1 Kings Chapter 20
God Leads Israel to Two Victories Over Syria
A. Ben Hadad comes against Samaria.
1. (1 Kings 20:1-6) The demands of Ben Hadad, king of Syria.
1 Kings 20:1-6 (KJV)
And Benhadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together, and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots, and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it. And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Benhadad, Thy silver and thy gold is mine, thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine. And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have. And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Benhadad, saying, Although I have sent unto thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children, yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants, and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it.
Ben Hadad the king of Syria assembled a massive coalition army to march against Samaria. The text describes thirty and two kings with him, which refers not to major empires but to the minor city state rulers and tribal chieftains of the region who served as vassals under Syria. Along with them came horses and chariots, demonstrating a formidable display of military might. Samaria was besieged, and Ben Hadad pressed Israel into a humiliating position. Even though Israel had appeared strong under Ahab’s reign outwardly, their spiritual corruption and the national weakness caused by the long drought made them vulnerable to attack from a powerful northern enemy.
Ben Hadad sent messengers to Ahab inside the city with an arrogant and oppressive demand. He claimed absolute ownership of Ahab’s silver and gold, and even demanded the king’s wives and children. Ahab responded in cowardly surrender. He did not resist. He did not seek the Lord. He immediately submitted, saying, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have. This response revealed Ahab’s character. He was a man whose life was directed by comfort, luxury, and self preservation. He had the outward power of a king but lacked the inner strength of a godly leader. His heart was easily intimidated and quickly broken.
The messengers returned with an even more outrageous demand. Ben Hadad declared that he would send his servants throughout the palace and the homes of Ahab’s officials. They would search without restriction and seize anything of value. This went far beyond the first demand. It placed Israel in total humiliation. It threatened not only Ahab’s personal treasures but also the wealth of the nation’s leadership. It was a statement of total domination.
Ahab’s earlier surrender emboldened Ben Hadad. When Israel’s king showed no resistance, the enemy pressed harder. Compromise never satisfies an oppressor. What begins with one concession quickly becomes a pathway to total surrender. Ahab’s weakness exposed the nation to even greater danger.
God Leads Israel to Two Victories Over Syria
A. Ben Hadad comes against Samaria.
2. (1 Kings 20:7-9) Ahab is counseled by his elders to resist.
1 Kings 20:7-9 (KJV)
Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief, for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold, and I denied him not. And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him, nor consent. Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Benhadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do, but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
Ahab finally called for counsel, summoning all the elders of the land. He explained to them that Ben Hadad demanded his wives, his children, his silver, and his gold, and that he had agreed to the first demand without resistance. Ahab confessed the truth plainly. Ben Hadad was not seeking peace but mischief. He was pressing for humiliation and total domination over Israel. The elders immediately recognized the danger. They understood that to yield to Ben Hadad would not preserve peace but destroy sovereignty. Total submission to a foreign tyrant would dissolve the kingdom and reduce Israel to a vassal state with no authority of its own.
The elders and the people answered with unified clarity. Hearken not, nor consent. Their counsel was firm because compromise with an oppressor only invites deeper oppression. Ahab relayed their response to the messengers. He said that he would comply with the original demand, but not with the expanded command to allow Syrian agents to freely search and seize whatever they desired. Ahab’s partial refusal was weak, but it was nevertheless a refusal. A tyrant who is denied in one matter considers himself denied in all matters. Ben Hadad would not accept partial obedience. He would react with fury.
3. (1 Kings 20:10-12) Ben Hadad threatens and readies his army.
1 Kings 20:10-12 (KJV)
And Benhadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me. And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off. And it came to pass, when Benhadad heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings in the pavilions, that he said unto his servants, Set yourselves in array. And they set themselves in array against the city.
Ben Hadad responded with a violent oath. The gods do so to me, and more also. These words mirror the murderous oath Jezebel pronounced against Elijah. The threat declared that Samaria would be so thoroughly destroyed that there would not be enough dust for each man in the Syrian coalition to take a single handful. It was a boast of absolute annihilation. Ben Hadad spoke as if Israel’s defeat was guaranteed.
