1 Kings 22:1-29 is one of the clearest examples in the bible of how God uses the spirit realm to accomplish all the counsel of His own will (Eph 1:11). In this story, the time has come for Ahab to meet his demise, and God is the one who created the circumstances needed through prophets who had been given a lying spirit to convince king Ahab that, with the joined forces of Jehoshaphat king of Israel, they can come up and battle the king of Syria and possess “Ramoth in Gilead”.
Eze 14:9 And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the LORD have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel.
Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Ahab has consistently separated himself from the counsel of the Lord and rejected the words of God’s faithful prophet Elijah, and this first half of chapter 22 of 1 Kings sets the stage for how God is going to punish Ahab for past and present sins that have brought him and the nations of Israel and Judah to the brink of destruction which will come suddenly and without remedy (Pro 29:1).
Pro 29:1 He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.
Ezekiel 14 reveals the condition of the idolatrous heart we all have in our appointed time and the punishment it necessitates (Eze 14:7-10). As the Master Potter, God is the one who has created these conditions and is the One who can take that marred condition and make it into something new and holy at the time that He appoints this to happen through judgment that comes in the form of fiery trials (Jer 18:4, Rom 9:19-21, 1Pe 4:17, 1Pe 4:12, Heb 12:6).
Eze 14:7 For every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to enquire of him concerning me; I the LORD will answer him by myself:
Eze 14:8 And I will set my face against that man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
Eze 14:9 And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the LORD have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel [Rom 9:21].
Eze 14:10 And they shall bear the punishment of their iniquity: the punishment of the prophet shall be even as the punishment of him that seeketh unto him;Jer 18:4 And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
Ahab was unwilling to listen to Micaiah when he came with a warning from God that he will not be victorious in this battle against Syria, which were contrary words to what the four hundred prophets have been given to say (1Ki 22:18). The reason he states that there will be no victory is found in 1 Kings 22:17 that talks about a lack of leadership in Israel that has been brought about by Ahab’s idolatrous way of living. This tells us that when we don’t obey Christ as our head, we put him to an open shame, scattering the flock, leaving them with “no master” (Mat 26:31).
1Ki 22:17 And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd: and the LORD said, These have no master: let them return every man to his house in peace.
1Ki 22:18 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil?Mat 26:31 Then saith Jesus unto them, All ye shall be offended because of me this night: for it is written, I will smite the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock shall be scattered abroad.
God can easily harden our hearts over and over to the point where sudden destruction comes upon us as was the case with Ahab. The overall lesson for the elect of God today is to take heed from these stories written for our sakes (1Co 10:11) as we continue to die daily, and examine ourselves daily, less a root of bitterness, which often stems from pride, take root in our heart and thereby many be defiled (Heb 12:15, 1Ti 4:16, Act 20:28, 1Co 9:27). If we are examining ourselves, and being granted to be washed with the word of God through that examination, the root of bitterness will not have an opportunity to take root but will be dealt with by God’s grace through faith (Eph 2:8).
Heb 12:15 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
1Ti 4:16 Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.
Act 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.
1Co 9:27 But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
That root of sin is always going to be at the door of our heart because God made flesh to be that way with a law of sin in our members (Jer 17:9, Gen 4:7), and so our focus needs to be on “Micaiah” in this story, who typifies the Christ-centric life we can be granted to live through him, as we fight a good fight of faith, taking heed to His commandments and not shunning to declare all the counsel of God’s will to those to whom God brings us to deliver that message (1Pe 3:15).
Jer 17:9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?
Gen 4:7 If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
[We are accepted in the Lord who knows our hearts (Eph 1:6, Jer 17:10, Col 1:27)]
There are many entries in the KJV using some form of the english expression “take heed“, all of which are very instructive for us as we know that Christ will come to us via the true church (Eph 3:10) in the spirit, typified by the life of “Micaiah“, and it will be for the express purpose of having us “take heed” to those admonitions.
There are actually eight different Strong’s Hebrew numbers and 6 different Strong’s Greek numbers that can be found in the KJV translating some form of this concept of the english word “heed”, and there is a total of just under 80 times (in this positive application) using the english word “heed”, but using a total of 2,724 Hebrew and Greek instances in the KJV to describe the concept we are looking at in this study.
