1 Kings 18:43
New International Version
“Go and look toward the sea,” he told his servant. And he went up and looked. “There is nothing there,” he said. Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”

New Living Translation
Then he said to his servant, “Go and look out toward the sea.” The servant went and looked, then returned to Elijah and said, “I didn’t see anything.” Seven times Elijah told him to go and look.

English Standard Version
And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” And he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go again,” seven times.

Berean Standard Bible
“Go and look toward the sea,” he said to his servant. So the servant went and looked, and he said, “There is nothing there.” Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”

King James Bible
And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.

New King James Version
and said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And seven times he said, “Go again.”

New American Standard Bible
And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked, but he said, “There is nothing.” Yet Elijah said, “Go back” seven times.

NASB 1995
He said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go back “ seven times.

NASB 1977
And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go back” seven times.

Legacy Standard Bible
And he said to his young man, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go back” seven times.

Amplified Bible
and he said to his servant, “Go up, look toward the sea.” So he went up and looked and said, “There is nothing.” Elijah said, “Go back” seven times.

Christian Standard Bible
Then he said to his servant, “Go up and look toward the sea.” So he went up, looked, and said, “There’s nothing.” Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Then he said to his servant, “Go up and look toward the sea.” So he went up, looked, and said, “There’s nothing.” Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”

American Standard Version
And he said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And he said to his disciple: “Come up! Look to the way of the sea!” And he came up and he gazed and said, “There is nothing!” He said to him, “Return” seven times.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
and said to his servant, Go up, and look toward the sea. And the servant looked, and said, There is nothing: and Eliu said, Do thou then go again seven times.

Contemporary English Version
and said to his servant, "Look toward the sea." The servant left. And when he came back, he said, "I looked, but I didn't see anything." Elijah told him to look seven more times.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And he said to his servant: Go up, and look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said: There is nothing. And again he said to him: Return seven times.

English Revised Version
And he said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
He said to his servant, "Please go back to [Mount Carmel], and look toward the sea." He went up, looked, [came back,] and said, "There's nothing." Seven times Elijah told him, "Go back."

Good News Translation
He said to his servant, "Go and look toward the sea." The servant went and returned, saying, "I didn't see a thing." Seven times in all Elijah told him to go and look.

International Standard Version
Then he told his young servant, "Go and look toward the sea." So he went and looked out to sea. "Nothing there," he said. But Elijah told him to go back seven times.

JPS Tanakh 1917
And he said to his servant: 'Go up now, look toward the sea.' And he went up, and looked, and said: 'There is nothing.' And he said: 'Go again seven times.'

Literal Standard Version
and says to his young man, “Now go up, look attentively [toward] the way of the sea”; and he goes up and looks attentively, and says, “There is nothing”; and he says, “Turn back,” seven times.

Majority Standard Bible
“Go and look toward the sea,” he said to his servant. So the servant went and looked, and he said, “There is nothing there.” Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.”

New American Bible
He said to his servant, “Go up and look out to sea.” He went up and looked, but reported, “There is nothing.” Seven times he said, “Go look again!”

NET Bible
He told his servant, "Go on up and look in the direction of the sea." So he went on up, looked, and reported, "There is nothing." Seven times Elijah sent him to look.

New Revised Standard Version
He said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” He went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” Then he said, “Go again seven times.”

New Heart English Bible
And he said to his servant, "Go up now, look toward the sea." So he went up, and looked, and said, "There is nothing." Then he said, "Go again" seven times. And the servant went again seven times.

Webster's Bible Translation
And said to his servant, Go up now, look towards the sea. And he went up and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.

World English Bible
He said to his servant, “Go up now and look toward the sea.” He went up and looked, then said, “There is nothing.” He said, “Go again” seven times.

Young's Literal Translation
and saith unto his young man, 'Go up, I pray thee, look attentively the way of the sea;' and he goeth up and looketh attentively, and saith, 'There is nothing;' and he saith, 'Turn back,' seven times.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The LORD Sends Rain
42So Ahab went up to eat and drink. But Elijah climbed to the summit of Carmel, bent down on the ground, and put his face between his knees. 43“Go and look toward the sea,” he said to his servant. So the servant went and looked, and he said, “There is nothing there.” Seven times Elijah said, “Go back.” 44On the seventh time the servant reported, “There is a cloud as small as a man’s hand rising from the sea.” And Elijah replied, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’ ”…

Cross References
1 Kings 18:42
So Ahab went up to eat and drink. But Elijah climbed to the summit of Carmel, bent down on the ground, and put his face between his knees.

1 Kings 18:44
On the seventh time the servant reported, "There is a cloud as small as a man's hand rising from the sea." And Elijah replied, "Go and tell Ahab, 'Prepare your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.'"


Treasury of Scripture

And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times.