Ahab answered with uncharacteristic boldness and unexpected wisdom. Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off. The point was simple. Victory should be spoken of only after the battle, not before. It was a rebuke of Ben Hadad’s arrogance. A soldier puts on his armor before the fight. He only takes it off after victory. Ahab warned him that premature boasting is foolish.
When Ben Hadad heard Ahab’s reply, he was drinking in the pavilions with the thirty and two kings. The Syrian leader was intoxicated at the command post, revealing carelessness, pride, and overconfidence. His response was immediate. He ordered his servants, Set yourselves in array. The Syrians prepared to attack, and the city of Samaria braced for a devastating assault. Ahab’s refusal had triggered the fury of a pagan king who believed himself unstoppable.
God Leads Israel to Two Victories Over Syria
B. Victory for Israel.
1. (1 Kings 20:13-15) The prophet promises victory.
1 Kings 20:13-15 (KJV)
And, behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab king of Israel, saying, Thus saith the Lord, Hast thou seen all this great multitude, behold, I will deliver it into thine hand this day, and thou shalt know that I am the Lord. And Ahab said, By whom. And he said, Thus saith the Lord, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces. Then he said, Who shall order the battle. And he answered, Thou. Then he numbered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty and two, and after them he numbered all the people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thousand.
A prophet suddenly appeared before Ahab. His name is not given, yet he stood boldly before the king with a direct message from the Lord. This prophet was one of the faithful in Israel who had not bowed the knee to Baal. While Ahab and Jezebel had persecuted the prophets of the Lord, God had preserved many who remained loyal in secret places. Now, in Israel’s moment of helplessness, one of those hidden servants stepped forward to deliver divine instruction.
The prophet declared the word of the Lord with unmistakable authority. Hast thou seen all this great multitude. God acknowledged the overwhelming military power arrayed against Samaria. The armies of Syria and the thirty and two kings vastly outnumbered Israel. Yet God promised, Behold, I will deliver it into thine hand this day. Israel did not deserve deliverance. Ahab had led the nation deeper into idolatry than any king before him. Nevertheless, God acted in mercy. He would give victory not because of Ahab’s righteousness but because of His own sovereign purpose. God would once again reveal Himself to Ahab, Thou shalt know that I am the Lord. Ahab had witnessed fire fall from heaven at Carmel, yet his heart remained stubborn. God graciously gave him another undeniable demonstration of His supremacy.
Ahab asked, By whom. He saw no strength in his army, no ability in his commanders, and no hope in himself. The prophet answered, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces. These were inexperienced officers, noble youths who were not seasoned warriors. They were precisely the kind of men no military strategist would choose. God often works through the unlikely so that His glory is unmistakable.
Ahab asked, Who shall order the battle. The prophet answered directly, Thou. The Lord required Ahab to stand at the front, to act decisively, and to obey God even though he was an ungodly leader. God sometimes works through flawed kings to reveal His own power. Ahab was not relieved of responsibility because of his sin. God’s mercy did not remove the obligation of obedience.
Ahab then numbered the young men of the princes of the provinces. There were two hundred and thirty two. After this, he numbered all the fighting men of Israel, totaling seven thousand. This small number was intentionally contrasted with the massive forces of Syria. God would bring victory through a remnant, proving that deliverance comes by His strength alone.
God Leads Israel to Two Victories Over Syria
B. Victory for Israel.
2. (1 Kings 20:16-21) Victory for Israel.
1 Kings 20:16-21 (KJV)
And they went out at noon. But Benhadad was drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the thirty and two kings that helped him. And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first, and Benhadad sent out, and they told him, saying, There are men come out of Samaria. And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive, or whether they be come out for war, take them alive. So these young men of the princes of the provinces came out of the city, and the army which followed them. And they slew every one his man, and the Syrians fled, and Israel pursued them, and Benhadad the king of Syria escaped on an horse with the horsemen. And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.
