Bible Strands
1 Kings 17:6
The ravens would bring him bread and meat in the morning and evening, and he would drink from the brook.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The narrator records Elijah’s daily routine at the Brook of Cherith immediately after he obeys the Lord’s command to hide there east of the Jordan. This occurs during the early phase of a divinely initiated drought with no rain in the land.
The words — The Hebrew מְבִיאִים (mevi'im) denotes the continuous action of "bringing," emphasizing the sustained nature of the provision. The paired terms לֶחֶם (lechem) for bread and בָּשָׂר (basar) for meat specify the exact food sources delivered twice daily.
The thread — The text describes sustained supernatural feeding that parallels the manna pattern and appears in Matthew 6:31 as a counterpoint to anxious human striving. The brook’s initial provision aligns with the water from the rock in Psalms 78:15, while the command over nature mirrors the cloud and heaven imagery of Psalms 78:23.
Why it lands — The passage establishes that obedience precedes provision, requiring the reader to accept daily sustenance without demanding visible guarantees. It sets a factual baseline for trusting that specific needs will be met according to a fixed schedule.
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 the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook.
Cross-references
- Psalms 78:23 Yet He commanded the clouds above and opened the doors of the heavens.
- Matthew 6:31 Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’
- Psalms 78:15 He split the rocks in the wilderness and gave them drink as abundant as the seas.
- Jeremiah 37:21 So King Zedekiah gave orders for Jeremiah to be placed in the courtyard of the guard and given a loaf of bread daily from the street of the bakers, until all the bread in the city was gone. So Jeremiah remained in the courtyard of the guard.
- Matthew 14:19 And He directed the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He spoke a blessing. Then He broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.
- Matthew 19:26 Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
- Luke 22:35 Then Jesus asked them, “When I sent you out without purse or bag or sandals, did you lack anything?” “Nothing,” they answered.
- Judges 15:18 And being very thirsty, Samson cried out to the LORD, “You have accomplished this great deliverance through Your servant. Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?”
- Psalms 34:9 Fear the LORD, you His saints, for those who fear Him lack nothing.
- Psalms 37:19 In the time of evil they will not be ashamed, and in the days of famine they will be satisfied.