Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
False prophets predict victory for King Achab going to war, but the prophet Micaiah predicts his destruction. Therefore in battle Achab, pierced by an arrow, falls, and dogs lick his blood. Then, at verse 41, the deeds of Josaphat king of Judah are described, and his fleet sent to Ophir. Finally, upon his death at verse 51, his son Joram succeeds him, while Ochozias, Achab's son, succeeds Achab.
Vulgate Text: 3 Kings 22:1-54
1. Three years therefore passed without war between Syria and Israel. 2. But in the third year, Josaphat king of Judah came down to the king of Israel. 3. And the king of Israel said to his servants: Do you not know that Ramoth Gilead is ours, and we neglect to take it from the hand of the king of Syria? 4. And he said to Josaphat: Will you come with me to fight at Ramoth Gilead? 5. And Josaphat said to the king of Israel: As I am, so are you; my people and your people are one: and my horsemen are your horsemen. And Josaphat said to the king of Israel: Inquire, I beseech you, today for the word of the Lord. 6. So the king of Israel gathered the prophets, about four hundred men, and said to them: Should I go to Ramoth Gilead to fight, or should I refrain? They answered: Go up, and the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king. 7. But Josaphat said: Is there not here some prophet of the Lord, that we may inquire through him? 8. And the king of Israel said to Josaphat: There remains one man through whom we can inquire of the Lord; but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good to me, but evil: Micaiah the son of Imlah. Josaphat said to him: Do not speak so, O king. 9. So the king of Israel called a certain eunuch and said to him: Hasten to bring Micaiah the son of Imlah. 10. Now the king of Israel and Josaphat king of Judah were sitting each on his throne, dressed in royal attire, in a threshing floor beside the entrance of the gate of Samaria, and all the prophets were prophesying before them. 11. And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made himself horns of iron and said: Thus says the Lord: With these you shall gore Syria until you destroy it. 12. And all the prophets prophesied likewise, saying: Go up to Ramoth Gilead, and prosper, and the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king. 13. And the messenger who had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying: Behold, the words of the prophets with one mouth predict good things to the king; let your word therefore be like theirs, and speak good things. 14. Micaiah said to him: As the Lord lives, whatever the Lord says to me, that I will speak. 15. So he came to the king, and the king said to him: Micaiah, should we go to Ramoth Gilead to fight, or should we refrain? He answered: Go up, and prosper, and the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king. 16. But the king said to him: Again and again I adjure you that you speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord. 17. And he said: I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, like sheep having no shepherd, and the Lord said: These have no master; let each one return to his house in peace. 18. Then the king of Israel said to Josaphat: Did I not tell you that he does not prophesy good to me, but always evil? 19. But he added, saying: Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting upon His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on His right hand and on His left; 20. and the Lord said: Who will deceive Achab king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth Gilead? And one said this, and another said that. 21. Then a spirit came forth and stood before the Lord and said: I will deceive him. The Lord said to him: By what means? 22. And he said: I will go forth and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And the Lord said: You shall deceive him and shall prevail; go forth and do so. 23. Now therefore behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets who are here, and the Lord has spoken evil against you. 24. Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came forward and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said: Did then the Spirit of the Lord left me and spoke to you? 25. And Micaiah said: You shall see on that day when you enter chamber within chamber to hide yourself. 26. And the king of Israel said: Take Micaiah and let him remain with Amon the governor of the city and with Joash the son of Amelech. 27. And tell them: Thus says the king: Put this man in prison, and feed him with the bread of affliction and the water of anguish, until I return in peace. 28. And Micaiah said: If you return in peace, the Lord has not spoken through me. And he said: Hear, all you peoples. 29. So the king of Israel and Josaphat king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead. 30. And the king of Israel said to Josaphat: Take your armor and enter the battle, and put on your garments; but the king of Israel changed his attire and went into battle. 31. Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying: Do not fight against anyone lesser or greater, but only against the king of Israel. 