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1 Kings 13
The Voice
1 Kings 13
The Voice
In his zeal to solidify the worship of the Lord in the Northern Kingdom, Jeroboam inadvertently dooms the Israelites’ relationship with God by making changes to God’s laws. Instead of worshiping no idols, the Northern Kingdom has two golden calves. Instead of worshiping at the temple in Jerusalem, the Israelites worship at various shrines like the one at Bethel. Instead of relying on the Levites, others can become priests and approach the altar. Finally, instead of following God’s calendar, Jeroboam brings with him the Egyptian calendar from his time in exile, thus altering the observance date of every sacred festival in the Northern Kingdom. The unwillingness to conform to God’s worship requirements will devolve into outright rebellion on the part of Israel.
13 A man of God from Judah arrived in Bethel because the Eternal One had told him to go there for a divine purpose. He arrived in the city while Jeroboam was burning incense at the altar. 2 The prophet proclaimed the message of the Eternal against the altar.
Man of God: Altar, altar, listen closely! This is the message of the Eternal: “A boy named Josiah will be born of David’s royal bloodline, and he will sacrifice the priests of the high places upon your back. O what irony: the bones of the priests will burn at the very spot where, just the day before, the priests burned incense.”
3 The prophet offered a sign that day.
Man of God: The Eternal One has revealed what the sign will be: “The altar will split in two, and the countless ashes of fat will fall out.”
4 The king heard the threatening message that the man of God boldly proclaimed against the altar in Bethel.
Jeroboam (raising his hand): Grab hold of him! He’s dangerous!
When Jeroboam raised his hand from the altar, it shriveled up instantaneously, and he could not bring it back to his body. 5 The altar broke apart, and the ashes of fat fell out of the altar. This sign occurred exactly as the man of God said it would in the message he gave from the Eternal One.
Jeroboam (to the man of God): 6 I beg you to intercede quickly with the Eternal, your True God, and ask Him to make my hand normal again.
So the man of God called upon the Eternal, and Jeroboam’s hand became normal again, as if it had never changed.
Jeroboam: 7 Now accompany me to my house for refreshment, and I will give you something in return for the good you have done me.
Man of God: 8 Even if you offered to give me half of your estate, I would not accompany you. I would not eat a crumb or drink water from your table. 9 The Eternal gave me clear instructions. He said, “While you are there, do not eat a crumb or drink water. Do not travel back the way you came.”
Certainly God’s requirements seem to be unreasonable. In fact, they are! Only by requiring something so arbitrary can God test the man’s dedication to Him.
10 So the man of God took a different path from the one he had originally traveled to Bethel.
11 There was an old prophet who lived in Bethel. The old prophet’s sons heard about the sign the man of God had performed and about the words he spoke to the king, and they relayed these things to their father.
Prophet (to his sons): 12 Where did the man of God go? I would like to see him.
The old prophet’s sons had seen which way the man of God from Judah had gone, so they told their father which direction to take.
Prophet (to his sons): 13 Get the donkey ready. I’m going to find the man of God.
The old prophet’s sons saddled the donkey, and the father got on it and went to find the man of God. 14 Along his journey, he found the man of God resting beneath an oak tree.
Prophet (to the man of God): There’s been talk of a man of God from Judah who performed a sign for Jeroboam. Are you that man?
Man of God: Yes, I am.
Prophet: 15 Accompany me back to my house, and eat my bread. Surely you must be hungry.
Man of God: 16 I will not accompany you to your house, and I will not eat your bread or drink your water here. 17 The Eternal One gave me clear instructions when He said, “While you are there, do not eat a crumb or drink water. Do not travel back the way you came.”
Prophet: 18 But you see, I, too, am a prophet, just as you are. One of the Eternal’s heavenly messengers brought me this word of the Eternal: “Escort the man of God back to your house, feed him your bread, and let him drink your water.”
But the old prophet lied. 19 The man of God trusted the old prophet and accompanied him back to his house, where he ate bread and drank water.
20 While they were sitting at the prophet’s table, the Eternal gave a grim message to the prophet who brought the man of God to his house. 21 He spoke it to the man of God who was from Judah.
