During his reign Hiel from Bethel rebuilt Jericho. As the Lord had foretold through Joshua son of Nun, Hiel lost his oldest son Abiram when he laid the foundation of Jericho, and his youngest son Segub when he built the gates.
Indicative of the decadence of that time – much like the summary judgement in Judges 21:25.
A prophet named Elijah, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to King Ahab, “In the name of the Lord, the living God of Israel, whom I serve, I tell you that there will be no dew or rain for the next two or three years until I say so.”
The great prophet Elijah bursts onto the scene, a bright light in the midst of a very dark time.
Then the Lord said to Elijah, “Leave this place and go east and hide yourself near Cherith Brook, east of the Jordan. The brook will supply you with water to drink, and I have commanded ravens to bring you food there.”
You have provided for me all these years in the desert, Father. Thank you.
Then the Lord said to Elijah, “Now go to the town of Zarephath, near Sidon, and stay there. I have commanded a widow who lives there to feed you.” So Elijah went to Zarephath, and as he came to the town gate, he saw a widow gathering firewood. “…please bring me some bread…”
She answered, “…I came here to gather some firewood to take back home and prepare what little I have for my son and me. That will be our last meal, and then we will starve to death.”
Luke 4:25-26. There is no indication here that the widow was aware of being commanded by the Lord. So much passes beyond what we can sense.
“Don’t worry,” Elijah said to her. “…first make a small loaf from what you have and bring it to me, and then prepare the rest for you and your son.
Always the first fruits (Nehemiah 10:35).
The widow went and did as Elijah had told her, and all of them had enough food for many days. As the Lord had promised through Elijah, the bowl did not run out of flour nor did the jar run out of oil.
Some time later the widow’s son got sick; he got worse and worse, and finally he died. She said to Elijah, “Man of God, why did you do this to me? Did you come here to remind God of my sins and so cause my son’s death?”
The source of blessing when all is well and the first to be blamed when things turn south. Life.