Chapter 4 – AT ZAREPHATH (part 2)
“For thus says the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth” (1 Kings 17:14). God gave her His word of promise to rest upon: could she rely upon it? Would she really trust Him? Note how definite was the promise: it was not merely, God will not suffer you to starve, or will surely supply all your need; rather was it as though the Prophet had said, The meal in your barrel shall not diminish nor the oil in your cruse dry up. And if our faith be a Divinely-sustained one it will cause us to trust in God’s promise to commit ourselves unreservedly to His care, and to do good unto our fellow creatures. But observe how faith must continue in exercise: no new barrel of meal was promised or furnished: just an undiminished “handful”-seemingly a very inadequate quantity for the family, but quite sufficient with God. “Until the day that the LORD sends rain upon the earth” evidenced the firm faith of the Prophet himself.
“And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she and he and her house did eat many days” (v. 15). Who can forbear exclaiming, O woman great is your faith! She might have advanced many excuses to the Prophet’s request, especially as he was a stranger to her, but great as the test was, her faith in the Lord was equal to it. Her simple trust that God would take care of them overcame all the objections of carnal reason. Does she not remind us of another Gentile woman, the Syro-Phoenician, a descendant of the idolatrous Canaanites, who long afterwards welcomed the appearance of Christ to the borders of Tyre, and who sought His aid on behalf of her demon distressed daughter? With astonishing faith she overcame every obstacle, and obtained a portion of the children’s bread in the healing of her daughter (Matthew 15:28). Would that such cases moved us to cry from our hearts, “Lord, increase our faith,” for none but He who bestows faith can increase it.
“And she and her house did eat many days. And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke by Elijah” (1 Kings 17:15, 16). She was no loser by her generosity. Her little supply of meal and oil was but sufficient for a single meal and then she and her son must die. But her willingness to minister unto God’s servant brought her enough, not only for many days, but for several years. She gave Elijah of the best of what she had and for her kindness to him God kept her household clear through the famine. How true it is that, “He who receives a Prophet in the name of a Prophet shall receive a Prophet’s reward” (Matthew 10:41). But all of God’s people are not granted the privilege of supporting a Prophet, yet they may God’s poor. Is it not written, “He who has pity upon the poor lends unto the LORD; and that which he has given will He pay him again” (Proverbs 19:17)? And again, “Blessed is he who considers the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble” (Psalm 41:1). God will be no man’s Debtor.
“And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she and her house did eat many days. And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail.” Here again we have exemplified the fact that the receiving of God’s blessing and obtaining of food (in figure, spiritual food) is the result of obedience. This woman complied with the request of God’s servant and great was her reward. Are you, my reader, fearful of the future? Are you afraid that when strength fails and old age comes you may be left without the necessities of life? Then suffer us to remind you that there is no need whatever for such fears. “Seek you first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things (temporal necessities) shall be added unto you” (Matthew 6:33). “O fear the LORD, you His saints: for there is no want to them that fear Him” (Psalm 34:9). “No good thing will He withhold from them that walk uprightly” (Psalm 84:11). But note well that each of these promises is conditional: your business is to give God the first place in your life, to fear, obey and honor Him in all things, and in return He guarantees your bread and water shall be sure.
Is there a reader inclined to reply, Such wholesome counsel is easier to receive than to act on, to be reminded of God’s promises than to rely upon the same. Someone may be disposed to say, Ah, you know not how distressing are my circumstances, how dark the outlook, how sorely Satan is injecting doubts into my mind. True, yet however desperate your case may be, we would earnestly beg you to think upon the widow of Zarephath: it is most unlikely that your situation is anything like as extreme as hers, yet she perished not of starvation. He who puts God first will always find Him with him at the last. Things which seem to be acting against us, work together for our good in His wondrous hands. Whatever be your need, dear friend, forget not Elijah’s God.
“And she and he and her house did eat many days.” Here we see Elijah dwelling safely in the humble abode of this poor widow. Though the fare was frugal, yet it was sufficient to preserve life in the body. There is no hint that God provided any variation of diet during those “many days,” nor any intimation that the Prophet became dissatisfied with being required to eat the same food over so long a period. This is where we obtain our first glimpse of how he conducted himself within the family circle. Blessedly did he exemplify that Divine precept, “Having food and clothing, let us be therewith content” (1 Timothy 6:8). And from where does such contentment proceed? From a submissive and peaceful heart which rests in God: subject to His sovereign pleasure, satisfied with the portion He is pleased to allot us, seeing His hand both in providing and in withholding.
