1 Kings22
English Standard Version
Tap any underlined word for the original Hebrew or Greek.
1 For and .
2 But in the the of to the of .
3 And the of to his , Do you belongs to us, and we and do it of the of the of ?
4 And he to , Will you with me to at ? And to the of , I am as you , my as your , my as your .
5 And to the of , for the of the Lord.
6 Then the of the , about , and to them, Shall I to , or shall I ? And they , Go , for the give it into the of the .
7 But , Is there here of the Lord of whom we may ?
8 And the of to , There is by whom we may of the Lord, the of , but I him, he me, but . And , Let the .
9 Then the of and , Bring the of .
10 of and the of were , in their , at the at the of the of , and the were them.
11 And the of for himself of and , the Lord, With these you shall the until they are .
12 And the so and , Go to and ; the Lord will it into the of the .
13 And the to to him, , the of the with are to the . your be like the of of them, and .
14 But , As the Lord , the Lord to me, that I will .
15 And when he had to the , the to him, , shall we to to , shall we ? And he him, Go and ; the Lord will it into the of the .
16 But the to him, How shall I make you that you to me nothing the in the of the Lord?
17 And he , I on the , as that have . And the Lord , have ; let to his in .
18 And the of to , Did I you that he would me, ?
19 And Micaiah , the of the Lord: I the Lord his , and the of him on his and on his ;
20 and the Lord , will , that he may and at ? And one , and another .
21 Then a and the Lord, , I will him.
22 And the Lord to him, By what ? And he , I will , and will be a in the of his . And he , You are to him, and you shall ; and .
23 therefore , the Lord has a in the of your ; the Lord has for you.
24 Then the of and the and , did the of the Lord me to to you?
25 And , , you shall on that you go an to yourself.
26 And the of , , and take him to the of the and to the ,
27 and , the , fellow in and him of and , I in .
28 And , you in , the Lord has by me. And he , , you !
29 So the of and the of to .
30 And the of to , I will myself and go , but you your . And the of himself and into .
31 of had the of his , with nor , with the of .
32 And when the of the , they , It is the of . So they to him. And .
33 And when the of the it was the of , they him.
34 But a certain his at and the of the and the . Therefore he to the driver of his , and of the , for I am .
35 And the that , and the was in his the , he . And the of the into the of the .
36 And about a the , Every to his , and every to his !
37 So the , and was to . And they the in .
38 And they the by the of , and the his , and the themselves in it, according to the of the Lord that he had .
39 of the of and that he , and the he and the that he , are they in the of the of the of ?
40 So his , and his in his .
41 the of began to in the of of .
42 was when he began to , and he in . His was the of .
43 He in the of his . He did it, what was in the of the Lord. the were taken , and the still and on the .
44 also the of .
45 of the of , and his he , and he , are they in the of the of the of ?
46 And the he the of the male who in the of his .
47 There was in ; a was .
48 of to to for , but they did , the were at .
49 the of to , Let my your in the , but was .
50 And his and was his in the of his , and his in his .
51 the of began to in in the of of , and he two .
52 He what was in the of the Lord and in the of his and in the of his and in the of the of , to .
53 He and him and the Lord, the of , to in way his had .
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1 Kings 22Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for 1 Kings 22. The full AI study guide (summary, themes, context) has its own page.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: Jehoshaphat makes a league with Ahab. (1–14). Micaiah predicts the death of Ahab. (15–28). Death of Ahab. (29–40). Jehoshaphat's good reign over Judah. (41–50). Ahaziah's evil reign over Israel. (51–53).
vv1-14
The same easiness of temper, which betrays some godly persons into friendship with the declared enemies of religion, renders it very dangerous to them. They will be drawn to wink at and countenance such conduct and conversation as they ought to protest against with abhorrence. Whithersoever a good man goes, he ought to take his religion with him, and not be ashamed to own it when he is with those who have no regard for it. Jehoshaphat had not left behind him, at Jerusalem, his affection and reverence for the word of the Lord, but avowed it, and endeavoured to bring it into Ahab's court. And Ahab's prophets, to please Jehoshaphat, made use of the name of Jehovah: to please Ahab, they said, Go up. But the false prophets cannot so mimic the true, but that he who has spiritual senses exercised, can discern the fallacy. One faithful prophet of the Lord was worth them all. Wordly men have in all ages been alike absurd in their views of religion. They would have the preacher fit his doctrine to the fashion of the times, and the taste of the hearers, and yet to add, Thus saith the Lord, to words that men would put into their mouths. They are ready to cry out against a man as rude and foolish, who scruples thus to try to secure his own interests, and to deceive others.
