Elijah Announces Famine

17 Now Elijah(A) the Tishbite, from the Gilead settlers,[a](B) said to Ahab, “As the Lord God of Israel lives,(C) in whose presence I stand, there will be no dew or rain during these years except by my command!” (D)

Then the word of the Lord came to him: “Leave here, turn eastward, and hide(E) at the Wadi Cherith where it enters the Jordan. You are to drink from the wadi. I have commanded the ravens(F) to provide for you there.”

So he proceeded to do what the Lord commanded. Elijah left and lived at the Wadi Cherith where it enters the Jordan. The ravens kept bringing him bread and meat in the morning and in the evening,(G) and he would drink from the wadi. After a while, the wadi dried up because there had been no rain in the land.

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Footnotes

  1. 17:1 LXX reads from Tishbe of Gilead

Elijah and the ravens

17 Elijah from Tishbe, who was one of the settlers in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As surely as the Lord lives, Israel’s God, the one I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain these years unless I say so.”

Then the Lord’s word came to Elijah: Go from here and turn east. Hide by the Cherith Brook that faces the Jordan River. You can drink from the brook. I have also ordered the ravens to provide for you there. Elijah went and did just what the Lord said. He stayed by the Cherith Brook that faced the Jordan River. The ravens brought bread and meat in the mornings and evenings. He drank from the Cherith Brook. After a while the brook dried up because there was no rain in the land.

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