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Read the Bible

The NET Bible®

1 Kings 17:16

The jar of flour was never empty and the jug of oil never ran out, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Barrel;   Blessing;   Elijah;   Hospitality;   Minister, Christian;   Miracles;   Oil;   Poor;   Readings, Select;   Women;   Zarephath;   Thompson Chain Reference - Bible Stories for Children;   Children;   Home;   Pleasant Sunday Afternoons;   Providence, Divine;   Religion;   Stories for Children;   Supplies, Divine;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Miracles Wrought through Servants of God;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Elijah;   Miracle;   Zarephath;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Elijah;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Word;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Barrel;   Cruse;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Elijah;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Barrel;   Cruse;   Jug;   Kings, 1 and 2;   Oil;   Zarephath;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Ahab;   Haggai;   Zarephath;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Feeding the Multitudes;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Barrel;   Cruse;   Miracles;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Chief parables and miracles in the bible;   Cruse;   Elijah;   Zarephath;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Kingdom of Israel;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Barrel;   Cruse;   Elisha;   Oil;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Amittai;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The flour jar did not become empty, and the oil jug did not run dry, according to the word of the Lord he had spoken through Elijah.
Hebrew Names Version
The jar of meal didn't empty, neither did the jar of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke by Eliyah.
King James Version
And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord , which he spake by Elijah.
English Standard Version
The jar of flour was not spent, neither did the jug of oil become empty, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.
New Century Version
The jar of flour and the jug of oil were never empty, just as the Lord , through Elijah, had promised.
Amplified Bible
The bowl of flour was not exhausted nor did the jar of oil become empty, in accordance with the word of the LORD which He spoke through Elijah.
New American Standard Bible
The bowl of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil become empty, in accordance with the word of the LORD which He spoke through Elijah.
Geneva Bible (1587)
The barrell of the meale wasted not, nor the oyle was spent out of the cruse, according to the worde of the Lorde, which he spake by the hand of Eliiah.
Legacy Standard Bible
The bowl of flour was not exhausted nor did the jar of oil become empty, according to the word of Yahweh which He spoke by the hand of Elijah.
Contemporary English Version
The Lord kept the promise that his prophet Elijah had made, and she did not run out of flour or oil.
Complete Jewish Bible
The pot of meal did not get used up, nor did there fail to be oil in the jug, in fulfillment of the word of Adonai spoken through Eliyahu.
Darby Translation
The meal in the barrel did not waste, neither did the oil in the cruse fail, according to the word of Jehovah which he had spoken through Elijah.
Easy-to-Read Version
The jar of flour and the jug of oil were never empty. This happened just as the Lord said through Elijah.
George Lamsa Translation
And the pot of flour was not spent, neither did the cruse of oil diminish, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke by Elijah.
Good News Translation
As the Lord had promised through Elijah, the bowl did not run out of flour nor did the jar run out of oil.
Lexham English Bible
The jar of flour was not emptied and the jug of olive oil did not run out, according to the word of Yahweh which he spoke by the hand of Elijah.
Literal Translation
the pitcher of meal was not consumed, and the jar of oil did not fail, according to the Word of Jehovah that He spoke by the hand of Elijah.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
The meel in the pitcher was not mynished, and the oyle in the cruse fayled not, acordinge to the worde of ye LORDE which he spake by Elias.
American Standard Version
The jar of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of Jehovah, which he spake by Elijah.
Bible in Basic English
The store of meal did not come to an end, and the bottle was never without oil, as the Lord had said by the mouth of Elijah.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the meale wasted not out of the barrell, neither was the oyle spent out of the cruse, according to the word of the Lorde which he spake by the hande of Elias.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
The jar of meal was not spent, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by Elijah.
King James Version (1611)
And the barrell of meale wasted not, neither did the cruse of oyle faile, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Eliiah.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the pitcher of meal failed not, and the cruse of oil was not diminished, according to the word of the Lord which he spoke by the hand of Eliu.
English Revised Version
The barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by Elijah.
Berean Standard Bible
The jar of flour was not exhausted and the jug of oil did not run dry, according to the word the LORD had spoken through Elijah.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And fro that dai the pot of mele failide not, and the vessel of oile was not abatid, bi the word of the Lord, which he hadde spoke in the hond of Elie.
Young's Literal Translation
the pitcher of meal was not consumed, and the dish of oil did not lack, according to the word of Jehovah that He spake by the hand of Elijah.
Update Bible Version
The jar of meal did not waste, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of Yahweh, which he spoke by Elijah.
Webster's Bible Translation
[And] the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke by Elijah.
World English Bible
The jar of meal didn't empty, neither did the jar of oil fail, according to the word of Yahweh, which he spoke by Elijah.
New King James Version
The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke by Elijah.
New Living Translation
There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.
New Life Bible
The jar of flour was not used up, and the jar of oil did not become empty. It happened as was spoken by the word of the Lord through Elijah.
New Revised Standard
The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by Elijah.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The jar of meal, did not waste, - and, the cruse of oil, did not fail, - according to the word of Yahweh, which he spake through Elijah.
Douay-Rheims Bible
The pot of meal wasted not, and the cruise of oil was not diminished according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke in the hand of Elias.
Revised Standard Version
The jar of meal was not spent, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD which he spoke by Eli'jah.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
The bowl of flour was not exhausted nor did the jar of oil become empty, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke through Elijah.

