The Prophet Micaiah
v1 There was peace between Syria and Israel for almost three years. v2 In the third year Jehoshaphat, king of Judah went down to see the king of Israel. v3 The king of Israel said to his officials, ‘I do not know why we have not done anything to get back Ramoth-Gilead from the king of Syria. It belongs to us!’ v4 So he asked Jehoshaphat if he would go to attack Ramoth-Gilead with him.
Jehoshaphat said that he, his army and his horses were ready and willing to join in. v5 But he also said to the king of Israel, "Let us first ask the Lord for advice."
v6 So the king of Israel called in 400 prophets and he asked them, "Shall I go to attack Ramoth-Gilead or not?" ‘Go’, they replied. "The Lord will give you success.'
v7 But Jehoshaphat replied, "Is there not another prophet, a prophet of the Lord whom we can ask?"
v8 ‘There is one’, replied the king of Israel. "He is Micaiah son of Imlah. We can ask the Lord’s advice by means of him. But I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me. He always prophesies what is bad."
‘You should not say that’, replied Jehoshaphat.
v9 So the king of Israel asked one of his officials to fetch Micaiah son of Imlah at once. v10 King Jehoshaphat of Judah and the king of Israel were both wearing their royal clothes. They were sitting on their royal seats at the yard by the gate of Samaria. All the prophets were prophesying in front of them.
v11 Zedekiah son of Chenaanah had made horns of iron. And he declared, ‘This is what the Lord says. “With these you will fight the soldiers from Syria and you will completely destroy them.” ’
v12 All the other prophets said the same. "Attack Ramoth-Gilead! You will be successful. The Lord will give you success.
v13 The man who had gone to get Micaiah said to him, "All the other prophets have prophesied success for the king. Let your words be like theirs. Say something favorable."
v14 But Micaiah said, "I promise this, as surely as the Lord lives. I will only speak what the Lord tells me to say."
Commentary
In chapter 20, Ahab (the king of Israel) made an agreement with the king of Syria. That agreement was the reason why there was peace for almost three years. When the kings made that agreement, the king of Syria promised to return certain cities to Israel.
However, Syria still controlled Ramoth-Gilead. This was a large city that belonged to the tribe of Levi. It was a special city of safety (Joshua 20:8).
Ahab discussed this matter with Jehoshaphat, who was the king of Judah. Jehoshaphat was a good king, who was loyal to the Lord. We do not know why Jehoshaphat chose to have a friendly relationship with Ahab’s family. Ahab was a very wicked king.
Ahab asked Jehoshaphat to help him to fight for Ramoth-Gilead. Jehoshaphat agreed. His army would fight with Ahab’s army. It seems that both Jehoshaphat and Ahab considered Syria to be their enemy. But Jehoshaphat wanted the prophets to give advice first. He wanted to know whether God approved of this plan.
Ahab asked 400 prophets. We cannot be sure about the religion of these prophets. They probably belonged to the religion that Jeroboam set up. So although they spoke about the Lord, they were not really prophets of the Lord. In fact, they worshipped idols.
This was an impressive event. The kings wore their royal clothes. They sat on their royal seats by the city gates. This was the place where all public meetings happened. All 400 prophets agreed that the battle would be successful. They spoke with great power. One prophet called Zedekiah made horns of iron. They represented the two kings in the fight against Syria.
Jehoshaphat listened to all these prophets. But they could not convince him. He knew that they worshipped idols. And Jehoshaphat only worshipped the Lord. Jehoshaphat would not agree to go to war until he had heard the advice from a real prophet of the Lord.
