Berean Study Bible | New Living Translation |
1Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was among the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As surely as the LORD lives—the God of Israel before whom I stand—there will be neither dew nor rain in these years except at my word!” | 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 a revelation from the LORD came to Elijah: | 2Then the LORD said to Elijah, |
3“Leave here, turn eastward, and hide yourself by the Brook of Cherith, east of the Jordan. | 3“Go to the east and hide by Kerith Brook, near where it enters the Jordan River. |
4And you are to drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” | 4Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food.” |
5So Elijah did what the LORD had told him, and he went and lived by the Brook of Cherith, east of the Jordan. | 5So Elijah did as the LORD told him and camped beside Kerith Brook, east of the Jordan. |
6The ravens would bring him bread and meat in the morning and evening, and he would drink from the brook. | 6The ravens brought him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he drank from the brook. |
7Some time later, however, the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land. | 7But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land. The Widow at Zarephath |
8Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah: | 8Then the LORD said to Elijah, |
9“Get up and go to Zarephath of Sidon, and stay there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” | 9“Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there to feed you.” |
10So Elijah got up and went to Zarephath. When he arrived at the city gate, there was a widow gathering sticks. Elijah called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, so that I may drink.” | 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?” |
11And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a piece of bread.” | 11As she was going to get it, he called to her, “Bring me a bite of bread, too.” |
12But she replied, “As surely as the LORD your God lives, I have no bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. Look, I am gathering a couple of sticks to take home and prepare a meal for myself and my son, so that we may eat it and die.” | 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.” |
13“Do not be afraid,” Elijah said to her. “Go and do as you have said. But first make me a small cake of bread from what you have, and bring it out to me. Afterward, make some for yourself and your son, | 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: ‘The jar of flour will not be exhausted and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD sends rain upon the face of the earth.’ ” | 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 went and did according to the word of Elijah, and there was food every day for Elijah and the woman and her household. | 15So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days. |
16The jar of flour was not exhausted and the jug of oil did not run dry, according to the word that the LORD had spoken through Elijah. | 16There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the LORD had promised through Elijah. |
17Later, the son of the woman who owned the house became ill, and his sickness grew worse and worse, until no breath remained in him. | 17Some time later the woman’s son became sick. He grew worse and worse, and finally he died. |
18“O man of God,” said the woman to Elijah, “what have you done to me? Have you come to remind me of my iniquity and cause the death of my son?” | 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 said to her, “Give me your son.” So he took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his own bed. | 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 he cried out to the LORD, “O LORD my God, have You also brought tragedy on this widow who has opened her home to me, by causing her son to die?” | 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?” |
21Then he stretched himself out over the child three times and cried out to the LORD, “O LORD my God, please let this boy’s life return to him!” | 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.” |
22And the LORD listened to the voice of Elijah, and the child’s life returned to him, and he lived. | 22The LORD heard Elijah’s prayer, and the life of the child returned, and he revived! |
23Then Elijah took the child, brought him down from the upper room into the house, and gave him to his mother. “Look, your son is alive,” Elijah declared. | 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 said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD from your mouth is truth.” | 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.” |
|