1 Kings 13:7-11: a reflection

7The king said to the man of God, “Come home with me and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward.” 8The man of God said to the king, “Even if you gave me half of your house, I would not go in with you, neither would I eat bread nor drink water in this place; 9for so was it commanded me by the LORD’s word, saying, ‘You shall eat no bread, drink no water, and don’t return by the way that you came.’” 10So he went another way, and didn’t return by the way that he came to Bethel. 11Now an old prophet lived in Bethel, and one of his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Bethel. They also told their father the words which he had spoken to the king.

When a man of God delivers a message to the wicked king, and the king, impressed, invites him home to be fed and rewarded, the man of God refuses firmly, because God had commanded him not to eat or drink there. Even if you gave me half of your house, he says, I would not go in with you, neither would I eat bread nor drink water in this place; for so was it commanded me by the LORD's word. The king's offer was attractive, a reward, hospitality, honor; but the man of God had a clear command from God, and no inducement, however generous, would move him from it. He held firm to God's word even against an attractive offer to disobey it. Half a king's house could not buy his disobedience. To hold firm to God's command even when attractive inducements pull the other way is a real faithfulness; the man of God would not be bought.

Notice the firmness of the man of God against an attractive inducement. The king's offer was generous, flattering, hard to refuse: come home, be refreshed, receive a reward. But the man of God had a clear command from God not to eat or drink there, and he would not be moved from it, not for half the king's house. He held firm to God's word against the pull of an attractive offer to disobey it. This is a real test of faithfulness: not the pressure to disobey by threat, but the temptation to disobey by reward, by an attractive inducement that makes disobedience appealing. To hold firm to God's command even when it costs us an attractive offer, even when disobedience would be pleasant and rewarded, is a real faithfulness. The man of God would not be bought; God's clear word held him against the inducement. What we will refuse for the sake of God's command, even when refusing is costly, shows whether we truly hold his word. Faithfulness is tested by attractive offers as much as by threats.

That is worth taking to heart, for we are called to hold firm to God's command even against attractive inducements to disobey it. We can be tempted to disobey God not only by threats but by attractive offers, by rewards and inducements that make disobedience appealing; but the man of God held firm to God's clear command even against the king's generous offer, refusing to be bought. To hold to God's word even when an attractive inducement pulls the other way is a real faithfulness. Do not let an attractive offer move you from God's clear command; hold firm, as the man of God would not be bought even by half a king's house. Hold firm to God's command even against attractive inducements to disobey it, as the man of God refused the king's generous offer, saying that even for half the king's house he would not disobey the word of the LORD; for faithfulness is tested not only by threats but by rewards, by the attractive offers that make disobedience appealing, and to hold to God's clear word even when refusing is costly, refusing to be bought, is a real faithfulness that attractive inducements cannot move.

Lord, when a man of God delivers a message to the wicked king, and the king, impressed, invites him home to be fed and rewarded, the man of God refuses firmly, because you had commanded him not to eat or drink there. Even if you gave me half of your house, he says, I would not go in with you, neither would I eat bread nor drink water in this place; for so was it commanded me by the LORD's word. The king's offer was attractive, a reward, hospitality, honor; but the man of God had a clear command from you, and no inducement, however generous, would move him from it. He held firm to your word even against an attractive offer to disobey it. Show me the firmness of the man of God against an attractive inducement. The king's offer was generous, flattering, hard to refuse. But the man of God had a clear command from you not to eat or drink there, and he would not be moved from it, not for half the king's house. This is a real test of faithfulness: not the pressure to disobey by threat, but the temptation to disobey by reward, by an attractive inducement that makes disobedience appealing. The man of God would not be bought; your clear word held him. Take that to my heart, for I am called to hold firm to your command even against attractive inducements to disobey it. I can be tempted to disobey you not only by threats but by attractive offers, by rewards that make disobedience appealing; but the man of God held firm to your clear command even against the king's generous offer. Keep me from letting an attractive offer move me from your clear command; help me hold firm, Lord, as the man of God would not be bought even by half a king's house, refusing to disobey your word.