2. And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, 3. Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan. 4. And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. 5. 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. 6. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. the consciences of the people, fix their wavering decision, and even reach the royal heart. The sign was given, and the beneficent rains for three weary years were withheld from the parched land. Green. REASONS FOR THIS FAMINE. (1) To compel Ahab and the people to listen to his message. Ahab would despise the rough, uncouth man as a lunatic, and give no heed to his message. But the famine would compel him to listen. This was but preparatory to the message of Elijah, as the miracles of Moses before Pharaoh were to compel the king to hear and grant his request.-P. (2) It showed that Jehovah was still the rightful God of Israel, to whom they owed allegiance, and that he was the same mighty God as of old. (3) It was a righteous punishment for their sins, and would tend to show them the dreadful nature of sin, and lead to repentance.-P. (4) Such a punishment was at the same time an evidence against the Baal-worship; for since Baal was worshipped conspicuously as the generating Nature-power, so was the impending drought and barrenness a tangible proof of the impotence and nullity of this idol. — Pulpit Com. III. God Cares for Elijah through the Powers of Nature. - Vers. 2-7. 2. The word of the Lord came unto him. In what manner is unknown, whether by inward impulse, or vision, or angelic messenger. But it was clearly God's word. 3. Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, i.e., toward the Jordan, and Gilead, his own country. And hide thyself. (1) To escape persecution and death. (2) To wait till the famine had done its work on the hearts of king and people.-P. (3) To avoid importunity. It would have been morally impossible for him, though a man of inflexible will (Bähr) to dwell among the people, while the land groaned under the terrible burden which he had laid upon it, and which he alone was able to remove. - Pulpit Com. By the brook Cherith. The brook Cherith is the brook of the gorge; and instead of hiding "by" it, as our translation has it, Elijah hid in it, that is, in the gorge. Todd. That is before Jordan. The word "before" sometimes means "to the east of," as in Joshua 18: 14. But it also means "towards," as in Gen. 18: 16; 19: 28. Where the brook Cherith was is unknown. (1) Tradition identifies the brook Cherith with the Wady-el-kelt, i.e.," the great valley," west of the Jordan, which debouches into the Ghor, half a mile south of Jericho, and Robinson and Porter pronounce in its favor.- Spence. (2) It is much more probable that Cherith is to be sought in the region east of the Jordan, where, indeed, Eusebius and Jerome place it. Elijah would naturally go to his own country, whose wilds and fastnesses would be perfectly familiar to him. It was probably in the Wady Alias, i.e., at no great distance from 'Abara (Conder, "Tent-work," p. 230), the Jordan ford, nearly opposite Bethshan. -Spence. 4. And it shall be that thou shalt drink of the brook. There was clearly nothing miraculous about the supply of water. No miracle was wrought even to continue the supply (ver. 7). Spence. I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. The raven is one of the most common birds of Palestine. To command the ravens is to provide in the order of nature for their doing so. It may be called a particular providence, but is not, on that account, necessarily a miracle.- Tayler Lewis. 6. And the ravens brought him bread and flesh. The bringing to Elijah of suitable food, "bread and flesh," at regular intervals, "morning and evening," by such birds, was evidently miraculous. Various attempts have been made to get rid of the miracle. Some scholars have claimed that the word which is rendered "ravens" means also "merchants," and is so translated in other places. Their idea is, that Elijah was fed by travelling companies of merchants, who passed by his hiding-place. Others, and among them no less an authority than Jerome, have held that there was a town near by, called Orbo, or Oreb, whose inhabitants, the Orebim (which is the word rendered "ravens"), fed the prophet. Jerome seems to speak of the town as if it were known to him. But the best scholars generally take the story as it stands, and understand that it speaks of ravens. — Todd. 7. And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land. 8. And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying, 9. Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee. 10. 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. 