20240923

a lesson in faith

1 Kings 17:1-24 (JDV)

1 Kings 17:1 Elijah the Tishbite, from the Gilead settlers, said to Ahab, “As Yahveh God of Israel lives, in whose presence I stand, there will be no dew or rain during these years except by my command!”
1 Kings 17:2 Then the word of Yahveh came to him:
1 Kings 17:3 “Leave here, turn eastward, and hide at the Wadi Cherith where it enters the Jordan.
1 Kings 17:4 You are to drink from the wadi. I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there.”
1 Kings 17:5 So he proceeded to do what Yahveh commanded. Elijah left and lived at the Wadi Cherith where it enters the Jordan.
1 Kings 17:6 The ravens kept bringing him bread and meat in the morning and in the evening, and he would drink from the wadi.
1 Kings 17:7 After a while, the wadi dried up because there had been no rain in the land.
1 Kings 17:8 Then the word of Yahveh came to him:
1 Kings 17:9 “Get up, go to Zarephath that belongs to Sidon and stay there. Look, I have commanded a woman who is a widow to provide for you there.”
1 Kings 17:10 So Elijah got up and went to Zarephath. When he arrived at the city gate, there was a widow gathering wood. Elijah called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup and let me drink.”
1 Kings 17:11 As she went to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a piece of bread in your hand.”
1 Kings 17:12 But she said, “As Yahveh your God lives, I don’t have anything baked– only a handful of flour in the jar and a bit of oil in the jug. Just now, I am gathering a couple of sticks in order to go prepare it for myself and my son so we can eat it and die.”
1 Kings 17:13 Then Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid; go and do as you have said. But first make me a small loaf from it and bring it out to me. Afterward, you may make some for yourself and your son,
1 Kings 17:14 for this is what Yahveh God of Israel says, ‘The flour jar will not become empty and the oil jug will not run dry until the day Yahveh sends rain on the surface of the land.'”
1 Kings 17:15 So she proceeded to do according to the word of Elijah. Then the woman, Elijah, and her household ate for many days.
1 Kings 17:16 The flour jar did not become empty, and the oil jug did not run dry, according to the word of Yahveh he had spoken through Elijah.
1 Kings 17:17 After this, the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. His illness got worse until he stopped breathing.
1 Kings 17:18 She said to Elijah, “Man of God, why are you here? Have you come to call attention to my iniquity so that my son is put to death?”
1 Kings 17:19 But Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.” So he took him from her arms, brought him up to the upstairs room where he was staying, and laid him on his own bed.
1 Kings 17:20 Then he cried out to Yahveh and said, “Lord my God, have you also brought tragedy on the widow I am staying with by killing her son?”
1 Kings 17:21 Then he stretched himself out over the boy three times. He cried out to Yahveh and said, “Yahveh my God, please let this boy’s throat be restored inside him!”
1 Kings 17:22 And Yahveh listened to Elijah’s voice, and the boy’s throat was restored inside him, and he lived.
1 Kings 17:23 Then Elijah took the boy, brought him down from the upstairs room into the house, and gave him to his mother. Elijah said, “Look, your son is alive.”
1 Kings 17:24 Then the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know you are a man of God and Yahveh’s word from your mouth is true.”

a lesson in faith

Both Elijah and the widow of Zarephath learn the same lesson. God will miraculously provide if the need exists, but he might also occasionally place his children in a position where their faith is stretched. He does this for his glory. Our business is to cooperate with his plan, even when we cannot see how he is working out that plan.

LORD, we submit to your stretching.

For an explanation of my translation of verses 21-22, see: https://www.afterlife.co.nz/2023/08/a-resurrection-in-zarephath/