“And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail.” Certainly the widow had no cause to complain of the severe testing to which her faith had been put. God, who sent His Prophet to board with her, paid well for his table-by providing her family with food while her neighbors were starving, and by granting her the company and instruction of His servant. Who can tell what blessing came to her soul under the edifying conversation of Elijah and from the efficacy of his prayers? She was of a humane and generous disposition, ready to relieve the misery of others and minister to the needs of God’s servants; and her liberality was returned to her a hundredfold. Unto the merciful, God shows mercy, “For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love which you have showed toward His name, in that you have ministered to the saints, and do minister” (Hebrews 6:10).
“And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail.” Let us now endeavor to look higher, lest we miss the lovely type which is to be found here. The “meal” is certainly a Divinely-selected figure of Christ, the “corn of wheat” that died (John 12:24), being ground between the upper and nether millstones of Divine judgment that He might be unto us the “Bread of life.” This is clear from the first few chapters of Leviticus, where we have the five great offerings appointed for Israel, which set forth the Person and work of the Redeemer; the Meal offering of “fine flour” (Leviticus 2) portraying the perfections of His humanity. It is equally clear that the “oil” is an emblem of the Holy Spirit in His anointing, enlightening and sustaining operations. It is a most blessed line of study to trace through the Scriptures the typical references of the “oil.”
As the little family at Zarephath were not sustained by meal or oil alone, but the two in conjunction, so the believer is not sustained spiritually without both Christ and the Holy Spirit. We could not feed upon Christ, yes, we would never feel our need of so doing, were it not for the gracious influences of the Spirit of God. The One is as indispensable to us as the Other: Christ for us, the Spirit in us; the One maintaining our cause on high, the Other ministering to us down here. The Spirit is here to “testify” of Christ (John 15:26), yes, to “glorify” Him (John 16:14), and therefore did the Savior add, “He shall receive of Mine and show it unto you”-is not this why the “meal” (three times over) is mentioned first in the type? Nor is this the only passage where we see the two types combined: again and again in the beautiful pre-figuration of the Old Testament we read of the “oil” being placed upon the blood (Exo. 29:21; Leviticus 14:14; etc.).
“And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail.” There was a steady increase and supply of both according to the mighty power of God working a continuous miracle: is there not a close parallel between this and the Savior’s supernatural increasing of the five barley loaves and the two small fishes, while the disciples were distributing and the multitude eating (Matthew 14:19, 20)? But again we would look from the type to the Antitype. The meal continued undiminished, the supply unabated, and the meal pointed to Christ as the Nourisher of our souls. The provision which God has made for His people in the Lord Jesus remains the same throughout the centuries: we may come to Him again and again and though we receive from Him “grace for grace” yet His “fullness” (John 1:16) continues the same “yesterday and today and forever.” “Neither did the cruse of oil fail” foreshadowed the grand truth that the Holy Spirit is with us to the very end of our pilgrimage (Ephesians 4:30).
But let us point out again that God did not give a new barrel of meal and cruse of oil unto this family at Zarephath, nor did He fill to the brim the old one. There is another important lesson for us in this. God gave them sufficient food for their daily use, but not a whole year’s supply in advance or even a week’s provision all at once. In like manner, there is no such thing as our laying up for ourselves a stock of grace for future use. We have to go constantly to Christ for fresh supplies of grace. The Israelites were expressly forbidden to hoard up the manna: they had to go out and gather it anew each morning. We cannot procure sufficient sustenance for our souls on the Sabbath to last us throughout the week, but must feed on God’s Word each morning. So, too, though we have been regenerated by the Spirit once and for all, yet He renews us in the inner man “day by day” (2 Corinthians 4:16).
“According to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by Elijah” (1 Kings 17:16). This was illustrative and demonstrative of a vital principle: no word of His shall fall to the ground, but all things “which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy Prophets since the world began” — (Acts 3:21)-shall surely be accomplished. This is both solemn and blessed. Solemn, because the threatenings of Holy Writ are not idle ones, but the faithful warnings of Him that cannot lie. Just as surely as Elijah’s declaration, “there shall be no dew nor rain these years, but according to my word” (1 Kings 17:1) was fulfilled to the letter, so will the Most High make good every judgment He has announced against the wicked. Blessed, because as truly as the widow’s meal and oil failed not according to His word through Elijah, so shall every promise made to His saints yet receive its perfect accomplishment. The unimpeachable veracity, unchanging faithfulness, and all-mighty power of God to make good His Word is the impregnable foundation on which faith may securely rest.
