I King 17:1-18:46
by Bob Conar, Bible Study created April 2001
A gentleman in our Bible Study Group talked a few weeks ago about Elijah prophesying the drought before wicked King Ahab. The reference for this is 1 Kings 17:1, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.” This drought lasted 3 ½ years.
This gentleman also talked about the major confrontation Elijah had with King Ahab and his 400 false prophets on Mt. Carmel. This story is in 1 Kings 18.
I want to talk about a two or three stories which are sandwiched between the prophesy of drought in 1 Kings 17:1 and the showdown on Mt. Carmel in chapter 18.
After being cared for by the Lord by a brook in the Kerith Ravine (we’ll come back to this), God sent Elijah to a widow woman in Zarephath. 1 Kings 17:8-9, “Then the word of the LORD came to him: Go at once to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there. I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food.”
First, I want to look at the widow woman. We know from verse 9 above, that God had spoken to her, and she knew Elijah was coming, and she knew she was to supply him with food. Many scholars think Israel was perhaps into the first year of the drought. Let’s join the story the story when the two came upon each other at the town gate.
1 Kings 17:10-12, “So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, ‘Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?’ As she was going to get it, he called, ‘And bring me, please, a piece of bread.’ ‘As surely as the LORD your God lives,’ she replied, ‘I don't have any bread-- only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it-- and die.’”
There were still 2 ½ years of the drought remaining and the widow woman is already preparing to give up and die. This shows how severe the drought was.
But, let’s see what happens. 1 Kings 17:13-14, “Elijah said to her, ‘Don't be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD gives rain on the land.’”
What if she had not been obedient to the Lord? Surely such a boast as this from Elijah had never come to pass in Israel. The practical thing, the logical thing for her to have done would have been to prepare the cake for her and her son, eat, and die.
Because she was obedient to the Lord, the Lord sustained her with oil and flour through the remainder of the drought. Many scholars think God was preparing her for this crisis, this challenge. Her obedience during her crisis of drought resulted in a miraculous bounty from God. She would have missed this miracle had she been disobedient.
But, that’s not all. In 1 Kings 17:17-24, her son became sick and died while Elijah was staying with them. In despair, she cried out to Elijah in verse 18, “What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?” The Scripture goes on to give the account of Elijah, through God’s power, raising her son from the dead! Her obedience in the earlier situation had prepared her for this larger crisis.
Now, let’s look at Elijah. Following his prophesy of drought to King Ahab, God told him he needed to leave, perhaps for fear of his life. 1 Kings 17:2-6, “Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah: ‘Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. You will drink from the brook, and I have ordered the ravens to feed you there.’ So he did what the LORD had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there. The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.” Because of his obedience in prophesying the Word of the Lord before King Ahab, the Lord sustained him with His own hand for a period of time.
1 Kings 17:7, “Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land.” Now, Elijah is out of food and water. What will he do now? Don’t you suppose God had prepared him for this next crisis by demonstrating His sustaining power with the provision of food and water? His next, and even larger crisis is just on the horizon.
As we read earlier in 1 Kings 17:8-9, God was sending Elijah to the widow woman, telling Elijah that He (God) has already spoken to the woman.
Let me place myself into this scenario. I go, and observe the woman’s crises, her depravity. I see that she is destitute. So, because my belly is growling, am I sure the Lord has sent me to ask her for her last meal? Or, is it my want for food, myself, which is causing me to ask?
Because of their obedience, God sustains Elijah, the widow woman, and her son. And, like the widow woman, God was preparing Elijah for a larger challenge.
1 Kings 17:17-18. We talked about this earlier. Her son became sick and died. Listen to what she said to Elijah. “What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?” Again, let me place myself in this situation. Imagine how I felt. I have been living off this widow woman for some time now. Then her son dies, and she is blaming me!
But, Elijah trusts and obeys God. Through Elijah, God raised the boy from the dead! Again, obedience in an earlier challenge had prepared Elijah for this one. See what the widow woman says. 1 Kings 17:24, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is the truth.” Elijah had better be thankful for this opportunity. A greater challenge is coming!
The showdown on Mt. Carmel. Consider Elijah’s opposition; the 400 false prophets, King Ahab himself, and all the multitude of other people who must have been present. Yet, Elijah’s faithfulness in the earlier crises had prepared him for this great challenge. He fully trusted in God, and all those in attendance witnessed a magnificent miracle. Hear what the people said following the miracle, “When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, ‘The LORD-- he is God! The LORD-- he is God!’” 1 Kings 18:39.
What crises are you facing? What challenges lay before you? What is the possibility that God may be intending to use these situations to prepare you for greater things? There may be bigger trials ahead. And there may be bigger blessings. I can’t say for sure what paths the Lord will lead you in. We do know that the steps of a righteous man are ordered by the Lord. The Lord has a plan for our lives. We must be faithful in smaller situations, so we will be prepared for the larger ones. All God desires to accomplish through the trials He sets before us, is for us to trust Him with all our heart. We can depend on His faithfulness.
Had the widow woman failed the test of giving Elijah what appeared to be her last bit of food, she would have missed God’s abundant bounty, and even more, she would have missed the miracle of her son being raised from the dead. Had Elijah failed to proclaim the word of the Lord regarding the drought, he would have missed God’s provision from the ravens. He would have missed the provision of the abundant oil and flour. He would have missed the joy of seeing the widow woman’s son be raised. And, he would surely have missed the major opportunity of demonstrating God’s power before such a large audience on Mt. Carmel.
Will God do bigger things through you? Try Him and see!
The Scripture references.
1 Kings 17
1) Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, "As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word."
2) Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah:
3) "Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan.
4) "You will drink from the brook, and I have ordered the ravens to feed you there."
5) So he did what the LORD had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordon, and stayed there.
