The Last Battle -- (NOT the one from Chronicles of Narnia)
This, as the title warned, is NOT about The Last Battle, the brilliant conclusion to the Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis ... which you should read if you have not, by the way. This is the story of the last battle of King Ahab's life. It is a poignant story. You will see why, I hope, by the end of this blog.
"poignant" That is such a great word...here let me give you the definition (to save you time, cuz I know you are about to go get a dictionary to look it up...right?
POIGNANT
1. keenly distressing to the feelings: poignant regret.
2. keen or strong in mental appeal: a subject of poignant interest.
3. affecting or moving the emotions: a poignant scene
Etymology: ME poynaunt < MF poignant, prp. of poindre < L pungere to prick, pierce
Let's start by playing the fun, fun game "Who Would YOU Cast?" again. Go and read the story of Ahab's last battle in 1 Kings 22, and in 2 Chronicles 18. 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles tell stories from the same time period of the Kings of Israel and Judah. This is one of the rare times where the stories as written in Kings and in Chronicles are nearly identical. In this round of "Who Would YOU Cast?", the cast members you are assigned are ... Micaiah, prophet of YHWH; Ahab, King of Israel; Jehoshaphat, King of Judah; and Zedekiah, also a prophet.
Go ahead ... I'll wait!
{silent musical interlude for your listening pleasure while you read.}
OK, are you finished? Good. Pretty interesting story, don't you think? Funny, tragic, powerful. Did you come up with ideas for who you would cast in the parts assigned? Good!
OK, here are my picks:
Ahab: Anthony Hopkins -- the Anthony Hopkins from Remains of the Day or Mask of Zorro or Amistad. (With perhaps the slightest touch of the Anthony Hopkins from Silence of the Lambs, but just the slightest touch.) He should be older, but gruff, while still sharp in intellect and demeanor.
Jehoshaphat: Russel Crowe -- strong, confident, powerful. A strong force.
Micaiah: Jack Nicholson. Sarcastic, powerful, loud, and a touch (OK, more than a touch) arrogant.
Zedekiah: Al Pacino, dark, and a bit "slimy" looking
(if you have better ideas -- I am SURE some of you must -- let me know)
- - - - - - -
Now, let's give the story some context:
"Three years passed without war between Aram and Israel" (1 Kings 22:1)
But before that 3 years, Israel had been at war with Aram for 2 years running. Israel had won those wars -- handily. God had been wholly on Israel's side, and with His help Ahab, king of Israel, had soundly defeated Ben-Hadad, the king of Aram. I think that Ahab was feeling confident -- so confident that he 'forgot' that he only won because of the help GOD had given him against the Arameans. (if you need a review, read 1 Kings 20).
Jehoshaphat is king in Judah. He is a good king who loves and worships GOD from his heart. His father had also been a good king who also worshiped GOD. Jehoshaphat, for some reason that I cannot figure out, has married into Ahab's family and for the first time in a long, long time there is peace between Israel and Judah.
Jehoshaphat comes for a state visit up to Israel. Ahab makes a suggestion to Jehoshaphat:
"Do you know that Ramoth-gilead belongs to us, and we are still doing nothing to take it out of the hands of the king of Aram? (Then specifically to Jehoshaphat) "Will you go with me to battle at Ramoth-gilead?"
Jehoshaphat agrees, but suggests that they get a word of the Lord first. Now the wording of the story becomes interesting. It says that Ahab called "the prophets ... about 400 ... together". They all say, "Go up, for the Lord will give it into the hands of the king." Then Jehoshaphat makes a VERY interesting remark: "Is there not yet a prophet of the LORD here that we may inquire of him?"
Ahab says there is one...but says that he hates that prophet because he never prophecies anything good concerning Ahab.
OK...I find all this VERY interesting. First, while it may be that the 400 prophets that Ahab calls at first are prophets of Baal -- it does not say they are ~ and up to this point in the story that contrast has been specifically pointed out. Second, it is clear to Jehoshaphat that these are NOT prophets of GOD (YHWH), and Ahab does not deny that. And third, when Jehoshaphat requests a prophet of GOD (YHWH) specifically, Ahab does NOT say, "hey, these prophets ARE prophets of YHWH"...he says there is one other guy that he hates who is a prophet of YHWH.
