22 There was no war between Syria and Israel for three years. 2 But after three years, Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, went to visit the king of Israel.
3 The king of Israel said to his leaders, ‘You know that Ramoth Gilead belongs to us. But we are not doing anything to take it back from the king of Syria.’ 4 So the king of Israel asked Jehoshaphat, ‘Will you go with me to attack Ramoth Gilead?’ Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, ‘Yes, we should work together! Use my soldiers and my horses as if they belonged to you.’
5 Then Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, ‘Before we go to fight, we must ask the Lord what we should do.’ 6 So the king of Israel brought together about 400 prophets. He asked them, ‘Should I attack Ramoth Gilead, or not?’ They answered, ‘Yes, go and attack it, because the Lord God will give it to you, our king.’
7 But Jehoshaphat then asked, ‘Is there any other prophet of the Lord that we could ask?’ [ a ] 8 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, ‘There is still one man. We could ask him what the Lord wants us to do. But I do not like him, because he never says that anything good will happen to me. He only says that I will have trouble. He is Imlah's son, Micaiah.’ Jehoshaphat said, ‘The king should not talk like that.’ 9 So the king of Israel said to one of his officers, ‘Bring Imlah's son Micaiah here quickly.’
10 The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, were each sitting on their thrones. They were wearing their royal clothes. They sat near the threshing floor at Samaria's city gate. [ b ] All the prophets stood in front of them and they were speaking messages from God. 11 Kenaanah's son Zedekiah had used iron to make sharp points like a bull's horns. He said, ‘This is what the Lord says: “With these sharp horns you will attack Syria's army. You will destroy them all.” ’ [ c ] 12 All the other prophets were speaking the same message. They said, ‘Attack Ramoth Gilead. You will win the fight. The Lord will give the city to you, our king.’
13 The man who had gone to fetch Micaiah said to him, ‘All the other prophets are saying the same thing. They say that the king will win the fight. So you must agree with what they are saying. Promise that something good will happen.’ 14 But Micaiah said, ‘I can only speak what the Lord tells me to say. As surely as the Lord lives, that is what I must do.’
15 When Micaiah arrived, the king asked him, ‘Micaiah, should we attack Ramoth Gilead or not?’ Micaiah answered, ‘Yes, attack it. You will surely win the fight. The Lord will give it to you, our king.’ 16 Then King Ahab said to Micaiah, ‘I have already told you many times to tell me only what is true! You must promise to do this in the name of the Lord !’
17 Then Micaiah said, ‘I saw the whole army of Israel and they were walking about on the hills without any leader. They were like sheep with no shepherd as their guide. The Lord told me, “These people have no master. They should go home quietly and they should not fight.” ’
18 The king of Israel said to King Jehoshaphat, ‘I told you what he would say! He never says that anything good will happen to me. He only says that I will have trouble.’ 19 Then Micaiah said, ‘So now listen to the Lord 's message! I saw the Lord as he was sitting on his throne. The great crowd of his angels in heaven were standing around him, on his right side and on his left side. 20 The Lord asked, “Who will go and deceive King Ahab so that he attacks Ramoth Gilead and he dies there?” Many of the angels suggested different things. 21 Then a spirit came and stood in front of the Lord . The spirit said, “I will deceive Ahab.” [ d ] The Lord asked him, “How will you do it?” 22 The spirit said, “I will give a message to all Ahab's prophets. I will cause them to speak lies.” The Lord said, “Go and deceive King Ahab, as you have said. He will do what you say.”
23 So you see what has happened. The Lord has sent a spirit to all these prophets who serve you. This spirit has caused them to speak lies. The Lord has decided that terrible trouble will come on you.’
24 Then Kenaanah's son Zedekiah went to Micaiah. He hit Micaiah on his face. He asked Micaiah, ‘Do you say that the Lord 's spirit has gone away from me and has spoken to you instead? How did he do that?’ 25 Micaiah answered him, ‘One day, you will know which of us has spoken the truth. That will be the day that you go to hide in a room at the back of a house.’ [ e ]
26 Then the king of Israel said to his men, ‘Take hold of Micaiah. Take him back to Amon, the city officer, and to Joash, the king's son. 27 Say to them, “The king commands you to put this man in prison. Feed him with only a little bread and water until I return safely from the battle.” ’ 28 Micaiah said, ‘If you do return safely, it will show that I have not spoken the Lord 's message.’ Then he said to all the people who were there, ‘Remember what I have said to King Ahab!’
