1 Kings 22
The pressure to go with the crowd has always been an issue, even when the ‘crowd’ consisted of only Adam and Eve. We see no evidence that Adam hesitated to follow Eve in her sin. In this chapter of 1 Kings, the pressure is real for Micaiah. Four hundred so-called prophets were speaking a unanimously favorable message to the king. Can you imagine being the single contrary voice in that kind of enthusiastic crowd? I sure can’t! Even the messenger who called Micaiah urged him to go with the crowd. However, Micaiah did not pay attention to the messenger or the masses. Instead, he kept his focus on serving God without considering the immediate consequences.
They say it’s always ‘better’ to tell the truth. And it is…in the long run. Micaiah is one of many in the Bible, though, that show us that ‘better’ does not always mean ‘easier’. Nor does it always manifest itself in this life. The immediate consequences of Micaiah’s faithfulness were certainly not ‘better’.
This is why it is so important that we keep a long-term, eternal perspective. As the Apostle Paul encouraged, we must do as he did. “Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 3:13b-14). Jesus as much as told us that taking a stand for Him would not always give us pleasant results. However, He also said when we face such persecution, like Micaiah did, we should, “Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven.” (Matt. 5:12a). Never forget that we serve an eternal God. The choices we make now should be the ones that benefit us after we leave this world.
2 Chron. 18
I wonder what was going through Jehoshaphat’s mind when he heard Micaiah’s prophecy concerning the battle for Ramoth-Gilead. Micaiah told them the battle would not go favorably. However, he also told them that God would use the battle to execute His justice against King Ahab. I’m thinking maybe that part of Micaiah’s message wasn’t given for Ahab’s benefit. Ahab certainly didn’t pay any heed to anything Micaiah said, even though he knew in his heart it was true. Jehoshaphat, on the other hand, had insisted on seeking God’s will before heading into battle. So perhaps he recognized that heading into the doomed situation was the path in line with God’s will.
Should Jehoshaphat have backed out of his agreement to go to battle when he learned the outcome would not be good? That’s hard to say. He might well have protected himself that way. But would he have been going against God’s will at that point? Clearly, he had put himself in a very sticky situation. While Jehoshaphat did well to seek God’s will – a rather courageous stand in his situation, I might add – I think his timing was off. I think he should have asked that question before getting involved with King Ahab in the first place. Had he not allied himself so closely with evil King Ahab, he wouldn’t have found himself in such a sticky situation, caught in the crossfire of God’s judgment against evil.
Graciously, God protected Jehoshaphat in his sticky situation. But what a reminder to be careful who we get tight with! The more tightly we bind ourselves to those who refuse to follow God, the greater our risk of getting caught in a hard spot. Perhaps God will have mercy on us, as He did with Jehoshaphat, and help us out of our bind. Wouldn’t it be better, though, if we didn’t get ourselves into those situations in the first place?