Suddenly , as Jeroboam was standing beside the altar to burn incense , there came a man of God from Judah to vvv Bethel by the word of the LORD.
And he cried out against the altar by the word of the LORD , “ O altar , O altar , this is what the LORD says : ... ‘ A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David , and upon you - he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense upon you , and human bones will be burned upon you. ’”
That day (the man of God) gave a sign , saying , “ The LORD has spoken this sign - : ‘ Surely the altar will be split apart , and the ashes - upon it will be poured out. ’”
Now when King - Jeroboam - , who was at the altar in Bethel , heard the word that the man of God had cried out against (it) , he stretched out his hand and said , “ Seize him ! ” But the hand he stretched out - toward him withered , so that he could not pull it back ....
And the altar was split apart , and the ashes poured out - - , according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the LORD.
Then the king ... responded to the man of God , “ Intercede ... - with the LORD your God and pray that my hand may be restored -. ” So the man of God - interceded with the LORD , and the king’s hand was restored to him as (it was) before.
Then the king said to the man of God , “ Come home with me and refresh yourself , and I will give a reward. ”
But the man of God ... ... replied , “ If you were to give - half your possessions , I still would not go with you , nor would I eat bread ... or drink water in this place.
For this is what I was commanded - by the word of the LORD ... : ‘ You must not eat bread ... or drink water ... or return by the way - you came. ’”
So (the man of God) went another way and did not return by the way - he had come to vvv Bethel.
Now a certain old prophet was living vvv in Bethel , and his sons came and told - all the deeds that the man of God had done that day vvv in Bethel. - They also told their father the words that (the man) had spoken to the king.
“ Which ... way did he go ? ” their father asked -. And his sons - showed him the way - taken by the man of God , who had come from Judah.
So (the prophet) said to his sons , “ Saddle the donkey Then they saddled the donkey and he mounted it
and went 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.
So (the prophet) said to (the man of God) , “ Come home with me and eat some bread. ”
But (the man) replied , “ I cannot ... return with you ... - - or eat bread ... or drink water with you in this place.
For I 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. ’”
Then (the prophet) replied “ I too (am) a prophet like you , and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD , saying , ‘ Bring him back with you to your house , so that he may eat bread and drink water. ’” The old prophet was lying
but the man of God went back with him , ate bread in his house , and drank water.
While they were sitting at the table , ... the word of the LORD came to the prophet who had brought him back ,
and the prophet cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah , “ This is what ... the LORD says : ‘ Because ... you have defied the word of the LORD and have not kept - the commandment that the LORD your God gave you ,
but you went back and ate bread and drank water in the place where He told you not to do so ... ... ... ... , your body shall never reach ... the tomb of your fathers. ’”
And after (the man of God) had finished eating - and drinking , the old prophet who had brought him back saddled the donkey
As he went on his way , a lion met him on the road and killed him , and his body was left lying in the road , with the donkey - - and the lion standing beside (it).
And there were men passing by who saw - the body lying in the road with the lion standing beside it , and they went and reported this in the city where the old prophet lived
When the prophet who had brought him back from his journey heard this , he said , “ It (is) the man of God who disobeyed - the command of the LORD. Therefore the LORD has delivered him to the lion , and it has mauled him and killed him , according to the word that the LORD - had spoken
Then the old prophet instructed ... his sons , ... “ Saddle - the donkey So they saddled (it) ,
and he went and found - the body lying in the road , with the donkey and the lion standing beside (it). The lion - had not eaten the body ... or mauled - the donkey.
So the old prophet - lifted 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.
Then he laid - the body in his own tomb , and they lamented over him , “ Oh , my brother ! ”
- After he had buried him , - (the prophet) said to his sons , ... “ When I die , you must bury me in the tomb where the man of God is buried Lay my bones - beside his bones ,
for the message that he cried out by the word of the LORD against the altar - vvv in Bethel and against all the shrines on the high places - in the cities of Samaria will surely come to pass. ”
Even after these events , Jeroboam did not repent of his evil ways , but again he appointed priests for the high places from every class of people. He ordained - - anyone who desired to be a priest of the high places.
And this was ... the sin of the house of Jeroboam that led to its extermination and destruction from the face of the earth.