^4:25But in truth I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s days,⁸⁷ when the sky⁸⁸ was shut up three and a half years, and⁸⁹ there was a great famine over all the land. ^4:26Yet⁹⁰ Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to a woman who was a widow at Zarephath in Sidon.⁹¹

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Footnotes

87 Elijah’s days. Jesus, by discussing Elijah and Elisha, pictures one of the lowest periods in Israel’s history. These examples, along with v. 24, also show that Jesus is making prophetic claims as well as messianic ones. See 1 Kgs 17–18.
88 Or “the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. Since the context here refers to a drought (which produced the famine), “sky” is preferable.
89 Grk “as.” The particle ὡς can also function temporally (see 8).
90 Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast.
91 Zarephath in Sidon was Gentile territory (see 1 Kgs 17:9–24). Jesus’ point was that he would be forced to minister elsewhere, and the implication is that this ministry would ultimately extend (through the work of his followers) to those outside the nation. For location see ; ; .

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

But in truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heavens were shut up three years and six months, and a great famine came over all the land, and Elijah was sent to none of them but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

But I say to you, there were certainly many widows in Israel in Elijah’s days, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months while a great famine came over all the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them except a widow at Zarephath in Sidon.

NLTNew Living Translation

“Certainly there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them. He was sent instead to a foreigner—a widow of Zarephath in the land of Sidon.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

But in truth I say to you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut for three years and six months while a great famine took place over all the land. And Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow.

KJV 1900King James Version

But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land; But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow.

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