1 Kings 22

1 And he stayed on three years, and there was no war between Aram and Israel. [a] 2 And in the third year Jehoshaphat king of Judah went down to the king of Israel. 3 And the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ramoth-gilead is ours, and we say nothing about taking it out of the hand of the king of Aram?”

4 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go up with us to Ramoth-gilead, to war?” And Jehoshaphat said, “As I am, so are you; as my people, so your people; as my horses, so your horses.” [b] 5 And Jehoshaphat king of Judah said to the king of Israel, “Ask the Lord today, please.”

6 And the king of Israel gathered all the prophets together, about four hundred men, and the king said to them, “Shall I go to Ramoth-gilead to war, or shall I hold back?” And they said, “Go up, and the Lord will surely give it into the hands of the king.” 7 And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, so that we may ask the Lord through him?” 8 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man to ask the Lord through, but I hate him, because he does not speak good about me, but only evil — Micaiah son of Imlah.” And Jehoshaphat king of Judah said, “Do not let the king say that.” [c] 9 And the king of Israel called a eunuch and said, “Quick — Micaiah son of Imlah!” [d]

10 And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah were sitting, each man on his throne, in their armor, at the gates of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying in front of them. 11 And Zedekiah son of Chenaanah made himself horns of iron and said, “This is what the Lord says: With these you will gore Aram until it is finished.” [e] 12 And all the prophets were prophesying the same way, saying, “Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and it will go well, and the Lord will give it into your hands — and the king of Aram too.”

13 And the messenger who had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him and said, “Look, all the prophets speak good about the king with one mouth. Let your words be like the words of one of them, and speak good.” [f] 14 And Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, whatever the Lord says to me, that is what I will speak.” 15 And he came to the king, and the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall I go up to Ramoth-gilead to war, or shall I hold back?” And he said, “Go up, and it will go well, and the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.”

16 And the king said to him, “How many times am I to put you under oath to speak the truth to me in the name of the Lord?” 17 And Micaiah said, “Not so. I have seen all Israel scattered on the mountains like a flock that has no shepherd. And the Lord said, ‘These have no master. Let each one go back to his own house in peace.’” [g] 18 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, “Did I not say to you that this man does not prophesy good to me, but only evil?”

19 And Micaiah said, “Not so. It is not I. Hear the word of the Lord. It is not so. I saw the Lord God of Israel sitting on his throne, and all the army of heaven standing around him, on his right and on his left. [h] † 20 And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab king of Israel, so that he goes up and falls at Ramoth-gilead?’ And one spoke one way, and another another way. 21 And a spirit came out and stood in front of the Lord and said, ‘I will entice him.’ And the Lord said to him, ‘By what means?’ [i] 22 And he said, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You will entice him, and you will be able to. Go out and do so.’ 23 And now, look, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the Lord has spoken evil against you.”

24 And Zedekiah son of Chenaanah came up and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, “What sort of spirit of the Lord is it that has spoken in you?” 25 And Micaiah said, “Look, you will see on that day, when you go into a room inside a room to hide yourself.”

26 And the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah and bring him back to Emer the ruler of the city, and to Joash the king’s son — [j] 27 say, ‘Put this man in prison, and feed him bread of affliction and water of affliction until I return in peace.’” 28 And Micaiah said, “If you really do come back in peace, the Lord has not spoken through me.”

29 And the king of Israel went up, and Jehoshaphat king of Judah with him, to Ramoth-gilead. 30 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, “I will disguise myself and go into the battle; and you, put on my clothes.” And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle. 31 And the king of Aram had given orders to the thirty-two commanders of his chariots, saying, “Do not fight small or great, but only the king of Israel.”

32 And when the commanders of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat king of Judah, they said, “This one looks like the king of Israel.” And they circled him to fight him, and Jehoshaphat cried out. 33 And when the commanders of the chariots saw that this was not the king of Israel, they turned back from him. 34 And one man drew his bow with a good aim and struck the king of Israel between the lungs and the breastplate. And he said to his charioteer, “Turn your hands and take me out of the battle, for I am wounded.” [k]

35 And the battle turned that day, and the king was standing in his chariot facing Aram from morning until evening; and the blood kept draining from the blow into the floor of the chariot. And he died in the evening, and the blood of the fighting ran out into the floor of the chariot. [l] 36 And the herald of the army stood up as the sun was going down and said, “Every man to his own city and to his own land, 37 for the king is dead.” And they came to Samaria and buried the king in Samaria. 38 And they washed the chariot at the spring of Samaria, and the pigs and the dogs licked up the blood, and the prostitutes washed themselves in the blood, according to the word of the Lord that he had spoken. [m]

39 And the rest of the acts of Ahab, and everything he did, and the ivory house that he built, and all the cities that he built — look, are these things not written in the book of the daily record of the kings of Israel? [n] 40 And Ahab slept with his fathers, and Ahaziah his son became king in his place.

41 And Jehoshaphat son of Asa became king over Judah. He became king in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. [o] 43 And he walked in all the way of Asa his father; he did not turn aside from it, from doing what was right in the eyes of the Lord. 44 Only, he did not take away the high places; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. 45 And Jehoshaphat was at peace with the king of Israel. 46 And the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, and his mighty deeds, all that he did — look, are these things not written in the book of the daily record of the kings of Judah? [p]

51 And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; and Joram his son became king in his place. 52 And Ahaziah son of Ahab became king over Israel in Samaria, in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; and he reigned over Israel two years. 53 And he did what was evil in front of the Lord, and walked in the way of Ahab his father and in the way of Jezebel his mother, and in the sins of the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who made Israel sin. 54 And he served the Baals and bowed down to them, and provoked the Lord God of Israel to anger, according to everything that had been done before him. [q]