“Change and decay in all around I see.” We live in a mutable world where nothing is stable, and where life is full of strange vicissitudes. We cannot, and we should not expect things to go smoothly for us for any length of time while we are sojourning in this land of sin and mortality. It would be contrary to the present constitution of our lot as fallen creatures for, “man is born unto trouble as the sparks fly upward.” Neither would it be for our good if we were altogether exempted from affliction. Though we are the children of God, the objects of His special favor-yet this does not free us from the ordinary calamities of life. Sickness and death may enter our dwellings at any time: they may attack us personally, or those who are nearest and dearest to us, and we are obliged to bow to the sovereign dispensations of Him who rules over all. These are commonplace remarks, we know-nevertheless they contain a truth of which, unpalatable though it is, we need constantly reminding.
Though we are quite familiar with the fact mentioned above, and see it illustrated daily on every side, yet we are very reluctant and slow to acknowledge its application to ourselves. Such is human nature: we wish to ignore the unpleasant and persuade ourselves that if our present lot is a happy one it will remain so for some time to come. But no matter how healthy we are, how vigorous our constitution, how well provided for financially, we must not think that our mountain is so strong it cannot be moved (Psalm 30:6, 7). Rather must we train ourselves to hold temporal mercies with a light hand, and use the relations and comforts of this life as though we had them not (1 Corinthians 7:30), remembering that “the fashion of this world passes away.” Our rest is not here, and if we build our nest in any earthly tree it should be with the realization that sooner or later the whole forest will be cut down.
Like many an one both before and since, the widow at Zarephath might have been tempted to think that all her troubles were now over. She might reasonably expect a blessing from entertaining the servant of God in her home, and a very real and liberal blessing she received. In consequence of sheltering him, she and her son were supplied by a Divine miracle in a time of famine for “many days”; and from this she might draw the conclusion that she had nothing further to fear. Yet the very next thing recorded in our narrative is. “And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him” (1 Kings 17:17). The language in which this pathetic incident is couched seems to denote that her son was stricken suddenly, and so sorely that he expired quickly, before there was opportunity for Elijah to pray for his recovery.
How deeply mysterious are the ways of God! The strangeness of this incident now before us is the more evident if we link it with the verse immediately preceding: “The barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke by Elijah. And it came to pass after these things that the son of the woman . . . fell sick” etc. Both she and her son had been miraculously fed for a considerable interval of time, and now he is drastically cut off from the land of the living-reminding us of those words of Christ concerning the sequel to an earlier miracle: “your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead” (John 6:49). Even though the smile of the Lord is upon us and He is showing Himself strong on our behalf, this does not grant us an immunity from the afflictions to which flesh and blood is the heir. As long as we are left in this valley of tears we must seek grace to “rejoice with trembling” (Psalm 2:11).
On the other hand, this widow had most certainly erred if she concluded from the snatching away of her son that she had forfeited the favor of God and that this dark dispensation was a sure mark of His wrath. Is it not written, “For whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives” (Hebrews 12:6)? Even when we have the clearest manifestations of God’s good will-as this woman had in the presence of Elijah under her roof and the daily miracle of sustenance-we must be prepared for the frowns of Providence. We ought not to be staggered if we meet with sharp afflictions while we are treading the path of duty. Did not Joseph do so again and again? Did not Daniel? Above all, did not the Redeemer Himself?-so, too, with His Apostles. “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you” (1 Peter 4:12).
Let it be duly noted that this poor soul had received particular marks of God’s favor before she was cast into the furnace of affliction. It often happens that God exercises His people with the heaviest trials when they have been the recipients of His richest blessings. Yet here the anointed eye may discern His tender mercies. Does that remark surprise you, dear reader? Do you ask, How so? Why, the Lord, in His infinite grace, often prepares His children for suffering by previously granting them great spiritual enjoyments: giving them unmistakable tokens of His kindness, filling their hearts with His love, and diffusing an indescribable peace over their minds. Having tasted experimentally of the Lord’s goodness, they are better fitted to meet adversity. Moreover, patience, hope, meekness, and the other spiritual graces can only be developed in the fire: the faith of this widow, then, must needs be tried yet more severely.
The loss of her child was a very heavy affliction for this poor woman. It would be so to any mother, but it was more especially severe on her, because she had previously been reduced to widowhood, and there would now be none left to support and comfort her declining years. In him all her affections were centered, and with his death all her hopes were destroyed: her coal was now indeed quenched (2 Samuel 14:7) for none remained to preserve the name of her husband on the earth. Nevertheless, as in the case of Lazarus and his sisters, this heavy blow was “for the glory of God” (John 11:4), and was to afford her a still more distinguishing mark of the Lord’s favor. Thus it was, too, with Joseph and Daniel to whom we have alluded above: severe and painful were their trials, yet subsequently God conferred greater honor upon them. O for faith to lay hold of the “afterward” of Hebrews 12:11!
