1 Kings 22:3-28

³The king of Israel had said to his officers, “Aren't you aware that Ramoth-gilead really belongs to us and yet we haven't done anything to take it back from the king of Aram?”

⁴So he asked Jehoshaphat, “Will you join me in an attack to recapture Ramoth-gilead?” Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel, “You and I are as one, my men and your men are as one, and my horses and your horses are as one.”

⁵Then Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “But first though, please find out what the Lord says.”

⁶So the king of Israel brought out the prophets—four hundred of them—and he asked them, “Should I go up and attack Ramoth-gilead, or should I not?” “Yes, go ahead,” they replied, “for the Lord will hand it over to the king.”

⁷But Jehoshaphat asked, “Isn't there another prophet of the Lord here that we can ask?”

⁸“Yes, there's another man who could consult the Lord,” the king of Israel replied, “but I don't like him because he never prophesies anything good for me—it's always bad! His name is Micaiah, son of Imlah.” “You shouldn't talk like that,” said Jehoshaphat.

⁹The king of Israel called over one of his officials and told him, “Bring me Micaiah, son of Imlah, right away.”

¹⁰Dressed in their royal robes, the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah, were sitting on their thrones at the threshing floor beside the gate of Samaria, with all of the prophets prophesying in front of them.

¹¹One of them, Zedekiah, son of Chenaanah, had made himself iron horns. He announced, “This is what the Lord says: ‘With these horns you will gore the Arameans until they're dead!”

¹²All the prophets were prophesying the same thing, saying, “Go ahead, attack Ramoth-gilead; you will be successful, for the Lord will hand it over to the king.”

¹³The messenger who went to call Micaiah told him, “Look, all the prophets are unanimous in prophesying positively to the king. So please make sure to speak positively like them.”

¹⁴But Micaiah replied, “As the Lord lives, I can only say what my God tells me.”

¹⁵When he came before the king, the king asked him, “Should we go up and attack Ramoth-gilead, or should we not?” “Yes, go ahead and be victorious,” Micaiah replied, “for the Lord will give it into the king's hand.”

¹⁶But the king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear to tell me only the truth in the name of the Lord?”

¹⁷So Micaiah answered, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep without a shepherd. The Lord said, ‘These people have no master; let each of them go home in peace.’”

¹⁸The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Didn't I tell you he never prophesies anything good for me, only bad?”

¹⁹Micaiah went on to say, “So listen to what the Lord says. I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, surrounded by the whole army of heaven standing to his right and to his left.

²⁰The Lord asked, ‘Who will trick Ahab, king of Israel, into attacking Ramoth-gilead so he will be killed there?’ One said this, another said that, and another said something else.

²¹Finally a spirit came and approached the Lord and said, ‘I will trick him.’

²²‘How are you going to do that?’ the Lord asked. ‘I will go and be a lying spirit and make all his prophets tell lies,’ the spirit replied. ‘That will work,’ the Lord responded. ‘Go and do it.’

²³As you see, the Lord has put a lying spirit into these prophets of yours, and the Lord has pronounced your death sentence.”

²⁴Then Zedekiah, son of Chenaanah, went and slapped Micaiah in the face, and demanded, “Which way did the Spirit of the Lord go when he left me to speak to you?”

²⁵“You'll soon find out when you try and find some secret place to hide!” Micaiah replied.

²⁶The king of Israel ordered, “Place Micaiah under arrest and take him back to Amon the governor of the city and to my son Joash.

²⁷Tell them these are the king's instructions: ‘Put this man in jail. Give him only bread and water until my safe return.’”

²⁸“If you do in fact return safely then the Lord has not spoken through me,” Micaiah declared. “Pay attention everyone to all I've said!”