SEV Biblia, Chapter 18:24
Invocad luego vosotros en el nombre de vuestros dioses, y yo invocaré en el nombre del SEÑOR; y será que el Dios que respondiere por fuego, sea el Dios. Y todo el pueblo respondió, diciendo: Bien dicho.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - 1 Kings 18:24
Verse 24. The God that answereth by fire] Elijah gave them every advantage when he granted that the God who answered by fire should be acknowledged as the true God; for as the Baal who was worshipped here was incontestably Apollo, or the sun, he was therefore the god of fire, and had only to work in his own element.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 24. And call ye on the name of your gods , etc.] The Baalim, the many lords and gods they served: and I will call on the name of the Lord ; the one true Jehovah and God of Israel, whom I serve: and the God that answereth by fire ; by causing fire to come down upon the sacrifice, and consume it: let him be God ; accounted, owned, and acknowledged as the true God, and so afterwards worshipped as such: and all the people answered and said, it is well spoken ; they thought it a very reasonable proposal, a very good method to determine the controversy, and come at the truth, and know who was the true God, and who not.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 21-40 - Many of the people wavered in their judgment, and varied in their practice. Elijah called upon them to determine whether Jehovah or Baa was the self-existent, supreme God, the Creator, Governor, and Judge of the world, and to follow him alone. It is dangerous to halt between the service of God and the service of sin, the dominion of Christ and the dominion of our lusts. If Jesus be the only Saviour, let us cleave to him alone for every thing; if the Bible be the world of God, let u reverence and receive the whole of it, and submit our understanding to the Divine teaching it contains. Elijah proposed to bring the matter to a trial. Baal had all the outward advantages, but the event encourage all God's witnesses and advocates never to fear the face of man. The God that answers by fire, let him be God: the atonement was to be mad by sacrifice, before the judgment could be removed in mercy. The God therefore that has power to pardon sin, and to signify it by consumin the sin-offering, must needs be the God that can relieve from the calamity. God never required his worshippers to honour him in the manner of the worshippers of Baal; but the service of the devil, thoug sometimes it pleases and pampers the body, yet, in other things, reall is cruel to it, as in envy and drunkenness. God requires that we mortify our lusts and corruptions; but bodily penances and severitie are no pleasure to him. Who has required these things at your hands? few words uttered in assured faith, and with fervent affection for the glory of God, and love to the souls of men, or thirstings after the Lord's image and his favour, form the effectual, fervent prayer of the righteous man, which availeth much. Elijah sought not his own glory but that of God, for the good of the people. The people are all agreed convinced, and satisfied; Jehovah, he is the God. Some, we hope, ha their hearts turned, but most of them were convinced only, no converted. Blessed are they that have not seen what these saw, yet have believed, and have been wrought upon by it, more than they that saw it.
Original Hebrew
וקראתם 7121 בשׁם 8034 אלהיכם 430 ואני 589 אקרא 7121 בשׁם 8034 יהוה 3068 והיה 1961 האלהים 430 אשׁר 834 יענה 6030 באשׁ 784 הוא 1931 האלהים 430 ויען 6030 כל 3605 העם 5971 ויאמרו 559 טוב 2896 הדבר׃ 1697
