1 Kings

1 Kings 17: God feeds and gives life

Begin in prayer

Before we read about Elijah and the widow of Zarephath, let us come to the Lord in prayer. Ask Him to feed our souls with His word, and to show us Jesus, the Bread of life.

I will sing to Yahweh as long as I live. I will sing praise to my God while I have any being.

Psalm 104:33

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us that You fed Elijah and the widow and gave life to her son, and help us to trust You and Your Son, Jesus. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

Elijah the Tishbite tells Ahab that there will be no dew or rain in these years, as the LORD lives. The LORD sends Elijah to the brook Cherith, where ravens bring him bread and meat morning and evening. When the brook dries up, the LORD sends him to a widow in Zarephath, who has only a little meal and oil. The jar of meal and the jar of oil do not run out. Her son falls sick and stops breathing, but he lives again when Elijah cries to the LORD.

As you read 1 Kings 17, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

The LORD keeps His word, and He fed Elijah and the widow and gave her son life.

Elijah told King Ahab that no dew or rain would fall except by his word (verse 1). The LORD then hid Elijah at the brook Cherith, where ravens brought him bread and meat morning and evening (verses 2 to 6). When the brook dried up, the LORD sent him to a widow in Zarephath, a town of Sidon, outside Israel (verses 7 to 9). She had only a little meal and oil, yet the jars did not run out, as the LORD had said (verses 12 to 16). Later her son became sick and stopped breathing, and she feared her sin had been remembered (verses 17 and 18). Elijah cried to the LORD, and the LORD listened, and the child lived again (verses 20 to 22). The widow said she now knew Elijah was a man of God, and the LORD's word in his mouth was truth (verse 24). Jesus said that Elijah was sent to a widow in Sidon (Luke 4 verses 25 and 26). He also said that He is the bread of life (John 6 verse 35).

How does 1 Kings 17 show us that the LORD keeps His word, and that He fed Elijah and the widow and gave her son life?

The LORD feeds Elijah and the widow.

The ravens brought Elijah bread and meat in the morning and in the evening (verse 6). When the brook dried up, the LORD sent him to a widow with little meal and oil (verses 7 to 9). The jar of meal and the jar of oil did not run out (verse 16).

The LORD gives the widow's son life.

The widow's son stopped breathing, and Elijah cried to the LORD for the child (verses 17 to 21). The LORD listened to Elijah's voice, and the child's soul came back into him (verse 22). Elijah gave the boy back to his mother alive (verse 23).

Jesus is the bread of life.

Jesus said Elijah was sent past Israel's widows to a widow in Sidon (Luke 4 verses 25 and 26). Jesus said that He is the bread of life, and that whoever comes to Him will not hunger (John 6 verse 35). He also said that He is the resurrection and the life (John 11 verse 25).

Memorise

The jar of meal didn’t run out, and the jar of oil did not fail, according to Yahweh’s word, which he spoke by Elijah.

1 Kings 17:16

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, do I trust the LORD to feed me, and do I come to Jesus?

The widow had a handful of meal and a little oil, and she expected to eat it and die. The LORD fed her until the rain came, and He gave her son back alive. Jesus said that He is the bread of life, and that He is the resurrection and the life.

Hungry sinners cannot feed themselves on their own goodness. Jesus laid down His life for His sheep at the cross, and He rose from the dead. He is alive forever, and His sacrifice never needs to be repeated.

So come to Him, turn from your sin, and put your trust in Jesus. He will not cast off the one who comes. Whoever believes in Him will live, even though he dies.

Parent's note

Tell your children that the LORD fed Elijah and the widow, and that Jesus is the Bread of life. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God for feeding us and giving life, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

You give to them; they gather. You open your hand; they are satisfied with good.

Psalm 104:28

Father, thank You that You fed Elijah and the widow, and gave her son life. Thank You for Jesus, the Bread of life, who gave Himself for His people. Give each of us grace to turn from our sin and trust Jesus. Give us hope in You this week, and keep our hearts close to You. Amen.