H238 = 43 times used = conceptually “hearken” as in ear
H2095 = 1 time used (Aramaic) = “take heed” (Ezr 4:22)
H3820 = 595 times used = conceptually regarding the heart, understanding, mind
H5535 = 1 time used = “take heed” (Deu 27:9)
H7181 = 46 times used = conceptually “hearken”, “attend”, “incline”
H7182 = 3 times used = conceptually ‘diligent hearing’/’regarding’
H7200 = 1308 times used = conceptually “see”, “appear”, “show”, “consider”
H8104 = 469 times used = conceptually “keep”, “observe”, “heed”, “beware”, “preserve”, “watch”, “mark”G991 = 136 times used = conceptually “see”, “behold”, “regard” etc
G1907 = 7 times used = conceptually “stay”, “hold”, “mark”
G3381 = 19 times used = conceptually “lest by”
G3708 = 60 times used = conceptually “see”, “perceive”
G4337 = 27 times used = conceptually “heed”, “beware”, “attend to”
G4648 = 9 times used = conceptually “consider”, “look”, “mark”
In the new covenant, five entries can be noted as very specific admonitions to beware of the leaven of the “Pharisees and of the Sadducees” or “the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod” or “that no man deceive you” or “lest any man deceive you“. God has called us to be watchmen looking without (outwardly), through Christ, and there is also a great emphasis on watching within and examining the fruit of our life as these statements make very clear: “Take heed what ye hear” and “take heed to yourselves” and “Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.“
God’s spirit shows us that the primary place where we start to take heed is ‘within’ as we wash the cup within so we can detect the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees ‘without’. The following verses express the outward:
Mat 16:6, Mat 24:4, Mar 8:15, Mar 13:5, Luk 21:8…
…while these verses emphasize the within, of which there are more:
Mat 4:24, Mar 13:9, Luk 11:35, Luk 17:3, Luk 21:34, Act 5:35, Act 20:28, Rom 11:21, 1Co 3:10, 1Co 10:12, Heb 3:12, 1Ti 4:16, 2Pe 1:19…
…and these verses have their emphasis on examining the fruit of our life:
Mat 6:1, Mat 18:10, Luk 8:18, Luk 12:15, Act 22:26, 1Co 8:9, Gal 5:15, Col 4:17.
Ahab represents our old man of sin, the first corrupt king who cannot take heed, and will be destroyed as a result of that. “The king’s [whose] heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: [that] he turneth it whithersoever he will.” That turning, as we’re seeing over and over, is a work of the Lord, and He alone is the one who determines what the outcome will be of all unprofitable servants in this life, which we all are of our own selves (Pro 21:1, Luk 17:10).
Pro 21:1 The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.
Luk 17:10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
If we are part of the river of Life that can flow from our belly as a result of the life of Christ within us (Joh 7:38, Col 1:27), then the positive outcome of our hearts being in the hand of our Lord which He turns in this age (Php 2:12-13) is that we will be led by His holy spirit. As such, we will be able to say in faith that “we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose”; a purpose which includes that we live by the faith of the son of God and endure to the end through Christ in order to be saved, receiving His kingdom which is God’s good pleasure to give to His little flock (Rom 8:14-16, Rom 8:28-31, Gal 2:20, Luk 12:32).
Joh 7:38 He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.
Pro 21:1 The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.
Luk 12:32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
One other important thing we must always heed when we are reading these old covenant stories is, “If the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the LORD have deceived that prophet.” This statement tells us that knowing the mindset of and understanding the condition of the world’s heart is a gift from God (Luk 8:10) as we look at this deceived and dying world with love and compassion in our hearts for every single soul as our Lord did (Luk 23:34, Joh 20:21, Joh 3:16-17).
Luk 8:10 And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand.
Luk 23:34 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted his raiment, and cast lots.
Joh 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.
Joh 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
1Ki 22:1 And they continued three years without war between Syria and Israel.
1Ki 22:2 And it came to pass in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel.
1Ki 22:3 And the king of Israel said unto his servants, Know ye that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, and we be still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Syria?
1Ki 22:4 And he said unto Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramothgilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses.
1Ki 22:5 And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the LORD to day.
The Lord gave Ahab this three-year period of grace because of the contrite heart which he displayed in the previous chapter when he heard what God was going to do to him and to Jezebel (1Ki 21:29). The brokenness of Ahab spoken of in 1 Kings 21:29 was a wound that would be healed in time however, symbolizing for us that this period of judgment that was upon Ahab, or God’s wrath that was upon him, had no effect in the long run as would be revealed by his disregard for the counsel God gave him via the prophet “Micaiah the son of Imlah” who warned Ahab to not go to battle with Israel against “Ramothgilead“.
