Which Voices Are We Listening to? — 1 Kings 22:4-8, 13-18.
Ahab asks Judah to help him fight against Aram.
1 Kings 22:4-7 (NIV84) So he asked Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to fight against Ramoth Gilead?”
Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel, “I am as you are…”
“First seek the counsel of the Lord.”
So the king of Israel brought together the prophets—about four hundred men—and asked them, “Shall I go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall I refrain?”
“Go,” they answered, “for the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.”
“But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there not a prophet of the Lord here whom we can inquire of?”
We see they do inquire of God before the battle, and all the “prophets” say exactly what the king wants to hear, 400 hundred of them!
Yet, Jehoshaphat is wise enough to ask if there is a real prophet around.
Listen to Ahab,
1 Kings 22:8 (NIV84) “The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man through whom we can inquire of the Lord, but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me but always bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.””
“The king should not say that,” Jehoshaphat replied.
I don’t like this man of God; he keeps saying things I just don’t want to hear.
Jehoshaphat gives the right response, but watch what happens.
They send for Micaiah. While they are getting him, the “prophets” continue telling the kings that the battle is in their hands. The messenger who was sent to get Micaiah tells Micaiah:
1 Kings 22:13-14 (NIV84) “Look, as one man the other prophets are predicting success for the king. Let your word agree with theirs, and speak favorably.”
But Micaiah said, “As surely as the Lord lives, I can tell him only what the Lord tells me.”
That seems to be the wrong answer. We think that it is only today that people want only to hear from the man of God what they want to hear.
Micaiah truly is a man of God; he is a true prophet. He says I will not interject myself into this situation. He says I will not try to control the outcome. He says I will let God be God and say and do as He tells me.
I love this exchange between Ahab and Micaiah.
Sarcasm is not a new thing…
1 Kings 22:15-16 (NIV84) “When he arrived, the king asked him, “Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall I refrain?””
“Attack and be victorious,” he answered, “for the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.”
“The king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?””
Now watch what Micaiah has to say,
1 Kings 22:17-18 (NIV84) “Then Micaiah answered, “I saw all Israel scattered on the hills like sheep without a shepherd, and the Lord said, ‘These people have no master. Let each one go home in peace.’ ”
“The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you that he never prophesies anything good about me, but only bad?””
I would encourage you to read the rest of Micaiah’s prophecy.
He tells them of God’s vision of the throne room and the decepted spirit that was sent and led all the other “prophets” astray.
This sadly worked. Ahab, even though confronted with the truth and now Jehoshaphat also. They put Micaiah in prison and go off to battle. Ahab is killed, and his blood is licked up by the dogs, as was prophesied about him.
There is so much we could take from this passage, and I would encourage you to review it.
This morning, I am struck by how people only want to hear what they want to hear. They even make some kind of attempt to ask God, but it really is just to validate or to justify their already made decision.
People scorn someone who would actually tell them what God says. That is somehow the bad person.
Like it has anything to do with the one telling the truth! But everything to do with hearing from God and obeying what God says!
I see it and, sadly, live it. People hate you because you bring the truth. They can’t imagine you simply bringing what God says to them. Because it is not what they want to hear, they think you personally are against them instead of wanting all of us to simply listen to and obey God. No matter what it costs and if it is hard or uncomfortable.
Who are we listening to today? Are we really wanting to hear from God? Or do we want God and everyone around us to validate our decisions?
This didn’t end well for Ahab. Yet, 400 “prophets” told him exactly what he wanted to hear.
