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The chiastic structure in 1st Kings 13 points to the words spoken by the prophet to the pagan altar of northern Israel. That prophecy finds fulfillment in chapter 14 and 300 years later under king Yoshiyah (Josiah).
This if a fitting end to the “man of God’s” proclamation in 1st Kings 13 of the destruction of the house of Yeroboam (Jeroboam) and the eventual destruction of the house of Israel. This spans 20 years of Yeroboam’s reign. This really isn’t about Jeroboam when it comes down to it, even though he is the star of the story.
Last time, we reviewed the Messianic themes in 1st Kings 13 on the repetition of the number 3, the man of God, the lion and the prophesy against the altar.
Chiastic structure of 1st Kings 13
There is a chiastic structure hidden in chapter 13 that gives us insight into what happens in 1st Kings 14. This chiastic structure includes 1st Kings 13:1-32. There is more to this than what appears on the surface. The topics repeat and culminate at 1st Kings 13:11:
“…the deeds which the man of God had done that day in Bethel; the words which he had spoken to the king.”
Ignore the lion, the eating and drinking, the circumstances of the path the man of God went home and the prophet’s lie. Those are the story, not the objective. Verse 11 in the chiastic structure is what the chapter is trying to tell us.
On the surface the prophesy is against an altar, an inanimate object made or rocks. Why does he condemn the altar, what about king Yeroboam, the golden calves. It’s an incomplete prophesy. There are missing pieces. The story is not finished. It wasn’t the man of God’s job to finish this. Even after the man of God died, Yeroboam continues to appoint his own priests and set up his own government religion.
Prophecy fulfilled in 1st Kings 14
The prophet Ahijah finisheed the job in 1st Kings 14 when he spoke to Yeroboam’s wife. Was Yeroboam afraid of the man of God’s prophesy? No, it doesn’t matter because there is no heir to David’s throne alive at this time with the name Josiah, so that part of the prophesy against the altar has no concern to him. They don’t know it will be 300 years until Josiah shows up. The prophesy only concerns those will will be alive when the prophesy comes true, which are the people of Israel who are alive at that time.
Ahijah added to this in chapter 14 and brought the prophesy home to Yeroboam’s house, completing the story of Israel’s utter dispersion beyond the Euphrates River. Israel added to Yeroboam’s sin. God was more angry with Israel than with Yeroboam. Yeroboam started something and the people didn’t have to follow it but they did and added even worse rituals to Yeroboam’s template. The future of Israel was set at the foundation of their nation.
Ahijah lives in Shiloh, which at this time, was in Israel’s territory. He did not evacate Israel to Judah when the two split. He did not flee, he stayed. This was a hard choice. He knew that Israel was doomed, their people was doomed, yet he stayed. There were a lot of prophets who stayed in Israel even though they knew the evil was to come, God still send someone to convince individual Israelites to change their course and come back to God’s path.
Speaker: Daniel Agee. Summary: Tammy.
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