It is also in the third year that Judah and Israel, who are types of Babylon, consulted to join forces to do battle against Syria, symbolizing the deadly wound (of Ahab) being healed (after three years of reprieve from war) in Revelation 13:12. Although they were joined in their purpose to take back that which was Israel’s, God is going to thwart their efforts to show us that the “whole head is sick”, represented by Judah and “the whole heart faint…from the sole of the foot even unto the head”, representing Israel (Isa 1:5-6). This story reveals stages of what we go through so that God can seek an occasion against our flesh, Ahab representing our old man that seeks alliance with other nations like a companion of fools who will soon be destroyed (Pro 13:20).
Rev 13:11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
Rev 13:12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.Isa 1:5 Why should ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and more: the whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint.
Isa 1:6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrifying sores: they have not been closed, neither bound up, neither mollified with ointment.Pro 13:20 He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.
Jehoshaphat was speaking the truth when he said “I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses“, meaning they were of kindred spirits like the ecumenical spirit of the churches of Babylon whose power is in the earth symbolized by the horses, the beast that gets his power from Satan, “the dragon which gave power unto the beast” (Psa 33:16-17, Rev 13:4). Jehoshaphat asked Ahab, “And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the LORD to day.” In itself this is not a problem, but inquiring of the Lord with an idol in our heart is the stumbling block of Ahab’s iniquity, as he inquired with a heart that only wanted to hear what he wanted to hear (Eze 14:6-7). This idol in the heart of Ahab represents our former conversation (Eph 2:1-5) when we claimed to have a right relationship with God but served Him on our terms and conditions, calling him Lord, Lord, but not doing the things which he says (Luk 6:46, Jer 10:2).
Psa 33:16 There is no king saved by the multitude of an host: a mighty man is not delivered by much strength.
Psa 33:17 An horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength.Eze 14:6 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.
Eze 14:7 For every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to enquire of him concerning me; I the LORD will answer him by myself:Jer 10:2 Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.
1Ki 22:6 Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them, Shall I go against Ramothgilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king.
Ahab gathering four hundred men, who were prophets, is a symbol of how the whole stay of bread (4×10) and water can be taken away even from the prophets of God (Isa 3:1-5, Mat 24:24) who have come with a lying spirit, as God intended. The lesson for God’s elect is to try the spirits whether they are of God even if they come as an angel of light (2Co 11:14). We do this by going to God’s word and by listening to “Micaiah the son of Imlah” who typifies Christ and His elect bride who have remained faithful to the commandments of God, listening to the voice of the true shepherd saying, “Let God be true and every man a liar” (400 prophets – Rom 3:4) as was the case in this story. When God wants a nation or individual to be deceived, He takes away the truth from Judah and Jerusalem, by the many divergent ways expressed after that first verse of Isaiah 3:1 (Isa 3:1-5).
Isa 3:1 For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water,
Isa 3:2 The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient,
Isa 3:3 The captain of fifty, and the honourable man, and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator.
Isa 3:4 And I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.
Isa 3:5 And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbour: the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honourable.
In this case, it was the four hundred united voices of the prophets that God used to convince Ahab and Jehoshaphat to make war against Syria. Seeing we know God does not change (Mal 3:6), it will be by the same means that God will ultimately bring Gog and Magog from the four corners of the world up against the holy city to destroy God’s elect (Rev 20:8).
1Ki 22:7 And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD besides, that we might enquire of him?
1Ki 22:8 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may enquire of the LORD: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so.
1Ki 22:9 Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said, Hasten hither Micaiah the son of Imlah.
Jehoshaphat is willing to ask if there is any other prophet “that we might enquire of him.” Ahab reluctantly says, “(Yes) yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may enquire of the LORD.” He makes sure Jehoshaphat knows how he feels about Micaiah: “but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.” By this comment Ahab reveals the murderous spirit that was in him (1Jn 3:15). Neither of these two kings who have joined forces have in type and shadow passed from death to life which can only be accomplished through Christ (1Jn 3:13-14). So God has moved king Jehoshaphat to ask Ahab, which caused him to go get Micaiah. Now they both (2 = witness) are without excuse when they finally carried out an attack on Syria despite the warning that God would deliver to them through his faithful prophet “Micaiah (who is like Jehovah) the son of Imlah (replenish).” (PNB-kjv)
1Jn 3:15 Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him.
