WHY DID THE OLD PROPHET LIE TO THE MAN OF GOD CAUSING HIS DEATH?
By Ezekiel Kimosop
INTRODUCTION
In 1 Kings 13:18 we learn that the old prophet deceived the man of God from Judah into disobedience after God had warned the man of God never to eat food on his journey to Israel or return using the same way he had traveled.
The passage context of this story lies in 1 Kings 13:1-32.
This passage has always puzzled many because of what appears to be a contradiction of sorts in its narrative. It can be classified as a difficult passage.
THE DECEPTION OF THE OLD PROPHET
The Bible teaches that the old prophet deliberately deceived the man of God from Judah, leading him to disobey the express prohibitions that God had given him regarding eating or drinking and returning the same way he had traveled.
This prohibition is first mentioned by the man of God in his conversation with king Jeroboam of Israel and later repeated when he engaged the old prophet.
On the first temptation with King Jeroboam, the young prophet passed his test. He obeyed the voice of God and respectfully declined the royal dinner.
The second test was too tough for him. He fell in for the confidence trickery of the old prophet. Notice the enticing words...
First the old prophet affirmed his spiritual authority saying "I too am a prophet as you are!" (1 Kings 13:18)
We must bear in mind that the claim to prophetic authority is no guarantee that one is a true prophet or that they speak the mind of God! Notice that the two men had never met before and were therefore strangers to each other. Scripture does not reveal the identity of this wity old prophet.
Just because someone claims that they are a prophet, bishop, apostle or MOG does not imply that God sent them or that they speak the mind of God. They must be subjected to spiritual and moral scrutiny in accordance with the teachings of Scripture (cf. 1 John 4:1-4).
Back to our story....
It is inconceivable to argue that the old prophet was a false prophet. If indeed he was, how come God finally spoke through him and passed judgment on the young prophet? God could not have spoken through a false prophet!
Again there is a second catch...
If the old prophet initially spoke his mind and not the mind of God, why did he apparently lie to the young prophet who spoke the truth? Did God send him?
Is this not a question of moral contradictions for a prophet of God?
Was God testing the integrity of the young prophet and if so why would He subject His servant to such tragedy yet he had faithfully served him?
Is it possible that the young prophet overlooked some prophetic etiquette by disclosing to strangers the instructions that God intended exclusively for him?
It is undeniable that this story is mystically strange and is undoubtedly one of its kind that leaves many questions unanswered!
While we might not fully comprehend every aspect of this passage, we can however deduce from the passage a number of moral truths as follows:
1) That the old prophet had obviously not spoken the mind of God when he initially claimed that an angel had spoken to him regarding the young prophet being permitted to eat food. He had simply deceived the man of God!
An angel had no authority to circumvent the voice of God neither do prophets receive instructions from angels! They are under God's direct command. The young prophet should have confirmed with his Master if indeed He had spoken through the stranger! This was a giveaway test that the young prophet flatly failed.
2) We learn from the second prophecy of the old prophet recorded in 1 Kings 13:21-22 that he was now speaking the mind of God given the tragic consequences that followed shortly thereafter. God was sorely displeased by the disobedience of the man of God for giving in to deception!
DID GOD PERMIT THIS DECEPTION?
I must admit that this is a difficult question to answer!
Since we know that God is sovereign over all things, we can only presume that He permitted the test for His higher purposes. However, it is apparent that God could not have instructed the old prophet to lie for that would be inconsistent with His moral nature!
God is not a man that He should lie. He is the Father of lights and in Him is no darkness at all (cf. Numbers 23:19; James 1:17; 1 John 1:4-10). Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44).
Again we can learn from Scripture that God proves His servants. We note from other passages of Scripture that God permitted Job's affliction to prove that he was loyal to God and that His assessment of Job's moral integrity was perfect.
The question then begs: Why was the old prophet not punished for his initial lie? Did God absolve his moral liability?
We cannot entirely rule out the fact that God would hold the old prophet to account for his role in deceiving the young prophet.
However, since we have no answers from the passage, it is safe to leave that inquiry to divine resolution! There is a theological rule which provides that we should not allow Scripture to speak out of silence!
We should however appreciate that in the context of this passage, the young prophet is actually the subject of the author's inquiry and that the old prophet was simply an instrument that God used to test the young prophet.
My view is that the young prophet is the principal character of the narrator whose conduct captures the gist of the passage idea and from whose disobedience we learn important moral lessons. Every Scripture passage holds important truths for our instruction and that fact should not escape our attention!
