1 Kings 22:1

1 Kings 22:1 says, And they continued three years without war between Syria and Israel.  There was a three-year period of peace between Syria and Israel.  It is always nice if we can live at peace with the world without sacrificing our obedience to God, but it may never happen and if it does, it may be but for a brief period of time.  Verse two adds, And it came to pass in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel.  After three years, Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came to the king of Israel.  Matthew Henry says Jehoshaphat came to discuss the state of the entire kingdom of God with Ahab, who was at least pretending to be following God.  He adds that it is hard to understand why a great king like Jehosophat would be interested in Ahab, but we need to be concerned about the unity of all of God's people as we reach out to the lost people of the world.  Verse three continues, 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? Ahab pointed out that Ramoth in Gilead belonged to Israel but was still in the possession of Syria.  Matthew Henry points out that we don't know if other cities were still in the possession of Syria, but that the fact that Ramoth Gilead was occurred because of Ahab's making a pact with Benhadad instead of destroying him.  If we attempt to make a pact with sin as Christians, it is ultimately going to cause us problems.  Verse four states, 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.  Ahab asked Jehosaphat if he would join him in reclaiming Ramoth Gilead, and Jehosaphat said that he and all that was his was at Ahab's disposal.  Once more, we are not told that Jehoshaphat asked God for guidance in this situation.  Before we as followers of Christ make an agreement with anyone, we must first ask God what we should do.  Verse five adds, And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the Lord to day.  Jehoshaphat did then ask Ahab to inquire of God about what they were about to do.  Still, I have to wonder why he didn't just ask God himself.  If we have questions about what God wants us to do today, we need to first just ask Him.  Verse six continues, 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. Ahab gathered about four hundred prophets, the prophets of the grove referred to earlier most likely, though we are not told they were prophets of God, and asked if he should go to war with Syria and they told him to go because God was with him.  We need to be careful about relying on others to tell us what God wants us to do, because there are still people who profess to be Christians today who are Christians in name only.  Some are willing to say that whatever someone in power wants is God's will, whether it is or not.  Verse seven declares, And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we might enquire of him?  At least Jehoshaphat didn't just accept the word of these four hundred prophets, but asked if there was not a prophet of God whom they could inquire of.  We need to make certain that those who profess to reveal God's will to us are true Christians.  Verse eight adds, 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.  Ahab told Jehoshaphat that there was one named Micaiah, but that Ahab hated him because he never prophesied good things for Ahab, probably because he was actually prophesying God's word.  We may not always want to hear what God has to say to us as a nation today, but we also must be careful that those who profess to tells us what God wants are truly Christians who are following God's guidance in what they tell us.  Verse nine continues, Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said, Hasten hither Micaiah the son of Imlah.  Jehoshaphat told Ahab to call Micaiah.  The fact that Micaiah did not tell Ahab what he wanted to hear was reason enough to call for him.  We need the people of God to tell us the truth today and not just what we may want to hear.