Information Retrieved -> 1 Kings 17 - 22(NLT)

Book Chapter Verse Text
1 Kings 17 1 Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab, "As surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives--the God whom I worship and serve--there will be no dew or rain during the next few years unless I give the word!"
1 Kings 17 2 Then the LORD said to Elijah,
1 Kings 17 3 "Go to the east and hide by Kerith Brook at a place east of where it enters the Jordan River.
1 Kings 17 4 Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food."
1 Kings 17 5 So Elijah did as the LORD had told him and camped beside Kerith Brook.
1 Kings 17 6 The ravens brought him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he drank from the brook.
1 Kings 17 7 But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land.
1 Kings 17 8 Then the LORD said to Elijah,
1 Kings 17 9 "Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. There is a widow there who will feed you. I have given her my instructions."
1 Kings 17 10 So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her, "Would you please bring me a cup of water?"
1 Kings 17 11 As she was going to get it, he called to her, "Bring me a bite of bread, too."
1 Kings 17 12 But she said, "I swear by the LORD your God that I don't have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die."
1 Kings 17 13 But Elijah said to her, "Don't be afraid! Go ahead and cook that `last meal,' but bake me a little loaf of bread first. Afterward there will still be enough food for you and your son.
1 Kings 17 14 For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: There will always be plenty of flour and oil left in your containers until the time when the LORD sends rain and the crops grow again!"
1 Kings 17 15 So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her son continued to eat from her supply of flour and oil for many days.
1 Kings 17 16 For no matter how much they used, there was always enough left in the containers, just as the LORD had promised through Elijah.
1 Kings 17 17 Some time later, the woman's son became sick. He grew worse and worse, and finally he died.
1 Kings 17 18 She then said to Elijah, "O man of God, what have you done to me? Have you come here to punish my sins by killing my son?"
1 Kings 17 19 But Elijah replied, "Give me your son." And he took the boy's body from her, carried him up to the upper room, where he lived, and laid the body on his bed.
1 Kings 17 20 Then Elijah cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, why have you brought tragedy on this widow who has opened her home to me, causing her son to die?"
1 Kings 17 21 And he stretched himself out over the child three times and cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, please let this child's life return to him."
1 Kings 17 22 The LORD heard Elijah's prayer, and the life of the child returned, and he came back to life!
1 Kings 17 23 Then Elijah brought him down from the upper room and gave him to his mother. "Look, your son is alive!" he said.
1 Kings 17 24 Then the woman told Elijah, "Now I know for sure that you are a man of God, and that the LORD truly speaks through you."
1 Kings 18 1 After many months passed, in the third year of the drought, the LORD said to Elijah, "Go and present yourself to King Ahab. Tell him that I will soon send rain!"
1 Kings 18 2 So Elijah went to appear before Ahab. Meanwhile, the famine had become very severe in Samaria.
1 Kings 18 3 So Ahab summoned Obadiah, who was in charge of the palace. (Now Obadiah was a devoted follower of the LORD.
1 Kings 18 4 Once when Jezebel had tried to kill all the LORD's prophets, Obadiah had hidden one hundred of them in two caves. He had put fifty prophets in each cave and had supplied them with food and water.)
1 Kings 18 5 Ahab said to Obadiah, "We must check every spring and valley to see if we can find enough grass to save at least some of my horses and mules."
1 Kings 18 6 So they divided the land between them. Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
1 Kings 18 7 As Obadiah was walking along, he saw Elijah coming toward him. Obadiah recognized him at once and fell to the ground before him. "Is it really you, my lord Elijah?" he asked.
1 Kings 18 8 "Yes, it is," Elijah replied. "Now go and tell your master I am here."
1 Kings 18 9 "Oh, sir," Obadiah protested, "what harm have I done to you that you are sending me to my death at the hands of Ahab?
1 Kings 18 10 For I swear by the LORD your God that the king has searched every nation and kingdom on earth from end to end to find you. And each time when he was told, `Elijah isn't here,' King Ahab forced the king of that nation to swear to the truth of his claim.
1 Kings 18 11 And now you say, `Go and tell your master that Elijah is here'!
1 Kings 18 12 But as soon as I leave you, the Spirit of the LORD will carry you away to who knows where. When Ahab comes and cannot find you, he will kill me. Yet I have been a true servant of the LORD all my life.