Israel launched their attack at noon. This was the moment when ancient armies least expected battle and when vigilance was typically lowest. At that very hour, Ben Hadad and the thirty and two kings who supported him were drinking themselves drunk in the pavilions. The command post that should have been sober, alert, and prepared was instead engulfed in intoxication. The same sinful pride and arrogance that drove Ben Hadad to attack Israel also weakened his ability to lead his forces. His drunkenness made him careless and foolish, and his weak character contributed directly to his defeat.
The young men of the princes of the provinces went out first, exactly as the Lord had commanded. Ben Hadad received word that men were coming out of Samaria, but in his drunken stupor he replied with confused and contradictory orders. He said that whether the Israelites came for peace or for war, they should be taken alive. His command made little sense. A sober commander would have distinguished between surrender and battle. His drunken words placed his soldiers in an impossible position. Instead of preparing them for combat, he gave orders that would cripple their ability to fight.
The young provincial leaders marched out of the city with the small army that followed them. In obedience to God’s word, these inexperienced men charged boldly. Scripture reports that each one slew his man. God empowered the small Israelite force to strike decisively and immediately. Their obedience to God’s strategy overcame the massive numerical disadvantage. Once the initial line of Syrians fell, panic spread. The Syrians fled, and Israel pursued them. Ben Hadad himself escaped on horseback with the cavalry, abandoning his army in disgrace.
The king of Israel then joined the battle and struck the horses and the chariots, destroying the war machines of Syria. Israel slew the Syrians with a great slaughter. The victory was unmistakably the work of the Lord. Israel had neither superior numbers nor superior military skill. They triumphed because God fought for them. God used the drunk and careless condition of Ben Hadad, the obedience of a small inexperienced force, and the decisive pursuit of Israel’s troops to overturn an overwhelming enemy.
3. (1 Kings 20:22) The prophet advises preparation.
1 Kings 20:22 (KJV)
And the prophet came to the king of Israel, and said unto him, Go, strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou doest, for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee.
After the victory, the nameless prophet returned to Ahab with another word from the Lord. The victory over Ben Hadad was not to be misunderstood as the end of the conflict. God warned Ahab that the king of Syria would return at the beginning of the next year, which refers to the spring season when kings customarily resumed military campaigns. God instructed Ahab to prepare. Go, strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou doest. This was a divine reminder that spiritual victories do not eliminate the need for vigilance. God expected Ahab to take practical steps to fortify Israel, to reorganize his forces, and to remain alert.
Though God gave victory, He also required responsibility. Preparation is part of obedience. God often grants deliverance in one season and then commands His people to watch, strengthen, and prepare for the next. The prophet’s presence also revealed God’s continued mercy toward Ahab. Although Ahab was an idolatrous king, God continued to send His word to him, guiding him, warning him, and giving him every opportunity to acknowledge that the Lord alone is God.
God Leads Israel to Two Victories Over Syria
C. A second victory over Syria.
1. (1 Kings 20:23-25) The Syrians try again.
1 Kings 20:23-25 (KJV)
And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him, Their gods are gods of the hills, therefore they were stronger than we, but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put captains in their rooms, and number thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot, and we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they, And he hearkened unto their voice, and did so.
The servants of the king of Syria sought to explain their earlier defeat. Instead of acknowledging the true God of Israel, they created a false theology to comfort themselves. They declared that the gods of Israel were gods of the hills, and therefore stronger in high places. In the ancient world, pagans commonly believed in territorial deities who controlled specific regions. Since Israel had won the previous battle in hilly terrain, the Syrians assumed Israel’s God had limited jurisdiction. They imagined that if the battle could be moved to the plain, Syria would surely prevail. In their minds, spiritual power was geographically restricted, and Israel’s God was confined to elevated ground.
This reasoning demonstrated the human tendency to reshape God in our own image rather than submit to who He reveals Himself to be. Men prefer a god who is limited, definable, and manageable. Spurgeon noted that people often construct gods of their own understanding in the same way a craftsman forms an idol from wood or stone. Many today treat God as if He is a God of certain circumstances but not of others. They treat Him as God of the hills of crisis but not of the valleys of prosperity, or as God of past generations but not of the present hour. Such thinking belittles the majesty and sovereignty of the Lord.
The Syrian advisers recommended a complete military restructuring. They suggested removing the thirty and two kings from their command roles and placing trained captains in their positions. They urged the king to rebuild the army he lost, horse for horse and chariot for chariot. Their confidence rested not in truth but in a flawed theological assumption. They believed that a change in terrain and army structure would guarantee victory. Ben Hadad listened to their voice and followed their advice, unaware that he was about to confront the God who reigns over hills, valleys, plains, seas, and all creation.
2. (1 Kings 20:26-28) The armies muster and God promises victory.
1 Kings 20:26-28 (KJV)
And it came to pass at the return of the year, that Benhadad numbered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel. And the children of Israel were numbered, and were all present, and went against them, and the children of Israel pitched before them like two little flocks of kids, but the Syrians filled the country. And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the Lord, Because the Syrians have said, The Lord is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
When spring arrived, the customary season when kings resumed military campaigns, Ben Hadad mustered his renewed Syrian forces and marched to Aphek. His army filled the countryside. The field was brimming with soldiers, horses, and chariots. In contrast, the children of Israel stood before them like two little flocks of goats. Israel’s forces were small, divided, and visually insignificant. The contrast was dramatic. Syria possessed overwhelming numbers and superior equipment. Israel looked fragile and outmatched. Ben Hadad intended not merely to defeat Israel but to erase the memory of his earlier humiliation.
In this moment of glaring disparity, a man of God appeared and delivered another message from the Lord to Ahab. God spoke directly to the theological error of the Syrians. Because the Syrians have said, The Lord is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys. God took their words as a personal insult, for false ideas about God always diminish His glory. The Syrians imagined a deity with limited power. Therefore, God would show them and all nations that He is sovereign everywhere. He declared, I will deliver all this great multitude into thine hand. The victory would be so decisive that Israel would know once again that He alone is the Lord.
Their blasphemy would be answered by the Lord’s power. Clarke observed that God took up their insult to demonstrate His universal dominion. The Syrians trusted in numbers, terrain, and human strategy. God would prove that none of these mattered when He chose to act. The small and vulnerable Israelite army would triumph over a massive host so that both friend and foe would acknowledge the God who reigns in every place.
C. A second victory over Syria.
3. (1 Kings 20:29-30) A second victory for Israel against Syria.
1 Kings 20:29-30 (KJV)
And they pitched one over against the other seven days. And so it was, that in the seventh day the battle was joined, and the children of Israel slew an hundred thousand footmen of the Syrians in one day. But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city, and there a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were left. And Benhadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.
Israel and Syria camped opposite each other for seven days. This long standoff intensified the drama of the battle that was about to come. On the seventh day, the conflict erupted, and the children of Israel slew one hundred thousand Syrian foot soldiers in a single day. This extraordinary result bears the clear imprint of divine power. Israel was vastly outnumbered, yet God used their existing, outwardly unimpressive forces as the instrument of His judgment. The victory did not come through angelic armies, fire from heaven, or any spectacular sign. God deliberately chose to work through Israel’s limited military strength so that His glory would be unmistakable.
The remainder of the Syrian army fled to Aphek, seeking safety within the walls of the city. However, even there they found no refuge, for a wall collapsed, killing twenty seven thousand more. This act of judgment demonstrated that God’s reach is not limited to the battlefield. The Syrians had slandered God by declaring Him to be a God of the hills only, and not the valleys. Now God proved that His sovereignty extended everywhere. As Clarke notes, the twenty seven thousand included all who were present in the city at the time of the collapse. Ben Hadad himself narrowly escaped death and fled into an inner chamber, hiding in desperation after his arrogant threats and blasphemous claims against the God of Israel.
