1 Kings 13:1

1 A man of God from Judah had come to Bethel. When he arrived, Jeroboam was standing at the altar to offer a sacrifice.

1 Kings 13:1 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 13:1

And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah
Whom Josephus ^F24 calls Jadon, perhaps the same with Iddo, who is by the Jewish writers ^F25 generally thought to be this man of God, and which may seem to be countenanced by ( 2 Chronicles 9:29 ) but cannot be, because this man was quickly slain, whereas Iddo lived after Rehoboam, and wrote his acts, first and last, nay, after Ahijah his son, ( 2 Chronicles 13:22 ) and for the same reason Shemaiah cannot be the man of God, ( 1 Kings 12:22 ) , though Tertullian ^F26 calls him Sameas, and designs Shemaiah: but, whoever he was, he came

by the word of the Lord to Bethel:
that is, by his command:

and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense;
at the time he came, ( 1 Kings 12:33 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F24 Ut supra. (Antiqu. l. 8. c. 8. sect. 3.)
F25 Seder Olam Rabba, c. 20. Shalshalet Hakabala, fol. 11. 1. Jarch & Kimchi in loc.
F26 De Jejuniis, c. 16.

1 Kings 13:1 In-Context

1 A man of God from Judah had come to Bethel. When he arrived, Jeroboam was standing at the altar to offer a sacrifice.

2 By a command of the LORD, this man condemned the altar. "Altar, altar! This is what the LORD says: There will be a son born in David's family line. His name will be Josiah. Here on you Josiah will sacrifice the priests from the illegal worship sites who offer sacrifices on you. Human bones will be burned on you."

3 That day the man of God [also] gave [them] a miraculous sign, saying, "This is the sign that the LORD will give you: You will see the altar torn apart. The ashes on it will be poured [on the ground]."

4 When King Jeroboam heard the man of God condemning the altar in Bethel, he pointed to the man across the altar. "Arrest him," he said. But the arm that he used to point to the man of God was paralyzed so that he couldn't pull it back.

5 The altar was torn apart, and the ashes from the altar were poured [on the ground]. This was the miraculous sign the man of God performed at the LORD's command.