Jehoshaphat: The Influenced King (1 Kings 22:41-50)
1 Kings 22:41-50
We are now moving on in the book of Kings to a new era.
This morning we come across a King named Jehoshaphat.
He is typically regarded as one of the 8 good Kings
To sit upon the throne of Judah.
And for the most part that is true.
As you will see, he was a man of high character,
And he was a man with good intentions.
However, Jehoshaphat was easily influenced and his lack of conviction
Ultimately did more harm for Judah than good.
From Jehoshaphat we learn a little bit about
The importance of following your convictions,
And not giving in to the evil influences around you.
And obviously this is a relevant topic.
We live in a day of wicked and evil influence.
We as Christians must learn to recognize it and resist it.
Paul said:
1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 “But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.”
You can be a Christian with high morals who desires Godliness,
But if you do not protect yourself through discernment
You can still find yourself in a world of hurt.
It is that spirit of compromise
That has so many times gotten God’s people in trouble.
That is why Jesus told the church at Thyatira:
Revelation 2:20 “But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads My bond-servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols.”
• That church was too loose in their relationships,
• They found themselves actually tolerating the Jezebel of the New Testament,
• Allowing her to wreak havoc in their church as she preyed on weak believers.
God’s people must not only have high moral character,
But also a sense of discernment and conviction.
AND SO WE STUDY JEHOSHAPHAT
A man of high moral character,
Whose influences nearly destroyed him.
There are four things I want us to look at in regard to Jehoshaphat this morning.
#1 HIS INTEGRITY
1 Kings 22:41-43a
The section opens on Jehoshaphat with a reminder
Of his basic nature as a man of integrity.
Verse 43 states it explicitly, “He walked in all the way of Asa his father; he did not turn aside from it, doing right in the sight of the LORD.”
Allow me to refresh your memory about Asa.
“Wholly Devoted, Under Committed”
Asa started well,
1 Kings 15:11-15 “Asa did what was right in the sight of the LORD, like David his father. He also put away the male cult prostitutes from the land and removed all the idols which his fathers had made. He also removed Maacah his mother from being queen mother, because she had made a horrid image as an Asherah; and Asa cut down her horrid image and burned it at the brook Kidron. But the high places were not taken away; nevertheless the heart of Asa was wholly devoted to the LORD all his days. He brought into the house of the LORD the dedicated things of his father and his own dedicated things: silver and gold and utensils.”
However late in life Asa quit seeking the Lord.
When he had war with Israel, instead of seeking God,
He sought out the King of Aram, and that made God angry.
2 Chronicles 16:7-10 “At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you have relied on the king of Aram and have not relied on the LORD your God, therefore the army of the king of Aram has escaped out of your hand. “Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim an immense army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet because you relied on the LORD, He delivered them into your hand. “For the eyes of the LORD move to and fro throughout the earth that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His. You have acted foolishly in this. Indeed, from now on you will surely have wars.” Then Asa was angry with the seer and put him in prison, for he was enraged at him for this. And Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time.”
That was Asa.
For the most part, he was a good King who sought God,
But he did stray away from God toward the end of his life.
But history does remember him as a good king,
And now Jehoshaphat is said to have been like him.
In his heart, Jehoshaphat only wanted to be pleasing to God.
Allow me to give you one of the examples
Of Jehoshaphat’s great devotion to God.
During Jehoshaphat’s reign, there was a 3 king coalition
That came up against him to conquer Judah.
Ammon, Moab, and Edom all three got together to wipe out Judah.
Jehoshaphat handled it like a pro.
2 Chronicles 20:6-12 “and he said, “O LORD, the God of our fathers, are You not God in the heavens? And are You not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand so that no one can stand against You. “Did You not, O our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and give it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? “They have lived in it, and have built You a sanctuary there for Your name, saying, ‘Should evil come upon us, the sword, or judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before You (for Your name is in this house) and cry to You in our distress, and You will hear and deliver us.’ “Now behold, the sons of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom You did not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt (they turned aside from them and did not destroy them), see how they are rewarding us by coming to drive us out from Your possession which You have given us as an inheritance. “O our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this great multitude who are coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are on You.”
You can see in his prayer that he was a man of great personal devotion,
And one who truly trusted God.
He didn’t turn to other nations for help,
He put his problem in the lap of God,
And allowed God to deliver him.
He was a man of great integrity in his personal walk with God.
There is more I want you to see:
#2 HIS INTENTIONS
1 Kings 22:45-46
In these two verses we only get a little glimpse
Of his intentions for the nation.
VERSE 46, “The remnant of the sodomites who remained in the days of his father Asa, he expelled from the land.”
You will remember that Asa removed
All of the mail cult prostitutes (sodomites).
Apparently some went into hiding, and a small remnant remained,
But Jehoshaphat got rid of them.
He was finishing what his father started.
Let me show you some more of what he did.
In addition to the sodomites, Jehoshaphat wanted Judah
To be a pure nation that was solely devoted to God.