6) The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.
7) Some time later the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land.
8) Then the word of the LORD came to him:
9) "Go at once to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there. I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food."
10) So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, "Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?"
11) As she was going to get it, he called, "And bring me, please, a piece of bread."
12) "As surely as the LORD your God lives," she replied, "I don't have any bread-- only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it-- and die."
13) Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son.
14) For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: 'The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD gives rain on the land.'"
15) She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family.
16) For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the LORD spoken by Elijah.
17) Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing.
18) She said to Elijah, "What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?"
19) "Give me your son," Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed.
20) Then he cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, have you brought tragedy also upon this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die?"
21) Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried to the LORD, "O LORD my God, let this boy's life return to him!"
22) The LORD heard Elijah's cry, and the boy's life returned to him, and he lived.
23) Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, "Look, your son is alive!"
24) Then the woman said to Elijah, "Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is the truth."
1 Kings 18
1) After a long time, in the third year, the word of the LORD came to Elijah: "Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain on the land."
2) So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samaria,
3) and Ahab had summoned Obadiah, who was in charge of his palace. (Obadiah was a devout believer in the LORD.
4) While Jezebel was killing off the LORD's prophets, Obadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them in two caves, fifty in each, and had supplied them with food and water.)
5) Ahab had said to Obadiah, "Go through the land to all the springs and valleys. Maybe we can find some grass to keep the horses and mules alive so we will not have to kill any of our animals."
6) So they divided the land they were to cover, Ahab going in one direction and Obadiah in another.
7) As Obadiah was walking along, Elijah met him. Obadiah recognized him, bowed down to the ground, and said, "Is it really you, my lord Elijah?"
8) Yes," he replied. "Go tell your master, 'Elijah is here.'"
9) "What have I done wrong," asked Obadiah, "that you are handing your servant over to Ahab to be put to death?
10) As surely as the LORD your God lives, there is not a nation or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to look for you. And whenever a nation or kingdom claimed you were not there, he made them swear they could not find you.
11) But now you tell me to go to my master and say, 'Elijah is here.'
12) I don't know where the Spirit of the LORD may carry you when I leave you. If I go and tell Ahab and he doesn't find you, he will kill me. Yet I your servant have worshiped the LORD since my youth.
13) Haven't you heard, my lord, what I did while Jezebel was killing the prophets of the LORD? I hid a hundred of the LORD's prophets in two caves, fifty in each, and supplied them with food and water.
14) And now you tell me to go to my master and say, 'Elijah is here.' He will kill me!
15) Elijah said, "As the LORD Almighty lives, whom I serve, I will surely present myself to Ahab today.
16) So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him, and Ahab went to meet Elijah.
17) When he saw Elijah, he said to him, "Is that you, you troubler of Israel?"
18) "I have not made trouble for Israel", Elijah replied. "But you and your father's family have. You have abandoned the LORD's commands and have followed the Baals.
19) "Now summon the people from all over Israel to meet me on Mount Carmel. And bring the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel's table."
20) So Ahab sent word throughout all Israel and assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel.
21) Elijah went before the people and said, "How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him." But the people said nothing.
22) Then Elijah said to them, "I am the only one of the LORD's prophets left, but Baal has four hundred and fifty prophets.
23) Get two bulls for us. Let them choose one for themselves, and let them cut it into pieces and put it on the wood but not set fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood but not set fire to it.
24) Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by fire-- he is God." Then all the people said, "What you say is good."
25) Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose one of the bulls and prepare it first, since there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god, but do not light the fire."
26) So they took the bull given them and prepared it. Then they called on the name of Baal from morning till noon. "O Baal, answer us!" they shouted. But there was no response; no one answered. And they danced around the altar they had made.
27) At noon Elijah began to taunt them. "Shout louder!" he said. "Surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or busy, or traveling. Maybe he is sleeping and must be awakened."
28) So they shouted louder and slashed themselves with swords and spears, as was their custom, until their blood flowed.
29) Midday passed, and they continued their frantic prophesying until the time for the evening sacrifice. But there was no response, no one answered, no one paid attention.
30) Then Elijah said to all the people, "Come here to me." They came to him, and he repaired the altar of the LORD, which was in ruins.
31) Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes descended from Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD had come, saying, "Your name shall be Israel."
32) With the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD, and he dug a trench around it large enough to hold two seahs of seed.
33) He arranged the wood, cut the bull into pieces and laid it on the wood. Then he said to them, "Fill four large jars with water and pour it on the offering and on the wood."
34) "Do it again," he said, and they did it again. "Do it a third time," he ordered, and they did it the third time.
35) The water ran down around the altar and even filled the trench.
36) At the time of sacrifice, the prophet Elijah stepped forward and prayed: "O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and have done all these things at your command.
37) Answer me, O LORD, answer me, so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God, and that you are turning their hearts back again."
38) Then the fire of the LORD fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.
39) When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, "The LORD-- he is God! The LORD-- he is God!"
40) Then Elijah commanded them, "Seize the prophets of Baal. Don't let anyone get away!" They seized them, and Elijah had them brought down to the Kishon Valley and slaughtered there.
41) And Elijah said to Ahab, "Go, eat and drink, for there is the sound of a heavy rain."
42) So Ahab went off to eat and drink, but Elijah climbed to the top of Carmel, bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees.
43) "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."
44) The seventh time the servant reported, "A cloud as small as a man's hand is rising from the sea." So Elijah said, "Go and tell Ahab, 'Hitch up your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.'"
45) Meanwhile, the sky grew black with clouds, the wind rose, a heavy rain came on and Ahab rode off to Jezreel.
46) The power of the LORD came upon Elijah and, tucking his cloak into his belt, he ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.
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May God speak to your heart! Bob Conar