And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah ,.... In prayer, and answered it: and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived ; this is the first instance of anyone being raised from the dead; this Satan has imitated; hence the many fabulous stories with the Heathens of persons being raised to life after death F11 Vid. Huet. Alnetan. Quaest. l. 2. c. 12. sect. 30. . read more
And the soul - נפש nephesh , of the child came into him again, קרבו על al kirbo , into the midst of him; and he revived, ויח vaiyechi , and he became alive. Did he not become alive from the circumstance of the immaterial principle coming again into him? Although רוח ruach is sometimes put for the breath, yet נפש generally means the immortal spirit, and where it seems to refer to animal life alone, it is only such a life as is the immediate and necessary effect of the... read more
Second Preparation of Elijah. Elijah passed through his second phase of preparation under the humble roof of the widow of Sarepta. He is in the right attitude for gaining a holy preparedness for his work, for he has placed himself absolutely and directly under the guidance of God. When the word of God comes to him, he is ready to arise and go whithersoever it bids. Thus was Christ "led of the Spirit" to commence His public ministry ( Matthew 4:1 ); and throughout His whole course He... read more
Life from the Dead. The miracles wrought by Elijah or associated with his name were for the most part of the nacre of severe judgments, and present the person of the lowly prophet in a stern and terrible light before us. But the two miracles that mark the opening of his career were miracles of mercy, and show that there was another side to his character, one that was tenderly sympathetic and humane. Having at first brought hope and a new lease of life to the starving mother and her child,... read more
Affliction and its Fruits. I. THE DISCIPLINE OF TRIAL . 1 . It is no proof of God's anger . Sorrow darkens the homes of God's beloved. This was a home of faith and ministering love. Affliction is no more proof of wrath than is the farmer's ploughing of his field. To him, with his eye upon the future harvest, it is only the needful preparation of the soil. And the great Husbandman, with His eye upon the eternal glory, must open up a bed within the soul's depths for the seed... read more
The Sign of the Widow's Son. Here is a touching scene—a poor widow pressing to her bosom the corpse of her only child, while in the agony of her bereaved soul, addressing Elijah, she says, "What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come to call my sin to my remembrance, and to slay my son?" Now note the words of the text: "And he said unto her, Give me thy son , " etc. In this history we have— I. AN EXAMPLE OF THE POWER OF FAITH . Behold here— 1. ... read more
And the Lord heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again and he revived [or recovered . Cf. 2 Kings 1:2 ; 2 Kings 8:8 ]. read more
1 Kings 17:22. The soul of the child came into him again The reader will easily observe, that this phraseology of the sacred historian, like that of the prophet in the former verse, (and they both spoke by inspiration of God,) plainly signifies the distinction between the rational soul and earthly body to be as real as that between the house and its inhabitant, and supposes the existence of the former in a state of separation from the body, and consequently its immortality: and, probably,... read more
16:29-22:53 MINISTRY OF ELIJAHJezebel’s Baalism in Israel (16:29-17:24)In a new political alliance, Ahab, the new king of Israel, married Jezebel, daughter of the king-priest of Phoenicia. Ahab not only accepted his wife’s Baalism, but also gave it official status in Israel by building a Baal temple in the capital (29-33). The Baalism imported by Jezebel was of a kind far more evil and far more dangerous to Israel’s religion than the common Canaanite Baalism practised at the high places.... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - 1 Kings 17:17-24
We have here a further recompence made to the widow for her kindness to the prophet; as if it were a small thing to be kept alive, her son, when dead, is restored to life, and so restored to her. Observe, I. The sickness and death of the child. For aught that appears he was her only son, the comfort of her widowed estate. He was fed miraculously, and yet that did not secure him from sickness and death. Your fathers did eat manna, and are dead, but there is bread of which a man may eat and not... read more