1 Obad. 20. Luke 4: 26, called Sarepta. REASONS FOR ELIJAH'S RETIREMENT. (1) For his safety. (2) To prepare his soul for the work yet to be done. (3) To strengthen his faith. (4) To leave the people no resource but God in their trouble. 7. And it came to pass after a while. Hebrew, at the end of days. An indefinite term, which furnishes no idea of the exact time. All we can be sure of is, that he must have been more than two years, out of the three and a half, at Zarephath.—Pulpit Com. How Elijah's faith must have been tried as the waters slowly dried up, leaving him without resource. It is such slow processes that try faith most of all. Many possess the faith for any sudden great and heroic deed — for one who can maintain his faith unshaken in the midst of such slow trials as this. This trial the faith of Elijah stood. Yet it may be that now and then, in his solitary musings upon the ways of God, the thought may have occurred to him that this one stream might have been spared for his sake. But there was faith even in such a doubt. Such an exemption of this stream would, however, have brought crowds of people thither for water, and thus his retreat would have been discovered. God does not always exempt those whom he loves from their share in such visitations as these. "It is," says Bishop Hall, "no unusual thing with God to suffer his own dear children to be enwrapped in the common calamities of offenders. He makes a difference in the use and issue of their stripes, not in the infliction. The corn is cut down with the weeds, but to a better purpose." - Kitto. Vers. 8-16. IV. God Cares for Elijah through Human Aid. 9. Arise, get thee to Zarephath. The name (meaning smelting-house) points to furnaces or workshops for the refining of metals. Greek, Zarepta (Luke 4: 26). It is now represented by an insignificant village, Surafend. It lies still, as no doubt it did then, on the high road between Tyre and Sidon, and on the shore. The prophet would thus be in the lion's den, in the very heart of the dominions of Ethbaal. — Pulpit Com. It was beyond the limits of the kingdom of Israel; and therefore the prophet was here comparatively safe from the vengeance of Ahab.- Todd. Ahab sought everywhere for Elijah. But he would not dream of his going into the territories of Jezebel's father; and, as a peasant in the cottage of a poor widow, he would be unsuspected. - Green. I have commanded. That is, have put it into her heart. It is not necessarily implied that God had spoken to the woman, or inspired her. Todd. 10. He, mouse And Thus They And when he came. . . behold, the widow woman was there. with a famished body and famished heart; she, mourning over her breadless hold. Says she, "Ah! he knows nothing of the agony of a widow's heart." he, "Ah! she knows nothing of the heavy burden of the prophet of the Lord." it has often been a way of God to bring, as at Sarepta, burdened hearts together. shall do each other good, those two.- Hood. The widow showed by the oath, "as Jehovah thy God liveth," that she was a worshipper of the true God. Spence. Never would Elijah have made the demand, and still less would she have paid any attention to it, had she been a heathen and worshipper of idols.- Bähr. She had seen better days, for her house had an "aliyeh," or roof-chamber, built over it, the room specially appropriated for guests, as the best furnished in the house, and usually dedicated, in a well-ordered family, to meditation and prayer. Geikie. Gathering of sticks. Two sticks (ver. 12). shows her poverty, and how small a fire would suffice to cook her remaining food. Fetch me... a little water in a vessel. Elijah asked this to test whether he had found her to whom he had been sent, and her instant compliance showed him that he had. His appearance, very probably, convinced her that he was a "holy man "; a title often given to the devotees of Eastern religions. - Geikie. This II. Bring me . . . a morsel of bread. He tests her again by asking of her a still greater favor, appealing to human kindness. II. 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. 12. 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. 13. 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. 14. 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. 15. And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat, many days. 16. 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. 