1 Kings 13:1

1 Kings 13:1 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the Lord unto Beth–el: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.
• New International Version (NIV)By 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.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And behold, a man of God came out of Judah by the word of the Lord to Bethel. Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make offerings.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And behold, a man of God went from Judah to Bethel by the word of the Lord, and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.

Context of 1 Kings 13:1

King Jeroboam was standing in front of the altar at Bethel. He was ready to make an offering. At that time, the Lord told one of his servants to go from Judah to Bethel. 2When he arrived at Bethel, he shouted the message that the Lord had given to him. He said, ‘Altar! Altar! This is what the Lord says to you: “Listen! One day, a son will be born in David's family. His name will be Josiah. On this altar, he will burn as sacrifices the priests who offer sacrifices on the hills. He will burn the bones of dead people on you!” ’ 3The same day, God's servant spoke another message to warn Jeroboam. He said, ‘This is the sign to show that the Lord has decided to do this: You will see the altar break into two pieces. The ashes of the sacrifices that are on it will fall to the ground.’

1 Kings 13:1 word by word

וְהִנֵּ֣ה׀ אִ֣ישׁ אֱלֹהִ֗ים בָּ֧א מִיהוּדָ֛ה בִּדְבַ֥ר יְהוָ֖ה אֶל־בֵּֽית־אֵ֑ל וְיָרָבְעָ֛ם עֹמֵ֥ד עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ לְהַקְטִֽיר׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And, behold, there cameבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• a manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
• of Godאֱלֹהִים'ĕlôhîym · GodH430
• out of Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
• by the wordדָּבָרdâbâr · wordH1697
• of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• unto Beth–elבֵּֽיתְ־אֵלbêyth-'êl · BethelH1008
• and Jeroboamיָֽרָבְעָםyârob‛âm · JeroboamH3379
• stoodעָמַד‛âmad · to stand: standH5975
• by the altarמִזְבֵּחַmizbêach · altarH4196
• to burn incenseקָטַרqâţar · to offer: offerH6999

Cross-references for 1 Kings 13:1

• 1 Kings 12:22But God told the prophet Shemaiah,
• 2 Kings 23:17He asked, ‘Whose grave stone is that?’ The men from Bethel city said to him, ‘It is the grave of the man of God who came from Judah. You have now done to this altar at Bethel the things that he said would happen.’
• 2 Chronicles 9:29People wrote down everything else that Solomon did while he ruled as king, from the beginning to the end. The prophet Nathan wrote them down in his book. The prophet Ahijah who came from Shiloh also wrote them down. The prophet Iddo also wrote about them in his book of the visions that he saw about Nebat's son Jeroboam.
• 1 Kings 13:5Then the altar broke into two pieces and the ashes fell to the ground. That is what God's servant had said would happen, to show that he spoke with the Lord's authority.
• 1 Kings 20:35At this time, the Lord gave a message to a prophet who belonged to a group of prophets. He told the prophet to say to one of his friends, ‘Hit me with your stick.’ But his friend refused to do it.
• Jeremiah 25:3He said, ‘For 23 years the Lord has been giving me his messages. I started to tell you his messages when Amon's son Josiah had been ruling Judah for 13 years. I have continued to tell you many times what the Lord has said, even until today. But you have refused to listen.
• 1 Thessalonians 4:15We are telling you the message that the Lord has given to us. This is what will happen when the Lord returns. Those of us who are still alive will not go to meet the Lord first. We will not go before those people who have already died.
• 1 Kings 12:32He decided to have a festival on the 15th day of the eighth month each year. He wanted it to be like the festival that they had in Judah. He offered sacrifices on the altar in Bethel to the gold cows that he had made. He also chose priests to serve at the places that he built for people to worship.
• 2 Chronicles 26:18They warned King Uzziah. They said to him, ‘It is not right for you, Uzziah, to offer incense to the Lord. Only the priests, Aaron's descendants, may do that. They are the people that God has chosen to offer incense to him. So you must leave this Holy Place because you have done something that is wrong. As a result, the Lord God will not give you any honour.’
• Numbers 16:40Then the Israelites would remember not to do what Korah and his group did. Only people from the family of Aaron could burn incense on the Lord's altar. God would punish anyone else, like he punished Korah and his men. The Lord had given this command through Moses.
• Jeremiah 11:12The people who live in Jerusalem and in the other towns of Judah will ask their false gods to help them. Those are the gods that they offer sacrifices to. But when this terrible trouble comes, those gods will never be able to rescue them.
• Jeremiah 32:29The soldiers from Babylon who are attacking the city will come in. They will destroy it with fire. They will burn down the houses of the people. These people have made me angry. They went up on the roofs of their houses and they burned incense to worship Baal. They also poured out drink offerings to other false gods.
• Malachi 1:11‘People in every nation of the whole world will respect my name. People everywhere will offer incense and pure sacrifices to worship me. They will all know that I am great.’ That is what the Lord Almighty says.
• Revelation 8:3Then another angel came. He stood at the altar where people offered gifts to God. He had a gold bowl to put incense in. He received a lot of incense and he burned it as a gift to God. It made a nice smell and it mixed with the prayers of God's people. The angel offered the incense and the prayers on the gold altar that was in front of God's throne.