“And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with you O you man of God? are you come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?” (1 Kings 17:18). Alas, what poor, failing, sinful creatures we are! How wretchedly we requite God for His abundant mercies! When His chastening hand is laid upon us, how often we rebel instead of meekly submitting thereto. Instead of humbling ourselves beneath God’s mighty hand and begging Him to show “wherefore” He is contending with us (Job. 10:2), we are far readier to blame some other person as being the cause of our trouble. Thus it was with this woman. Instead of entreating Elijah to pray with and for her-that God would enable her to understand wherein she had “erred” (Job. 6:24), that He would be pleased to sanctify this affliction unto the good of her soul, and enable her to glorify Him “in the fires” (Isaiah 24:15)-she reproached him. How sadly we fail to use our privileges.
“And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with you O you man of God? are you come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?” This is in striking contrast from the calmness she had displayed when Elijah first encountered her. The swift calamity which had befallen her had come as a sore surprise, and under such circumstances when trouble overtakes us unexpectedly it is hard to keep our spirits composed. Under sudden and severe trials much grace is needed if we are to be preserved from impatience, petulant outbursts, and to exercise unshaken confidence in and complete submission to God. Not all of the saints are enabled to say with Job, “Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? . . . the LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away: blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job. 2:10; 1:21). But so far from such failure excusing us, we must judge ourselves unsparingly and contritely confess such sins unto God.
The poor widow was deeply distressed over her loss, and her language to Elijah is a strange mixture of faith and unbelief, pride and humility. It was the inconsistent outburst of an agitated mind, as the disconnected and jerky nature of it intimates. First, she asks him, “What have I to do with thee?”-what have I done to displease you? wherein have I injured you? She wished that she had never set eyes on him if he were responsible for the death of her child. Yet, second, she owns him as “you man of God”-one who was separated unto the Divine service. She must have known by this time that the terrible drought had come upon Israel in answer to the Prophet’s prayers, and she probably concluded her own affliction had come in a similar way. Third, she humbled herself, saying “Are you come to me to call my sin to remembrance?”-possibly a reference to her former worship of Baal.
It is often God’s way to employ afflictions in bringing former sins to our remembrance. In the ordinary routine of life it is so easy to go on from day to day without any deep exercise of conscience before the Lord, especially so when we are in the enjoyment of a replenished barrel. It is only as we are really walking closely with Him, or when we are smitten with some special chastisement of His hand that our conscience is sensitive before Him. And when death entered her family the question of sin came up, for death is the wages of sin (Romans 6:23). It is always the safest attitude for us to assume when we regard our losses as the voice of God speaking to our sinful hearts, and to diligently examine ourselves, repent of our iniquities, and duly confess them unto the Lord, that we may obtain His forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9).
It is at this very point that the difference between an unbeliever and a believer so often appears. When the former is visited with some sore trouble or loss, the pride and self-righteousness of his heart is quickly manifested by his, “I know not what I have done to deserve this: I always sought to do what is right: I am no worse than my neighbors who are spared such sorrow-why should I be made the subject of such a calamity?” But how different is it with a person truly humbled. He is distrustful of himself, aware of his many shortcomings, and ready to fear that he has displeased the Lord. Such an one will diligently consider his ways (Hag. 1:5), reviewing his former manner of life and carefully scrutinizing his present behavior, so as to discover what has been or still is amiss, that it may be set right. Only thus can the fears of our mind be relieved and the peace of God confirmed in our souls.
It is this calling to mind our manifold sins and judging ourselves for them which will make us meek and submissive, patient and resigned. It was thus with Aaron who, when the judgment of God fell so heavily upon his family, “held his peace” (Leviticus 10:3). It was thus with poor old Eli who had failed to admonish and discipline his sons, for when they were summarily slain, he exclaimed, “It is the Lord: let Him do what seems Him good” (1 Samuel 3:18). The loss of a child may sometimes remind parents of sins committed with respect to it long previously. So it was with David when he lost his child by the hand of God smiting it for his wickedness (2 Samuel 12). No matter how heavy the loss, how deep his grief, when in his right mind the language of the saint will ever be, “I know, O LORD, that Your judgments are right, and that You in faithfulness have afflicted me” (Psalm 119:75).
