And the king said to him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou say nothing but the truth to me in the name of the LORD?
Parallel translations
- WEB The king said to him, “How many times shall I adjure you that you speak to me nothing but the truth in Yahweh’s name?”
- BSB But the king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear not to tell me anything but the truth in the name of the LORD?”
- NKJV So the king said to him, “How many times shall I make you swear that you tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?”
- NASB Then the king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear that you will tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?”
- NLT But the king replied sharply, “How many times must I demand that you speak only the truth to me when you speak for the Lord?”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Ahab, sensing the sarcasm, adjures Micaiah to speak nothing but the truth in Yahweh's name.
Overview
Ironically the king demands truth he does not really want, condemning himself by his own insistence. Ahab knows Micaiah's earlier words were not the genuine prophecy. The moment reveals that the heart can recognize truth even while refusing to obey it.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- 1 Sam 14:24And the men of Israel were distressed that day: for Saul had adjured the people, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth any food until evening, that I may be avenged on mine enemies. So none of the people tasted any food.
- Mark 5:7And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not.
- Matt 26:63But Jesus held his peace. And the high priest answered and said unto him, I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God.
- 1 Kgs 22:16And the king said unto him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the LORD?
- Acts 19:13Then certain of the vagabond Jews, exorcists, took upon them to call over them which had evil spirits the name of the LORD Jesus, saying, We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preacheth.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Temple, priesthood, and the repeated need for a faithful king who seeks the LORD all point past every imperfect reign to the King and Temple who finally and fully dwell with God's people.
How 2 Chronicles 18:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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