1 Kings 13 2

1 Kings 13:2 kjv

And he cried against the altar in the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee.

1 Kings 13:2 nkjv

Then he cried out against the altar by the word of the LORD, and said, "O altar, altar! Thus says the LORD: 'Behold, a child, Josiah by name, shall be born to the house of David; and on you he shall sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and men's bones shall be burned on you.' "

1 Kings 13:2 niv

By 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.'?"

1 Kings 13:2 esv

And the man cried against the altar by the word of the LORD and said, "O altar, altar, thus says the LORD: 'Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name, and he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who make offerings on you, and human bones shall be burned on you.'"

1 Kings 13:2 nlt

Then 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."

1 Kings 13 verses

1 Kings 13 2 Meaning

This verse presents a prophetic declaration delivered by an unnamed man of God from Judah to King Jeroboam's idolatrous altar at Bethel. The prophecy specifically foretells that a king named Josiah from the house of David will, over three centuries later, defile this very altar. Josiah will accomplish this by sacrificing the idolatrous priests who served at the high places on it, and by burning men's bones upon it, thereby utterly desecrating Jeroboam's illicit place of worship and the false religious system it represented. It is a powerful affirmation of God's sovereignty over history, His direct opposition to idolatry, and the certainty of His spoken word.

1 Kings 13 2 Context

The chapter opens in the newly divided kingdom. King Jeroboam I, fearing that his people might return their allegiance to Rehoboam, the king of Judah, by worshipping at the Temple in Jerusalem, established his own idolatrous worship centers. He built two golden calves, one in Bethel and one in Dan, declaring them to be the gods that brought Israel out of Egypt (1 Ki 12:28-30). He also appointed his own non-Levitical priests and set his own feasts, deviating completely from the Mosaic Law. Verse 2 describes an immediate, uninvited divine confrontation with this new, false religion. An unnamed "man of God" from Judah confronts Jeroboam at the very altar in Bethel where the king was presiding over a feast for his new deities. The prophecy against the altar and its priesthood highlights the seriousness of Jeroboam's sin and God's absolute rejection of such apostasy, demonstrating God's meticulous oversight and ultimate justice that extends centuries into the future.

1 Kings 13 2 Word analysis

• And he cried against: (Hebrew: va-yiqra') Implies a loud, authoritative, public proclamation, not just a casual remark. It signifies a prophetic utterance directly challenging and condemning the object. This is a divine indictment.
• the altar: The specific focus of the prophecy. Not just Jeroboam or his kingdom, but the very instrument and symbol of his apostate worship. Addressing an inanimate object personifies it, highlighting its role in rebellion against God.
• by the word of the Lord: This phrase is crucial. It underscores the divine authority and origin of the prophecy. The man of God is merely a conduit; the message is Yahweh's, not his own opinion or human insight. It highlights God's sovereignty over history and prophetic revelation.
• O altar, altar: The repetition emphasizes the directness, intensity, and certainty of the divine judgment upon this specific place of idolatry. It draws attention to its centrality in Jeroboam's rebellion and its coming destruction.
• thus saith the Lord: A common prophetic formula (Hebrew: koh amar YHWH). It reinforces that the subsequent words are direct pronouncements from the Almighty, bearing His full weight and guarantee of fulfillment.
• Behold: (Hebrew: hinneh) An interjection drawing immediate and strong attention to the importance and certainty of what follows.
• a child shall be born: Indicates a future event, specifically a birth, demonstrating God's foreknowledge and control over human lineage and destiny, even centuries in advance.
• unto the house of David: Specifies the legitimate lineage from which the future king will come, implicitly contrasting it with Jeroboam's unauthorized kingship and challenging his newly established kingdom. It ties back to the enduring Davidic Covenant (2 Sam 7).
• Josiah by name: This is a truly remarkable detail. God names an individual hundreds of years before his birth, showing absolute pre-knowledge, divine orchestration, and historical precision. This unprecedented specificity serves as irrefutable proof of the divine source of the prophecy. Josiah (Hebrew: Yo'shiyahu) means "Yahweh supports" or "Yahweh heals," ironically through acts of judgment.
• and upon thee shall he offer: Foreshadows a reversal of roles. The altar, normally a place for burnt offerings to idols, will itself become the site where its own pagan priests are "offered" (sacrificed) as judgment, a defilement of the altar itself.
• the priests of the high places: These were the illicit priests appointed by Jeroboam, distinct from the legitimate Levitical priesthood. "High places" (Hebrew: bamot) were elevated cult sites for pagan or syncretistic worship, frequently denounced in the Old Testament for their association with idolatry.
• that burn incense upon thee: Specifies the idolatrous act these priests perform, making the judgment directly proportional to their sin on that altar.
• and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee: This is the ultimate act of defilement and desecration in Israelite culture. Contact with bones rendered one ritually unclean (Num 19:16). Burning them on an altar meant not just desolating the altar but making it an object of utter abhorrence and revulsion, making it permanently unusable for worship. It implies the utter rejection and dismantling of Jeroboam's entire religious system.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "cried against the altar by the word of the Lord": Emphasizes that this is a direct, divinely authorized condemnation. It is God Himself speaking judgment through His prophet.
• "O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord": The repetition coupled with the prophetic formula conveys undeniable divine certainty and highlights the specific object of God's wrath, focusing the audience's attention on the precise locus of rebellion.
• "Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name": This remarkable cluster of words highlights divine omniscience, power over lineage, and specific prophetic foresight, cementing the credibility of God's word through a highly improbable and detailed prediction that was fulfilled centuries later.
• "upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee": This describes the specific punitive act targeting the agents and practices of idolatry. The term "offer" takes on a judicial sense here, meaning "to sacrifice in judgment," a chilling irony that the practitioners of false worship would themselves become sacrificial victims on their own defiled altars.
• "and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee": This specifies the absolute and irrevocable desecration of the altar, rendering it unfit for any future "sacred" use, thus signifying the complete and permanent rejection of Jeroboam's religion by God.

