I Kings 13:2 · Bible study
1 Kings 13:2 Commentary: The Prophecy That Named Josiah
Hebrew · 9 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Does naming Josiah 300 years early prove divine foreknowledge or a later edit? Explore the prophecy, its context, and what it means for trust in Scripture.
Research Summary
- Meaning: An unnamed prophet announces that the altar at Bethel will be destroyed by a future Davidic king, Josiah, who will sacrifice its priests on it.
- Key words: Altar (מִזְבֵּחַ) symbolizes the idolatrous system; word (דָּבָר) denotes divine commission; Josiah (יֹאשִׁיָּהוּ) is the first explicit naming of a future king in Israel’s prophecy.
- Main debate: Whether the naming of Josiah is an original prophecy or a later scribal addition based on fulfilled events.
- Theological theme: God’s sovereign foreknowledge and the certainty of his judgment against false worship.
- Best use: Preaching on the reliability of God’s word, the danger of idolatry, and the long view of faith.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
And he cried out against the altar by the word of the LORD, “O altar, O altar, this is what the LORD says: ‘A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David, and upon you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense upon you, and human bones will be burned upon you.’”
WEB World English Bible 2000
He cried against the altar by Yahweh’s word, and said, “Altar! Altar! Yahweh says: ‘Behold, a son will be born to David’s house, Josiah by name. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who burn incense on you, and they will burn men’s bones on you.’”
KJV King James Version 1769
And he cried against the altar in the word of the Lord, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men’s bones shall be burnt upon thee.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
And he cried against the altar by the word of Jehovah, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith Jehovah: Behold, a son shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he sacrifice the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men’s bones shall they burn upon thee.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
and he calleth against the altar, by the word of Jehovah, and saith, `Altar! altar! thus said Jehovah, Lo, a son is born to the house of David--Josiah his name--and he hath sacrificed on thee the priests of the high places who are making perfume on thee, and bones of man are burnt on thee.'
Darby Darby Bible 1890
And he cried against the altar by the word of Jehovah, and said, O altar, altar! thus saith Jehovah: Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he sacrifice the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burned upon thee.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
And he cried out against the altar in the word of the Lord, and said: O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord: Behold a child shall be born to the house of David, Josias by name, and he shall immolate upon thee the priests of the high places, who now burn incense upon thee, and he shall burn men's bones upon thee.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
El clamó contra el altar por palabra de Jehová, y dijo: Altar, altar, así ha dicho Jehová: He aquí que á la casa de David nacerá un hijo, llamado Josías, el cual sacrificará sobre ti á los sacerdotes de los altos que queman sobre ti perfumes; y sobre ti quemarán huesos de hombres.
Ele clamou contra o altar por palavra do SENHOR, e disse: Altar, altar, assim disse o SENHOR: Eis que à casa de Davi nascerá um filho, chamado Josias, o qual sacrificará sobre ti aos sacerdotes dos altos que queimam sobre ti incenso; e sobre ti queimarão ossos humanos.
Il cria contre l’ autel, par la parole de l’ Éternel, et il dit: Autel! Autel! Ainsi parle l’ Éternel: Voici, il naîtra un fils à la maison de David; son nom sera Josias; il immolera sur toi les prêtres des hauts lieux qui brûlent sur toi des parfums, et l’ on brûlera sur toi des ossements d’ hommes!
Und er rief wider den Altar durch das Wort des HERRN und sprach: Altar, Altar! so spricht der HERR: Siehe, es wird ein Sohn dem Hause David geboren werden mit Namen Josia; der wird auf dir opfern die Priester der Höhen, die auf dir räuchern, und wir Menschengebeine auf dir verbrennen.
En hij riep tegen het altaar, door het woord des HEEREN, en zeide: Altaar, altaar, zo zegt de HEERE: Zie, een zoon zal aan het huis Davids geboren worden, wiens naam zal zijn Josia; die zal op u offeren de priesters der hoogten, die op u roken, en men zal mensenbeenderen op u verbranden.
e per ordine dell’Eterno si mise a gridare contro l’altare e a dire: “Altare, altare! così dice l’Eterno: Ecco, nascerà alla casa di Davide un figliuolo, per nome Giosia, il quale immolerà su di te i sacerdoti degli alti luoghi che su di te ardono profumi e s’arderanno su di te ossa umane”.
