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Texts -- 1 Kings 13:2-34 (NET)

Context
13:2 With the authority of the Lord he cried out against the altar , “O altar , altar ! This is what the Lord says , ‘Look , a son named Josiah will be born to the Davidic dynasty . He will sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who offer sacrifices on you. Human bones will be burned on you.’” 13:3 That day he also announced a sign , “This is the sign the Lord has predetermined : The altar will be split open and the ashes on it will fall to the ground.” 13:4 When the king heard what the prophet cried out against the altar in Bethel , Jeroboam , standing at the altar , extended his hand and ordered , “Seize him!” The hand he had extended shriveled up and he could not pull it back . 13:5 The altar split open and the ashes fell from the altar to the ground, in fulfillment of the sign the prophet had announced with the Lord’s authority . 13:6 The king pled with the prophet , “Seek the favor of the Lord your God and pray for me, so that my hand may be restored .” So the prophet sought the Lord’s favor and the king’s hand was restored to its former condition. 13:7 The king then said to the prophet , “Come home with me and have something to eat . I’d like to give a present .” 13:8 But the prophet said to the king , “Even if you were to give me half your possessions , I could not go with you and eat and drink in this place . 13:9 For the Lord gave me strict orders , ‘Do not eat or drink there and do not go home the way you came .’” 13:10 So he started back on another road ; he did not travel back on the same road he had taken to Bethel . 13:11 Now there was an old prophet living in Bethel . When his sons came home, they told their father everything the prophet had done in Bethel that day and all the words he had spoken to the king . 13:12 Their father asked them, “Which road did he take ?” His sons showed him the road the prophet from Judah had taken . 13:13 He then told his sons , “Saddle the donkey for me.” When they had saddled the donkey for him, he mounted it 13:14 and took off after the prophet , whom he found sitting under an oak tree . He asked him, “Are you the prophet from Judah ?” He answered , “Yes, I am.” 13:15 He then said to him, “Come home with me and eat something .” 13:16 But he replied , “I can’t go back with you or eat and drink with you in this place . 13:17 For the Lord gave me strict orders , ‘Do not eat or drink there ; do not go back the way you came .’” 13:18 The old prophet then said , “I too am a prophet like you. An angel told me with the Lord’s authority , ‘Bring him back with you to your house so he can eat and drink .’” But he was lying to him. 13:19 So the prophet went back with him and ate and drank in his house . 13:20 While they were sitting at the table , the Lord spoke through the old prophet 13:21 and he cried out to the prophet from Judah , “This is what the Lord says , ‘You have rebelled against the Lord and have not obeyed the command the Lord your God gave you. 13:22 You went back and ate and drank in this place , even though he said to you, “Do not eat or drink there.” Therefore your corpse will not be buried in your ancestral tomb .’” 13:23 When the prophet from Judah finished his meal , the old prophet saddled his visitor’s donkey for him. 13:24 As the prophet from Judah was traveling , a lion attacked him on the road and killed him. His corpse was lying on the road , and the donkey and the lion just stood there beside it . 13:25 Some men came by and saw the corpse lying in the road with the lion standing beside it . They went and reported what they had seen in the city where the old prophet lived . 13:26 When the old prophet who had invited him to his house heard the news, he said , “It is the prophet who rebelled against the Lord . The Lord delivered him over to the lion and it ripped him up and killed him, just as the Lord warned him.” 13:27 He told his sons , “Saddle my donkey ,” and they did so. 13:28 He went and found the corpse lying in the road with the donkey and the lion standing beside it ; the lion had neither eaten the corpse nor attacked the donkey . 13:29 The old prophet picked up the corpse of the prophet , put it on the donkey , and brought it back . The old prophet then entered the city to mourn him and to bury him. 13:30 He put the corpse into his own tomb , and they mourned over him, saying, “Ah , my brother !” 13:31 After he buried him, he said to his sons , “When I die , bury me in the tomb where the prophet is buried ; put my bones right beside his bones , 13:32 for the prophecy he announced with the Lord’s authority against the altar in Bethel and against all the temples on the high places in the cities of the north will certainly be fulfilled .”
A Prophet Announces the End of Jeroboam’s Dynasty
13:33 After this happened , Jeroboam still did not change his evil ways ; he continued to appoint common people as priests at the high places . Anyone who wanted the job he consecrated as a priest . 13:34 This sin caused Jeroboam’s dynasty to come to an end and to be destroyed from the face of the earth .