4. (1 Kings 20:31-34) Ahab’s willingness to make peace with an enemy of God.
1 Kings 20:31-34 (KJV)
And his servants said unto him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings, let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel, peradventure he will save thy life. So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Benhadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive, he is my brother. Now the men did diligently observe whether any thing would come from him, and did hastily catch it, and they said, Thy brother Benhadad. Then he said, Go ye, bring him. Then Benhadad came forth to him, and he caused him to come up into the chariot. And Benhadad said unto him, The cities, which my father took from thy father, I will restore, and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria. Then said Ahab, I will send thee away with this covenant. So he made a covenant with him, and sent him away.
Ben Hadad’s servants urged him to humble himself completely before Ahab. They had heard that the kings of Israel were merciful kings. This reputation for mercy was now their only hope for survival. They put sackcloth upon their loins and ropes upon their heads, outward symbols of deep humiliation and supplication. As Patterson and Austel note, the rope symbolized submission, much like a captive led by the victor’s chariot. They approached Ahab pleading for Ben Hadad’s life. Their posture provides a picture of how sinners must come before God, with sincerity, humility, surrender, and earnest watchfulness for any sign of mercy.
Ahab responded with the astonishing words, Is he yet alive, he is my brother. This was not godly mercy but foolish sentiment. Ahab felt kinship toward a pagan king who despised the Lord. Perhaps Ahab hoped that peace with Syria would strengthen his position against the rising threat of Assyria. Regardless of his motive, he sought friendship where God had commanded judgment. Trapp remarks that this was not courtesy but foolery, for Ben Hadad would later use the life Ahab spared to wage war again.
Ben Hadad eagerly seized this unexpected leniency. He promised to restore cities that his father had taken from Israel and to allow Ahab to establish marketplaces in Damascus. Ahab agreed and made a covenant with him, sending him away. This was a tragic misstep. The victory belonged to God, not to Ahab. God had defeated Syria as judgment upon their idolatry and blasphemy. Ahab had no right to negotiate away what God had accomplished. His treaty demonstrated misplaced priorities and a lack of spiritual discernment. In showing favor to God’s enemy, Ahab dishonored the Lord who had given him the victory.
5. (1 Kings 20:35-38) A prophet prepares to confront the king.
1 Kings 20:35-38 (KJV)
And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said unto his neighbour in the word of the Lord, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man refused to smite him. Then said he unto him, Because thou hast not obeyed the voice of the Lord, behold, as soon as thou art departed from me, a lion shall slay thee. And as soon as he was departed from him, a lion found him, and slew him. Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded him. So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with ashes upon his face.
A certain man of the sons of the prophets approached his neighbor with a command from the Lord, saying, Smite me, I pray thee. This reveals that prophetic communities were still active and faithful in Israel, despite Ahab and Jezebel’s purge. This man was likely part of the same prophetic guilds later mentioned in 2 Kings. Some ancient interpreters, such as Josephus, speculated that this might be Micaiah, the prophet who appears in the next chapter; however, Scripture does not identify him by name. What matters is that he spoke in the word of the Lord, meaning the command to be struck was a direct divine instruction. His neighbor refused, and the prophet pronounced immediate judgment. Because thou hast not obeyed the voice of the Lord, behold, as soon as thou art departed from me, a lion shall slay thee. This seems severe, but the man was likely himself a member of the prophetic order, which means he understood perfectly that when God issued a command through a prophet, obedience was required. Clarke observes that the smiting would have done no moral injury when God commanded it, and refusal demonstrated disobedience, not compassion. The judgment was fulfilled instantly, showing again that lions were instruments God used repeatedly in 1 Kings to bring judgment upon covenant breakers.