32. So when the captains of the chariots saw Josaphat, they thought he was the king of Israel, and they charged upon him and fought against him, and Josaphat cried out. 33. And the captains of the chariots realized that he was not the king of Israel and turned away from him. 34. But a certain man drew his bow, directing the arrow at random, and by chance struck the king of Israel between the lungs and the stomach. And he said to his charioteer: Turn your hand and take me out of the battle, for I am grievously wounded. 35. So the battle was joined that day, and the king of Israel stood in his chariot facing the Syrians, and he died in the evening: and the blood from the wound flowed into the hollow of the chariot, 36. and the herald sounded throughout the whole army before the sun set, saying: Let each one return to his city and to his own land. 37. And the king died and was brought to Samaria: and they buried the king in Samaria, 38. and they washed his chariot in the pool of Samaria, and dogs licked his blood, and they washed the reins, according to the word of the Lord which He had spoken. 39. Now the rest of the acts of Achab, and all that he did, and the ivory house that he built, and all the cities that he constructed, are these not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 40. So Achab slept with his fathers, and Ochozias his son reigned in his place. 41. Now Josaphat the son of Asa had begun to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Achab king of Israel. 42. He was thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. 43. And he walked in all the way of Asa his father, and did not turn aside from it: and he did what was right in the sight of the Lord. 44. Nevertheless he did not remove the high places: for the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. 45. And Josaphat had peace with the king of Israel. 46. Now the rest of the acts of Josaphat and his deeds that he did, and his battles, are these not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 47. He also removed from the land the remnant of the sodomites who had remained in the days of Asa his father. 48. And there was then no king constituted in Edom. 49. And King Josaphat had made ships at sea to sail to Ophir for gold; but they could not go, because they were wrecked at Ezion-geber. 50. Then Ochozias the son of Achab said to Josaphat: Let my servants go with your servants in the ships. But Josaphat would not. 51. And Josaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with them in the City of David his father: and Joram his son reigned in his place. 52. And Ochozias the son of Achab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Josaphat king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. 53. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the way of his father and of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. 54. And he served Baal and worshipped him, and provoked the Lord God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.
Verse 3: Jehoshaphat Said to the King of Israel
3. AND JOSAPHAT SAID TO THE KING OF ISRAEL: AS I AM, SO ARE YOU. — In Hebrew, As I, as you, that is, I am as you, and you are as I. For the Hebrews in comparisons repeat the word "as" or "so." The meaning therefore is, as if to say: What you are going to do, I also will do: if you go to war against the Syrians, I also will go; all things shall be common between us, and the chance and danger of war shall also be shared. The reason is given in 2 Paralipomenon 18:1, that Josaphat was connected to King Achab by marriage; for he had given Athaliah, daughter of Achab, as wife to his son Joram, and therefore he himself visited Achab here and went with him to war.
In this matter he sinned by providing aid and fostering friendship with the wicked Achab, and therefore he was nearly killed in battle, as is said in verse 32. Hence also, returning from war, he encountered the prophet Jehu, who gravely rebuked him saying: "You give aid to the wicked, and you are joined in friendship with those who hate the Lord; and therefore you deserved the wrath of the Lord; but good works have been found in you," etc. Here you see how displeasing to God are marriages and alliances with the wicked, and how dangerous these same things are to the whole kingdom. For the wicked Athaliah destroyed all the royal offspring, that is, all her grandsons from Joram, with the sole exception of Joash who was hidden, so that she alone might reign, as in 4 Kings 11:1. For the same reason, the ships that Josaphat sent with the ships of Ochozias son of Achab to Tarshish were wrecked, as is said in 2 Paralipomenon 20:37. For there the prophet Eleazar said to Josaphat: "Because you made an alliance with Ochozias, the Lord has struck your works, and the ships were broken and could not sail to Tarshish." On the contrary, God blesses and prospers marriages and alliances with the upright and holy, and saints breathe their sanctity and happiness upon their spouses and allies, as Abraham did for the Hittites (Genesis 23:6), Jacob for Laban (Genesis 30:27), Joseph for Potiphar (Genesis 39:3), Moses for the Hebrews whom he led out of Egyptian slavery (Exodus 12), Samuel for David, David for Saul, etc. This is what the Apostle decreed in 2 Corinthians 6:14, saying: "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with iniquity? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God."
