New English Translation
1 Kings 22:8
8The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man through whom we can seek the Lord’s will. But I despise him because he does not prophesy prosperity for me, but disaster. His name is Micaiah son of Imlah. Jehoshaphat said, “The king should not say such things.”
1 Kings 22:8 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may enquire of the Lord: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so.
- New International Version (NIV)The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, “There is still one prophet through whom we can inquire of the Lord, but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me, but always bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.” “The king should not say such a thing,” Jehoshaphat replied.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord, Micaiah the son of Imlah, but I hate him, for he never prophesies good concerning me, but evil." And Jehoshaphat said, "Let not the king say so."
- New King James Version (NKJV)So the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may inquire of the Lord; but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.” And Jehoshaphat said, “Let not the king say such things!”
Context of 1 Kings 22:8
6So the king of Israel assembled about four hundred prophets and asked them, “Should I attack Ramoth Gilead or not?” They said, “Attack! The sovereign one will hand it over to the king.” 7But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there not a prophet of the Lord still here, that we may ask him?” The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man through whom we can seek the Lord’s will. But I despise him because he does not prophesy prosperity for me, but disaster. His name is Micaiah son of Imlah. Jehoshaphat said, “The king should not say such things.” 9The king of Israel summoned an official and said, “Quickly bring Micaiah son of Imlah.” 10Now the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah were sitting on their respective thrones, dressed in their robes, at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria. All the prophets were prophesying before them.
Read all of 1 Kings 221 Kings 22:8 word by word
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר מֶֽלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵ֣ל׀ אֶֽל־יְהוֹשָׁפָ֡ט ע֣וֹד אִישׁ־אֶחָ֡ד לִדְרֹשׁ֩ אֶת־יְהוָ֨ה מֵאֹת֜וֹ וַאֲנִ֣י שְׂנֵאתִ֗יו כִּ֠י לֹֽא־יִתְנַבֵּ֨א עָלַ֥י טוֹב֙ כִּ֣י אִם־רָ֔ע מִיכָ֖יְהוּ בֶּן־יִמְלָ֑ה וַיֹּ֙אמֶר֙ יְה֣וֹשָׁפָ֔ט אַל־יֹאמַ֥ר הַמֶּ֖לֶךְ כֵּֽן׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- unto Jehoshaphatיְהוֹשָׁפָטyehôshâphâţ · JehoshaphatH3092
- yet oneאֶחָד'echâd · oneH259
- manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- Micaiahמִיכָֽיְהוּmîykâyehû mikâyehû · MicaiahH4321
- the sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- of Imlahיִמְלָהyimlâ' yimlâh · ImlahH3229
- by whom we may enquireדָּרַשׁdârash · to seekH1875
- of the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- but I hateשָׂנֵאώânê' · to hateH8130
- him; for he doth not prophesyנָבָאnâbâ' · to prophesyH5012
- goodטוֹבţôb · pleasantH2896
- concerning me, but evilרַעra‛ râ‛âh · bad: evilH7451
Cross-references for 1 Kings 22:8
- 1 Kings 18:4When Jezebel was killing the Lord’s prophets, Obadiah took one hundred prophets and hid them in two caves in two groups of fifty. He also brought them food and water.)
- 1 Kings 19:10He answered, “I have been absolutely loyal to the Lord, the sovereign God, even though the Israelites have abandoned the agreement they made with you, torn down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left and now they want to take my life.”
- 1 Kings 20:41The prophet quickly removed the bandage from his eyes and the king of Israel recognized he was one of the prophets.
- 1 Kings 22:27Say, ‘This is what the king says, “Put this man in prison. Give him only a little bread and water until I safely return.”’”
- 1 Kings 20:43The king of Israel went home to Samaria bitter and angry.
- 1 Kings 21:20When Elijah arrived, Ahab said to him, “So, you have found me, my enemy!” Elijah replied, “I have found you, because you are committed to doing evil in the sight of the Lord.
- Genesis 37:8Then his brothers asked him, “Do you really think you will rule over us or have dominion over us?” They hated him even more because of his dream and because of what he said.
- 2 Chronicles 36:16But they mocked God’s messengers, despised his warnings, and ridiculed his prophets. Finally the Lord got very angry at his people and there was no one who could prevent his judgment.
- Psalms 34:21Evil people self-destruct; those who hate the godly are punished.
- Proverbs 9:8Do not reprove a mocker or he will hate you; reprove a wise person and he will love you.
- Proverbs 15:12The scorner does not love one who corrects him; he will not go to the wise.
- Isaiah 49:7This is what the Lord, the protector of Israel, their Holy One, says to the one who is despised and rejected by nations, a servant of rulers: “Kings will see and rise in respect, princes will bow down, because of the faithful Lord, the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.”
- Jeremiah 18:18Then some people said, “Come on! Let us consider how to deal with Jeremiah! There will still be priests to instruct us, wise men to give us advice, and prophets to declare God’s word. Come on! Let’s bring charges against him and get rid of him! Then we will not need to pay attention to anything he says.”
- Jeremiah 20:10I hear many whispering words of intrigue against me. Those who would cause me terror are everywhere! They are saying, “Come on, let’s publicly denounce him!” All my so-called friends are just watching for something that would lead to my downfall. They say, “Perhaps he can be enticed into slipping up, so we can prevail over him and get our revenge on him.
- Jeremiah 43:3But Baruch son of Neriah is stirring you up against us. He wants to hand us over to the Babylonians so that they will kill us or carry us off into exile in Babylon.”
- Amos 5:10The Israelites hate anyone who arbitrates at the city gate; they despise anyone who speaks honestly.
Commentaries on 1 Kings 22:8
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8Micaiah the son of Imlah - The Jews suppose that it was this prophet who reproved Ahab for dismissing Ben-hadad, 1 Kings 20:35, etc. And that it was because of the judgments with which he had threatened him, that Ahab hated him: I hate him, for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8There is yet one man, Micaiah - Elijah, it appears, had withdrawn again after the events of the last chapter, and there was no known prophet of Yahweh within reach of Samaria except Micaiah. He doth not prophesy good concerning me but evil - Whether the tradition in 1 Kings 20:41 note be true or not, it is certain that Ahab had imprisoned him 1 Kings 22:26, and probable that the imprisonment was on account of threatening prophecies. Ahab suggests to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5-9Following ancient Near Eastern tradition, Jehoshaphat asked the two kings to seek God's will before battle. This tradition appears in Aramean, Moabite, and Assyrian writings, as well as in the Old Testament (1 Samuel 23:2–4; 2 Samuel 5:19–25). Despite Ahab's doubts, Jehoshaphat insisted on calling Micaiah, a true prophet of God.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3-83-8. Know ye that Ramoth in Gilead is ours--a Levitical and free town on the north border of Gad (De 4:43; Jos 21:38), on the site of the present Salt Lake, in the province of Belka. It lay within the territories of the Israelitish monarch, and was unjustly alienated; but whether it was one of the cities usurped by the first Ben-hadad, which his son had promised to restore, or was retained for some other reasons, the sacred historian has not mentioned. In…Read the comment
Topics related to 1 Kings 22:8
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on 1 Kings 22
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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