The altar also was torn in pieces, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the LORD — The prophet's sign is verified instantaneously: the altar cracks and its ashes scatter, confirming that his word is God's word. The phrase כַּדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר־נָתַן־הָאִישׁ־הָאֱלֹהִים (kadavar asher-natan-ha-ish-ha-elohim, according to the word which the man of God gave) shows the perfect correspondence between prophecy and fulfillment. The dual judgment—Jeroboam's withered hand and the altar's destruction—makes the point irrefutable: God opposes the schismatic worship, and the man of God possesses unambiguous prophetic authority.

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