1 Kings 18 13 Has no one told you, my lord, about the time when Jezebel was trying to kill the LORD's prophets? I hid a hundred of them in two caves and supplied them with food and water.
1 Kings 18 14 And now you say, `Go and tell your master that Elijah is here'! Sir, if I do that, I'm as good as dead!"
1 Kings 18 15 But Elijah said, "I swear by the LORD Almighty, in whose presence I stand, that I will present myself to Ahab today."
1 Kings 18 16 So Obadiah went to tell Ahab that Elijah had come, and Ahab went out to meet him.
1 Kings 18 17 "So it's you, is it--Israel's troublemaker?" Ahab asked when he saw him.
1 Kings 18 18 "I have made no trouble for Israel," Elijah replied. "You and your family are the troublemakers, for you have refused to obey the commands of the LORD and have worshiped the images of Baal instead.
1 Kings 18 19 Now bring all the people of Israel to Mount Carmel, with all 450 prophets of Baal and the 400 prophets of Asherah, who are supported by Jezebel."
1 Kings 18 20 So Ahab summoned all the people and the prophets to Mount Carmel.
1 Kings 18 21 Then Elijah stood in front of them and said, "How long are you going to waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him! But if Baal is God, then follow him!" But the people were completely silent.
1 Kings 18 22 Then Elijah said to them, "I am the only prophet of the LORD who is left, but Baal has 450 prophets.
1 Kings 18 23 Now bring two bulls. The prophets of Baal may choose whichever one they wish and cut it into pieces and lay it on the wood of their altar, but without setting fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood on the altar, but not set fire to it.
1 Kings 18 24 Then call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD. The god who answers by setting fire to the wood is the true God!" And all the people agreed.
1 Kings 18 25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, "You go first, for there are many of you. Choose one of the bulls and prepare it and call on the name of your god. But do not set fire to the wood."
1 Kings 18 26 So they prepared one of the bulls and placed it on the altar. Then they called on the name of Baal all morning, shouting, "O Baal, answer us!" But there was no reply of any kind. Then they danced wildly around the altar they had made.
1 Kings 18 27 About noontime Elijah began mocking them. "You'll have to shout louder," he scoffed, "for surely he is a god! Perhaps he is deep in thought, or he is relieving himself. Or maybe he is away on a trip, or he is asleep and needs to be wakened!"
1 Kings 18 28 So they shouted louder, and following their normal custom, they cut themselves with knives and swords until the blood gushed out.
1 Kings 18 29 They raved all afternoon until the time of the evening sacrifice, but still there was no reply, no voice, no answer.
1 Kings 18 30 Then Elijah called to the people, "Come over here!" They all crowded around him as he repaired the altar of the LORD that had been torn down.
1 Kings 18 31 He took twelve stones, one to represent each of the tribes of Israel,
1 Kings 18 32 and he used the stones to rebuild the LORD's altar. Then he dug a trench around the altar large enough to hold about three gallons.
1 Kings 18 33 He piled wood on the altar, cut the bull into pieces, and laid the pieces on the wood. Then he said, "Fill four large jars with water, and pour the water over the offering and the wood." After they had done this,
1 Kings 18 34 he said, "Do the same thing again!" And when they were finished, he said, "Now do it a third time!" So they did as he said,
1 Kings 18 35 and the water ran around the altar and even overflowed the trench.
1 Kings 18 36 At the customary time for offering the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet walked up to the altar and prayed, "O LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, prove today that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant. Prove that I have done all this at your command.
1 Kings 18 37 O LORD, answer me! Answer me so these people will know that you, O LORD, are God and that you have brought them back to yourself."
1 Kings 18 38 Immediately the fire of the LORD flashed down from heaven and burned up the young bull, the wood, the stones, and the dust. It even licked up all the water in the ditch!
1 Kings 18 39 And when the people saw it, they fell on their faces and cried out, "The LORD is God! The LORD is God!"
1 Kings 18 40 Then Elijah commanded, "Seize all the prophets of Baal. Don't let a single one escape!" So the people seized them all, and Elijah took them down to the Kishon Valley and killed them there.
1 Kings 18 41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, "Go and enjoy a good meal! For I hear a mighty rainstorm coming!"
1 Kings 18 42 So Ahab prepared a feast. But Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel and fell to the ground and prayed.