29 So King Ahab of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to attack Ramoth Gilead. 30 King Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, ‘When we go into the battle, I will wear ordinary clothes. People will not recognize me as the king. But you should wear your royal clothes.’ So the king of Israel went into the battle as if he was an ordinary soldier.
31 The king of Syria had said to his 32 chariot officers, ‘Only fight the king of Israel. Do not fight against anyone else, whoever they are.’ [ f ] 32 The chariot officers saw King Jehoshaphat in his royal clothes. They thought, ‘Surely that man is the king of Israel.’ So they turned towards him to attack him. When King Jehoshaphat saw them, he shouted out. 33 Then the chariot officers realized that he was not the king of Israel. So they did not chase him any more.
34 Then a Syrian soldier shot an arrow into the air. He did not try to shoot at anyone, but the arrow hit the king of Israel. The arrow went through a space in the king's armour. The king commanded the man who drove his chariot, ‘Turn the chariot around. Take me away from the battle. An arrow has hit me.’
35 The soldiers fought the battle all day. While they were fighting, King Ahab sat in his chariot where he could see the Syrian soldiers. His blood poured out and it covered the floor of the chariot. When evening came, Ahab died. 36 At sunset, the Israelite soldiers shouted to each other, ‘Leave the battle! Every man should return home to the city where he lives.’
37 So the king of Israel died. They took him to Samaria. They buried him there. 38 They washed his blood from the chariot at the pool of water in Samaria. It was the place where the prostitutes washed themselves. The dogs drank Ahab's blood there. The Lord had said that this would happen. [ g ]
39 The other things that happened while Ahab was king are written in a book. The book is called ‘The history of Israel's kings’. It tells about all the great things that he did. It also tells about the beautiful palace and the cities that he built.
40 Ahab died and they buried him beside his ancestors. His son Ahaziah became king after him.
41 In the fourth year that Ahab ruled Israel as king, Asa's son Jehoshaphat became the king of Judah. 42 Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 25 years. His mother's name was Azubah. She was the daughter of Shilhi.
43 Jehoshaphat lived in the good way that his father Asa had lived. He only did things that the Lord says are right. But he did not remove all the altars that were on the hills. People continued to offer sacrifices on those altars and they continued to burn incense there. 44 Jehoshaphat agreed not to fight against the king of Israel.
45 The other things that happened while Jehoshaphat was king are written in a book. The book is called ‘The history of Judah's kings’. It tells about the great things that he did and the battles that he fought. 46 He also removed the male prostitutes who lived near the special altars. [ h ] His father Asa had removed many of them when he ruled as king. Jehoshaphat removed those who were still there.
47 At this time there was no king who ruled Edom. Their ruler was an officer that King Jehoshaphat had chosen. 48 Jehoshaphat built some big ships to bring back gold from Ophir. But they never left Ezion-Geber because a storm destroyed them. So they never travelled anywhere. 49 At that time, Ahab's son Ahaziah said to Jehoshaphat, ‘Let my sailors join with your sailors on the ships.’ But Jehoshaphat refused.
50 Jehoshaphat died and they buried him beside his ancestors in the City of David, his ancestor. Jehoshaphat's son Jehoram became king after him.
51 When Jehoshaphat had ruled Judah for 17 years, Ahab's son Ahaziah became the king of Israel in Samaria. Ahaziah ruled Israel as king for two years. 52 He did things that the Lord said were evil. He lived in the way that his father and mother had lived. He caused the Israelites to do bad things, as Nebat's son Jeroboam had done. 53 Ahaziah served Baal as his god and he worshipped him. He made the Lord , Israel's God, very angry, as his father had also done. [ i ]
22 For the next two years there was peace between Israel and Aram. 2 Then during the third year, King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to visit King Ahab of Israel.
