Direction from God

“The old prophet answered, ‘I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the Lord: “Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.”’ (But he was lying to him.)” 1 Kings 13:18
Here in 1 Kings 13 we have the account of two prophets. The first was a young man who had been sent by God to give a warning to king Jeroboam. He had specifically been told not to eat or drink until he returned home, and to go back by a different way (1 Kin. 13:17). Then we meet the second prophet: an older man, who invited the first prophet to his home for a meal. Initially the younger man refuses, but when the older prophet says that an angel told him that the plan for the younger man had changed, he accepts. While they are eating, the older prophet receives a true word from God, and reprimands the younger man for going with him and disobeying God.
It always seemed a bit unfair to me, that the same man who misled the younger prophet, was the one to reprimand him. One question that naturally arises is, why did the older prophet lie about receiving a word from an angel of the Lord? I am convinced that this was not a trap. It was probably because the old prophet was lonely and wanted some company, so he could talk with a like-minded person over a meal. This is why he says, “I too am a prophet, as you are.”
There’s an important lesson for us in this story. Not everything that someone says is a word from God, is a word from God. God had told the younger prophet what to do in the first place. If He really had changed His mind, He would have told him personally. Sometimes this does happen; especially since God usually leads us one step at a time, and He may lead us somewhere and then cause us to backtrack (e.g. Ex. 14:1-2). But God is capable of letting you know – He won’t speak to you through someone else, without speaking to you about it also.