I zawołał przeciw ołtarzowi słowem Pańskiem, i rzekł: Ołtarzu, ołtarzu, tak mówi Pan: Oto syn narodzi się domowi Dawidowemu imieniem Jozyjasz, który będzie ofiarował na tobie kapłany wyżyn, kadzące na tobie, i kości ludzkie popalą na tobie.
И произнес к жертвеннику слово Господне и сказал: жертвенник, жертвенник! так говорит Господь: вот, родится сын дому Давидову, имя ему Иосия, и принесет на тебе в жертву священников высот, совершающих на тебе курение, и человеческие кости сожжет на тебе.
神人奉耶和華 的命 向 壇 呼叫，說：「壇哪，壇哪！耶和華 如此 說： 大衛 家 裡必生 一個兒子，名 叫約西亞，他必將 邱壇 的祭司，就是在你上面 燒香的，殺 在你上面，人 的骨頭 也必燒 在你上面。」
And by the order of the Lord he made an outcry against the altar, saying, O altar, altar, the Lord has said, From the seed of David will come a child, named Josiah, and on you he will put to death the priests of the high places, who are burning offerings on you, and men's bones will be burned on you.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · I Kings 13:2
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree the passage presents a prophet from Judah announcing the future destruction of Jeroboam’s altar at Bethel, and that a Davidic king will defile it by sacrificing idolatrous priests and burning human bones on it. The naming of Josiah is a “remarkable” detail, as Adam Clarke calls it, that elevates the oracle’s specificity well above the usual pattern of Old Testament prophecy. Albert Barnes notes that doubts arise “even among orthodox theologians” about whether the name was originally spoken, since divine predictions rarely descend to such detail. The Cambridge Bible suggests the story was “brought into their present form at a later date” and that the name could have been inserted when the events were already known. John Gill defends the prophecy as “a clear proof of the prescience, predetermination, and providence of God.” Most scholars agree the narrative intends to demonstrate God’s sovereign control over history, whether the name was part of the original utterance or a faithful record of an event that later scribes understood through its fulfillment.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Authentic pre-fulfillment prophecy: The narrative presents the naming of Josiah as a direct divine revelation (v.2). A present sign (the altar splitting and the king’s hand withering) verifies the prophet’s authority (vv.3-5).
- Post-event insertion / scribal clarification: The absence of comparable name-specific prophecies elsewhere, the mention of “Samaria” (v.32) which postdates Jeroboam, and the fact that the name is unnecessary to the plot all suggest the name was added when the story was written down in Josiah’s time.
What is clear: That the altar at Bethel was destined for destruction, and that the reform of Josiah was interpreted by the biblical authors as the fulfillment of a longstanding divine word against Jeroboam’s idolatry.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Authenticity of the name “Josiah” | The story connects a prophecy from Jeroboam’s era with the later reform of Josiah (2 Kings 23). | Some (Gill, Clarke) defend the original naming as a miraculous prediction; others (Barnes, Cambridge) argue for a post-event insertion due to the absence of other name-specific prophecies and the reference to “Samaria” in v.32. |
| Provenance of the chapter | The account of the man of God was preserved and incorporated into Kings from an older source. | How old that source is: early (contemporary with Jeroboam) vs. Josianic or exilic (edited with the benefit of hindsight). |
| Meaning of “high places” (בָּמוֹת) | They were worship sites outside Jerusalem, often associated with illegitimate cultic practices. | Whether they were always sinful (most reformers say yes) or were originally tolerated as local shrines before the temple was built (some traditions hold that they became sinful only when rivaling Jerusalem). |
| Role of the unnamed prophet | He is a true prophet sent by God to deliver a warning. | Why he remains unnamed: some see it as a sign that the message matters more than the messenger; others see it as evidence the story came from a source that did not preserve his name. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The background of 1 Kings 13 sits in the early years of the divided monarchy. Jeroboam I, the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel, had established rival worship centers at Dan and Bethel to keep his people from traveling to Jerusalem (1 Kings 12:25, 33). He appointed non-Levitical priests, instituted a new festival, and personally officiated at the altar in Bethel. This was an act of state-sponsored idolatry, and it is against this altar that the unnamed “man of God” from Judah directs his announcement.