1 Kings 18 43 Then he said to his servant, "Go and look out toward the sea." The servant went and looked, but he returned to Elijah and said, "I didn't see anything." Seven times Elijah told him to go and look, and seven times he went.
1 Kings 18 44 Finally the seventh time, his servant told him, "I saw a little cloud about the size of a hand rising from the sea." Then Elijah shouted, "Hurry to Ahab and tell him, `Climb into your chariot and go back home. If you don't hurry, the rain will stop you!'"
1 Kings 18 45 And sure enough, the sky was soon black with clouds. A heavy wind brought a terrific rainstorm, and Ahab left quickly for Jezreel.
1 Kings 18 46 Now the LORD gave special strength to Elijah. He tucked his cloak into his belt and ran ahead of Ahab's chariot all the way to the entrance of Jezreel.
1 Kings 19 1 When Ahab got home, he told Jezebel what Elijah had done and that he had slaughtered the prophets of Baal.
1 Kings 19 2 So Jezebel sent this message to Elijah: "May the gods also kill me if by this time tomorrow I have failed to take your life like those whom you killed."
1 Kings 19 3 Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there.
1 Kings 19 4 Then he went on alone into the desert, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. "I have had enough, LORD," he said. "Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors."
1 Kings 19 5 Then he lay down and slept under the broom tree. But as he was sleeping, an angel touched him and told him, "Get up and eat!"
1 Kings 19 6 He looked around and saw some bread baked on hot stones and a jar of water! So he ate and drank and lay down again.
1 Kings 19 7 Then the angel of the LORD came again and touched him and said, "Get up and eat some more, for there is a long journey ahead of you."
1 Kings 19 8 So he got up and ate and drank, and the food gave him enough strength to travel forty days and forty nights to Mount Sinai, the mountain of God.
1 Kings 19 9 There he came to a cave, where he spent the night. But the LORD said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
1 Kings 19 10 Elijah replied, "I have zealously served the LORD God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I alone am left, and now they are trying to kill me, too."
1 Kings 19 11 "Go out and stand before me on the mountain," the LORD told him. And as Elijah stood there, the LORD passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
1 Kings 19 12 And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper.
1 Kings 19 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
1 Kings 19 14 He replied again, "I have zealously served the LORD God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I alone am left, and now they are trying to kill me, too."
1 Kings 19 15 Then the LORD told him, "Go back the way you came, and travel to the wilderness of Damascus. When you arrive there, anoint Hazael to be king of Aram.
1 Kings 19 16 Then anoint Jehu son of Nimshi to be king of Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel-meholah to replace you as my prophet.
1 Kings 19 17 Anyone who escapes from Hazael will be killed by Jehu, and those who escape Jehu will be killed by Elisha!
1 Kings 19 18 Yet I will preserve seven thousand others in Israel who have never bowed to Baal or kissed him!"
1 Kings 19 19 So Elijah went and found Elisha son of Shaphat plowing a field with a team of oxen. There were eleven teams of oxen ahead of him, and he was plowing with the twelfth team. Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak across his shoulders and walked away again.
1 Kings 19 20 Elisha left the oxen standing there, ran after Elijah, and said to him, "First let me go and kiss my father and mother good-bye, and then I will go with you!" Elijah replied, "Go on back! But consider what I have done to you."
1 Kings 19 21 Elisha then returned to his oxen, killed them, and used the wood from the plow to build a fire to roast their flesh. He passed around the meat to the other plowmen, and they all ate. Then he went with Elijah as his assistant.
1 Kings 20 1 Now King Ben-hadad of Aram mobilized his army, supported by the chariots and horses of thirty-two allied kings. They went to besiege Samaria, the Israelite capital, and launched attacks against it.
1 Kings 20 2 Ben-hadad sent messengers into the city to relay this message to King Ahab of Israel: "This is what Ben-hadad says:
1 Kings 20 3 `Your silver and gold are mine, and so are the best of your wives and children!'"
1 Kings 20 4 "All right, my lord," Ahab replied. "All that I have is yours!"
1 Kings 20 5 Soon Ben-hadad's messengers returned again and said, "This is what Ben-hadad says: `I have already demanded that you give me your silver, gold, wives, and children.
1 Kings 20 6 But about this time tomorrow I will send my officials to search your palace and the homes of your people. They will take away everything you consider valuable!'"