Pericope

NET

Bible Dictionary

  • Jeroboam

    [ebd] increase of the people. (1.) The son of Nebat (1 Kings 11:26-39), "an Ephrathite," the first king of the ten tribes, over whom he reigned twenty-two years (B.C. 976-945). He was the son of a widow of Zereda, and while still ...
    [isbe] JEROBOAM - jer-o-bo'-am (yarobh`am; Septuagint Hieroboam, usually assumed to have been derived from riyb and `am, and signifying "the people contend," or, "he pleads the people's cause"): The name was borne by two kings of I...
    [nave] JEROBOAM: 1. First king of Israel after the revolt. Promoted by Solomon, 1 Kin. 11:28. Ahijah's prophecy concerning, 1 Kin. 11:29-39; 14:5-16. Flees to Egypt to escape from Solomon, 1 Kin. 11:26-40. Recalled from Egypt by...

  • JADON

    [isbe] JADON - ja'-don (yadhon, perhaps "he will judge" or "plead"): One who helped to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem in company with the men of Gibeon and of Mizpah (Neh 3:7). He is called the "Meronothite," and another Meronothite...

  • CHRONICLES, BOOKS OF

    [isbe] CHRONICLES, BOOKS OF - kron'-i-k'-ls (dibhere ha-yamim, "The Words of the Days"; Septuagint paraleipomenon: 1. The Name 2. The Position of Chronicles in the Old Testament 3. Two Books, or One? 4. The Contents 5. Sources Bibl...

  • IDDO

    [isbe] IDDO - id'-o: (1) ('iddo (?[~'adhadh, "to be strong"), "hap," "happy" (?), Ezr 8:17): The "chief at the place Casiphia," who provided Ezra with Levites and Nethinim, the head of the Levitical body or school, said to be one o...

  • BETHEL

    [isbe] BETHEL - beth'-el (beth-'el; Baithel and oikos theou, literally, "house of God"): (1) A town near the place where Abraham halted and offered sacrifice on his way south from Shechem. 1. Identification and Description: It lay ...

  • PROPHECY; PROPHETS, 2

    [isbe] PROPHECY; PROPHETS, 2 - II. Historical Development of the Prophetic Office. 1. Abraham: It is a characteristic peculiarity of the religion of the Old Testament that its very elementary beginnings are of a prophetical nature....

  • Disobedience to God

    [nave] DISOBEDIENCE TO GOD. Denunciations Against Num. 14:11, 12, 22-24; Num. 32:8-13; Deut. 18:19; Deut. 28:15-68 Lev. 26:14-46. Punishment of Of the Egyptians by plagues, See: Plagues. See also Sin, Punishment of. Instances...

  • Judgments

    [nave] JUDGMENTS On the serpent, Gen. 3:14, 15. Eve, Gen. 3:16; Adam, Gen. 3:17-19. Cain, Gen. 4:11-15; the Antediluvians, Gen. 6; 7; Sodomites, Gen. 19:23-25; Egyptians, the plagues and overthrow, Ex. 7-14; Nadab and Abihu, Lev....

  • OLD PROPHET, THE

    [isbe] OLD PROPHET, THE - (nabhi' 'echadh zaqen, "an old prophet" (1 Ki 13:11), ha-nabhi' ha-zaqen, "the old prophet" (1 Ki 13:29)): 1. The Narrative: The narrative of 1 Ki 13:11-32, in which the old prophet is mentioned, is part o...

  • Minister

    [nave] MINISTER, a sacred teacher. Index of Sub-topics Miscellany of Minor Sub-topics; Call of; Character and Qualifications of; Charge Delivered to; Courage of; Duties of; Duties of the Church to; Emoluments of; Faithful, Instanc...

  • Temptation

    [nave] TEMPTATION. Gen. 3:1-13; Gen. 20:6; Ex. 34:12 vs. 13-16.; Deut. 7:25; Deut. 8:11-14, 17, 18; Deut. 13:3; 1 Chr. 21:1; 2 Chr. 32:30, 31; Psa. 119:165; Prov. 1:10-17; Prov. 2:10-12, 16; Prov. 4:14, 15; Prov. 5:6-21; Prov. 6:2...