The phrase “by Yahweh’s word” (בִּ/דְבַ֣ר יְהוָ֔ה) appears twice in verse 2, signaling that the prophet’s journey and his words are not his own but a divine commission. This is consistent with the pattern of classical prophecy: a messenger confronts a king in the name of Israel’s covenant God.
The audience would have understood the gravity of naming a Davidic heir “Josiah” over three centuries before his birth. The Davidic promise (2 Samuel 7) assured an enduring line, but here it is used as a threat against the northern cult. The mention of “the priests of the high places who burn incense on you” identifies the very priests serving at Bethel. The prophecy says they will become the sacrifice, and human bones, not animal bones, will be burned on the altar, an act that renders it utterly defiled (compare 2 Kings 23:16, 20).
A detail that complicates the dating of the text is the reference to “the cities of Samaria” in 1 Kings 13:32. Samaria was not built until after Omri became king (1 Kings 16:24), roughly fifty years after Jeroboam I. This has led several commentators, including the Cambridge Bible, to argue that the chapter in its final form was written or edited after the events it describes, possibly in the time of Josiah himself. The presence of the name “Josiah” would then be a scribal clarification, not a fresh prediction. Yet even the possibility of later editing does not diminish the story’s theological claim: when Josiah’s reform finally came, it was seen as the fulfillment of a very old word from God.
Textual Notes
The Hebrew text of 1 Kings 13:2 is stable across manuscripts, with no significant variants reported in the supplied sources. The name יֹאשִׁיָּ֣הוּ appears consistently. Some commentators (Barnes, Cambridge) raise the possibility that the name originated as a marginal gloss that later entered the text, but no manuscript evidence for that theory is cited. The phrase “the cities of Samaria” in verse 32 is noted by the Cambridge Bible as historically problematic (Samaria was not built until after Omri), but this is a matter of redaction criticism, not textual variation.
Reception History
This verse has been a touchstone in debates about biblical prophecy and historicity. Early Jewish tradition (e.g., Pirke Eliezer) cited it to demonstrate God’s foreknowledge. The church fathers, such as Augustine, used the naming of Josiah as evidence for the divine origin of Scripture, a specific prediction fulfilled centuries later. During the Reformation, both Catholic and Protestant commentators (including the Geneva Bible notes) treated the prophecy as straightforward and miraculous. In the modern period, critical scholars like those represented in the Cambridge Bible read the verse as a vaticinium ex eventu, a prophecy written after the events. Conservative commentators (Gill, Clarke, Keil) contested this, insisting on supernatural prediction. Across traditions, the verse has been sung in hymns about the certainty of God’s word and used in catechesis to teach the reliability of prophecy.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- A word against the altar. The prophet speaks not to Jeroboam but to the altar itself, the symbol of Israel’s rebellion. God’s judgment targets the system of false worship, not only the king.
- A name from the future. God knows Josiah’s name before his great-grandparents are born. The specificity of the prophecy assures us that history is not random; it moves under a sovereign hand.
- A fulfilled sign. The altar splits and the king’s hand withers, then is restored. These miracles confirm that the prophet speaks for God, even before the long-term prophecy is fulfilled.
Five-point outline
- The messenger. An unnamed “man of God” from Judah, his anonymity points to the authority of the message, not the messenger.
- The target. The altar at Bethel, which Jeroboam built as a substitute for the temple.
- The prediction. A coming Davidic king named Josiah will desecrate the altar by sacrificing its priests on it.
- The present sign. The altar splits and the king’s hand withers, then is restored, immediate verification of the prophet’s commission.
- The theological claim. God’s word stands over kings, altars, and centuries. No political power can prevent what God has spoken.
Illustration hooks
- A letter written to a future grandchild: the sender knows the child’s name and a key detail of his or her life. That is the kind of knowledge God displays here, intimate, specific, unshaken by the centuries between.
- A city planner who draws up a map for a street that will not be built for another three hundred years. Everyone laughs, but later the street is exactly where he said it would be. This prophecy is a map for an altar’s destruction.
Questions your congregation is asking
- “If the prophecy was written after the events, does that make the Bible less trustworthy?”
- “How can I trust that God’s promises for my life will come true when they seem so far off?”
- “What do I do when a spiritual leader fails morally, does that mean his message was false?”
