Matthew Henry Commentary 1 Kings 18:1-16

"And it came to pass after many days, that the word of Jehovah came to Elijah, in the third year, saying, Go, show thyself unto Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth. And Elijah went to show himself unto Ahab. And the famine was sore in Samaria. And Ahab called Obadiah, who was over the household. (Now Obadiah feared Jehovah greatly: for it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of Jehovah, that Obadiah took a hundred prophets, and hid them by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.) And Ahab said unto Obadiah, Go through the land, unto all the fountains of water, and unto all the brooks: peradventure we may find grass and save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts. So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself. And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him: and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Is it thou, my lord Elijah? And he answered him, It is I: go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah [is here]. And he said, Wherein have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me? As Jehovah thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee: and when they said, He is not here, he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found thee not. And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah [is here]. And it will come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of Jehovah will carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he will slay me: but I thy servant fear Jehovah from my youth. Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of Jehovah, how I hid a hundred men of Jehovah`s prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water? And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold, Elijah [is here]; and he will slay me. And Elijah said, As Jehovah of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself unto him to-day. So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah." — 1 Kings 18:1-16 (ASV)

The severest judgments, by themselves, will not humble or change the hearts of sinners; nothing, except the blood of Jesus Christ, can atone for the guilt of sin; nothing, except the sanctifying Spirit of God, can purge away its pollution. The priests and the Levites had gone to Judah and Jerusalem (2 Chronicles 11:13–14), but instead of them, God raised up prophets who read and expounded the word. They probably were from the schools of the prophets, first established by Samuel.

They did not have the spirit of prophecy like Elijah but taught the people to keep close to the God of Israel. These Jezebel sought to destroy. The few who escaped death were forced to hide themselves. God has His remnant among all kinds of people, high and low; and that faith, fear, and love of His name, which are the fruits of the Holy Spirit, will be accepted through the Redeemer.

See how wonderfully God raises up friends for His ministers and people, for their shelter in difficult times. Bread and water were now scarce, yet Obadiah will find enough for God's prophets to keep them alive. Ahab's concern was not to lose all the animals; but he took no care for his soul, not to lose that. He took pains to seek grass, but none to seek the favor of God, countering the effect but not inquiring how to remove the cause.

But it bodes well for a people when God calls His ministers to stand forth and show themselves. And we can better endure the bread of affliction while our eyes see our teachers.