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1 Kings 22

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Ahab Seeks War with Syria 1–4

1
And they continued three years without war between Syria and Israel. ​
2
And it came to pass in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel. ​
3
And the king of Israel said unto his servants, Know ye that Ramoth-gilead is ours, and we are still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Syria? ​
4
And he said unto Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramoth-gilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses. ​

Consulting the Prophets 5–12

5
And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Inquire first, I pray thee, for the word of Jehovah. ​
6
Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them, Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up; for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king. ​
7
But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of Jehovah besides, that we may inquire of him? ​
8
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of Jehovah, Micaiah the son of Imlah: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so. ​
9
Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said, Fetch quickly Micaiah the son of Imlah.
10
Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, in an open place at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying before them.
11
And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron, and said, Thus saith Jehovah, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until they be consumed. ​
12
And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper; for Jehovah will deliver it into the hand of the king.

Micaiah's True Prophecy 13–28

13
And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spake unto him, saying, Behold now, the words of the prophets declare good unto the king with one mouth: let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak thou good. ​
14
And Micaiah said, As Jehovah liveth, what Jehovah saith unto me, that will I speak. ​
15
And when he was come to the king, the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we forbear? And he answered him, Go up and prosper; and Jehovah will deliver it into the hand of the king. ​
16
And the king said unto him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou speak unto me nothing but the truth in the name of Jehovah?
17
And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd: and Jehovah said, These have no master; let them return every man to his house in peace. ​
18
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?
19
And Micaiah said, Therefore hear thou the word of Jehovah: I saw Jehovah sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. ​
20
And Jehovah said, Who shall entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said on this manner; and another said on that manner.
21
And there came forth a spirit, and stood before Jehovah, and said, I will entice him.
22
And Jehovah said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt entice him, and shalt prevail also: go forth, and do so. ​
23
Now therefore, behold, Jehovah hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets; and Jehovah hath spoken evil concerning thee.
24
Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near, and smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said, Which way went the Spirit of Jehovah from me to speak unto thee? ​
25
And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see on that day, when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thyself.
26
And the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah, and carry him back unto Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king’s son;
27
and say, Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I come in peace. ​
28
And Micaiah said, If thou return at all in peace, Jehovah hath not spoken by me. And he said, Hear, ye peoples, all of you. ​

The Death of Ahab 29–40

29
So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead.
30
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle. ​
31
Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty and two captains of his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.
32
And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, Surely it is the king of Israel; and they turned aside to fight against him: and Jehoshaphat cried out.
33
And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him.
34
And a certain man drew his bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the joints of the armor: wherefore he said unto the driver of his chariot, Turn thy hand, and carry me out of the host; for I am sore wounded. ​
35
And the battle increased that day: and the king was stayed up in his chariot against the Syrians, and died at even; and the blood ran out of the wound into the bottom of the chariot. ​
36
And there went a cry throughout the host about the going down of the sun, saying, Every man to his city, and every man to his country. ​
37
So the king died, and was brought to Samaria; and they buried the king in Samaria.
38
And they washed the chariot by the pool of Samaria; and the dogs licked up his blood (now the harlots washed themselves there); according unto the word of Jehovah which he spake. ​
39
Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, and 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 slept with his fathers; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead.

The Reign of Jehoshaphat 41–50

41
And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. ​
42
Jehoshaphat was thirty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi.
43
And he walked in all the way of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah: howbeit the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places. ​
44
And Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
45
Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, and his might that he showed, and how he warred, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
46
And the remnant of the sodomites, that remained in the days of his father Asa, he put away out of the land. ​
47
And there was no king in Edom: a deputy was king.
48
Jehoshaphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold: but they went not; for the ships were broken at Ezion-geber. ​
49
Then said Ahaziah the son of Ahab unto Jehoshaphat, Let my servants go with thy servants in the ships. But Jehoshaphat would not.
50
And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; And Jehoram his son reigned in his stead.

Ahaziah Reigns in Israel 51–53

51
Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned two years over Israel. ​
52
And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, 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, wherein he made Israel to sin. ​
53
And he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked to anger Jehovah, the God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for 1 Kings 22

Verse 1

three years without war — The peace followed the covenant by which Ahab 'sent him away', Benhadad (1 Kgs 20:34), the man the LORD had 'appointed to utter destruction'. A prophet had told Ahab then, 'thy life shall go for his life' (20:42). This chapter records the end of that peace.

