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22 And they continued three years without war between Syria and Israel. And it came to pass in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel. And the king of Israel said unto his servants, Know ye that Ramoth-gilead is ours, and we [a]are still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Syria? And he said unto Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramoth-gilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses.

And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Inquire [b]first, I pray thee, for the word of Jehovah. Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them, Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up; for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king. But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of Jehovah besides, that we may inquire of him? And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of Jehovah, Micaiah the son of Imlah: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so. Then the king of Israel called an [c]officer, and said, Fetch quickly Micaiah the son of Imlah. 10 Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, in [d]an open place at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying before them. 11 And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron, and said, Thus saith Jehovah, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until they be consumed. 12 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper; for Jehovah will deliver it into the hand of the king.

13 And the messenger that went 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 thou good. 14 And Micaiah said, As Jehovah liveth, what Jehovah saith unto me, that will I speak. 15 And when he was come to the king, the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we forbear? And he answered him, Go up and prosper; and Jehovah will deliver it into the hand of the king. 16 And the king said unto him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou speak unto me nothing but the truth in the name of Jehovah? 17 And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd: and Jehovah said, These have no master; let them return every man to his house in peace. 18 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil? 19 And Micaiah said, Therefore hear thou the word of Jehovah: I saw Jehovah sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. 20 And Jehovah said, Who shall [e]entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said on this manner; and another said on that manner. 21 And there came forth [f]a spirit, and stood before Jehovah, and said, I will entice him. 22 And Jehovah said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt entice him, and shalt prevail also: go forth, and do so. 23 Now therefore, behold, Jehovah hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets; and Jehovah hath spoken evil concerning thee.

24 Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near, and smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said, Which way went the Spirit of Jehovah from me to speak unto thee? 25 And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see on that day, when thou shalt go [g]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, Jehovah hath not spoken by me. And he said, Hear, ye peoples, all of you.

29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead. 30 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle. 31 Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty and two captains of 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 saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him. 34 And a certain man drew his bow [h]at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between [i]the joints of the armor: wherefore he said unto the driver of his chariot, Turn thy hand, and carry me out of the host; for I am sore 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 bottom of the chariot. 36 And there went a cry throughout the host about the going down of the sun, saying, Every man to his city, and every man to his country.

37 So the king died, and was brought to Samaria; and they buried the king in Samaria. 38 And they washed the chariot by the pool of Samaria; and the dogs licked up his blood [j](now the harlots washed themselves there); according unto the word of Jehovah which he spake. 39 Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, and the ivory house which he built, 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 way of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah: howbeit the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burnt incense 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 showed, 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, that remained in the days of his father Asa, he put away out of the land. 47 And there was no king in Edom: a deputy was king. 48 Jehoshaphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold: but they went not; for the ships were broken at Ezion-geber. 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 in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned two years over Israel. 52 And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, 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, [k]wherein he made Israel to sin. 53 And he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked to anger Jehovah, the God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 22:3 Or, keep silence
  2. 1 Kings 22:5 Hebrew to-day.
  3. 1 Kings 22:9 Or, eunuch
  4. 1 Kings 22:10 Hebrew a threshing-floor.
  5. 1 Kings 22:20 Or, deceive
  6. 1 Kings 22:21 Hebrew the spirit.
  7. 1 Kings 22:25 Or, from chamber to chamber
  8. 1 Kings 22:34 Hebrew in his simplicity.
  9. 1 Kings 22:34 Or, the lower armor and the breastplate
  10. 1 Kings 22:38 Or, and they washed the armor
  11. 1 Kings 22:52 Or, who made

Jehoshaphat of Judah Allies with Ahab of Israel

22 They lived three years, and there was no war between Aram and Israel. It happened in the third year, Jehoshaphat king of Judah went down to the king of Israel, and the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know Ramoth-Gilead belongs to us, and we are doing nothing about taking it from the hand of the king of Aram?” Then he said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to the battle for Ramoth-Gilead?” Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “I am like you;[a] my people are like your people;[b] my horses are like your horses.”[c]

Jehoshaphat also said to the king of Israel, “Please inquire for the word of Yahweh today.” Then the king of Israel assembled the prophets, about four hundred men, and he said to them, “Shall I go against Ramoth-Gilead for the battle, or should I refrain?” Then they said, “Go up, for the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.” So Jehoshaphat said, “Is there no prophet of Yahweh here that we might still inquire from him?” Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man to inquire from Yahweh, but I despise him, for he never prophesies anything good concerning me, but only bad: Micaiah the son of Imlah.” Then Jehoshaphat said, “The king should not say so.” The king of Israel summoned a certain court official, and he said, “Quickly fetch Micaiah son of Imlah.” 10 The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah were each sitting on his throne, dressed in their robes, at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria, with all the prophets prophesying before them. 11 Zedekiah son of Kenaanah made horns of iron for himself and said, “Thus says Yahweh: ‘With these you shall gore the Arameans until finishing them.’” 12 All of the prophets were likewise prophesying, saying, “Go up to Ramoth-Gilead and triumph, and Yahweh will give it into the hand of the king.”