3 Ahab asked his officials, “Remember when the king of Aram took Ramoth Gilead from us? That city is ours, so why have we done nothing to get it back?” 4 So Ahab asked King Jehoshaphat, “Will you join with us to go fight the Arameans at Ramoth Gilead?”
Jehoshaphat answered, “Yes, you and I will be as one—my men and my horses will be as yours. 5 But first let’s ask the Lord for advice.”
6 So Ahab called a meeting of the prophets. There were about 400 prophets at that time. Ahab asked the prophets, “Should I go and attack the Arameans at Ramoth Gilead or not?”
The prophets answered Ahab, “Yes, because the Lord will let you defeat Ramoth Gilead.”
7 But Jehoshaphat said, “Doesn’t the Lord have another prophet here? Let’s ask him the same question.”
8 King Ahab answered, “Yes, there is another prophet. His name is Micaiah son of Imlah. But I hate him because he will not say anything good about me when he speaks for the Lord . He always says things that I don’t like.”
Jehoshaphat said, “The king should not say that!”
9 So King Ahab told one of his officers to go and find Micaiah.
10 At that time the two kings were sitting on their thrones, with their royal robes on, at the judgment place near the gates of Samaria. All the prophets were standing before them, prophesying. 11 One of the prophets was named Zedekiah son of Kenaanah. Zedekiah made some iron horns [ a ] and said to Ahab, “The Lord says, ‘You will use these iron horns to fight against the army of Aram. You will defeat them and destroy them.’” 12 All the other prophets agreed with Zedekiah and said, “Your army should march now to go fight against the Arameans at Ramoth Gilead. You will win the battle. The Lord will let you defeat them.”
13 While this was happening, the officer went to find Micaiah. When he found him, the officer told him, “All the other prophets have said that the king will succeed, so you should say the same thing.”
14 But Micaiah answered, “As surely as the Lord lives, I can say only what the Lord says.”
15 Micaiah went and stood before King Ahab. The king asked him, “Micaiah, should we go and attack the Arameans at Ramoth Gilead or not?”
Micaiah answered, “Yes, go and be successful! The Lord will let you take the city.”
16 But Ahab answered, “How many times do I have to tell you? Tell me the truth. What does the Lord say?”
17 So Micaiah answered, “I can see the army of Israel scattered all over the hills, like sheep with no one to lead them. This is what the Lord says: ‘These men have no leaders. Let them go home in peace.’”
18 Then Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “See, I told you! This prophet never says anything good about me. He always says something bad.”
19 But Micaiah said, “Listen to this message from the Lord : I saw the Lord sitting on his throne. All of heaven’s army was standing around him, some on his left side and some on his right side. 20 The Lord said, ‘Which of you will go fool Ahab into attacking the Arameans at Ramoth Gilead so that he will be killed?’ The angels discussed many different plans. 21 Then a spirit [ b ] went and stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will fool him!’ The Lord asked, ‘How will you do it?’ 22 The spirit answered, ‘I will go to Ahab’s prophets and cause them to tell lies.’ So the Lord said, ‘Yes, that will fool Ahab. Go out and do that.’
23 “So that is what has happened here. The Lord made your prophets lie to you. The Lord himself decided to bring this disaster to you.”
24 Then the prophet Zedekiah went to Micaiah and hit him on the face. Zedekiah said, “How is it that the Spirit of the Lord left me to speak through you?”
25 Micaiah answered, “Look, what I said will happen! And you will see it one day when you are in a secret room somewhere hiding.”
26 Then King Ahab ordered one of his officers to arrest Micaiah. Ahab said, “Arrest him and take him to Amon the governor of the city and prince Joash. 27 Tell them to put Micaiah in prison. Give him nothing but bread and water to eat. Keep him there until I come home from the battle.”
28 Micaiah said, “Listen to me, everyone! Ahab, if you come back alive from the battle, the Lord has not spoken through me.”
29 King Ahab of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to fight the Arameans at Ramoth Gilead. 30 Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “Disguise yourself when you go into battle, but wear your own clothes. And I will disguise myself.” The king of Israel went into battle dressed like an ordinary soldier.
