Main Characters
Elijah, the widow, her son, God
Plot
Elijah learns that there will be no rain for the next few years. Elijah hears the word of God, who tells him to go and hide in the Kerith Ravine to the east of the Jordan. God promises Elijah that he will drink from a stream there, and the ravens will feed him. After the stream has dried up, the Lord tells Elijah to go to Zarephath and stay there and find a widow to feed him. Elijah meets the widow at the city gate and asks her to bring him a jug of water and some bread. The widow replies that she only has a handful of flour and a little olive oil for her and her son. But Elijah tells her not to be afraid because, according to the word of God, flour and oil will not run out until it rains. And so it happened, and Elijah and the widow were saved from the famine. But after a while, the widow’s little son fell ill and stopped breathing. Elijah took him to his room and cried out to the Lord to return the boy’s life. God heard Elijah, and the boy became alive again.
Structure
This story’s structure consists of the situation, stress, search, solution, and new situation. The situation is that there is no rain on the earth; Elijah goes to Zarephath so that the widow would feed him according to God’s word. The stress is that the widow has no food, only the last handful of flour and oil. The solution is that, according to God’s word, flour and oil do not run out, and the heroes manage to survive. Then another stress happens – the widow’s son falls ill and stops breathing. This is followed by a search for a solution – Elijah brings the boy to his room and cries out to God. Then a decision comes – God hears Elijah and breathes life into the boy. This is followed by a new situation – Elijah gives the living son to his mother, and the mother is relieved.