Elijah's Talking Bull and the Ravens That Fed Him

(Numbers 34:2:) "WHEN YOU COME INTO THE LAND." [What is written above on this matter? "And you shall dispossess all the inhabitants of the land from before you" (Numbers 33:52).] This is what Scripture says (Job 35:11): "Who teaches us from the beasts of the earth." He said to Israel: Learn from the bull of Elijah; for at the hour that Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "Choose for yourselves the one bull and prepare it first" (1 Kings 18:25), at that hour the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah gathered together, and they could not budge its foot from the ground. See what is written there: "And let them give us two bulls" etc. (1 Kings 18:23). Elijah said to them: Choose for yourselves two bulls, twins from one mother, raised at one manger, and cast lots over them, one for the Name and one for Baal. They chose for themselves the one bull, and Elijah's bull was being drawn along and following after him; but that bull which fell to the name of Baal, all those prophets of Baal and prophets of Asherah gathered to move its foot from the ground, and they could not, until Elijah opened and said to it: Go with them. The bull answered and said to Elijah, before the eyes of all the people, and said to him: I and my fellow came out from one belly, and we were raised in one pasture, at one manger; he came up in the portion of the Holy One, blessed be He, and the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, is sanctified over him, while I came up in the portion of Baal, to provoke my Creator. Elijah said to him: Go with them, and let them not find a pretext; just as the name of the Holy One, blessed be He, is sanctified over this one that is with me, so it is sanctified over you. It said to him: And is this how you advise me? An oath that I will not move from here until you hand me over into their hand, as it is said: "And they took the bull which he gave to them and they prepared it" (1 Kings 18:26). And who gave it to them? Elijah. And you learn that Elijah said to them, "Choose for yourselves the one bull" (1 Kings 18:25), and at the end it is written, "And they took the bull which he gave to them" (1 Kings 18:26). Therefore it is said: "Who teaches us from the beasts of the earth." "And from the birds of the heavens He makes us wise" (Job 35:11). The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Learn from the ravens, who sustained Elijah, as it is said: "And I have commanded the ravens to sustain you there [and the ravens brought him bread and meat]" etc. (1 Kings 17:4, 6). From where did they bring him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening? From the table of Jehoshaphat, because those ravens did not want to enter into the house of Ahab, to bring out from the table of that wicked man anything for that righteous man, because his house was full of idolatry. Thus, "From the birds of the heavens He makes us wise." The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel: Learn from the bull and from the ravens, and do not turn unto the idols to gaze at them. [From where is this shown? From what they read on the matter:] "And you shall dispossess all the inhabitants of the land" (Numbers 33:52).