Prophet: This is the urgent message of the Eternal One: You have strayed from His strict instructions. You have not honored the command of the Eternal, your True God. 22 Instead, you have eaten bread and drunk water here, even after He gave you this instruction: “Do not eat a crumb or drink water while you are there.” Therefore you will not be buried in the place of your fathers.
To be buried away from one’s family is the ultimate curse. In ancient Israel, a connection is retained between the living and the dead. The ancestors are to be buried somewhere on the family land, legally securing forever the land for the living family members. The living family members, by taking care of that land, care for their ancestors in the afterlife. If someone is buried away from his ancestral home, then the quality of his afterlife is in question.
23 After having a sobering meal and some water, the prophet prepared his donkey for the man of God. 24 While the man of God was traveling on the donkey, he was killed by a lion and his body fell to the ground, right in the middle of the road. 25 It was the strangest sight, for the donkey and the lion both remained standing beside the man’s body. People walked by on the road and saw the body of the man of God with the lion standing beside it. The people brought word of this strange sight to the city of the old prophet.
Prophet (hearing the news): 26 The dead body is that of the man of God. He strayed from the Eternal’s strict directions so He has sent the lion to tear him to pieces and kill him, just as He said would happen.
27 (to his sons) Prepare the donkey so that I can ride it. I must go retrieve the body of the man of God.
And so his sons saddled the donkey for him. 28 The prophet traveled to the body of the man of God. The donkey and the lion remained standing beside it on the road. The strange thing is that the lion had not tried to eat any of the dead body or kill the donkey. 29 The prophet gathered up the lifeless body of the man of God and placed it on the donkey, then he led the donkey back to the old prophet’s city where he grieved for the man of God and gave him a proper burial. 30 The prophet buried the man of God in his own grave; and everyone grieved for him, crying out, “I’m so sorry, brother!” 31 After the prophet had buried the man of God, he spoke to his sons.
Prophet: When death takes me someday, I want you to bury me in the same grave as the man of God, so that my bones rest next to his bones. This will be an honor for me. 32 The words he cried out against the altar in Bethel and against the high places in the Samaritan towns will surely happen, for those words were the Eternal’s message.
33 Even after all of this, Jeroboam still did not repent from his wickedness. He continued to choose priests for the high places out of anyone and everyone. Any man who was willing to be a priest, Jeroboam ordained him so that the man could act as a priest of the high places. 34 This was wicked enough to annihilate Jeroboam’s entire house and reign from the history of the world.
1 Kings 13
New International Version
1 Kings 13
New International Version
The Man of God From Judah
13 By the word of the Lord a man of God(A) came from Judah to Bethel,(B) as Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make an offering. 2 By the word of the Lord he cried out against the altar: “Altar, altar! This is what the Lord says: ‘A son named Josiah(C) will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places(D) who make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you.’” 3 That same day the man of God gave a sign:(E) “This is the sign the Lord has declared: The altar will be split apart and the ashes on it will be poured out.”
4 When King Jeroboam heard what the man of God cried out against the altar at Bethel, he stretched out his hand from the altar and said, “Seize him!” But the hand he stretched out toward the man shriveled up, so that he could not pull it back. 5 Also, the altar was split apart and its ashes poured out according to the sign given by the man of God by the word of the Lord.
6 Then the king said to the man of God, “Intercede(F) with the Lord your God and pray for me that my hand may be restored.” So the man of God interceded with the Lord, and the king’s hand was restored and became as it was before.
7 The king said to the man of God, “Come home with me for a meal, and I will give you a gift.”(G)
8 But the man of God answered the king, “Even if you were to give me half your possessions,(H) I would not go with you, nor would I eat bread(I) or drink water here. 9 For I was commanded by the word of the Lord: ‘You must not eat bread or drink water or return by the way you came.’” 10 So he took another road and did not return by the way he had come to Bethel.
11 Now there was a certain old prophet living in Bethel, whose sons came and told him all that the man of God had done there that day. They also told their father what he had said to the king. 12 Their father asked them, “Which way did he go?” And his sons showed him which road the man of God from Judah had taken. 13 So he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” And when they had saddled the donkey for him, he mounted it 14 and rode after the man of God. He found him sitting under an oak tree and asked, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?”
“I am,” he replied.
