1 Kings 17:22
in 1 Kings 17And the LORD listened to the voice of Elijah, and the child’s life returned to him, and he lived.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Jehovah hearkened unto the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
KJV
And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
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This verse in 1 Kings 17
Commentary
6 notes on this verseAs we mentioned, that widow prefigured the church, and her son was a type of the Gentiles. The son of the widow lay dead because the son of the church, that is, the Gentiles, was dead because of many sins and offenses. At the prayer …
This site's exposition
the soul of the child came into him again
on 1 Kings 17:22-24
The Lord hears, and the child's soul returns to him. Gill calls this the first instance in Scripture of anyone being raised from the dead, and notes that pagan literature's own tales of revived men are its later, lesser copy. Elijah carries the boy down and hands him to his mother with the plainest possible proof, see, thy son liveth, and her confession closes the chapter where it opened: now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth, the same word that shut heaven at verse 1 now proven true over a single household.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah,.... In prayer, and answered it: and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived; this is the first instance of anyone being raised from the dead; this Satan has imitated; hence the many fabulous stories with the Heathens of persons being raised to life after death (k). (k) Vid. Huet. Alnetan. Quaest. l. 2. c. 12. sect. 30.
Elijah brought him to his mother, who, we may suppose, could scarcely believe her own eyes, and therefore Elijah assures her it is her own: "It is thy son that liveth; see it is thy own, and not another,"
Thus his story begins with judgments and miracles, designed to awaken that stupid generation that had to deeply corrupted themselves. 1 And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the L ORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
And the soul - נפש nephesh, of the child came into him again, על קרבו al kirbo, into the midst of him; and he revived, ויח vaiyechi, and he became alive. Did he not become alive from the circumstance of the immaterial principle coming again into him? Although רוח ruach is sometimes put for the breath, yet נפש generally means the immortal spirit, and where it seems to refer to animal life alone, it is only such a life as is the immediate and necessary effect of the presence of the immortal spirit.
The words behind it
10 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּשְׁמַ֥ע | vaiyishma' | and he listened | H8085 → | 1159 times |
| יְהוָ֖ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| בְּק֣וֹל | bekol | to [the] voice of | H6963 → | 506 times |
| אֵלִיָּ֑הוּ | ʾeliyahu | Elijah | H452 → | 71 times |
| וַתָּ֧שָׁב | vatashov | and it returned | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| נֶֽפֶשׁ־ | nefesh- | [the] life of | H5315 → | 754 times |
| הַיֶּ֛לֶד | haiyeled | the lad | H3206 → | 89 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | to | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| קִרְבּ֖וֹ | kirbo | inward part[s] his | H7130 → | 227 times |
| וַיֶּֽחִי׃ | vaiyechi | and he lived | H2421 → | 282 times |
וַיִּשְׁמַ֥עand he listened
vaiyishma'H8085 →1159 times
יְהוָ֖הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
בְּק֣וֹלto [the] voice of
bekolH6963 →506 times
אֵלִיָּ֑הוּElijah
ʾeliyahuH452 →71 times
וַתָּ֧שָׁבand it returned
vatashovH7725 →1056 times
נֶֽפֶשׁ־[the] life of
nefesh-H5315 →754 times
הַיֶּ֛לֶדthe lad
haiyeledH3206 →89 times
עַל־to
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
קִרְבּ֖וֹinward part[s] his
kirboH7130 →227 times
וַיֶּֽחִי׃and he lived
vaiyechiH2421 →282 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Deuteronomy 32:39See now that I am He; there is no God besides Me. I bring death and I give life; I wound and I heal, and there is no one who can deliver from My…
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 2:6
The LORD brings death and gives life; He brings down to Sheol and raises up.
- Hosea 6:1
Come, let us return to the LORD. For He has torn us to pieces, but He will heal us; He has wounded us, but He will bind up our wounds.
- Job 5:18
For He wounds, but He also binds; He strikes, but His hands also heal.
- Isaiah 45:5
I am the LORD, and there is no other; there is no God but Me. I will equip you for battle, though you have not known Me,
- Isaiah 45:22
Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.
- 1 Samuel 2:6
Through
Revelation 11:11But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God entered the two witnesses, and they stood on their feet, and great fear fell upon those who saw them.
it leads to
- Genesis 2:7
Then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed the breath of life into his nostrils, and the man became a living being.
- Genesis 2:7
Through
Hebrews 11:35Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused their release, so that they might gain a better resurrection.
it leads to
- 2 Kings 4:27–37
When she reached the man of God at the mountain, she clung to his feet. Gehazi came over to push her away, but the man of God said, “Leave her alone, for her soul…
- 1 Kings 17:22–24
And the LORD listened to the voice of Elijah, and the child’s life returned to him, and he lived.
- 2 Kings 4:27–37
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About 1 Kings
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Caesarius of Arles, Commentary (church-history corpus); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.