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| 1 Then said Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, unto Ahab, By the life of Yahweh, God of Israel, before whom I stand, there shall not, these two years, be either dew or rain,–save at the bidding of my word. |
And Elijah – Type of the true Church in the flesh--The Christ, Head and Body. B256; R5629:1, R5569:5, R5741:3, R5857:4; Q259:1
Said unto Ahab – Worldly system, to which this professed nominal church of Christ is united. R5741:6
Type of the Roman empire. R3408:3; B256
He reproved King Ahab, Jezebel and the ten tribes. R4730:3
The king doubtless considered this a vain boast. R4731:2
God of Israel liveth – Whom you seem to think is dead. R2326:1
Before whom I stand – Whose representative I am. R3400:1
True prophets of God are not boastful; they speak merely as divine mouthpieces. R5741:2
Not be dew nor rain – A declaration of a divine judgment. R2326:1
Intended to be corrective. R5741:2
A drouth which was a retribution of punishment upon Israel. R4730:6
The 3 � year drouth and resulting famine of 1260 days were prophetic of the 1260 years from 539 AD to 1799 AD, when there was a famine in the world for the hearing of the word of the Lord (Amos 8:11, 12) under Papal dominatio R5742:1, R5741:6, R5751:5, R234:6
The word for rain is that which refers to the principal rain, which comes in the fall of the year. R3400:2
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| 2 Then came the word of Yahweh unto him, saying: |
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| 3 Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward,–and hide thyself in the ravine of Cherith, which faceth the Jordan; |
And hide thyself – Keep his whereabouts unknown to the king. R3400:2
Representing the flight of the true Church into a condition of isolation during the three and one-half symbolic "times" of Papal supremacy. B256
Brook Cherith – On a mountainside, on the road leading from Jerusalem down to the Dead Sea, a lonely spot. R5741:2
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| 4 and it shall be that, of the torrent, shalt thou drink,–and, the ravens, have I commanded to sustain thee, there. |
Ravens to feed thee – Our Heavenly Father was quite able to use the ravens in supplying the needs of his servant, and we are told, "He careth for you" (1 Pet. 5:7); "My God shall supply all R3400:3,4
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| 5 So he went and did, according to the word of Yahweh,–yea he went and dwelt in the ravine of Cherith, which faceth the Jordan. |
Dwelt by the brook – For about two years. R2326:2
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| 6 And, the ravens, used to bring him bread and flesh, in the morning, and bread and flesh, in the evening,–and, of the torrent, used he to drink. |
Ravens – Exhibit not only extraordinary intelligence, but sometimes also sympathy. R2326:2
The food for Elijah was probably stolen from the bazaars of Jerusalem or Jericho. R2326:3
Bread and flesh – Typifying the Lord's care of the true Church during the time she was hiding from Papacy. B256
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| 7 But it came to pass, at the end of [certain] days, that the torrent dried up,–because there had been no rain in the land. |
No rain in the land – Typifying the lack of truth the living water, during the 3 ½ symbolic "times" of papal persecution. B256
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| 8 Then came the word of Yahweh unto him, saying– |
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| 9 Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there,–Lo! I have commanded, there, a widow woman, to sustain thee. |
Zarephath – Outside the kingdom of Israel. R3400:5
A widow woman – A godly Gentile who had respect to Jehovah. R3400:5, R2326:4
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| 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath, and, when he came to the entrance of the city, lo! there, a widow woman gathering sticks,–and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. |
A little water – The gift of water to the thirsty is regarded as a sacred duty. R2326:4
The streams of that vicinity, from the mountains of Lebanon, had evidently not completely dried up. R3400:5
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| 11 And, as she went to fetch it, he called to her and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread, in thy hand. |
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| 12 And she said–By the life of Yahweh, thy God, verily I have not a cake, only a handful of meal in the jar, and a little oil in the cruse,–and lo! I have been gathering a couple of sticks, so I shall go in and make it ready for me and for my son, that we may eat it–and die! |
An handful of meal – Even so, small amounts of consecrated funds can greatly spread the gospel. R2549:5
Eat It, and die – What she presumed would be her last meal. Your meal and oil may run low, but God knoweth it and will provide with spiritual blessings accompanying, if you will trust him. R2326:5, R2021:4
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| 13 And Elijah said unto her–Do not fear, go in–make ready according to thy word,–howbeit, make me thereof a little cake, first, and bring it out to me, and, for thyself and thy son, make ready, afterwards. |
Fear not – This was a severe test to the woman's faith and generosity. R4731:4
A little cake first – If the woman had the faith necessary to obey she would be esteemed worthy of the Lord's assistance through the prophet. The Lord tests our faith, too. R2326:5, R3400:6
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| 14 For, thus, saith Yahweh, God of Israel, The jar of meal, shall not waste, and, the cruse of oil, shall not fail,–until the day that Yahweh giveth rain upon the face of the ground. |
Barrel of meal – Symbol of the bread of truth, of which our supply is continued from day to day. R2326:6
Neither shall ... oil fail – You will increase your own store of spiritual food as you give it to others. CR302:3
Representing the holy Spirit, which helps to make the truth nourishing and profitable to us. R2326:6
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| 15 So she went and made ready, according to the word of Elijah,–and did eat, she, and he, and her house, [certain] days: |
She went and did – She had faith enough to share her little remnant with him, resulting in a miracle. R5741:3
A lesson that, even in our extremities, we should exercise sympathy toward others. R4731:5
Is thy cruse of comfort failing? Rise and share it with another. R2326:6*
Did eat many days – The Lord's people have great need to cultivate a large generosity, not only of thought, but of deed. R2326:4, R3400:6
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| 16 The jar of meal, did not waste,–and, the cruse of oil, did not fail,–according to the word of Yahweh, which he spake through Elijah. |
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| 17 And it came to pass, after these things, that the son of the woman, owner of the house, fell sick,–yea it came to pass that his sickness was very severe, until no, breath, was left in him. |
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| 18 Then said she unto Elijah, What have I in common with thee, O man of God? Hast thou come unto me, to call to remembrance mine iniquity, and to cause the death of my son? |
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| 19 And he said unto her–Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him unto the upper room, where, he, was staying, and laid him upon his own bed. |
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| 20 Then cried he unto Yahweh, and said,–O Yahweh, my God! Even upon the widow with whom I am sojourning, hast thou brought misfortune by causing the death of her son? |
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| 21 And he stretched himself out upon the boy, three times, and cried unto Yahweh, and said,–O Yahweh, my God! Let the life of this boy, I pray thee, come again within him. |
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| 22 And Yahweh hearkened unto the voice of Elijah,–and the life of the boy came again within him, and he lived. |
And the soul – Nephesh, being, life, existence. R366:6
And he revived – Awakening, not resurrection, of the dead. R2618:2, R360:2; F704
Thus foreshadowing the Times of Restitution. (Isa. 25:6-9) R4758:5, R62:1*; HG336:1
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| 23 Then Elijah took the boy, and carried him down out of the upper room, into the house, and gave him to his mother,–and Elijah said, See! thy son liveth. |
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| 24 And the woman said unto Elijah, Now, then I know, that, a man of God, thou art,–and that, the word of Yahweh, is in thy mouth, of a truth. |
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