Christian Standard Bible | New Living Translation |
1A man of God came, however, from Judah to Bethel by the word of the LORD while Jeroboam was standing beside the altar to burn incense. | 1At the LORD’s command, a man of God from Judah went to Bethel, arriving there just as Jeroboam was approaching the altar to burn incense. |
2The man of God cried out against the altar by the word of the LORD: "Altar, altar, this is what the LORD says, 'A son will be born to the house of David, named Josiah, and he will sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who are burning incense on you. Human bones will be burned on you.'" | 2Then at the LORD’s command, he shouted, “O altar, altar! This is what the LORD says: A child named Josiah will be born into the dynasty of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests from the pagan shrines who come here to burn incense, and human bones will be burned on you.” |
3He gave a sign that day. He said, "This is the sign that the LORD has spoken: 'The altar will now be ripped apart, and the ashes that are on it will be poured out.'" | 3That same day the man of God gave a sign to prove his message. He said, “The LORD has promised to give this sign: This altar will split apart, and its ashes will be poured out on the ground.” |
4When the king heard the message that the man of God had cried out against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar and said, "Arrest him!" But the hand he stretched out against him withered, and he could not pull it back to himself. | 4When King Jeroboam heard the man of God speaking against the altar at Bethel, he pointed at him and shouted, “Seize that man!” But instantly the king’s hand became paralyzed in that position, and he couldn’t pull it back. |
5The altar was ripped apart, and the ashes poured from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. | 5At the same time a wide crack appeared in the altar, and the ashes poured out, just as the man of God had predicted in his message from the LORD. |
6Then the king responded to the man of God, "Plead for the favor of the LORD your God and pray for me so that my hand may be restored to me." So the man of God pleaded for the favor of the LORD, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it had been at first. | 6The king cried out to the man of God, “Please ask the LORD your God to restore my hand again!” So the man of God prayed to the LORD, and the king’s hand was restored and he could move it again. |
7Then the king declared to the man of God, "Come home with me, refresh yourself, and I'll give you a reward." | 7Then the king said to the man of God, “Come to the palace with me and have something to eat, and I will give you a gift.” |
8But the man of God replied, "If you were to give me half your house, I still wouldn't go with you, and I wouldn't eat food or drink water in this place, | 8But the man of God said to the king, “Even if you gave me half of everything you own, I would not go with you. I would not eat or drink anything in this place. |
9for this is what I was commanded by the word of the LORD: 'You must not eat food or drink water or go back the way you came.'" | 9For the LORD gave me this command: ‘You must not eat or drink anything while you are there, and do not return to Judah by the same way you came.’” |
10So he went another way; he did not go back by the way he had come to Bethel. | 10So he left Bethel and went home another way. |
11Now a certain old prophet was living in Bethel. His son came and told him all the deeds that the man of God had done that day in Bethel. His sons also told their father the words that he had spoken to the king. | 11As it happened, there was an old prophet living in Bethel, and his sons came home and told him what the man of God had done in Bethel that day. They also told their father what the man had said to the king. |
12Then their father asked them, "Which way did he go?" His sons had seen the way taken by the man of God who had come from Judah. | 12The old prophet asked them, “Which way did he go?” So they showed their father which road the man of God had taken. |
13Then he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." So they saddled the donkey for him, and he got on it. | 13“Quick, saddle the donkey,” the old man said. So they saddled the donkey for him, and he mounted it. |
14He followed the man of God and found him sitting under an oak tree. He asked him, "Are you the man of God who came from Judah?" "I am," he said. | 14Then he rode after the man of God and found him sitting under a great tree. The old prophet asked him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?” “Yes, I am,” he replied. |
15Then he said to him, "Come home with me and eat some food." | 15Then he said to the man of God, “Come home with me and eat some food.” |
16But he answered, "I cannot go back with you or accompany you; I will not eat food or drink water with you in this place. | 16“No, I cannot,” he replied. “I am not allowed to eat or drink anything here in this place. |
17For a message came to me by the word of the LORD: 'You must not eat food or drink water there or go back by the way you came.'" | 17For the LORD gave me this command: ‘You must not eat or drink anything while you are there, and do not return to Judah by the same way you came.’” |