Commentaries on 1 Kings 13:1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 1There came a man of God - Who this was we know not. The Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic call him a prophet. The Vulgate and Septuagint follow the Hebrew, אלהים איש ish elohim means a Divine person, one wholly devoted to God's service. Some have thought it was Shemaiah, others Joel, and others Iddo. It could not have been the latter, for he wrote the acts of Jeroboam, 2 Chronicles 9:29, and the prophet was killed before he returned home; but conjecture is idle…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1Rather, “in the word of the Lord.” The meaning seems to be, not merely that the prophet was bid to come, but that he came in the strength and power of God‘s word, a divinely inspired messenger. (Compare 1 Kings 13:2, 1Kings 13:5,1 Kings 13:32.) By the altar - “On the altar;” i, e. on the ledge, or platform, halfway up the altar, whereupon the officiating priest always stood to sacrifice. Compare 1 Kings 12:32 note.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 1Jeroboam's sin reproved. (1-10) The prophet deceived. (11-22) The disobedient prophet is slain, Jeroboam's obstinacy. (23-34) Verses 1-10 In threatening the altar, the prophet threatens the founder and worshippers. Idolatrous worship will not continue, but the word of the Lord will endure for ever. The prediction plainly declared that the family of David would continue, and support true religion, when the ten tribes would not be able to resist them. If…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-10The story of the unnamed man of God who spoke against Jeroboam’s false altar at Bethel shows the authority of God’s word. This prophecy even gave a personal name connected with an event that would happen much later (2 Kings 23:15–20). Other examples are Isaiah’s prophecy of Cyrus as a future ruler (Isaiah 44:28; 45:1) and Micah’s prophecy that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). Prophecies like these give assurance that God is in control…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1-221Ki 13:1-22. Jeroboam's Hand Withers. 1. there came a man of God out of Judah--Who this prophet was cannot be ascertained, He came by divine authority. It could not be either Iddo or Ahijah, for both were alive after the events here related. Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense--It was at one of the annual festivals. The king, to give interest to the new ritual, was himself the officiating priest. The altar and its accompaniments would, of course…Read the comment

Topics related to 1 Kings 13:1

• Afflictions and Adversities
• Beth-El
• Calf
• Intercession
• Jeroboam
• Josiah
• Judgments
• Reproof
• Rulers

In the dictionaries

• God
• Jeroboam
• Judah
• Judah, kingdom of Judah
• Judea, Judah
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• man of God
• Bethel
• Cast
• Chronicles, Books of

Commentaries on 1 Kings 13

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings