Jehoshaphat: His serious mistakes
Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abundance; and by marriage he allied himself with Ahab (2 Chronicles 18:1).
Jehoshaphat’s reign had such a bright start. He delighted in honouring God. He was characterised by obedience to God and spiritual care for his people. He learned from godly ancestors. He avoided the idolatry of the Northern Kingdom. In response, God gave him peace and made him powerful. He also gave the king “riches and honour in abundance”. David wrote, “My cup runs over.” It was an experience Jehoshaphat enjoyed.
Why then did this excellent king ally himself to Ahab, who “did evil in the sight of the Lord, more than all who were before him” (1 Kings 16:30)? When we move away from God, it generally happens gradually. Satan can appear as an “angel of light” and as “a roaring lion”, and all the guises in between. Somehow, Jehoshaphat was convinced that it was a good idea to visit Ahab in Samaria, the centre of Israel’s idolatry (v. 2). Perhaps he thought he could have a positive influence on the wicked king. But he only had to look at the ministry of Elijah, one of God’s most powerful prophets, to see the futility of such thinking. The best way to deal with Ahab and his wife, Jezebel, was to stay well away from their company and their kingdom and leave them to God’s judgement. The Lord says some words we rarely consider, “Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces” (Matthew 7:6).
Ahab invited Jehoshaphat to fight with him against Syria, placing himself in mortal danger. Jehoshaphat could have refused, but instead said, “I am as you are, and my people as your people; we will be with you in the war” (v. 3). The king blinded himself. He wasn’t as Ahab was; his people were not as the people of the Northern Kingdom, and he had no right to commit them to a dangerous war. He does make an appeal to Ahab to enquire for the word of the Lord (v. 4). And God speaks through the faithfulness and suffering of Micaiah, the prophet. Ahab’s treatment of Micaiah (vv. 7-27) should have alerted Jehoshaphat to the true character of the man he had befriended. It was an opportunity to walk away, but he did not take it. Then Ahab persuades Jehoshaphat to go into battle dressed in his royal robes, whilst Ahab disguises himself so he cannot be recognised in battle (vv. 28-29). The naivety of the king is staggering. But it shows us how, once we cease to be guided by God and go freely into areas we should avoid at all costs, we place ourselves, and often those we love, in grave spiritual danger. As Christians, we are capable of making decisions that can endanger our relationship with the Lord, our Christian testimony, our marriages, fellowship, finances, businesses, moral state and even our lives. Jehoshaphat’s experience is a solemn warning to us. The remedy is to judge matters when they first appear and not to wait for them to engulf us and rob us of spiritual judgement.
If Jehoshaphat had not cried to the Lord as he was surrounded by enemies, and the Lord had not intervened (vv. 30-32), he would have perished because of his own spiritual stupidity. Through the mercy of God, he returned safely home. When he arrived, God spoke to him again through Jehu, another prophet. Jehu’s words were uncompromising, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Therefore the wrath of the Lord is upon you. Nevertheless, good things are found in you, in that you have removed the wooden images from the land, and have prepared your heart to seek God” (2 Chronicles 19:1-3). God spared Jehoshaphat and took Ahab’s life. God demonstrates how we must not allow the blessings of God to make us think we are invincible or forget we are responsible: “Take heed to yourselves” (Acts 20:28). We need to be awake to spiritual dangers, remembering to “watch and pray” (Matthew 26:41). Our watching informs our prayers. God shows us in the next chapter of Jehoshaphat’s life His power to restore and use us for His glory.