13 Then the messenger who had gone to summon Micaiah said to him, “Please now, the words of the prophet are unanimously[d] favorable to the king. Please let your words be as one word with them, and speak favorably.” 14 Then Micaiah said, “As Yahweh lives,[e] surely only as Yahweh speaks to me, that will I speak.” 15 When he came to the king, the king asked him, “Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-Gilead to the battle, or shall we refrain?” He said to him, “Go up and triumph, and Yahweh will give it into the hand of the king.” 16 Then the king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear that you shall not tell me anything but truth in the name of Yahweh?” 17 So he said, “I saw all of Israel scattering to the mountains, like the sheep without a shepherd. Yahweh also said, ‘There are no masters for these, let them return in peace, each to his house.’” 18 Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not say to you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but disaster?”

19 And he[f] said, “Therefore, hear the word of Yahweh. I saw Yahweh sitting on his throne with all the hosts of heaven standing beside him from his right hand and from his left hand. 20 And Yahweh said, ‘Who will entice Ahab so that he will go up and fall at Ramoth-Gilead?’ Then this one was saying one thing and the other one was saying another.[g] 21 Then a spirit came out and stood before Yahweh and said, ‘I will entice him,’ and Yahweh said to him, ‘How?’ 22 He said, ‘I will go out and I will be a false spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he[h] said, ‘You shall entice and succeed, go out and do so.’ 23 So then, see that Yahweh has placed a false spirit in the mouth of all of these your prophets, and Yahweh has spoken disaster concerning you.”

24 Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah came near and slapped Micaiah on the cheek and said, “When did the Spirit of Yahweh pass from me to speak with you?” 25 Then Micaiah said, “Behold, you are about to see on that day when you go from room to room[i] to hide.” 26 The king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah and return him to Amon the commander of the city and to Jehoash the son of the king; 27 and say, ‘Thus says the king: “Put this fellow in the house of imprisonment and feed him reduced rations of food and water until I come in peace.”’” 28 Then Micaiah said, “If you indeed return in peace, then Yahweh has not spoken with me.” Then he said, “Let all the peoples hear!”

29 Then the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah went up to Ramoth-Gilead. 30 Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into the battle, but you wear your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself, and he went into the battle. 31 The king of Aram commanded his thirty-two chariot commanders, saying, “You shall not fight with small or great, but only against the king of Israel, him alone!” 32 When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “Surely he is the king of Israel,” and they turned to fight against him, so Jehoshaphat called out. 33 When the chariot commanders saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned away from him. 34 But another man drew his bow fully and struck the king of Israel between the armor scales and the breastplate; so he said to his chariot driver, “Turn the chariot[j] and bring me out from the camp, for I am wounded.”

35 The battle intensified on that day, and the king was being propped up in the chariot opposite Aram, but he died in the evening, and the blood of the wound ran out to the floor of the chariot. 36 Then the shout passed through the camp about sunset, saying, “Each man to his city and each to his land!” 37 So the king died, and they brought him[k] to Samaria, and they buried the king in Samaria. 38 They washed the chariot by the pool of Samaria, and the dogs licked his blood (now, the prostitutes washed themselves there) according to the word of Yahweh which he had spoken. 39 The remainder of the acts of Ahab and all that he did, and the ivory palace and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? 40 So Ahab slept with his ancestors,[l] and Ahaziah his son became king in his place.

King Jehoshaphat of Judah

41 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 twenty-five years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. 43 He walked in all of the way of Asa his father, and he did not turn aside from it, doing right in the eyes of Yahweh.[m] Only he did not remove the high places; the people were still sacrificing and burning incense on the high places. 44 [n] But, Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel. 45 The remainder of the acts of Jehoshaphat, his powerful deeds he did, and how he fought, are they not written in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah? 46 The remainder of the male shrine prostitutes who were left over in the days of Asa his father he exterminated from the land. 47 There was not a king in Edom; a governor served as king. 48 Jehoshaphat built[o] ships of the Tarshish type to go to Ophir for the gold; but he did not go because the ships were destroyed at Ezion-Geber. 49 Then Ahaziah son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my servants go with your servants in the ships,” but Jehoshaphat was not willing. 50 And Jehoshaphat slept with his ancestors[p] and was buried with his ancestors[q] in the city of David his ancestor,[r] and Joram his son became king in his place.

King Ahaziah of Israel

51 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. 52 He did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and he went in the way of his father and his mother and in the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat who caused Israel to sin. 53 He served Baal and bowed down to him; and he provoked Yahweh the God of Israel according to all that his father did.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Kings 22:4 Literally “Like I am, like you are”
  2. 1 Kings 22:4 Literally “like my people, like your people”
  3. 1 Kings 22:4 Literally “like my horses, like your horses”
  4. 1 Kings 22:13 Literally “one mouth”
  5. 1 Kings 22:14 Literally “The life of Yahweh”
  6. 1 Kings 22:19 That is, Micaiah
  7. 1 Kings 22:20 Literally “this one said in thus and this one was saying in thus”
  8. 1 Kings 22:22 That is, Yahweh
  9. 1 Kings 22:25 Literally “private room in private room”
  10. 1 Kings 22:34 Literally “your hand”
  11. 1 Kings 22:37 Literally “and he went”
  12. 1 Kings 22:40 Or “fathers”
  13. 1 Kings 22:43 1 Kings 22:44 begins here in the Hebrew Bible
  14. 1 Kings 22:44 1 Kings 22:44– 53 in the English Bible is 22:45–54 in the Hebrew Bible
  15. 1 Kings 22:48 According to the reading tradition(Qere); what is written (Kethib) is “ten”
  16. 1 Kings 22:50 Or “fathers”
  17. 1 Kings 22:50 Or “fathers”
  18. 1 Kings 22:50 Or “father”