LIBERTY BAPTIST THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

OLD TESTAMENT LITERARY ANALYSIS 1 KINGS 13

A PAPER SUBMITTED TO DR. JOHN MCLEAN IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE COURSE OBST 515 B01 OLD TESTAMENT ORIENTATION 1

BY JESIN JOSE STUDENT ID: 26355950 ELMONT, NEW YORK JUNE 23, 2014 CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION………………………………………………………………………………...2
LITERARY TECHNIQUES AND INSIGHTS……………………………………………...…...3
CONTESTED ISSUE OF 1 KINGS 13……………………………………………………...…...5
APPLICATION…………………………………………………………………………………...6
CONCLUSION……………………………………………………………………………………9
BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………………………..10

INTRODUCTION When the nation of Israel was established, it was one nation. All twelve tribes of Israel were under the same umbrella. The Israelites obeyed the Lord during the days of Moses and Joshua. They were unified as one people during these times, the time when judges governed the land, and the reign of Saul, David, and Solomon as king. After the death of Solomon, Rehoboam treated the people of Israel very roughly. Therefore, the Israelites ended up as two separate kingdoms. The kingdom of Judah would be known as the Southern Kingdom. The only two tribes that were part of that system of rule were the tribes of Judah and Benjamin. Rehoboam ruled over the people of those two family divisions. The other ten tribes of the nation of Israel were part of the Northern kingdom—also known as the Kingdom of Israel. Jeroboam was placed as king over the Northern Kingdom. It is easy for us to assume “that the narrative is concerned with the relationship between Judah and Israel.” However, both kingdoms of the nation of Israel start off turning away from God and going toward the path of idolatry, even after warnings from prophets of God to turn from their evil ways and come back to worshipping and serving Him. Jeroboam was concerned about his kingdom instead of the Lord Himself. He thought that if the people were to go to Jerusalem to worship God, they would get rid of him and show loyalty to Rehoboam. “Therefore the king asked advice, made two calves of gold, and said to the people, ‘It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt.’” This method that was invented by Jeroboam was good enough to drive the people of Israel from the ways of the Lord. He set up one golden calf in Bethel and the other one in Dan. King Jeroboam ordained whomever he wanted as priests. This was just the beginning of Israel going astray from the Lord and His commandments. The worst was yet to come for the children of Israel, as far as their evil ways were concerned. LITERARY TECHNIQUES AND INSIGHTS
The passage of 1 Kings 13 is a story with great representation and lessons from God. It “is one of the more puzzling prophetic legends in the OT.” The background of this narrative began after the death of King Solomon. The twelve tribes of Israel were split between the South, the tribe of Judah along with Benjamin, and the North, the other ten tribes. Jeroboam was ruling over the Northern Kingdom while the line of David reigned in the southern one. During this time these kingdoms were worshipping idols. Therefore, the anger of the Lord was burning against the nation of Israel.
In this narrative there were three main characters-- Jeroboam, the Man of God, and, the Old Prophet. The 13th chapter of First Kings “falls clearly into three sections: the man of God at the Beth-El sanctuary (vv. 1-10); the man of God and the Beth-El prophet (vv. 11-32); and an evaluative comment about Jeroboam (vv. 33-34).” Jeroboam was a flat character. He was the main focus for this story, but he did not develop in any way. The Man of God was the main character. However, when his role was analyzed he was really not right with the Lord. There was not any name given to this man of God and his whole purpose in this passage was not to change himself. It was to effect change in Jeroboam and the Old Prophet. “At the beginning of 1 Kings 13, the Man of God arrived from Judah to denounce Jeroboam and his illegitimate cult.” There was not any improvement of Jeroboam through the Man of God but the Old Prophet brought about some spiritual progress in spite of his deception. Not only was the Old Prophet introduced as a liar, but then he became a tool to speak the words of God. Then, after the death of the Man of God, the Old Prophet was inspired to unsuspected action requesting to be buried with the Man of God. The Old Prophet was the only character who makes improvement in his spiritual walk with God.
Right before the introduction of the Man of God, the author of 1 Kings discussed the acts of Jeroboam. This king erected two idols for Israel to worship. In fact some scholars proposed that this introduction was probably part of the same narrative. This is very important to consider because it allows for solid parallel between the Man of God and Jeroboam. The king of Israel knew the Lord and realized that the Lord commanded that Israel was to worship God alone. However, in order to maintain power he caused the people to worship the idols at the end of 1 Kings 12. This was similar to the Man of God, who knew the Lord's command and disobeyed those orders given to him.
The beginning of 1 Kings 13 is where the action starts. Then the Man of God was introduced and was sent to Jeroboam to generate the conflict. God would judge the kingdom of Jeroboam because of the sin that he brought to the kingdom. The Man of God repeated that he was commanded by God to “eat no bread, nor drink water, nor return by the way which you came.” This command was repeated in verse 17 when the Man of God met the Old Prophet. This repetition brought about the significance of this command and that the climax of the story came after the third repetition which was a bit different from the first two. The third repetition came in after the disobedience of the Man of God. The Lord then used the disobedient prophet to curse the Man of God for disobeying the orders given to him from the Lord. The climax was the Man of God being slain by a lion on his way back from Bethel. What is seen here is the “unnatural behavior of the lion in order to underscore the divine employment of the animal world.” After this, the unraveling in the conflict appeared through the Old Prophet's gathering of the Man of God's body for burial. Then, the Old Prophet told his sons to bury him next to the Man of God at his death. Then, at the end of the chapter, the resolution came into light. Change was not effected upon Jeroboam. He continued to sin by way of idolatry. The climax of this story was brought about with animal symbolism. A lion met the Man of God and threw him on the road.
The way the Man of God was thrown to the road was a sign of great shame and disrespect. The donkey and the lion stood slowly by as people who passed by observed the scene. The lion neither ate the man or the donkey nor hindered the recovery of the Man of God. This Man of God was allowed to be put to shame and put on display in the Northern Kingdom. Obviously, some part of this narrative portrayed something else in this story. However, the contested issue was what portion of the narrative reflected Jeroboam.

