Without water, nothing can grow, crop yields cease, and disease becomes rampant. There are instances when God withheld rain from falling as a conditional blessing. Even though rain is often associated with giving life, it can be destructive to human life when wielded by the Lord’s anger. All dry land disappeared and killed every living creature except those aboard Noah’s Ark. The floodwaters rose so high that they covered even mountaintops. God sent rain for 40 days and 40 nights ( Genesis 7:12, ESV) on ancient people, which flooded the entire earth. The Great Flood recorded in Genesis 7-8 resulted from God’s wrath against sin. Remember the story of Noah in the book of Genesis? Judgment and Destructionīut what does rain symbolize when God sends a deluge over the whole land? Flooding rain is often associated with God’s judgment. In this way, your loving Father provides sustenance and refreshment in times of need. He is also seen as the source of refreshing rain for the land.įor example, the farmer’s hope in times of drought and hunger ( Deuteronomy 11:10, ESV). In the Old Testament, God is the provider who gives life-giving water to all living things ( Genesis 2:5, ESV Psalm 145:8, ESV). The biblical meaning of rain can point to a thirsty land, a natural phenomenon, or a symbol of the Holy Spirit. What exactly does rain symbolize throughout Scripture? God Our Provider Sometimes, the season of rain or amount of rainfall can make a difference. It holds special significance that is important to understand along your spiritual journey. Rain (or some form of it) appears over 100 times in the holy Bible. Yet rain can also appear as God’s act of judgment against sin or wrongdoing. Rain depicts God as your source of physical and spiritual life. Rain is a powerful symbol that you can interpret in a variety of ways depending on the context in which it appears. Yet, rain symbolism includes other significant elements. He uses rain to water the earth and provides nourishment to it. 20 Then he prayed aloud, “O Lord my God, why have you done such a terrible thing to this widow? She has been kind enough to take care of me, and now you kill her son!” 21 ( C)Then Elijah stretched himself out on the boy three times and prayed, “O Lord my God, restore this child to life!” 22 The Lord answered Elijah's prayer the child started breathing again and revived.The Bible often uses the image of rain to describe God’s provision for His people. He took the boy from her arms, carried him upstairs to the room where he was staying, and laid him on the bed. 18 She said to Elijah, “Man of God, why did you do this to me? Did you come here to remind God of my sins and so cause my son's death?”ġ9 “Give the boy to me,” Elijah said. 16 As the Lord had promised through Elijah, the bowl did not run out of flour nor did the jar run out of oil.ġ7 Some time later the widow's son got sick he got worse and worse, and finally he died. 14 For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘The bowl will not run out of flour or the jar run out of oil before the day that I, the Lord, send rain.’”ġ5 The widow went and did as Elijah had told her, and all of them had enough food for many days. But first make a small loaf from what you have and bring it to me, and then prepare the rest for you and your son.
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That will be our last meal, and then we will starve to death.”ġ3 “Don't worry,” Elijah said to her. I came here to gather some firewood to take back home and prepare what little I have for my son and me. All I have is a handful of flour in a bowl and a bit of olive oil in a jar. 11 And as she was going to get it, he called out, “And please bring me some bread, too.”ġ2 She answered, “By the living Lord your God I swear that I don't have any bread. “Please bring me a drink of water,” he said to her.
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I have commanded a widow who lives there to feed you.” 10 So Elijah went to Zarephath, and as he came to the town gate, he saw a widow gathering firewood. Elijah and the Widow in ZarephathĨ Then the Lord said to Elijah, 9 ( B)“Now go to the town of Zarephath, near Sidon, and stay there. 7 After a while the brook dried up because of the lack of rain. 6 He drank water from the brook, and ravens brought him bread and meat every morning and every evening. 4 The brook will supply you with water to drink, and I have commanded ravens to bring you food there.”ĥ Elijah obeyed the Lord's command, and went and stayed by Cherith Brook. 17 ( A)A prophet named Elijah, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to King Ahab, “In the name of the Lord, the living God of Israel, whom I serve, I tell you that there will be no dew or rain for the next two or three years until I say so.”Ģ Then the Lord said to Elijah, 3 “Leave this place and go east and hide yourself near Cherith Brook, east of the Jordan.