1 Kings 18 · Verse 31

1 Kings 18:31

And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the Lord came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:
1 Kings 18:31, King James Version

1 Kings 18:31 in other translations

BSBAnd Elijah took twelve stones, one for each tribe of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come and said, “Israel shall be your name.”
WEBElijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the LORD’s word came, saying, “Israel shall be your name.”
ASVAnd Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of Jehovah came, saying, Israel shall be thy name.
YLTand Elijah taketh twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of Jehovah was, saying, ‘Israel is thy name;'
DARBYAnd Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of Jehovah came saying, Israel shall be thy name;
BBEAnd Elijah took twelve stones, the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the Lord had said, Israel will be your name:
WebsterAnd Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:

What does 1 Kings 18:31 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Kings 18:21-40

21-40. Elijah said unto all the people, How long halt ye?--They had long been attempting to conjoin the service of God with that of Baal. It was an impracticable union and the people were so struck with a sense of their own folly, or dread of the king's displeasure, that they "answered not a word." Elijah proposed to decide for them the controversy between God and Baal by an appeal, not to the authority of the law…

Read the full comment on 1 Kings 18:21-40 →

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 31 Took twelve stones - He did this to show that all the twelve tribes of Israel should be joined in the worship of Jehovah.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on 1 Kings 18:21-40

Many of the people wavered in their judgment, and varied in their practice. Elijah called upon them to determine whether Jehovah or Baal 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…

Read the full comment on 1 Kings 18:21-40 →

1 Kings 18:31 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיִּקַּ֣חvai.yi.Kachand he tookH3947
אֵלִיָּ֗הוּ'e.li.Ya.huElijahH452
שְׁתֵּ֤יםshe.Teimtwo [plus]H8147
עֶשְׂרֵה֙'es.RehtenH6240
אֲבָנִ֔ים'a.va.NimstonesH68
כְּמִסְפַּ֖רke.mis.Paraccording to [the] number ofH4557
שִׁבְטֵ֣יshiv.Tei[the] tribes ofH7626
בְנֵֽי\־ve.nei-[the] sons ofH1121
יַעֲקֹ֑בya.'a.KoJacobH3290
אֲשֶׁר֩'a.SherwhomH834
הָיָ֨הha.Yahit had comeH1961
דְבַר\־de.var-[the] word ofH1697
יְהוָ֤הYah.wehYahwehH3068
אֵלָיו֙'e.Lavto himH413
לֵאמֹ֔רle.Mor<to> sayingH559
יִשְׂרָאֵ֖לYis.ra.'ElIsraelH3478
יִהְיֶ֥הyih.Yehit will beH1961
שְׁמֶֽךָ\׃she.Me.khaname yourH8034

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for 1 Kings 18:31

  • 2 Kings 17:34

    Unto this day they do after the former manners: they fear not the Lord, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law and commandment which the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel;

  • Genesis 35:10

    And God said unto him, Thy name is Jacob: thy name shall not be called any more Jacob, but Israel shall be thy name: and he called his name Israel.

  • Genesis 32:28

    And he said, Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed.

  • Joshua 4:3-4

    And command ye them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priests’ feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this night. Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man:

  • Joshua 4:20

    And those twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal.

  • Genesis 33:20

    And he erected there an altar, and called it El–elohe–Israel.

  • Ezra 6:17

    And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.

  • Ephesians 4:4-6

    There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

  • Isaiah 48:1

    Hear ye this, O house of Jacob, which are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, which swear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, but not in truth, nor in righteousness.

  • Ezekiel 37:16-22

    Moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand. …

  • Jeremiah 31:1

    At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people.

  • Revelation 21:12

    And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel:

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
twelve stones.
Ex 24:4; Jos 4:3,4,20; Ezr 6:17; Jer 31:1; Eze 37:16-22; 47:13
Eph 2:20; 4:4-6; Re 7:4-8; 21:12
saying.
Ge 32:28; 33:20; 35:10; 2Ki 17:34; Isa 48:1

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • 1 Kings 18:30

    And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down.

  • 1 Kings 18:31

    And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the Lord came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:

  • 1 Kings 18:32

    And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord: and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.

Read all of 1 Kings 18

1 Kings 18:31 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Y tomando Elías doce piedras, conforme al número de las tribus de los hijos de Jacob, al cual había sido palabra de Jehová, diciendo, Israel será tu nombre;
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Et Élie prit douze pierres, selon le nombre des tribus des fils de Jacob, auquel vint la parole de l’ Éternel, disant: Israël sera ton nom;
German
Elberfelder 1871
Und Elia nahm zwölf Steine, nach der Zahl der Stämme der Söhne Jakobs, zu welchem das Wort Jehovas geschehen war, indem er sprach: Israel soll dein Name sein!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Et tulit duodecim lapides juxta numerum tribuum filiorum Jacob, ad quem factus est sermo Domini, dicens: Israël erit nomen tuum.