Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord sends rain on the land.’” 1 Kings 17:13-14
“Elijah goes at the command of Yahweh to the very country of the baalists, Phoenicia, to beg for food from one of the Zarephath’s lowliest and poorest, a widow gathering sticks with which to prepare a last meal for herself and her family.
One who listens to this tale will say, no wonder she refused to give Elijah the food and water he requested. The marvel is that God gave her faith sufficient to believe his assurance and his prophecy — the God who can direct ravens to bring food in a desolate wadi surely can create faith in this widow’s heart.
To the miracle of faith Yahweh adds the miracle of a never-empty jar of meal and a never-failing cruse of oil. That the prophet with the widow and her sons are fed, while the heavens withhold rain and dew, foretells a great divine work to come — the giving of rain on the day that Yahweh has chosen.”
Simon DeVries in 1 Kings, Volume 12: Second Edition (Word Biblical Commentary; Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004) 218.
Imagine God directing you to go into enemy territory and approach the least likely source to provide never-empty and never-failing resources. That’s what’s happening in this scene in the life of Elijah.
As I ponder this text today, I think of the faith of Elijah and ask God to give me this faith. The wadi or brook had dried up, and God wanted him to go from stretching situation to stretching situation.
Ever felt like the “Stretch Armstrong” toy? You feel can’t be stretched anymore. That’s the picture I get and how I feel sometimes. Maybe you can relate? Elijah never flinches. He depended on ravens by a brook, and now goes to Phoenicia.
We must not miss that the miracle happened after he went from a difficult place to an even more difficult place. The never-empty and never-failing results came in increasingly challenging circumstances.
God, give us the faith of Elijah by your Holy Spirit to believe that You can supply us with never-empty and never-failing resources to do whatever You call us to do. In your mercy hear my prayer in the name of Jesus. Amen.