And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with me, and refresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward.
After delivering his message at Bethel, King Jeroboam invited the man of God to come home with him to refresh himself with food and drink and offered him a reward. God had directly commanded the man not to eat or drink in that place at Bethel and not to return by the same way he came. The king's invitation tested the prophet's obedience to that command.
He was right to refuse the hospitality and reward, holding to the Lord's direct command not to accept such hospitality there. He would not accept them even if the king offered him half his house. He afterward disobeyed that known command by returning with the old prophet to eat and drink.
The disobedience came through the old prophet's false claim that an angel had told him to bring the man back, which Satan used to lead him away from what he already knew. The lie was exposed when the Lord pronounced judgment at the table. Returning to eat brought the penalty of transgression, making it an expensive meal that cost him his life. The foretold doom was literally fulfilled when a lion killed him on his way home. The episode warns against abandoning a clear command of God because someone claiming religious authority asserts a contrary message.
After delivering his message at Bethel, King Jeroboam invited the man of God to come home with him to refresh himself with food and drink and offered him a reward. God had directly commanded the man not to eat or drink in that place at Bethel and not to return by the same way he came. The king's invitation tested the prophet's obedience to that command.
He was right to refuse the hospitality and reward, holding to the Lord's direct command not to accept such hospitality there. He would not accept them even if the king offered him half his house. He afterward disobeyed that known command by returning with the old prophet to eat and drink.
The disobedience came through the old prophet's false claim that an angel had told him to bring the man back, which Satan used to lead him away from what he already knew. The lie was exposed when the Lord pronounced judgment at the table. Returning to eat brought the penalty of transgression, making it an expensive meal that cost him his life. The foretold doom was literally fulfilled when a lion killed him on his way home. The episode warns against abandoning a clear command of God because someone claiming religious authority asserts a contrary message.