Verse 5: Inquire for the Word of the Lord
5. INQUIRE, ETC., THE WORD OF THE LORD — that is, an oracle from God through some prophet, whether the outcome of war will be fortunate or unfortunate: for if it be fortunate, we will go to it; but if unfortunate, we will return home.
Verse 6: The King Gathered the Prophets
6. SO THE KING OF ISRAEL (Achab) GATHERED FOUR HUNDRED PROPHETS — not of God, but of Baal or of the devil, and therefore false prophets, idolaters, and heretics. Hence Lucifer of Cagliari, in book 1 of On Apostate Kings, notes that heretical princes cling to their false prophets, that is, to heretical preachers, and despise the true Prophets of God, indeed persecute and kill them, as did Constantius, Valens, Julian, and others, who therefore, seduced by their Arians, perished miserably.
GO UP, AND THE LORD WILL DELIVER IT INTO THE HAND OF THE KING — namely yours, O Achab. The devil, consulted by these false prophets through the auguries and sorceries customary to them about the outcome of war, promises victory but lies. Therefore he deceives the prophets, and they deceive Achab, and lead him, trusting too much in himself, into the prey of slaughter like a mouse into a trap.
Verse 7: Is There Not a Prophet of the Lord
7. BUT JOSAPHAT SAID: IS THERE NOT HERE SOME PROPHET OF THE LORD, THAT WE MAY INQUIRE THROUGH HIM? — Josaphat was a worshipper of the true God; therefore it displeased him that Achab had consulted the prophets of Baal, and Baal himself, that is, the demon, and he did not believe them since they were liars. He therefore asked that a true Prophet of the true God be sought and that his oracle be consulted and followed.
Verse 8: Micaiah the Son of Imlah
8. MICAIAH. — This is a different person from the Micah who is numbered sixth among the Minor Prophets; indeed this one preceded him by 150 years. For this one prophesied under Josaphat and Achab, while that one prophesied under Jotham and Ahaz: this one in Israel, that one in Judah.
Verse 15: Go Up and Prosper
15. GO UP AND PROCEED PROSPEROUSLY, AND THE LORD WILL DELIVER IT INTO THE HANDS OF THE KING. — First, Cajetan thinks that Micaiah said this before he had received an oracle from God, and therefore assented to the other prophets, erred, and predicted falsely; but then, adjured by the king and enlightened by God, he received and pronounced the true oracle from God about the king's death.
Second, Dionysius says this response is ambiguous, and can be understood either of Benhadad king of Syria, the enemy of King Achab, or of Achab himself. For thus the demon, consulted and responding ambiguously, deceived Croesus, saying:
Croesus, crossing the Halys, will destroy a great force of wealth.
And Pyrrhus, as Ennius attests:
I say that you, descendant of Aeacus, can conquer the Romans.
See Cicero, book 2 of On Divination.
Third, Theodoret and Lyranus think that Micaiah here asserts nothing, but to show that he does not hate King Achab, as the king supposed, he merely wishes him a prosperous outcome of war, so that "will deliver" means the same as "I wish that He may deliver."
Fourth and genuinely, Micaiah here speaks ironically, as if to say: Since, O Achab, your prophets promise you victory and you believe them, go to battle; for they say you will return victorious. Test therefore their oracle, since you do not believe me and mine. For I know that you will perish in battle; but I do not wish to declare it to you, because you are unworthy to hear the truth from God, since you consult the lying Baal and prefer to hear his false oracles rather than my most true ones from the true God. So say Abulensis, Vatablus, Sanchez, and Serarius.
