1 Kings 22:5-6
22:5 Then Jehoshaphat added, 1 “First seek an oracle from the Lord.” 2
22:6 So the king of Israel assembled about four hundred prophets and asked them, “Should I attack Ramoth Gilead or not?” 3 They said, “Attack! The sovereign one 4 will hand it over to the king.”
1 tn Heb “and Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel.”
2 tn Heb “the word of the Lord.” Jehoshaphat is requesting a prophetic oracle revealing the Lord’s will in the matter and their prospects for success. For examples of such oracles, see 2 Sam 5:19, 23-24.
3 tn Heb “Should I go against Ramoth Gilead for war or should I refrain?”
4 tn Though Jehoshaphat requested an oracle from “the Lord” (יְהוָה, Yahweh), they stop short of actually using this name and substitute the title אֲדֹנָי (’adonai, “lord; master”). This ambiguity may explain in part Jehoshaphat’s hesitancy and caution (vv. 7-8). He seems to doubt that the four hundred are genuine prophets of the Lord.