Elijah Stops the Rain

17 Now Elijah was a prophet from the town of Tishbe in Gilead. Elijah said to King Ahab, “I serve the Lord, the God of Israel. As surely as the Lord lives, I tell you the truth. No rain or dew will fall during the next few years unless I command it.”

² Then the Lord spoke his word to Elijah: ³ “Leave this place. Go east and hide near Kerith Ravine. It is east of the Jordan River. ⁴ You may drink from the brook. And I have commanded ravens to bring you food there.” ⁵ So Elijah did what the Lord told him to do. He went to Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and lived there. ⁶ The birds brought Elijah bread and meat every morning and every evening. And he drank water from the brook.

⁷ After a while the brook dried up because there was no rain. ⁸ Then the Lord spoke his word to Elijah, ⁹ “Go to Zarephath in Sidon. Live there. I have commanded a widow there to take care of you.”

¹⁰ So Elijah went to Zarephath. When he reached the town gate, he saw a widow there. She was gathering wood for a fire. Elijah asked her, “Would you bring me a little water in a cup? I would like to have a drink.” ¹¹ As she was going to get his water, Elijah said, “Please bring me a piece of bread, too.”

¹² The woman answered, “As surely as the Lord your God lives, I tell you the truth. I have no bread. I have only a handful of flour in a jar. And I have only a little olive oil in a jug. I came here to gather some wood. I will take it home and cook our last meal. My son and I will eat it and then die from hunger.”

¹³ Elijah said to her, “Don’t worry. Go home and cook your food as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread from the flour you have. Bring it to me. Then cook something for yourself and your son. ¹⁴ The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘That jar of flour will never become empty. The jug will always have oil in it. This will continue until the day the Lord sends rain to the land.’”

¹⁵ So the woman went home. And she did what Elijah told her to do. So Elijah, the woman and her son had enough food every day. ¹⁶ The jar of flour and the jug of oil were never empty. This happened just as the Lord, through Elijah, said it would.

Elijah Brings a Boy Back to Life

¹⁷ Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became sick. He grew worse and worse. Finally he stopped breathing. ¹⁸ So the woman said to Elijah, “You are a man of God. What have you done to me? Did you come here to remind me of my sin? Did you come here to kill my son?”

¹⁹ Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.” So Elijah took the boy from her and carried him upstairs. Elijah laid the boy on the bed in the room where he was staying. ²⁰ Then he prayed to the Lord. He said, “Lord my God, this widow is letting me stay in her house. Why have you done this terrible thing to her? Why have you caused her son to die?” ²¹ Then Elijah lay on top of the boy three times. Elijah prayed to the Lord, “Lord my God, let this boy live again!”

²² The Lord answered Elijah’s prayer. The boy began breathing again, and he was alive. ²³ Elijah carried the boy downstairs. He gave the boy to his mother and said, “See! Your son is alive!”

²⁴ The woman said to Elijah, “Now I know you really are a man from God. I know that the Lord truly speaks through you!”