1 Kings 13:7–25

7 Then the king said to the man of God, “Come home with me and refresh yourself, and aI will give you a reward.”

8 But the man of God said to the king, “aIf you were to give me half your house I would not go with you, nor would I eat bread or drink water in this place.

9 “For so 1it was commanded me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘You shall eat no bread, nor drink water, nor return by the way which you came.’ ”

10 So he went another way and did not return by the way which he came to Bethel.

The Disobedient Prophet

11 Now aan old prophet was living in Bethel; and his 1sons came and told him all the deeds which the man of God had done that day in Bethel; the words which he had spoken to the king, these also they related to their father.

12 Their father said to them, “1Which way did he go?” Now his sons 2had seen the way which the man of God who came from Judah had gone.

13 Then he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” So they saddled the donkey for him and he rode away on it.

14 So he went after the man of God and found him sitting under 1an oak; and he said to him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah?” And he said, “I am.”

15 Then he said to him, “Come home with me and eat bread.”

16 He said, “aI cannot return with you, nor go with you, nor will I eat bread or drink water with you in this place.

17 “For a command came to me aby the word of the Lord, ‘You shall eat no bread, nor drink water there; do not return by going the way which you came.’ ”

18 He said to him, “aI also am a prophet like you, and ban angel spoke to me by the word of the Lord, saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your house, that he may eat bread and drink water.’ ” But che lied to him.

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

20 Now it came about, as they were sitting down at the table, that the word of the Lord came to the prophet who had brought him back;

21 and he cried to the man of God who came from Judah, saying, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have 1disobeyed the 2command of the Lord, and have not observed the commandment which the Lord your God commanded you,

22 but have returned and 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 grave of your fathers.’ ”

23 It came about after he had eaten bread and after he had drunk, that he saddled the donkey for him, for the prophet whom he had brought back.

24 Now when he had gone, aa lion met him on the way and killed him, and his body was thrown on the road, with the donkey standing beside it; the lion also was standing beside the body.

25 And behold, men passed by and saw the body thrown on the road, and the lion standing beside the body; so they came and told it in the city where athe old prophet lived.