By
Rev. Todd
W. Allen
Villa Rica 8/29/03
2 Chronicles 18:1-17 Compare 1 Kings 22
We talked last week about the
sin of Ahab and Jezebel in arranging the
murder of Naboth the Jezreelite and how
God pronounced judgment on them.
In our
scripture today -- which you can also find
recorded in 1 Kings 22 -- we see Ahab
reverting to his pattern of unbelief after
he had a brief period of remorse and
regret following the judgment word from
Elijah.
In our
scripture today we have a situation that
can speak to us all. It deals with a
portion of history in the two kingdoms of
Judah and Israel about 850 years before
the birth of Christ.
The one
people of God suffered a division of the
kingdom after Solomon's death. In our
scripture today we see Judah in the south
with Jehosaphat as king and Israel to the
north with Ahab as king.
Jehosaphat
was considered a good king. He followed
the example of David in living a life of
faith and in seeking to obey the Word of
God. He removed the high places and the
images. He was a Bible believing King and
taught the people the Bible. We read in 2
Chron. 17:3-6:
3The
LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he
followed the example of his father David’s
earlier days and did not seek the Baals,
4but sought the God of his
father, followed His commandments, and did
not act as Israel did. 5So the
LORD established the kingdom in his
control, and all Judah brought tribute to
Jehoshaphat, and he had great riches and
honor. 6He took great pride in
the ways of the LORD and again removed the
high places and the Asherim from Judah 2
Chr. 17:3 -6 (NASB)
We are not
able to see the hearts of men as God does.
No one can escape accountability or
responsibility for his words and deeds. We
all must stand before the Judge of all the
earth and then shall each man have his own
praise of God, according to his faith.
Undoubtedly, the man or woman who takes
seriously the Word of God and who makes it
his or her business to live by the Book,
will prosper and be promoted by God. It is
simply a benefit of faithful discipleship.
We learn
from scripture that Jehoshaphat became
allied with Ahab through the marriage of
his son Jehoram to Athaliah the daughter
of Ahab and Jezebel.
What a
serious thing marriage is. Not only does
it cause the two to become one it also
binds together two families. How careful
we ought to be to counsel our sons and
daughters to marry in the Lord.
Now it
may have been a natural desire on the part
of Jehosaphat to be a friendly
father-in-law. Apparently he had approved
of the wedding. So he went down to visit
his son in law’s family at Samaria. And
Ahab was very hospitable to Jehosaphat. He
butchered many sheep and oxen for a feast.
It was a friendly time for both families.
Everyone enjoyed the barbecue. Perhaps
this would be the beginning of a reunion
of the northern and southern kingdoms. The
two families gettting together must have
seemed promising for the future.
Well,
wouldn't you know that Ahab saw this as a
golden
opportunity to thicken up this
relationship and make a little profit at
the same time. He had had his eye on
Ramoth gilead. Ramoth gilead was possessed
by the Syrians but Ahab claimed that it
rightfully belonged to Israel. Jehosaphat
had a famous name and had never been
defeated in battle. He would be just the
force needed to assure a victory. So Ahab
propositions Jehosaphat, Will you go with
me to Ramoth gilead?
Without
praying about it or even consulting his
advisors Jehosaphat immediately replies, I
am as you are, and my people as your
people, and we will be with you in the
battle.
That was a
very hasty and unwise decision.
But see
how affinity joined in marriage can soon
lead to projects and enterprises together.
We become associated with our partners in
things we otherwise would not have been
involved in. His son's marriage has now
developed into a war alliance.
But
Jehosaphat, being the man of faith that he
was, would not go into battle without a
word from the lord. He asks Ahab to join
him in seeking the mind of the Lord.
Inquire, I pray thee, at the word of the
Lord today.
Vs. 4.
Well, Ahab
certainly wouldn't refuse that. After all,
he considered himself a very religious
man. As a matter of fact he had 400
prophets of Baal on his staff. They must
have been a very impressive corps of
advisors. So they are all called together.
This is a very important moment. Ahab gets
them all in front of their thrones and
puts the question to them,
Shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or
shall I forbear?
These men
knew exactly what to say. They already
knew the situation. They had their ears to
the ground and knew that Ahab had
maneuvered Jehosaphat into a mutual
assistance pact. Their part was to confirm
the deal and reassure these kings that
what Ahab wanted to do was the right thing
to do. Their chief prophet had even
prepared for the occasion by having a pair
of horns made of iron. This was a great
prop to reinforce his words before the
kings. We read, and Zedekiah the son of
Chenaanah said,
Thus says the LORD, ‘With these you shall
gore the Arameans until they are
consumed.’” 2 Chr. 18:10 (NASB
That was
the signal. All the other prophets backed
up that
word from their chief, And they all
prophesied, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead,
and prosper for the Lord shall deliver it
into the hand of the king.