So we, it seems at least, have now 3 categories of prophets -- prophets of Baal (killed at Mt. Carmel after the contest with Elijah); prophets of YHWH like Elijah and Micaiah, and this 'in-between' group: these 400 'other' prophets. The fact is that after these 'other' prophets say they should go to war and that God is going to give them victory, Jehoshaphat asks if there isn't a prophet of GOD (YHWH). Clearly something in what Jehoshaphat heard did NOT sit right with his spirit...and he knew he was NOT hearing from GOD.
Ahab calls in Micaiah. The messenger who goes to get Micaiah tells him, "Behold, now, the words of the prophets are uniformly favorable to the king. Please let your words be like the words of one of them and speak favorably." In other words, 'Don't rock the boat: you say what everyone else has said ~ tell the king what he wants to hear.' Micaiah's answer is, "As the LORD lives, what the LORD says to me, that I will speak."
Micaiah goes in and says, "Go up and succeed, and the LORD will give it into the hands of the King." He must have been REALLY sarcastic because Ahab tells him "how many times do I have to say to you 'only tell me the truth' ?" (I really can see Jack Nicholson doing this part ... can't you??) Micaiah proceeds to tell him MUCH more than he was, probably, ready to hear. Micaiah tells the kings how he overheard an amazing scene in the court of GOD. God is on his throne and all the host of heaven were around him. "Hosts" means "army". So the entire army of God is around God. He wants to hear a plan -- how can Ahab be enticed to go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead. One of the 'spirits' says to God that he will go be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets, and God says, in effect, 'Great plan! Go do it!' Then he says, "Now, therefore, behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these your prophets; and the LORD has proclaimed disaster against you." One of the prophets named Zedekiah kind of freaks out: he walks over and smacks Micaiah and says, in a voice that I am SURE dripped with sarcasm, "How did the Spirit of the LORD pass from me to speak to you?" In other words he says, 'I know I heard from God -- and if I have the Spirit of God then you can't!' (ok, not only can I see Nicholson and Pacino do this scene...I would love to!)
What are we to think? Here is what I think --
The 450 prophets, we are told, are telling the king what he wants to hear. . .and they are all saying the same thing. It is a plan: the messenger tells Micaiah to say what everyone else is saying. Then Micaiah tells us that he overheard a spirit get permission from God to be a lying spirit in the mouth of Ahab's prophets. Zedekiah is either being a drama-prophet (you know ~ like a 'drama queen', but male and a prophet) and knows that his prophecy is not true, or he thinks what he has heard in his spirit is actually a prophecy since came spiritually. Here is the difference for me: Micaiah tells the messenger: "What the LORD speaks to me, that I will say!" Real prophecy is not what you hear in your spirit, or what you 'feel' and it is NOT going with the crowd of other 'spiritual' people. REAL prophecy is hearing what GOD has to say, and saying that! And at the risk of sounding like a 'broken record': If you KNOW God, you KNOW His voice.
What Micaiah tells the kings comes to pass. It is quite sad actually: poignant ~ keenly distressing. The best 'planning' of Ahab can not keep him from the disaster about which God has warned him. Ahab must have been full of foreboding -- even though he brashly disregards Micaiah's clear warning. He tells Jehoshaphat that he will go into the battle disguised, but that Jehoshaphat should go in his royal robes. Jehoshaphat agrees ? What ? Yeah, go figure!! But as Robert Burns said, "The best laid plans of mice and men, gang oft aglee" (gang oft aglee -- go often awry, or DO NOT WORK OUT) Ahab goes into the battle disguised. At first the Arameans go after Jehoshaphat because they think he is Ahab, King of Israel. They only want to kill the king of ISRAEL, and so they turn away when they see it is Jehoshaphat. Some random guy randomly shoots an arrow that randomly ~ that poignantly pierces Ahab and he bleed to death. Poignant, don't you think? Makes a very strong point, and it definitely moves my emotions! He thought he could disregard God. He had a chance -- he could have listened. How many times had prophets been sent to him? How many times had God done wonderful and miraculous things to get him to see that GOD is LORD! Even to this bitter end you see God -- albeit left-handedly -- telling Ahab truth and warning him. But, he 'leans on his OWN understanding'. He could have gotten to know God. He didn't. In the end, all his planning and trickery could NOT protect him from the final judgement of God.
"poignant" That is such a great word...here let me give you the definition (to save you time, cuz I know you are about to go get a dictionary to look it up...right?
POIGNANT
1. keenly distressing to the feelings: poignant regret.
2. keen or strong in mental appeal: a subject of poignant interest.
