1 Kings 13:1-4

13:1 Just then ¹  a prophet ²  from Judah, sent by the Lord, arrived in Bethel, ³  as Jeroboam was standing near the altar ready to offer a sacrifice. 13:2 With the authority of the Lord ⁴  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.’” ⁵  13:3 That day he also announced ⁶  a sign, “This is the sign the Lord has predetermined: ⁷  The altar will be split open and the ashes ⁸  on it will fall to the ground.” ⁹  13:4 When the king heard what the prophet ¹⁰  cried out against the altar in Bethel, Jeroboam, standing at the altar, extended his hand ¹¹  and ordered, ¹²  “Seize him!” The hand he had extended shriveled up ¹³  and he could not pull it back.

¹ tn Heb “Look.” The Hebrew particle הִנֵּה (hinneh) is a rhetorical device by which the author invites the reader to visualize the scene for dramatic effect.

² tn Heb “the man of God.”

³ tn Heb “came by the word of the Lord to Bethel.”

⁴ tn Heb “by the word of the Lord.”

⁵ sn ‘Look…you.’ For the fulfillment of this prophecy see 2 Kgs 23:15-20.

⁶ tn Heb “gave.”

⁷ tn Heb “spoken.”

⁸ tn Heb “the fat.” Reference is made to burnt wood mixed with fat. See HALOT 234 s.v. דשׁן.

⁹ tn Heb “will be poured out.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “the man of God.”

¹¹ tn Heb “Jeroboam extended his hand from the altar.”

¹² tn Heb “saying.”

¹³ tn Heb “dried up” or “withered.” TEV and NLT interpret this as “became paralyzed.”