12. And she said, As the Lord thy God liveth. Showing her recognition of him as an Israelite and a man of God, and therefore having peculiar claims upon her; and also her own religious tendencies. I have not a cake. Rather loaf, the smallest kind of bread. Bread was baked in small round and flat loaves, about a span in diameter, and a finger's breadth in thickness, shaped not unlike flat stones (Matt. 4:3; 7:9); and three of them were allowed for each person for one meal (Luke 11:5). - Todd. An handful of meal. Wheat, ground in a hand-mill. In a barrel. Probably an earthern jar. In the East, the people kept their corn in earthern jars to protect it from insects which swarm in the heat of the sun. Canon Exell. And a little oil. Olive oil. Hasselquist speaks of bread baked in oil as being particularly sustaining. In a cruse. At the present time this vessel is made of a blue, porous clay, and is of a globular form, about nine inches in diameter, with a slender neck about three inches long; a small handle below the neck, and, on the side opposite the handle, a straight spout having an orifice about as large as a straw. — Todd. Two sticks. That is, a few, as we say "two or three." Dress it. Prepare it for eating. That we may eat it, and die. The famine prevailed there, and she was in the last extremity. She needed Elijah much more than Elijah needed her help. A heathen historian, quoted by Josephus, speaks of a great drought and famine as having occurred in the reign of Ethbaal, king of Tyre. Todd. This was not from evidence before her It was also a test And this faith was 13. Fear not. The prophet says this because he was about to mention something startling, something really supernatural, the thought of which always brings its dread upon us, even when designed in munificence. Such was the fear which fell upon the apostles after the miraculous draught of fishes. Tayler Lewis. Make me thereof a little cake first, . . . and after make for thee and for thy son. the selfishness of the prophet, but because he wished to give her an eyes of the reality of the promise made in the next verse. - Lewis. of her faith whether she were worthy of the help Elijah offered. necessary in order to make the provision for her wants a real blessing to her spirit. — P. 14. For thus saith the Lord God, etc. This unfailing oil and meal was doubtless due to a miracle. And it was worthy of God to work the miracle here. (1) To uphold his own prophet. (2) To show his kindness and love to the poor. (3) To strengthen the faith of Elijah and the poor widow. (4) To be an unfailing source of instruction and comfort to all God's people, an object lesson for all ages. - P. 15. And she went and did. She had faith, and her faith produced good works. Did eat, many days. Between two and three years. Lange. 16. And the barrel of meal wasted not. THE UNFAILING CRUSE. Is thy cruse of comfort failing? Rise and share it with another, And through all the years of famine Or thy handful still renew. Make a royal feast for two. God's word proved true. For the heart grows rich in giving; Numb and weary on the mountains, And together both shall glow. And that balm shall heal thine own. Is the heart a well left empty? ZAREPHATH, THE Furnace of TRIAL. I. It was a place of trial to Elijah. (1) He must go into the country most at enmity with the God he served. (2) His path is untried and unknown. (3) He is led to one of the poorest of people, unable to sustain herself. (4) He lives by a perpetual miracle, his sustenance coming day by day. (5) The trial is long continued. (6) His reward. He was sustained, and at the same time prepared for his future work. Well says Lange, “Elijah had to make good, first of all, obedience and resignation to the will of God at the brook Cherith, compassion and love at Sarepta; then it was that he appeared in the sight of God, furnished with iron severity to judge and to punish. Now since thou hast learned sympathy, go hence and preach, and speak to the people.' These are the words to him which Chrysostom puts into the mouth of God.” - P. II. It was a place of trial for the widow. (1) She is asked to entertain a man of God, whom the king desires to kill; hence her life was in danger. (2) She gives to a stranger, on his word as a man of God, her last loaf. (3) She was tested day by day, as only the supply for a day was given at a time. (4) Her faith was rewarded by constant support; by the presence and life of a man of God; by spiritual blessings. LIBRARY REFERENCES. Lives of Elijah, by Wm. M. Taylor, Krummacher, Edersheim, Macduff, and Lowrie; Geikie's Hours with the Bible, IV.; Hall's Contemplations, 11; Bush's Illustrations of Scripture, 261-263; on the brook Cherith, see Thomson's Land and the Book (last edition), pp. 396-400; the Pulpit Commentary has many practical applications; the Sunday School Times for Jan. 13, 1877, is very good. PRACTICAL. I. God raises up suitable instruments in every crisis. The most eminent prophet is reserved for the corruptest age. — Hall. 2. The preacher and the teacher must be faithful, and deliver God's messages of warning at whatever cost. 3. 4. work. When the seed is sown, it is often best to let it germinate in silence. By silent communing with nature and nature's God, we are prepared for active 6. God gives us our bread day by day. 7. Everything in nature is a servant of God to minister to his people. The Lord will care for thee; rest assured of that, and do not ask how it shall come to pass. Despise no instrumentality which he points out to thee. Krummacher. IO. reward. II. our store. 