1Ki 22:10 And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, having put on their robes, in a void place in the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them.
1Ki 22:11 And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron: and he said, Thus saith the LORD, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until thou have consumed them.
1Ki 22:12 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramothgilead, and prosper: for the LORD shall deliver it into the king’s hand.
The “king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne” showing that this was a joint effort that these two kings were getting involved in, and it was all being deliberated “in a void placeH1637 in the entrance of the gate of Samaria.” The symbolism of “a void place” is important to notice as it reminds us that these two kings were being judged by the Lord at a void place that means ‘threshing floor’, which in biblical terms represents a place of judgment. They were certainly void of God’s counsel in their lives and were now going to be visited by God’s prophet of whom they will inquire with hearts that were already made up regarding what they were going to do.
H1637 gôren go’-ren
From an unused root meaning to smooth; a threshing floor (as made even); by analogy any open area: – (barn, corn, threshing-) floor, (threshing-, void) place. Total KJV occurrences: 36
There is already a persistent spirit around the kings from all the prophets that were falsely prophesying before them both, along with “Zedekiah (righteousness of Jehovah [PNB-kjv]) the son of Chenaanah (humiliated [PNB-kjv]) [who had] made him horns of iron“, representing the false prophets’ power in their own flesh that generates lies like this one: “Thus saith the LORD, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until thou have consumed them.” This was the circus-like atmosphere that “Micaiah the son of Imlah” walked into where all the false prophets were in accord: “all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramothgilead, and prosper: for the LORD shall deliver it into the king’s hand.“
1Ki 22:13 And the messenger that was gone 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 that which is good.
1Ki 22:14 And Micaiah said, As the LORD liveth, what the LORD saith unto me, that will I speak.
Now that we’ve been shown the spirit which surrounds the two kings, Ahab and Jehoshaphat, we learn of the warning that was given to “Micaiah” from the messenger who was sent from Ahab: “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 that which is good.” Micaiah is not going to pay any heed to this messenger and tells him straightway he will declare the whole counsel of God saying, “As the LORD liveth, what the LORD saith unto me, that will I speak.“
1Ki 22:15 So he came to the king. And the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go against Ramothgilead to battle, or shall we forbear? And he answered him, Go, and prosper: for the LORD shall deliver it into the hand of the king.
1Ki 22:16 And the king said unto him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the LORD?
1Ki 22:17 And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd: and the LORD said, These have no master: let them return every man to his house in peace.
Keeping in mind the scene that Micaiah is walking into, and having already heard clearly what he knows Ahab has heard, Micaiah sounds like he’s agreeing with the prophets that they should go and do battle. However, there’s no doubt he was being sarcastic with Ahab, who agrees and therefore says: “How many times shall I adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the LORD?” Then the truth comes out, a witness given for us to heed, when Micaiah faithfully tells him what the Lord intended him to say for our sakes: “And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd: and the LORD said, These have no master: let them return every man to his house in peace.“
Note that Micaiah did not lie in either case. First, he seems to tell Ahab what he wants to hear and then seems to contradict himself, but for the elect, we need to hear what he actually says. “I saw all Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd“… (Therefore Ahab, go ahead, it’s a done deal!)… That is a shadow of how Christ spoke first to the Pharisees and scribes, only revealing the hidden meaning to His apostles (Mar 11:28-33, Mat 28:18).
Mar 11:27-28 And they come again to Jerusalem: and as he was walking in the temple, there come to him the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders, And say unto him, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authorityG1849 to do these things?
Mar 11:33 And they [the chief priests, and the scribes, and the elders] answered and said unto Jesus, We cannot tell. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Neither do I tell you by what authorityG1849 I do these things.
Mat 28:16-18 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted. And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All powerG1849 is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
1Ki 22:18 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil?
All the fanfare of Babylon won’t change the truth one iota, represented by all this activity around the two kings of Judah and Israel. No matter how many people say otherwise, the truth will prevail through those whom God has ordained to be sent to bring that true gospel message in this age, which is what this story represents (Mat 16:18). Notice that Ahab does not take heed to this message, even though it is the one that will bring safety and security to the nation. He instead tells us where our heart is until it’s not (the first man Adam) by saying: “Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil?“
1Ki 22:19 And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left.