31 The king of Aram had 32 chariot commanders. He gave them this command, “Don’t go after anyone except the king of Israel, no matter how important they are.” 32 When the commanders saw King Jehoshaphat, they thought he was the king of Israel, and so they went to kill him. Jehoshaphat started shouting. 33 When the commanders saw that he was not King Ahab, they stopped chasing him.
34 Then a soldier in the distance pulled back as far as he could on his bow and shot an arrow into the air. The arrow happened to hit the king of Israel in a small hole where his armor was fastened together. King Ahab said to his chariot driver, “I’ve been hit! Turn the chariot around and take me off the battlefield!”
35 The armies continued to fight while King Ahab was propped up in his chariot. He was leaning against the sides of the chariot, looking out toward the Arameans. His blood ran down onto the floor of the chariot. Later in the evening, he died. 36 At sunset all the Israelites cheered when they were told to go home. So they all went back to their hometowns.
37 And that is how King Ahab died. Some men carried his body to Samaria and buried him there. 38 They took his chariot to the large pool in Samaria to clean it. The dogs licked up Ahab’s blood while the prostitutes washed the chariot. This happened just as the Lord said it would.
39 The rest of what King Ahab did during the time he ruled is written in the book, The History of the Kings of Israel . That book tells about all the cities he built and about all the ivory that he used to decorate his palace. 40 Ahab died and was buried with his ancestors. His son Ahaziah became the next king after him.
41 Jehoshaphat son of Asa became the king of Judah in Ahab’s fourth year as king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he became king, and he ruled in Jerusalem for 25 years. His mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi. 43 Like his father Asa, Jehoshaphat was good and did everything that the Lord wanted, but he did not destroy the high places. The people continued offering sacrifices and burning incense there.
44 Jehoshaphat made a peace agreement with the king of Israel. 45 Jehoshaphat was very brave and fought many wars. The rest of what he did is written in the book, The History of the Kings of Judah .
46 Jehoshaphat forced all the men and women who sold their bodies for sex to leave the places of worship. They had served in these places of worship while his father Asa was king.
47 In those days Edom did not have a king; it was ruled by a governor who was chosen by the king of Judah.
48 King Jehoshaphat built some cargo ships. He wanted the ships to sail to Ophir for gold, but they never went there—they were destroyed in their home port at Ezion Geber. 49 Then King Ahaziah of Israel offered to put some of his own sailors with Jehoshaphat’s men on the ships, [ c ] but Jehoshaphat refused to accept his help.
50 Jehoshaphat died and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. Then his son Jehoram became the next king.
51 Ahaziah was the son of Ahab. He became king of Israel during the 17th year that King Jehoshaphat ruled Judah. Ahaziah ruled in Samaria for two years. 52 He sinned against the Lord just as his parents, Ahab and Jezebel, did. He caused Israel to sin just as Jeroboam son of Nebat did. 53 Ahaziah served the false god Baal and worshiped him, just as his father did before him. He did all the things that his father did to make the Lord , the God of Israel, angry.
22 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 in Gilead is ours, and we be 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 Ramothgilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses.
5 And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the Lord to day.
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.
7 And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we might enquire of him?
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.
9 Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said, Hasten hither Micaiah the son of Imlah.
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.
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.
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.
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.
14 And Micaiah said, As the Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak.
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.
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 ?
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.
18 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil?
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.
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.
21 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord , and said, I will persuade him.
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.
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.
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?
25 And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see in 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, the Lord hath not spoken by me. And he said, Hearken, O people, every one of you.
29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramothgilead.
30 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and enter into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.
31 But the king of Syria commanded his thirty and two captains that had rule over 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 perceived that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him.
34 And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the joints of the harness: wherefore he said unto the driver of his chariot, Turn thine hand, and carry me out of the host; for I am 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 midst of the chariot.
36 And there went a proclamation throughout the host about the going down of the sun, saying, Every man to his city, and every man to his own country.
37 So the king died, and was brought to Samaria; and they buried the king in Samaria.
38 And one washed the chariot in the pool of Samaria; and the dogs licked up his blood; and they washed his armour; according unto the word of the Lord which he spake.
39 Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, and the ivory house which he made, 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.
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 ways of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of the Lord : nevertheless the high places were not taken away; for the people offered and burnt incense yet 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 shewed, 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, which remained in the days of his father Asa, he took out of the land.
