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.

On the fifteenth day of the eighth month (a date he had arbitrarily chosen) ¹  Jeroboam ²  offered sacrifices on the altar he had made in Bethel. ³  He inaugurated a festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to offer sacrifices.