1 Kings 20 7 Then Ahab summoned all the leaders of the land and said to them, "Look how this man is stirring up trouble! I already agreed when he sent the message demanding that I give him my wives and children and silver and gold."
1 Kings 20 8 "Don't give in to any more demands," the leaders and people advised.
1 Kings 20 9 So Ahab told the messengers from Ben-hadad, "Say this to my lord the king: `I will give you everything you asked for the first time, but this last demand of yours I simply cannot meet.'" So the messengers returned to Ben-hadad with the response.
1 Kings 20 10 Then Ben-hadad sent this message to Ahab: "May the gods bring tragedy on me, and even worse than that, if there remains enough dust from Samaria to provide more than a handful for each of my soldiers."
1 Kings 20 11 The king of Israel sent back this answer: "A warrior still dressing for battle should not boast like a warrior who has already won."
1 Kings 20 12 This reply of Ahab's reached Ben-hadad and the other kings as they were drinking in their tents. "Prepare to attack!" Ben-hadad commanded his officers. So they prepared to attack the city.
1 Kings 20 13 Then a prophet came to see King Ahab and told him, "This is what the LORD says: Do you see all these enemy forces? Today I will hand them all over to you. Then you will know that I am the LORD."
1 Kings 20 14 Ahab asked, "How will he do it?" And the prophet replied, "This is what the LORD says: The troops of the provincial commanders will do it.Should we attack first?" Ahab asked. "Yes," the prophet answered.
1 Kings 20 15 So Ahab mustered the troops of the 232 provincial commanders. Then he called out the rest of his army of seven thousand men.
1 Kings 20 16 About noontime, as Ben-hadad and the thirty-two allied kings were still in their tents getting drunk,
1 Kings 20 17 the troops of the provincial commanders marched out of the city. As they approached, Ben-hadad's scouts reported to him, "Some troops are coming from Samaria."
1 Kings 20 18 "Take them alive," Ben-hadad commanded, "whether they have come for peace or for war."
1 Kings 20 19 But by now Ahab's provincial commanders had led the army out to fight.
1 Kings 20 20 Each Israelite soldier killed his Aramean opponent, and suddenly the entire Aramean army panicked and fled. The Israelites chased them, but King Ben-hadad and a few others escaped on horses.
1 Kings 20 21 However, the other horses and chariots were destroyed, and the Arameans were killed in a great slaughter.
1 Kings 20 22 Afterward the prophet said to King Ahab, "Get ready for another attack by the king of Aram next spring."
1 Kings 20 23 After their defeat, Ben-hadad's officers said to him, "The Israelite gods are gods of the hills; that is why they won. But we can beat them easily on the plains.
1 Kings 20 24 Only this time replace the kings with field commanders!
1 Kings 20 25 Recruit another army like the one you lost. Give us the same number of horses, chariots, and men, and we will fight against them in the plains. There's not a shadow of a doubt that we will beat them." So King Ben-hadad did as they suggested.
1 Kings 20 26 The following spring he called up the Aramean army and marched out against Israel, this time at Aphek.
1 Kings 20 27 Israel then mustered its army, set up supply lines, and moved into the battle. But the Israelite army looked like two little flocks of goats in comparison to the vast Aramean forces that filled the countryside!
1 Kings 20 28 Then the man of God went to the king of Israel and said, "This is what the LORD says: The Arameans have said that the LORD is a god of the hills and not of the plains. So I will help you defeat this vast army. Then you will know that I am the LORD."
1 Kings 20 29 The two armies camped opposite each other for seven days, and on the seventh day the battle began. The Israelites killed 100,000 Aramean foot soldiers in one day.
1 Kings 20 30 The rest fled behind the walls of Aphek, but the wall fell on them and killed another 27,000. Ben-hadad fled into the city and hid in a secret room.
1 Kings 20 31 Ben-hadad's officers said to him, "Sir, we have heard that the kings of Israel are very merciful. So let's humble ourselves by wearing sackcloth and putting ropes on our heads. Then perhaps King Ahab will let you live."
1 Kings 20 32 So they put on sackcloth and ropes and went to the king of Israel and begged, "Your servant Ben-hadad says, `Please let me live!'" The king of Israel responded, "Is he still alive? He is my brother!"
1 Kings 20 33 The men were quick to grasp at this straw of hope, and they replied, "Yes, your brother Ben-hadad!Go and get him," the king of Israel told them. And when Ben-hadad arrived, Ahab invited him up into his chariot!
