“After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places.”
My Notes
What Does 1 Kings 13:33 Mean?
After the miraculous sign (the altar splitting, the king's hand withering and restoring), Jeroboam doesn't change. He returns to his evil way and continues making priests from the lowest of the people — anyone who wanted to be a priest, he consecrated. The miracle made no difference. The pattern continued.
The phrase "returned not from his evil way" is the narrator's verdict: the signs were ignored. The withered hand, the split altar, the prophet's word fulfilled before his eyes — none of it produced repentance. Jeroboam saw the evidence and went back to business.
"Whosoever would, he consecrated him" — the priestly office, which God restricted to the Levites, is now open to anyone who volunteers. The democratization sounds egalitarian. It's actually desecration. Jeroboam isn't elevating the common people. He's degrading the sacred office to control it.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Have you ever witnessed God's power and still gone back to the same pattern? What does that reveal?
- 2.Why do miracles fail to produce lasting change in some people — and what does that teach about the nature of repentance?
- 3.How does Jeroboam's 'open priesthood' (anyone can serve) mirror modern tendencies to dilute sacred things for control?
- 4.What's the difference between a heart that miracles can reach and a heart that has decided to refuse — and which is yours?
Devotional
After everything — the altar splitting, the hand withering, the miraculous sign — Jeroboam went right back to what he was doing. He didn't change.
The narrator states it plainly: he returned not from his evil way. Not "he returned slowly" or "he partially reformed." He returned not. Zero change. The most dramatic divine intervention of his reign produced no repentance whatsoever.
This is the darkest form of spiritual resistance: seeing God's power firsthand and choosing to ignore it. Jeroboam wasn't uninformed. He wasn't absent when the miracle happened. He was the recipient. His own hand. His own altar. His own eyes. And he went back to making priests out of whoever applied.
"Whosoever would, he consecrated him" — this sounds democratic but it's destructive. The priesthood wasn't meant to be a volunteer position. It was a divine appointment. By opening it to anyone, Jeroboam wasn't honoring the people. He was controlling the religion. Priests who owe their position to the king serve the king, not God. The open application process was a loyalty guarantee.
The combination — ignoring miracles AND corrupting the priesthood — reveals a heart that's hardened beyond what evidence can reach. No sign is powerful enough to change a heart that's decided not to change. Jeroboam chose his evil way with full knowledge of the alternative. The miracle didn't fail. Jeroboam refused it.
Miracles don't produce repentance. Willing hearts produce repentance. And Jeroboam's heart wasn't willing.
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
Whosoever would, he consecrated him - i. e., he exercised no discretion, but allowed anyone to become a priest, without…
Jeroboam returned not from his evil way - There is something exceedingly obstinate and perverse, as well as blinding and…
Here is, I. The death of the deceived disobedient prophet. The old prophet that had deluded him, as if he would make him…
Jeroboam goes on in his evil way (Not in Chronicles)
33. made again of the lowest of the people R.V. made again from…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture