Albert Barnes Commentary 1 Kings 17:1

"And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the sojourners of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As Jehovah, the God of Israel, liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word." — 1 Kings 17:1 (ASV)

The name Elijah means “Yahweh is my God.” It is expressive of the truth which his whole life preached.

The two words rendered “Tishbite” and “inhabitant” are in the original (setting aside the vowel points) “exactly alike.” The meaning consequently must be either “Elijah the stranger, of the strangers of Gilead,” or (more probably) “Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbi of Gilead.” Of Tishbi in Gilead there is no further trace in Scripture; it is to be distinguished from another Tishbi in Galilee.

In forming a conception of the great Israelite prophet, we must always bear in mind that the wild and mountainous Gilead, which bordered on Arabia and was half-Arab in its customs, was the country where he grew up.

His abrupt appearance may be compared with the similar appearances of Ahijah (1 Kings 11:29), Jehu (1 Kings 16:1), Shemaiah (2 Chronicles 11:2), Azariah (2 Chronicles 15:1), and others. It is clear that a succession of prophets was raised up by God, both in faithful Judah and in idolatrous Israel, to witness to Him before the people of both countries and leave them without excuse if they forsook His worship.

At this time, a grosser and more deadly idolatry than had been practiced before was introduced into Israel by the authority of Ahab, and the total apostasy of the ten tribes was consequently imminent. In response, two prophets of unusual vigor and force of character, endowed with miraculous powers of an extraordinary kind, were successively raised up so that the wickedness of the kings might be boldly met and combated, and, if possible, a remnant of faithful men preserved in the land.

The unusual outpouring of miraculous energy at this time was suitable for the unusual emergency and in very evident proportion to the spiritual necessities of the people.

As the Lord God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand — This solemn formula, here first used, was well adapted to impress the king with the sacred character of the messenger and the certain truth of his message. Elisha adopted the phrase with very slight modifications in 2 Kings 3:14 and 2 Kings 5:16.

Drought was one of the punishments threatened by the Law if Israel forsook Yahweh and turned after other gods (Deuteronomy 11:17; Deuteronomy 28:23; Leviticus 26:19, etc.).