Single lesson
Elijah and the Widow's Son
1 Kings 17:17–24
In this lesson, children follow the steps of a serious story about Elijah, a mother, and her son. They will notice what each person says and does, and see how the passage ends with a clear statement about Yahweh’s word.
Before you teach
This passage begins after the woman’s son becomes very sick and dies. The woman speaks to Elijah about her grief and sin, Elijah takes the boy upstairs and cries out to Yahweh, and the passage ends when the child lives again and the woman declares that Yahweh’s word in Elijah’s mouth is truth.
Students will be able to retell the events of 1 Kings 17:17–24 in order and name what the passage shows about Elijah, the widow, and Yahweh.
Welcome: What changed in the house?
4 minBegin by telling the children they will hear a story with a sad problem and a surprising ending. Read verse 17 slowly. Ask them to listen for the problem in the house. Explain that “there was no breath left in him” shows the boy had died. This helps children start the account with care and clarity.
1 Kings 17:17
Read and explain: The mother speaks and Elijah acts
7 minRead verses 18–19. Point out that the mother speaks out of deep distress and connects the tragedy with her sin. Elijah does not argue with her. Instead, he says, “Give me your son,” then carries the boy to the room where he is staying and lays him on his bed. Trace these actions in order.
1 Kings 17:18, 1 Kings 17:19
Discuss: Elijah cries to Yahweh
7 minRead verses 20–22. Explain that Elijah speaks directly to Yahweh twice. He asks a hard question about the widow’s loss, and then pleads for the child’s life to return. The key turning point is that Yahweh listened to Elijah’s voice, and the child revived. Keep the focus on what the verses actually say.
1 Kings 17:20, 1 Kings 17:21, 1 Kings 17:22
Make and respond: Story sequence cards
8 minChildren make simple sequence cards for the main steps of the story, then place them in order and tell the account using the cards. Include these moments: the son became sick, the mother spoke, Elijah took the son, Elijah prayed, Yahweh listened, Elijah returned the son, and the mother spoke about truth.
1 Kings 17:17, 1 Kings 17:18, 1 Kings 17:19, 1 Kings 17:21, 1 Kings 17:22, 1 Kings 17:23, 1 Kings 17:24
Closing: What did the woman know at the end?
4 minRead verses 23–24 again. Emphasise the ending words: “your son lives” and the woman’s statement that Yahweh’s word in Elijah’s mouth is truth. Invite children to say one thing they learned from the end of the passage. Finish by reviewing the sequence together from beginning to end.
1 Kings 17:23, 1 Kings 17:24
Questions to explore
What does the mother say to Elijah when her son dies?
Listen for her exact words about her sin being remembered and her son dying, then notice that the verse shows her distress rather than explaining everything for us.
1 Kings 17:18
What does Elijah do before the child lives again?
Look for the actions in order: he takes the boy upstairs, lays him on the bed, cries to Yahweh, stretches himself on the child three times, and asks for the child’s soul to come again.
1 Kings 17:19, 1 Kings 17:20, 1 Kings 17:21
What does the woman say she knows at the end of the story?
Use her final sentence to answer: she says Elijah is a man of God and that Yahweh’s word in his mouth is truth.
1 Kings 17:24
Make, think or respond
Sequence Cards for Elijah and the Widow’s Son
What you’ll need
- plain paper or card
- pencils or markers
- scissors
- Bible
Try it together
- Write or draw one main event from the story on each card.
- Make 6 to 7 cards showing the story from verse 17 to verse 24.
- Mix the cards up and work together to place them in the right order.
- Retell the story aloud using the cards and the Bible verses.
- If time allows, circle the card where Yahweh listened to Elijah.
This activity helps children follow the order of the account and notice how the passage moves from grief and prayer to the child’s restored life and the woman’s statement about truth.
Adapt for your group
- For younger children, prepare the event labels for them and let them match pictures to the correct order.
- For older or more confident children, ask them to add a short sentence from each verse onto their cards, especially the mother’s words in verse 18 and the woman’s conclusion in verse 24.
An optional closing prayer
You could pray: “Yahweh God, thank you for this passage. Please help us listen carefully to your word, understand what we read, and speak truthfully about what you have done. Amen.”
Read the Bible passage World English Bible Classic
1 Kings 17
17 After these things, the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his sickness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.
18 She said to Elijah, “What have I to do with you, you man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to memory, and to kill my son!”
19 He said to her, “Give me your son.” He took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into the room where he stayed, and laid him on his own bed.
20 He cried to Yahweh and said, “Yahweh my God, have you also brought evil on the widow with whom I am staying, by killing her son?”
21 He stretched himself on the child three times, and cried to Yahweh and said, “Yahweh my God, please let this child’s soul come into him again.”
22 Yahweh listened to the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
23 Elijah took the child and brought him down out of the room into the house, and delivered him to his mother; and Elijah said, “Behold, your son lives.”
24 The woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that Yahweh’s word in your mouth is truth.”
World English Bible Classic. Public domain.