Micaiah
continued, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne with
all the multitudes of heaven standing on his right and on his left. And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab
king of Israel into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?’
“One
suggested this, and another that. Finally, a spirit came
forward, stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will entice him.’
“‘By what
means?’ the Lord asked.
“‘I will go
and be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,’ he said.
“‘You will
succeed in enticing him,’ said the Lord. ‘Go and do it.’
“So now the
Lord has put a
deceiving spirit in the mouths of these prophets of yours. The Lord has decreed disaster for
you.” 2 Chronicles 18:18-22
When
people stray from God willingly, trying to push him out of their lives, God
responds by sending a deceptive spirit to speed up the division. He knows that the quicker the people fall,
the faster they will realize their sin and turn back to Him.
This
happened in the fractured nation of Israel and the horrible reign of Ahab. There was no truth, only conflict. Division was the end goal, not unity.
Does
this sound like our nation today? Has
God sent a deceptive spirit to our nation?
Deception’s goal is to divide and God approves and accelerates that deception
so we will return to God on our knees, humbly.