vv15-28
The greatest kindness we can do to one that is going in a dangerous way, is, to tell him of his danger. To leave the hardened criminal without excuse, and to give a useful lesson to others, Micaiah related his vision. This matter is represented after the manner of men: we are not to imagine that God is ever put upon new counsels; or that he needs to consult with angels, or any creature, about the methods he should take; or that he is the author of sin, or the cause of any man's telling or believing a lie. Micaiah returned not the blow of Zedekiah, yet, since he boasted of the Spirit, as those commonly do that know least of the Holy Spirit's operations, the true prophet left him to be convinced of his error by the event. Those that will not have their mistakes set right in time, by the word of God, will be undeceived, when it is too late, by the judgments of God. We should be ashamed of what we call trials, were we to consider what the servants of God have endured. Yet it will be well, if freedom from trouble prove not more hurtful to us; we are more easily allured and bribed into unfaithfulness and conformity to the world, than driven to them.
vv29-40
Ahab basely intended to betray Johoshaphat to danger, that he might secure himself. See what they get that join with wicked men. How can it be expected that he should be true to his friend, who has been false to his God! He had said in compliment to Ahab, I am as thou art, and now he was indeed taken for him. Those that associate with evil-doers, are in danger of sharing in their plagues. By Jehoshaphat's deliverance, God let him know, that though he was displeased with him, yet he had not deserted him. God is a friend that will not fail us when other friends do. Let no man think to hide himself from God's judgment. God directed the arrow to hit Ahab; those cannot escape with life, whom God has doomed to death. Ahab lived long enough to see part of Micaiah's prophecy accomplished. He had time to feel himself die; with what horror must he have thought upon the wickedness he had committed!
Key Words
שָׁלוֹשׁ: three; occasionally (ordinal) third, or (multiple) thrice
שָׁנֶה: a year (as a revolution of time)
יָשַׁב: properly, to sit down (specifically as judge. in ambush, in quiet); by implication, to dwell, to remain; causatively, to settle, to marry
מִלְחָמָה: a battle (i.e. the engagement); generally, war (i.e. warfare)
שְׁלִישִׁי: third; feminine athird (part); by extension, a third (day, year or time); specifically, a third-story cell)
יְהוֹשָׁפָט: Jehoshaphat, the name of six Israelites; also of a valley near Jerusalem
מֶלֶךְ: a king
יְהוּדָה: Jehudah (or Judah), the name of five Israelites; also of the tribe descended from the first, and of its territory
יָרַד: to descend (literally, to go downwards; or conventionally to a lower region, as the shore, a boundary, the enemy, etc.; or figuratively, to fall); causatively, to bring down (in all the above applications)
יִשְׂרָאֵל: Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity
Cross References
1 Kings 22Jehu the seer rebukes Jehoshaphat for helping the ungodly Ahab in this specific alliance.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Fulfillment of Elijah's prophecy that dogs would lick Ahab's blood in Samaria.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Zedekiah's symbolic iron horns mimic Moses' blessing of Joseph pushing peoples with horns.
Supported by JFB
Moses' original prayer for Israel to have a shepherd, echoed by Micaiah's vision of scattered sheep.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Parallel account of Zedekiah striking Micaiah on the cheek in defiance of the true prophecy.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The treaty three years prior that Ahab made with Ben-hadad, which Syria had now broken.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Identifies Ramoth in Gilead as a Levitical city of refuge belonging to Israel.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Parallel depiction of the heavenly court where the host of heaven stands before the Lord.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Historical precedent of God sending an evil spirit to execute judgment, echoing the lying spirit.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Chronicles parallel noting God helped Jehoshaphat and moved his pursuers to depart when he cried out.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Micaiah's initial sarcastic, ironic response to Ahab mimics Elijah's mocking of Baal's prophets.
Supported by JFB
Jesus uses the same 'sheep without a shepherd' imagery to describe Israel's leaderless estate.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Jehoshaphat continues the purging of sodomites begun by his father Asa.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Chronicles parallel detailing Jehoshaphat's joint shipbuilding venture with Ahaziah which God wrecked.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Ahab's previous hatred of prophets who declared his doom for sparing Ben-hadad.
Supported by JFB