But
Jehosaphat just didn't feel right about
this show. He smelled something phony
about this display. These men just didn't
ring true with him. But he didn’t come
right out and say what he was thinking.
Instead he just said,
“Is
there not yet a prophet of the LORD here
that we may inquire of him?” 2 Chr. 18:6
You know,
a discerning seeker after the truth of God
will know the difference between a man of
God and a false prophet. Jehosaphat knew a
true prophet when he heard one. These men
were showmen, political appointees, royal
sycophants who merely told Ahab what he
wanted to hear. They knew his whims and
pet projects; they knew his political
aspirations and his thirst for lands and
possessions. It wouldn't take a very smart
man to figure out what Ahab wanted to hear
preached in this instance.
There are
honest people like Jehosophat who really
do want to hear the Word of God and then
there are many who don't, like Ahab. Some
people want the preacher to preach the
Word no matter how it steps on them or
others, the harder the better, but there
are others who don't. Ahab wanted religion
on his terms. He wanted an accommodating
God, a God who would endorse whatever
goals and aspirations he might have. A god
who would look the other way when he
indulged his lusts, a god who would
flatter him and speak smooth words to him.
Since God is not like that at all such
people as Ahab manufacture a god to suit
himself or herself. Ahab had his own brand
of prophets. He could count on them to say
just the right thing.
You all
know about chameleons. They have a
chemistry that enables them to change
color and blend in with their background.
They adapt themselves to the color of
whatever they stand on. These false
prophets were like that. They could adapt
themselves to whatever the king wanted to
hear. Zedekiah was the color selector. He
told them what to say and then all of them
would say the same. It worked like a
charm. Of course it was not the Word of
the Lord, but then who is going to say
otherwise?
Have you
ever been to a circus and seen the trapeze
artists perform. They are experts at their
craft. There are men and women who are
theological trapeze artists. They can
stand on the platform of authority and
c1aim to speak for God, and do a double
summersault, catch the swinging trapeze
swung out to them by a partner and catch
it without falling into the net.
There is a
theology today called neoorthodoxy that
can adapt itself to every new situation by
claiming that God has given new truth to
cover that situation any way you want it
covered -- they call that situation
ethics. God can be switched around any old
way you please to endorse anything you
want to do. That suits the Ahab's of our
day.
Ahab knew
exactly what Jehosaphat was talking about
when he asked if there wasn't another
prophet besides these 400 phonies. He
said,
“There is yet one man by whom we may
inquire of the LORD, but I hate him, for
he never prophesies good concerning me but
always evil. He is Micaiah, son of Imla.”
But Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the king
say so.” 2 Chr. 18:7 (NASB)
You know,
that's just the way a lot a people feel
about preachers who preach nothing but the
Word of God. They get uncomfortable in
church when their toes get stepped on;
their conscience begins to bother them.
They get the idea in their head that the
preacher is against them personally and
they resent him for that. Or else they
just out and out deny the truth of what
the Word of God says. So they go find a
church where there are smooth words and
nice platitudes, the place where you get a
comfortable feeling, a sort of Ahab
coziness.
Now I want
you to notice two things: first. After
Ahab had
complained about Micaiah, saying that he
always had something bad to say about him
or to him, that Jehosaphat said, Let not
the king say so. In other words, don’t say
that! Don't blame it on the prophet. The
Lord never speaks anything that is not
meant for our good. If the Lord speaks to
us about our sins and about the need to
repent and obey him, that is a good thing.
We can only please the Lord when we
hearken to his Word.
Secondly,
when the messenger goes to get Micaiah he
tried to persuade him to make his message
conform to
the
message of Zedekiah. He said,
“Behold, the words of the prophets are
uniformly favorable to the king. So please
let your word be like one of them and
speak favorably.” 13But Micaiah
said, “As the LORD lives, what my God
says, that I will speak.” 2 Chr. 18:12-13
Come on,
Micaiah, get with it. Shape up. Join the
majority vote. This thing is going just
like the king wants it to go, so throw
your support behind the 400 staff
prophets.
