Elijah and the Widow
Let's read the story of Elijah and the Widow and then ask some questions.
This text is taken from the Easy-to-Read Version of the Bible.
Elijah the Prophet
Elijah was a prophet from the town of Tishbe in Gilead. He said to King Ahab, “I serve the Lord, the God of Israel. By his power, I promise that no dew or rain will fall for the next few years. The rain will fall only when I command it to fall.”
By Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18902771
The Ravens
Then the Lord said to Elijah, “Leave this place and go east. Hide near Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan River. You can get your water from that stream, and I have commanded ravens to bring food to you there.”
So Elijah did what the Lord told him to do. He went to live near Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan River. Ravens brought Elijah food every morning and every evening, and he drank water from the stream.
By Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18902763
Does Elijah listen to God before going somewhere? Why is it important to listen to God before taking important actions in our life?
Could Elijah trust God to feed him? How do we learn to trust God when we have needs?
The Widow
There was no rain, so after a while the stream became dry.
Then the Lord said to Elijah, “Go to Zarephath in Sidon and stay there. There is a widow there that I commanded to take care of you.”
So Elijah went to Zarephath. He went to the town gate and saw a woman there gathering wood for a fire. She was a widow.
Elijah said to her, “Would you bring me a small cup of water to drink?”
By Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18902772
Hunger in the Family
As she was going to get the water, Elijah said, “Bring me a piece of bread too, please.”
The woman answered, “I promise you, before the Lord your God, that I have nothing but a handful of flour in a jar and a little bit of olive oil in a jug. I came here to gather a few pieces of wood for a fire to cook our last meal. My son and I will eat it and then die from hunger.”
By Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18902773
Food Provided by God
3 Elijah said to the woman, “Don’t worry. Go home and cook your food as you said. But first make a small piece of bread from the flour that you have and bring it to me. Then cook some for yourself and your son. 14 The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘That jar of flour will never be empty and the jug will always have oil in it. This will continue until the day the Lord sends rain to the land.’”
So the woman went home and did what Elijah told her to do. And Elijah, the woman, and her son had enough food for a long time. The jar of flour and the jug of oil were never empty.
This happened just as the Lord said through Elijah.
By Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18902774
The widow would have been an unlikely person to help Elijah because she had no money and almost no food. Why do you think God chose the widow to help Elijah when God could have chosen a rich or powerful person?
Why do you think Elijah made the widow bring him food first before feeding her own family? Why was it important the the widow trust or have faith in Elijah?
Did God just help Elijah, or did he help the widow and the son as well? Do you think when we pray and listen to God it only helps us, or does it help other people as well?
Boy gets Sick
Some time later the woman’s son became sick. He became worse and worse until he stopped breathing.
Then the woman said to Elijah, “You are a man of God. Can you help me? Or did you come here only to remind me of my sins and to make my son die?”
Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.”
By Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18902777
Elijah Prays
He took the boy from her and carried him upstairs. He laid him on the bed in the room where he was staying.
Then Elijah cried out to the Lord. He said, “Lord my God, this widow is letting me stay in her house. Will you do this bad thing to her? Will you cause her son to die?”
Then Elijah lay on top of the boy three times. He prayed, “Lord my God, let this boy live again!”
The Lord answered Elijah’s prayer. The boy began breathing again and was alive.
By Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18902780
The Boy is Well
Elijah carried the boy downstairs, gave him to his mother, and said, “Look, your son is alive!”
The woman answered, “Now I know that you really are a man from God. I know that the Lord really speaks through you!"
By Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18902785
Why do you think the widow thought Elijah might be there to let her son die?
Why do you think the widow is sure that God really speaks to Elijah at the end of the story?