1 Kings 22:30

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
But the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your royal attire.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.

Hebrew Names Version
The king of Yisra'el said to Yehoshafat, I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put you on your robes. The king of Yisra'el disguised himself, and went into the battle.

King James Version
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and enter into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

English Standard Version
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes." And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.

New Century Version
King Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, "I will go into battle, but I will wear other clothes so no one will recognize me. But you wear your royal clothes." So Ahab wore other clothes and went into battle.

New English Translation
The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and then enter into the battle, but you wear your royal robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself and then entered into the battle.

Amplified Bible
The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and enter the battle, but you put on your [royal] clothing." So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle.

New American Standard Bible
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and go into the battle, but you put on your robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And the King of Israel sayde to Iehoshaphat, I will change mine apparell, and will enter into the battell, but put thou on thine apparell. And the King of Israel changed himselfe, and went into the battel.

Legacy Standard Bible
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and go into the battle, but you put on your garments." So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle.

Contemporary English Version
Before they went into battle, Ahab said, "Jehoshaphat, I'll disguise myself, but you wear your royal robe." Then Ahab disguised himself and went into battle.

Complete Jewish Bible
The king of Isra'el said to Y'hoshafat, "I will disguise myself and go into battle; but you, put on your robes." So the king of Isra'el disguised himself and went into battle.

Darby Translation
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and will enter into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

Easy-to-Read Version
Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, "Disguise yourself when you go into battle, but wear your own clothes. And I will disguise myself." The king of Israel went into battle dressed like an ordinary soldier.

George Lamsa Translation
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself and enter into the battle; but you put on your robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle.

Good News Translation
Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, "As we go into battle, I will disguise myself, but you wear your royal garments." So the king of Israel went into battle in disguise.

Lexham English Bible
Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and go into the battle, but you wear your robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself, and he went into the battle.

Literal Translation
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself and enter into the battle. But you put on your robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And the kynge of Israel sayde vnto Iosaphat: Chaunge thy clothes, and come in to ye battayll in thine araie. The kinge of Israel chaunged his clothes also, and wete in to the battayll.

American Standard Version
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

Bible in Basic English
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will make a change in my clothing, so that I do not seem to be the king, and will go into the fight; but do you put on your robes. So the king of Israel made a change in his dress and went into the fight.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the king of Israel sayde vnto Iehosaphat: I wil chaunge my apparell, and will enter into the battel, but put thou on thyne apparell. And the king of Israel chaunged him selfe, and went to battell.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat: 'I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put thou on thy robes.' And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

King James Version (1611)
And the king of Israel said vnto Iehoshaphat, I wil disguise my selfe, & enter into the battell, but put thou on thy robes. And the King of Israel disguised himselfe, & went into the battell.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And the king of Israel said to Josaphat king of Juda, I will disguise myself, and enter into the battle, and do thou put on my raiment. So the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

English Revised Version
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

Berean Standard Bible
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your royal robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Therfor the kyng of Israel seide to Josephat, Take thou armeris, and entre thou in to batel, and be thou clothid in thi clothis, that is, noble signes of the kyng. Certis the kyng of Israel chaungide hise clothing, and entride in to batel.

Young's Literal Translation
And the king of Israel saith unto Jehoshaphat to disguise himself, and to go into battle, `And thou, put on thy garments.' And the king of Israel disguiseth himself, and goeth into battle.

Update Bible Version
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but you put on your robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

Webster's Bible Translation
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and enter into the battle; but put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

World English Bible
The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put you on your robes. The king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle.

New King James Version
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and go into battle; but you put on your robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.

New Living Translation
The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "As we go into battle, I will disguise myself so no one will recognize me, but you wear your royal robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself, and they went into battle.

New Life Bible
The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will dress so no one will know who I am, and will go to battle. But you put on your king's clothing." So the king of Israel dressed so no one would know who he was, and went into battle.

New Revised Standard
The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat - I am about to disguise myself, and enter into the battle, thou, therefore, put on thy robes. So the king of Israel disguised himself, and entered into the battle.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And the king of Israel said to Josaphat: Take thy armour, and go into the battle, and put on thy own garments. But the king of Israel changed his dress, and went into the battle.

Revised Standard Version
And the king of Israel said to Jehosh'aphat, "I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes." And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and go into the battle, but you put on your robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle.

