1 AND Elijah [ The Hebrew translates literally to "the Lord is God"] the Tishbite, [ Referring to the place from which he came, or to the Hebrew meaning of "dweller". ] who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, [ Remember from the previous chapter he is the worse of the worst kings in provoking God the the northern part of Israel. ] As the LORD God of Israel liveth, [ This is the strongest language that he can use, as he convokes all of the power that God has in his testimony of what he is saying. Essentially saying that I know that God lives and as a result God will keep us honest in what I say with and in this covenant. In addition, he is stating with all authority to Ahab that God does live and you better believe that he does live. As a matter of fact Ahab you better hope that God does live because he is the only one who will be able to reverse what I am about to do. I am going to seal the heavens and there is only one God who can possible reverse that. It will not be your idols, it will not be Baal it will only be the will of my God. ] before whom I stand, [What is the role of a prophet? to vicariously stand as a witness of and testifier for the Lord. Here Elijah explicitly spells this out. The Hebrew "nabi", commonly translated to the English "prophet" most literally translates to "spokesman". Elder Joseph Fielding Smith "There is something very signifigant in that edict...'but according to my word' should impress you with the sealing power by which Elijah was able to close the heavens, that there should be no rain or dew until he spoke (Doctrines of Salvation 2;102). ] there shall not be dew nor rain these years, [ The use of drought is a common curse used by the Lord to humble the people to repent. ] but according to my word. [Why was Elijah able to make such a statement? He knew he had been called of God and he knew what his job as a prophet was. ]

2 And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,

3 Get thee hence, [ Elijah is warned of danger, they are out to execute him. ] and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, [ A small little creek. ] that is before Jordan.

4 And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; [ So I will have clean water. ] and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there. [ Ravens are no so that big, so the meal that they will bring will be fairly small. So as Elder Holland once said about this "Elijah was not living high on the hog here.". Ravens are one of the unclean birds mentioned in Lev. So God is using the unclean here to help Elijah. So is the unclean the best that there is left, maybe some idea of the real situtation here. This will also be a daily need and door dash delivery. ]

5 so he went and did [What does Elijah do? went and did What can we learn from Elijahs response to the Lord's command?] according unto the word of the LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.

6 And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, [ Elijah must exercise faith each day in order to sustain his life - he is totally dependant on the Lord for everything required to maintain physical life. Ravens are scavengers as well, so they will pick the meat from dead animals, so you might wonder where did this meal come from. ] and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.

7 And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, [so just how does Elijah make it alone in the desert? the last symbol of natural providence, the only thing left was complete reliance on the Lord. He will not last long without water. ] because there had been no rain in the land.

8 ¶ And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,

9 Arise, get thee to Zarephath,[ What is now Lebanon. ] which belongeth to Zidon, [ Go to Zidon or Sidon. This is north of Israel, outside of Israel. This is where Jezebell is and Jezebel is out to kill all of the prophets of the Lord, and Elijah was obviously on the top of the list as he had cursed the earth with drought. The irony is the Lord instructs him to go and hide in Jezebel's home country, possibly because it is a place she obviously wouldn't think to look. So he is going into a region that obviously is not on his side, and will almost likely try to kill him. Well I might as well get this over with since I will die anyway without water. ] and dwell there: behold, I have commanded [ Lord has prepared all things in advance. ] a widow woman there to sustain thee. [What does this phrase tell us about how the Lord works? He has already begun the preparation of all things, they are most often done in advance of our knowledge. How had the Lord prepared the widow? She was not given a cart of food just prior so she would be ready for the prophet. What does this teach us about how the Lord prepares us sometimes? sometimes he just makes us ready to receive a prompting - nothing else. ]

10 so he arose [ I like this - the Lord commands and he quickly obeys. How do you suppose he has refined this skill? His days alone in the desert reling on the Lord to tell him what he must do each day to survive.] and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, [ The place of judgement. ] behold, the widow woman [ She has already lost so much. ] was there gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. [ I can only image how relieved that she is to hear that he only wants a drink. ]

11  And as she was going to fetch it,< [ So I imagine being relieved she hurried to fetch the drink of water, hurry before he changes his mind and asks for mind. ] he called to her, and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine hand. [ And then he does ask for more. ]

12 And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, [ I am not an Israelite, I know that you are but I am not. I do not have a God as whatever God we had has abandoned us. And I do not know who your God is or where he is but you do not seem to be doing much better. So I have not anything to give you. ] I have not a cake, [ You are asking for really more than I have. Maybe there was only enough left for a small bit of meal for her son. She would give it all to him and eat nothing herself. Maybe she had not eaten in days. So what he is asking is for her to choose between him and her son, which one to feed. I am sorry but I cannot do that it is to much. ] but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, [ Two sticks, are you kidding me. How big of a fire to cook on will she have with two little sticks. ] that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. [ Note that she has consigned her and her son to most certain death - she is at the end of her rope. ]

