11:4a

And what was the divine reply to him?: This is a rhetorical question. Paul answered this question in 11:4b–c. Some languages must translate this as a statement. For example:

God replied to him like/with this:

In Greek, this is a historical present. In many languages the normal way of referring to a past event must be used, which is what the Berean Standard Bible does here. Here is another way to translate this:

what did God say/reply to him?

the divine reply: The Greek is literally “the divine-answer.” Here it refers to the words God spoke in response to Elijah’s complaint. For example:

the divine response (New American Standard Bible)
-or-
God’s answer (New International Version)

11:4b

I have reserved for Myself seven thousand men: Here the words reserved for Myself refers to holding a part/portion of something for future use. For example, a farmer eats or sells most of his grain but holds back some grain for next year’s planting. Here God allowed many Israelites to worship the false god Baal, but caused some of the Israelites to remain faithful to him. Here are other ways to translate this clause:

I have kept for myself (English Standard Version)
-or-
I have separated out seven thousand men ⌊to remain⌋ my people
-or-
I have prevented seven thousand men ⌊from falling away⌋ ⌊and they remain faithful⌋ to me

seven thousand men: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as men usually refers to adult human males. That is probably its meaning here.

seven thousand: Some languages do not have large numbers like thousand. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Use numerals. For example:

7,000 (God’s Word)

• Use the major language word. For example:

seven tausen

11:4c

have not bowed the knee to Baal: The phrase bowed the knee means “kneel.” This action indicates submitting to the person or god before whom they bow. It implies honoring that person or god and is a common action used in worship. That is the implied meaning here. For example:

have not knelt to worship Baal (God’s Word)

In some languages kneeling has a different meaning. If that is true in your language, you may want to:

• Use the action in your language that implies worship. For example:

have not bowed-at-the-waist ⌊in worship⌋ to Baal

• Translate the implied meaning without any explicit action. For example:

have not worshiped Baal (Contemporary English Version)

Baal: This word means “lord” in the Canaanite languages of the peoples living near Israel. It was often used like a name for the chief god of the Canaanite peoples. To the Jews who followed Yahweh, the God of Israel, Baal was a false god. In some languages this name will need to be explained. You may want to:

• Explain it in your translation. For example:

the false god Baal (Good News Translation)

• Explain it in a footnote. Here is an example footnote:

This name refers to the chief ⌊false⌋ god of the peoples living near Israel.

General Comment on 11:4b–c

These words are a quote of 1 Kings 19:18. If you indicate the location of quotes from the Old Testament with cross-references, you may want to do so here.

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