Leading a Discussion
In 1 Kings 13:2, an unnamed prophet from Judah confronts the altar of Jeroboam in Bethel with a prophecy that names a future king three centuries in advance. This passage invites us to think about how God’s word works across time, sometimes immediately, sometimes after many generations. It also raises honest questions about how the Bible was written and transmitted. As a group, you are not expected to solve the historical puzzle; instead, let the text press you toward trust in the God who holds all of history in his hands.
Discussion questions
- Read verse 2 aloud together. Why do you think the prophet addresses the altar itself rather than the king?
- What is the “word of the Lord” (Yahweh’s word) according to verse 2? How does it come to the prophet and how does he deliver it?
- What makes the naming of “Josiah” so remarkable? Does knowing it was fulfilled in 2 Kings 23 change how you read this verse?
- Some scholars suggest the name “Josiah” was added later, when scribes recognized the prophecy’s fulfillment. How does that possibility affect your confidence in the Bible? What arguments from the text itself support a more ancient origin?
- The prophecy promises judgment on the priests of the high places, the very religious leaders of the northern kingdom. Why would God judge those who are only following the king’s command?
- How does this story show God’s sovereignty over time? Can you think of a modern example where a long delay made a promise seem impossible, yet it came true?
- What is one area of your life where you need to trust that God’s word is true, even when the fulfillment is not yet visible?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Deuteronomy 32:1 | Give ear, you heavens, and I will speak. Let the earth hear the words of my mouth. |
| I Kings 13:32 | For the saying which he cried by Yahweh’s word against the altar in Bethel, and against all the houses of the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, will surely happen.” |
| II Kings 22:1 | Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. |
| II Kings 22:2 | He did that which was right in Yahweh’s eyes, and walked in all the ways of David his father, and didn’t turn away to the right hand or to the left. |
| II Kings 23:15 | Moreover the altar that was at Bethel and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, even that altar and the high place he broke down; and he burned the high place and beat it to dust, and burned the Asherah. |
| II Kings 23:18 | He said, “Let him be! Let no one move his bones.” So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet who came out of Samaria. |
| II Chronicles 34:1 | Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. |
| II Chronicles 34:4 | They broke down the altars of the Baals in his presence; and he cut down the incense altars that were on high above them. He broke the Asherah poles, the engraved images, and the molten images in pieces, made dust of them, and scattered it on the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
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What the Commentators Say
9 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke calls this one of the most remarkable prophecies in the Old Testament because it named Josiah 340 years before his birth and was fulfilled exactly. He stresses that both Jewish and Israelite traditions guarded the prophecy, making its authenticity irrefutable. The prediction demonstrates God's precise foreknowledge and power over history.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832
Barnes questions whether the prophet originally named Josiah centuries before his birth, noting how rarely Scripture gives such detailed predictions. He suggests the words "Josiah by name" may have been a margin note that a copyist later inserted into the main text. The sense is complete without them.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
This commentary highlights that naming Josiah 330 years before his reign is unique among Old Testament prophecies, but it also notes signs the story was shaped after the fact, such as the anachronistic mention of Samaria. The writer suggests the chapter came from a source compiled after Josiah’s time, not the main narrative.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva Notes draw attention to the astonishing specificity of this prophecy: it names Josiah as the future king who would desecrate the altar, centuries before he was born. For the notes, this detail proves God's exact foreknowledge and control over history, securing the truth of his word.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill highlights that this prophecy, naming Josiah centuries before his birth, proves God's complete foreknowledge and control over future events, even those dependent on human choice like a child's name. The repeated cry "O altar, altar" shows the prophet's intense zeal against the idolatrous altar itself. He sees the fulfilled prediction as a clear demonstration of divine revelation.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871
JFB highlights this prophecy as strikingly specific, naming King Josiah over 360 years before his birth, unlike vague pagan oracles. The public nature of the prediction meant every Jew living at its fulfillment would be convinced of the true religion. The immediate miraculous sign of the altar splitting confirmed the prophecy's divine origin.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch argues that naming Josiah centuries in advance is true prophecy, not soothsaying. Real prophecy announces the progressive development of God’s kingdom in concrete details rooted in salvation’s promise. The name itself means “whom Jehovah supports” and functions as a description of what God will accomplish through him.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange argues that this narrative is not a contemporary prophetic record but a
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry focuses on the prophet's strict obedience to God's explicit command, refusing the king's offer of food, drink