3. affecting or moving the emotions: a poignant scene
Etymology: ME poynaunt < MF poignant, prp. of poindre < L pungere to prick, pierce
Let's start by playing the fun, fun game "Who Would YOU Cast?" again. Go and read the story of Ahab's last battle in 1 Kings 22, and in 2 Chronicles 18. 1 Kings and 2 Chronicles tell stories from the same time period of the Kings of Israel and Judah. This is one of the rare times where the stories as written in Kings and in Chronicles are nearly identical. In this round of "Who Would YOU Cast?", the cast members you are assigned are ... Micaiah, prophet of YHWH; Ahab, King of Israel; Jehoshaphat, King of Judah; and Zedekiah, also a prophet.
Go ahead ... I'll wait!
{silent musical interlude for your listening pleasure while you read.}
OK, are you finished? Good. Pretty interesting story, don't you think? Funny, tragic, powerful. Did you come up with ideas for who you would cast in the parts assigned? Good!
OK, here are my picks:
Ahab: Anthony Hopkins -- the Anthony Hopkins from Remains of the Day or Mask of Zorro or Amistad. (With perhaps the slightest touch of the Anthony Hopkins from Silence of the Lambs, but just the slightest touch.) He should be older, but gruff, while still sharp in intellect and demeanor.
Jehoshaphat: Russel Crowe -- strong, confident, powerful. A strong force.
Micaiah: Jack Nicholson. Sarcastic, powerful, loud, and a touch (OK, more than a touch) arrogant.
Zedekiah: Al Pacino, dark, and a bit "slimy" looking
(if you have better ideas -- I am SURE some of you must -- let me know)
- - - - - - -
Now, let's give the story some context:
"Three years passed without war between Aram and Israel" (1 Kings 22:1)
But before that 3 years, Israel had been at war with Aram for 2 years running. Israel had won those wars -- handily. God had been wholly on Israel's side, and with His help Ahab, king of Israel, had soundly defeated Ben-Hadad, the king of Aram. I think that Ahab was feeling confident -- so confident that he 'forgot' that he only won because of the help GOD had given him against the Arameans. (if you need a review, read 1 Kings 20).
Jehoshaphat is king in Judah. He is a good king who loves and worships GOD from his heart. His father had also been a good king who also worshiped GOD. Jehoshaphat, for some reason that I cannot figure out, has married into Ahab's family and for the first time in a long, long time there is peace between Israel and Judah.
Jehoshaphat comes for a state visit up to Israel. Ahab makes a suggestion to Jehoshaphat:
"Do you know that Ramoth-gilead belongs to us, and we are still doing nothing to take it out of the hands of the king of Aram? (Then specifically to Jehoshaphat) "Will you go with me to battle at Ramoth-gilead?"
Jehoshaphat agrees, but suggests that they get a word of the Lord first. Now the wording of the story becomes interesting. It says that Ahab called "the prophets ... about 400 ... together". They all say, "Go up, for the Lord will give it into the hands of the king." Then Jehoshaphat makes a VERY interesting remark: "Is there not yet a prophet of the LORD here that we may inquire of him?"
Ahab says there is one...but says that he hates that prophet because he never prophecies anything good concerning Ahab.
OK...I find all this VERY interesting. First, while it may be that the 400 prophets that Ahab calls at first are prophets of Baal -- it does not say they are ~ and up to this point in the story that contrast has been specifically pointed out. Second, it is clear to Jehoshaphat that these are NOT prophets of GOD (YHWH), and Ahab does not deny that. And third, when Jehoshaphat requests a prophet of GOD (YHWH) specifically, Ahab does NOT say, "hey, these prophets ARE prophets of YHWH"...he says there is one other guy that he hates who is a prophet of YHWH.
So we, it seems at least, have now 3 categories of prophets -- prophets of Baal (killed at Mt. Carmel after the contest with Elijah); prophets of YHWH like Elijah and Micaiah, and this 'in-between' group: these 400 'other' prophets. The fact is that after these 'other' prophets say they should go to war and that God is going to give them victory, Jehoshaphat asks if there isn't a prophet of GOD (YHWH). Clearly something in what Jehoshaphat heard did NOT sit right with his spirit...and he knew he was NOT hearing from GOD.
Ahab calls in Micaiah. The messenger who goes to get Micaiah tells him, "Behold, now, the words of the prophets are uniformly favorable to the king. Please let your words be like the words of one of them and speak favorably." In other words, 'Don't rock the boat: you say what everyone else has said ~ tell the king what he wants to hear.' Micaiah's answer is, "As the LORD lives, what the LORD says to me, that I will speak."