What an opportunity for
Micaiah to have ingratiated himself with
Ahab and the college of false prophets. He
could have secured his future that day by
just siding with the Baal liberals. But
this man has a true calling from God. He
can't do that. He must speak the truth of
God’s Word. So
Micaiah said, “As the LORD lives, what my
God says, that I will speak.” 2 Chr.
18:12-13
Ahab then asks at the mouth
of
Micaiah
whether he should go up to Ramoth-gilead
or not go up. The prophet says,
“Go up and succeed, for they will be given
into your hand.”
15Then
the king said to him, “How many times must
I adjure you to speak to me nothing but
the truth in the name of the LORD?
Apparently
the way the prophet Micaiah spoke, perhaps
with a smile on his face, the king knew he
was imitating his false prophets. He is
saying, you don't really want a Word from
the Lord, Ahab. You just want me to mouth
the words you want to hear.
Well, Ahab sees that he is
mocking the Baal prophets so he acts
indignant. How many times do I have to
tell you not to ever prophesy anything but
the truth? In other words, Stop fooling
around, Micaiah give it to me straight.
Isn't that
the way many people are today? They say,
oh, tell it like it is, preacher. Give me
what you think is the truth. After all, I
am a religious person. I resent your
insinuation that I don't care about the
Word of the Lord.
And so,
with this sanctimonious statement by Ahab,
Micaiah indeed does give him the Word of
the Lord. Micaiah says,
“I saw all Israel
Scattered on the mountains,
Like sheep which have no shepherd;
And the LORD said,
‘These have no master.
Let each of them return to his house in
peace.’”
7Then the king of Israel said
to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you that
he would not prophesy good concerning me,
but evil?”
Please
note that Ahab wasn’t interested in what
the Lord was saying. He is double minded.
He is one of those who believe in free
choice. He will believe what suits him.
After all, he wanted a message suitable to
his plans, but this message doesn't suit
his plans. According to this message he
had better stay home and not go into the
battle. Had he listened to the word of the
true prophet he would have spared his own
life. But he does what he has always done.
He blames the prophet for the message,
attributing it to a secret resentment
against him personally and thus he
disregards the Word of the Lord.
Micaiah
then gives a further word to Ahab that is
very instructive for all of us. (See 1
Kings 22:17-38 or 2 Chronicles 18:18-34)
These
passages tell us how God allows evil,
ungodly men and even evil spirits to be
instruments to bring to pass his holy
purposes.
Ahab hated
the message of Micaiah so he ordered that
he be put under arrest and be fed
sparingly with bread and water until he
returned. Micaiah told him that if he
returned God had not spoken his word.
Ahab
thinks to defeat the Word of God should it
happen to be true. So he disguised himself
by taking off his kingly robes as he goes
into battle. By doing this he makes
Jehosaphat the likely kingly target of the
Syrian soldiers. When the battle
commences Jehosaphat sees that he is being
singled out for an arrow cries out to the
Lord and is spared. But an arrow shot at
random by an unnamed soldier finds its
mark in Ahab, thus fulfilling the Word of
the Lord. And Ahab died and the dogs
licked his blood from his chariot
according to the Word of the Lord.
I ask that you examine
yourself today. Ask yourself, do I receive
the Word of God gladly and believingly or
petulantly, even resentfully, smarting
under it and somehow blaming the preacher
if it isn't what I want it to be. The Word
of God has some sharpness to it, some bite
so that you are inclined to say, he never
prophesies good of me but only evil?
We can
hear the gospel and be offended by it. We
can find fault with the preacher who
preaches the whole counsel of God. We can
resent the message that demands
righteousness and holiness in an evil
world and that tells of a judgment to come
that will send the ungodly to a darkened
lake of fire where the worm never dies and
the fire is never quenched. Some folks
just want a gospel that always promises
blessings and prosperity, never judgment
against sin.
Ahab
represents all who are ambivalent toward
the word of God. Let me ask you a personal
question, Have you acknowledged your sin
before the Lord and applied the Blood of
Jesus Christ to cleanse you? Have you
confessed your sins and been willing to
forsake them? Do you acknowledge Jesus
Christ as your Savior and Lord and promise
by His grace to live as becometh a
follower of Christ? This is the call of
the gospel, my friend. This is the Word of
the Lord to all men today. Repent of your
sins and trust in Jesus Christ for your
salvation today.
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The paper and sermon manuscripts from
Pastor
Todd W. Allen
are made freely available for review and
distribution. We only request that proper
web page attribution be provided if
distributed for any reason. Please be
gracious to forgive typos and errors of
expression. These notes are faithful
approximations of what has been preached.
May God be glorified in the preaching of
His Word.