Ahab had such a prophet available, but he did not want to call him. That prophet was Micaiah. Verse 26 shows that Micaiah was probably already in prison. Ahab would have put Micaiah there because he was angry about his prophecies. Ahab complained that Micaiah’s prophecies were always bad. But the truth was that Ahab did not like Micaiah’s prophecies. Micaiah would only tell the king what God told him to say. But Ahab did not want to obey God. So Ahab was angry with this loyal prophet. The man who called Micaiah warned him about the situation. His words mean, "Tell the king what he wants to hear." But Micaiah refused. He would only say what the Lord had told him. A genuine prophet never changes the Lord’s message. Such a prophet speaks the truth, even if everyone opposes him.
Question to Micaiah
v15 When Micaiah arrived, the king asked him a question. "Micaiah, shall we go and attack Ramoth-Gilead or not?’"
‘Attack. You will win’, said Micaiah. "The Lord will give you success.
v16 The king replied, "When you speak in the name of the Lord tell the truth! I have told you that so many times!"
v17 So Micaiah answered, "I saw all Israel’s armies. The soldiers had scattered across the hills. They seemed like sheep that had nobody to look after them. And the Lord said, “These men have no leader. Let them go home in peace.”
v18 Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I told you that he never prophesies anything good about me. It is always something bad."
v19 Micaiah continued. "Hear the word of the Lord. I saw the Lord. He was sitting on his royal seat. All the angels were standing behind him. They were on both his right side and his left side. v20 The Lord said, “Who will persuade Ahab to attack Ramoth-Gilead, so that he will die there?” One angel said one thing and other angels said something else. v21 Finally a spirit came forward. That spirit stood in front of the Lord. “I will persuade him”, the spirit said. v22 “How?” asked the Lord. The spirit replied, “I will go to Ahab’s prophets. I will make them all tell lies.” The Lord said, “You will succeed. Your plan will persuade him. So go, and do it!” v23 So now the Lord has sent that lying spirit. And that is why all these prophets speak lies. The Lord has said that you will suffer disaster.’
v24 Then Zedekiah son of Chenaanah slapped Micaiah’s face. Zedekiah asked Micaiah, ‘How do you suppose that the spirit from the Lord left me to speak to you?’
v25 Micaiah replied, "You will find out when you go into a back room to hide. v26 The king ordered his official to arrest Micaiah. He told the official to send him back to Amon, the ruler of the city, and to Joash, the king’s son. v27 ‘Tell them that the king says, “Put this man in prison and give him only bread and water. Do this until I return safely.”
v28 Micaiah said, "If you ever return safely then the Lord has not spoken by me.’ Then he added, ‘Listen everybody, to what I have said."
Commentary
At the beginning, Micaiah repeated all that the other prophets had said. Perhaps he was imitating them in order to show that their words disgusted him. Micaiah was saying the opposite of what he meant. Ahab realized this. He warned Micaiah not to laugh at him. Micaiah should only speak the message that the Lord had given to him. The kings would not listen to anything else.
So Micaiah explained what the Lord had shown to him. Unless someone looks after sheep, they wander. Unless someone leads an army, the soldiers scatter. God was not punishing the people. But he was punishing King Ahab, who was their leader. So Micaiah explained that the king would die. The army would return home without its leader. When Ahab was dead, there would be no reason to fight.
Then Micaiah described how God allowed the devil to make the people believe a lie. God allowed Micaiah to see a picture of what was happening in heaven. The event that Micaiah described was similar to the events in Job chapters 1 and 2.
Micaiah saw a very impressive scene. God was sitting on his royal seat. All the angels were present. They stood behind him like a great army. God had arranged a meeting of his court because he had made an important decision about Ahab.
Ahab’s wicked rule over Israel had continued for 22 years. During that period, God had sent several prophets to warn Ahab about his behavior. And God had been kind to Ahab. God even allowed Ahab to win battles against his enemies. But Ahab still continued his evil religion. And he still preferred the lies that his false *prophets told. Ahab had not turned to God. In fact, Ahab had become even more wicked.
So God had decided that Ahab’s opportunities to trust him had ended. The time was right for Ahab to die because of his sins.
