And, behold, men passed by, and saw the carcase cast in the way, and the lion standing by the carcase: and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.
Some people were traveling along the road and saw the dead body lying there, with the lion standing beside it. They went and reported what they had seen in the city where the old prophet lived.
The writer is showing how news of the man of God's tragic death spread when travelers discovered his body with the lion still standing guard beside it.
📚 Historical Context
In the divided kingdom period after Solomon's reign, Israel and Judah were separate nations, with Jeroboam as king of Israel who had set up idolatrous altars. A prophet from Judah was sent by God to prophesy against one of these altars in Bethel and was commanded not to eat or drink there, but he disobeyed after being deceived by an older prophet. As a result, the disobedient prophet was killed by a lion, and this verse describes how passersby found his body with the lion nearby and reported it to the city of the older prophet.
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