Verse 2

came down — Yarad, to go down. Jehoshaphat 'joined affinity with Ahab' (2 Chr 18:1), and the tie reached the next generation when his son Jehoram took Ahab's daughter as wife (2 Kgs 8:18). The visit leads straight to the request for help in v.4.

Verse 3

Ramoth in Gilead — A city of Gad east of the Jordan (Deut 4:43), appointed as a city of refuge (Josh 20:8–9). Ahab's 'is ours' rests on Benhadad's promise to restore the cities his father took (1 Kgs 20:34). 'Be still' is chashah, to keep silent: Ahab asks why Israel sits quiet.

Verse 4

I am as thou art — Jehoshaphat's pledge, 'my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses', is given almost word for word to Ahab's son Joram (2 Kgs 3:7). It commits Judah's whole army before any enquiry is made. He asks for the word of the LORD only in the next verse.

Verse 5

Enquire… at the word of the LORD — Darash, to seek, the verb repeated in vv.7–8. Jehoshaphat had 'prepared' his heart 'to seek God' (2 Chr 19:3). He asks for the answer 'to day', before the army moves.

Verse 6

four hundred men — The prophets answer with 'the Lord' (Adonai) where Jehoshaphat had said 'the LORD' (v.5): 'Go up; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king.' Jehoshaphat's next question, 'Is there not here a prophet of the LORD besides?' (v.7), shows he was not satisfied with it.

Verse 7

a prophet of the LORD besides — Od means 'still, further': Jehoshaphat asks for one more, a prophet speaking in the name of the LORD. The verb 'enquire' (darash) is the same as in v.5 and recurs in v.8, where Ahab names the one man left.

Verse 8

I hate him — Ahab names Micaiah the son of Imlah, who 'doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil'. Ahab had already been given hard words by prophets (1 Kgs 20:42; 21:19). The hatred is for the message, as in Amos 5:10: 'They hate him that rebuketh in the gate.'

Verse 11

horns of iron — Zedekiah acts out his word with iron horns: 'With these shalt thou push the Syrians.' The verb is nagach, to gore, found in Moses' blessing of Joseph, whose 'horns are like the horns of unicorns: with them he shall push the people together' (Deut 33:17). He speaks as from the LORD, and Micaiah will say the opposite.

Verse 13

with one mouth — The messenger asks Micaiah to match the prophets' 'one mouth' (peh) and 'speak that which is good'. It is the demand Isaiah later reports of Israel: 'Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things' (Isa 30:10).

Verse 14

As the LORD liveth — Micaiah answers with an oath by the living God, the oath Elijah used before Ahab (1 Kgs 17:1). 'What the LORD saith unto me, that will I speak' is the rule Balaam gave Balak: 'what the LORD saith, that will I speak' (Num 24:13).

Verse 15

Go, and prosper — Micaiah gives the court prophets' own words back to the king (v.12), and Ahab at once replies, 'How many times shall I adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the LORD?' (v.16). The king himself does not take the answer as the LORD's.

Verse 17

sheep that have not a shepherd — Moses prayed that Israel 'be not as sheep which have no shepherd' (Num 27:17), and Christ saw the crowds so (Matt 9:36). Here the LORD says 'These have no master' (adon), and sends them home 'every man to his house in peace': the leader falls, and the people are dismissed.

Verse 19

the host of heaven — Micaiah begins 'Hear thou therefore the word of the LORD', then describes the LORD on his throne with the host 'standing by him on his right hand and on his left'. These are the angels who 'do his pleasure' (Ps 103:20–21); Daniel sees 'ten thousand times ten thousand' before him (Dan 7:10).

Verse 22

a lying spirit — The LORD asks 'Who shall persuade Ahab?' (v.20). Pathah, to entice, runs through vv.20–22 and is used again of a deceived prophet: 'I the LORD have deceived that prophet' (Ezek 14:9). The spirit goes into 'the mouth of all his prophets', so the unanimous word of v.12 is the means that brings Ahab to Ramoth.

Verse 24

smote Micaiah on the cheek — Zedekiah claims the Spirit of the LORD for himself: 'Which way went the Spirit of the LORD from me to speak unto thee?' The blow on the cheek is the insult Micah foretells for 'the judge of Israel' (Mic 5:1), and an officer struck Jesus the same way before the high priest (John 18:22).