15 So the prophet said to him, “Come home with me and eat.”
16 The man of God said, “I cannot turn back and go with you, nor can I eat bread(J) or drink water with you in this place. 17 I have been told by the word of the Lord: ‘You must not eat bread or drink water there or return by the way you came.’”
18 The old prophet answered, “I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the Lord:(K) ‘Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.’” (But he was lying(L) to him.) 19 So the man of God returned with him and ate and drank in his house.
20 While they were sitting at the table, the word of the Lord came to the old prophet who had brought him back. 21 He cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah, “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have defied(M) the word of the Lord and have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. 22 You came back and ate bread and drank water in the place where he told you not to eat or drink. Therefore your body will not be buried in the tomb of your ancestors.’”
23 When the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him. 24 As he went on his way, a lion(N) met him on the road and killed him, and his body was left lying on the road, with both the donkey and the lion standing beside it. 25 Some people who passed by saw the body lying there, with the lion standing beside the body, and they went and reported it in the city where the old prophet lived.
26 When the prophet who had brought him back from his journey heard of it, he said, “It is the man of God who defied(O) the word of the Lord. The Lord has given him over to the lion, which has mauled him and killed him, as the word of the Lord had warned him.”
27 The prophet said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me,” and they did so. 28 Then he went out and found the body lying on the road, with the donkey and the lion standing beside it. The lion had neither eaten the body nor mauled the donkey. 29 So the prophet picked up the body of the man of God, laid it on the donkey, and brought it back to his own city to mourn for him and bury him. 30 Then he laid the body in his own tomb,(P) and they mourned over him and said, “Alas, my brother!”(Q)
31 After burying him, he said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried; lay my bones(R) beside his bones. 32 For the message he declared by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel and against all the shrines on the high places(S) in the towns of Samaria(T) will certainly come true.”(U)
33 Even after this, Jeroboam did not change his evil ways,(V) but once more appointed priests for the high places from all sorts(W) of people. Anyone who wanted to become a priest he consecrated for the high places. 34 This was the sin(X) of the house of Jeroboam that led to its downfall and to its destruction(Y) from the face of the earth.
1 Kings 13
King James Version
1 Kings 13
King James Version
13 And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the Lord unto Bethel: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.
2 And he cried against the altar in the word of the Lord, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee.
3 And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the Lord hath spoken; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out.
4 And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, which had cried against the altar in Bethel, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him.
5 The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the Lord.
6 And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the face of the Lord thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the Lord, and the king's hand was restored him again, and became as it was before.
7 And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with me, and refresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward.
8 And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place:
9 For so was it charged me by the word of the Lord, saying, Eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou camest.
10 So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Bethel.
11 Now there dwelt an old prophet in Bethel; and his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Bethel: the words which he had spoken unto the king, them they told also to their father.
12 And their father said unto them, What way went he? For his sons had seen what way the man of God went, which came from Judah.
13 And he said unto his sons, Saddle me the ass. So they saddled him the ass: and he rode thereon,
14 And went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak: and he said unto him, Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah? And he said, I am.
15 Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat bread.
16 And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee: neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place:
17 For it was said to me by the word of the Lord, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest.
18 He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the Lord, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him.
19 So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water.
20 And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the Lord came unto the prophet that brought him back:
21 And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the Lord, and hast not kept the commandment which the Lord thy God commanded thee,
22 But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the Lord did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.
23 And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom he had brought back.
24 And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also stood by the carcase.
25 And, behold, men passed by, and saw the carcase cast in the way, and the lion standing by the carcase: and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.
26 And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard thereof, he said, It is the man of God, who was disobedient unto the word of the Lord: therefore the Lord hath delivered him unto the lion, which hath torn him, and slain him, according to the word of the Lord, which he spake unto him.
27 And he spake to his sons, saying, Saddle me the ass. And they saddled him.
28 And he went and found his carcase cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase: the lion had not eaten the carcase, nor torn the ass.
29 And the prophet took up the carcase of the man of God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back: and the old prophet came to the city, to mourn and to bury him.
30 And he laid his carcase in his own grave; and they mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother!
31 And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he spake to his sons, saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre wherein the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones:
32 For the saying which he cried by the word of the Lord against the altar in Bethel, and against all the houses of the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass.
33 After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places.
34 And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth.
The Voice (VOICE)
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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