CONTESTED ISSUE OF 1KINGS 13
The donkey represents King Jeroboam. This may have been a very entertaining idea. “scholars have sought the main thrust of the text in four major areas of inquiry: the dynamics of true and false prophecy; the fulfillment of ‘the word of Yahweh;’ the example of the disobedient prophet; and the theological implications of the prophetic word and deeds.” The primary focus on 1st Kings 13 was to correlate the Man of God with the altar. The donkey was cautiously identified with king Jeroboam. Jeroboam said, “Now the kingdom will return to the house of David. If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then the heart of this people will return to their lord, even to Rehoboam king of Judah; and they will kill me and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.” Jeroboam set up the worship of Idols for the express purpose of not letting the people worship God. The sin of this king caused the anger of the Lord to burn against him. The Man of God was sent to Jeroboam to break his kingdom, just as the altar was broken. The Man of God knew the will of the Lord just as Jeroboam did. However, he did not obey those orders that were given to him. Here, “the theme of obedience to the law takes on renewed importance.” Instead of not eating and drinking in Bethel, he returned to the Old Prophet's house to dine with him there. The Lord's judgment then descended upon the Man of God and he was killed by the lion. Much support for similarity between Jeroboam and the Man of God is vivid in 1 Kings 13. The curse from God directly followed the willful disobedience of the two men-- Jeroboam and the man of God.

