May 26th 2
Chronicles 16
Asa asks for help from Syria
1: In the six and
thirtieth year of the reign of Asa Baasha king of Israel came up
against Judah, and built Ramah, to the intent that he might let none
go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 2: Then Asa brought out
silver and gold out of the treasures of the house of the LORD and of
the king's house, and sent to Ben-hadad king of Syria, that dwelt at
Damascus, saying, 3: There is a league between me and thee, as there
was between my father and thy father: behold, I have sent thee silver
and gold; go, break thy league with Baasha king of Israel, that he
may depart from me. 4: And Ben-hadad hearkened unto king Asa, and
sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel; and
they smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-maim, and all the store cities of
Naphtali. 5: And it came to pass, when Baasha heard it, that he left
off building of Ramah, and let his work cease. 6: Then Asa the king
took all Judah; and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the
timber thereof, wherewith Baasha was building; and he built therewith
Geba and Mizpah. 7: And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king
of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied on the king of
Syria, and not relied on the LORD thy God, therefore is the host of
the king of Syria escaped out of thine hand. 8: Were not the
Ethiopians and the Lubims a huge host, with very many chariots and
horsemen? yet, because thou didst rely on the LORD, he delivered them
into thine hand. 9: For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro
throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of
them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done
foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. 10: Then
Asa was wroth with the seer, and put him in a prison house; for he
was in a rage with him because of this thing. And Asa oppressed some
of the people the same time.
Asa
dies
11: And, behold,
the acts of Asa, first and last, lo, they are written in the book of
the kings of Judah and Israel. 12: And Asa in the thirty and ninth
year of his reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was
exceeding great: yet in his disease he sought not to the LORD, but to
the physicians. 13: And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the
one and fortieth year of his reign. 14: And they buried him in his
own sepulchres, which he had made for himself in the city of David,
and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet odours and divers
kinds of spices prepared by the apothecaries' art: and they made a
very great burning for him.
2 Chronicles
17 Jehoshaphat rules Judah
1: And Jehoshaphat
his son reigned in his stead, and strengthened himself against
Israel. 2: And he placed forces in all the fenced cities of Judah,
and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim,
which Asa his father had taken. 3: And the LORD was with Jehoshaphat,
because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought
not unto Baalim; 4: But sought to the LORD God of his father, and
walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel. 5:
Therefore the LORD stablished the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah
brought to Jehoshaphat presents; and he had riches and honour in
abundance. 6: And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the LORD:
moreover he took away the high places and groves out of Judah. 7:
Also in the third year of his reign he sent to his princes, even to
Ben-hail, and to Obadiah, and to Zechariah, and to Nethaneel, and to
Michaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah. 8: And with them he sent
Levites, even Shemaiah, and Nethaniah, and Zebadiah, and Asahel, and
Shemiramoth, and Jehonathan, and Adonijah, and Tobijah, and
Tob-adonijah, Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram, priests.
9: And they taught in Judah, and had the book of the law of the LORD
with them, and went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and
taught the people. 10: And the fear of the LORD fell upon all the
kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, so that they made
no war against Jehoshaphat. 11: Also some of the Philistines brought
Jehoshaphat presents, and tribute silver; and the Arabians brought
him flocks, seven thousand and seven hundred rams, and seven thousand
and seven hundred he goats. 12: And Jehoshaphat waxed great
exceedingly; and he built in Judah castles, and cities of store. 13:
And he had much business in the cities of Judah: and the men of war,
mighty men of valour, were in Jerusalem. 14: And these are the
numbers of them according to the house of their fathers: Of Judah,
the captains of thousands; Adnah the chief, and with him mighty men
of valour three hundred thousand. 15: And next to him was Jehohanan
the captain, and with him two hundred and fourscore thousand. 16: And
next him was Amasiah the son of Zichri, who willingly offered himself
unto the LORD; and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of
valour. 17: And of Benjamin; Eliada a mighty man of valour, and with
him armed men with bow and shield two hundred thousand. 18: And next
him was Jehozabad, and with him an hundred and fourscore thousand
ready prepared for the war. 19: These waited on the king, beside
those whom the king put in the fenced cities throughout all Judah.
