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the wicked spirit, Go, and do as
thou hast said.” Then Micaiah
turned to Ahab, and said, “'Thése
prophets who stand around, are
lying prophets. The wicked spirit
I saw in the vision, has taught them
to deceive; they are tempting thee
to go to the battle, and thou shalt
fall and die there; for God Himself
has spoken evil about thee.” Then
Ahab grew very angry ; and one of
the wicked prophets struck Micaiah
on the face, and laughed at what he
said. Ahab turned to his servants,
and said, “Take Micaiah away, and
put him in prison, and feed him
with bread and water, till I return
in peace.” But Micaiah said, “ Thou
wilt never return in peace again ;”
and then he turned to the people,
and said, “ Hearken, O people, every
one of you.”

The good prophet was carried to
his prison: and wicked Ahab went
with Jehoshaphat to Ramoth-Gilead.
But Micaiah was happy and peaceful
in the prison, because God was with
him there to bless and comfort him.
He was more happy than Ahab; for
Ahab felt frightened and uncomfort-
able, because he knew that he was
doing wrong, and that God’s blessing
was not with him.

When the two kings and their
armies came to the battle-field, Ahab
said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise
myself when I go to fight; but put
thou on thy robes.” Ahab was
afraid the Syrians would try to kill
him; and he thought he should be
safer in disguise, because no one

AHAB’S DEATH.

could know him then. When the
Syrians saw Jehoshaphat in his
robes, they said, “That is the king
of Israel; let us fight ‘him, and
kill him.” But Jehoshaphat cried,
“No, I am not Ahab; I am the
king of Judah;”’ so the Syrians
turned away, for they did not want
to kill Jehoshaphat. Could they
find Ahab? They did not know
him in his disguise; but God saw
him all the time: Ahab could not
hide himself from his eye. One of
the Syrians drew a bow, and let the
arrow fly. The Syrian could not
tell where the arrow might go, nor
whom it might shoot: but God
knew; He directed the arrow, and
it smote Ahab to the heart in his
chariot, where he was sitting in dis-
guise. The king felt that he must
soon die, and he gaid to the man
who drove the chariot, “Carry me
out of the battle, for I am wounded.”
His friends followed him, and held
him up in his chariot, and tried to
heal the wound; but they could not
cure their master; he died in the
evening, and they carried the dead
body home to Samaria, and buried
it. The chariot was full of blood;
and the servants washed it in the
pool of Samaria, and the dogs came
and licked up the blood, as God had
said by Elijah. Ahab was dead now.
All his possessions and riches were
gone; and he was gone too, to be
judged for all his wickedness; his
cruelty, and idolatry, and disobe-
dience to God.