Though the widow and her son had been kept alive for many days, miraculously sustained by the power of God, while the rest of the people had suffered, yet she was less impressed by the Divine beneficence than by His taking away her child: “What have I to do with you, O you man of God? are you come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?” While she seems to acknowledge God in the death of her son, she cannot shake off the thought that the Prophet’s presence was responsible for it. She attributes her loss to Elijah: as though he had been commissioned to go to her for the purpose of inflicting punishment upon her for her sin. As he had been sent to Ahab to denounce the drought upon Israel for their sin, so now she was afraid of his presence, alarmed at the very sight of him. Alas, how ready we are to mistake the grounds of our afflictions and ascribe them to false causes.
“And he said unto her, Give me your son” (1 Kings 17:19). We have already pointed out how that the second half of 1 Kings 17 presents to us a picture of the domestic life of Elijah, his deportment in the widow’s home at Zarephath. First, he evidenced his contentment with the humble fare, expressing no dissatisfaction with the unvarying menu day after day. And here we behold how he conducted himself under great provocation. The petulant outburst of this agitated woman was a cruel one to make unto the very man who had brought deliverance to her house. Her “are you come to call my sin to remembrance and to slay my son?” was uncalled for and unjust, and might well have prompted a bitter reply. It had undoubtedly done so had not the subduing grace of God been working within him, for Elijah was naturally of a very warm temper.
The wrong construction which the widow placed upon Elijah’s presence in her home was enough to shake any person. Blessed is it to observe there was no angry reply made to her inconsiderate judgment, but instead a “soft answer” to turn away her wrath. If one speaks to us unadvisedly with their lips that is no reason why we should descend to their level. The Prophet took no notice of her passionate inquiry and thereby evidenced that he was a follower of Him who is “meek and lowly in heart,” of whom we read “Who, when He was reviled, reviled not again” (1 Peter 2:23). “Elijah saw that she was in extreme distress and that she spoke as one in great anguish of spirit; and therefore, taking no notice of her words, he calmly said to her, ‘Give me your son’; leading her at the same time to expect the restoration of her child through his intercession” (J. Simpson).
It may be thought that the last words cited above are entirely speculative: personally we believe that they are fully warranted by Scripture. In Hebrews 11:35 we read, “Women received their dead raised to life again.” It will be remembered that this statement is found in the great Faith chapter, where the Spirit has set forth some of the wondrous achievements and exploits of those who trust the living God. One individual case after another is mentioned, and then there is it grouping together and generalizing: “who through faith subdued kingdoms, etc., etc.-women received their dead raised to life again.” There can be no room for doubt that the reference here is to the case now before us and the companion one in that of the Shunammite (2 Kings 4:17-37). Here, then, is where the New Testament again throws its light upon the earlier Scriptures, enabling us to obtain a more complete conception of that which we are now considering.
The widow of Zarephath, though a Gentile, was a daughter of Sarah, to whom had been committed the faith of God’s elect. Such a faith is a supernatural one, its Author and Object being supernatural. When this faith was first born within her we are not told-very likely while Elijah was sojourning in her home, for “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God”(Romans 10:17). The supernatural character of her faith was evidenced by its supernatural fruits, for it was in response to her faith (as well as to Elijah’s intercession) that her child was restored to her. What is the more remarkable is that, so far as the Word informs us, there had been no previous case of the dead being brought back again to life. Nevertheless, He who had caused a handful of meal to waste not and a little oil in a cruse to fail not while it sustained three people for “many days,” surely He could also quicken the dead. Thus does faith reason: nothing is impossible to the Almighty.
It may be objected that there is no hint in the historical narrative of the widow’s faith as to the restoring of her son to life, but rather that to the contrary. True, yet this in nowise makes against what has been pointed out above. Nothing is said in Genesis about Sarah’s faith to conceive seed, but instead her skepticism is mentioned. What is there in Exodus to suggest that the parents of Moses were exercising faith in God when they placed their son in the ark of bulrushes?-yet see Hebrews 11:23. One would be hard put to it to find anything in the book of Judges which suggests that Samson was a man of faith, yet it is clear from Hebrews 11:32 that he was. But if nothing is said in the Old Testament of her faith, we may also note that the unkind words of the widow to Elijah are not recorded in the New Testament-any more than the unbelief of Sarah or the impatience of Job-because they are blotted out by the blood of the Lamb.