Verse 16: Again and Again I Adjure You
16. AGAIN AND AGAIN I ADJURE YOU. — The king could see from his face, gesture, and manner of speaking that Micaiah was not speaking seriously but figuratively and ironically. He therefore adjures him to bring forth nothing but the truth and a true oracle seriously from his own sincere mind.
Verse 17: I Saw All Israel Scattered like Sheep
17. I SAW ALL ISRAEL SCATTERED UPON THE MOUNTAINS, LIKE SHEEP WITHOUT A SHEPHERD. — Micaiah predicts the flight of Israel and the death of King Achab, and that he would be killed in battle, as if to say: The shepherd, that is, the king, will be killed; therefore his subjects and soldiers, like sheep without a shepherd, will flee from the battle on the mountain of Samaria.
Verse 19: I Saw the Lord Sitting upon His Throne
19. I SAW THE LORD SITTING UPON HIS THRONE, AND ALL THE HOST OF HEAVEN STANDING BY HIM ON HIS RIGHT HAND AND ON HIS LEFT. — On the right were the Angels, on the left the devils; whence there went forth the one who said in verse 22: "I will go forth and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets." So in Job 1: "When the sons of God (the Angels) stood before the Lord, Satan also was present among them." On which St. Gregory, in book 2 of the Morals, chapter 16, citing this vision of Micaiah, says: "On the right hand therefore of God and on the left the army of Angels stands, because both the will of the elect spirits accords with the divine goodness, and the sense of the reprobate, serving its own malice, obeys the judgment of His strict justice."
Note that this vision of Micaiah was not a real event that actually took place, but was imaginary: for God was painting in Micaiah's imagination this appearance and form of a council, so that he seemed to himself to see God consulting with Angels and demons about the manner of deceiving King Achab. For God does not truly hold council with Angels, much less with demons, nor does He consult with them, since He knows with absolute certainty all the ways of accomplishing a matter, and which will be effective and have their result, and which will not. "For who has been His counselor?" (Romans 11:34). The same is evident from the dissension and ignorance of the Angels that is tacitly introduced here, since the counsel of the demon is preferred over all their proposals, in verse 22.
Therefore this was an imaginary and symbolic vision, sent by God to the Prophet, so that through it King Achab might understand that he was being deceived by his false prophets who promised victory, and that this was happening with God's permission and arrangement for his just punishment and destruction. For God accommodates Himself and His oracle to the capacity and understanding of King Achab. So say Serarius, Sanchez, and others.
Verse 20: Who Will Deceive Ahab
20. AND THE LORD SAID: WHO WILL DECEIVE ACHAB? — That inquiry of God, beyond the demerits and crimes of Achab by which he deserved to be deceived and perish, signifies two things:
First, that deception is foreign to God. Hence God here inquires about it as if He did not possess it in Himself, nor is it found among divine things; but rather in the assembly of demons, who were here deliberating among themselves about the manner of deceiving Achab: whence God is introduced in this vision as questioning them, as if to say: Which of you, O demons, will deceive Achab? For I know that you are deliberating about this matter.
Second, that the very deception of the demons was exactly known and ordained by God for the punishment of Achab; for God wished to punish Achab, and therefore permitted him to consult the demon through his false prophets, and permitted the demon to lie and deceive Achab by promising victory in a battle in which he was to be killed. So says St. Augustine, Question 44 on the book of Judges. Hence Theodoret and Procopius teach that here is signified that the divine will was the cause of Achab's destruction; for it willed to punish Achab's impiety, and therefore permitted certain of his sins, which nevertheless are committed freely, namely that he would consult his sorcerers and believe them, and thus be deceived and perish. These two things, says Cajetan, are signified by that inquiry of God. For otherwise God properly inquires about nothing, since He perceives and knows all things perfectly. Therefore Scripture here speaks anthropopathically, or in human fashion, because men in doubtful and future matters inquire and deliberate about the fitting manner of accomplishing a thing.
