1 Kings 14:3

3 Take with you ten loaves, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him; he will tell you what shall happen to the child."

1 Kings 14:3 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 14:3

And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse
of honey, and go to him
It being usual to carry a present to a prophet when he was inquired of on any account, see ( 1 Samuel 9:7 ) and this being a plain present, and of such things as the country afforded, she might be taken for a plain countrywoman, and not for such a personage as she was: the ten loaves could not be large for a woman to carry, most probably made of wheat; the cracknels, according to the Greek version in Drusius, were for the prophet's children; they very likely were spiced, or were sweetened with honey, and might be somewhat like our simnels; they seem to have their name in Hebrew from having points and pricks in them for the sake of ornament; such as Plautus ^F8 calls "scribilitae", because as Turnebus ^F9 says, they were marked and pricked, and seemed as if they were written:

he shall tell thee what shall become of the child;
whether it should live or die, for that was all he wanted to know; he did not desire to know what should be done to the child for its recovery, nor to request the prophet's prayers for it.

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FOOTNOTES:

F8 Prolog. Poenulo, ver. 43.
F9 Adversar. l. 23. c. 10.

1 Kings 14:3 In-Context

1 At that time Abi'jah the son of Jerobo'am fell sick.

2 And Jerobo'am said to his wife, "Arise, and disguise yourself, that it be not known that you are the wife of Jerobo'am, and go to Shiloh; behold, Ahi'jah the prophet is there, who said of me that I should be king over this people.

3 Take with you ten loaves, some cakes, and a jar of honey, and go to him; he will tell you what shall happen to the child."

4 Jerobo'am's wife did so; she arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahi'jah. Now Ahi'jah could not see, for his eyes were dim because of his age.

5 And the LORD said to Ahi'jah, "Behold, the wife of Jerobo'am is coming to inquire of you concerning her son; for he is sick. Thus and thus shall you say to her." When she came, she pretended to be another woman.