47 There was then no king in Edom: a deputy was king.
48 Jehoshaphat made ships of Tharshish to go to Ophir for gold: but they went not; for the ships were broken at Eziongeber.
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.
51 Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned two years over Israel.
52 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord , 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, who made Israel to sin:
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.
22 Now [ a ] three years passed without war between Aram and Israel. 2 ( A ) In the third year, ( B ) Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel. 3 Now the king of Israel said to his servants, “Are you aware that ( C ) Ramoth-gilead belongs to us, yet we are hesitant to take it out of the hand of the king of Aram?” 4 So he said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go to battle with me at Ramoth-gilead?” And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “ [ b ] ( D ) Consider me yours, my people yours, and my horses yours!”
5 However, Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please request the word of the Lord [ c ] first.” 6 So ( E ) the king of Israel assembled the [ d ] prophets, about four hundred men, and said to them, “Should I go to battle against Ramoth-gilead or should I refrain?” And they said, “Go up, for the Lord will hand it over to the king.” 7 But ( F ) Jehoshaphat said, “Is there no longer a prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire of him?” 8 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord , but I hate him, because he does not prophesy anything good regarding me, but only bad. He is Micaiah the son of Imlah.” But Jehoshaphat said, “May the king not say so.” 9 Then the king of Israel summoned an officer and said, “Bring Micaiah son of Imlah quickly.” 10 Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting, each on his throne, dressed in their robes, at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and ( G ) all the prophets were prophesying before them. 11 Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made ( H ) horns of iron for himself and said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘ ( I ) With these you will gore the Arameans until they are destroyed!’” 12 All the prophets were prophesying this as well, saying, “Go up to Ramoth-gilead and succeed, for the Lord will hand it over to the king.”
13 Then the messenger who went to summon Micaiah spoke to him saying, “Behold now, the words of the prophets are [ e ] unanimously favorable to the king. Please let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably.” 14 But Micaiah said, “ ( J ) As the Lord lives, whatever ( K ) the Lord says to me, I shall speak it.”
15 When he came to the king, the king said to him, “Micaiah, should we go to battle against Ramoth-gilead, or should we refrain?” And he said, “ ( L ) Go up and succeed, for the Lord will hand it over to the king!” 16 Then the king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear that you will tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord ?” 17 So he said,
“I saw all Israel
Scattered on the mountains,
( M ) Like sheep that have no shepherd.
And the Lord said,
‘These people have no master.
Each of them is to return to his house in peace.’”
18 Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “ ( N ) Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy anything good regarding me, but only bad?”
19 And Micaiah said, “Therefore, hear the word of the Lord . ( O ) I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and ( P ) all the [ f ] angels of heaven standing by Him on His right and on His left. 20 And the Lord said, ‘Who will [ g ] entice Ahab to go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ And one spirit said this, while another said that. 21 Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord , and said, ‘I will [ h ] entice him.’ 22 And the Lord said to him, ‘How?’ And he said, ‘I will go out and ( Q ) be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.’ Then He said, ‘You shall [ i ] entice him , and you will also prevail. Go and do so.’ 23 Now then, behold, ( R ) the Lord has put a deceiving spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours; and the Lord has declared disaster against you.”
24 Then ( S ) Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah approached and struck Micaiah on the cheek; and he said, “ ( T ) How did the Spirit of the Lord pass from me to speak to you?” 25 And Micaiah said, “Behold, you are going to see how on that day when you ( U ) go from one inner room to [ j ] another trying to hide yourself.” 26 Then the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah and return him to Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king’s son; 27 and say, ‘This is what the king says: “ ( V ) Put this man in prison, and feed him enough bread and water to survive until I [ k ] return safely.”’” 28 But Micaiah said, “ ( W ) If you actually return [ l ] safely, the Lord has not spoken by me.” And he said, “ ( X ) Listen, all you people!”
29 So ( Y ) the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah went up against Ramoth-gilead. 30 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “ ( Z ) I will disguise myself and go into the battle, but you put on your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle. 31 Now ( AA ) the king of Aram had commanded the thirty-two commanders of his chariots, saying, “Do not fight with the small or great, but only with the king of Israel.” 32 So when the commanders of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “Surely he is the king of Israel!” And they turned aside to fight against him, and Jehoshaphat cried out. 33 Then, when the commanders of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him.