We are now to consider one of the most remarkable incidents recorded in the Old Testament, namely, the restoring to life of the widow’s son at Zarephath. It is an incident staggering to unbelief, yet he who has any experimental acquaintance with the Lord finds no difficulty therein. When Paul was making his defense before Agrippa, the Apostle asked him, “Why should it be thought a thing incredible (not simply that a deceased person should be restored to life, but) that God should raise the dead?” (Acts 26:8). Ah, there is where the believer throws all the emphasis: upon the absolute sufficiency of the One with whom he has to do. Bring into the scene the living God, and no matter how drastic and desperate be the situation, all difficulties at once disappear, for nothing is impossible to Him. He who first implanted life, He who now holds our souls in life, (Psalm 66:9), can revivify the dead.
The modern infidel (like the Sadducees of old) may scoff at the Divinely revealed truth of resurrection, but not so the Christian. And why? Because he has experienced in his own soul the quickening power of God: he has been brought from death unto life spiritually. Even though Satan should inject vile doubts into his mind, and for awhile shake his confidence in the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, yet he will soon recover his poise: he knows the blessedness of that grand verity, and when grace has again delivered him from the power of darkness, he will joyfully exclaim with the Apostle, “Christ lives in me.” Moreover, when he was born again, a supernatural principle was planted within his heart-the principle of faith-and that principle causes him to receive the Holy Scriptures with full assurance that they are indeed the Word of Him that cannot lie, and therefore does he believe all that the Prophets have spoken.
Here is the reason why that which staggers and stumbles the wise of this world is plain and simple to the Christian. The preservation of Noah and his family in the ark, Israel’s passing through the Red Sea dry-shod, the survival of Jonah in the whale’s belly, present no difficulty to him at all. He knows that the Word of God is inerrant, for the truth thereof has been verified in his own experience. Having proved for himself that the Gospel of Christ is “the power of God unto salvation,” he has no reason to doubt anything recorded in Holy Writ concerning the prodigies of His might in the material realm. The believer is fully assured that nothing is too hard for the Maker of Heaven and earth. It is not that he is an intellectual simpleton, credulously accepting what is altogether contrary to reason, but that in the Christian, reason is restored to its normal functioning: predicate a God who is almighty, and the supernatural workings of His hand necessarily follows.
The entire subject of miracles is hereby reduced to its simplest factor. A great deal of learned jargon has been written on this theme: the laws of nature, their suspension, God’s acting contrary thereto, and as to the precise nature of a miracle. Personally we would define a miracle as something which none but God Himself can perform. In so doing we are not underestimating the powers possessed by Satan, or overlooking such passages as Revelation 16:14 and 19:20. It is sufficient for the writer that Holy Writ affirms the Lord to be “Him who alone does great wonders” (Psalm 136:4). As for the “great signs and wonders” shown by false Christs and false Prophets, their nature and design is to “deceive” (Matthew 24:24), for they are “lying wonders” (2 Thessalonians 2:9), just as their predictions are false ones. Here we rest: God alone does great wonders, and being GOD this is just what faith expects from Him.
We have been recently occupied with the sore affliction which came upon the Zarephath widow in the sudden death of her son, and the immediate effect which it had upon her. Stirred to the depths, she turned to Elijah and accused him of being the occasion of her heavy loss. The Prophet made no harsh reply to the unkind and unjust charge, but instead, quietly said, “Give me your son.” Observe that he did not autocratically lay hands upon the corpse, but courteously requested that the body should be turned over to him. We believe that Elijah’s design therein was to still her passion and cause her to “against hope believe in hope” (Romans 4:18) as long before Abraham had done, when he “believed God who quickens the dead,” for it was (in part) in response to her faith that she “received her dead restored to life again” (Hebrews 11:35).
“And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed” (1 Kings 17:19). This was evidently an upper room reserved for the Prophet’s personal use, as Elisha had his in another place (2 Kings 4:10). There he now retired for privacy, as Peter to the house-top and Christ into the garden. The Prophet himself must have been quite oppressed and disconcerted by the sad event which had overtaken his hostess. Stern as Elijah might be in the discharge of duty, yet he possessed a tender spirit underneath (as such stern men generally do), full of benignity and sensitive to the misery of others. It is quite evident from the sequel Elijah grieved that one who had been so kind to him should be so heavily afflicted since he had come to her hospitable abode, and it would add to his distress that she should think he was responsible for her loss.
It must not be lost sight of that this dark dispensation occasioned a very real testing of Elijah’s faith. Jehovah is the God of the widow and the Rewarder of those who befriend His people, especially of those who show kindness to His servants. Why, then, should such evil now come upon the one who was affording him shelter? Had he not come by the Lord’s own appointment as a messenger of mercy to her house? True, he had proved himself to be such: but this was forgotten by her under the stress of the present trial, for he is now regarded as the emissary of wrath, an avenger of her sin, the slayer of her only child. Worst of all, would he not feel that the honor of his Master was also involved? That the name of the Lord would be scandalized? Might the widow not ask, Is this how God repays those who befriend His servants?