AND ONE SPOKE WORDS OF THIS KIND, AND ANOTHER DIFFERENTLY. — Various ways of deceiving Achab are narrated as being suggested to God by those standing by, not so much Angels as demons, in this symbolic vision. These are not recounted in detail, because God did not wish to use them. In general, however, they are reported, so that it might be evident that all modes of deception are known to God and ready at hand, so that by them He may execute the decree of His providence and vengeance in killing the impious Achab. So says Cajetan.
Verse 21: A Spirit Went Forth
21. BUT A SPIRIT WENT FORTH — that is, a certain devil offered himself to the Lord to deceive Achab; for it is his office to lie and deceive: for good Angels cannot do this, and are therefore truthful and faithful. "For, as St. Gregory says in book 2 of the Morals, chapter 16, it is not right to believe that a good spirit would have wished to serve falsehood, so as to say: I will go forth and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. But because Achab, from his previous sins, was worthy to be condemned by such a deception, so that he who had often willingly fallen into guilt might sometimes unwillingly be caught for punishment. By hidden justice, license is given to malignant spirits, so that those whom they strangle willingly in the snare of sin, they also drag unwillingly into the punishment of sin." The same teaches St. Augustine, book 83, Question 4, article 53.
Verse 22: I Will Be a Lying Spirit
22. I WILL GO FORTH AND BE A LYING SPIRIT IN THE MOUTH OF ALL HIS PROPHETS — that is, I will suggest a lie and a false promise to all the false prophets of Achab, so that they may with one voice promise the king victory in battle, when he himself is to be killed in the same. Furthermore, Philastrius, in his book On Heresies, in the heresy about the Pythoness, adds this, from an uncertain source: "And the unclean spirit said to the Lord: I will make myself like an angel of light, and I will speak similar words, and I will lead him into battle, and there I will abandon him, and so he will die. And the Lord said: Go, so you shall do."
Again, St. Epiphanius, Heresy 25: "The spirit of error," he says, "is like a breath in a flute, stirring up each foolish person in various ways against the truth; for the flute itself is an imitation of the serpent, through which the devil spoke and deceived Eve."
AND THE LORD SAID: YOU SHALL DECEIVE AND SHALL PREVAIL; GO FORTH AND DO SO — these are the words of God not commanding but permitting the devil, who is ready to deceive, to deceive Achab. So Christ said to Judas: "What you do, do quickly" (John 13:27), that is, I permit you to betray Me at once.
Verse 23: The Lord Has Put a Lying Spirit
23. NOW THEREFORE BEHOLD, THE LORD HAS PUT A LYING SPIRIT IN THE MOUTH OF ALL YOUR PROPHETS. — "He put" means by loosening the reins on the demon, not by preventing, but by permitting deception to one willing to deceive. For the demon can deceive or tempt no one unless God positively permits it. Therefore, just as one who holds a lion bound by a rope in his hand, if he loosens the rope so that the lion attacks and kills someone,
the one who loosened the rope is said to have killed him, so also God is said to "give the spirit of falsehood" if He loosens the rope for the devil and permits him, most ready to lie, to lie and deceive. For by these phrases Scripture signifies that the most high providence of God so holds in His hand the wills of all men, both of the evil and of the good, that they can will or do absolutely nothing except what God has permitted.
Verse 24: He Struck Micaiah on the Cheek
24. HE STRUCK MICAIAH ON THE CHEEK — which is a shameful and disgraceful blow, as I said on Lamentations 3:30.
Verse 25: You Shall See on That Day
25. YOU SHALL SEE ON THAT DAY WHEN YOU ENTER CHAMBER WITHIN CHAMBER (that is, the innermost, most hidden chamber, because you will not find a place where you can be safe from the fear of the Syrian enemies) TO HIDE YOURSELF.