34 Now one man drew his bow at random and struck the king of Israel [ m ] in a joint of the armor. So he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn [ n ] around and take me out of the battle, ( AB ) for I am severely wounded.” 35 The battle [ o ] raged on that day, and the king was propped up in his chariot in front of the Arameans, and he died at evening, and the blood from the wound ran into the bottom of the chariot. 36 ( AC ) Then the word passed throughout the army close to sunset, saying, “Every man to his city, and every man to his [ p ] country!”
37 So the king died and was brought to Samaria, and they buried the king in Samaria. 38 They washed out the chariot by the pool of Samaria, and the dogs licked up his blood ( it was there that the prostitutes bathed themselves) ( AD ) in accordance with the word of the Lord which He had spoken. 39 Now as for the rest of the acts of Ahab and everything that he did, and ( AE ) the ivory house which he built and all the cities which he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 40 So Ahab [ q ] lay down with his fathers, and his son Ahaziah became king in his place.
41 ( AF ) Now Jehoshaphat the son of Asa became king over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned for twenty-five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. 43 ( AG ) He walked [ r ] entirely in the way of his father Asa; he did not turn aside from it, doing what was right in the sight of the Lord . ( AH ) However, the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. 44 ( AI ) Jehoshaphat also made peace with the king of Israel.
45 Now as for the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, and his might which he showed and how he made war, are they not written ( AJ ) in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 46 And the remnant of ( AK ) the cult prostitutes who remained in the days of his father Asa, he eliminated from the land.
47 Now ( AL ) there was no king in Edom; a governor served as king. 48 Jehoshaphat built ( AM ) ships of Tarshish to go to ( AN ) Ophir for gold, but ( AO ) they did not go, because the ships were destroyed at ( AP ) Ezion-geber. 49 Then Ahaziah the son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my servants go with your servants in the ships.” But Jehoshaphat was not willing. 50 ( AQ ) And Jehoshaphat [ s ] lay down with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of his father David, and his son Jehoram became king in his place.
51 Ahaziah the son of Ahab ( AR ) became king over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel for two years. 52 He did evil in the sight of the Lord and ( AS ) walked in the way of his father and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who misled Israel into sin. 53 ( AT ) So he served Baal and worshiped him, and provoked the Lord God of Israel to anger, according to all that his father had done.
22 For three years there was no war between Aram and Israel. 2 But in the third year Jehoshaphat king of Judah went down to see the king of Israel. 3 The king of Israel had said to his officials, “Don’t you know that Ramoth Gilead ( B ) belongs to us and yet we are doing nothing to retake it from the king of Aram?”
4 So he asked Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to fight ( C ) against Ramoth Gilead?”
Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel, “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.” 5 But Jehoshaphat also said to the king of Israel, “First seek the counsel ( D ) of the Lord .”
6 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,” ( E ) they answered, “for the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.” ( F )
7 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no longer a prophet ( G ) of the Lord here whom we can inquire ( H ) of?”
8 The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, “There is still one prophet through whom we can inquire of the Lord , but I hate ( I ) him because he never prophesies anything good ( J ) about me, but always bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.”
“The king should not say such a thing,” Jehoshaphat replied.
9 So the king of Israel called one of his officials and said, “Bring Micaiah son of Imlah at once.”
10 Dressed in their royal robes, the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah were sitting on their thrones at the threshing floor ( K ) by the entrance of the gate of Samaria, with all the prophets prophesying before them. 11 Now Zedekiah ( L ) son of Kenaanah had made iron horns ( M ) and he declared, “This is what the Lord says: ‘With these you will gore the Arameans until they are destroyed.’”
12 All the other prophets were prophesying the same thing. “Attack Ramoth Gilead and be victorious,” they said, “for the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.”
13 The messenger who had gone to summon Micaiah said to him, “Look, the other prophets without exception are predicting success for the king. Let your word agree with theirs, and speak favorably.” ( N )
14 But Micaiah said, “As surely as the Lord lives, I can tell him only what the Lord tells me.” ( O )
15 When he arrived, the king asked him, “Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or not?”
“Attack and be victorious,” he answered, “for the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.”
