1 Kings 18:35 (DRB)

Passage

And the water run round about the altar, and the trench was filled with water.

Nearby Context

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.

1 Kings 18:35 And the water run round about the altar, and the trench was filled with water.

1 Kings 18:36 And when it was now time to offer the holocaust, Elias, the prophet, came near and said: O Lord God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Israel, shew this day that thou art the God of Israel, and I thy servant, and that according to thy commandment I have done all these things.

1 Kings 18:37 Dear me, O Lord, hear me: that this people may learn that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast turned their heart again.

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 34's "And he said Fill four buckets with..." into verse 36's "And when it was now time to...", so "water" and "round" 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 "water" and "round" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.