1 Kings 13:1

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.

1 Kings 13:9

13:9 For the Lord gave me strict orders, ⁴  ‘Do not eat or drink ⁵  there and do not go home the way you came.’”

1 Kings 13:17-18

13:17 For the Lord gave me strict orders, ⁶  ‘Do not eat or drink ⁷  there; do not go back the way you came.’” 13:18 The old prophet then said, ⁸  “I too am a prophet like you. An angel told me with the Lord’s authority, ⁹  ‘Bring him back with you to your house so he can eat and drink.’” ¹⁰  But he was lying to him. ¹¹ 

1 Kings 13:22

13:22 You went back and ate and drank in this place, even though he said to you, “Do not eat or drink there.” ¹²  Therefore ¹³  your corpse will not be buried in your ancestral tomb.’” ¹⁴ 

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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 “for this he commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying.”

⁵ tn Heb “eat food and drink water.”

⁶ tn Heb “for a word to me by the word of the Lord.”

⁷ tn Heb “eat food and drink water.”

⁸ tn Heb “and he said to him.”

⁹ tn Heb “by the word of the Lord.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “eat food and drink water.”

¹¹ tn Or “deceiving him.”

sn He was lying to him. The motives and actions of the old prophet are difficult to understand. The old man’s response to the prophet’s death (see vv. 26-32) suggests he did not trick him with malicious intent. The old prophet probably wanted the honor of entertaining such a celebrity, or perhaps simply desired some social interaction with a fellow prophet.

¹² tn Heb “and you returned and ate food and drank water in the place about which he said to you, ‘do not eat food and do not drink water.’”

¹³ tn “Therefore” is added for stylistic reasons. See the note at 1 Kgs 13:21 pertaining to the grammatical structure of vv. 21-22.

¹⁴ tn Heb “will not go to the tomb of your fathers.”