Mess With the Bull

And the LORD said, “Who will entice Ahab the king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?” And one said one thing, and another said another. Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, saying, “I will entice him.” 2 Chronicles 18:19-20

When I was a kid, we usually ate supper together and when the meal was over, we had a rotating system where each of us kids would do one chore: clean the floor, the counter, or the table. Running parallel to this, was a point system. Points were bad. For any rule infraction, our parents would award us one point. When one of us got to five points, we had to clean all three – floor, counter, and table – alone. I don’t remember what the infraction was, but some behavior was vexing my father, so he announced that anyone who committed it would get a point. Again, I can’t recall what the behavior was, but I wanted to do it, so I asked my dad if I could. In a strange tone, he said – Well, you can do it. Feeling as though I had his approval, I did the thing. Immediately, he told me to award myself a point. What!? You said I could! He reminded me that the rules were clear. I could break the rules if I wanted, but if I broke the rules, I had to expect judgement.

This, I think, is akin to what happened in today’s passage. It’s a bizarre story that involves a glimpse into the throne room of God. In the narrative, we read how King Jehoshaphat (good guy) and King Ahab (bad guy) sought God’s approval for their upcoming military campaign. Ahab had 400 prophets who served as yes-men, telling the king only what he wanted to hear. Predictably, these pseudo-prophets told the kings they’d be victorious. When the prophet Micaiah was summoned for a second opinion however, he predicted disaster, defeat, and the death of Ahab. He didn’t stop there though. Continuing, he described a scene in heaven where God sought a spirit who would purposefully deceive the 400 prophets and King Ahab, leading to his death.

Did God lie? Like I said, it’s a bizarre story, one in which God at least participated in what Ahab would have understood to be a deception. Other passages however, like Hebrews 6:18, say that it is impossible for God to lie. So, what’s this story about?

I think it’s a lot like my story about my father. With my father, I knew the rules, yet I sought permission to break them. I wasn’t really trying to do what was right. I was trying to get away with doing as I pleased. My father told me I could do the thing, but it’s as if he was saying – If you mess with the bull, you get the horns. This, I think, was God’s posture and message to Ahab. Ahab wasn’t truly seeking God’s will. He’d worshipped idols his entire life, offending God. Now, when it served his purpose to try and get Jehoshaphat on his side, he pretended to be interested in God’s will. To this, God said – Fine. Do what you want. But if you mess with the bull, you get the horns. And that is a good lesson for any of us.