Elijah was a prophet from the town of Tishbe in Gilead. He said to King Ahab, "I serve the Lord, the God of Israel. By his power, I promise that no dew or rain will fall for the next few years. The rain will fall only when I command it to fall."
So Elijah went to Zarephath. He went to the town gate and saw a woman there gathering wood for a fire. She was a widow. Elijah said to her, "Would you bring me a small cup water to drink?"
The woman answered, "I promise you, before the Lord your God, that I have nothing but a handful of flour in a jar and a little bit of olive oil in a jug. I came here to gather a few pieces of wood for a fire to cook our last meal. My son and I will eat it and then die from hunger."
Elijah said to the woman, "Don't worry. Go home and cook your food as you said. But first make a small piece of bread from the flour that you have and bring it to me. Then cook some for yourself and your son.
The Lord, the God of Israel, says, 'That jar of flour will never be empty and the jug will always have oil in it. This will continue until the day the Lord sends rain to the land.'"