1 Kings 20 34 Ben-hadad told him, "I will give back the towns my father took from your father, and you may establish places of trade in Damascus, as my father did in Samaria." Then Ahab said, "I will let you go under these conditions." So they made a treaty, and Ben-hadad was set free.
1 Kings 20 35 Meanwhile, the LORD instructed one of the group of prophets to say to another man, "Strike me!" But the man refused to strike the prophet.
1 Kings 20 36 Then the prophet told him, "Because you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD, a lion will kill you as soon as you leave me." And sure enough, when he had gone, a lion attacked and killed him.
1 Kings 20 37 Then the prophet turned to another man and said, "Strike me!" So he struck the prophet and wounded him.
1 Kings 20 38 The prophet waited for the king beside the road, having placed a bandage over his eyes to disguise himself.
1 Kings 20 39 As the king passed by, the prophet called out to him, "Sir, I was in the battle, and a man brought me a prisoner. He said, `Guard this man; if for any reason he gets away, you will either die or pay a fine of seventy-five pounds of silver!'
1 Kings 20 40 But while I was busy doing something else, the prisoner disappeared!Well, it's your own fault," the king replied. "You have determined your own judgment."
1 Kings 20 41 Then the prophet pulled the bandage from his eyes, and the king of Israel recognized him as one of the prophets.
1 Kings 20 42 And the prophet told him, "This is what the LORD says: Because you have spared the man I said must be destroyed, now you must die in his place, and your people will die instead of his people."
1 Kings 20 43 So the king of Israel went home to Samaria angry and sullen.
1 Kings 21 1 King Ahab had a palace in Jezreel, and near the palace was a vineyard owned by a man named Naboth.
1 Kings 21 2 One day Ahab said to Naboth, "Since your vineyard is so convenient to the palace, I would like to buy it to use as a vegetable garden. I will give you a better vineyard in exchange, or if you prefer, I will pay you for it."
1 Kings 21 3 But Naboth replied, "The LORD forbid that I should give you the inheritance that was passed down by my ancestors."
1 Kings 21 4 So Ahab went home angry and sullen because of Naboth's answer. The king went to bed with his face to the wall and refused to eat!
1 Kings 21 5 "What in the world is the matter?" his wife, Jezebel, asked him. "What has made you so upset that you are not eating?"
1 Kings 21 6 "I asked Naboth to sell me his vineyard or to trade it, and he refused!" Ahab told her.
1 Kings 21 7 "Are you the king of Israel or not?" Jezebel asked. "Get up and eat and don't worry about it. I'll get you Naboth's vineyard!"
1 Kings 21 8 So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the elders and other leaders of the city where Naboth lived.
1 Kings 21 9 In her letters she commanded: "Call the citizens together for fasting and prayer and give Naboth a place of honor.
1 Kings 21 10 Find two scoundrels who will accuse him of cursing God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death."
1 Kings 21 11 So the elders and other leaders followed the instructions Jezebel had written in the letters.
1 Kings 21 12 They called for a fast and put Naboth at a prominent place before the people.
1 Kings 21 13 Then two scoundrels accused him before all the people of cursing God and the king. So he was dragged outside the city and stoned to death.
1 Kings 21 14 The city officials then sent word to Jezebel, "Naboth has been stoned to death."
1 Kings 21 15 When Jezebel heard the news, she said to Ahab, "You know the vineyard Naboth wouldn't sell you? Well, you can have it now! He's dead!"
1 Kings 21 16 So Ahab immediately went down to the vineyard to claim it.
1 Kings 21 17 But the LORD said to Elijah, who was from Tishbe,
1 Kings 21 18 "Go down to meet King Ahab, who rules in Samaria. He will be at Naboth's vineyard in Jezreel, taking possession of it.
1 Kings 21 19 Give him this message: `This is what the LORD says: Isn't killing Naboth bad enough? Must you rob him, too? Because you have done this, dogs will lick your blood outside the city just as they licked the blood of Naboth!'"
1 Kings 21 20 "So my enemy has found me!" Ahab exclaimed to Elijah. "Yes," Elijah answered, "I have come because you have sold yourself to what is evil in the LORD's sight.
1 Kings 21 21 The LORD is going to bring disaster to you and sweep you away. He will not let a single one of your male descendants, slave or free alike, survive in Israel!