MORAL LESSONS FROM THE PASSAGE
There are several moral lessons that we can draw from this strange incident.
First, we learn that the young prophet who had been mightily used of God in Judah failed his obedience test in Israel when he trusted the voice of a man rather than the voice of God! He failed to discern the mind of God in circumstances that He should have done better. God's people face many hurdles....
Secondly, we learn that no prophet or church leader is immune from error or poor judgement. No one under the sun is infallible no matter what spiritual authority they posses in the church. We must all watch our standing before God because the enemy will test our spiritual integrity at diverse times and in diverse ways!
Jesus passed this test in Matthew 4:1-11 because He stood by the word of God and was led by the Holy Spirit.
Thirdly, we should double check any prophecy against the written word of God in the Bible. It matters not who makes the prophetic proclamation in the church. If such proclamation is inconsistent with the truths of the word of God, we should flatly reject such prophecy and expose the false teacher. We should also walk away from the authority of false prophets. It is that simple.
In our above context, it was God, rather than the old prophet, who was the true Master of the young prophet. There must be clear limits and boundaries to our spiritual loyalties. We must ignore ungodly instructions or opinions of others where they cross the red line drawn by the word of God! There must be a point at which we shall walk a lonely journey but with God on our side.
Fourthly, we must remember that no authority, not even an angel from heaven, can take the place of God's word! Scripture is absolute and infallible. We must therefore resolve all matters of our convictions solely on the basis of the principles of the word of God.
Fifthly, the old prophet was merely a divine instrument that God chose to use to test the prophetic and spiritual integrity of the young prophet for His higher purposes. These purposes were painfully achieved.
This is a test which God in diverse times and in diverse ways administers upon us who love Him. Job sat this test and passed it and so did other men of God including Christ Himself.
We should therefore test every spirit or prophecy to see if it is from God (1 John 4:1-2). Not every person who claims to speak the mind of God is necessarily from God. Do not be deceived by the charisma, theatrics or flamboyance of a preacher! Test his message and moral standing against the word of God.
Some people who pass for spiritual leaders may be agents of Satan, who are keen on destroying our faith and leading us away from the path of obedience and into spiritual and moral ruin. There are many such antichrists today who propagate a counterfeit religion in the name of God. Be warned!
Jesus rebuked Peter openly when he tried to stand in the way of the cross of Calvary by dissuading Him from obeying God. Jesus correctly discerned that Satan spoke through Peter (Matthew 16:23). Peter did not speak the mind of God in this instance even though he was a key disciple and confidant of Jesus Christ.
Sixthly, we need to appreciate the moral nature of our God in that He does not change His nature or purposes to suit our specific circumstances, neither does He contradict Himself (James 1:17).
God means what He says and says what He means. Scripture declares in Numbers 23:19 that "God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?"
This is not to suggest that when we earnestly petition God He will not change His mind and forgive. We know that He is full of compassion and mercy to those who trust Him.
He changed His mind on the destruction of Israel after Moses successfully pleaded with Him to spare the stiffnecked people (Exodus 33:17).
He showed mercy to King Hezekiah after declaring that he would not recover from his illness. Hezekiah made a passionate plea that touched the heart of God and God changed His mind (Isaiah 38:1-4). We should however never forget that God will have mercy on whom He wills.
Seventh, we need to distinguish God's voice from the din and clutter around us that complete for our attention.
Prophet Samuel learnt this hard lesson early in life. It took the experienced hands of Eli the Priest to help him clearly distinguish between the voice of God and the voice of man and his prophetic ministry was powerfully established (1 Samuel 3). Samuel lived on to become one of the greatest prophets in Israel. We learn that understanding the mind of God is a lifelong experience.
We should daily rely on God's word and the guidance of the Holy Spirit in order to discern His will for us in any given set of circumstances. It does not always come easy because God does not operate in a template manner. It takes spiritual discipline and a close walk with God to consistently discern His mind.
Finally, we learn that God punishes disobedience no matter how high we operate from. No man is exempt from God's chastisement. If we wilfully disobey God and do not repent then the consequences will be tragic (cf. Acts 5:1-11 on Ananias and Sapphiras).
There is no evidence from the above passage that the young prophet repented of his disobedience after God rebuked him.
Scripture reveals that God is gracious to restore us in the path of truth and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness if we earnestly and sincerely repent (1 John 1:8-10). It is not God's will that any one may perish in their disobedience but that we may turn to him and receive pardon.
© Ezekiel Kimosop 2023