Contextual Overview

8 The Lord told him, 9 "Get up, go to Zarephath in Sidonian territory, and live there. I have already told a widow who lives there to provide for you." 10 So he got up and went to Zarephath. When he went through the city gate, there was a widow gathering wood. He called out to her, "Please give me a cup of water, so I can take a drink." 11 As she went to get it, he called out to her, "Please bring me a piece of bread." 12 She said, "As certainly as the Lord your God lives, I have no food, except for a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a jug. Right now I am gathering a couple of sticks for a fire. Then I'm going home to make one final meal for my son and myself. After we have eaten that, we will die of starvation." 13 Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid. Go and do as you planned. But first make a small cake for me and bring it to me; then make something for yourself and your son. 14 For this is what the Lord God of Israel says, ‘The jar of flour will not be empty and the jug of oil will not run out until the day the Lord makes it rain on the surface of the ground.'" 15 She went and did as Elijah told her; there was always enough food for Elijah and for her and her family. 16 The jar of flour was never empty and the jug of oil never ran out, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the barrel: Matthew 9:28-30, Matthew 19:26, Luke 1:37, Luke 1:45, John 4:50, John 4:51

according: 1 Kings 13:5

by Elijah: Heb. by the hand of Elijah, 1 Kings 16:12

Reciprocal: 2 Kings 4:5 - she went

Cross-References

Genesis 1:28
God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply! Fill the earth and subdue it! Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and every creature that moves on the ground."
Genesis 12:2
Then I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you, and I will make your name great, so that you will exemplify divine blessing.
Genesis 17:6
I will make you extremely fruitful. I will make nations of you, and kings will descend from you.
Genesis 17:10
This is my requirement that you and your descendants after you must keep: Every male among you must be circumcised.
Genesis 17:14
Any uncircumcised male who has not been circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin will be cut off from his people—he has failed to carry out my requirement."
Genesis 17:26
Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised on the very same day.
Genesis 24:60
They blessed Rebekah with these words: "Our sister, may you become the mother of thousands of ten thousands! May your descendants possess the strongholds of their enemies."
Genesis 35:11
Then God said to him, "I am the sovereign God. Be fruitful and multiply! A nation—even a company of nations—will descend from you; kings will be among your descendants!
Isaiah 49:23
Kings will be your children's guardians; their princesses will nurse your children. With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you and they will lick the dirt on your feet. Then you will recognize that I am the Lord ; those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.
Romans 9:9
For this is what the promise declared: " About a year from now I will return and Sarah will have a son ."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake by Elijah. There being a continual increase and supply of both, through the mighty power of God working a continued miracle; just as the loaves and fishes were increased while the disciples were eating, Matthew 14:19.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

This is the first recorded miracle of its kind - a supernatural and inexplicable multiplication of food (compare 2 Kings 4:42-44; Matthew 14:15-21; Matthew 15:32-38). The sacred record does not explain these miracles; but if the explanations sometimes suggested - that there was a transformation of previously existing matter into meal, oil, fish, and bread - be the true one, the marvel of the thing would not be much greater than that astonishing natural chemistry by which, in the growth of plants, particles of water, air, and earth are transmuted into fruits and grains of corn, and so fitted to be human food. There would be a difference in the agency employed and in the time occupied in the transmutation, but the thing done would be almost the same.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 1 Kings 17:16. The barrel of meal wasted not — She continued to take out of her jar and out of her bottle the quantity of meal and oil requisite for the consumption of her household; and without carefully estimating what was left, she went with confidence each time for a supply, and was never disappointed. This miracle was very like that wrought by Jesus at the marriage at Cana in Galilee: as the servants drew the water out of the pots, they found it turned into wine; and thus they continued to draw wine from the water-pots till the guests had been sufficiently supplied.


 
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