1 Kings 21:17-22:40

1 Kings 21:17-22:40

As a result of Jezebel’s and Ahab’s actions toward Naboth, God sent word of more judgment to come for the house of Ahab. He first predicted the way in which Jezebel would die, a dog attack, and then he told Ahab that he too would be killed, as well as his family. Like many of the kings before him, his family would eventually lose the throne in Israel. The kings in Judah were all direct descendents of David, an unbroken chain. But in Israel, several families had had representatives on the throne. Because of the disobedience of so many of their kings, God had replaced them with new kings from new families, and Ahab was about to experience the same tragedy.

For what was probably the first time in his life (or at least one of the first times), Ahab humbled himself before God when he heard word of his destruction. He finally recognized his sin and knew that he should turn back to God. As a result, God spoke again to Elijah, and promised that the destruction would not come while Ahab was king in Israel. He would postpone the judgment a little longer. But destruction would come when his son took the throne.

In 1 Kings 22 Judah comes back into the story with a new king. Asa had been on the throne in Judah for years, seeing several kings come and go in Israel. He was now dead, and his son Jehoshaphat was king. After 3 years of peace between Syria and Israel, Jehoshaphat was summoned by Ahab concerning a city in Syria. Ahab believed it was their city, and he wanted Jehoshaphat to go to battle with him against Syria. Jehoshaphat viewed the Israelites as family and agreed to support him in his efforts against Syria if they received confirmation from God’s prophets. Ahab summoned 400 prophets and received approval from all of them, but when Jehoshaphat questioned whether he had any prophets of God, Ahab told him how much he hated Micaiah, the prophet of the Lord. Ahab complained how he always prophesied evil in regards to Ahab’s plans, and he did not want to hear what Micaiah had to say. Because his own prophets supported his decision to go to battle, Ahab had his mind made up.

But Micaiah would not fall in suit. Although those around him were asking him to go along with the rest of the prophets, Micaiah understood the importance of doing as God had commanded. God had given him a message for Ahab, a warning to Ahab. He told Ahab that God had allowed a lying spirit to speak through all his prophets. Although they supported his decision to go to war, the war he was headed out to would end in destruction. Micaiah’s words not only angered Ahab but the other prophets as well. Micaiah was thrown in jail, and Ahab ignored his warning and prepared for battle.

Taking Jehoshaphat with him, the nations of Israel and Judah went to battle against Syria. In an effort to protect himself in battle, Ahab disguised himself on the battlefield. Jehoshaphat was almost killed as a result when the Syrians thought that he was Ahab. Their orders had been to find and kill Ahab, so when they noticed that it was not him, they began shooting at anyone and everyone on the battlefield. Then, an arrow was randomly shot that went straight for Ahab. He died later that night, and the warnings of the prophets (such as Micaiah) came true. Ahab was killed as a result of disobedience, and his son, Ahaziah, took the throne.

Micaiah is a great example of a man who stood firm on his convictions. Even when everyone around him had turned away from God, he listened carefully to God’s commands. Men tried to persuade him to change his prophecy so that he would not anger Ahab, but he knew that his allegiance was ultimately to God. Consider the words of Peter and John in Acts 4:19-20 “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” It is far more important to serve God rather than man. That does not always mean that it will be easy. There could be severe consequences for doing so. But God will never leave us, and He will give us the strength to persevere through any forms of persecution that might come our way.


Matt