God had made his judgment. But God never does anything evil. He is perfect; he never carries out any evil deed. And he does not want anyone to suffer. The evil deeds that we see in the world are the work of the devil and his evil spirits.
In the Book of Job, the devil was present at God’s court. But in this passage, an evil spirit was present. Because this spirit was evil, the spirit wanted to make people tell lies. But God puts a limit on the power of evil things. So the spirit could not act against Ahab until God allowed this.
That spirit was the reason why so many prophets told lies. And Ahab preferred to believe the false prophets instead of the real message that came from God.
Zedekiah insulted Micaiah. He slapped him on the face. Zedekiah asked where Micaiah got the authority for his prophecy. Micaiah did not give a proper reply. Instead, he gave a prophecy about Zedekiah. Many people would have to hide after the army from Syria won the battle. They would be very afraid that they too might die. And Zedekiah would be among them. He would have to hide. And then he would know that Micaiah’s message really did come from God.
The king arrested Micaiah. He ordered people to feed him on just bread and water. Probably he intended to kill him as a punishment for a false prophecy when he returned. But the king wanted Micaiah to see that he was wrong first.
The king’s words did not impress Micaiah. Micaiah knew that his message came from God. The king would not return alive from the battle. His death was certain. Only a false prophet gave a message that was not true. The events during the battle would prove that Micaiah spoke by God’s power.
The Death of King Ahab
v29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah went to attack Ramoth-Gilead. v30 The king of Israel spoke to Jehoshaphat. ‘I will wear ordinary clothes as we go into battle. I do not want people to recognize me. But you should wear your royal clothes.’ So the king of Israel wore the clothes of an ordinary soldier as he went into battle.
v31 Now the king of Syria gave an order to his 32 chariot captains. They must not attack anyone except the king of Israel. v32 When they saw Jehoshaphat, they thought, ‘Surely this is the king of Israel.’ So they turned to attack him. Then he cried out. v33 They realized that he was not the king of Israel. So they stopped their attack on him.
v34 But, by chance, someone shot an arrow. This hit the king of Israel between the sections of his armor. The king told his chariot driver, "Somebody has hurt me. Turn round and leave the battle."
v35 All day long the battle continued. They sat the king up in his chariot. He was looking towards the soldiers from Syria. The blood from his injury ran onto the floor of the chariot. That evening he died. v36 As the sun was setting, the order went out to all the Israelites. "Every man should go back to his own country and city."
v37 So the king died. They brought him to Samaria and they buried him there. v38 They washed the chariot at a pool in Samaria. The people who sold their bodies for sex used to wash at that pool. And there, the dogs licked Ahab’s blood as the Lord had prophesied.
v39 The History of the Kings of Israel contains details of all that Ahab did. And it records the other events during his rule. It describes his palace that he made beautiful with ivory (a substance like bone). It also describes all the cities that he built. v40 Ahab died. And Ahaziah his son became king next.
Commentary
It is surprising that Jehoshaphat continued to go with Ahab to battle. Micaiah had clearly warned Jehoshaphat that the battle would not be successful. But Micaiah only said that Ahab would die. So perhaps Jehoshaphat thought that he would be safe. Or perhaps Ahab was such an impressive person that Jehoshaphat did not want to disappoint him. Perhaps Jehoshaphat even felt that it would not be honorable to refuse to join in the battle. But, for whatever reason, Jehoshaphat went with Ahab to the battle. And Jehoshaphat seemed not to realize that he was taking a great risk. Ahab would even persuade Jehoshaphat to dress in a manner that would put him (Jehoshaphat) in great danger.
Ahab encouraged Jehoshaphat to put on the clothes of an army leader. Perhaps Ahab hoped that Jehoshaphat would think this to be an honor. Ahab did not wear his royal clothes. He realized that the king of Syria would be very angry with him. Ahab was not obeying the peace agreement that he made in 1 Kings 20:34. So Ahab thought that he could confuse the enemy soldiers. And, at the start of the battle, Ahab’s scheme did confuse them. But God knows the truth about everyone. The things that Micaiah prophesied would happen. Nobody can ever confuse God.
