1 Kings 13:17-19 For it was said unto me by the word of the Lord, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there….So he went back with him and did eat bread in his house and drank water.
A man of God came up from Judah to Bethel to cry against the altar there that it would be rent and its ashes poured out. Jeroboam heard of it and went to stretch out his hand, but it withered and he couldn’t pull it back. The man of God prayed for him and God restored his hand. The king wanted to reward him by inviting him to his house, but the man of God refused, saying that God told him not to eat and drink.
A prophet of Bethel invited him his home, but he refused again. Then the prophet lied to him, saying, “But an angel told me….” So he went with him to eat and drink. When he was eating and drinking the Lord spoke through the prophet: “Because you disobeyed the mouth of the Lord you will die.” Sure enough, a lion met him on the way home and killed him.
This gruesome story makes us think of God as being vindictive and cruel. But it also reminds us He takes obedience to His Word seriously. Breaking the rules always brings death. For this reason God gave His Son to die for us so that we might live before the Lord eternally. Meanwhile, because of that Gospel we desire to obey.