12. Those who trust in the Lord will find that he himself is their exceeding great It is always safe to give freely to the Lord. Our alms will not lessen, but increase, "The heart grows rich in giving." God's grace and love are an unfailing fountain. SUGGESTIONS TO TEACHERS. This lesson follows close upon the last. We need to REVIEW the last lesson so far as to obtain a vivid PICTURE OF THE SIN AND DANGER of the kingdom of Israel under Ahab. I. ELIJAH (ver. 1). Describe his appearance, character, etc. MARK the hint we obtain from Jas. 5: 17 that the prophet brooded and prayed over the wickedness and danger of his country, and that he was sent in answer to his prayer. II. THE FAMINE (ver. 1). A calamity brought upon the people for their sins. So God had threatened for such sins as they were committing (Deut. 28:15, 23, 24). The only hope of the people was that they repent and return to God. The famine long continued, at the word of God's prophet, would compel them to think, and lead them back to God. III. ELIJAH AT THE BROOK CHERITH (vers. 2-7). The reasons and advantages of his retirement here (see 1 Kings 18: 10). So Christ retired to the desert. So Moses was forty years preparing for his work. Illustration. A curious anecdote of ravens was given in the Saturday Magazine. It occurred many years ago at the Red Lion Inn, Hungerford, England. Coming into the inn yard," says a gentlemen who resided there," my chaise ran over and bruised the leg of a favorite Newfoundland dog, and while we were examining the injury, Ralph, the raven, looked on also. The minute the dog was tied up under the manger with my horse, Ralph not only visited him, but brought him bones, and attended him with particular marks of kindness. I observed it to the hostler, who told me that the bird had been brought up with the dog, and that the affection between them was mutual, and all the neighborhood had been witnesses of the many acts of kindness performed by the one to the other. Ralph's friend, the dog, in course of time had the misfortune to break his leg, and during the long period of his confinement the raven waited on him constantly, carried him his provisions, and scarcely ever left him alone. One night, by accident, the stable door had been shut, and Ralph had been deprived of his friend's company all night; but the hostler found, in the morning, the door so pecked away that, had it not been opened, in another hour Ralph would have made his own entrance.” — Bp. Stanley's History of Birds. APPLICATION. Nor is it a singular case; The wonder is often renewed; And many can say, to his praise, He sends them by ravens their food: Against their own wills can be kind. IV. ELIJAH AT ZAREPHATH (vers. 8–16). Thus Satan, that raven unclean, Who croaks in the ears of the saints, Administers oft to their wants; Illustration. St. George of England is fabled to have fought the famous dragon at Zarephath, and his fame still lingers there. We see here a double trial of faith and a double reward. In every way it was a trial to Elijah, to go to a strange family, in extreme poverty, and in his enemies' country, like Daniel in the lion's den, and to do nothing for two years. But it fitted him for his work, and sustained him to do it. The widow woman's faith was tried also, and she bore the trial, trusted the Lord, and gave all her living to his hungry prophet. And her reward was great and blessed. Illustration. The unfailing oil and meal was no stranger, though a miracle, than God's daily care of his people by the operations of nature. All nature, every garden and field and tree, is an unfailing cruse, renewed year by year, and far more wonderful than what was done for the widow of Zarephath. ELIJAH MEETING AHAB. -I KINGS 18:1-18. GOLDEN TEXT. - Ye have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and thou hast followed Baalim. -I KINGS 18: 18. TIME. About B.C. 907. Three and a half years after Elijah's first appearance to Ahab. PLACE. The country north-west from Jezreel (ver. 46), near the base of Mt. Carmel. RULERS.-Ahab, king of Israel (11th year). Jehoshaphat, king of Judah (7th year). A religious reformation in Judah. Idolatry prevailing in İsrael. PRONUNCIATIONS. — A'hab; Ba'alim; Jěz'ěběl; Obădi'ah; Zăr'ĕphath. INTRODUCTION. In our last lesson, we left the prophet hidden in the home of the widow of Zarephath, waiting for the time when the word of the Lord should come to him, and bid him do his further work of reformation. He remained here more than two years. The only incident of this long period, given in the history, was the healing of the widow's son when he was "so |