ELIJAH AND THE RAVENS

Posted: 06.02.24 in Articles category

There is an amazing story in the Old Testament about the prophet Elijah hiding in exile and being fed by ravens. You can find it in 1 Kings chapter 17. At the time the northern kingdom of Israel was being ruled by a king, Ahab, who actively promoted worship of the pagan god Baal. In the words of I Kings 16 verse 33 Ahab "did more to arouse the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than did all the kings of Israel before him". A new prophet, Elijah the Tishbite, entered the stage and publicly opposed Ahab, prophesying an imminent and severe drought sent as a sign of God's displeasure and judgement on the evil king and his realm. Elijah was told to flee the kingdom and live 'beyond the Jordan' where he would be miraculously sustained - perhaps paralleling the situation faced by the Jews during the years in the wilderness when they were led by the great prophet Moses. Elijah went as instructed and stayed in the Kerith Ravine where he had water to drink from the brook and food provided by local ravens. They brought him bread and meat twice each day to eat - a full diet that only a king at that time would expect to eat.

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 directed the ravens to supply you with food there.".... The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening, and he drank from the brook.

The text does not detail the identity of the meat, although we might presume it to be carrion and therefore 'unclean' according to the Law of Moses - a case perhaps of laws being superseded as and when an extreme situation required. Nor are we told for how long this situation persisted. Can we presume that ravens were chosen for this task because of their high intelligence? Or was this more about their behavioural trait of food storing which Elijah observed and took advantage of? What is clear from the scripture is that birds deemed 'unclean' according to Jewish law and generally despised by people were daily feeding God's prophet who was living in Gentile territory outside the promised land.

You might be inclined to disbelieve this miraculous story, but it is worth remembering that ravens and other corvids are clever and quick to learn. They have the ability to cache food, especially in the breeding season, and to remember where they have stored it. One remarkable aspect of corvid activity seems to confirm the current view about their intelligence; their social behaviour demonstrating reciprocity through giving gifts, not only to each other but also to people. In her recent book, "The Genius of Birds", US writer Jenny Ackerman records some amazing tales of 'gift giving' by various crows across America. She recounts:

In 2015, a story surfaced in Seattle of an eight-year-old girl, Gabi Mann, who started feeding crows on her way to and from the bus stop when she was only four. Later she began offering the crows peanuts on a tray in her yard as part of a daily ritual, and from time to time, after the peanuts had been consumed, trinkets showed up on the tray: an earring, bolts and screws, hinges, buttons, a tiny plastic tube, a rotting crab claw, a small scrap of metal printed with the word "best", and Gabi's favourite, an opalescent white heart. The less "icky" objects Gabi has collected in plastic bags with the dates they were received.

It seems that corvids have a history of giving gifts to people!