1 Kings 17

Elijah Predicts a Drought

1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of s Tishbe 1 in Gilead, said to Ahab, t "As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, u before whom I stand, v there 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 w Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you." 10 So he arose and went to w Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there x gathering 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, t "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.

Elijah Raises the Widow's Son

17 After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill. And his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18 And she said to Elijah, y "What have you against me, O z man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance and to cause the death of my son!" 19 And he said to her, "Give me your son." And he took him from her arms and carried him up into the upper chamber where he lodged, and laid him on his own bed. 20 And he cried to the Lord, "O Lord my God, have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?" 21 a Then he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to the Lord, "O Lord my God, let this child's life 2 come into him again." 22 And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child came into him again, and b he revived. 23 And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house and delivered him to his mother. And Elijah said, "See, your son lives." 24 And the woman said to Elijah, c "Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth."

  1. Cross References
    Judges 12:4
    Then Jephthah gathered all the men of Gilead and fought with Ephraim. And the men of Gilead struck Ephraim, because they said, "You are fugitives of Ephraim, you Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim and Manasseh.
  2. Cross References
    1 Kings 18:10
    As the Lord your God lives, there is no nation ...
    1 Kings 18:15
    And Elijah said, "As the Lord of hosts lives, b...
    1 Kings 22:14
    But Micaiah said, "As the Lord lives, what the ...
    2 Kings 3:14
    And Elisha said, "As the Lord of hosts lives, b...
    2 Kings 5:16
    But he said, "As the Lord lives, before whom I ...
    Ruth 3:13
    Remain tonight, and in the morning, if he will ...
  3. Cross References
    1 Kings 18:15
    And Elijah said, "As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.
    Deuteronomy 10:8
    At that time the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord to stand before the Lord to minister to him and to bless in his name, to this day.
  4. Cross References
    Luke 4:25
    But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land.
    James 5:17
    Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth.
    1 Kings 18:1
    After many days the word of the Lord came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, "Go, show yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the earth.
  5. Cross References
    Obadiah 1:20
    The exiles of this host of the people of Israel shall possess the land of the Canaanites as far as Zarephath, and the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad shall possess the cities of the Negeb.
    Luke 4:26
    And Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.
  6. Cross References
    1 Kings 17:9
    "Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you."
  7. Cross References
    Numbers 15:32 - 33
    While the people of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day.
  8. Cross References
    1 Kings 17:1
    Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, "As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.
  9. Cross References
    Luke 4:34
    "Ha! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are - the Holy One of God."
    Luke 5:8
    But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.
  10. Cross References
    Deuteronomy 33:1
    This is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the people of Israel before his death.
  11. Cross References
    2 Kings 4:34 - 35
    Then he went up and lay on the child, putting his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, and his hands on his hands. And as he stretched himself upon him, the flesh of the child became warm.
    Acts 20:10
    But Paul went down and bent over him, and taking him in his arms, said, "Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.
  12. Cross References
    Hebrews 11:35
    Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life.
  13. Cross References
    John 3:2
    This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.
English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers.
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