2 Chronicles
18 Micaiah predicts Jehoshaphat’s end
1: Now Jehoshaphat
had riches and honour in abundance, and joined affinity with Ahab. 2:
And after certain years he went down to Ahab to Samaria. And Ahab
killed sheep and oxen for him in abundance, and for the people that
he had with him, and persuaded him to go up with him to
Ramoth-gilead. 3: And Ahab king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat king
of Judah, Wilt thou go with me to Ramoth-gilead? And he answered him,
I am as thou art, and my people as thy people; and we will be with
thee in the war. 4: And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel,
Inquire, I pray thee, at the word of the LORD to day. 5: Therefore
the king of Israel gathered together of prophets four hundred men,
and said unto them, Shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall
I forbear? And they said, Go up; for God will deliver it into the
king's hand. 6: But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of
the LORD besides, that we might inquire of him? 7: And the king of
Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, by whom we may
inquire of the LORD: but I hate him; for he never prophesied good
unto me, but always evil: the same is Micaiah the son of Imla. And
Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so. 8: And the king of Israel
called for one of his officers, and said, Fetch quickly Micaiah the
son of Imla. 9: And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah
sat either of them on his throne, clothed in their robes, and they
sat in a void place at the entering in of the gate of Samaria; and
all the prophets prophesied before them. 10: And Zedekiah the son of
Chenaanah had made him horns of iron, and said, Thus saith the LORD,
With these thou shalt push Syria until they be consumed. 11: And all
the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and
prosper: for the LORD shall deliver it into the hand of the king. 12:
And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spake to him, saying,
Behold, the words of the prophets declare good to the king with one
assent; let thy word therefore, I pray thee, be like one of theirs,
and speak thou good. 13: And Micaiah said, As the LORD liveth, even
what my God saith, that will I speak. 14: And when he was come to the
king, the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead
to battle, or shall I forbear? And he said, Go ye up, and prosper,
and they shall be delivered into your hand. 15: And the king said to
him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou say nothing but the
truth to me in the name of the LORD? 16: Then he said, I did see all
Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd:
and the LORD said, These have no master; let them return therefore
every man to his house in peace. 17: And the king of Israel said to
Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would not prophesy good unto
me, but evil? 18: Again he said, Therefore hear the word of the LORD;
I saw the LORD sitting upon his throne, and all the host of heaven
standing on his right hand and on his left. 19: And the LORD said,
Who shall entice Ahab king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at
Ramoth-gilead? And one spake saying after this manner, and another
saying after that manner. 20: Then there came out a spirit, and stood
before the LORD, and said, I will entice him. And the LORD said unto
him, Wherewith? 21: And he said, I will go out, and be a lying spirit
in the mouth of all his prophets. And the LORD said, Thou shalt
entice him, and thou shalt also prevail: go out, and do even so. 22:
Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth
of these thy prophets, and the LORD hath spoken evil against thee.
23: Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near, and smote Micaiah
upon the cheek, and said, Which way went the Spirit of the LORD from
me to speak unto thee? 24: And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see
on that day when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thyself.
25: Then the king of Israel said, Take ye Micaiah, and carry him back
to Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king's son; 26:
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
return in peace. 27: And Micaiah said, If thou certainly return in
peace, then hath not the LORD spoken by me. And he said, Hearken, all
ye people.
Ahab
dies
28: So the king of
Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead.
29: And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise
myself, and will go to the battle; but put thou on thy robes. So the
king of Israel disguised himself; and they went to the battle. 30:
Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of the chariots that
were with him, saying, Fight ye not with small or great, save only
with the king of Israel. 31: And it came to pass, when the captains
of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, It is the king of
Israel. Therefore they compassed about him to fight: but Jehoshaphat
cried out, and the LORD helped him; and God moved them to depart from
him. 32: For it came to pass, that, when the captains of the chariots
perceived that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back again
from pursuing him. 33: And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and
smote the king of Israel between the joints of the harness: therefore
he said to his chariot man, Turn thine hand, that thou mayest carry
me out of the host; for I am wounded. 34: And the battle increased
that day: howbeit the king of Israel stayed himself up in his chariot
against the Syrians until the even: and about the time of the sun
going down he died.
