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I Kings 22; II Chronicles 18     Listen Podcast

 

 

Thinking of going to battle? You need a prophet. (I Kings 22:1-28; II Chronicles 18:1-27)

I Kings 22
II Chronicles 18
1 Now three years passed without war between Syria and Israel.
2 Then it came to pass, in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went down to visit the king of Israel.
3 ¶ And the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, but we hesitate to take it out of the hand of the king of Syria?”
4 So he said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to fight at Ramoth Gilead?” ¶ Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
5 Also Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please inquire for the word of the LORD today.”
6 ¶ Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall I go against Ramoth Gilead to fight, or shall I refrain?” ¶ So they said, “Go up, for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king.”
7 ¶ And Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not still a prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of Him?”
8 ¶ So the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may inquire of the LORD; but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.” ¶ And Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the king say such things!”
9 ¶ Then the king of Israel called an officer and said, “Bring Micaiah the son of Imlah quickly!”
10 ¶ The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, having put on their robes, sat each on his throne, at a threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them.
11 Now Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah had made horns of iron for himself; and he said, “Thus says the LORD: ‘With these you shall gore the Syrians until they are destroyed.’ ”
12 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, “Go up to Ramoth Gilead and prosper, for the LORD will deliver it into the king’s hand.”
13 ¶ Then the messenger who had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “Now listen, the words of the prophets with one accord encourage the king. Please, let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak encouragement.”
14 ¶ And Micaiah said, “As the LORD lives, whatever the LORD says to me, that I will speak.”
15 ¶ Then he came to the king; and the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall we refrain?” ¶ And he answered him, “Go and prosper, for the LORD will deliver it into the hand of the king!”
16 ¶ So the king said to him, “How many times shall I make you swear that you tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?”
17 ¶ Then he said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd. And the LORD said, ‘These have no master. Let each return to his house in peace.’ ”
18 ¶ And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?”
19 ¶ Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by, on His right hand and on His left.
20 And the LORD said, “Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner.
21 Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, and said, “I will persuade him.’
22 The LORD said to him, “In what way?’ So he said, “I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the LORD said, ‘You shall persuade him, and also prevail. Go out and do so.’
23 Therefore look! The LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the LORD has declared disaster against you.”
24 ¶ Now Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near and struck Micaiah on the cheek, and said, “Which way did the spirit from the LORD go from me to speak to you?”
25 ¶ And Micaiah said, “Indeed, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide!”
26 ¶ So the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah, and return him to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king’s son;
27 and say, “Thus says the king: ‘Put this fellow in prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and water of affliction, until I come in peace.” ’ ”
28 ¶ But Micaiah said, “If you ever return in peace, the LORD has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Take heed, all you people!”
1 Jehoshaphat had riches and honor in abundance; and by marriage he allied himself with Ahab.
2 After some years he went down to visit Ahab in Samaria; and Ahab killed sheep and oxen in abundance for him and the people who were with him, and persuaded him to go up with him to Ramoth Gilead.
3 So Ahab king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, “Will you go with me against Ramoth Gilead?” ¶ And he answered him, “I am as you are, and my people as your people; we will be with you in the war.”
4 ¶ Also Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please inquire for the word of the LORD today.”
5 ¶ Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall I refrain?” ¶ So they said, “Go up, for God will deliver it into the king’s hand.”
6 ¶ But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not still a prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of Him?”
7 ¶ So the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man by whom we may inquire of the LORD; but I hate him, because he never prophesies good concerning me, but always evil. He is Micaiah the son of Imla.” ¶ And Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the king say such things!”
8 ¶ Then the king of Israel called one of his officers and said, “Bring Micaiah the son of Imla quickly!”
9 ¶ The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah, clothed in their robes, sat each on his throne; and they sat at a threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them.
10 Now Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah had made horns of iron for himself; and he said, “Thus says the LORD: ‘With these you shall gore the Syrians until they are destroyed.’ ”
11 ¶ And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, “Go up to Ramoth Gilead and prosper, for the LORD will deliver it into the king’s hand.”
12 ¶ Then the messenger who had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “Now listen, the words of the prophets with one accord encourage the king. Therefore please let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak encouragement.”
13 ¶ And Micaiah said, “As the LORD lives, whatever my God says, that I will speak.”
14 ¶ Then he came to the king; and the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall I refrain?” ¶ And he said, “Go and prosper, and they shall be delivered into your hand!”
15 ¶ So the king said to him, “How many times shall I make you swear that you tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?”
16 ¶ Then he said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd. And the LORD said, ‘These have no master. Let each return to his house in peace.’ ”
17 ¶ And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?”
18 ¶ Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing on His right hand and His left.
19 And the LORD said, “Who will persuade Ahab king of Israel to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner.
20 Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, and said, “I will persuade him.’ The LORD said to him, ‘In what way?’
21 So he said, “I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the LORD said, ‘You shall persuade him and also prevail; go out and do so.’
22 Therefore look! The LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these prophets of yours, and the LORD has declared disaster against you.”
23 ¶ Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near and struck Micaiah on the cheek, and said, “Which way did the spirit from the LORD go from me to speak to you?”
24 ¶ And Micaiah said, “Indeed you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide!”
25 ¶ Then the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah, and return him to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king’s son;
26 and say, “Thus says the king: ‘Put this fellow in prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and water of affliction, until I return in peace.” ’ ”
27 ¶ But Micaiah said, “If you ever return in peace, the LORD has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Take heed, all you people!”