Contextual Overview

²⁹The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah attacked Ramoth Gilead. The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "Wear my kingly robe; I'm going into battle disguised." So the king of Israel entered the battle in disguise. ³¹ Meanwhile, the king of Aram had ordered his chariot commanders (there were thirty-two of them): "Don't bother with anyone, whether small or great; go after the king of Israel and him only." ³²When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat they said, "There he is! The king of Israel!" and took after him. Jehoshaphat yelled out, and the chariot commanders realized they had the wrong man—it wasn't the king of Israel after all. They let him go. ³⁴ Just then someone, without aiming, shot an arrow randomly into the crowd and hit the king of Israel in the chink of his armor. The king told his charioteer, "Turn back! Get me out of here—I'm wounded." ³⁵All day the fighting continued, hot and heavy. Propped up in his chariot, the king watched from the sidelines. He died that evening. Blood from his wound pooled in the chariot. As the sun went down, shouts reverberated through the ranks, "Abandon camp! Head for home! The king is dead!" The king was brought to Samaria and there they buried him. They washed down the chariot at the pool of Samaria where the town whores bathed, and the dogs lapped up the blood, just as God 's word had said. The rest of Ahab's life—everything he did, the ivory palace he built, the towns he founded, and the defense system he built up—is all written up in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. He was buried in the family cemetery and his son Ahaziah was the next king. Jehoshaphat son of Asa became king of Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king and he ruled for twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. He continued the kind of life characteristic of his father Asa—no detours, no dead ends—pleasing God with his life. But he failed to get rid of the neighborhood sex-and-religion shrines. People continued to pray and worship at these idolatrous shrines. And he kept on good terms with the king of Israel. The rest of Jehoshaphat's life, his achievements and his battles, is all written in The Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. Also, he got rid of the sacred prostitutes left over from the days of his father Asa. Edom was kingless during his reign; a deputy was in charge. Jehoshaphat built ocean-going ships to sail to Ophir for gold. But they never made it; they shipwrecked at Ezion Geber. During that time Ahaziah son of Ahab proposed a joint shipping venture, but Jehoshaphat wouldn't go in with him. Then Jehoshaphat died and was buried in the family cemetery in the City of David his ancestor. Jehoram his son was the next king. Ahaziah son of Ahab became king over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah. He ruled Israel for two years. As far as God was concerned, he lived an evil life, reproducing the bad life of his father and mother, repeating the pattern set down by Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into a life of sin. Worshiping at the Baal shrines, he made God , the God of Israel, angry, oh, so angry. If anything, he was worse than his father. ³⁸ They enjoyed three years of peace—no fighting between Aram and Israel. In the third year, Jehoshaphat king of Judah had a meeting with the king of Israel. Israel's king remarked to his aides, "Do you realize that Ramoth Gilead belongs to us, and we're sitting around on our hands instead of taking it back from the king of Aram?" He turned to Jehoshaphat and said, "Will you join me in fighting for Ramoth Gilead?" Jehoshaphat said, "You bet. I'm with you all the way—my troops are your troops, my horses are your horses." He then continued, "But before you do anything, ask God for guidance." The king of Israel got the prophets together—all four hundred of them—and put the question to them: "Should I attack Ramoth Gilead? Or should I hold back?" "Go for it," they said. " God will hand it over to the king." But Jehoshaphat dragged his heels: "Is there still another prophet of God around here we can consult?" The king of Israel told Jehoshaphat, "As a matter of fact, there is still one such man. But I hate him. He never preaches anything good to me, only doom, doom, doom—Micaiah son of Imlah." "The king shouldn't talk about a prophet like that," said Jehoshaphat. So the king of Israel ordered one of his men, "On the double! Get Micaiah son of Imlah." Meanwhile, the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat were seated on their thrones, dressed in their royal robes, resplendent in front of the Samaria city gates. All the prophets were staging a prophecy-performance for their benefit. Zedekiah son of Kenaanah had even made a set of iron horns, and brandishing them called out, " God 's word! With these horns you'll gore Aram until there's nothing left of him!" All the prophets chimed in, "Yes! Go for Ramoth Gilead! An easy victory! God 's gift to the king!" The messenger who went to get Micaiah said, "The prophets have all said Yes to the king. Make it unanimous—vote Yes!" But Micaiah said, "As surely as God lives, what God says, I'll say." With Micaiah before him, the king asked him, "So Micaiah—do we attack Ramoth Gilead, or do we hold back?" "Go ahead," he said. "An easy victory. God 's gift to the king." "Not so fast," said the king. "How many times have I made you promise under oath to tell me the truth and nothing but the truth?" "All right," said Micaiah, "since you insist. I saw all of Israel scattered over the hills, sheep with no shepherd. Then God spoke: ‘These poor people have no one to tell them what to do. Let them go home and do the best they can for themselves.'" Then the king of Israel turned to Jehoshaphat, "See! What did I tell you? He never has a good word for me from God , only doom." Micaiah kept on: "I'm not done yet; listen to God 's word: I saw God enthroned, and all the angel armies of heaven Standing at attention ranged on his right and his left. And God said, ‘How can we seduce Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead?' Some said this, and some said that. Then a bold angel stepped out, stood before God , and said, ‘I'll seduce him.' ‘And how will you do it?' said God . ‘Easy,' said the angel, ‘I'll get all the prophets to lie.' ‘That should do it,' said God . ‘On your way—seduce him!' "And that's what has happened. God filled the mouths of your puppet prophets with seductive lies. God has pronounced your doom." Just then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah came up and punched Micaiah in the nose, saying, "Since when did the Spirit of God leave me and take up with you?" Micaiah said, "You'll know soon enough; you'll know it when you're frantically and futilely looking for a place to hide." The king of Israel had heard enough: "Get Micaiah out of here! Turn him over to Amon the city magistrate and to Joash the king's son with this message, ‘King's orders: Lock him up in jail; keep him on bread and water until I'm back in one piece.'" Micaiah said, "If you ever get back in one piece, I'm no prophet of God ." He added,"When it happens, O people, remember where you heard it!" The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah attacked Ramoth Gilead. The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "Wear my kingly robe; I'm going into battle disguised." So the king of Israel entered the battle in disguise. Meanwhile, the king of Aram had ordered his chariot commanders (there were thirty-two of them): "Don't bother with anyone, whether small or great; go after the king of Israel and him only." When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat they said, "There he is! The king of Israel!" and took after him. Jehoshaphat yelled out, and the chariot commanders realized they had the wrong man—it wasn't the king of Israel after all. They let him go. Just then someone, without aiming, shot an arrow randomly into the crowd and hit the king of Israel in the chink of his armor. The king told his charioteer, "Turn back! Get me out of here—I'm wounded." All day the fighting continued, hot and heavy. Propped up in his chariot, the king watched from the sidelines. He died that evening. Blood from his wound pooled in the chariot. As the sun went down, shouts reverberated through the ranks, "Abandon camp! Head for home! The king is dead!" The king was brought to Samaria and there they buried him. They washed down the chariot at the pool of Samaria where the town whores bathed, and the dogs lapped up the blood, just as God 's word had said. ³⁹The rest of Ahab's life—everything he did, the ivory palace he built, the towns he founded, and the defense system he built up—is all written up in The Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. He was buried in the family cemetery and his son Ahaziah was the next king.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

I will: etc. or, when he was to disguise himself

and enter into the battle: put thou on, 1 Kings 22:10, Psalms 12:2

disguised himself: 1 Kings 14:2, 1 Kings 20:38, 1 Samuel 28:8, 2 Samuel 14:2, 2 Chronicles 18:29, 2 Chronicles 35:22, Proverbs 21:30, Jeremiah 23:24

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself, and enter into the battle,.... Change his clothes, his royal robes, and put on others, perhaps the habit of a common soldier; having, it may be, been informed by some deserters or spies, of the design of Benhadad against him. Abarbinel thinks the meaning is, that he would clothe himself with a coat of mail, and take to him the each of the instruments of war, and so go into the battle secure; this seems probable from 1 Kings 22:34 and this he might do to elude the prophecy of Micaiah:

but put thou on thy robes; his royal robes, or rather keep them on, that he might appear to be the chief commander of the army. There seems to be a good deal of insincerity and treachery in this conduct of Ahab's, whatever honour he might pretend to Jehoshaphat, or safety he might promise him in such a situation; his view seems to be to save himself at the hazard of the life of Jehoshaphat, especially if the Septuagint version could be established, "and put on my clothes"; which is natural enough, but would have been too barefaced:

and the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle; as if he had been a common soldier.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

I will disguise myself - Ahab had probably heard of Ben-hadad’s order to his captains 1 Kings 22:31.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 30. I will disguise myself — Probably he had heard of the orders given by Ben-hadad to his thirty-two captains, to fight with the king of Israel only; that is, to make their most powerful attack where he commanded, in order to take him prisoner, that he might lead him captive whose captive he formerly was; and therefore he disguised himself that he might not be known.

But put thou on thy robes. — What is meant by this? He could not mean, "Appear as the king of Judah, for they will not molest thee, as the matter of contention lies between them and me;" this is Jarchi's turn. For if Jehoshaphat aided Ahab, is it to be supposed that the Syrians would spare him in battle? A general in the civil wars of England, when he had brought his army in sight of their foes, thus addressed them: "Yonder are your enemies; if you do not kill them, they will kill you." So it might be said in the case of Jehoshaphat and the Syrians.

The Septuagint gives the clause a different and more intelligible turn: "I will cover (conceal) myself, and enter into the battle; και συ ενδυσαι τον ἱματισμον μου, but put thou on MY robes." And does it not appear that he did put on Ahab's robes? And was it not this that caused the Syrians to mistake him for the king of Israel? 1 Kings 22:32.