1 Kings 14:4
And Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age. And Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.
The verse belongs to the history of the divided kingdoms of Judah and Israel, covering the period from the revolt of the ten tribes to Jehoshaphat's death, about eighty years. It recounts Jeroboam's wife going to Ahijah at Shiloh and notes that the aged prophet could not see because his eyes were impaired by age. Ahijah lived at Shiloh, which had been a central place for Israel after Israel entered Canaan, for the tabernacle was set up there and the land was divided there by lot. Eli served there as high priest and Samuel served there as a youth in the tabernacle, and the ark was taken from there into battle and captured by the Philistines. By the time of this passage it had become a wilderness of rocks and stones.
The verse records that Jeroboam's wife arose, went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah, coming in disguise. Ahijah was old and could not see because his eyes were set and impaired by reason of age. Jeroboam and his wife thought his old age and blindness would help them deceive him, but God did not allow the scheme to succeed. This shows that God could guide and speak through His aged prophet despite his blindness and years.
The event in 1 Kings 14 is told more completely in 2 Chronicles 12, and its history is confirmed by pictures and writing on the walls of the temple at Karnak in Egypt reached by sailing up the Nile. The verse also provides an example of a godly person living in a wicked household, for Abijah stands alongside Daniel in Babylon, Obadiah in Ahab's house, and Lot in Sodom. Together they show that God's grace can preserve a righteous person amid surrounding evil.