Polite Conversation

Read 1 Kings 20:1–22:53

15. When Micaiah arrived before the king, Ahab asked him, “Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should we hold back?” Micaiah replied sarcastically, “Yes, go up and be victorious, for the Lord will give the king victory!”
16. But the king replied sharply, “How many times must I demand that you speak only the truth to me when you speak for the Lord?”
17. Then Micaiah told him, “In a vision I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, like sheep without a shepherd. And the Lord said, ‘Their master has been killed. Send them home in peace.’”
18. “Didn’t I tell you?” the king of Israel exclaimed to Jehoshaphat. “He never prophesies anything but trouble for me.” 1 Kings 22:15-18

Polite conversation is designed to insulate us from certain forms of the truth. How many cashiers, for example, total strangers to you, really need to know how you are doing that day? But most people confine polite conversation to contacts with the public. Only close friends get to hear—and tell—the truth.

There’s precious little polite conversation here in Micaiah’s prophesies against Ahab. This is truth straight from God to Ahab—no glossy public coating in sight. If Ahab really knew God, he would realize that he’s hearing from a friend. Instead he takes offense, and the warnings have no effect. For us, this story means “CAUTION, Negative Examples Here.”

Also, don’t miss the point of the judgments in this passage: things can get rough when we refuse to listen to God, and they can get downright deadly when we keep it up.

“I will go out and inspire all of Ahab’s prophets to speak lies” (1 Kings 22:22). Does God allow angels to entice people to do evil? No. What Micaiah saw was either a picture of a real incident in heaven, or a parable of what was happening on earth—illustrating that the seductive influence of the false prophets would be part of God’s judgment upon Ahab (1 Kings 22:23). Whether or not God sent an angel in disguise, he used the system of false prophets to snare Ahab in his sin. The lying spirit (1 Kings 22:22) symbolized the mind-set of these prophets who told the king only what he wanted to hear.

Don’t be like Ahab! Don’t surround yourself with people who only tell you what you want to hear, or you may make it impossible to hear the truth from anyone. The very people you trust with your life may lead you right into a dead end. Instead, seek out people who will be honest with you. Then when they tell you the hard truth, accept it graciously.