said, "Do it again."
44 The seventh time the assistant said, "I see a small cloud the size of a human hand coming up from the sea." Elijah said, "Go and tell Ahab, ‘Pull yourself together, go down the mountain, and don't let the rain hold you back.'"
45 After a little while, the sky became dark with clouds, and a wind came up with a huge rainstorm. Ahab was already riding on his way to Jezreel,
46 but the LORD's power strengthened Elijah. He gathered up his clothes and ran in front of Ahab until he came to Jezreel.
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