APPLICATION
The lessons for modern day Christianity are not instantly revealed in this text. However, after much analysis on 1 Kings 13, there are a few points that become obvious. The first lesson in this passage relays some of the characteristics of God. God is a jealous and righteous God. His anger burned because His people stopped worshiping Him. Nobody else is worthy of worship besides God. He is mighty and all powerful. The worship of manmade images is an assault to His majesty. The anger of God is righteous. God in His perfection can be angered and is holy. The anger of God caused Him to send judgment upon Jeroboam and his kingdom because of the sin of Idolatry. The jealousy of the Lord for worship from His people caused Him to move to destroy Jeroboam.
The question that can come up is why God was angry against the kingdom of Israel alone when all of the kingdoms around them were doing the same. The answer is simple. God revealed Himself to Israel directly and not to the other nations. The desire of the Lord was to use Israel to shine the light of God on the rest of the world. This worshipping of idols was wrong in the sight of God.
God is righteous and still kept His promise to King David and his heirs even after the sins of the people. However, the righteousness of God will not let any sin go without punishment. There is a third example of God's perfect righteousness in the punishment of the Man of God. The Man of God was being used by the Lord, but he too disobeyed God. The Man of God disobeyed and put food and water on a pedestal before obedience to God. God's perfect righteousness could not leave this sin of the man of God without punishment. The punishment of the Man of God displayed one more timeless lesson-- obedience to the Word of God is better than just claiming to be a person of God.
God's judgment can be swift and severe to those who are called by Him. Israel was punished while the other kingdoms were free from punishment for the same offenses. The House of Israel was called by God and knew the His will yet still disobeyed Him. This swift and severe judgment is seen most with the Man of God. This Man of God was spoken to either by an Angel of the Lord or directly from God himself. The glory of the Lord was displayed to this Man along with His command, not to eat any bread, or drink water, or return by the way which he came. God was directly involved in this command. “The old prophet lies, but he can excuse his lie with the rationalization that the man of God is ready to be enticed, desires it, and certainly, by his cupidity, deserves it.” However, when the Old Prophet came and lied to him about how God revealed the Man of God was to eat in his house, the Man of God chose to value the word of this man over direct revelation from God. First Kings 13 is where “one prophetic figure deceives another.” This is not something that can be reconciled to God with a simple apology. God had to punish this sin and make it an example to everyone in the land of Israel. Hence, a lion was allowed to slay him but not eat him. Thus, everyone who saw it knew that it was God who orchestrated his death.
Even sinners can be called by God. It is quite odd that the lying prophet was then used to proclaim God's word. “Thus says the LORD, ‘Because you have disobeyed the command of the LORD, and have not observed the commandment which the LORD your God commanded you, 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.’” This is important because it furthers the New Testament understanding that our God is a forgiving God. It also parallels the teachings and supports the teachings of Jesus Christ. Sinners can have faith in God, turn away from their sins, and ask Jesus to come into their hearts. Hence, people can be saved from hell and be taken into heaven. The Old Prophet had a change or heart with the death of the Man of God. He put his trust in the Lord, and he became faithful to the Lord. He said, “For the thing shall surely come to pass 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.” God will do what he says he will do. Hence, the Old Prophet was changed and moved to believe in God.
First Kings 13 is not only entertaining but it is insightful. It is wrapped in history and explains the character traits of God. The author is clearly a talented writer for his time. He used many literary devices that emphasize his points and edifies his readers. The story of the Man of God may be overlooked by many of the modern day Christians. However, it is worthy of reading and studying very carefully in order to get an idea as to what it is all about and what can be learned from 1 Kings 13.

CONCLUSION What is said by a person is one thing. What an individual does is another thing. If we say that we are Christians and not live it, we are deceiving ourselves and the people whom we are associating with. We need to walk in obedience to the Lord and His Word. We need to be careful of the people we keep and the advice that we get. If what we hear is not aligned with the Word of God, we really do not need it. When we go to a church, we need to consider the doctrine that comes into existence there. If what goes on in the church, whether they are teachings from its pulpit or how the Lord’s Supper is conducted there, is not aligned with the Bible, we better leave that church and never return there. We need to watch what we speak, do, or hear. Furthermore, we need to read, study, and meditate the Word of God and apply the principles therein to our daily lives. If we neglect the Scriptures, we can become vulnerable to false teaching. We need to watch our words and actions. We can save ourselves and the people whom we come across with by what we say and what we do.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Angel, Hayyim. “When God’s Will Can and Cannot be Altered: the Relationship Between the Balaam Narrative and 1 Kings 13.” Jewish Bible Quarterly 33, no. 1 (Jan. – Mar. 2005): 31 – 39.
Bosworth, David A. “Revisiting Karl Barth’s Exegesis of 1 Kings 13.” Biblical Interpretation
10, no. 4 (2002): 360 – 383.
Dozeman, Thomas B. “The Way of the Man of God from Judah: True and False Prophecy in the Pre-Deuteronomic Legend of 1 Kings 13.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 44, no. 3 (July 1982): 379 – 393.
Mead, James K. “Kings and Prophets, Donkeys and Lions: Dramatic Shape and Deuteronomistic Rhetoric in 1 Kings XIII.” Vetus Testamentum 49, no. 2 (Apr. 1999): 191 – 205.
Reis, Pamela Tamarkin. “Vindicating God: Another Look at 1 Kings xiii.” Vetus Testamentum 44, no. 3 (July 1994): 376 – 386.
Van Winkle, D.W. “1 Kings xii 25-xiii 34: Jeroboam’s Cultic Innovations and the Man of God from Judah.” Vetus Testamentum 46, no. 1 (Jan. 1996): 101 – 114.
Van Winkle, D.W. “! Kings 13: True and False Prophecy.” Vetus Testamentum 39, no. 1 (Jan. 1989): 31 – 43.
Walsh, Jerome T. “The Contexts of 1 Kings 13.” Vetus Testamentum 39, no. 3 (July 1989): 355 - 370.
Way, Kenneth C. “Animals in the Prophetic World: Literary Reflections on Numbers 22 and 1 Kings 13.” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 34, no. 1 (Sep. 2009): 47 – 62.