Verse 27: Feed Him with the Bread of Affliction
27. FEED HIM WITH THE BREAD OF AFFLICTION AND THE WATER OF ANGUISH — or of distress. Vatablus says, such as is usually given to the afflicted, as if to say: Feed him with a small amount of bread and a small amount of water. The Chaldean renders it, bread that will be in affliction, that is, not to satiety but only to the point of necessity, so that he may live and not die of hunger or thirst.
Verse 28: Hear, All You Peoples
28. HEAR, ALL YOU PEOPLES — this oracle of mine, and take note of it, so that when you see it truly come to pass, you may acknowledge that I foretold the truth.
Verse 30: The King of Israel Changed His Attire
30. AND THE KING OF ISRAEL SAID TO JOSAPHAT, ETC.: PUT ON YOUR GARMENTS — that is, your royal and customary ones as if you were the commander and leader of war, so that you may add courage to the soldiers for fighting bravely.
BUT THE KING OF ISRAEL (Achab) CHANGED HIS ATTIRE — and putting off his royal garments he put on the common attire of an ordinary soldier. Achab did this not to honor Josaphat, as though he were the commander and war leader (even though he pretended this before Josaphat), but out of terror at the prophecy of Micaiah. For although he did not fully believe him to be speaking the truth, namely that he would be killed in battle, nevertheless he feared that very thing, especially with the added command of the king of Syria, who had ordered that all his men should direct their weapons against Achab alone. For this command appears to have become known to him. Moreover, Josephus adds that he did this so that he might more easily and certainly elude Micaiah's prophecy and show it to be false, since with his attire changed and stationed in the rear guard, he would be far from the swords and blows of the enemy, so that nothing seemed to be feared for him regarding wounding and death.
Verse 31: Fight Only Against the King of Israel
31. DO NOT FIGHT, ETC., EXCEPT AGAINST THE KING OF ISRAEL ALONE — that is, against Achab, so that you may kill or capture him alone; for he is the firebrand of the war. For Josaphat follows him as a companion follows a leader. Therefore, once he is removed, all the war will cease. Moreover, the king of Syria commanded this by the instinct of God, it seems, who willed to punish and slay the impious Achab. Hence Josephus adds that only Achab fell in the battle, and that Micaiah had predicted this.
Verse 34: A Man Drew His Bow at Random
34. BUT A CERTAIN MAN DREW HIS BOW, DIRECTING THE ARROW AT RANDOM, AND BY CHANCE STRUCK THE KING OF ISRAEL. — This was a fortuitous chance with respect to the Syrian soldier shooting the arrow from his bow, but with respect to God it was not chance but a directed blow: for God through His Angels directed this arrow so that it would strike none other than the impious Achab. So Julian the Apostate, like a new Achab restoring the worship of idols, was struck by a heavenly weapon, as Nazianzen says in Oration 2 against Julian, and fell in the Persian war in the year of the Lord 363, namely pierced by St. Mercurius the Martyr, as Damascene teaches from Helladius in Oration 1 On Images, Nicephorus in book 10, chapter 35, and others; and therefore raging and gnashing his teeth, filling his hand with his own blood and casting it into the air, he said: "You have conquered, O Galilean" (for so he called Christ contemptuously), as Theodoret attests in book 3, chapter 20.
Moreover, Julian was killed on the same day on which he himself the previous year had killed Saints John and Paul, the chief officers of St. Constantia, daughter of Constantine the Great, and crowned them with martyrdom, namely on the 26th of June, as Baronius keenly observes.
BETWEEN THE LUNGS AND THE STOMACH. — In Hebrew, ben debakim uben hassirian, which the Rabbis translate as between the joints and the breastplate; the Chaldean as between the joints of the armor; our Vulgate, in 2 Paralipomenon 18:33, translates it as between the neck and the shoulders. Both are true, says Abulensis; for this barbed arrow entered between the neck and shoulders of Achab, but exited between the stomach and lungs: here therefore the exit of the arrow is narrated, while in Paralipomenon the entry of the same is narrated.
Verse 38: They Washed His Chariot in the Pool of Samaria
38. AND THEY WASHED HIS CHARIOT IN THE POOL OF SAMARIA (Josephus incorrectly has: Jezare or Jezael), AND DOGS LICKED HIS BLOOD, AND THEY WASHED THE REINS, ACCORDING TO THE WORD OF THE LORD. — For "reins," the Hebrew is zonoth, which the Septuagint and Josephus translate as prostitutes. The prostitutes, they say, washed themselves in his blood. Josephus says that the prostitutes thereafter drew water from that pool, because these women "cleanse themselves by night in the stream when they wash in the morning," as Serarius says from Procopius and Theodoret. The Chaldeans and Rabbis translate it as arms, and add that these were brought to the armory that was in Jezreel; and there dogs licked the blood adhering to them, and thus the oracle of Elijah was fulfilled to the letter.
But our Vulgate translates most excellently as "reins." For the discussion here concerns the chariot and its reins stained with the blood of Achab, and therefore washed in the pool of Samaria; whence dogs licked it there. And thus the prophecy of Elijah was fulfilled not in all respects but in part; but as to all respects, it was fulfilled in the slaughter of Ochozias the son of Achab, as I said on chapter 21, verse 19.
Verse 39: The Ivory House
39. THE IVORY HOUSE. — How houses are made of ivory I discussed on Amos 3, at those words: "The ivory houses shall perish."
Verse 42: The Name of His Mother Was Azubah
42. THE NAME OF HIS MOTHER WAS AZUBAH. — In the books of Kings their mother is frequently named, because the education of children depends on the mother, whether for good or for ill; and as the mother is, so is the offspring. Thus the Spartans were brave in wars and hardships, because they had mothers who, following the instruction of Lycurgus, accustomed themselves and their children to labors and hardship.
Hence Gorgo, wife of Leonidas, when someone said to her: "You Spartan women alone rule your husbands," replied: "Because we alone also give birth to men." So Plutarch in his Apophthegms. A clearer example is found in St. Wenceslaus, Duke of Bohemia, and his brother Boleslaus; for the former, piously educated by his devout grandmother Ludmilla, became pious and holy: the latter, impiously nurtured by his wicked mother Drahomira, turned out impious and a fratricide: for in order to seize the kingdom, he killed St. Wenceslaus, but made him a Martyr, as the Life of St. Wenceslaus relates, which Surius recounts from Aeneas Sylvius on September 28. This is what the Apostle says: "For if the firstfruit is holy, so is the lump; and if the root is holy, so are the branches" (Romans 11:16). Thus the Maccabean mother, St. Symphorosa, and St. Felicitas — three mothers and heroines, I say — were leaders to martyrdom for their seven sons.
Verse 44: He Did Not Remove the High Places
44. NEVERTHELESS HE DID NOT REMOVE THE HIGH PLACES. — You will object: in 2 Paralipomenon 17:6 it is said that he did remove them. I reply: He did not remove them at the beginning of his reign, lest he stir up sedition of the people against himself; but later, when he had sufficiently established his kingdom. Hence in Paralipomenon it is added: "when he had taken courage." Or he removed them, but not so thoroughly that they did not grow back again from the excessive inclination of the people toward them, as is suggested in 2 Paralipomenon 20:33. Finally, Lyranus and others reply that Josaphat removed the "high places" erected to idols, but permitted high places dedicated to the true God. This answer, as it is simpler, is also truer. For when Scripture had said in 2 Paralipomenon 17:6 that Josaphat removed "the high places and the groves," namely the idolatrous ones, it afterward in chapter 20:33 adds: "Nevertheless the high places," namely those dedicated to the true God but forbidden by Him, "he did not remove."