18He said to him, "I am also a prophet like you. An angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD: 'Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat food and drink water.'" The old prophet deceived him, | 18But the old prophet answered, “I am a prophet, too, just as you are. And an angel gave me this command from the LORD: ‘Bring him home with you so he can have something to eat and drink.’” But the old man was lying to him. |
19and the man of God went back with him, ate food in his house, and drank water. | 19So they went back together, and the man of God ate and drank at the prophet’s home. |
20While they were sitting at the table, the word of the LORD came to the prophet who had brought him back, | 20Then while they were sitting at the table, a command from the LORD came to the old prophet. |
21and the prophet cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah, "This is what the LORD says: 'Because you rebelled against the LORD's command and did not keep the command that the LORD your God commanded you-- | 21He cried out to the man of God from Judah, “This is what the LORD says: You have defied the word of the LORD and have disobeyed the command the LORD your God gave you. |
22but you went back and ate food and drank water in the place that he said to you, "Do not eat food and do not drink water"--your corpse will never reach the grave of your fathers.'" | 22You came back to this place and ate and drank where he told you not to eat or drink. Because of this, your body will not be buried in the grave of your ancestors.” |
23So after he had eaten food and after he had drunk, the old prophet saddled the donkey for the prophet he had brought back. | 23After the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the old prophet saddled his own donkey for him, |
24When he left, a lion attacked him along the way and killed him. His corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey was standing beside it; the lion was standing beside the corpse too. | 24and the man of God started off again. But as he was traveling along, a lion came out and killed him. His body lay there on the road, with the donkey and the lion standing beside it. |
25There were men passing by who saw the corpse thrown on the road and the lion standing beside it, and they went and spoke about it in the city where the old prophet lived. | 25People who passed by saw the body lying in the road and the lion standing beside it, and they went and reported it in Bethel, where the old prophet lived. |
26When the prophet who had brought him back from his way heard about it, he said, "He is the man of God who disobeyed the LORD's command. The LORD has given him to the lion, and it has mauled and killed him, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke to him." | 26When the prophet heard the report, he said, “It is the man of God who disobeyed the LORD’s command. The LORD has fulfilled his word by causing the lion to attack and kill him.” |
27Then the old prophet instructed his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." They saddled it, | 27Then the prophet said to his sons, “Saddle a donkey for me.” So they saddled a donkey, |
28and he went and found the corpse thrown on the road with the donkey and the lion standing beside the corpse. The lion had not eaten the corpse or mauled the donkey. | 28and he went out and found the body lying in the road. The donkey and lion were still standing there beside it, for the lion had not eaten the body nor attacked the donkey. |
29So the prophet lifted the corpse of the man of God and laid it on the donkey and brought it back. The old prophet came into the city to mourn and to bury him. | 29So the prophet laid the body of the man of God on the donkey and took it back to the town to mourn over him and bury him. |
30Then he laid the corpse in his own grave, and they mourned over him: "Oh, my brother!" | 30He laid the body in his own grave, crying out in grief, “Oh, my brother!” |
31After he had buried him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones, | 31Afterward the prophet said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried. Lay my bones beside his bones. |
32for the message that he cried out by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel and against all the shrines of the high places in the cities of Samaria is certain to happen." | 32For the message the LORD told him to proclaim against the altar in Bethel and against the pagan shrines in the towns of Samaria will certainly come true.” |
33Even after this, Jeroboam did not repent of his evil way but again made priests for the high places from the ranks of the people. He ordained whoever so desired it, and they became priests of the high places. | 33But even after this, Jeroboam did not turn from his evil ways. He continued to choose priests from the common people. He appointed anyone who wanted to become a priest for the pagan shrines. |
34This was the sin that caused the house of Jeroboam to be cut off and obliterated from the face of the earth. | 34This became a great sin and resulted in the utter destruction of Jeroboam’s dynasty from the face of the earth. |
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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