171 Now Elijah the Tishbite , who was of the settlers of Gilead , said to Ahab , " As the Lord , the God of Israel lives , before whom I stand , surely there shall be neither dew nor rain these years , except e by my word ." 2 The word of the Lord came to him, saying , 3 "Go away from here and turn eastward , and hide yourself by the brook Cherith , which is east e of the Jordan . 4 "It shall be that you will drink of the brook , and I have commanded the ravens to provide for you there ." 5 So he went and did according to the word of the Lord , for he went and lived by the brook Cherith , which is east e of the Jordan . 6 The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening , and he would drink from the brook . 7 It happened after e a while that the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land .
Matthew Henry's Commentary on 1 Kings 17:1-7
Commentary on 1 Kings 17:1-7
(Read 1 Kings 17:1-7)
God wonderfully suits men to the work he designs them for. The times were fit for an Elijah; an Elijah was fit for them. The Spirit of the Lord knows how to fit men for the occasions. Elijah let Ahab know that God was displeased with the idolaters, and would chastise them by the want of rain, which it was not in the power of the gods they served to bestow. Elijah was commanded to hide himself. If Providence calls us to solitude and retirement, it becomes us to go: when we cannot be useful, we must be patient; and when we cannot work for God, we must sit still quietly for him. The ravens were appointed to bring him meat, and did so. Let those who have but from hand to mouth, learn to live upon Providence, and trust it for the bread of the day, in the day. God could have sent angels to minister to him; but he chose to show that he can serve his own purposes by the meanest creatures, as effectually as by the mightiest. Elijah seems to have continued thus above a year. The natural supply of water, which came by common providence, failed; but the miraculous supply of food, made sure to him by promise, failed not. If the heavens fail, the earth fails of course; such are all our creature-comforts: we lose them when we most need them, like brooks in summer. But there is a river which makes glad the city of God, that never runs dry, a well of water that springs up to eternal life. Lord, give us that living water!