The Meaning of 1 Kings 13:5 Explained

1 Kings 13:5

KJV: The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD.

YLT: and the altar is rent, and the ashes poured forth from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of Jehovah.

Darby: And the altar was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of Jehovah.

ASV: The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of Jehovah.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

The altar  also was rent,  and the ashes  poured out  from the altar,  according to the sign  which the man  of God  had given  by the word  of the LORD. 

What does 1 Kings 13:5 Mean?

Context Summary

1 Kings 13:1-10 - Judgment Upon Worthless Worship
What a noble name for anyone to bear-a man of God! Yet we all might so bear the impress of God in our character that those who come in contact with us might feel that ineffable something which you cannot define, which does not need advertising, but which tells that the person who bears it is truly a child of God.
The altar by which Jeroboam expected to consolidate his kingdom was the cause of its overthrow and disaster, until at last Israel was carried into captivity. When we turn from the fountain of living waters and hew out for ourselves broken cisterns that can hold no water, we start on a course of unfailing disaster and loss.
Literal obedience to God is indispensable to those who would carry his messages. It was a fit and proper answer that the prophet, in the first instance, gave the king. He rightly told Jeroboam that he must abide by the exact terms of his commission, and that the bribe of half of Jeroboam's house would not induce him to tarry even so long as to take a meal at the royal table. This minute and rigorous obedience stood out in striking contrast to the conduct of Jeroboam. God is exact and requires exact obedience.
1 Kings 13:1-34 - Breaking Three Commandments
From a worldly point of view Naboth might have done a good stroke of business by selling his estate to. Ahab. A royal price and assured favor might have been his-but he had a conscience! Above the persuasive tones of the monarch's offer sounded the voice of God: "The land shall not be sold for ever, for the land is mine." See Leviticus 25:23; Numbers 36:7; Ezekiel 46:18.
Ahab knew perfectly well that Jezebel could not give him the property of another except by foul means, but he took pains not to inquire. Though the direct orders for Naboth's death did not come from him, yet, by his silence, he was an accomplice and an accessory; and divine justice penetrates all such specious excuses. God holds us responsible for wrongs which we do not arrest, though we have the power. The crime was blacker because of the pretext of religion, as suggested by a fast. See also 2 Kings 9:26. The blood of murdered innocence cries to God, and his requital, though delayed, is inevitable. See Revelation 6:9-10. [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Kings 13

1  Jeroboam's hand withers
6  and at the prayer of the prophet is restored
7  The prophet departs from Bethel
11  An old prophet brings him back
20  He is reproved by God
23  slain by a lion
26  buried by the old prophet
31  who confirms the prophecy
33  Jeroboam's obstinacy

What do the individual words in 1 Kings 13:5 mean?

And the altar was split apart and poured out the ashes from the altar according to the sign which had given the man of God by the word of Yahweh
וְהַמִּזְבֵּ֣חַ נִקְרָ֔ע וַיִּשָּׁפֵ֥ךְ הַדֶּ֖שֶׁן מִן־ הַמִּזְבֵּ֑חַ כַּמּוֹפֵ֗ת אֲשֶׁ֥ר נָתַ֛ן אִ֥ישׁ הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים בִּדְבַ֥ר יְהוָֽה

וְהַמִּזְבֵּ֣חַ  And  the  altar 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִזְבֵּחַ  
Sense: altar.
נִקְרָ֔ע  was  split  apart 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: קָרַע  
Sense: to tear, tear in pieces.
וַיִּשָּׁפֵ֥ךְ  and  poured  out 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Nifal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: שֶׂפֶק 
Sense: to pour, pour out, spill.
הַדֶּ֖שֶׁן  the  ashes 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: דֶּשֶׁן  
Sense: fat ashes, fatness.
הַמִּזְבֵּ֑חַ  the  altar 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִזְבֵּחַ  
Sense: altar.
כַּמּוֹפֵ֗ת  according  to  the  sign 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מֹופֵת  
Sense: wonder, sign, miracle, portent.
נָתַ֛ן  had  given 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: יָתַן 
Sense: to give, put, set.
אִ֥ישׁ  the  man 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
הָאֱלֹהִ֖ים  of  God 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
בִּדְבַ֥ר  by  the  word 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: דָּבָר  
Sense: speech, word, speaking, thing.
יְהוָֽה  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.