In Chapters 16-18
Asa finds himself at war after years of peace and he finds the Lords
word is against him. Asa dies after a time of infirmity in his feet
and Jehoshaphat reigns in his place. Then Micaiah predicts the end of
Jehoshaphat. And then we read of the death of Ahab. After 36 years of
peace Asa finds himself at war with Baasha king of Israel. Asa tried
at first to pay his way out of trouble then he asked the Syrian king
for help in his time of need. And the Syrian king went to attack the
rear of Israel so that the King of Israel left off attacking Judah.
Then Asa went and took away all of the building materials of Baasha.
Then the prophet Hanani went to Asa to speak to him the word of the
Lord, saying that because you didn’t turn to the Lord in the day of
your trouble you will find that the Syrians will not help you. Don’t
you remember how the Ethiopians who were a very great army were
destroyed? The Lord looks down on all men in the whole earth and he
is strong to help those whose hearts perfectly seek him. Because you
have acted foolishly you will have wars after wars. Asa was fuming
with the prophet and imprisoned him. And Asa oppressed some of the
people at this time. In his later years Asa was diseased in his feet
and it was a very great problem to him. Yet in spite of all this, he
did not seek the Lord. He had reigned for 41 years. He died and
Jehoshaphat reigned in his place. Asa had a great beginning but a sad
end. The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he lived faithfully with
the Lord, like his father David. God blessed him and gave him riches
and honour. And he appointed teachers to teach the word of the Lord.
They had the word of the Lord and they went around the country
teaching the word of the Lord. As a result of their teaching there
was a general revival and the fear of the Lord came on the people and
on the kingdoms that surrounds Judah. None made war against them Even
the Philistines and Arabians brought them gifts. Jehoshaphat became
very great and he built cities and store cities. He had a huge army
that were totally loyal to him. Then Jehoshaphat joined into affinity
with Ahab the northern king. And after a while he went to visit Ahab.
Ahab asked Jehoshaphat whether he would support him in war. And he
said l am with you and my army. Jehoshaphat said to Ahab shall we
enquire of the Lord as to what the Lord directs us to do? So Ahab
gathered 400 of his yes men. And he put to them the question shall we
go to war? They replied Oh Yes the Lord will bless you in battle.
Jehoshaphat was now even more uneasy, so he said don’t you have
another prophet of the Lord in Israel and Ahab said Oh yes there is
the prophet Micaiah, but l hate him because he always says bad things
about me. So they called for him and he came before the kings with
the 400 prophets. Micaiah was ‘The 401st
Prophet’. On the way Micaiah was told – ‘stick to the party
line’. When they brought Micaiah in they put the question to him
shall we go to battle and he said sure go ahead. But the king said
now tell me the truth like you have always done. So he said l have
seen all Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep without a
shepherd. This was indicating that the king would be killed and his
army routed. Then Ahab said l told you that he never says good things
to me. Then Micaiah said, I saw the Lord sitting on his throne and
all the host of heaven gathered around him (An ironic statement
considering where Micaiah was at this moment.) And he continues The
Lord said who shall entice Ahab to send him into battle and die? Then
there came a spirit (a demon) who stood before the Lord and said l
will go and put lies into the mouths of his false prophets. So the
Lord said go ahead and you will succeed. And so look all around you
the Lord has put lies into the mouths of all these prophets and the
LORD has declared that evil things will come on you. Zedekiah the
chief false prophet came near and slapped his face and said where has
the Spirit of the LORD gone from me? And Micaiah replied when this
happens that l have said you will hide yourself in a little
storeroom. So they king said take away Micaiah and put him in a
prison on bread and water until l come back from the battle. But
Micaiah said if you come back from the battle then l have not spoken
the word of the Lord. And he called on all the people to witness what
he had said. And so Ahab goes to the battle but he disguises himself.
The Syrian king told his men to focus on the king – Ahab. When they
saw the king of Judah Jehoshaphat they pressed on to kill him but he
cried to the Lord and the Lord delivered him in the battle. God moved
them away. In the fight there was an archer who thinking l had better
do something and he drew his bow and released it seemingly at random
but the arrow flew and it struck with unerring accuracy between the
joints of his armour and struck Ahab. He told his charioteer to carry
him away from the battle because l am wounded. The battle increased
in intensity and Ahab tried to stay in his chariot until the evening
and when the sun set he died.
- Why did Asa ask for help from Syria and how did it go?
- What sort of prophet was Micaiah?
- How can Micaiah be vindicated as a prophet?
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