1 Kings 18:21 (DBY)

Passage

Then Elijah drew near to all the people, and said, How long do ye halt between two opinions? if Jehovah be God, follow him; and if Baal, follow him. And the people answered him not a word.

Nearby Context

1 Kings 18:19 And now send, gather to me all Israel to mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the Asherah four hundred, who eat at Jezebel's table.

1 Kings 18:20 So Ahab sent to all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.

1 Kings 18:21 Then Elijah drew near to all the people, and said, How long do ye halt between two opinions? if Jehovah be God, follow him; and if Baal, follow him. And the people answered him not a word.

1 Kings 18:22 And Elijah said to the people, I, only I, remain a prophet of Jehovah; and Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men.

1 Kings 18:23 Let them therefore give us two bullocks: and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and put it on the wood, and put no fire; and I will sacrifice the other bullock, and put it on the wood, and put no fire.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "elijah", "drew", "near", "people", "said", "long", "halt", and "between". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "elijah" and "drew", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 20's "So Ahab sent to all the children..." into verse 22's "And Elijah said to the people I...", so "elijah" and "drew" belong inside that flow. In 1 Kings context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "elijah" and "drew" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.