Go up

Psalm 5:3
My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.

Luke 18:1
And he spake a parable unto them to this end, that men ought always to pray, and not to faint;

Go again

Genesis 32:26
And he said, Let me go, for the day breaketh. And he said, I will not let thee go, except thou bless me.

Habakkuk 2:3
For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.

Luke 18:7
And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?

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1 Kings 18
1. In the extremity of famine Elijah, sent to Ahab, meets good Obadiah
9. Obadiah brings Ahab to Elijah
17. Elijah, reproving Ahab, by fire from heaven convinces Baal's prophets
41. Elijah, by prayer obtaining rain, follows Ahab to Jezreel














(43) Go again seven times.--From this delay of the answer to prayer Elijah's example became proverbial for intensity and perseverance in supplication (James 5:17). The contrast is remarkable between the immediate answer to his earlier prayer (see 1Kings 18:36-37) and the long delay here. The one was for the sake of the people; the other for some lesson--perhaps of humility and patience--to Elijah himself. When the answer does come, it fulfils itself speedily. The "little cloud" becomes all but immediately (for so "in the mean while" should be rendered) a storm blackening the whole heavens, borne by a hurricane from the west.

Verse 43. - And said to his servant [of whom we now hear for the first time. It is an old tradition that this was none other than the son of the Sareptan, who was afterwards known as the prophet Jonah (Jerome, Praef. in Jonam). See note on 1 Kings 17:24], Go up now, look toward [Heb. the way of] the sea. [It is a striking confirmation of the theory which identifies El Murahkah with the scene of Elijah's sacrifice that the sea, though not visible from the plateau itself, is from the crest of the hill, a few feet higher. Van de Velde writes, "On its west and northwest sides the view of the sea is quite intercepted by an adjacent height. That height may be ascended, however, in a few minutes and a full view of the sea obtained from the top." Similarly the latest authority, Mr. Condor: "The peak is a semi-isolated knoll with a cliff some forty feet high, looking southeast .... The sea is invisible, except from the summit, and thus it was only by climbing to the top of Carmel, from the plateau where the altar may have stood, that the prophet's servant could have seen the little cloud," etc.] And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again seven times. [Cf. Joshua 6:15-20; 2 Kings 5:14; Matthew 18:21; Psalm 119:164. The idea here is that of sufficiency, of completion, rather than, as elsewhere, of covenant. And yet it must be remembered that Elijah was only praying for what God had already promised to grant (ver. 1). This earnest prayer for rain under these circumstances suggests that the former prayer "that it might not rain" (James 5:17) had also been inspired of God. But it is worth considering whether Elijah's attitude was not one of reverent and assured expectation, as much as of prayer. When Rawlinson says that "the faithfulness and patience shown [by the servant] in executing this order without a murmur, imply devotedness of no common kind," he surely forgets that the drought had lasted for three years and a half, and that the servant had that day seen the fires of God descend at Elijah's prayer. It is inconceivable, under such circumstances, that any man could murmur.]

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
“Go
עֲלֵֽה־ (‘ă·lêh-)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 5927: To ascend, in, actively

and look
הַבֵּ֣ט (hab·bêṭ)
Verb - Hifil - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 5027: To scan, look intently at, to regard

toward
דֶּֽרֶךְ־ (de·reḵ-)
Noun - common singular construct
Strong's 1870: A road, a course of life, mode of action

the sea,”
יָ֔ם (yām)
Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 3220: A sea, the Mediterranean Sea, large river, an artifical basin

he said
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר (way·yō·mer)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

to
אֶֽל־ (’el-)
Preposition
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

his servant.
נַעֲר֗וֹ (na·‘ă·rōw)
Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 5288: A boy, lad, youth, retainer

So [the servant] went
וַיַּ֙עַל֙ (way·ya·‘al)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5927: To ascend, in, actively

and looked,
וַיַּבֵּ֔ט (way·yab·bêṭ)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 5027: To scan, look intently at, to regard

and he said,
וַיֹּ֖אמֶר (way·yō·mer)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

“[There is] nothing there.”
אֵ֣ין (’ên)
Adverb
Strong's 369: A non-entity, a negative particle

Seven
שֶׁ֥בַע (še·ḇa‘)
Number - feminine singular
Strong's 7651: Seven, seven times, a week, an indefinite number

times
פְּעָמִֽים׃ (pə·‘ā·mîm)
Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 6471: A beat, foot, anvil, occurrence

Elijah said,
וַיֹּ֕אמֶר (way·yō·mer)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

“Go back.”
שֻׁ֖ב (šuḇ)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 7725: To turn back, in, to retreat, again


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OT History: 1 Kings 18:43 He said to his servant Go up (1Ki iKi i Ki 1 Kg 1kg)
1 Kings 18:42
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