1 Kings 20:38

38 Then the prophet went and waited for the king on the road. He disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes.

1 Kings 20:38 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 20:38

So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way,
&c.] As he went from Aphek, the place where the battle had been fought, to Samaria, his royal seat:

and disguised himself with ashes upon his face;
the Targum is, he covered his eyes with a vail, or piece of cloth, which he wrapped about his head, as men do when they have got a wound or bruise in such a part, which seems very probable; for had he besmeared his face with ashes, clay, or dust, or any such thing, he could not so easily have got it off, as in ( 1 Kings 20:41 ) .

1 Kings 20:38 In-Context

36 He told him, "Because you did not listen to the voice of the Lord, mark my words: When you leave me, a lion will kill you." When he left him, a lion found him and killed him.

37 The prophet found another man and said to him, "Strike me!" So the man struck him, inflicting a wound.

38 Then the prophet went and waited for the king on the road. He disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes.

39 As the king was passing by, he cried out to the king and said, "Your servant marched out into the midst of the battle. Suddenly, a man turned aside and brought someone to me and said, 'Guard this man! If he is ever missing, it will be your life in place of his life, or you will weigh out 75 pounds of silver.'

40 But while your servant was busy here and there, he disappeared." The king of Israel said to him, "That will be your sentence; you yourself have decided it."