  • Lies and Deceits

    [nave] LIES AND DECEITS Ex. 23:1; Lev. 6:2-7; Lev. 19:11, 12, 16 Ex. 20:16. Job 13:4; Job 21:34; Job 27:4; Job 31:5, 6, 33; Job 36:4; Psa. 5:6, 9; Psa. 10:7; Psa. 12:2, 3; Psa. 28:3; Psa. 31:18; Psa. 34:13 1 Pet. 3:10. Psa. 36:3; P...

  • Prophecy

    [nave] PROPHECY Concerning Jesus, See: Jesus. Concerning church, See: Church, Prophecies Concerning Prosperity of. Relating to various countries, nations, and cities, see under their respective titles. Respecting individuals, see...

  • Afflictions and Adversities

    [nave] AFFLICTIONS AND ADVERSITIES. List of Sub-Topics Miscellany of Minor Sub-Topics; Unclassified Scriptures Relating to; Benefits of; Benefits of, Illustrated; Consolation in; Deliverance from; Design of; Despondency in; Dispe...

  • Reproof

    [nave] REPROOF. Lev. 19:17; Psa. 141:5; Prov. 9:7, 8; Prov. 10:17; Prov. 12:1; Prov. 13:18; Prov. 15:5, 10, 12, 31, 32; Prov. 17:10; Prov. 19:25; Prov. 21:11; Prov. 25:12; Prov. 26:5; Prov. 27:5, 6; Prov. 28:23; Eccl. 7:5; Amos 5:...

  • Lion

    [isbe] LION - li'-un: (1) Occurring most often in the Old Testament is 'aryeh, plural 'ardyoth. Another form, 'ari, plural 'arayim, is found less often. 1. Names: Compare 'ari'el, "Ariel" (Ezr 8:16; Isa 29:1,2,7); char'el, "upper a...
    [smith] "The most powerful, daring and impressive of all carnivorous animals, the most magnificent in aspect and awful in voice." At present lions do not exist in Palestine; but they must in ancient times have been numerous. The lion...
    [nave] LION King of beasts, Mic. 5:8. Fierceness of, Job 4:10; 28:8; Psa. 7:2; Prov. 22:13; Jer. 2:15; 49:19; 50:44; Hos. 13:8. The roaring of, Psa. 22:13; Prov. 20:2. Strength of, Prov. 30:30; Isa. 38:13; Joel 1:6. Instincts o...

  • Intercession

    [isbe] INTERCESSION - in-ter-sesh'-un (pagha`, "to make intercession"; originally "to strike upon," or "against"; then in a good sense, "to assail anyone with petitions," "to urge," and when on behalf of another, "to intercede" (Ru...
    [nave] INTERCESSION. Of One Person with Another 1 Sam. 2:25 Instances of: Reuben for Joseph, Gen. 37:21, 22. Judah for Joseph, Gen. 37:26, 27. Pharaoh's chief baker for Joseph, Gen. 41:9-13, with Gen. 40:14. Jonathan for David...

  • Beth-el

    [nave] BETH-EL 1. A city N. of Jerusalem. The ancient city adjacent to, and finally embraced in, was called Luz, Josh. 18:13; Judg. 1:23-26. Abraham establishes an altar at, Gen. 12:8; 13:3, 4. The place where Jacob saw the visio...

  • ASS

    [ebd] frequently mentioned throughout Scripture. Of the domesticated species we read of, (1.) The she ass (Heb. 'athon), so named from its slowness (Gen. 12:16; 45:23; Num. 22:23; 1 Sam. 9:3). (2.) The male ass (Heb. hamor), the c...
    [isbe] ASS - as (chamowr or chamor, compare Arabic chamar, apparently connected with Arabic root 'achmar, "red," but referred by some to root hamal, "to carry"; also, but less commonly, both in Hebrew and in Arabic, 'athon, Arabic ...

