1 Kings 17:8-16

Good News Translation

Elijah and the Widow in Zarephath

⁸ Then the Lord said to Elijah, ^9 (A)“Now go to the town of Zarephath, near Sidon, and stay there. I have commanded a widow who lives there to feed you.” ¹⁰ So Elijah went to Zarephath, and as he came to the town gate, he saw a widow gathering firewood. “Please bring me a drink of water,” he said to her. ¹¹ And as she was going to get it, he called out, “And please bring me some bread, too.”

¹² She answered, “By the living Lord your God I swear that I don't have any bread. All I have is a handful of flour in a bowl and a bit of olive oil in a jar. I came here to gather some firewood to take back home and prepare what little I have for my son and me. That will be our last meal, and then we will starve to death.”

¹³ “Don't worry,” Elijah said to her. “Go on and prepare your meal. But first make a small loaf from what you have and bring it to me, and then prepare the rest for you and your son. ¹⁴ For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The bowl will not run out of flour or the jar run out of oil before the day that I, the Lord, send rain.’”

¹⁵ The widow went and did as Elijah had told her, and all of them had enough food for many days. ¹⁶ As the Lord had promised through Elijah, the bowl did not run out of flour nor did the jar run out of oil.