The subject of the verb went away must be the prophet from Judah.

A lion met him on the road and killed him: In languages where lions are unknown, it will be possible to use a more general expression for lion, such as “ferocious animal” or something similar. The fact that the lion did not attack the ass was a sign that what happened was out of the ordinary. Elsewhere also in the Old Testament, lions are sent to punish people (1 Kgs 20.36; 2 Kgs 17.25).

The verb met may seem too mild for this context. For this reason some modern versions use a verb like “attacked” (New Century Version, Contemporary English Version). The Hebrew verb here has the sense of “to come upon unexpectedly.” In this context it is possible to follow La Bible du Semeur, which says “pounced on.”

His body was thrown in the road: See the comments on the same Hebrew noun rendered body in verse 22. In this context some languages will translate the word “remains,” “corpse” (New American Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh), or “cadaver” (Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, Bible en français courant). The Hebrew says that the body was thrown on the road. Possibly the sense is that the lion tossed the body to the ground from the back of the donkey, but many translations say simply that the body “lay” on the road (so Good News Translation, New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh).

Quoted with permission from Omanson, Roger L. and Ellington, John E. A Handbook on 1-2 Kings, Volume 1. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2008. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .