Lyrics · 1 Kings
The Ravens and the Widow's Barrel
1 Kings 16:29-17:24
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About this song
This song belongs to the 1 Kings collection. One recording is available to play here, with the complete lyrics below.
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Named in this songAhabSamariaJerichoElijah
About the passage
1 Kings 16: Short-lived thrones and a deepening breach
Baasha’s rise does not shield his house from the judgment that fell on Jeroboam’s. Jehu the prophet announces that Baasha, though raised from obscurity, has become like the dynasty he destroyed. Elah is then murdered by Zimri, a commander inside his own military structure, and Zimri wipes out Baasha’s household. His reward is a throne that lasts only seven days. The army at Gibbethon makes Omri king, Tirzah is taken, and Zimri dies inside the burning palace. Even Omri must first survive a divided succession before establishing Samaria as a new capital. Political strength grows while the book’s religious assessment worsens. Ahab inherits Samaria, marries Jezebel, builds a house and altar for Baal, and treats Jeroboam’s sins as only the beginning. The chapter closes with Hiel rebuilding Jericho under Joshua’s old word.
Study 1 Kings 16 in depth1 Kings 17: Life sustained where the rain does not fall
Elijah enters the Book of 1 Kings by announcing that rain and dew will stop, and the drought immediately becomes a test of whose word governs the land. He is not insulated from the conditions he announces. Ravens bring food at Cherith, but the brook still dries because no rain falls. The next provision comes through a widow in Zarephath, a woman who expects the small amount of meal and oil in her house to become a final meal for herself and her son. Elijah gives a specific promise, and those ordinary containers continue to supply food through the famine. Then the chapter moves beyond hunger. The widow’s son dies despite the continuing provision. Elijah carries him upstairs, cries to the LORD, and the child’s life returns. The widow’s final confession joins Elijah’s identity with the truth of the LORD’s word in his mouth.
Study 1 Kings 17 in depth