1Ki 22:20 And the LORD said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner.
1Ki 22:21 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the LORD, and said, I will persuade him.
1Ki 22:22 And the LORD said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so.
1Ki 22:23 Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the LORD hath spoken evil concerning thee.
Micaiah goes so far as to explain how this has all been ordained of the Lord to send these prophets who would have a lying spirit put in their mouths, which was how the LORD was going to speak this evil concerning Ahab, to lead him into this battle that would lead to his demise. Micaiah gave God the glory and said with all truth, “This is of the Lord, Ahab, listen! God is sovereign, your day of judgment has come and you’re going to be persuaded by these lying spirits that will lead to your demise.” Yet, instead of being thankful for these words and works of the true prophet, they are rejected by both kings as well as the surrounding false prophets who have heard what he had to say from the LORD (Isa 3:1 rejected and hated for his name’s sake – Mat 10:22).
1Jn 4:6 We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.
Mat 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.
1Ki 22:24 But Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near, and smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said, Which way went the Spirit of the LORD from me to speak unto thee?
These words of “Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah” were prophetic in their nature and remind us of the men who held Jesus and mocked him and smote him in Luke 22:63-64. The actions against Micaiah were against Christ himself and is something that happened and was written for our sakes upon whom the end of the ages is come (1Co 10:11), both to remind us of our guilt of the blood of the prophets that are required of the elect’s generation (Luk 11:50-51). We are also reminded how we in turn become the ones who are persecuted by the world when we become one with the body of Christ. Paul tells king Agrippa that very thing in his witness to him of the changes that started to take place in his life from the road to Damascus experience going forward (Act 9:5, Act 26:1-12, Act 26:13-14).
Luk 22:63 And the men that held Jesus mocked him, and smote him.
Luk 22:64 And when they had blindfolded him, they struck him on the face, and asked him, saying, Prophesy, who is it that smote thee?Act 26:10 Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against them.
Act 26:11 And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange cities.Luk 11:50 That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;
Luk 11:51 From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.Act 26:13 At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.
Act 26:14 And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.
1Ki 22:25 And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see in that day, when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thyself.
Right after Micaiah is unjustly smote by “Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah” he continues to prophesy and says to Ahab that when these things unfold, he would go and hide himself in “an inner chamber”. The inner chamber is a symbol of seeking solace with ‘another Jesus’, just as Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah reveals to us by the very meaning of his name (righteousness of another Jehovah the son of humiliated). The real Christ is not found there (Mat 24:23-26).
Mat 24:23 Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
Mat 24:24 For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.
Mat 24:25 Behold, I have told you before.
Mat 24:26 Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
1Ki 22:26 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;
1Ki 22:27 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.
These last few verses of our study explain how the world will react to a faithful witness of Christ. Yet, Christ tells us not to fear any of the things we are going to suffer in this life, and these events happening to Micaiah are typical of those events that will happen to those that have been predestined to overcome and endure until the end through Christ (Rev 2:10).
Rev 2:10 Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Rev 2:11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.
1Ki 22:28 And Micaiah said, If thou return at all in peace, the LORD hath not spoken by me. And he said, Hearken, O people, every one of you.
1Ki 22:29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramothgilead.
One last witness and warning from Micaiah’s mouth before being led into prison admonishes them that if these events don’t unfold, then he is indeed a false prophet who has been deceived by the Lord (Deu 18:22, Eze 14:9). He does not sway from obeying the LORD and His words.
Deu 18:22 When a prophet speaketh in the name of the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which the LORD hath not spoken, but the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou shalt not be afraid of him.
It is obvious at this point that Ahab and Jehoshaphat do not want to hear the words of a true prophet, Micaiah in this case, but would rather listen to smooth words being deceived by the Lord, else they would have never gone “up to Ramothgilead” (high mounds of testimony – PNB – kjv).
Isa 30:8 Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever:
Isa 30:9 That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the LORD:
Isa 30:10 Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:
In our next study we will see the outcome of all these prophesied events of punishment that was going to come upon Ahab for the reasons explained in the last verse of the chapter (1Ki 22:53).
1Ki 22:53 For he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked to anger the LORD God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.
"His Branch" 