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(The view expressed in this blog are my own and should not be taken as inspired in any way.)
1 Kings 22:1–14, “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 in Gilead is ours, and we be 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 Ramothgilead? 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, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the LORD to day. Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them, Shall I go against Ramothgilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king. And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD besides, that we might enquire of him? And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may enquire of the LORD: 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 officer, and said, Hasten hither Micaiah the son of Imlah. And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, having put on their robes, in a void place in the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them. And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron: and he said, Thus saith the LORD, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until thou have consumed them. And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramothgilead, and prosper: for the LORD shall deliver it into the king’s hand. And the messenger that was gone 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 that which is good. And Micaiah said, As the LORD liveth, what the LORD saith unto me, that will I speak.”
After Benhadad was defeated he didn’t prosecute a war against Israel for three years. This is hardly surprising as he suffered two massive defeats in succession. Jehoshaphat from Judah came to Ahab and asked him about Ramoth in Gilead, a northern region on the eastern side of the Jordan River and the Sea of Galilee. This area is now known as the Golan heights (although the boundaries are not exactly the same). This is high ground that overlooks Israeli territory on the flat lands around the sea. Mount Hermon in the north is a snow topped mountain. Ahab wanted to take this area back and Jehoshaphat agreed that this was a good idea, after all the land had belonged to Israel since the nation’s foundation. Jehoshaphat was more interested in believing the Lord and wanted to consult some true prophets of the Lord to find out if this was a worthwhile venture. Ahab had any number of prophets that would tell him whatever he wanted to hear but that wasn’t good enough for Jehoshaphat. Ahab said that there was a man called Micaiah the son of Imlah but Ahab hated him because Micaiah gave Ahab’s the Lord’s message and it was never the message Ahab wanted. When Micaiah came Jehoshaphat told him what all the other prophets had said and then asked him to give the true message from the Lord, rather than a message from Ahab’s god.
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