HISTORY OF THE KINGS AND THE SOVEREIGN - beginning with the death of David and the inauguration of Solomon to the release of Jehoiachin in the 6th century BCE. Throughout this long history of interplay between human and the divine will the theme that pervades the histories is that humanity and destiny is God’s. History will move according to the will of the sovereign God:

STRUCTURE - the material of 1 and 2 Kings is structured into three parts: the Solomonic reign (1 Kings 1-11), the divided kingdom (1 Kings 12-2 Kings 17), and the Kingdom of Judah (2 Kings 18-25).

THE STORY - the account of Elijah and the widow is a display of obedience, faith, and sacrificial sharing on the widow's part, and one of reward and faithfulness on God's part. The widow's sacrificial sharing with the prophet of God resulted in a miraculous show of God's faithfulness and ample provisions.  

The story of the widow in this lesson is reminiscent of the miracle of  Chanukah. Her flour and oil flasks never ran dry. God honors the widows faith and willingness to share the little she had.

A parallel could also be drawn to the widow Jesus observed giving her "mite" into the temple offering which, according to Jesus, constituted all she had.

God's faithfulness to widows and the fatherless is a running theme throughout the Hebrew Scriptures. In the parallel Gospel text, Jesus raised the son of a widow, which likely restored her social and economic prospects.   Many prophets had decried the plight of the widows and the fatherless, such as Malachi (chapter 3) decried that there was a disconnect between religion and daily life. People on the streets were left to fend for themselves-widows and orphans roamed the streets searching for food to survive while the wealthy enjoyed their Temple sacrifices which seemed nothing less than country-club style barbeque parties.