1 Kings 19



Elijah Hears the Lord



9 (Ex 33:21-22; 1Ki 19:13) He came to a cave and camped there,

and the word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him,

"Why are you here, Elijah?"

10 (1Ki 18:4; 18:22; Nu 25:13) And he said, "I have been very zealous

for the Lord, Lord of Hosts, for the children of Israel have forsaken

Your covenant, thrown down Your altars, and killed Your prophets

with the sword, and I alone am left, and they seek to take my life."

11 (Ex 24:12; Eze 1:4) He said, "Go and stand on the mountain

before the Lord."

And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind split

the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord,

but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind, an earthquake came,

but the Lord was not in the earthquake.

12 (Job 4:16; Zec 4:6) And after the earthquake, a fire came, but the Lord

was not in the fire, and after the fire, a still, small voice.

13 (1Ki 19:9) When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak

and went out and stood in the entrance to the cave.

And a voice came to him and said, "Why are you here, Elijah?"

14 And he said, "I have been very zealous for the Lord, Lord of Hosts,

because the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, thrown down

Your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I alone am left,

and they seek to take my life."

15 (2Ki 8:7-15) The Lord said to him, "Go, return on the road through

the Wilderness of Damascus, and when you arrive, anoint Hazael

to be king over Aram.

16 (1Ki 19:19-21; 2Ki 2:9) And you shall anoint Jehu, the son of Nimshi,

to be king over Israel, and you shall anoint Elisha, the son of Shaphat

of Abel Meholah, to be prophet in your place.

17 (2Ki 8:12; 13:3) He who escapes the sword of Hazael will be killed

by Jehu, and he who escapes the sword of Jehu will be killed by Elisha.

18 (Hos 13:2) Still, I have preserved seven thousand men in Israel for Myself,

all of whose knees have not bowed to Baal

and whose mouths have not kissed him."



9 And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word

of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?

10 And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the

children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars,

and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left;

and they seek my life, to take it away.

11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD.

And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent

the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but

the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake;

but the LORD was not in the earthquake:

12 and after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire:

and after the fire a still small voice.

13 And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his

mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave. And, behold,

there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?

14 And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: because

the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars,

and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left;

and they seek my life, to take it away.

15 And the LORD said unto him, Go, return on thy way to the wilderness

of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hazael to be king over Syria:

16 and Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel:

and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah shalt thou anoint to be

prophet in thy room.

17 And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth the sword of Hazael

shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha

slay.

18 Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have

not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.



The Call of Elisha



19 (2Ki 2:8; 1Sa 28:14) So he departed from there and found Elisha

the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen

before him and he with the twelfth, and Elijah passed by him

and threw his cloak on him.

20 (Mt 8:21-22; Lk 9:61-62) He left the oxen and ran after Elijah and said,

"Please let me kiss my father and mother, and then I will follow you."

And he said to him, "Go back, for what have I done to you?"

21 (2Sa 24:22) So he returned from following him and took a yoke of oxen

and sacrificed them and boiled their flesh with the yokes from the oxen

and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he got up and went after Elijah

and ministered to him.



19 So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was

plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth:

and Elijah passed by him, and cast his mantle upon him.

20 And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me,

I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee.

And he said unto him, Go back again: for what have I done to thee?

21 And he returned back from him, and took a yoke of oxen, and slew them,

and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto

the people, and they did eat.

Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him.



2) Our Daily Bread for 26 June 2026 titled Who's My Neighbour?



Luke 10:29-37



The Good Samaritan



29 (Lk 16:15) But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus,

"And who is my neighbour?"

30 Jesus answered, "A man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho

and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing

and wounded him and departed, leaving him half dead.

31 By chance a priest came down that way. And when he saw him,

he passed by on the other side.

32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to that place, looked at him

and passed by on the other side.

33 (Mt 10:5) But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was.

And when he saw him, he had compassion on him,

34 and went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine.

Then he set him on his own donkey and brought him to an inn,

and took care of him.

35 The next day when he departed, he took out two denarii

(Gk. denarius, a coin worth about a day's wage.)

and gave them to the innkeeper and said to him, 'Take care of him.

I will repay you whatever else you spend when I return.'

36 " ow which of these three do you think was a neighbor to him

who fell among the thieves?"

37 (2Co 8:9; 1Pe 2:21) He said, "The one who showed mercy on him."

Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."



[29] But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my

neighbour?

[30] And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to

Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and

wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.

[31] And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he

saw him, he passed by on the other side.

[32] And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on

him, and passed by on the other side.

[33] But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when

he saw him, he had compassion on him,

[34] And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and

set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.

[35] And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave

them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou

spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.

[36] Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that

fell among the thieves?

[37] And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go,

and do thou likewise.



An elderly woman became unconscious on a hot sidewalk after a terrible fall.

Several people stopped to help. One called 911. Another gently placed a coat

under her head. Others put towels under her arms, and still another held an

umbrella over her head until paramedics arrived. The person who posted the

video wrote that it was an especially heartwarming scene because those who

stopped included people of different ages and ethnicities - all working

together to help someone in distress.



When an expert in God's law asked Jesus who his neighbour was (Luke 10:29) -

that is, who he was obligated to show love to - Jesus told a story of a man

badly beaten by robbers, lying near death by the side of the

road (vv. 30-31). A priest and then a Levite approached, but both passed by on

the other side. Finally, a Samaritan stopped to help. What made this so

unusual was that Jews and Samaritans had a bitter history of scorn for each

other. Yet it was the Samaritan who stopped

and "took pity" on the man (v. 33).



After telling this parable, Jesus asked which was a neighbor to the fallen

man. The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him" (v. 37).

Jesus told him, and us, "Go and do likewise."



May God help us see that everyone we meet is our neighbour,

another human created by Him and deserving of our aid.



By: Alyson Kieda

Reflect & Pray



To whom do you find it difficult to be a good neighbour?

How does Jesus show what it means to be a loving neighbor to others?



Dear God, please help me to love others -

regardless of differences - as my neighbour.