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1 Kings

Starts with King Solomon's reign, his wisdom, and building the temple, then the kingdom dividing into Israel and Judah.

Chapter 13

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1 And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Bethel: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.

*And suddenly, a man from God appeared from Judah, sent by God's message, at Bethel. Meanwhile, Jeroboam was standing near the altar to burn incense.

2 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.

*He shouted at the altar in God's message, saying, "Altar, altar! The Lord says this: A child will be born into King David's family named Josiah. He will make the high priests who burn incense on you offer sacrifices, and people's bones will be burned here.

3 And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the LORD hath spoken; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out.

*On that very day, he showed a sign, saying, "This is what the LORD promised: The altar will break apart, and the ashes on top will be spilled."

4 And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, which had cried against the altar in Bethel, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him.

*When King Jeroboam heard the man of God speak against the altar in Bethel, he reached out to grab him. But as he tried to pull his hand back, it dried up and wouldn't move.

5 The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD.

*The altar split apart, and the ashes spilled out from it, just like the man of God had said through God's message.

6 And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the LORD, and the king’s hand was restored him again, and became as it was before.

*The king asked the man of God to pray to for him, so his hand would heal and be like it was before. The man of God then prayed to God, and the king's hand got better and was just like it used to be.

7 And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with me, and refresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward.

*The king asked the man of God to come to his house, rest, and eat, and he would give the man a prize.

8 And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place:

*The man of God told the king, "If you give me half your house, I won't live with you, and I won't eat or drink anything here."

9 For so was it charged me by the word of the LORD, saying, Eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou camest.

*The Lord's message told me not to eat bread or drink water, and to take a different path from the one I came.

10 So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Bethel.

*So, he took a different path and didn't go back the same way he came from Bethel.

11 Now there dwelt an old prophet in Bethel; and his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Bethel: the words which he had spoken unto the king, them they told also to their father.

*Now, an elderly prophet lived in a place called Bethel. His sons heard about everything the man of God did there that day, including what he said to the king. They told their father everything.

12 And their father said unto them, What way went he? For his sons had seen what way the man of God went, which came from Judah.

*The father asked his sons, "Which way did he go?" The sons knew because they saw the man from Judah's path.

13 And he said unto his sons, Saddle me the ass. So they saddled him the ass: and he rode thereon,

*He told his sons to put a saddle on the donkey. They did it, and he rode on it.

14 And went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak: and he said unto him, Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah? And he said, I am.

*They followed the man of God and found him under an oak tree. They asked if he was the man from Judah, and he replied that he was.

15 Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat bread.

*Then he invited him, "Come to my house, and have some food."

16 And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee: neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place:

*He said, "I can't come with you or stay with you. I won't eat or drink anything with you here."

17 For it was said to me by the word of the LORD, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest.

*The Lord told me not to eat or drink anything and not to return the way I came in that place.

18 He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him.

*He told him, "I'm a prophet too, just like you. An angel spoke to me God's message, telling me to bring him to your home so he can eat and drink. But he wasn't telling the truth.

19 So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water.

*So, he joined him and shared a meal at his home, drinking water too.

20 And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the LORD came unto the prophet that brought him back:

*Then, while they were eating, the Lord's message reached the prophet who had brought him:

21 And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee,

*He called out to the person from Judah, "The Lord says, Because you didn't listen to what the Lord told you and didn't follow the command the Lord your God gave you,"

22 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 carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.

*But you returned and ate food and drank water in a place where the Lord told you not to eat or drink. Now your body won't be buried with your ancestors.

23 And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom he had brought back.

*Then, after eating and drinking, he prepared the donkey for the prophet he had returned.

24 And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also stood by the carcase.

*After he left, a lion encountered him and killed him. Then, his body was thrown nearby, and the donkey stood next to it. The lion was also there by the body.

25 And, behold, men passed by, and saw the carcase cast in the way, and the lion standing by the carcase: and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.

*And look, people walked by and saw a dead animal on the road with a lion next to it. They went and shared this with others in the city where the old prophet lived.

26 And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard thereof, he said, It is the man of God, who was disobedient unto the word of the LORD: therefore the LORD hath delivered him unto the lion, which hath torn him, and slain him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake unto him.

*When the prophet who brought him back heard about it, he said, "That's the man of God who disobeyed the Lord's message. So, the Lord gave him to the lion, which ripped him apart and killed him, just like the Lord said in his message."

27 And he spake to his sons, saying, Saddle me the ass. And they saddled him.

*He told his sons, "Put a saddle on the donkey." They did it.

28 And he went and found his carcase cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase: the lion had not eaten the carcase, nor torn the ass.

*He went and saw his body lying on the ground, and the donkey and the lion were next to it. The lion hadn't eaten the body or hurt the donkey.

29 And the prophet took up the carcase of the man of God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back: and the old prophet came to the city, to mourn and to bury him.

*The prophet picked up the dead man's body and put it on the donkey. He then brought it back. Later, the older prophet arrived in the city to grieve and give the man a proper burial.

30 And he laid his carcase in his own grave; and they mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother!

*He put his body in his own grave, and they cried over him, saying, Oh, my brother!

31 And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he spake to his sons, saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre wherein the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones:

*Then, after he buried someone, he told his children, "When I die, put me in the tomb with the person from God. Put my bones next to their bones."

32 For the saying which he cried by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel, and against all the houses of the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass.

*Whatever he proclaimed using the LORD's message against the altar in Bethel and all the high places' buildings in Samaria's cities will definitely happen.

33 After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places.

*Afterward, Jeroboam didn't change his wicked ways. Instead, he chose ordinary people to be priests for special altars. Anyone who wanted could become a priest, and they served at these high places.

34 And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth.

*This action brought sin to Jeroboam's family, causing them to be eliminated and wiped out from the Earth's surface.

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