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1 Kings 17:1-16

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Elijah Predicts a Drought

1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of 1Tishbe[a] in Gilead, said to Ahab, 2"As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, 3before whom I stand, 4there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word."
2 And the word of the LORD came to him:
3 "Depart from here and turn eastward and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is east of the Jordan.
4 You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there."
5 So he went and did according to the word of the LORD. He went and lived by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan.
6 And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.
7 And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

The Widow of Zarephath

8 Then the word of the LORD came to him,
9 "Arise, go to 5Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you."
10 So he arose and went to 6Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there 7gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, "Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink."
11 And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, "Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand."
12 And she said, 8"As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. And now I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it and die."
13 And Elijah said to her, "Do not fear; go and do as you have said. But first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make something for yourself and your son.
14 For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, 'The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty, until the day that the LORD sends rain upon the earth.'"
15 And she went and did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days.
16 The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.
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1 Kings 17:1-16 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 17

This chapter begins with a prophecy of Elijah, that there should be want of rain for some years to come, and he is directed to go first to the brook Cherith, where he should be fed by ravens, 1Ki 17:1-7, and afterwards he is sent to a widow at Zarephath, where he, she, and her son, were supported for a considerable time with a handful of meal, and a little oil in a cruse miraculously increased, 1Ki 17:8-16, whose son falling sick and dying, he restored to life, 1Ki 17:17-24.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 8

  • 1. [Judges 12:4]
  • 2. 1 Kings 18:10, 15; 1 Kings 22:14; 2 Kings 3:14; 2 Kings 5:16; See Ruth 3:13
  • 3. 1 Kings 18:15; [Deuteronomy 10:8]
  • 4. Luke 4:25; James 5:17; [1 Kings 18:1]
  • 5. Obadiah 20; Luke 4:26
  • 6. [See ver. 9 above]
  • 7. Numbers 15:32, 33
  • 8. [See ver. 1 above]

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Septuagint; Hebrew of the settlers
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.