Of the Pharisees, the Word says: “They loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” (John 12:43) This was true of the Pharisees and, sadly, it is true also of many “religionists” today who, having a form of godliness, deny the power thereof.
Nowhere is this more readily found than in the pulpits of our land. To preach for the praise and plaudits of men is the basest occupation under the sun. But if men today are like men of all times (and they by and large are), false prophets are still with us. One writer speaks of these in a poem:
“To please them all on Sunday morn; just dish them out the same old corn;
A touch of humor here and there; some prudent statements made with care.
And if you’re not one to exhort—if saving souls is not your forte;
If you don’t want your crowd depressed; by such a thing as sins confessed.
If facts of life are far too strong, for righteous people never wrong;
Use illustrations far away, and preach on ‘drink’ on Labor Day;
And when your folks arise to go, they’ll all confide, ‘Enjoyed it so.’”
One English authority on the subject categorized modern sermons according to seven qualities: “(1) The sesquipedalian—big words—little thoughts; (2) the wishy-washy, (self-explanatory); (3) the pyrotechnic, burning with brilliant metaphors and illustrations, finishing with a faint odor of gun smoke; 4) The anecdote—teeming with stories, some good enough once, but gone bad with time; (5) the flowery, rhyme more important than reason; (6) the mellifluous, with calm, unbroken flow; (7) the paregoric—against which all the powers of wakefulness fail, so much alike at all points that a yard can be cut off at any point.”
Enter Mighty Micaiah! He steps onto the pages of holy writ when the evil king of Israel, Ahab, and the good king of Judah, Jehoshaphat, had—defying all understanding—agreed to join forces together against Syria, whose king at that time occupied the coveted Ramoth-gilead. The king of Israel gathered 400 prophets together to seek their counsel as to whether the two kings should go against Syria in battle. Every one of the false prophets encouraged the two kings to do so. (I Kings 22:6)
But Jehoshaphat raised the question: “Is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we might inquire of him?” Well, Ahab had to admit there was one other prophet who could be consulted, but the wicked king hastened to say: “I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.” Jehoshaphat could not believe that, so an officer was dispatched to fetch Micaiah. While he was gone, the priest Zedekiah made horns of iron and, in a visual way, demonstrated how the two kings would push back, as with iron horns, the king of Syria.
The messenger sent to bring Micaiah onto the scene informed him of the proceedings, coaching him not to rock the boat—since 400 prophets, led by the priest Zedekiah, had assured the covenanting kings that victory was a sure thing. Micaiah responded with: “As the Lord liveth, what the Lord saith unto me, that will I speak.” (I Kings 22:14)
When Micaiah came face to face with Ahab, the king asked, “Shall we go against Ramoth-gilead to battle?” With what was no doubt a “tongue in cheek” answer, Micaiah said, “Go and prosper, for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king.” Incredibly, the king retorted: “How many times shall I adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the Lord?” So, Ahab knew that a true prophet of God would counsel him not to go to battle as he and Jehoshaphat had planned to do!
And, sure enough, Micaiah proceeded to share what God had shown him: Israel scattered as sheep with no shepherd. About that time, Ahab turned to Jehoshaphat and said, “See, I told you he would not prophesy any good toward me!” Micaiah then told the two kings what God’s Word was: he painted a picture of God seated with the host of heaven before Him, asking His servants how He could persuade Ahab to go up against Ramoth-gilead to fall there in battle. After a couple of ideas were shared, one spirit said, “I will persuade him; I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.” This was the answer that the Lord was looking for, and He dispensed the spirit to go and prevail.
Predictably, Micaiah was howled down, slapped in the face by the false priest, Zedekiah, and ordered to solitary confinement with only bread and water to eat. The two cohort kings went to battle as the false prophets had encouraged them to do; and, having concocted a strategy where Ahab disguised himself while the king of Judah put on his robes and parked his chariot away from the heat of the battle, all of their proud plans melted when a man drew a bow at a venture that struck Ahab “between the joints of the harness,” resulting in his death. (I Kings 22:34)
Mighty Micaiah. He had the spiritual backbone of a David, a Daniel, or an Elijah. He made only a brief appearance on the pages of scripture, but he was true to his calling as a man of God, a prophet who with undaunted courage told the misguided kings the truth—and was exiled to prison for it. What a great example of faithfulness to our calling in the face of scoffing, criticism, rejection, and persecution. God, give us prophets, pastors, preachers, men of God today with the courage and conviction of Mighty Micaiah!
“When principles that run against your deepest convictions begin to win the day, then battle is your calling, and peace becomes sin; you must, at any price, lay your convictions bare before friend and enemy, with all the fire of your faith.” (Abraham Kuyper)
YOU and GOD 