Heights and Highs - Part 2

Moreover, Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please inquire first for the word of the LORD.” Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle or shall I refrain?” And they said, “Go up, for the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.” But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not yet a prophet of the LORD here that we may inquire of him?” [1 Kings 22:5-7]

King Ahab wanted Jehoshaphat to go with him to Ramoth-gilead, so as to take back his territory from the king of Aram. That king was a bad dude, you see, so Ahab wanted some moral support…and some extra fire power on Jehoshaphat’s part.

And that is where King Jehoshaphat entered the story. He was visiting his buddy Ahab at his palace in Samaria. King Ahab decided to take advantage of the opportunity by putting Jehoshaphat on the spot.

Hey, Josh! Now that you’re here, maybe you can give me a hand. That no good sidewinder in Damascus is occupying my territory in Gilead at Ramoth. I want it back. Care to come along with me and take it away from him?

Jehoshaphat was on the spot. If he declined he’d look like a scaredy-cat. The alternative was to go fight Ahab’s war for him. Hard choice, huh? Not! Jehoshaphat didn’t want anyone to think he was a wuss, so he jumped right into the fray like a real dufus.

Yes, by all means. Let’s go kick the scalawag’s heinie and take back Ramoth-gilead! But first let’s consult the Lord. Let the prophets give us His Word about the matter.

Well, back in the day folks knew better than to get on the king’s wrong side. Any self-styled prophet who wanted a life worth living knew to tell the king what he wanted to hear…or else! So Ahab’s four hundred flunkeys gathered in the throne room before the two kings. “O King. Go up to Ramoth and take back what is yours. The Lord gives the king of Aram into your hands. You’re the man!”

But wait a sec! King Jehoshaphat didn’t much fancy those smarmy pagan prophets. They didn’t speak the Word of God. They uttered their own malarkey in the name of the heathen idols. So Jehoshaphat waxed bold and objected,

Hold your horses, Nellie, er, I mean Ahab! I want to hear the Word of the Lord, not the words of man under pretense of being words of the gods. Isn’t there a prophet of the Lord in Samaria?

Ahab was taken aback by Jehoshaphat’s rebuttal. He was used to seeing the king of Judah playing the role of yes-man to him. So Ahab was a bit slow in responding. He had to compose himself first, so as not to lay the lumber to Jehoshaphat for his display of temerity.

Oh, of course. I almost forgot. You’re from Judah and they like to worship the Lord down there. Up here we prefer our own gods. Well, in answer to your inquiry, yes, there is still one prophet of the Lord left in my kingdom…unfortunately. But I hate to give him a pulpit because he never says one good thing about me. He always castigates me and banishes me to the deepest, darkest recesses of the nether world. But for you I will allow him to speak…but just this once! Guards! Go fetch that worthless Micaiah from the dungeon and bring him here at once.

Awkward for Ahab? Yes. But even more so for Jehoshaphat, who should never have had such close involvements with an idolater like Ahab. The Law of Moses specifically forbade it, but Jehoshaphat was a slow learner.

We’ll continue this theme in our next study. Jesus requests our presence now. Let’s not keep Him waiting.

To further research this issue, I direct you to my book Numbers: Volume 4 of Heavenly Citizens in Earthly Shoes. To purchase my books please click on the "Shop" tab at the top of this page, where you will find a complete list of my books. Each book is available in both paperback (Createspace) and eBook (Kindle).

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