So, here's Jehoshaphat, the good King of Judah (according to II Chronicles 17:1-19, see notes), with a massive army, and who does he hang with? Jezebel's husband, Ahab, King of Israel, a man who held the record for wickedness in his day according to I Kings 16:33 (see notes). Ahab decides he wants to go to battle with Syria to take back Ramoth in Gilead and asks for Jehoshaphat's help. According to the Jewish historian Josephus (Ant., VIII, xv, 3 ff), King Omri of Israel (I Kings 16:21-28, see notes) had lost it to the Syrians. It had been one of Israel's cities of refuge in Gad on the east side of the Jordan (Joshua 20-21, see notes), and Ahab wants it back. Jehoshaphat tells Ahab, "Call in the prophets so we can get some success probabilities." If you're a prophet in Israel under Ahab, you better give just "good" prophecies, or Ahab will land you in prison.

They're sitting on their thrones listening to Ahab's yes-men prophets when Jehoshaphat gets a little suspicious of these glowing, identical prophesies. One even shows up with props in II Chronicles 18:10 to illustrate his positive-scenario prophecy. Jehoshaphat queries Ahab, "Wonder why all these prophets agree? You got anybody else?" Actually, Jehoshaphat asks specifically, "Is there not still a prophet of the LORD here, that we may inquire of Him?" Here's the deal: Ahab didn't ordinarily keep a troop of prophets who were Jehovah prophets. Ahab liked prophets who were loyal to his double-calf religion - the religion of the Northern Kingdom. So, Jehoshaphat wonders if there is at least one prophet of the LORD (Jehovah aka Yahweh) available for questioning. Well, as a matter of fact, Ahab does have one, and he keeps in housed in prison. Well, that figures, doesn't it?

Ahab describes his Jehovah-loyal prophet to Jehoshaphat, "but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil." Jehoshaphat's reply to Ahab is interesting here in II Chronicles 18:7, "Let not the king say such things!" In other words, "Hey, Ahab, don't talk like that!" Well, after 400 (false) prophets say "go for it," the guy in charge of fetching Micaiah, the real prophet from the LORD, from prison warns Micaiah that he should give a favorable prophecy to match that of the 400 prophets which preceded him.

Micaiah's detailed prophecy

When Micaiah explains what he saw taking place in Heaven, he went into great detail. He saw "the LORD [Jehovah] sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left." Who were these "host of heaven?" Undoubtedly they were the "sons of God" of Job 1:6 (see notes). Elijah had already prophesied to Ahab that he would die (I Kings 21:17-29, see notes). This planning meeting in Heaven was simply to devise the way to carry out the prophecy, and these lying prophets turn out to be part of that plan.