Verse 27

bread of affliction — Lachats, distress or oppression: the prison ration of bread and water is 'of affliction'. Isaiah uses the same word in 'the water of affliction' (Isa 30:20). Ahab sets a limit, 'until I come in peace', and Micaiah stakes his word on that very outcome in the next verse.

Verse 28

the LORD hath not spoken by me — Micaiah puts his word under the test of Moses: a prophet whose word does not 'come to pass' has spoken 'presumptuously' (Deut 18:22). It did come to pass: the king died and 'was brought to Samaria' (v.37). 'Hearken, O people, every one of you' calls every hearer as a witness.

Verse 30

I will disguise myself — Chaphas, to search, in the reflexive to hide oneself. It is used of the prophet who 'disguised himself with ashes upon his face' (1 Kgs 20:38) and of Josiah before Megiddo (2 Chr 35:22). Ahab tells Jehoshaphat to wear 'thy robes', and the Syrian captains are ordered to fight 'only with the king of Israel' (v.31).

Verse 34

at a venture — Tom, simplicity or innocence, the word rendered 'integrity' in 1 Kgs 9:4: the man drew his bow with no stated aim at the king. The arrow found 'the joints of the harness' (debeq, a joint, and shiryon, a corslet). The LORD had asked who would bring Ahab up to 'fall at Ramothgilead' (v.20).

Verse 35

died at even — Ahab did not leave the field. He was 'stayed up in his chariot' while the battle 'increased', and 'died at even' (ereb). The blood ran 'into the midst of the chariot', the chariot washed in v.38.

Verse 36

about the going down of the sun — The rinnah, a ringing cry, sent the army home: 'Every man to his city, and every man to his own country.' It matches Micaiah's vision, 'let them return every man to his house in peace' (v.17).

Verse 38

the dogs licked up his blood — The LORD had said after Naboth's death, 'In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine' (1 Kgs 21:19). The verse closes 'according unto the word of the LORD which he spake'. Ahab's humbling had put off the evil on his house to his son's days (21:29).

Verse 39

the ivory house — Shen is 'tooth', hence ivory. Amos later names such houses in judgment: 'the houses of ivory shall perish' (Amos 3:15), and 'beds of ivory' (6:4). The rest of Ahab's acts lie in 'the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel', a record separate from this one.

Verse 41

Jehoshaphat the son of Asa — The name means 'the LORD has judged'. He began to reign in Ahab's fourth year and reigned twenty-five years (v.42). 'The LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David' (2 Chr 17:3).

Verse 43

the high places were not taken away — Jehoshaphat did 'that which was right in the eyes of the LORD', yet the people kept to the high places. Chronicles records both his taking away of 'the high places and groves' (2 Chr 17:6) and that the people 'had not prepared their hearts unto the God of their fathers' (2 Chr 20:33).

Verse 46

the remnant of the sodomites — Qadesh, a man set apart to idol worship by prostitution, forbidden in Israel (Deut 23:17). They came in under Rehoboam (1 Kgs 14:24); Asa 'took away the sodomites out of the land' (15:12), and Jehoshaphat removed those who remained. Josiah later broke down their houses (2 Kgs 23:7).

Verse 48

ships of Tharshish — Solomon had made a navy at Eziongeber and fetched gold from Ophir (1 Kgs 9:26–28). Jehoshaphat's ships were 'broken at Eziongeber' before they sailed. Chronicles gives the reason: he had joined himself with Ahaziah, and Eliezer said 'the LORD hath broken thy works' (2 Chr 20:37).

Verse 51

Ahaziah the son of Ahab — The name means 'Jah has seized'. He began to reign in Jehoshaphat's seventeenth year and reigned two years. His story is taken up in 2 Kgs 1, where after a fall through a lattice he sends to enquire of Baalzebub, the god of Ekron (2 Kgs 1:2).

Verse 52

the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat — Three ways are named: his father's, his mother's, and Jeroboam's, 'who made Israel to sin'. Ahab's marriage to Jezebel brought in the service of Baal (1 Kgs 16:31), and v.53 adds of Ahaziah, 'he served Baal, and worshipped him'.