2 Chronicles 17:6 “He took great pride in the ways of the LORD and again removed the high places and the Asherim from Judah.”
It is clear that he wanted God and God alone to be worshiped.
He also had a passion for the whole land to be taught the Word of God.
2 Chronicles 17:7-9 “Then in the third year of his reign he sent his officials, Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel and Micaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah; and with them the Levites, Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah and Tobadonijah, the Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram, the priests. They taught in Judah, having the book of the law of the LORD with them; and they went throughout all the cities of Judah and taught among the people.”
And God blessed this endeavor
2 Chronicles 17:10-12 “Now the dread of the LORD was on all the kingdoms of the lands which were around Judah, so that they did not make war against Jehoshaphat. Some of the Philistines brought gifts and silver as tribute to Jehoshaphat; the Arabians also brought him flocks, 7,700 rams and 7,700 male goats. So Jehoshaphat grew greater and greater, and he built fortresses and store cities in Judah.”
The point is that when you look at Jehoshaphat
You see a man of high integrity
And a man who had the best intentions in the world.
• He trusted God and he wanted all of Judah to trust God.
• He loved God’s word and he wanted all of Judah to love God’s word.
On a personal level, he was a great man.
But there was one chink in Jehoshaphat’s armor.
He was too easily influenced.
His Integrity, His Intentions
#3 HIS INFLUENCES
1 Kings 22:43-44, 47-48
Let’s just take these negative incidents in order.
And let me show you some of his influences.
1) HE WAS INFLUENCED BY A CROWD
We just read in 2 Chronicles
That Jehoshaphat removed the high places.
But look at what it says in verse 43,
“However, the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burnt incense on the high places.”
That can mean one of two things.
1) He removed the high places, but they came back.
2) He stopped the worship of false gods on the high places, but people still worshiped the LORD at those sites.
To allow either to happen was a mistake on Jehoshaphat’s part.
It showed a propensity to compromise.
It showed a willingness to give in
And not follow through on your convictions.
Although he personally only worshiped God,
He was one who did not take full use of his authority as king
And fully clean up the land.
Part of the reason is because crowds could influence him.
(Remember how Ahab used a crowd
To manipulate him into going to battle with him?)
That gives a pretty good explanation
As to why he allowed the high places to be rebuilt as well.
He was influenced by a crowd / mob,
And it led to the rebuilding of the high places.
As Christians we have to learn to have convictions
That reach beyond public opinion.
We can either be men pleasers or God pleasers.
Jehoshaphat was too easily influenced by men.
But that was not his only influence.
2) HE WAS INFLUENCED BY AHAB
Verse 44 says, “Jehoshaphat also made peace with the king of Israel.”
First allow me to give you a correction to some misinformation.
Last week I said Jehoshaphat was Ahab’s son-in-law, that is wrong.
I got my facts mixed up.
Jehoshaphat gave his son in marriage to Ahab’s daughter.
2 Chronicles 18:1-3 “Now Jehoshaphat had great riches and honor; and he allied himself by marriage with Ahab.”
IT WAS THIS ALLIANCE
That got Jehoshaphat into a battle that nearly got him killed.
What you didn’t see last week
Is God’s response when Jehoshaphat got home.
2 Chronicles 19:1-3 “Then Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned in safety to his house in Jerusalem. 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 and so bring wrath on yourself from the LORD? “But there is some good in you, for you have removed the Asheroth from the land and you have set your heart to seek God.”
God was angry with Jehoshaphat
For his willingness to walk in unity with the wicked.
We don’t know why he did it.
(Most likely it was to stop the fighting that had occurred between his father Asa and the kings of Israel)
Jehoshaphat didn’t maintain his convictions
He allowed himself to be too easily influenced by a wicked man.
So he was influenced by a crowd
He was influenced by Ahab
3) HE WAS INFLUENCED BY AHAZIAH
Ahaziah was the son of Ahab.
Verses 47-48 says, “Now there was no king in Edom; a deputy was king. Jehoshaphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold, but they did not go for the ships were broken at Ezion-geber.”
What you don’t see is the reason Jehoshaphat began this venture.
2 Chronicles 20:35-37 “After this Jehoshaphat king of Judah allied himself with Ahaziah king of Israel. He acted wickedly in so doing. So he allied himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Ezion-geber. Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat saying, “Because you have allied yourself with Ahaziah, the LORD has destroyed your works.” So the ships were broken and could not go to Tarshish.”
Again, he makes a bad decision to ally himself with an evil person,
And it brought upon him wrath from God and this time also financial ruin.
So despite the fact that Jehoshaphat really was a man of integrity
With good intentions, his influences cost him greatly.
• On one occasion it nearly got him killed…
• On another occasion it cost him financially…
• On both occasions it made the LORD angry…
BUT THOSE ARE NOT THE ONLY CONSEQUENCES
Jehoshaphat’s bad influences continued on even after his death.
Jehoshaphat gave his son (Jehoram)
In marriage to Ahab’s daughter.