1 Kings 21 22 He is going to destroy your family as he did the family of Jeroboam son of Nebat and the family of Baasha son of Ahijah, for you have made him very angry and have led all of Israel into sin.
1 Kings 21 23 The LORD has also told me that the dogs of Jezreel will eat the body of your wife, Jezebel, at the city wall.
1 Kings 21 24 The members of your family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the field will be eaten by vultures."
1 Kings 21 25 No one else so completely sold himself to what was evil in the LORD's sight as did Ahab, for his wife, Jezebel, influenced him.
1 Kings 21 26 He was especially guilty because he worshiped idols just as the Amorites had done--the people whom the LORD had driven from the land ahead of the Israelites.
1 Kings 21 27 When Ahab heard this message, he tore his clothing, dressed in sackcloth, and fasted. He even slept in sackcloth and went about in deep mourning.
1 Kings 21 28 Then another message from the LORD came to Elijah, who was from Tishbe:
1 Kings 21 29 "Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has done this, I will not do what I promised during his lifetime. It will happen to his sons; I will destroy all his descendants."
1 Kings 22 1 For three years there was no war between Aram and Israel.
1 Kings 22 2 Then during the third year, King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to visit King Ahab of Israel.
1 Kings 22 3 During the visit, Ahab said to his officials, "Do you realize that the Arameans are still occupying our city of Ramoth-gilead? And we haven't done a thing about it!"
1 Kings 22 4 Then he turned to Jehoshaphat and asked, "Will you join me in fighting against Ramoth-gilead?" And Jehoshaphat replied to King Ahab, "Why, of course! You and I are brothers, and my troops are yours to command. Even my horses are at your service."
1 Kings 22 5 Then Jehoshaphat added, "But first let's find out what the LORD says."
1 Kings 22 6 So King Ahab summoned his prophets, about four hundred of them, and asked them, "Should I go to war against Ramoth-gilead or not?" They all replied, "Go right ahead! The Lord will give you a glorious victory!"
1 Kings 22 7 But Jehoshaphat asked, "Isn't there a prophet of the LORD around, too? I would like to ask him the same question."
1 Kings 22 8 King Ahab replied, "There is still one prophet of the LORD, but I hate him. He never prophesies anything but bad news for me! His name is Micaiah son of Imlah.You shouldn't talk like that," Jehoshaphat said. "Let's hear what he has to say."
1 Kings 22 9 So the king of Israel called one of his officials and said, "Quick! Go and get Micaiah son of Imlah."
1 Kings 22 10 King Ahab of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah, dressed in their royal robes, were sitting on thrones at the threshing floor near the gate of Samaria. All of Ahab's prophets were prophesying there in front of them.
1 Kings 22 11 One of them, Zedekiah son of Kenaanah, made some iron horns and proclaimed, "This is what the LORD says: With these horns you will gore the Arameans to death!"
1 Kings 22 12 All the other prophets agreed. "Yes," they said, "go up to Ramoth-gilead and be victorious, for the LORD will give you victory!"
1 Kings 22 13 Meanwhile, the messenger who went to get Micaiah said to him, "Look, all the prophets are promising victory for the king. Be sure that you agree with them and promise success."
1 Kings 22 14 But Micaiah replied, "As surely as the LORD lives, I will say only what the LORD tells me to say."
1 Kings 22 15 When Micaiah arrived before the king, Ahab asked him, "Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead or not?" And Micaiah replied, "Go right ahead! The LORD will give the king a glorious victory!"
1 Kings 22 16 But the king replied sharply, "How many times must I demand that you speak only the truth when you speak for the LORD?"
1 Kings 22 17 So Micaiah told him, "In a vision I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, like sheep without a shepherd. And the LORD said, `Their master has been killed. Send them home in peace.'"
1 Kings 22 18 "Didn't I tell you?" the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat. "He does it every time. He never prophesies anything but bad news for me."
1 Kings 22 19 Then Micaiah continued, "Listen to what the LORD says! I saw the LORD sitting on his throne with all the armies of heaven around him, on his right and on his left.
1 Kings 22 20 And the LORD said, `Who can entice Ahab to go into battle against Ramoth-gilead so that he can be killed there?' There were many suggestions,
1 Kings 22 21 until finally a spirit approached the LORD and said, `I can do it!'
1 Kings 22 22 " `How will you do this?' the LORD asked. "And the spirit replied, `I will go out and inspire all Ahab's prophets to speak lies.'" `You will succeed,' said the LORD. `Go ahead and do it.'
