HOME | SCRIPTURE INDEX | MOVIE INDEX | ART INDEX | SEARCH | ABOUT | MOBILE | ADVERTISE | SUPPORT | BLOG | CONTACT

1 Kings 19:1-15
(1 Kings 19:4-8)
Please consider your sponsorship or support
of The Text This Week.

• Reading the Text:
  • NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
  • Hebrew Interlinear Bible, WLCv, WLC5, CHES, AV.
  • The Bible Gateway: NRSV, RSV, NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
  • The Blue Letter Bible. KJV, alternate versions, Hebrew text with concordance, commentaries.
  • The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
• Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • IV.XX.10, Adversus Haereses, Irenaeus of Lyons. (c. 180) 
  • III.7, Paedagogus, Clement of Alexandria (c 200)
  • Chapter XV, On Patience, Tertullian (c. 202)
  • IV.23, Against Marcion, Tertullian (c. 210)
  • Chapter LXI, On the Resurrection of the Flesh,  Tertullian (c. 211)
  • V.9, Against Marcion, Tertullian (c. 212)
  • Chapter XXXI, Hortatory Address to the Greeks, pseudo-Justin. (3rd cent?)
  • Rashi's Commentary, c. 1075. chabad.org.
  • From the Geneva Notes.
    • "He declares that unless God had nourished him miraculously it would have been impossible for him to have gone on this journey."
  • From Matthew Henry's Commentary.
    • "God knows what he designs us for, though we do not, what services, what trials, and he will take care that we are furnished with grace sufficient."
  • From Wesley's Notes.
    • "See how wonderfully God raises up friends for his ministers and people where one would least expect them!"
  • From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
    • "fed them with bread and water--These articles are often used to include sustenance of any kind. As this succor must have been given them at the hazard, not only of his place, but his life, it was a strong proof of his attachment to the true religion."
  • "God's Gentle Power: 1 Kings 19:11-13," Charles H. Spurgeon, 1916.
• Contemporary Commentary, Studies, and Exegesis:
  • Commentary, 1 Kings 19:1-4 [5-7] 8-15a, Sara Koenig, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2016.
    • "This chapter is well represented in the lectionary, and provides a stark contrast with the immediately previous one, when Elijah had his dramatic, public showdown with the prophets of Baal."
  • "Get Up and Eat: The Act of Feeding," John Boopalan, Political Theology, 2019.
    • "The posture that invites those who are struggling for freedom to 'Get up and eat, otherwise the journey will be too much for you' is a political posture laden with messianic power."
  • Commentary, 1 Kings 19:1-4 [5-7] 8-15a, Pentecost 5, Terence E. Fretheim, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2016.
    • "These verses in First Kings have long captured the imagination of interpreters, especially the phrase: "the still, small voice" or "a sound sheer silence" (19:12)."
  • The Center for Excellence in Preaching, resources from Calvin Theological Seminary: Comments & Observations, Textual Points, Illustration Ideas, 2016.
  • "God Is Still Speaking, Quietly," Jerry Carpenter, Weimar Wanderings, 2016.
  • Pulpit Fiction, with podcast. Reflections of lectionary text, pop culture, current events, etc. Robb Mc Coy and Eric Fistler, 2016.
  • Commentary, 1 Kings 19:4-8, Garret Galvin, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2015.
    • "As God accompanies Elijah, Hagar, and Jonah on their journey, Scripture invites us to consider how God has accompanied us on our journeys."
  • "God Is Not Done," Janet Hunt, Dancing with the Word, 2015.
  • Commentary, 1 Kings 19:1-4 [5-7] 8-15a, Pentecost 5, Roger Nam, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2013.
    • "Dear Working Preacher, this week is not your typical prophetic narrative. For this week, I encourage you to prayerfully prepare your sermon, while considering those who are really struggling in their journeys."
  • "Elijah, Murderer," Nanette Sawyer, The Hardest Question, 2013.
    • "Does this story teach us that murder is okay when we do it to defend God's honor or to enforce loyalty to God? Does God need this kind of defending?"
  • "Get Up And Eat," Linda Fabian Pepe, Theological Stew, 2013.
    • "Our journey with God sometimes calls us to do things and be things that we may not want to do, or didn't ever see ourselves doing. There might be times when things get scary. But what we can learn, through Elijah, that when things happen, and when the road gets hard… that it's ok to be afraid, or worried, or frustrated; its even ok to feel like giving up."
  • "What Are You Doing Here?" Faith Element, 2013.
  • Commentary, 1 Kings 19:4-8, Sara Koenig, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2012.
    • "This notice and the selection of Elisha are not divine reprimand proper, but they may sting Elijah nevertheless, serving as yet another reminder that one doesn't always get the answer one wants from God in prayer."
  • Commentary, 1 Kings 19:4-8, Brent A. Strawn, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2011.
    • "it is worth reflecting on how Elijah's complaint that he is the last of God's prophets leads to God appointing a new prophet in his place. Elijah is no longer just the last prophet (his perspective), but in effect is on his way out and no longer necessary.."
  • 1 Kings 19:4-8, Studies on Old Testament texts from Series B, Ralph W. Klein, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago.
  • Join the Feast, 1 Kings 19:4-8, E. Carson, Union PSCE, 2009.
    • "The path is more often through the wilderness than up any ephemeral 'crystal staircase' as the African-American writer Langston Hughes, who knew about exile, wrote"
  • Commentary, I Kings 19:1-4[5-7]8-15a (Pentecost 4C), Nancy deClaissé-Walford, Preaching This Week, WorkingPreacher.org, 2010.
    • "The story of Elijah told in 1 Kings 19 is both comically tragic and awesomely powerful."
  • Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
  • 1 Kings 19:1-4, (5-7), 8-15a, Pentecost 4, The Old Testament Readings: Weekly Comments on the Revised Common Lectionary, Howard Wallace Audrey Schindler, Morag Logan, Paul Tonson, Lorraine Parkinson, Theological Hall of the Uniting Church, Melbourne, Australia.
  • "God in the Silence," Torah Commentary by Dini Lewittes. BeliefNet.
    • "Elijah had to learn the lesson of Moses. He had to understand that being zealous is insufficient."
  • God in the Quietness: Reflections on 1 Kings 19:1-18, Dennis Bratcher, Christian Resource Institute.
    • "What is the danger in using a certain level of emotion as the measure of a successful Christian life?  of a successful church service?"
  • "One Reason to Believe in God," Larry Broding's Word-Sunday.Com: A Lectionary Resource for Catholics.
  • "The Whisper of God," Larry Broding's Word-Sunday.Com: A Lectionary Resource for Catholics.
    • "When you pray or go to Church on Sunday, what is your attitude towards God: expectation or anticipation? (Or both?) Have you ever been surprised by an experience of God? What happened?"
• Recommended articles from ATLAS, an online collection of religion and theology journals, are linked below. ATLAS Access options are available for academic institutions, alumni of selected theological schools, and clergy/church offices. Annotated list of "starting place" articles at ATLAS for this week's texts (includes direct links).
  • Britt, Brian, "Prophetic Concealment in a Biblical Type Scene," Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2002.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Burnett, Joel S., "The Question of Divine Absence in Israelite and West Semitic Religion," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2005.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Cohn, Robert L., "The Literary Logic of 1 Kings 17-19," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1982.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
    • Herr, Denise Dick, "Variations of a Pattern: 1 Kings 19," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1985.
        EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
        EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Epp-Tiessen, Dan, "1 Kings 19: The Renewal of Elijah," Direction, 2006.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Glover, Neil, "Elijah versus the Narrative of Elijah: The Contest between the Prophet and the Word," Journal for the Study of the Old Testament, 2006.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • "Homiletical Helps," Concordia Journal, 2010. (Section on this text begins on page 174)
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Ramshaw, Gail, "Living by the Word: 1 Kings 19:4-8, John 6:35, 41-51," The Christian Century, 2009.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Sandoval, Timothy J., "A prophet's (re-)call and recollection: the case of Elijah in 1 Kings 19, Chicago Theological Seminary Register, 2007.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Taylor, Barbara Brown, "Four Stops in the Wilderness," Journal for Preachers, 2001. (See especially section beginning on page 6.)
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Trible, Phyllis, "Exegesis for Storytellers and Other Strangers," Journal of Biblical Literature, 1995.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
  • Ziegler, Yael, "'So Shall God Do...' Variations of an Oath Formula and Its Literary Meaning," Journal of Biblical Literature, 2007.
      EBSCO ATLASerials, Religion Collection
      EBSCO ATLA Religion Database with ATLASerials
• Sermons:
  • "Awkward Silences," the Rev. Stuart Higginbotham, Day 1, 2013.
  • "Silence Bites," the Rev. Dr. Homer Henderson, Day 1, 2004.
• With Children:
  • Worshiping with Children, Proper 7, Including children in the congregation's worship, using the Revised Common Lectionary, Carolyn C. Brown, 2016.
  • Storypath, Connecting Children's Literature with our Faith Story, Union Presbyterian Seminary, 2016.
  • "Elijah," Illustrating the Story (lessons, children's sermons), coloring pages, activity sheets, crafts, children's songs. MSSS Crafts.
  • "By Elijah's Head Was Some Baked Bread," Sunday School Lessons: Family Bible Study, art projects, music, stories, etc.
  • "The Still Small Voice," children's study, puzzles, coloring sheet, etc. Higher Praise Christian Center.
• Drama:
• Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
  • Clip Art, 1 Kings 19:9-12, Fr. Richard Lonsdale, Resources for Catholic Educators.
  • Images for this week's readings, Pitts Theology Library Digital Image Archive.
  • Clip Art: Elijah, Julius Schnoor von Carolsfeld woodcuts, World Mission Collection, Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod.
• Hymns and Music:
  • Hymnary.org, hymns, scores, media, information.
  • Hymns with Scripture Allusions: 1 Kings 19:11, 12. The Cyber Hymnal.
  • At Digital Hymnal (midi files, guitar chords, karaoke files, projection text):
    • Dear Lord and Father
  • "Help Us, Lord, When We're Scared," F. Richard Garland, tune: NEW WORLD. United Methodist Church General Board of Discipleship.
• Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
  • Eating/Feeding/Eucharist
  • Elijah
• Movies scenes with the following themes, listed at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance:
  • Communion/Eucharist
  • Grace
• Study Links and Resources for the Book of 1 Kings

• INDEX BY SCRIPTURE
• PODCASTS
• NARRATIVE LECTIONARY RESOURCES
• DAILY LECTIONARY RESOURCES
• FESTIVALS/SPECIAL DAYS (includes Creation)
• FOR USE IN TIMES OF VIOLENCE
• PEACE RESOURCES
• FOR USE IN TIMES OF NATURAL DISASTER

• Year C
• Maundy Thurs Apr 14
• Good Friday Apr 15
• Easter Day Apr 17
• Easter 2 Apr 24
• Easter 3 May 1
• Easter 4 May 8
• Easter 5 May 15
• Easter 6 May 22
• Ascension May 26
• Easter 7 May 29
• Pentecost June 5
  

• Calendars
• YEAR A
• YEAR B
• YEAR C

©1997-2020, Jenee Woodard