1 Kings 13:21-31

21 and he cried [out] to the man of God that came from Judah, and said, The Lord saith these things, For thou obeyedest not to the mouth of the Lord, and keptest not the commandment which thy Lord God commanded to thee,
22 and thou turnedest (back) again, and atest bread, and drankest water in the place in which I commanded to thee, that thou shouldest not eat bread, neither shouldest drink water, thy dead body shall not be borne into the sepulchre of thy fathers.
23 And when he had eaten and drunk, the prophet, whom he had brought again, saddled his ass (the prophet, whom he had brought back, saddled up his donkey).
24 And when he had gone forth, a lion found him in the way, and killed him. And his dead body was cast forth in the way; soothly the ass stood beside him, and the lion also stood beside the dead body. (And when he had gone forth, a lion found him on the way, and killed him. And his dead body was thrown down on the way; and the donkey stood beside him, and the lion also stood beside his dead body.)
25 And lo! men passing saw the dead body cast forth in the way (And lo! men passing by saw the dead body thrown down on the way), and the lion standing beside the dead body; and they came, and published it in the city, in which the eld prophet dwelled.
26 And when that prophet, that brought him (back) again from the way, had heard this, he said, It is the man of God, that was unobedient to the mouth of God; and the Lord betook him to the lion, that hath broken him, and killed him, by the word of the Lord which he spake to him.
27 And he said to his sons, Saddle ye an ass to me (Saddle ye up a donkey for me). And when they had saddled (it up),
28 and he had gone, he found his dead body cast forth in the way, and the ass and the lion standing beside the dead body; and the lion ate not the dead body, neither hurted the ass. (and he had gone there, he found his dead body thrown down on the way, and the donkey and the lion standing beside the dead body; and the lion had not eaten the dead body, nor had hurt the donkey.)
29 Therefore the prophet took the dead body of the man of God, and put it on the ass; and he turned again, and brought it into the city of the eld prophet, that he should bewail him. (And so the prophet took the dead body of the man of God, and put it on his donkey; and then the old prophet returned, and brought the body back to the city, so that he could bewail, or mourn, him.)
30 And he put his dead body in his (own) sepulchre, and they bewailed him, and said, Alas! alas! my brother!
31 And when they had bewailed him, he said to his sons, When I shall be dead (When I shall die), bury me in the sepulchre, in which the man of God is buried; put ye my bones beside his bones.

1 Kings 13:21-31 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 13

In this chapter is an account of a man of God being sent to exclaim against Jeroboam's altar, and threaten its destruction, of which he gave a sign, which was accomplished, and with it the withering of the king's hand, which was healed upon the prophet's prayer for him, 1Ki 13:1-7, who would have entertained him at his house, but he refused the offer, and departed, 1Ki 13:8-10, but an old prophet in Bethel hearing of him, rode after him, and fetched him back to eat bread with him, through a lie he told him, 1Ki 13:11-19 upon which the word came to the old prophet, threatening the man of God with death for disobeying his command, and which was accordingly executed by a lion that met him in the way, and slew him, 1Ki 13:20-24, of which the old prophet being informed, went and took up his carcass, and buried it in his own sepulchre, where he charged his sons to bury him also when dead, believing that all the man of God had said would be fulfilled, 1Ki 13:25-30 and the chapter is closed with observing the continuance of Jeroboam in his idolatry, 1Ki 13:33,34.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.