Celebrating the Feast of St. Elijah



The Ascension of The Prophet Elijah



Elijah and the 1260 days of drought, Widow of Zarephath

1 Kings 17:1 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.
1 Kings 17:2 And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
1 Kings 17:3 Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
1 Kings 17:4 And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
1 Kings 17:5 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.
1 Kings 17:6 And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
1 Kings 17:7 And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.
Elijah the Tishbite had to make a strong proclamation to King 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.” The period with neither dew nor rain lasted for 3 1/2 years, and for much of this time, Elijah was at the brook Cherith.
When Elijah issued this proclamation, Ahab would have been stunned. The prophet then fled quickly to the brook Cherith and hid himself there, as instructed. “Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan [in Israel].” The word from God continued, “You shall drink water from the brook, and I have commanded ravens to feed you there.” The ravens brought Elijah bread and flesh morning and evening. Elijah’s necessities were thus provided for.
Like a bedouin, Elijah dressed in rough skins, or hairy garments. For him to have gone to Ahab, the king of Israel, who had a notorious reputation, and issue this proclamation was a courageous act. The message would have been delivered with confidence.
Ravens are flesh-eating birds. In fact, the word “ravenous” comes from “raven.” Therefore, we can be sure that the meat they brought to Elijah was freshly slain.
There is a prophetic aspect to this account, for during the period of papal persecution in the Dark and Middle Ages in Europe, worldly unconsecrated people (“ravens”) fed, hid, and helped Christians who were fleeing from brutal persecution. If caught, this “raven” class would have been punished severely, so many risked their lives by helping Christians. In the antitype, Elijah represents God’s people down through the Gospel Age who were preserved and fed from His Word and given time to develop Christlike characters in the hope of being kings and priests in the Kingdom Age. Many were tried and executed, but at least, they had an opportunity to develop their characters.
In time, the brook Cherith dried up, and Elijah had to move to another place. God’s instruction came to him, starting in verse 8.

1 Kings 17:8 And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
1 Kings 17:9 Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
1 Kings 17:10 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 Kings 17:11 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.
1 Kings 17:12 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.
1 Kings 17:13 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.
1 Kings 17:14 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.
1 Kings 17:15 And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
1 Kings 17:16 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.

Elijah was told to leave the brook Cherith and go to Zarephath, which is in Lebanon today— and thus was quite a distance to go on foot. First, he went to Zidon, the capital of Phoenicia, as a landmark. Zarephath was located in a little village nearby. When Elijah entered the gate, he saw a woman gathering sticks. God had told him that a widow would sustain him there, so he called out to her, “Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” Then, being famished, he added, “Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread.”
With a famine in the land, the woman had been gathering sticks to prepare a fire to bake a cake  of her last handful of flour mixed with oil. She had to scrape the bottom of the barrel to get the flour, and there was a little oil left in the cruse. Her expectation was that after this last meal, she and her son would die of starvation. Under this dire circumstance, Elijah has asked for something to eat. Imagine being in the woman’s place and getting this request for food!
Elijah next said, “Fear not; go and do as you have said. But make me a little cake first, and bring it to me, and afterward make one for you and your son. For God has said that the barrel will not be emptied of meal or the cruse of oil, until the very day He sends rain to end the famine.”
Elijah’s request was a test on the widow, and faith was involved. Perhaps the woman had been praying, but at any rate, she obeyed in this time of extremity. “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.”
Elijah must have had a very magnetic, forceful personality. He started his mission by going to King Ahab and reprimanding him to his face with the boldness and courage that were instilled by the Lord. Now he spoke to the widow. His manner of speaking was convincing and persuasive, and she believed him. According to the King James margin, for a “full year,” they ate of the flour and the oil that kept replenishing. Therefore, Elijah was at the brook Cherith for at least two years, and then he was in Zarephath for another year.
Jesus used this widow of Zarephath as an illustration of faith when he was castigating the Israelites for not believing. Even after all his miracles, the number of believers was only 500 of the 7 million or so people who lived in Israel at that time. As an example of faith, Jesus also used Naaman the Syrian leper, who came for help. They had more faith than anyone in Israel.