<< 1 Kings 17: Elijah and the Years of Famine >>

 AFTER Solomon died, the land of Canaan was divided into two kingdoms, Israel in the north and Judah in the south. Now and then there was a good king who  worshipped and obeyed the Lord, but most of the kings in both kingdoms were evil, and worshipped idols. The kingdoms were often at war. Still the Lord sent prophets to warn and teach the people.

When Omri was king of Israel he bought the hill of Samaria northwest of Shechem, and built a new capital for the kingdom. It is a broad-topped hill, and parts of a colonnade are still standing, where you have a fine view away to the Mediterranean. This was the capital city when Ahab the son of Omri became king. He was a wicked king, and his wife Jezebel, a daughter of the king of Zidon, led the people away from the Lord to worship Baal the sun-god, and the goddess Ashtoreth, whom the Zidonians worshipped. The "groves" were wooden images of the goddess.

This was the state of Israel when the Lord sent the prophet Elijah to warn the people and call them back to Him. He spoke as boldly as John the Baptist did years afterward. And like John his hair was long and he wore a leather girdle. Elijah is called the Tishbite. It is not sure where the town was in which he was born, but he was living in Gilead beyond Jordan.

The Lord sent the prophet to tell Ahab that there would be a drought and famine because the people were disobedient. And the famine came, and  lasted   three   years and  six months. In the meantime Elijah was cared for by the Lord. He was hidden from Ahab, who would have killed him, and was fed.

First he was sent by the Lord to the brook Cherith "that is before Jordan." It was some deep, rough gorge down which a torrent rushed when there was rain, and in which a little water still lingered. The deep gorge of the Kelt opens from the hills near Jericho. Perhaps this was the Cherith, but more likely it was some gorge like this, on the eastern side of Jordan. Here Elijah stayed while there was still water in the brook, and he was fed morning and evening by the ravens. Some think the word means Arabs, but in any case they were the Lord's servants caring for the prophet.

When the brook dried up, the Lord sent Elijah to Zarephath a city of Zidon. It was on the seashore, at the point where the beach between Tyre and Zidon reaches out furthest into the sea. You will learn, as you read the story, how Elijah was cared for there, when they would have killed him in his own country. By and by when the Lord was rejected by His own people, He reminded them how it had been with Elijah.

Do you want to hear the story?

 And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land. And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.

And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth. And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah. And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him. And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?  And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed. And he cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?   And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him again. And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth. And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth.---1 Kings XVII.

Author: William L. Worcester 1904

Spiritual Correspondences

Worship of Baal >> Love of self and evil pleasure

Jezebel >> Love of self and evil pleasure

Rain and dew >> Truth from the Lord

Drought >> Love of self and evil close mind to all perception of Truth and Heaven

Ravens >> Simple ignorant people, ready to receive the Lord and serve him according to their power

Widow with her very little oil and meal >> A spirit conscious of its need and its destitution of the bread of Heaven

She cared for the Lord before caring for herself >> Her needs are continually satisfied by the spirit of the Lord

Spiritual Meaning

1KINGS XVII

1And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
 
1. The Word of the Lord,as to the acknowledgment that He is Divine Truth united to Divine Good, leading the souls of men drawing them to Himself, and dwelling in them; and also as accomnlodated to those who are in the beginning of regeneration, --is opposed to the vastated church, testifying that the Lord is Life Itself; that all truth, or the whole Word, is from Him; and that, in its state of vastation, the church cannot receive either interior truth with its peace and innocence, or exterior truth.

 2And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
 
 2. Consequently there is perception from the Lord with those who acknowledge the Word, that
 
 3Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
 
 3. The truth is hated by the vastated church and must therefore be concealed in an obscure state of love to the Lord, among apparent truths or falsities, drawn from the external things of the church and of the Word;
 
 4And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
 
 4. And that those who are in this state of good and truth, imbibe apparent truths and falsities, which falsities, nevertheless, are instrumental for their nourishment.

 5So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
 
 5. And such persons are obedient to the truths they know, although living in an obscure state as to truth, and in external things.