We can see how angry the king of Syria was, by his instructions to his captains. The king of Syria ordered his men to aim at King Ahab. At first, they thought that Jehoshaphat was Ahab. They were confused because only Jehoshaphat was wearing royal clothes. But then Jehoshaphat shouted his battle cry. From this they knew that he was not Ahab. One man shot an arrow. Tradition says that this man was Naaman from Syria (2 Kings chapter 5). We do not know. He did not have a particular purpose but the arrow hit Ahab.
At first, King Ahab left the battle. Then, however, he stayed in his chariot and he encouraged his men to attack. That evening he died and the Israelite soldiers were without their leader. They had to escape to their homes.
Ahab’s officials buried the king in Samaria. So Ahab’s body had a proper grave, unlike the bodies of his descendants (1 Kings 21:24; 21:29). Ahab’s officials washed the chariot in a pool. But there was much blood on this chariot. The blood attracted dogs. The dogs licked the king’s blood. So Elijah’s prophecy came true (1 Kings 21:19). Ahab’s death was in 853 *B.C.
Jehoshaphat’s Rule as King of Judah
v41 Jehoshaphat son of Asa became king of Judah. He began to rule in the 4th year of Ahab king of Israel. v42 Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he became king. And he ruled in Jerusalem for 25 years. His mother was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. v43 Like his father Asa, he did what the Lord considered to be right. He did not turn away from it. But he did not remove the places of worship on the high hills. People continued to offer sacrifices there. And they burnt incense there. v44 Jehoshaphat made an agreement of peace with the king of Israel.
v45 The History of the Kings of Judah describes all the other events during his rule. It describes what he did. And it describes all the battles that he fought. v46 He removed the rest of the males who sold their bodies for sex. His father Asa had not removed them.
v47 There was no king in Edom. The king of Judah appointed the person who ruled it. v48 Jehoshaphat built a group of ships to go to Ophir for gold. But they never sailed. Storms destroyed them at Eziongeber. v49 King Ahaziah son of Ahab offered to let his men sail with Jehoshaphat’s men. But Jehoshaphat refused the offer.
v50 When Jehoshaphat died, his officials buried him in the city of David, his ancestor. Afterward, Jehoram his son became king.
Commentary
Next, there is a short account of the rule of Jehoshaphat king of Judah. He followed the good ways of his father Asa. He did not remove the places of worship on the hills. But he removed the males who sold their bodies for sex in the worship of Baal.
There was no king in Edom because Judah still controlled it. Eziongeber was in Edom. Jehoshaphat intended to use this port in a trading scheme that could make him very wealthy. Solomon had succeeded with a similar scheme (1 Kings 9:26-28). Jehoshaphat tried to work with Ahaziah, Ahab’s son. But Jehoshaphat’s scheme failed. A storm destroyed the ships.
2 Chronicles 20:35-37 contains more information about this event. God would not allow the plan to succeed. He did not want Jehoshaphat to have such a close relationship with Ahab’s family. When Ahaziah again invited Jehoshaphat to trade, Jehoshaphat refused. Jehoshaphat realized because of the storm that the Lord did not want him to continue this agreement.
Ahaziah’s Rule as King of Israel
v51 Ahaziah the son of Ahab became king of Israel. This was in the 17th year of Jehoshaphat’s rule over Judah. Ahaziah ruled over Israel in Samaria for two years. v52 He did what the Lord considered to be evil. He was like his father and mother. He was also like Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who made Israel sin. v53 He worshipped and served Baal. He made the Lord, the God of Israel, very angry. His father had done this as well.
Commentary
Ahaziah only ruled for two years. Like Ahab, Jezebel, and Jeroboam, he was a very evil ruler. He made God very angry.
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