13 And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; [ Can you imagine what is going through her head her. Yea sure, easy for you to say as a stranger. I have lost my husband, I have no one to take care of me. and you say fear not, I can't it is too much. And if that is not enough make me a cake first, put me first, trust in my message and the God of Israel will bless you for it. ] go and do as thou hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son. [ Sir; obviously you are not listening here. I just told you there is not that much left in the barrel and yet you persist. Elijah is teaching her that it is the order that matters here. He could have said make the two of you a cake and then check the barrel again to see if there is still enough to make me a cake. So what he is asking, what the Lord is asking will you put God's servant first, a stranger first. ]

14 For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, [ Note Elijah inserts "of Israel" where the woman omits it in v. 12. Elijah is emphasizing the covenant relationship Israel enjoys as well as to whom his primary ministry is aimed at. Simply a gentle reproof. ] The barrel of meal shall not waste, [ It will never be completely empty. ] neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth. [ There is an expiration date on his blessing to her. The idea is that after the rain comes she will be able to glean in the field again. ]

15 And she went and did [ What kind of faith did she have to have? Why do you think that the Lord commanded the widow to feed Elijah when she had so little?] according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.

16 And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he [ The Lord. ] spake by Elijah. [ Thus he is a true prophet - he is a spokesman for the Lord. What blessings did the widow receive for her faithfulliness? What things does God ask us to do today that are difficult? In what ways are we blessed when we put God first? Predident Benson taught:"When we put God first, all other things fall into their proper place or drop out of our lives. Our love of the Lord will govern the claims for our affection, the demands on our time, the interests we pursue, and the order of our priorities..." ]

17 ¶ And it came to pass after these things, [ Her barrel was always with mael and her cruise always was with oil, and now after all of that the test comes. ] that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; [ Since we are in a famine, malnutrition and disease surely must have been rampant - easy for one to get very ill. ] and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him. [ At this point after all that she has been through she must have been devastated. To think that her little boy was about to die, why had the previous blessings been given him with the meal and oil only to have him die now? She would believe that whatever was put on the child was her sin, it was because of something that she had done. So why now do you put my sin right back in may face so to speak. ]

18 And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? [ Prophet and holder of the Holy Priesthood of God - power to act in his name. ] art thou come unto me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son? [ Do you think that the woman might have thought about being a little bitter with the Lord? Have you ever heard someone say I have gone on a mission, paid my tithing, got married in the temple, tried to keep the commandments and this is what I get? Does doing the will of the Lord qualify us for exemption from trials? so what then does it qualify us for? Maybe that our burdens will be lighter, or have purpose...

The JPS renders the same verse: (Jewish Publication society Bible)

She said to Elijah, "What harm have I done you, O man of God, that you should come here to recall my sin and cause the death of my son?"

The KJV makes it seem like she is accusing Elijah of being the cause of her sons death. This isn't the case. The widow here is appealing to Elijah in an way that seems rather odd to us. In v.12 the widow is already resigned to death by starvation for both herself and her son, so it is plain Elijah has acted as a deliverer to her. Here, she is confessing her and her son's sinfulness to him in such a manner as to make him a pillar of judgement against them, as he is a man of God. She is saying that he represents God's Justice and God's Justice has exposed her sin and slain her son. She is indirectly appealing to Elijah to once again be a deliverer, as she points out to him that she has done no harm to him, but has been his benefactor. It is his office as a prophet, a man of God, that has exposed her sins. He did not personally condemn her, his position as a representative of the Lord did. Elijah recognizes she is appealing to him to act as intercessor again and spare them from death (her allusion to her own sinfulness makes an otherwise implicit reference to spiritual death explicit). ]

19 And he said unto her, Give me thy son. [ Elijah responds that it is not God who is punishing you. ] And he took him out of her bosom, [ She is clutching him as he takes his last breaths. BUt She trusts Elijah to let me take her little boy. ] and carried him up into a loft, [ Takes him to a higher place. Child must have been little if he is able by himself to carry him upstairs. ] where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed.

20  And he cried unto the LORD, [ He pleaded with God to spale the child, his compassion is overwhelming for the widow who gave her all for him, she sacrificed what she thought was her last meal for both her and her son, to feed Elijah. What compassion he must have had for her. After all she acted with great faith when you asked that of her, why not now. ] and said, O LORD my God, hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?

21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times, [ The repetition of his faith, 3 times which shows perfection in his actions to the Lord. Is Elijah's faith being tested here as well? ] and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child’s soul come into him again.

22 And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. [ Elijah become one of the 2 prophets in the Old Testament to raise the dead. I think Elisha was the other one. ]

23 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, thy son liveth. [ How joyful must that reunion have been. ]

24 ¶ And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth. [ The result is the widow's faith in both Elijah, herself and the Lord is confirmed. ]