2 Chronicles 21:1-7 “Then Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David, and Jehoram his son became king in his place. He had brothers, the sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azaryahu, Michael and Shephatiah. All these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of Israel. Their father gave them many gifts of silver, gold and precious things, with fortified cities in Judah, but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram because he was the firstborn. Now when Jehoram had taken over the kingdom of his father and made himself secure, he killed all his brothers with the sword, and some of the rulers of Israel also. Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab did (for Ahab’s daughter was his wife), and he did evil in the sight of the LORD. Yet the LORD was not willing to destroy the house of David because of the covenant which He had made with David, and since He had promised to give a lamp to him and his sons forever.”
All because Jehoshaphat made a covenant with the wicked.
The Kingdom actually went exactly opposite of what he had hoped.
He was a man of integrity…
He was a man of great intentions…
But in the end, you could say that
He actually did more harm for the nation of Judah than good.
• The high places he removed were rebuilt…
• The false gods he removed were restored by his son…
• The Law he taught was disregarded by the nation…
These influences ruined all that this man tried to accomplish.
Now I will say this.
Jehoshaphat did finally learn his lesson.
#4 HIS IMPROVEMENT
1 Kings 22:49-50
We read about the first time Ahaziah had this idea
And how it cost Jehoshaphat greatly.
Apparently, after this venture failed Ahaziah wanted to try it again.
However, Jehoshaphat had finally learned.
You can’t include the wicked in your plan and ask God to bless it.
And so “Jehoshaphat was not willing.”
He did finally learn his lesson, but the seeds had been sown.
WHAT IS THE POINT?
You can be a man who truly loves God,
And who truly desires to see God alone be glorified.
You can be a man of character.
But if you do not add conviction to your character,
Your character won’t last long.
1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 “But examine everything carefully; hold fast to that which is good; abstain from every form of evil.”
1 Corinthians 15:33 “Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”
Throughout Scripture, God’s people have been warned
Not to allow themselves to be influenced by the wicked.
Numbers 33:55-56 “But if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the land from before you, then it shall come about that those whom you let remain of them will become as pricks in your eyes and as thorns in your sides, and they will trouble you in the land in which you live. ‘And as I plan to do to them, so I will do to you.'”
Joshua 23:12-13 “For if you ever go back and cling to the rest of these nations, these which remain among you, and intermarry with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, know with certainty that the LORD your God will not continue to drive these nations out from before you; but they will be a snare and a trap to you, and a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good land which the LORD your God has given you.”
In the New Testament God echoes this theme.
He is speaking of the church, and is calling for her purity.
2 Corinthians 6:14-18 “Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, “I WILL DWELL IN THEM AND WALK AMONG THEM; AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE. “Therefore, COME OUT FROM THEIR MIDST AND BE SEPARATE,” says the Lord. “AND DO NOT TOUCH WHAT IS UNCLEAN; And I will welcome you. “And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” Says the Lord Almighty.”
And we could go on.
• Look at how Lot was influenced by the people of Sodom…
• Look at how Samson was influenced by Delilah…
• Look at how Solomon was influenced by his foreign wives…
• Look at how Aaron was influenced to make a golden calf…
• Look at how the children of Israel were influenced by the grumbling rabble…
And throughout the course of history,
Satan has had no shortage of false prophets and false teachers
To wickedly influence God’s people to disregard His word
And walk in disobedience to Him.
Ephesians 5:6-14 “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them; for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light (for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth), trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them; for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret. But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light. For this reason it says, “Awake, sleeper, And arise from the dead, And Christ will shine on you.”
The wicked are a stumbling block for the people of God.
And if you don’t have enough discernment to see it
And conviction to stand against it,
You will watch the curse slowly creep upon your entire world.
“Jehoshaphat was a good man,
But he lacked the conviction to stand against
The peer pressure, and it ruined him.”
Allowing yourself to be swayed by the wicked
Will only bring you to ruin.
Psalms 1 “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.”
The blessed man knows that the wicked are a dangerous influence,
And to spend too much time with them, can only lead to ruin.
You don’t want to be caught with the wicked
When the day of their judgment comes.
Proverbs 17:12 “Let a man meet a bear robbed of her cubs, Rather than a fool in his folly.”
This morning let me encourage you.
Seek the Lord
Trust the Lord
Love the Lord
But also stand upon your convictions,
And refuse to allow yourself to be influenced by this wicked world.
• For some it is their work place…
• For some it is a friend…
• For some it is a family member…
• For some it is a television…
Now some influences can be escaped,
But certainly you cannot escape them all.
And you were not intended to live with your head in the sand.
1 Corinthians 5:9-10 “I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world.”
A Christian does have the responsibility
To be light in the midst of darkness.
JUST MAKE SURE YOU RECOGNIZE THE DARKNESS
AND REFUSE TO ALLOW IT TO INFLUENCE YOU.
IF EVIL CAN BE AVOIDED, THEN AVOID IT.
But if cannot be, then stand against it,
And be a man or woman of conviction.
Ephesians 6:10-13 “Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.”
