“I will go and be a lying spirit in the mouths of his prophets,’ he said. “ ‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the LORD. ‘Go and do it.”
~ 2 Chronicles 18:21
Hi James and Ellen,
What is a lie to you? Is a lie to you a good thing? Have you ever told a lie? If you claim that you have never told a lie, you are telling a lie because every guy, gal and kid lies. Where do you think that lies come from? Do you think that an inaudible voice tells guys, gals or kids that it is okay to lie? If you think that an inaudible voice is telling you that it is okay to lie, where do you think is the source of the inaudible voice? If you are thinking that an inaudible voice is telling you that it is okay to lie, do you think that the inaudible voice is God – as God the Spirit, giving His okay for you to lie or do you think that the inaudible voice is the voice of a spirit minion who is aligned with the devil Satan who is telling you that it is okay to lie? What do you think is invariably the ultimate outcome of a lie? Ahab – who was a king who ruled over the guys and gals who lived in Israel’s land area, found out one kind of a dire consequence that there is for believing in a lie. The Chronicler – in 2 Chronicles 18, chronicled the lie that did in Ahab. Ahab’s final days of life on planet Earth began with a visit from Jehosphaphat. Jehosphaphat was Ahab’s contemporary. Jehosphaphat was the king who was ruling over the guy and gals who lived in Judah’s land area. Ahab and Jehosphaphat had been kings over God’s specially chosen guys and gals for twenty years. Athaliah was Jehosphaphat’s wife. Athaliah was one of Ahab’s daughters. Jehosphaphat had accumulated a lot of wealth. Even though his military power was weaker than Ahab’s military power, Jehosphaphat had earned the respect of the guys and gals who he ruled over in Judah’s land area. Jehosphaphat was a wise, godly guy. Ahab was a manipulative, ungodly guy. When Jehosphaphat arrived at Ahab’s palace home in Samaria, Ahab butchered some of his cattle and sheep for a feast for Jehosphaphat and his entourage. Ahab was wanting to wipe out the Aramean guys and gals who lived in Ramoth-Gilead. Your grandpaa does not know why Ahab had a case against the Ramoth-Gilead Aramean guys and gals but . . . Ahab wanted Jehosphaphat to affirm his desire to destroy the Aramean guys and gals who were living Ramoth-Gilead and he wanted Jehosphaphat to join him in the pending battle against the Ramoth-Gilead Aramean guys. Jehosphaphat told his father-in-law that he was okay with what he wanted to do if it was something that God was okay with his father-in-law doing. Ahab called together a gaggle of 400 of his prophets to ask them for their call on whether or not that he, Jehosphaphat and the guys who were in their armies should take on the Aramean guys who lived in Ramoth-Gilead. Ahab’s 400 prophets told Ahab to go for it. Zedekiah – who was one of the prophets, put on iron horns that he had made to use as a visual to show how Ahab and the guys who were with him would gore the Aramean guys until the Aramean guys and gals were totally annihilated. Zedekiah told Ahab that this was what God had told him would take place. Jehosphaphat was not comfortable with what the gang of 400 was saying as he sensed that they were saying what they knew that Ahab wanted them to say. Jehosphaphat asked Ahab if there was another prophet around who could speak into what Ahab was wanting to do. Ahab admitted that there was another prophet around – a guy by the name of Micaiah. Ahab told his son-in-law that he did not like Micaiah because Micaiah always said bad things to him. Micaiah got the call to prophesy into what would happen if Ahab did go ahead with an attack on the Ramoth Gilead Aramean guys. After Micaiah told Ahab what God had told him was going to happen, Micaiah ended up in jail because Ahab was not a happy camper with Micaiah’s input. Ahab was bound and determined to do what he wanted to do – which was to totally wipe out the Aramean guys and gals who lived in Ramoth-Gilead. Because Ahab did not want to stand out on the battle field as he was watching the battle by wearing his royal clothes – which would have the Aramean army’s archers singling him to shoot at him with their arrows, Ahab disguised himself. Ahab had his son-in-law wear his royal clothes as they watched their armies battle against the Aramean guys who lived in Ramoth-Gilead.
Why do you think that Ahab was so keen on eradicating the Aramean guys and gals who were living in Ramoth-Gilead? It began with a strategic discussion in heaven. A host of spirit beings were sitting on both sides of God’s throne. God asked the spirit beings who among them was willing to entice Ahab so that he would go to battle against the Aramean guys who lived in Ramoth-Gilead. God made it clear that it was His desire that Ahab die in the battle. Finally after some discussion and suggestions, one of the spirit beings said that he would entice Ahab to go out to do battle with the Aramean guys who lived in Ramoth-Gilead. When God asked the spirit being what the spirit being’s plan was, the spirit told God in verse 21 his plan, “‘ ‘I will go and be a lying spirit in the mouths of his prophets,’ he said. “ ‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the LORD. ‘Go and do it.’ ” Ahab would die in the battle against the Aramean guys when an Aramean archer randomly shot an arrow that found a gap in Ahab’s armor.
Do you believe that God condones lies to accomplish His will? One lie invariably leads to another lie. Lies build ethical traps. Lies compromise moral ideals. Lies destroy. Absolutely nothing good can come out of telling a lie. The gang of 400’s attempt to appease Ahab is a case in point. Ahab died because God wanted Ahab to get the wrong message. As you scrutinize the guys and gals who now have influence on planet Earth, who would you say has in him or her a lying spirit who is doing what God has given him the okay to do – which is to have the guy or gal tell a lie so that other guys and gals will die? Your grandpaa can name guys and gals today who are always lying.
2 Chronicles 18 (643)