1 Kings 22:13-28
New English Translation
13 Now the messenger who went to summon Micaiah said to him, “Look, the prophets are in complete agreement that the king will succeed.[a] Your words must agree with theirs; you must predict success.”[b] 14 But Micaiah said, “As certainly as the Lord lives, I will say what the Lord tells me to say.”
15 When he came before the king, the king asked him, “Micaiah, should we attack Ramoth Gilead or not?” He answered him, “Attack! You will succeed; the Lord will hand it over to the king.”[c] 16 The king said to him, “How many times must I make you solemnly promise in[d] the name of the Lord to tell me only the truth?” 17 Micaiah[e] said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep that have no shepherd. Then the Lord said, ‘They have no master. They should go home in peace.’” 18 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you he does not prophesy prosperity for me, but disaster?” 19 Micaiah[f] said, “That being the case, listen to the Lord’s message. I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, with all the heavenly assembly standing beside him on his right and on his left. 20 The Lord said, ‘Who will deceive Ahab, so he will attack Ramoth Gilead and die[g] there?’ One said this and another that. 21 Then a spirit[h] stepped forward and stood before the Lord. He said, ‘I will deceive him.’ 22 The Lord asked him, ‘How?’ He replied, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.’ The Lord[i] said, ‘Deceive and overpower him.[j] Go out and do as you have proposed.’ 23 So now, look, the Lord has placed a lying spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours, but the Lord has decreed disaster for you.” 24 Zedekiah son of Kenaanah approached, hit Micaiah on the jaw, and said, “Which way did the Lord’s Spirit go when he went from me to speak to you?” 25 Micaiah replied, “Look, you will see in the day when you go into an inner room to hide.” 26 Then the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah and return him to Amon the city official and Joash the king’s son. 27 Say, ‘This is what the king says, “Put this man in prison. Give him only a little bread and water[k] until I safely return.”’”[l] 28 Micaiah said, “If you really do safely return, then the Lord has not spoken through me.” Then he added, “Take note,[m] all you people.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Kings 22:13 tn Heb “the words of the prophets are [with] one mouth good for the king.”
- 1 Kings 22:13 tn Heb “let your words be like the word of each of them and speak good.”
- 1 Kings 22:15 sn “Attack! You will succeed; the Lord will hand it over to the king.” One does not expect Micaiah, having just vowed to speak only what the Lord tells him, to agree with the other prophets and give the king an inaccurate prophecy. Micaiah’s actions became understandable later, when it is revealed that the Lord desires to deceive the king and lead him to his demise. The Lord even dispatches a lying spirit to deceive Ahab’s prophets. Micaiah can lie to the king because he realizes this lie is from the Lord. It is important to note that in v. 14 Micaiah only vows to speak the word of the Lord; he does not necessarily say he will tell the truth. In this case the Lord’s word itself is deceptive. Only when the king adjures him to tell the truth (v. 16), does Micaiah do so.
- 1 Kings 22:16 tn Or “swear an oath by.”
- 1 Kings 22:17 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Micaiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- 1 Kings 22:19 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Micaiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- 1 Kings 22:20 tn Heb “and fall.”
- 1 Kings 22:21 tn Heb “the spirit.” The significance of the article prefixed to רוּחַ (ruakh) is uncertain, but it could contain a clue as to this spirit’s identity, especially when interpreted in light of v. 24. It is certainly possible, and probably even likely, that the article is used in a generic or dramatic sense and should be translated, “a spirit.” In the latter case it would show that this spirit was vivid and definite in the mind of Micaiah the storyteller. However, if one insists that the article indicates a well-known or universally known spirit, the following context provides a likely referent. Verse 24 tells how Zedekiah slapped Micaiah in the face and then asked sarcastically, “Which way did the spirit from the Lord (רוּחַ־יְהוָה, [ruakh Yahweh], Heb “the spirit of the Lord”) go when he went from me to speak to you?” When the phrase “the spirit of the Lord” refers to the divine spirit (rather than the divine breath or mind, Isa 40:7, 13) elsewhere, the spirit energizes an individual or group for special tasks or moves one to prophesy. This raises the possibility that the deceiving spirit of vv. 20-23 is the same as the divine spirit mentioned by Zedekiah in v. 24. This would explain why the article is used on רוּחַ; he can be called “the spirit” because he is the well-known spirit who energizes the prophets.
- 1 Kings 22:22 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- 1 Kings 22:22 tn The Hebrew text has two imperfects connected by וְגַם (vegam). These verbs could be translated as specific futures, “you will deceive and also you will prevail,” in which case the Lord is assuring the spirit of success on his mission. However, in a commissioning context (note the following imperatives) such as this, it is more likely that the imperfects are injunctive, in which case one could translate, “Deceive, and also overpower.”
- 1 Kings 22:27 tn Heb “the bread of affliction and the water of affliction.”
- 1 Kings 22:27 tn Heb “come in peace.” So also in v. 28.
- 1 Kings 22:28 tn Heb “Listen.”
1 Kings 22:13-28
International Standard Version
Micaiah Predicts Failure(A)
13 Meanwhile, the messenger who had gone off to summon Micaiah advised him, “Look, everything that the other prophets were saying was unanimously favorable to the king. So please, cooperate with them and speak favorably.”
14 “As the Lord lives,” Micaiah replied, “I’ll say what my God tells me to say.”
15 When Micaiah[a] approached the king, the king asked him, “Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should I not?”
“Go to war,” Micaiah[b] replied, “and you will be successful, because the Lord will hand it over to the king!”
16 When he heard this, the king asked him, “How many times do I have to make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth? Now do it in the name of the Lord!”
17 So Micaiah replied:
“I saw all of Israel
scattered on the mountains
like sheep without a shepherd.
And the Lord told me,
‘These have no master,
so let them each return to his own home in peace.’”
18 Then the king of Israel told Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you that he wouldn’t prophesy anything good about me, but only evil?”
19 But Micaiah responded, “Therefore, listen to what the Lord has to say. I saw the Lord, sitting on his throne, and the entire Heavenly Army was standing around him on his right hand and on his left hand.
20 “The Lord asked, ‘Who will tempt King Ahab of Israel to attack Ramoth-gilead, so that he will die there?’ And one was saying one thing and one was saying another.
21 “But then a spirit approached, stood in front of the Lord, and said, ‘I will entice him.’
22 “And the Lord asked him, ‘How?’
“‘I will go,’ he announced, ‘and I will be a deceiving spirit in the mouth of all of his prophets!’
“So the Lord said, ‘You’re just the one to deceive him. You will be successful. Go and do it.’
23 “Now therefore, listen! The Lord has placed a lying spirit in the mouth of all of these prophets of yours, because the Lord has determined to bring disaster upon you.”
24 Right then, Chenaanah’s son Zedekiah approached Micaiah and struck him on the cheek. Then he asked him, “How did the Spirit of the Lord move from me to speak to you?”
25 Micaiah replied, “You’ll see how when the day comes that you run away to hide yourself in a closet!”
26 Then the king of Israel ordered, “Take Micaiah and place him in the custody of Amon, the city governor. Hand him over to Joash, the king’s son. 27 Give him this order: ‘Place him in prison on survival rations of bread and water only until I come back safely.’”
28 “If you return alive,” Micaiah responded, “then the Lord has not spoken by me.” Then he added, “Listen, all you people!”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 1 Kings 22:15 Lit. he
- 1 Kings 22:15 Lit. he
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