Micaiah goes in and says, "Go up and succeed, and the LORD will give it into the hands of the King." He must have been REALLY sarcastic because Ahab tells him "how many times do I have to say to you 'only tell me the truth' ?" (I really can see Jack Nicholson doing this part ... can't you??) Micaiah proceeds to tell him MUCH more than he was, probably, ready to hear. Micaiah tells the kings how he overheard an amazing scene in the court of GOD. God is on his throne and all the host of heaven were around him. "Hosts" means "army". So the entire army of God is around God. He wants to hear a plan -- how can Ahab be enticed to go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead. One of the 'spirits' says to God that he will go be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets, and God says, in effect, 'Great plan! Go do it!' Then he says, "Now, therefore, behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these your prophets; and the LORD has proclaimed disaster against you." One of the prophets named Zedekiah kind of freaks out: he walks over and smacks Micaiah and says, in a voice that I am SURE dripped with sarcasm, "How did the Spirit of the LORD pass from me to speak to you?" In other words he says, 'I know I heard from God -- and if I have the Spirit of God then you can't!' (ok, not only can I see Nicholson and Pacino do this scene...I would love to!)
What are we to think? Here is what I think --
The 450 prophets, we are told, are telling the king what he wants to hear. . .and they are all saying the same thing. It is a plan: the messenger tells Micaiah to say what everyone else is saying. Then Micaiah tells us that he overheard a spirit get permission from God to be a lying spirit in the mouth of Ahab's prophets. Zedekiah is either being a drama-prophet (you know ~ like a 'drama queen', but male and a prophet) and knows that his prophecy is not true, or he thinks what he has heard in his spirit is actually a prophecy since came spiritually. Here is the difference for me: Micaiah tells the messenger: "What the LORD speaks to me, that I will say!" Real prophecy is not what you hear in your spirit, or what you 'feel' and it is NOT going with the crowd of other 'spiritual' people. REAL prophecy is hearing what GOD has to say, and saying that! And at the risk of sounding like a 'broken record': If you KNOW God, you KNOW His voice.
What Micaiah tells the kings comes to pass. It is quite sad actually: poignant ~ keenly distressing. The best 'planning' of Ahab can not keep him from the disaster about which God has warned him. Ahab must have been full of foreboding -- even though he brashly disregards Micaiah's clear warning. He tells Jehoshaphat that he will go into the battle disguised, but that Jehoshaphat should go in his royal robes. Jehoshaphat agrees ? What ? Yeah, go figure!! But as Robert Burns said, "The best laid plans of mice and men, gang oft aglee" (gang oft aglee -- go often awry, or DO NOT WORK OUT) Ahab goes into the battle disguised. At first the Arameans go after Jehoshaphat because they think he is Ahab, King of Israel. They only want to kill the king of ISRAEL, and so they turn away when they see it is Jehoshaphat. Some random guy randomly shoots an arrow that randomly ~ that poignantly pierces Ahab and he bleed to death. Poignant, don't you think? Makes a very strong point, and it definitely moves my emotions! He thought he could disregard God. He had a chance -- he could have listened. How many times had prophets been sent to him? How many times had God done wonderful and miraculous things to get him to see that GOD is LORD! Even to this bitter end you see God -- albeit left-handedly -- telling Ahab truth and warning him. But, he 'leans on his OWN understanding'. He could have gotten to know God. He didn't. In the end, all his planning and trickery could NOT protect him from the final judgement of God.
First comment: As to the question why "Jehoshaphat, for some reason that I cannot figure out has married into Ahab's family," you answered in your next statement: "for the first time in a long, long time there is peace between Israel and Judah." Historically royalties in one nation marry into royalty of another nation for the express purpose of political unity and harmony between the two nations. It is a practice well established and certainly no reason to conclude otherwise between Judah and Israel.
ReplyDeleteSecond comment: Interesting look at the 400 prophets. Might some of the mystery over neither King taking the word of these prophets because they are not "real" prophets of God? I mean, didn't God anoint his prophets, men who did not come out of prophet school and hang their shingle over their hut? While the 400 might have been "true believers" they were not "true" prophets and both Kings knew this, hence they could not trust their collective word and wanted to hear from an anointed prophet. Maybe?
ReplyDeleteThird comment: Excellent. Love what you have done. I'm kind of reminded of the Battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836 when General Santa Ana was defeated and tried to escape by dressing out as a private. Didn't work for him, either.
ReplyDelete