Bible Strands
1 Kings 17:17
Later, the son of the woman who owned the house became ill, and his sickness grew worse and worse, until no breath remained in him.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrative shifts to a moment after Elijah’s prolonged stay and the ongoing miracle of the flour and oil. The text reports that the widow’s son suddenly falls gravely ill, moving the scene from daily provision to acute crisis.
The words — The phrase וַ/יְהִ֗י אַחַר הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה (va/y.Hi 'a.Char ha./de.va.Rim 'E.leh) translates literally to "and it was after the things these," marking a precise temporal transition. The verb חָלָה (cha.Lah) denotes the son becoming sick, initiating the life-threatening decline.
The thread — This account of sudden illness and breath leaving a child runs parallel to the testing of Abraham in Genesis 22:1 and the prophetic ministry to the Shunammite woman in 2 Kings 4:18. It also aligns with the theological claim in Job 12:10 that the breath of all mankind resides in God’s hand.
Why it lands — The text requires the reader to acknowledge that divine sustenance does not immunize against mortal collapse. It demands a sober confrontation with death while positioning the reader to observe how God responds to human limitation.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
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.
Cross-references
- Genesis 22:1 Some time later God tested Abraham and said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am,” he answered.
- 2 Kings 4:18 And the child grew, and one day he went out to his father, who was with the harvesters.
- Job 12:10 The life of every living thing is in His hand, as well as the breath of all mankind.
- Job 34:14 If He were to set His heart to it and withdraw His Spirit and breath,
- Psalms 104:29 When You hide Your face, they are terrified; when You take away their breath, they die and return to dust.
- Daniel 5:23 Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. The vessels from His house were brought to you, and as you drank wine from them with your nobles, wives, and concubines, you praised your gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you have failed to glorify the God who holds in His hand your very breath and all your ways.
- Zechariah 12:10 Then I will pour out on the house of David and on the people of Jerusalem a spirit of grace and prayer, and they will look on Me, the One they have pierced. They will mourn for Him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for Him as one grieves for a firstborn son.
- John 11:3 So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one You love is sick.”
- John 11:14 So Jesus told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead,
- James 1:2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, when you encounter trials of many kinds,