1 Kings 18:32 (DRB)

Passage

And he built with the stones an altar to the name of the Lord: and he made a trench for water, of the breadth of two furrows, round about the altar.

Nearby Context

1 Kings 18:30 Elias said to all the people: Come ye unto me. And the people coming near unto him, he repaired the altar of the Lord, that was broken down:

1 Kings 18:31 And he 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.

1 Kings 18:32 And he built with the stones an altar to the name of the Lord: and he made a trench for water, of the breadth of two furrows, round about the altar.

1 Kings 18:33 And he laid the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid it upon the wood.

1 Kings 18:34 And he said: Fill four buckets with water, and pour it upon the burnt offering, and upon the wood. And again he said: Do the same the second time. And when they had done it the second time, he said: Do the same also the third time. And they did so the third time.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "built", "stones", "altar", "name", "lord", "trench", "water", and "breadth". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "built" and "stones", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 31's "And he took twelve stones according to..." into verse 33's "And he laid the wood in order...", so "built" and "stones" 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 "built" and "stones" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.