Holy Prophet Joad

The holy Prophet Joad was a Samaritan and prophesied in the tenth century before Christ. He is told of in the thirteenth chapter of the Third Book of Kings. The Lord sent Saint Joad from Judea to Bethel to denounce Jeroboam, king of Israel, who had led the people astray and brought them into the sin of idol-worship. God commanded the prophet: “Eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou camest” (3 Kings 13:9).

The Prophet Joad came before Jeroboam and foretold his death. The king pointed with his hand for the prophet to be seized, and that hand withered at once. Jeroboam begged Joad to pray for him, and through the prophet’s prayer he was healed. On his way back to his homeland Joad disregarded the Lord’s commandment and accepted food offered him by the false prophet Emve. The Lord’s punishment was not slow to come: a lion killed the prophet. Joad’s body was buried near the dwelling of the false prophet who had led him astray.