When Micaiah shows up before Ahab and Jehoshaphat, he is asked by Ahab what he should do regarding the battle against the Syrians, Micaiah, with a lack of enthusiasm for being a yes man, says something like, "Yeah, yeah, yeah - go for it; you'll be victorious." Ahab apparently senses some sarcasm or insincerity in his voice and pursues him further - makes him pledge to tell the truth. Okay, Ahab, you asked for it! Micaiah then cuts loose on him with the whole truth and nothing but the truth, "You're gonna die in battle, Ahab!" King Ahab's reply to King Jehoshaphat then is, "See! I told you!" Micaiah goes on to explain in great detail that the other prophets were evil and were sent to intentionally deceive him into believing he would be victorious in battle. Then one of those false prophets, Zedekiah, goes over and smacks Micaiah and subsequently taunts Micaiah by saying, in essence in II Chronicles 18:23, "Hey prophet...I'll bet you didn't see that coming!" Micaiah simply retorts, "You're going to see the day when you'll go into hiding over this episode."

So...is Ahab grateful for an honest prophet from the LORD? Naaaaa! "It's back to prison for you, Micaiah, until I return from battle!" replies Ahab. Michaiah cleverly replies in II Chronicles 18:27, "If you ever return in peace, the LORD has not spoken by me." In other words Ahab, "You won't be coming back!"

Even with all of this unfolding before Jehoshaphat's eyes, Ahab gets Jehoshaphat to pitch in to do battle against Syria. Jehoshaphat was the good King of Judah, but he makes a bad decision here to work with Ahab. It makes you wonder what was going through Jehoshaphat's mind; he listened to the prophecy of the good prophet, Micaiah, and makes a decision to participate anyway...remarkable!

By the way, we see another prophet show up to speak with Jehoshaphat in II Chronicles 19 (see notes) with an addendum to this story. His own prophet, Jehu, delivers the message from God in 19:2, "Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the LORD? Therefore the wrath of the LORD is upon you."

Of course! Ahab dies in battle (I Kings 22:29-40; II Chronicles 18:28-34)

I Kings 22
II Chronicles 18
29 ¶ So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead.
30 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle; but you put on your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.
31 ¶ Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, “Fight with no one small or great, but only with the king of Israel.”
32 So it was, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, “Surely it is the king of Israel!” Therefore they turned aside to fight against him, and Jehoshaphat cried out.
33 And it happened, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him.
34 Now a certain man drew a bow at random, and struck the king of Israel between the joints of his armor. So he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn around and take me out of the battle, for I am wounded.”
35 ¶ The battle increased that day; and the king was propped up in his chariot, facing the Syrians, and died at evening. The blood ran out from the wound onto the floor of the chariot.
36 Then, as the sun was going down, a shout went throughout the army, saying, “Every man to his city, and every man to his own country!”
37 ¶ So the king died, and was brought to Samaria. And they buried the king in Samaria.
38 Then someone washed the chariot at a pool in Samaria, and the dogs licked up his blood while the harlots bathed, according to the word of the LORD which He had spoken.
39 ¶ Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, the ivory house which he built and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
40 So Ahab rested with his fathers. Then Ahaziah his son reigned in his place.
28 ¶ So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead.
29 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle; but you put on your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself, and they went into battle.
30 ¶ Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of the chariots who were with him, saying, “Fight with no one small or great, but only with the king of Israel.”
31 ¶ So it was, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, “It is the king of Israel!” Therefore they surrounded him to attack; but Jehoshaphat cried out, and the LORD helped him, and God diverted them from him.
32 For so it was, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him.
33 Now a certain man drew a bow at random, and struck the king of Israel between the joints of his armor. So he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn around and take me out of the battle, for I am wounded.”
34 The battle increased that day, and the king of Israel propped himself up in his chariot facing the Syrians until evening; and about the time of sunset he died.

Syria's king had instructed his officers regarding their battle against Israel, "Don't get distracted; focus only on getting King Ahab." Well...Ahab takes a cowardly approach to this battle - dresses up like a regular soldier rather than the King of Israel. When the Syrians see King Jehoshaphat in the battle, they mistakenly identify him as Ahab and take off after him before they realize he's not the right king. Of course that's after Jehoshaphat cries out to God for help. Then, a quirky thing happens; a Syrian soldier shoots an arrow at random and hits Ahab - didn't even know he was shooting at the King of Israel. Ahab just couldn't catch a break that day. Boom! He's dead by sunset - didn't even have his king uniform on. It looks as though Micaiah was right! We don't know what happened to Micaiah after that, but I'm guessing it wasn't good. Prophets were often held accountable for bad events as though they were responsible for their cause; it's like blaming the weather man for a hurricane.