Verse 46: The Rest of the Acts of Jehoshaphat
46. NOW THE REST OF THE ACTS (that is, of the deeds and accomplishments; this is a metonymy frequent in these books) OF JOSAPHAT, ETC., ARE THESE NOT WRITTEN IN THE BOOK OF THE CHRONICLES OF THE KINGS OF JUDAH? — Namely in the Chronicles and Diaries in which the words, that is, the deeds of the kings of Judah were described day by day.
For very many heroic deeds of Josaphat are here passed over in silence for the sake of brevity, of which some are recounted in 2 Paralipomenon 17:2, where the zeal of Josaphat in propagating the worship of God and in instructing the people is celebrated, and therefore glory was given to him as a reward by God. Again in the same book, chapter 19, it is narrated that he reformed the tribunals in Judah and appointed Levites as judges, and other pious and incorruptible men. In addition, in chapter 20, the remarkable victory is recounted which he obtained from God by his piety and prayer against Ammon and Moab, where among other things in verse 12, praying he says: "In us indeed there is not such great strength that we can resist this multitude which rushes upon us. But since we do not know what we should do, this alone remains to us, that we direct our eyes to You." On account of which God raised up the prophet Jahaziel, who said in verse 17: "Stand firm with confidence, and you shall see the help of the Lord upon you." Therefore, trusting, he himself went ahead of the camp, but in such a way that he sent ahead singers praising God and singing together: "Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, for His mercy endures forever." And when these began to sing, God turned the ambushes of the enemy against themselves, so that they attacked one another and slaughtered each other with mutual slaughter. Whence they all perished to a man, and Josaphat arrived with his men to strip them of their spoils.
Verse 48: No King Was Constituted in Edom
48. AND THERE WAS THEN NO KING CONSTITUTED IN EDOM — because Idumea, subjugated by David, was governed by his prefects; but soon, under Joram son of Josaphat, "Edom revolted so as not to be under Judah, and set up a king for themselves," as is said in 4 Kings 8:20.
Verse 49: Ships to Sail to Ophir
49. WHICH WERE TO SAIL TO OPHIR. — Where Ophir is I discussed in chapter 9, verse 28.
THEY WERE WRECKED AT EZION-GEBER — because they were allied and joined to the fleet of the impious king of Israel, namely Ochozias son of Achab, as is said in 2 Paralipomenon 20:37. Whence Ochozias, seeing his ships wrecked, asked Josaphat that his servants might go with the servants of Josaphat in his ships; but Josaphat refused, as follows; namely because he feared the same or a worse divine punishment on account of his alliance with the impious Ochozias.
Verse 51: Jehoshaphat Slept with His Fathers
51. AND JOSAPHAT SLEPT WITH HIS FATHERS AND WAS BURIED WITH THEM IN THE CITY OF DAVID — namely in Zion; nevertheless a mausoleum was erected for him in the valley which was thence called Josaphat; which is situated between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives, where the universal judgment will take place, as I said from Bede and others on Joel 3:2.
Here ends the third book of Kings, which comprises the history of the kings of Judah over 126 years. For Solomon reigned 40 years, Rehoboam 17, Abijah 3, Asa 41, Josaphat 25; add all these together and you will have 126 years.
Finally, as regards the synchronism with Gentile history, Eusebius in the Chronicle, Genebrardus, Salianus, and others report the following. In the time of Josaphat, Achab and his son Ochozias ruled in Israel; in Assyria, Orphratanes; in Lacedæmon, Archelaus; in Athens, Mechades; in Corinth, Agelas; among the Latins, Capetus Silvius and Tiberinus Silvius, who gave his name to the river Tiber, which was previously called the Albula; and Agrippa Silvius; in Egypt, Nepher, Cheras, Amenophis, Osochor, and Spinaces.
THE END.