1 Kings 13 22

1 Kings 13:22 kjv

But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the Lord did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcass shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.

1 Kings 13:22 nkjv

but you came back, ate bread, and drank water in the place of which the LORD said to you, "Eat no bread and drink no water," your corpse shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.' "

1 Kings 13:22 niv

You 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.'?"

1 Kings 13:22 esv

but have come back and have eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which he said to you, "Eat no bread and drink no water," your body shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.'"

1 Kings 13:22 nlt

You 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."

1 Kings 13 verses

1 Kings 13 22 Meaning

This verse pronounces a severe judgment upon the man of God for his disobedience. Despite receiving a clear and explicit command from the LORD not to eat or drink in Bethel, he defied it. The consequence is dire: his body will not receive the customary burial with his ancestors, a sign of grave dishonor and divine displeasure in ancient Israel. It emphasizes that divine commands, even seemingly simple ones, carry profound weight, and their transgression has absolute and irreversible consequences as determined by God.

1 Kings 13 22 Context

Chapter 13 details the story of a "man of God" from Judah who is sent by the LORD to Bethel to pronounce judgment on King Jeroboam's idolatrous altar. The prophet delivers a specific divine command: he is not to eat or drink anything in Bethel and must return by a different road, avoiding any return by the same path. This command emphasized a complete separation from the defiled land. After his prophecy is miraculously confirmed and Jeroboam's hand healed, the man of God is deceived by an old prophet who falsely claims to have received a new, contradicting command from an angel, inviting the man of God to eat and drink. Believing the lie, the man of God violates the original divine injunction. This verse (13:22) is the old prophet's divinely inspired pronouncement of judgment on the man of God immediately after his transgression, revealing the dire consequence: death and dishonor. This incident serves as a stark warning about obedience, discernment, and the serious nature of prophetic ministry in an era when Jeroboam had introduced severe religious corruption in the northern kingdom, thereby actively resisting God's word and legitimate worship.

1 Kings 13 22 Word analysis

• But: Signifies a strong contrast or opposition. It points to a direct defiance of the prior clear instruction.
• have gone back: Hebrew: shuv (שׁוּב), meaning to turn back, return, or revert. This isn't merely a passive turning but an active reversal of course, an intentional deviation from the direct path commanded by God. It implies abandoning the initial obedient posture.
• and eaten bread: Refers to a forbidden act of fellowship or sustenance. Eating bread implies hospitality and breaking a fast or a divine ban. The command was explicitly not to partake of food or drink in Bethel.
• and drunk water: Reinforces the comprehensive nature of the prohibition against any sustenance in that place. Both basic human needs were prohibited by God for this specific mission.
• in the place: Pinpoints the exact location (Bethel) where the eating and drinking were forbidden. This prohibition on location likely served to underscore Bethel's defilement through idolatry, emphasizing a divine disconnect from the very site where Jeroboam was establishing his false worship.
• of which: A direct link, emphasizing that it was the very place concerning which God had given a precise instruction.
• the LORD: Hebrew: YHWH (יהוה), the covenant name of God. This stresses that the command came from the sovereign, covenant-keeping God of Israel, highlighting the seriousness of the breach. Disobedience was against the Divine Authority Himself.
• said to you: Emphasizes the directness and clarity of the original command given to the man of God. He could not claim ignorance; the instruction was personal and explicit.
• You shall not eat bread or drink water: This phrase explicitly repeats the original command that was transgressed, highlighting the deliberate and unmistakable nature of the man of God's disobedience. The negative injunction ("shall not") was definitive.
• your body: Refers to his physical being, indicating the tangible and personal nature of the impending judgment. The consequences were to be borne by him.
• shall not come: A declaration of absolute prohibition or prevention. It signifies a complete denial of what would otherwise be a natural process or expected rite.
• to the tomb: Hebrew: qeber (קֶבֶר). A burial place, grave. Proper burial was profoundly important in ancient Israelite culture, representing rest, peace, and integration with one's ancestors. Not being buried, or being unburied in a family tomb, was a curse and a mark of severe dishonor. It suggested one was outside the community, without peace even in death, a stark contrast to the reverence shown to ancestral burial sites, such as the cave of Machpelah. It also countered pagan notions where proper burial rites might be thought to secure an afterlife, here it is divine judgment that dictates.
• of your fathers: Refers to the ancestral burial plot, a significant aspect of family identity, inheritance, and hope for an eternal rest with one's people (e.g., Abraham gathered to his people). Being denied burial with his fathers was a symbolic severance from his lineage and from the blessings associated with a covenantal relationship with God that extended even to the grave.

1 Kings 13 22 Bonus section

The divine judgment pronounced and executed in 1 Kings 13:22-24, though severe for what appears to be a lesser transgression (compared to Jeroboam's widespread idolatry), powerfully upholds the sanctity and non-negotiability of God's revealed word, especially when it involves those who are meant to represent Him. The integrity of God's messenger and message was paramount in an age prone to syncretism and false prophecy. The manner of his death by a lion, though a direct divine execution, interestingly left his body intact and unconsumed, alongside his donkey. This unique circumstance prevented his body from being scattered or entirely desecrated, which would have been even worse. This nuance allowed the old prophet to later retrieve and bury the man of God in his own tomb, alongside himself, partially mitigating the pronouncement regarding not being buried "with his fathers," yet not negating the dishonor of his non-traditional resting place or the swift divine consequence for his personal sin. It speaks to the mystery of God's justice, which is severe in its enforcement yet can contain elements of grace or respect even for a disobedient servant, perhaps through the intercession of another, albeit flawed, prophet.

1 Kings 13 22 Commentary

1 Kings 13:22 serves as a stark reminder of the gravity of obedience, particularly for those entrusted with God's word. The man of God, though initially faithful and empowered to execute divine judgment, faltered not through direct rebellion but through naive credulity to a "false" prophecy from another prophet. His undoing was a seemingly minor act of eating and drinking, yet it was a direct contravention of a precise divine instruction given by the LORD Himself. This passage underlines several profound truths:First, God's commands are absolute; there is no compromise or deviation based on secondary revelations if they contradict primary, clear instructions from God. The man of God's discernment failed.Second, divine judgment is certain and specific, often tailored to the nature of the transgression. His physical body, which committed the disobedient act by taking forbidden sustenance, would face the judgment of being denied an honorable burial. In a culture where proper burial was vital for familial honor and perceived rest, this was an extreme form of public dishonor and spiritual condemnation.Third, this account emphasizes that even servants of God, including prophets, are accountable to the exactness of His word. The integrity of God's message and the authority of His word cannot be compromised, even through apparent 'angelic' instruction. It illustrates that spiritual deception can be highly insidious, particularly when it cloaks itself in the guise of higher authority or religious comfort. The tragic outcome for the man of God served as a severe warning, both to Jeroboam's rebellious kingdom and to future generations, that divine words hold ultimate and non-negotiable weight. The consequence, swift death by a lion, underscored the immediacy and divine origin of the punishment.