“And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to King Jehoshaphat, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord?” Therefore the wrath of the Lord is upon you.
2 Chronicles 19:2
Jehoshaphat was a very good king overall, but his weakness was that he was much too friendly toward the wrong people. He made a huge mistake by making a quick decision to commitment to King Ahab, a king who hated God, before first seeking the Lord’s answer. In spite of the word of warning from Micaiah, the prophet of the Lord, Jehoshaphat felt more obligated to keep his word of promise to help Ahab (after all, his wife was Ahab’s daughter). Were it not for the graceful interception of the Lord, he would have surely died.
This verse seemingly contradicts the words of Jesus that we should love our enemies. However a closer look at the context and meaning of the world “love” reveals that this “love” resulted in an unholy alliance and an unsanctified pursuit. We can never allow our love for our enemies to cross into the level of friendship that causes us to compromise.
In addition, the word “help” means to surround, protect, aid. Be careful not find yourself “helping” those who despise God and thus find yourself on the wrong side. This does not mean we cannot be kind to our enemies, but to protect and aid them is a whole other matter.
The problem did not begin with Jehoshaphat making an alliance with wicked King Ahab, but when Jehoshaphat neglected to first seek the Lord about it all prior to making a commitment. When asked by Ahab to go to support him in battle, Jehoshaphat made a quick decision and said yes. He found that it was much easier to keep that alliance than to break it once the Lord revealed that their plans would be fatal.
The lesson learned is clear: Always seek the Lord about any leadership decisions before you commit to any plan, and never align yourself with the ungodly.
Can you relate to this story? Have you ever made quick decisions without seeking the Lord? What was the outcome?