1 Kings 13 2 Bonus section

• Anonymity of the Man of God: The prophet remains unnamed throughout the narrative (1 Kings 13:1-32), highlighting that the power and authority of the message came entirely from the Lord, not from the status or identity of the messenger. This focuses attention on the "word of the Lord" itself.
• Inverse Fulfillment: The prophecy describes Josiah making an "offering" of priests on the altar. This is a dramatic inversion: altars are for offering sacrifices to God, but here the priests of false gods become the sacrifice on their own altar, symbolizing the complete overturning and judgment of the idolatrous system.
• Geographical Significance: Bethel ("House of God") was originally a significant sacred site where Jacob encountered God (Gen 28:16-19). Jeroboam choosing this very site for idolatry was a direct perversion of its original sacred meaning, and thus its eventual defilement by Josiah held profound symbolic weight.
• Length of Prophecy: The approximately 360-year gap between the prophecy and its fulfillment (c. 930 BCE to c. 621 BCE) demonstrates the eternal patience yet unyielding commitment of God to His declared word. This span of time made the fulfillment undeniably miraculous and divine.
• Polemics against Contemporary Beliefs: This act of divine prophecy specifically counteracted any belief among Jeroboam's followers that their new altars and religious practices were divinely sanctioned or enduring. It also countered pagan notions of local gods or the permanence of man-made religious structures, demonstrating YHWH's universal authority.

1 Kings 13 2 Commentary

This verse stands as a profound testament to the unchallengeable sovereignty and foresight of the God of Israel. Faced with King Jeroboam's audacious act of establishing rival worship to that commanded by Yahweh, God does not remain silent. He sends an anonymous prophet, not from Jeroboam's newly instituted priesthood, but from Judah, emphasizing the divine nature of the message over the messenger. The message itself is striking: a specific condemnation of the altar at Bethel, articulated with prophetic authority ("by the word of the Lord," "thus saith the Lord"). The repetition "O altar, altar" underscores the severity and certainty of the judgment.

The naming of King Josiah over three centuries before his birth is arguably the most extraordinary element. This detail demonstrates God's perfect knowledge of future events, His control over nations and human destiny, and His ability to plan the precise execution of His justice generations in advance. It signifies that no act of rebellion against Him goes unnoticed or unpunished, regardless of the time elapsed. The "house of David" connection affirms God's commitment to His covenant with David, even as Jeroboam seeks to establish a competing kingship and worship system.

Josiah's actions—sacrificing the idolatrous priests and burning bones—represent the ultimate defilement of Jeroboam's sacred space. By executing the false priests on their own altar and scattering human remains upon it, Josiah performs a double desecration, effectively undoing the sanctity Jeroboam tried to bestow upon it and demonstrating the utter abhorrence God holds for such syncretistic worship. This divine judgment through Josiah served as a clear message across centuries: Yahweh is the only true God, and His commands, particularly regarding worship, are absolute. This narrative serves as a warning against the dangers of self-made religion and disobedience to God's specific commands, demonstrating that God remembers every act of apostasy and ensures justice.