1 Kings 17
17
Elijah Fed by Ravens
1Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab, “As surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives—the God I serve—there will be no dew or rain during the next few years until I give the word!”
2Then the Lord said to Elijah, 3“Go to the east and hide by Kerith Brook, near where it enters the Jordan River. 4Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food.”
5So Elijah did as the Lord told him and camped beside Kerith Brook, east of the Jordan. 6The ravens brought him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he drank from the brook. 7But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land.
The Widow at Zarephath
8Then the Lord said to Elijah, 9“Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there to feed you.”
10So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her, “Would you please bring me a little water in a cup?” 11As she was going to get it, he called to her, “Bring me a bite of bread, too.”
12But she said, “I swear by the Lord your God that I don’t have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die.”
13But Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid! Go ahead and do just what you’ve said, but make a little bread for me first. Then use what’s left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son. 14For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There will always be flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the Lord sends rain and the crops grow again!”
15So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days. 16There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.
17Some time later the woman’s son became sick. He grew worse and worse, and finally he died. 18Then she said to Elijah, “O man of God, what have you done to me? Have you come here to point out my sins and kill my son?”
19But Elijah replied, “Give me your son.” And he took the child’s body from her arms, carried him up the stairs to the room where he was staying, and laid the body on his bed. 20Then Elijah cried out to the Lord, “O Lord my God, why have you brought tragedy to this widow who has opened her home to me, causing her son to die?”
21And he stretched himself out over the child three times and cried out to the Lord, “O Lord my God, please let this child’s life return to him.” 22The Lord heard Elijah’s prayer, and the life of the child returned, and he revived! 23Then Elijah brought him down from the upper room and gave him to his mother. “Look!” he said. “Your son is alive!”
24Then the woman told Elijah, “Now I know for sure that you are a man of God, and that the Lord truly speaks through you.”
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1 Kings 17: NLT
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1 Kings 17
17
Elijah Stops the Rain
1Now Elijah the Tishbite was a prophet from the settlers in Gilead. “I serve the Lord, the God of Israel,” Elijah said to Ahab. “As surely as the Lord lives, no rain or dew will fall during the next few years unless I command it.”
2Then the Lord spoke his word to Elijah: 3“Leave this place and go east and hide near Kerith Ravine east of the Jordan River. 4You may drink from the stream, and I have commanded ravens to bring you food there.” 5So Elijah did what the Lord said; he went to Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and lived there. 6The birds brought Elijah bread and meat every morning and evening, and he drank water from the stream.
7After a while the stream dried up because there was no rain. 8Then the Lord spoke his word to Elijah, 9“Go to Zarephath in Sidon and live there. I have commanded a widow there to take care of you.”
10So Elijah went to Zarephath. When he reached the town gate, he saw a widow gathering wood for a fire. Elijah asked her, “Would you bring me a little water in a cup so I may have a drink?” 11As she was going to get his water, Elijah said, “Please bring me a piece of bread, too.”
12The woman answered, “As surely as the Lord your God lives, I have no bread. I have only a handful of flour in a jar and only a little olive oil in a jug. I came here to gather some wood so I could go home and cook our last meal. My son and I will eat it and then die from hunger.”
13“Don’t worry,” Elijah said to her. “Go home and cook your food as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread from the flour you have, and bring it to me. Then cook something for yourself and your son. 14The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘That jar of flour will never be empty, and the jug will always have oil in it, until the day the Lord sends rain to the land.’ ”
15So the woman went home and did what Elijah told her to do. And the woman and her son and Elijah had enough food every day. 16The jar of flour and the jug of oil were never empty, just as the Lord, through Elijah, had promised.
Elijah Brings a Boy Back to Life
17Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became sick. He grew worse and worse and finally stopped breathing. 18The woman said to Elijah, “Man of God, what have you done to me? Did you come here to remind me of my sin and to kill my son?”
19Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.” Elijah took the boy from her, carried him upstairs, and laid him on the bed in the room where he was staying. 20Then he prayed to the Lord: “Lord my God, this widow is letting me stay in her house. Why have you done this terrible thing to her and caused her son to die?” 21Then Elijah lay on top of the boy three times. He prayed to the Lord, “Lord my God, let this boy live again!”
22The Lord answered Elijah’s prayer; the boy began breathing again and was alive. 23Elijah carried the boy downstairs and gave him to his mother and said, “See! Your son is alive!”
24“Now I know you really are a man from God,” the woman said to Elijah. “I know that the Lord truly speaks through you!”
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