1 Kings 22:17

To make his message even more solemn, Micaiah at first speaks just like the four hundred prophets: "Go up, and prosper; the LORD will give it into the hand of the king." Ahab replies, "How many times shall I make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?" We see here what conscience is, even a hardened one. It speaks within the heart, telling Ahab: what Micaiah is saying cannot be his real opinion! And even though Ahab is seeking a lie, his conscience forces him to want the truth. He will not follow it or obey it, but the unease his conscience produces gives him no rest until he hears, knows, and sees it.

Micaiah now spoke by the power of the Spirit of God. His message was far from welcome to Ahab: "I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd. And the LORD said, 'These have no master; let each return to his home in peace.'" He said nothing about the battle, or whether Israel or Syria would win. He said only that Israel would lose its leader. Of course this pointed to the death of Ahab.

All Israel were the sheep of one flock, and the king was their recognised shepherd (1 Kings 22:17; Ezek. 37:24). So for the Messiah to be a shepherd fits Old Testament teaching. God will make this good for the godly remnant in a coming day.

Such was the wretched Ahab — wretched, though he had a crown and a sceptre. He cared neither for God nor for his people. In what he said and did here, we find as little about Israel as about God. There is not one word about the people God had put in his care. After God, they should have been his great concern.

The very thing Moses dreaded came upon the sheep. It was not that God had stopped honouring what His servant asked. It was that He could not overlook the sinful practices, in a later day, of their shepherd, King Ahab… And in Ezekiel we find God had a controversy with both the shepherds and the sheep. He exposes their sins and threatens judgment. Then He shows His compassion for the weak remnant of the flock in the most touching way possible: "Because there was no shepherd… I will save My flock… And I will set up one shepherd over them, My servant David. He will feed them, and he will be their shepherd."

The Lord had come to fulfil Ezekiel's prophecy: "I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out." He found them where Ahab had left them. He came to bring them back to God — not only Jews, but Gentiles too, forming "one flock," with "one Shepherd."

Even a prison sentence did not intimidate Micaiah. He insisted, "If you ever return in peace, the LORD has not spoken by me." He also appealed to everyone present: "Take heed, all you people." Why did Jehoshaphat at least not reason with Ahab about his unjust treatment of Micaiah? Because his alliance with Ahab had already compromised righteousness. Evil associations will always rob us of courage of faith.