Road-kill sandwiches

In church this weekend, Pastor Paul preached from 1 Kings about Elijah. This reminded me of a story in the Bible that always puzzled me…..

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 ordered the ravens to feed you 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. (1 Kings 17:2-6)

Some translations label this passage as “The miracle of the ravens”….What miracle? What did Elijah do that pissed God off so much that he was fed by ravens?

I remember sitting in Sunday School as a child…..watching the “miracle” played out in front of me in full technicoloured flanelgraph….thinking to myself “What sort of meat would ravens be delivering?” “How in the heck did Elijah cook it?”

Ravens, according to Leviticus were considered detestable (Lev 11:15) presumably because they live off road-kill. All this meant though was that ravens were off the menu....but apparently not what they delivered.

The ravens also brought Elijah bread…..road-kill sandwiches!