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1 Kings Chapter 17

Other Translations

lxxbrent (lxxbrent) - Septuagint (Brenton 1851) eBible USFM

1 And Eliu the prophet, the Thesbite of Thesbæ of Galaad, said to Achaab, As the Lord God of hosts, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be these years dew nor rain, except by the word of my mouth.
2 And the word of the Lord came to Eliu, [saying],
3 Depart hence eastward, and hide thee by the brook of Chorrath, that is before Jordan.
4 And it shall be [that] thou shalt drink water of the brook, and I will charge the ravens to feed thee there.
5 And Eliu did according to the word of the Lord, and he sat by the brook of Chorrath before Jordan.
6 And the ravens brought him loaves in the morning, and flesh in the evening, and he drank water of the brook.
7 And it came to pass after some time, that the brook was dried up, because there had been no rain upon the earth.
8 And the word of the Lord came to Eliu, [saying],
9 Arise, and go to Sarepta of the Sidonian [land]: behold, I have there commanded a widow-woman to maintain thee.
10 And he arose and went to Sarepta, and came to the gate of the city: and, behold, a widow-woman was there gathering sticks; and Eliu cried after her, and said to her, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
11 And she went to fetch it; and Eliu cried after her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of the bread that is in thy hand.
12 And the woman said, [As] the Lord thy God lives, I have not a cake, but only a handful of meal in the pitcher, and a little oil in a cruse, and, behold, I am going to gather two sticks, and I shall go in and dress it for myself and my children, and we shall eat it and die.
13 And Eliu said to her, Be of good courage, go in and do according to thy word: but make me thereof a little cake, and thou shalt bring [it] out to me first, and thou shalt make [some] for thyself and thy children last.
14 For thus saith the Lord, The pitcher of meal shall not fail, and the cruse of oil shall not diminish, until the day that the Lord gives rain upon the earth.
15 And the woman went and did [so], and did eat, she, and he, and her children.
16 And the pitcher of meal failed not, and the cruse of oil was not diminished, according to the word of the Lord which he spoke by the hand of Eliu.
17 And it came to pass afterward, that the son of the woman the mistress of the house was sick; and his sickness was very severe, until there was no breath left in him.
18 And she said to Eliu, What have I to do with thee, O man of God? hast thou come in to me to bring my sins to remembrance, and to slay my son?
19 And Eliu said to the woman, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and took him up to the chamber in which he himself lodged, and laid him on the bed.
20 And Eliu cried aloud, and said, Alas, O Lord, the witness of the widow with whom I sojourn, thou hast wrought evil [for her] in slaying her son.
21 And he breathed on the child thrice, and called on the Lord, and said, O Lord my God, let, I pray thee, the soul of this child return to him.
22 And it was so, and the child cried out,
23 and he brought him down from the upper chamber into the house, and gave him to his mother; and Eliu said, See, thy son lives.
24 And the woman said to Eliu, Behold, I know that thou [art] a man of God, and the word of the Lord in thy mouth [is] true.

web (web) - WorldEnglish.Bible — CC0 modern update of ASV

1 Elijah the Tishbite, who was one of the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.”
2 Then the LORD’s word came to him, saying,
3 “Go away from here, turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan.
4 You shall drink from the brook. I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.”
5 So he went and did according to the LORD’s word, for he went and lived by the brook Cherith that is before the Jordan.
6 The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook.
7 After a while, the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.
8 The LORD’s word came to him, saying,
9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and stay there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to sustain you.”
10 So he arose and went to Zarephath; and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and said, “Please get me a little water in a jar, that I may drink.”
11 As she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.”
12 She said, “As the LORD your God lives, I don’t have anything baked, but only a handful of meal in a jar and a little oil in a jar. Behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and bake it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.”
13 Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go and do as you have said; but make me a little cake from it first, and bring it out to me, and afterward make some for you and for your son.
14 For the LORD, the God of Israel, says, ‘The jar of meal will not run out, and the jar of oil will not fail, until the day that the LORD sends rain on the earth.’”
15 She went and did according to the saying of Elijah; and she, he, and her household ate many days.
16 The jar of meal didn’t run out and the jar of oil didn’t fail, according to the LORD’s word, which he spoke by Elijah.
17 After these things, the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his sickness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.
18 She said to Elijah, “What have I to do with you, you man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to memory, and to kill my son!”
19 He said to her, “Give me your son.” He took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into the room where he stayed, and laid him on his own bed.
20 He cried to the LORD and said, “LORD my God, have you also brought evil on the widow with whom I am staying, by killing her son?”
21 He stretched himself on the child three times, and cried to the LORD and said, “LORD my God, please let this child’s soul come into him again.”
22 The LORD listened to the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
23 Elijah took the child and brought him down out of the room into the house, and delivered him to his mother; and Elijah said, “Behold, your son lives.”
24 The woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the LORD’s word in your mouth is truth.”

Explanations by Age Level

Explain Like I'm 5

A long, long time ago, there was nothing at all - no earth, no sky, no animals, no people. It was all dark and empty. But God was there! God is so powerful that He can make anything just by speaking. So God said "Let there be light!" and BOOM! There was light everywhere! God saw that the light was beautiful and good. He called the light "day" and the darkness "night." This was the very first day when God started making our wonderful world!

Explain Like I'm 10

Before anything existed - no planets, stars, or life - God decided to create the universe. The earth started out as a dark, empty place covered with water. But God's Spirit was there, ready to bring order and beauty to everything. When God spoke and said "Let there be light," light immediately appeared because God's words have incredible power. God looked at the light and was pleased with what He had made. He organized time by separating light (day) from darkness (night), creating the first 24-hour period. This shows us that God is organized and purposeful in everything He does.

Explain Like I'm 15

Genesis 1:1-5 establishes fundamental theological truths about God and creation. The Hebrew word "bara" (created) indicates creation from nothing (ex nihilo), demonstrating God's absolute sovereignty and power. The phrase "without form and void" (tohu wa-bohu) describes a state of chaos that God transforms into order. The Spirit of God "hovering" or "brooding" over the waters suggests active, caring involvement in creation. The creation of light before the sun (created on day 4) indicates that God Himself is the ultimate source of light and energy. The establishment of day and night creates the framework of time, showing that God operates within orderly patterns while transcending them. This passage refutes both atheistic materialism and pantheism, establishing that God is both transcendent (separate from creation) and immanent (actively involved in it).