Blessed is it to observe how Elijah reacted to this trial. When the widow asked if the death of her son was due to his presence, he indulged in no carnal speculations, making no attempt to solve the deep mystery which now confronted himself as well as her. Instead, he retires to his chamber that he may get alone with God and spread his perplexity before Him. This is ever the course we should follow, for not only is the Lord “a very present help in trouble” but His Word requires that we should seek unto Him first (Matthew 6:33). “My soul, wait you only upon God,” applies with double force in times of perplexity and distress. Vain is the help of man; worthless are carnal conjectures. In the hour of His acutest trial the Savior Himself withdrew from His own disciples and poured out His heart unto the Father in secret. The widow was not allowed to witness the deepest exercises of the Prophet’s soul before his Master.
“And he cried unto the LORD” (1 Kings 17:20). As yet Elijah apprehended not the meaning of this mystery, but he well understood what to do in his difficulty. He betook himself unto his God and spread his complaint before Him. He sought relief with great earnestness and importunity, humbly reasoning with Him regarding the death of the child. But note well his reverent language: he did not ask, Why have You inflicted this dismal dispensation upon us? But instead, “O LORD, my God, have You also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?” (v. 20). The why of it was none of his business. It is not for us to call into question the ways of the Most High nor to curiously inquire into His secret counsels. Sufficient for us to know that the Lord makes no mistakes, that He has a good and sufficient reason for all He does, and therefore should we meekly submit to His sovereign pleasure. Man’s “why does He” and “why have You”? is designated a “replying against God” (Romans 9:19, 20).
In Elijah’s address unto God we may note, first, how that he fell back upon the special relation which He sustained to him: “O LORD, my God” he cried. This was a pleading of his personal interest in God, for these words are always expressive of Covenant relationship. To be able to say “O LORD, my God” is worth more than gold or rubies. Second, he traced the calamity back to its original source: “have You also brought evil upon the widow?” (v. 20)-he saw death striking by Divine commission: “shall there be evil in a city and the LORD has not done it!” (Amos 3:6). What a comfort when we are enabled to realize that no evil can befall God’s children but such as He brings upon them. Third, he pleaded the severity of the affliction: this evil has come upon, not simply the woman nor even the mother, but “the widow” whom You do specially support. Moreover, she it is “with whom I sojourn”: my kind benefactor.
“And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD” (v. 21). Was this proof of the Prophet’s humility? How remarkable that so great a man should spend so much time and thought on that slender form, and bring himself into immediate contact with that which was ceremonially defiled! Was this act indicative of his own affection for the child, and to show how deeply he was stirred by his death? Was it a token of the fervency of his appeal unto God, as though he would if he could put life into his body from the life and warmth of his own? Does not his doing this three times over so intimate? Was it a sign of what God would do by His power and accomplish by His grace in the bringing of sinners from death unto life; the Holy Spirit overshadowing them and imparting His own life to them? If so, is there not more than a hint here that those whom He employs as instruments in conversion must themselves become as little children, bringing themselves to the level of those to whom they minister, and not standing on a pedestal as though they were superior beings?
“Cried unto the Lord and said, O LORD, my God, I pray You, let this child’s soul come into him again” (v. 21). What a proof is this that Elijah was accustomed to expect wondrous blessings from God in response to his supplications, accounting that nothing was too hard for Him to do, nothing too great for Him to bestow in answer to prayer. Undoubtedly this petition was prompted by the Holy Spirit, yet it was a marvelous effect of the Prophet’s faith to anticipate the restoration of the child to life, for there is no record in Scripture that anyone had been raised from the dead before this time. And remember, Christian reader, that this is recorded for our instruction and encouragement: the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. At the Throne of Grace we approach unto a great King, so let us large petitions bring. The more faith counts upon the infinite power and sufficiency of the Lord, the more is He honored.
“And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah, and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived” (v. 22). What a proof was this that the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and “His ears are open unto their prayers” (1 Peter 3:12). What a demonstration of the potency and efficacy of prayer! Ours is a prayer-hearing and a prayer-answering God: to Him therefore let us have recourse whatever be our distress. Hopeless as our case may be to all human help, yet nothing is too hard for the Lord. He is able to do far more exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think. But let us “ask in faith, nothing wavering: for he who wavers is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall obtain anything of the Lord” (James 1:6, 7). “This is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us” (1 John 5:14). Surely we have need, all of us, to cry more earnestly, “Lord, teach us to pray.” Unless this be one of the effects produced by pondering the incident now before us, our study of the same has availed us little.