The prophet then approached another man and repeated the command, and this man smote him and wounded him. With the needed injury, the prophet departed and waited by the road for King Ahab. He disguised himself with ashes upon his face, concealing his identity under a wound and a covering. His entire action was a divinely ordered object lesson, meant to confront Ahab face to face with his sin in releasing Ben Hadad.
6. (1 Kings 20:39-40) The prophet gives an object lesson.
1 Kings 20:39-40 (KJV)
And as the king passed by, he cried unto the king, and he said, Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle, and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and said, Keep this man, if by any means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a talent of silver. And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said unto him, So shall thy judgment be, thyself hast decided it.
As the king passed by, the wounded prophet cried to him with a constructed story, following the same prophetic method used by Nathan when he confronted David. He presented himself as a soldier entrusted with guarding a captive under threat of death should the prisoner escape. The fictional guard confessed failure, saying, While thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. This excuse exposed the heart of negligence. The guard had one task, yet he allowed lesser concerns to distract him. Meyer notes that the circumstances he described were entirely possible on a battlefield, where duties could overlap, yet the point was that in failing the central assignment, all secondary activity became meaningless.
Morgan draws out the spiritual application. Ministers of the Gospel are entrusted with the central task of proclaiming the Word of God. When they become busy here and there with many secondary things and neglect their God given calling, their failure is complete. Spurgeon presses the point even further, observing that time wasted can never be recovered. When opportunities escape because of spiritual distraction, they are simply gone.
Ahab responded quickly, rendering judgment against the fictional soldier. So shall thy judgment be, thyself hast decided it. He declared that the man was responsible for failing to guard what was entrusted to him. Without realizing it, Ahab condemned himself. He had been entrusted by God with Ben Hadad, a man under divine sentence for blasphemy and for attacking God’s covenant people. Instead of executing God’s judgment, Ahab allowed him to escape through a foolish treaty. The prophet’s object lesson exposed the king’s guilt in his own words.
7. (1 Kings 20:41-43) The rebuke from God.
1 Kings 20:41-43 (KJV)
And he hasted, and took the ashes away from his face; and the king of Israel discerned him that he was of the prophets. And he said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people. And the king of Israel went to his house heavy and displeased, and came to Samaria.
The prophet immediately removed the ashes from his face, revealing his true identity. Ahab discerned him that he was of the prophets, confirming why the disguise and the wound were necessary. Ahab had grown accustomed to avoiding prophets, suppressing their warnings, and insulating himself from the word of the Lord. His recognition of the prophet shows that his avoidance was intentional, not accidental. He knew the prophetic voice, he simply did not want to hear it.
The prophet delivered God’s message with authority. Thus saith the Lord, Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction. God declared plainly that Ben Hadad was not merely a political enemy, but a man under divine sentence. His earlier blasphemy, his arrogance, his threats against God’s covenant people, and his dismissal of Israel’s God as a tribal deity all warranted judgment. God appointed him to utter destruction, meaning that the divine decree had been spoken, and Ahab was to be the instrument of that decree. Ahab rejected this duty and attempted to secure political advantage through an alliance instead. In doing so, he directly opposed the will of God.
Therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people. This principle reflects God’s justice. Ahab released the life of a condemned man, therefore God declared that Ahab’s own life would be taken, and that the people under his rule would bear the consequences as well. This was later fulfilled when Ahab fell in battle in 1 Kings 22, and when Israel suffered increased instability and judgment under subsequent kings.
Ahab went to his house heavy and displeased. His reaction mirrors his earlier attitude in 1 Kings 21 when rebuked. He displayed the sorrow of being caught, not the sorrow of genuine repentance. He was grieved over the consequences, not the sin. This sadness without repentance is the worldly sorrow described in 2 Corinthians 7:10, which worketh death. He had no intention of submitting his heart to the word of the Lord. He simply returned to Samaria with a darkened spirit, still resistant, still rebellious, and still unwilling to acknowledge God’s sovereign authority.
