And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Inquire first for the word of the LORD.”
Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, has just pledged himself and his people to Ahab, king of Israel, for the war at Ramoth-gilead. Only then does he ask Ahab to inquire of the Lord. Commentators ask what it means to seek the Lord after the decision is already made.
The Right Question in the Wrong Order
The request comes in the wrong order. Jehoshaphat bound himself to the war first and asked about it second. One writer adds that he dragged others in with him.
An Outline of Sound WordsIt was not enough for the king of Judah to put himself in a false position; he put the people of God in a false position too… Jehoshaphat's conscience clearly troubled him a little. After agreeing to be associated with Ahab, the king of Judah wants the mind of the Lord on the venture. He should have sought the mind of the Lord before agreeing to go to Ramoth-gilead.
C. H. Mackintosh hears a struggle behind the words, and turns the lesson on the reader:
C. H. MackintoshJehoshaphat did not yield to Ahab's pleading without a struggle. You can see conscience at work in the words, "Inquire first for the word of the LORD." But how useless was prayer for guidance! He had already said, "I am as you are, my people as your people. We will be with you in the war." It is only solemn mockery to ask for guidance when we have made up our minds. Yet how often we do so! How often do we decide on a course of action, and then go and ask the Lord about it!
A Conscience That Will Not Settle
The request is still a sign of life. Ahab tried to settle his guest with generosity.
J. N. DarbyAhab knew him to be a child of God, and, to calm his conscience, had sheep and oxen killed for him in abundance. Ahab did not care what he did, so long as he could persuade Jehoshaphat to go with him to Ramoth-gilead. But all these sheep and oxen did not satisfy Jehoshaphat's conscience. He said to the king of Israel, "Inquire first for the word of the LORD."
H. L. Rossier weighs this unease against a gift only some believers have:
H. L. RossierThis is not the gift of distinguishing between spirits (1 Corinthians 12:10), which is not given to all. It is a sense which may be weak in a child of God, but it ought never to be missing in him. He feels ill at ease in a setting opposed to God. He feels ill at ease when he hears talk that claims to come from religious tongues but lacks the divine character.
Who Is Asked, and Who Answers
Jehoshaphat asks Ahab to inquire. Ahab brings in prophets who say what he wants to hear.
Leslie M. GrantThe prophets knew that Ahab had set this project up himself, so they all agreed that he should go through with it. This was not inquiring of the Lord at all, but inquiring from men who were pleasing to him.
Darby weighs the alliance itself — who came to whom, and how little it cost Ahab:
J. N. DarbyIt is Jehoshaphat who comes to Ahab, and not Ahab to Jehoshaphat. Jehoshaphat asks Ahab, as a favour, to consult the Lord… To please Jehoshaphat by speaking to him about the Lord was no more than decency required. But it was all that Ahab did for Jehoshaphat, except that he sent for Micaiah against his will.
Guidance in a Path We Chose Ourselves
Darby turns from Jehoshaphat to a mistake we repeat:
J. N. DarbySometimes we seek God's will, wanting to know how to act in circumstances where His only will is that we should not be there at all. If conscience were truly active, its first effect would be to make us leave. It is our own will which puts us there, and we would still like the comfort of God guiding us in a path we ourselves have chosen. This is a very common case.
Mercy Behind the Folly
The story does not end in disaster for Jehoshaphat. Commentators credit that to God, not to the king.
The Bible TreasuryStrict justice would have let Jehoshaphat feel the full effect of his folly, but mercy triumphed. In his danger he cried to the Lord, and the Lord delivered him. He returned to his house in peace. But the Lord's reproof comes after His mercy.
Summary
- Order — He pledged first and asked second. Asking for guidance once we have made up our minds is "solemn mockery."
- Conscience — Jehoshaphat's unease was real. Ahab's feast could not quiet it, and that is why he asked at all.
- Discernment — Every child of God should feel ill at ease among religious talk that lacks the divine character. This is a sense, not a special gift.
- Source — Asking men who please us is not inquiring of the Lord. Ahab's prophets only echoed his plan.
- Mercy — God spared the king who had put himself where he did not belong. The reproof came afterwards.