Wait! There's more about this passage worth noting in I Kings 22:38, "Then someone washed the chariot at a pool in Samaria, and the dogs licked up his blood while the harlots bathed, according to the word of the LORD which He had spoken." That's a fulfillment of Elijah's prophecy in I Kings 21:19 (see notes) after Naboth was framed and executed, "You shall speak to him, saying, 'Thus says the LORD: "Have you murdered and also taken possession?"' And you shall speak to him, saying, 'Thus says the LORD: "In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth, dogs shall lick your blood, even yours."'"

Jehoshaphat: a good man - except for two shortcomings (I Kings 22:41-50)

41 ¶ Jehoshaphat the son of Asa had become king over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel.
42 Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi.
43 And he walked in all the ways of his father Asa. He did not turn aside from them, doing what was right in the eyes of the LORD. Nevertheless the high places were not taken away, for the people offered sacrifices and burned incense on the high places.
44 Also Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
45 ¶ Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, the might that he showed, and how he made war, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
46 And the rest of the perverted persons, who remained in the days of his father Asa, he banished from the land.
47 There was then no king in Edom, only a deputy of the king.
48 ¶ Jehoshaphat made merchant ships to go to Ophir for gold; but they never sailed, for the ships were wrecked at Ezion Geber.
49 Then Ahaziah the son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my servants go with your servants in the ships.” But Jehoshaphat would not.
50 ¶ And Jehoshaphat rested with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the City of David his father. Then Jehoram his son reigned in his place.

He was King of Judah. He was a good king before God. He continued on like his Dad in getting rid of the remnant of the male prostitutes in the land. Two bad moves though: first, he formed an alliance with evil Ahab. Second, he didn't insist that all the "high places" be torn down in Judah. These were the altars to the false gods. He didn't worship them himself, but he didn't rid Judah of these altars. After losing his fleet of ships, he declined to strike up another commercial venture with Ahab's son (Ahaziah) in verses 47-49. Jehoshaphat dies, "Then Jehoram his son reigned in his place."

We get two more chapters of Jehoshaphat in II Chronicles 19-20 (see notes).

A Summary of King #4 from 873 to 848 B.C. over Judah: Jehoshaphat
References The Good The Bad

I Kings 22
II Chronicles 17-20

II Chronicles 17:3-4 And the LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim; But sought to the LORD God of his father, and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel.

II Chronicles 20:32 And he walked in the way of Asa his father, and departed not from it, doing that which was right in the sight of the LORD.

I Kings 22:43 And he walked in all the ways of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of the LORD: nevertheless the high places were not taken away; for the people offered and burnt incense yet in the high places.

I Kings 22:46 And the remnant of the sodomites, which remained in the days of his father Asa, he took out of the land.

I Kings 22:43b ...nevertheless the high places were not taken away; for the people offered and burnt incense yet in the high places.

II Chronicles 20:33 Howbeit the high places were not taken away: for as yet the people had not prepared their hearts unto the God of their fathers.

Jehoshaphat spent a lot of quality time around the notoriously evil King of Israel, Ahab, for which he was rebuked in II Chronicles 19:2, "And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the LORD? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the LORD."

He was also rebuked for his joint ventures with the wicked King Ahaziah of Israel in II Chronicles 20:37, "Then Eliezer the son of Dodavah of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because thou hast joined thyself with Ahaziah, the LORD hath broken thy works. And the ships were broken, that they were not able to go to Tarshish."

Then there was Ahaziah, Ahab's son (I Kings 22:51-53)

51 ¶ Ahaziah the son of Ahab became king over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned two years over Israel.
52 He did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father and in the way of his mother and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin;
53 for he served Baal and worshiped him, and provoked the LORD God of Israel to anger, according to all that his father had done.

No, Ahaziah was no better than his Dad, Ahab. Verse 53 summarizes his life, "for he served Baal and worshiped him, and provoked the LORD God of Israel to anger, according to all that his father had done."

A Summary of King #8 from 853 to 852 B.C. over Israel: Ahaziah
References The Good The Bad

I Kings 22:51-53
II Kings 1:2-18

Not specified - He was evil.

I Kings 22:52-53 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin: For he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked to anger the LORD God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.