  • Calf

    [nave] CALF Offered in sacrifice, Mic. 6:6. Golden, made by Aaron, Ex. 32; Deut. 9:16; Neh. 9:18; Psa. 106:19; Acts 7:41. Images of, set up in Beth-el and Dan by Jeroboam, 1 Kin. 12:28-33; 2 Kin. 10:29. Worshiped by Jehu, 2 Kin....
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Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • When the Israelites entered the land they were to bring a special offering of firstfruits they harvested from the land to Yahweh at the tabernacle (cf. 14:22-27). It was to be an expression of their gratitude to God for fulfi...
  • These verses conclude the account of the division of the land proper (chs. 13-21; cf. 1:2-6; 11:23). They bind the two parts of the second half of the book together. They form a theological conclusion to the entire book up to...
  • 1:22-26 The writer described Ephraim and Manasseh together as "the house of Joseph"(vv. 22-29). First, he narrated Ephraim's activity (vv. 22-26). The Ephraimites' treatment of the man of Bethel who gave them information viol...
  • The fact that this book opens and closes with death should be a clue as to its message.It opens with David's death, and it closes with Ahab's death. The intervening period of about a century and a half is a story of national ...
  • I. The reign of Solomon chs. 1-11A. Solomon's succession to David's throne 1:1-2:121. David's declining health 1:1-42. Adonijah's attempt to seize the throne 1:5-533. David's charge to Solomon 2:1-94. David's death 2:10-12B. ...
  • The second major part of the Book of Kings records the histories of the Northern Kingdom of Israel and the Southern Kingdom of Judah.123During this era of 209 years (931-722 B.C.) the two kingdoms experienced differing relati...
  • God sent a young Judahite prophet to Bethel to announce a prophecy that God would judge Jeroboam for his apostasy. When he arrived, the king was exercising his priestly function at the Bethel altar (v. 1). The prophet predict...
  • The prophecy of God's judgment on Jeroboam and its signs (vv. 4-5) did not lead the king to repentance. The most serious aspect of his apostate system was his disregard for what God had required concerning Israel's priesthood...
  • This section is similar to the one that recorded Saul's failure to follow Yahweh's command that also resulted in God cutting him off as His vice-regent (1 Sam. 13:13-14). The parallels between Saul and Ahab are remarkable thr...
  • Aharoni, Yohanan. "The Building Activities of David and Solomon."Israel Exploration Journal24:1(1974):13-16.Aharoni, Yohanan, and Michael Avi-Yonahl. The Macmillan Bible Atlas. Revised ed., New York: Macmillan Publishing Co.,...
  • Had Elijah still been alive on the earth Elisha could not have exercised authority as his successor. In this chapter note the parallels between the succession of the prophets and the succession of the kings that the writer re...
  • Josiah began to seek Yahweh when he was 16 years old and began initiating religious reforms when he was 20 (2 Chron. 34:3-7). His reforms were more extensive than those of any of his predecessors. One of them was the repair o...
  • 30:18 Yahweh promised to restore Israel's tribal fortunes (cf. Num. 24:5-6), to have compassion on His peoples' towns and homes, and to rebuild Jerusalem and the royal palace there.30:19 Thanksgiving and merrymaking would mar...
  • 9:1 In his vision Ezekiel heard the Lord (cf. v. 4) cry out loudly for the executioners (guards), who would punish the people of Jerusalem, to draw near to Him with their weapons in hand. The Lord had predicted that the peopl...
  • In this pericope God addressed the Israelites as a whole but identified sins of their priests in particular.4:4 Israel's guilt was so clear that the Lord forbade the people from denying His charge against them. As judge, He s...
  • This verse summarizes the message that Amos received from the Lord. Amos reported that Yahweh roared from Zion, as a lion roars before it devours its prey or as thunder precedes a severe storm (cf. 3:4, 8; Jer. 25:30; Hos. 5:...
  • 7:15 Jesus here sounded a warning that the Old Testament prophets also gave about false prophets (cf. Deut. 13; 18; Jer. 6:13-15; 8:8-12; Ezek. 13; 22:27; Zeph 3:4). He did not explain exactly what they would teach, only that...
  • Jesus told the parable of the fig tree to illustrate the certainty of what He had prophesied. He then gave other assurances of fulfillment. Luke omitted Jesus' statement that no one would know the day or hour when He would re...
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