But it is not sufficient for us to cry, “Lord, teach us to pray”: we must also carefully ponder those portions of His Word which chronicle cases of prevailing intercession, that we may learn the secrets of successful prayer. In this instance we may note the following points. First, Elijah’s retiring to his own private chamber, that he might be alone with God. Second, his fervency: he “cried unto the Lord”-no mere lip-service was this. Third, his reliance upon his own personal interest in the Lord, avowing his covenant relationship: “O Lord, my God.” Fourth, his encouraging himself in God’s attributes: here, the Divine sovereignty and supremacy-“have You also brought evil upon the widow.” Fifth, his earnestness and importunity: evidenced by his “stretching himself upon the child” no less than three times. Sixth, his appeal to God’s tender mercy: “the widow, with whom I sojourn.” Finally, the definiteness of his petition: “let this child’s soul come into him again.”
“And the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived” (1 Kings 17:22). These words are important for clearly establishing the very definite distinction which there is between the soul and the body, a distinction as real as that which exists between the house and its inhabitant. Scripture tells us that in the day of his creation, the Lord God first formed man’s body out of “the dust of the ground,” and second, that He “breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,” and only then did he become “a living soul” (Genesis 2:7). The language employed on this occasion affords clear proof that the soul is distinct from the body, that it does not die with the body, that it exists in a separate state after the death of the body, and that none but God can restore it to its original habitat (compare Luke 8:55). Incidentally we may observe that this request of Elijah’s and the Lord’s response make it quite clear that the child was actually dead.
Relatively speaking, though in a very real sense nevertheless, the age of miracles has ceased, so that we cannot expect to have our dead supernaturally restored to us in this life. Yet the Christian may and ought to look forward with certain assurance that he shall meet again those beloved relatives and friends who departed hence in Christ. Their spirits are not dead, nor even sleeping as some erroneously assert, but have returned to God who gave them (Ecclesiastes 12:7) and are now in a state that is “far better” (Philippians 1:23), which could not be were they deprived of all conscious communion with their Beloved. Their souls are not in “purgatory” as sordid priests have pretended for filthy lucre’s sake, but, being absent from the body, they are “present with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:8), and in His presence is “fullness of joy” (Psalm 16:11). As to their bodies they await that great Day when they shall be fashioned like unto Christ’s glorious body.
“And Elijah took the child and brought him down out of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother: and Elijah said, See, your son lives” (1 Kings 17:23). What joy must have filled the Prophet’s heart as he witnessed the miraculous answer to his intercession! What fervent ejaculations of praise must have issued from his lips unto God for this additional manifestation of His goodness in delivering him from his grief. But it was no time for delay: the sorrow and suspense of the poor widow must now be allayed. Elijah, therefore promptly took the child downstairs and gave him to his mother. Who can imagine her delight as she saw her child restored to life again? How the Prophet’s procedure on this occasion reminds us of our Lord’s action following upon the miracle of restoring to life the only son of the widow of Nain, for no sooner did he sit up and speak than we are told that the Savior “delivered him to his mother” (Luke 7:15)!
“And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that you are a man of God, that the Word of the Lord in your mouth is truth” (1 Kings 17:24). Very blessed is this. Instead of giving vent to her natural emotions she appears to have been entirely absorbed with the power of God which rested upon His servant, which now firmly established her conviction of his Divine mission and assurance in the truth which he proclaimed. Full demonstration had been given her that Elijah was indeed a Prophet of the Lord and that his witness was true. It must not be forgotten that in verse 14 he had first presented himself to her as a “man of God” (note her words in v. 18), and therefore it was essential he should establish his claim to that character. And this was done by the restoration of her child to life. Ah, my reader, we avow ourselves to be the children of the living God, but how are we making good our profession? There is only one conclusive way of so doing, and that is by walking in “newness of life,” evidencing that we are new creatures in Christ.
That which has been before us supplies yet another feature of Elijah’s domestic life. In considering how he conducted himself in the widow’s home, we noted first his contentment, murmuring not at the humble fare which was placed before him. Second, his gentleness, in refusing to reply to her unkind words with an angry retort. And now we behold the blessed effect upon his hostess of the miracle wrought in answer to his prayers. Her confession, “by this I know you are a man of God,” was a personal testimony to the reality and power of a holy life. O to live in the energy of the Holy Spirit so that those who come into contact with us may perceive the power of God working in and through us! Thus did the Lord override the widow’s grief unto her spiritual good, by establishing her faith in the veracity of His word.