 6And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
 
 6. So that they receive interior good and exterior good, in their states of brightness and in their states of obscurity, even by means of the falsities of their religion, being instructed also from the Word.
 
 7And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.
 
 7. But it happens that, on account of the vastated state of the church, and hence on account of the non-reception of influx that is, of good and truth from the Lord -truth from the Word fails.
 
  8And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
 
 8. But, with those who are regenerating, there is still perception by the Word from the Lord,
 
 9Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
 
 9. That there must be an elevation from their obscure state, and that they must apply themselves to doctrine concerning the knowledges of good and truth outside the vastated church among those who are in good and earnestly desire truth.
 
 10So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
 
 10. And this elevation of state naturally follows, when by obedience, introductory truths, being obtained, it is discovered that even these truths lead to good; and that although it is, at first, the good of merit, yet it desires truth, which desire is intensified by contact with the Word; for it teaches that unless truth can be taught in suitable or corresponding forms, or knowledges, good cannot be sustained;
 
 11And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand.
 
 11. While at the same time it is also necessary that good should be appropriated with truth.
 
 12And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
 
 12. But it is perceived by those in good and who desire truth, not only that all life is from the Lord, with whom is the union of good and truth, but also that they themselves have not, as yet, the conjunction of good and truth, but only the remains of truth and love in their receptacles in the mind also that they are striving after this conjunction, although it is in the good of merit, in order that good and truth may be reallzed internally, and appropriated externally in their regeneration. Otherwise the soul perishes.
 
 13And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.
 
 13. Yet in this state of uncertainty, the Word gives consolation, and teaches, that the good and truth of remains must needs be realized and appropriated; but only when the conjunction of good and truth is acknowledged to be from the Lord.
 
 14For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth.
 
 14. For it is the testimony of Divine Good and Truth conjoined, that remains of truth and of good are always stored up in the mind for the use of the man of the church, even in its states of vastation ; and hence that a new church amongst the nations will succeed the vastated church.
 
 15And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
 
 15. And obedience to the Word of the Lord, even in the worst states of mankind when accompanied by internal acknowledgment and external devotion to good, causes the appropriation of the good and truth of remains, and thus a continuous heavenly state,
 
 16And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.
 
 16. In which it is realized that neither truth nor love can fail according to Divine Truth from Divine Good, when the Lord is acknowledged to be Good and Truth united, or the Divine manifested in the Human; and when obedience results in the appropriation of good and truth in the regenerated soul.

 17And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him.
 
 17. But nevertheless, it must happen, that, when a state of vastation exists in the church, the affection of interior truth from good will be tempted, because essential truth will suffer frorn evils and falsities; and this to so great an extent that it will appear to be extinct.
 
 18And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?
 
 18. Wherefore they who are in this temptation have a perception thence derived, that Divine Truth is their enemy; they are aware of the evil in themselves, which renders their affection for truth imperfect; and they fear the loss of that truth.
 
  19And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
 
 19. But they also perceive that the truth has been too much ascribed to themselves, and must be ascribed to the Lord; which being done, there is elevation to a more interior state of conjunction with the Lord by the Word, and also the reception of the truth in corresponding doctrine.

 20And he cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?
 
 20. Moreover the desire of good for truth is now more intensified by prayer to the Lord, but at first with the perception that its apparent removal is from the Lord, when yet, in reality, there is a state of instruction.

 21And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come into him again.
 
 21. In which there is closer application to the Word in will, understanding and life, thus complete application, expressing the desire that the outward form of the truth may be filled, by influx from the Lord, with its inward spirit.
 22And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
 
 22. The consequence of which is that such influx is granted, and the outward form of the truth is filled with spirit and life.

 23And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth.
 
 23. And thus the Lord, by the Word, restores the truth, flowing in from internals to externals, so that the church receives new life; when it is perceived that good is united with truth.
 
 24And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth.
 
 24. And thus the church perceives frorn the Lord, that truth is revealed in external forms from internal principles ; and that when truth from good is expressed in ultimates it is in light and in power.

Author: Rev. HENRY MACLAGAN (1905)