The interpretation timeline

1Kgs 17:4

How this passage has been read — the sources, oldest to newest.

From the early Church Fathers to now.

1Kgs 17:4 · Douay-Rheims
“And there thou shalt drink of the torrent: and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.”
Patristic before A.D. 750
523
A.D.
Philoxenus of Mabbug Patristic
c. A.D. 450–523
“Now although this meat is a burden unto the wise and prudent, yet was it given by promise unto Noah, and it was sent unto Elijah in a gift, and Abraham received God and His angels thereby, and Isaac was pleased to pour out blessings upon Jacob thereby, and Samuel offered this gift beforehand to Saul as to a king, and David and all the righteous kings made use of such meat, and it was employed by all the righteous; and they were not blamed therefor, because they were superior to lust.”
Source
Modern · 1953 →

The in-app commentary runs from the Fathers to the early-modern record, then stops — that's where the public-domain sources end, not where the reading does. For the modern reading, follow the sources directly.