1 Kings 22 23 "So you see, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouths of your prophets. For the LORD has determined disaster for you."
1 Kings 22 24 Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah walked up to Micaiah and slapped him across the face. "When did the Spirit of the LORD leave me to speak to you?" he demanded.
1 Kings 22 25 And Micaiah replied, "You will find out soon enough when you find yourself hiding in some secret room!"
1 Kings 22 26 King Ahab of Israel then ordered, "Arrest Micaiah and take him back to Amon, the governor of the city, and to my son Joash.
1 Kings 22 27 Give them this order from the king: `Put this man in prison, and feed him nothing but bread and water until I return safely from the battle!'"
1 Kings 22 28 But Micaiah replied, "If you return safely, the LORD has not spoken through me!" Then he added to those standing around, "Take note of what I have said."
1 Kings 22 29 So the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah led their armies against Ramoth-gilead.
1 Kings 22 30 Now King Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, "As we go into battle, I will disguise myself so no one will recognize me, but you wear your royal robes." So Ahab disguised himself, and they went into battle.
1 Kings 22 31 Now the king of Aram had issued these orders to his thirty-two charioteers: "Attack only the king of Israel!"
1 Kings 22 32 So when the Aramean charioteers saw Jehoshaphat in his royal robes, they went after him. "There is the king of Israel!" they shouted. But when Jehoshaphat cried out,
1 Kings 22 33 the charioteers realized he was not the king of Israel, and they stopped chasing him.
1 Kings 22 34 An Aramean soldier, however, randomly shot an arrow at the Israelite troops, and the arrow hit the king of Israel between the joints of his armor. "Get me out of here!" Ahab groaned to the driver of his chariot. "I have been badly wounded!"
1 Kings 22 35 The battle raged all that day, and Ahab was propped up in his chariot facing the Arameans. The blood from his wound ran down to the floor of his chariot, and as evening arrived he died.
1 Kings 22 36 Just as the sun was setting, the cry ran through his troops: "It's all over--return home!"
1 Kings 22 37 So the king died, and his body was taken to Samaria and buried there.
1 Kings 22 38 Then his chariot was washed beside the pool of Samaria, where the prostitutes bathed, and dogs came and licked the king's blood, just as the LORD had promised.
1 Kings 22 39 The rest of the events in Ahab's reign and the story of the ivory palace and the cities he built are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel.
1 Kings 22 40 When Ahab died, he was buried among his ancestors. Then his son Ahaziah became the next king.
1 Kings 22 41 Jehoshaphat son of Asa began to rule over Judah in the fourth year of King Ahab's reign in Israel.
1 Kings 22 42 He was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-five years. His mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.
1 Kings 22 43 Jehoshaphat was a good king, following the example of his father, Asa. He did what was pleasing in the LORD's sight. During his reign, however, he failed to remove all the pagan shrines, and the people still offered sacrifices and burned incense there.
1 Kings 22 44 Jehoshaphat also made peace with the king of Israel.
1 Kings 22 45 The rest of the events in Jehoshaphat's reign, the extent of his power, and the wars he waged are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah.
1 Kings 22 46 He banished from the land the rest of the shrine prostitutes, who still continued their practices from the days of his father, Asa.
1 Kings 22 47 There was no king in Edom at that time, only a deputy.
1 Kings 22 48 Jehoshaphat also built a fleet of trading ships to sail to Ophir for gold. But the ships never set sail, for they were wrecked at Ezion-geber.
1 Kings 22 49 At that time Ahaziah son of Ahab proposed to Jehoshaphat, "Let my men sail an expedition with your men." But Jehoshaphat refused the offer.
1 Kings 22 50 When Jehoshaphat died, he was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. Then his son Jehoram became the next king.
1 Kings 22 51 Ahaziah son of Ahab began to rule over Israel in the seventeenth year of King Jehoshaphat's reign in Judah. He reigned in Samaria two years.
1 Kings 22 52 But he did what was evil in the LORD's sight, following the example of his father and mother and the example of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had led Israel into the sin of idolatry.
1 Kings 22 53 He served Baal and worshiped him, arousing the anger of the LORD, the God of Israel, just as his father had done.
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