16 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 ?”
17 Then Micaiah answered, “I saw all Israel scattered ( P ) on the hills like sheep without a shepherd, ( Q ) and the Lord said, ‘These people have no master. Let each one go home in peace.’”
18 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you that he never prophesies anything good about me, but only bad?”
19 Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord : I saw the Lord sitting on his throne ( R ) with all the multitudes ( S ) of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left. 20 And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?’
“One suggested this, and another that. 21 Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will entice him.’
22 “‘By what means?’ the Lord asked.
“‘I will go out and be a deceiving ( T ) spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,’ he said.
“‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the Lord . ‘Go and do it.’
23 “So now the Lord has put a deceiving ( U ) spirit in the mouths of all these prophets ( V ) of yours. The Lord has decreed disaster ( W ) for you.”
24 Then Zedekiah ( X ) son of Kenaanah went up and slapped ( Y ) Micaiah in the face. “Which way did the spirit from [ a ] the Lord go when he went from me to speak ( Z ) to you?” he asked.
25 Micaiah replied, “You will find out on the day you go to hide ( AA ) in an inner room.”
26 The king of Israel then ordered, “Take Micaiah and send him back to Amon the ruler of the city and to Joash the king’s son 27 and say, ‘This is what the king says: Put this fellow in prison ( AB ) and give him nothing but bread and water until I return safely.’”
28 Micaiah declared, “If you ever return safely, the Lord has not spoken ( AC ) through me.” Then he added, “Mark my words, all you people!”
29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead. 30 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will enter the battle in disguise, ( AE ) but you wear your royal robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.
31 Now the king of Aram ( AF ) had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king ( AG ) of Israel.” 32 When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat, they thought, “Surely this is the king of Israel.” So they turned to attack him, but when Jehoshaphat cried out, 33 the chariot commanders saw that he was not the king of Israel and stopped pursuing him.
34 But someone drew his bow ( AH ) at random and hit the king of Israel between the sections of his armor. The king told his chariot driver, “Wheel around and get me out of the fighting. I’ve been wounded.” 35 All day long the battle raged, and the king was propped up in his chariot facing the Arameans. The blood from his wound ran onto the floor of the chariot, and that evening he died. 36 As the sun was setting, a cry spread through the army: “Every man to his town. Every man to his land!” ( AI )
37 So the king died and was brought to Samaria, and they buried him there. 38 They washed the chariot at a pool in Samaria (where the prostitutes bathed), [ b ] and the dogs ( AJ ) licked up his blood, as the word of the Lord had declared.
39 As for the other events of Ahab’s reign, including all he did, the palace he built and adorned with ivory, ( AK ) and the cities he fortified, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel? 40 Ahab rested with his ancestors. And Ahaziah his son succeeded him as king.
41 Jehoshaphat son of Asa became king of Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-five years. His mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. 43 In everything he followed the ways of his father Asa ( AM ) and did not stray from them; he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord . The high places, ( AN ) however, were not removed, and the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there. [ c ] 44 Jehoshaphat was also at peace with the king of Israel.
45 As for the other events of Jehoshaphat’s reign, the things he achieved and his military exploits, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? 46 He rid the land of the rest of the male shrine prostitutes ( AO ) who remained there even after the reign of his father Asa. 47 There was then no king ( AP ) in Edom; a provincial governor ruled.
48 Now Jehoshaphat built a fleet of trading ships [ d ] ( AQ ) to go to Ophir for gold, but they never set sail—they were wrecked at Ezion Geber. ( AR ) 49 At that time Ahaziah son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my men sail with yours,” but Jehoshaphat refused.
50 Then Jehoshaphat rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the city of David his father. And Jehoram his son succeeded him as king.
51 Ahaziah son of Ahab became king of Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. 52 He did evil ( AS ) in the eyes of the Lord , because he followed the ways of his father and mother and of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. 53 He served and worshiped Baal ( AT ) and aroused the anger of the Lord , the God of Israel, just as his father ( AU ) had done.
