1 Kings 17:2-5 Cherith

 “Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “Get away from here and turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan. And it will be that you shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” So he went and did according to the word of the Lord, for he went and stayed by the Brook Cherith, which flows into the Jordan.” I Kings‬ ‭17‬:‭2‬-‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Get away from here and turn eastward, and hide by the Brook Cherith: The drought announced by Elijah in the previous verse was a great threat to the northern kingdom of Israel and the reign of Ahab. Therefore, his life was in danger, and God sent him to the Brook Cherith for his own safety.

i. God led Elijah one step at a time. He did not tell him to go to Cherith until he first delivered the message to Ahab. He did not tell him to go to Zarephath until the brook dried up at Cherith. God led Elijah by faith, one step at a time, and Elijah followed in faith.

ii. Hide by the Brook Cherith: Through this, God taught Elijah the value of the hiddenlife. He had just become famous as an adversary of Ahab, so mighty that his prayers could stop the rain. At the moment of his new-found fame, God wanted Elijah to hideand be alone with God. “We must not be surprised, then, if sometimes our Father says: ‘There, child, thou hast had enough of this hurry, and publicity, and excitement; get thee hence, and hide thyself by the brook - hide thyself in the Cherith of the sick chamber; or in the Cherith of disappointed hopes; or in the Cherith of bereavement; or in some solitude from which the crowds have ebbed away’” (Meyer).

iii. “Elijah could not be alone, so long as he had God and himself to converse with. A good man is never less alone, than when alone.” (Trapp)

b. And it will be that you shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there: The escape to the Brook Cherith was for more than protection. It was also to train Elijah in dependence upon the LORD. In a season of drought, he had to trust that God could keep this brook flowing. He also had to accept food from the ravens, which were unclean animals.

i. The name Cherith comes from the ancient Hebrew root meaning, to cut away, to cut up or off. This shows that God had some cutting to do in the life of Elijah during this period.

ii. I have commanded the ravens to feed you there: There is an emphasis on the word there. God promised that the ravens would feed Elijah as he stayed at Cherith. Of course, theoretically the ravens could feed him anywhere - but God commanded that it be at Cherith. Elijah perhaps wanted to be somewhere else, or be preaching, or doing anything else. Yet God wanted him there and would provide for him there. (Guzik) 

Cherith 

Meyer’s comment above reminds us that the Father tells us to hide thyself in the Cherith from the busyness of life and to commune with Him while He prunes away parts of us so we can bear more fruit! 

“Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”

‭‭John‬ ‭15‬:‭2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

It’s the brook of Cherith where the Father does His greatest transformation within us especially when we are experiencing trials because it draws us closer to Him just as a child runs to their Father.

When was the last time you hide thyself in the Cherith?

Blessings