And as they sat at the table, the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back. And he cried to the man of God who came from Judah, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord and have not kept the command that the Lord your God commanded you, 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 13:20-22 ESV
I get annoyed or upset anytime I read the story of the old prophet in 1 King 13. It seems unfair that the man of God is punished for believing the instructions of the old prophet who claimed that God gave him a message for the man even though it was a lie.
In our own humanness, we would be angry, furious and would seek to punish the old prophet for lying to the man of God. But for the one that was lied to be the recipient of the punishment, is hard to comprehend, feels very harsh and not at all fair.
How did the man of God get to the place of being lied to by the old prophet? I believe it’s because of over-sharing of information. When the king saw the power of God displayed through the man of God, the king invited him to his home. “And the king said to the man of God, ‘Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward.’ ‘And the man of God said to the king, “If you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, for so was it commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came.’” 1 Kings 13: 7-9 (ESV)
There was no need to share that much details to the king. It was this information that was relayed to the old prophet by his sons which he then succeeded in using to lie to the man of God.
There are lessons here for every believer. The man of God got his initial instructions from God to confront Jeroboam. When he was approached by the old prophet, his focus shifted from God to the old prophet maybe because of his maturity, seniority or reputation. Instead of believing the old prophet and going against the initial instructions given to him, he could have taken time to consult God to confirm what the old prophet said. That was his responsibility and the blame in that instance is on him.
In a similar manner in many churches, sometimes the focus shifts from God to leaders, with members hanging on every word of their ministers instead of God and His Word. I have a personal experience and have seen others as well, abandon what the Holy Spirit communicated to them and have proceeded to seek confirmation with their leaders.
We’ll discuss this further in the next article.
Stay blessed,
LaraLex
Hills and Valleys 