Micaiah

Biblical Account

Micaiah appears in 1 Kings 22 and 2 Chronicles 18. Ahab, king of the northern kingdom of Israel, sought to recover Ramoth-gilead from Aram and asked Jehoshaphat, king of the southern kingdom of Judah, to join him in battle. Jehoshaphat proposed that they first inquire of the LORD, and the four hundred prophets Ahab had gathered all declared that if they went up, they would prevail. When Jehoshaphat asked whether there was yet another prophet of the LORD, Ahab answered that there was "Micaiah the son of Imlah," but that he hated him because he did not prophesy good concerning him, but evil (1 Kings 22:8).

The messenger sent to summon Micaiah urged him to speak favorably, as the other prophets had. Micaiah replied, "what the LORD saith unto me, that will I speak" (1 Kings 22:14). Before the king, he at first repeated the words of the other prophets. When the king pressed him, he related a vision of all Israel scattered upon the hills as sheep that have not a shepherd (22:17). He then described a vision of the LORD sitting on His throne, with all the host of heaven standing beside Him. In that vision, he said, a spirit came forward and offered to be a lying spirit in the mouth of Ahab's prophets (22:19–23).

Thereupon Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah struck Micaiah on the cheek. Ahab ordered that Micaiah be put in prison and fed with bread of affliction and water of affliction until he returned in peace. Micaiah answered that if the king returned in peace, the LORD had not spoken by him (22:28). Ahab disguised himself and went into battle, but he was killed by an arrow from a certain man who drew a bow at a venture (22:34–37).

Significance Within Scripture

Micaiah is portrayed as a prophet who, against the prophecy of the majority and the wishes of the king, proclaimed only the word he had received. His prophecy came to pass just as he had spoken. For this reason, the narrative is read as a classic text illustrating the problem of distinguishing true prophets from false ones. Micaiah's name does not appear in the New Testament.

Micaiah is sometimes confused with Micah of the Minor Prophets, but the two lived in different periods and ministered in different regions. However, words nearly identical to "Hearken, O people, every one of you" in 1 Kings 22:28 also appear in Micah 1:2. Several people in the Bible bear the name Micaiah; for example, Micaiah the son of Gemariah in Jeremiah 36:11 is a different person from this Micaiah.

Interpretation and Debated Issues

• The lying spirit: The scene in which God sends a lying spirit has long been a point of interpretive debate. The Reformed tradition tends to explain it in terms of God's sovereignty and providence, by which He governs all things even when He judges sinners. Other interpreters regard the scene as a figurative depiction within a vision, or read it as something God permitted. Some identify this spirit with Satan.
• The meaning of his first answer: Interpreters differ on the meaning of Micaiah's initially repeating what the other prophets had said. Many take it as sarcasm.
• Extrabiblical tradition: The Jewish historian Josephus is reported to have identified Micaiah with the unnamed prophet who rebuked Ahab in 1 Kings 20:35–43. The biblical text does not say that the two are the same person. Nor does Scripture record what became of Micaiah after his imprisonment.

In the Korean Church

In the Korean church, Micaiah is treated mainly in preaching, where he is commonly presented through the contrast of "four hundred to one." In this context, the passage is used to emphasize the stance of a preacher who proclaims the word of God rather than pleasing words, or a faith that is not swept along by majority opinion.