November 6, 2025
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Reading along with us in 1 Kings and Acts? Here’s today’s reading:
1 Kings 20 (NIV)
Ben-Hadad Attacks Samaria
1 Now Ben-Hadad king of Aram mustered his entire army. Accompanied by thirty-two kings with their horses and chariots, he went up and besieged Samaria and attacked it. 2 He sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel, saying, “This is what Ben-Hadad says: 3‘Your silver and gold are mine, and the best of your wives and children are mine.’ ”……Continue Reading
He is a God of the hills and the valleys and victory is His! Ahab and Israel did not deserve what God provided here and yet He protected His people. An army that was bigger and a leader who was stronger was still no match when God was on the other side. God protects us wherever we are even when we don’t deserve it. His love and mercy extends to us anyway and He is able to put us up on the hill and meet us in our valleys! For that we should gratefully follow and with thanksgiving obey, unfortunately, Ahab did not. Letting Ben-Hadad live was foolish and not what God wanted but rather something Ahab thought was a good idea for whatever reason and God let Him know. But rather than being repentant, especially after seeing all God had just accomplished for Israel, he walks away from that exchange mad instead….not wise!
It is a bit surprising that God granted Israel this victory considering Ahab and Jezebell’s wickedness, but I wonder if God afforded this grace to Ahab because there was some openness to God after what Elijah did on Mt Carmel. But regardless, God seeks to make the point that He can grant victory to Israel even when they are out matched to show His power to them. He even gives them the strategy. The second victory comes as a lesson to Aram as they try to put Him in a box, saying His power is limited by location. Well God doesn’t like being put in boxes. And yet Ahab makes a wrong decision to keep Ben Hadad alive. It just goes to show that when we are not seeking God His wisdom and guidance will not be available to us. And when He corrects us, we will not be teachable, as Ahab shows at the end here…
1 Kings 20
Psalm 23; 1 Kings 20; Jeremiah 3
Two battles here with two different acts of disobedience. First Ahab is told to lead the attack, but he has the other leaders of Israel go out first instead; but God still grants him victory. Second Ahab is to kill the king of Aram but he doesn’t. For this he is told that his life will be forfeit.
Let us follow God in what He tells us to do and how He tells us to do it.
Disobedience has consequences! It was Gods command that Ben-Hadad should die….not Ahabs to let him live. Ahab gave in to the enemy of God and therefore lost his life. God keeps His word.
Side note: always amazes me the amount of soldiers, horses & chariots that would go to fight in these Old Testament battles. Thousands upon thousands and then thousands of casualties all in a day. Of course God and only God could provide this ‘vast’ army deliverance to Israel.
1 kings 20
Paul is connected to believers as he travels to Jerusalem. When he is told that he will be bound like a criminal and handed over to the Gentiles, he does not change his mind about his decision to go there. He stands for what he believes in regardless of the consequences. And he makes light of the consequences saying he is willing to die to share the gospel of Jesus Christ. May we see the benefit of all that we do in the name of the Lord and be determined to continue with it regardless of the risks we take to our welfare, reputation, popularity, wealth, and so on.
We see Gods sovereignty and man’s agency in this exchange. Ahab is evil, God still uses him to lead Israel. Ahab is happy to follow God when it benefits him, but doesn’t follow through and kill Ben Hadad is delivered into his hands. All that God did to deliver him and he makes his own decision!