Kerith Place

The Kerith Place

1 Kings 17:1-6 “Now Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, whom I serve, there will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.” Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah:  “Leave here, turn eastward and hide in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan.  You will drink from the brook, and I have directed the ravens to supply you with food there.”  So he did what the LORD had told him. He went to the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and stayed there.  The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook. “

Elijah was a prophet. He knew God’s voice intimately – as intimately as one knows the voice of our earthly father. So when God told him to announce a season of real drought, he did so with his usual obedience. The Bible does not record whether or not he was frightened by what he was asked to speak out, but I guess it wouldn’t have made one jot of difference to his obedience. He would have spoken anyway, regardless of cost. I am not sure either that he would have been ready for God’s next order to go to Kerith. It was a ravine; a rock strewn place; probably dotted around with caves for shelter. But why have the ravens feed him there?

It strikes me that Kerith was a place of hiding away from the world, where Elijah could be still in God’s presence, and where God could minister to him. It was a place of hiding, yes. It was also a place of protection from the newly crowned king, Ahab, who would surely have been seeking him out for his own purposes which were almost certainly not God’s purposes. It was almost three and a half years before Ahab found him again and, when Elijah did eventually make himself available, it was once again surely on God’s command. “OK Elijah, it’s time for the rain again. Now listen, this what I want you to do . . . . “

I wonder how many of us have had or are having a Kerith experience right now? Have you found yourself separating yourself or being separated just so you can be alone with Him? For learning or for protection maybe? Have there been ‘ravens’, or complete strangers feeding or ministering to you?

Such an experience may not be the best you’ve ever had, but don’t completely eschew it. It may be pleasant or not so, but you can believe it is a necessary experience because God wants your attention for a short while. And you never know, He may be preparing you to face your own ‘Prophets of Baal’ prior to a thundering victory – just like Elijah.