| New International Version | NET Bible |
| 1By the word of the LORD a man of God came from Judah to Bethel, as Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make an offering. | 1Just then a prophet from Judah, sent by the LORD, arrived in Bethel, as Jeroboam was standing near the altar ready to offer a sacrifice. |
| 2By the word of the LORD he cried out against the altar: "Altar, altar! This is what the LORD says: 'A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you.'" | 2With 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.'" |
| 3That same day the man of God gave a sign: "This is the sign the LORD has declared: The altar will be split apart and the ashes on it will be poured out." | 3That 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." |
| 4When King Jeroboam heard what the man of God cried out against the altar at Bethel, he stretched out his hand from the altar and said, "Seize him!" But the hand he stretched out toward the man shriveled up, so that he could not pull it back. | 4When 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. |
| 5Also, the altar was split apart and its ashes poured out according to the sign given by the man of God by the word of the LORD. | 5The 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. |
| 6Then the king said to the man of God, "Intercede with the LORD your God and pray for me that my hand may be restored." So the man of God interceded with the LORD, and the king's hand was restored and became as it was before. | 6The 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. |
| 7The king said to the man of God, "Come home with me for a meal, and I will give you a gift." | 7The king then said to the prophet, "Come home with me and have something to eat. I'd like to give a present." |
| 8But the man of God answered the king, "Even if you were to give me half your possessions, I would not go with you, nor would I eat bread or drink water here. | 8But 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. |
| 9For I was commanded by the word of the LORD: 'You must not eat bread or drink water or return by the way you came.'" | 9For the LORD gave me strict orders, 'Do not eat or drink there and do not go home the way you came.'" |
| 10So he took another road and did not return by the way he had come to Bethel. | 10So he started back on another road; he did not travel back on the same road he had taken to Bethel. |
| 11Now there was a certain old prophet living in Bethel, whose sons came and told him all that the man of God had done there that day. They also told their father what he had said to the king. | 11Now 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. |
| 12Their father asked them, "Which way did he go?" And his sons showed him which road the man of God from Judah had taken. | 12Their father asked them, "Which road did he take?" His sons showed him the road the prophet from Judah had taken. |
| 13So he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." And when they had saddled the donkey for him, he mounted it | 13He then told his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." When they had saddled the donkey for him, he mounted it |
| 14and rode after the man of God. He found him sitting under an oak tree and asked, "Are you the man of God who came from Judah?" "I am," he replied. | 14and 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." |
| 15So the prophet said to him, "Come home with me and eat." | 15He then said to him, "Come home with me and eat something." |
| 16The man of God said, "I cannot turn back and go with you, nor can I eat bread or drink water with you in this place. | 16But he replied, "I can't go back with you or eat and drink with you in this place. |
| 17I have been told by the word of the LORD: 'You must not eat bread or drink water there or return by the way you came.'" | 17For the LORD gave me strict orders, 'Do not eat or drink there; do not go back the way you came.'" |
| 18The old prophet answered, "I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the LORD: 'Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.'" (But he was lying to him.) | 18The 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. |
| 19So the man of God returned with him and ate and drank in his house. | 19So the prophet went back with him and ate and drank in his house. |
| 20While they were sitting at the table, the word of the LORD came to the old prophet who had brought him back. | 20While they were sitting at the table, the LORD spoke through the old prophet |
| 21He cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah, "This is what the LORD says: 'You have defied the word of the LORD and have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you. | 21and 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. |
| 22You came back and ate bread and drank water in the place where he told you not to eat or drink. Therefore your body will not be buried in the tomb of your ancestors.'" | 22You 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.'" |
| 23When the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him. | 23When the prophet from Judah finished his meal, the old prophet saddled his visitor's donkey for him. |
| 24As he went on his way, a lion met him on the road and killed him, and his body was left lying on the road, with both the donkey and the lion standing beside it. | 24As 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. |
| 25Some people who passed by saw the body lying there, with the lion standing beside the body, and they went and reported it in the city where the old prophet lived. | 25Some 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. |
| 26When the prophet who had brought him back from his journey heard of it, he said, "It is the man of God who defied the word of the LORD. The LORD has given him over to the lion, which has mauled him and killed him, as the word of the LORD had warned him." | 26When 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." |
| 27The prophet said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me," and they did so. | 27He told his sons, "Saddle my donkey," and they did so. |
| 28Then he went out and found the body lying on the road, with the donkey and the lion standing beside it. The lion had neither eaten the body nor mauled the donkey. | 28He 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. |
| 29So the prophet picked up the body of the man of God, laid it on the donkey, and brought it back to his own city to mourn for him and bury him. | 29The 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. |
| 30Then he laid the body in his own tomb, and they mourned over him and said, "Alas, my brother!" | 30He put the corpse into his own tomb, and they mourned over him, saying, "Ah, my brother!" |
| 31After burying 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. | 31After 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, |
| 32For the message he declared by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel and against all the shrines on the high places in the towns of Samaria will certainly come true." | 32for 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." |
| 33Even after this, Jeroboam did not change his evil ways, but once more appointed priests for the high places from all sorts of people. Anyone who wanted to become a priest he consecrated for the high places. | 33After 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. |
| 34This was the sin of the house of Jeroboam that led to its downfall and to its destruction from the face of the earth. | 34This sin caused Jeroboam's dynasty to come to an end and to be destroyed from the face of the earth. |
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