מלכים א, פרק כ׳, פסוק ל״ו

A prophet seals the fate of a man who refuses to strike him, condemning him to a severe and immediate punishment. The accusation that the man failed to listen to God reveals that the instruction to hit the prophet was actually a direct divine command [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The fatal consequence that strikes the man down the moment he departs is based firmly on the law written in the Torah. According to this law, anyone who disobeys the words of a prophet is subject to the death penalty [רלב״ג].