Ahab learns why you can't give in to a bully.

1 Kings 20:1–11 KJV 1900

1 And Ben-hadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it. 2 And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Ben-hadad, 3 Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine. 4 And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have. 5 And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Ben-hadad, saying, Although I have sent unto thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children; 6 Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away. 7 Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not. 8 And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him, nor consent. 9 Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again. 10 And Ben-hadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me. 11 And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.

Ahab finds himself at war with Syria.

Ben-Hadad and israel had been involved in an off and on war for many years.

Now, Ben-Hadad has assembled a confederacy of 32 kings to go up and besiege Ahab in Samaria.

Siege warfare is no pretty thing.

Especially in this time period when a siege could last for years.

The invading armies would set up around the established city and would cut off all access from the outside.

Ben-hadad sends a message to Ahab and tells him that the pain and discomfort of the siege can all be over, if Ahab gives in to a few requests.

He wants all of Ahab’s silver and gold.

He wants all of his children and his wives.

Ahab is so unwilling to endure the pain of a siege that he is willing to trade his finances and his family for a chance at relief.

I’m sure he thinks, well I can always marry more wives and have more kids.

And, I can always raise taxes and get more money.

I’m willing to sacrifice what I have for a temporary reprieve.

Ben-Hadad sees Ahab’s weakness and goes for more.

The messengers must have come back and told Ben-Hadad how quickly Ahab had agreed to their demands.

Hey man, this guy is really ready for us to leave.

He seems like he would be willing to do just about anything we ask him to do.

We should definitely try to push him for more.

Ahab’s weakness was like blood in the water to the hungry sharks of Syria.

Ben-Hadad sends the messengers back with new demands.

What they have to say is like something out of a cartoon.

Hey Ahab, Ben-Hadad wanted us to pass on a message, he says...

“Look, I know I said last time that I wanted your silver and gold, and your wives and your children, but...”

“I’m going to need a little bit more from you, if you want me to leave you alone.”

Ben-Hadad tells Ahab that he is sending his servants back into Samaria on the following day.

When they get there, Ahab is to follow them throughout his entire house and the houses of his servants.

Anything they find that looks valuable or looks like something that Ahab treasures, they will take it.

They don’t just want to inconvenience Ahab, they want to leave him completely destitute of anything valuable.

Only when Ahab sees the possibility of losing absolutely everything, does he get serious about resisting Ben-Hadad.

He calls the elders of Israel together to explain the situation.

He tells them about how he was willing to give away his family and his fortune to appease the Syrians.

However, they were not interested in being appeased, they wanted only mischief and to humiliate and rob Ahab.

Notice he doesn’t tell them about the second request, only the first.

The leaders and representatives of the people tell Ahab to refuse the request of the Syrians.

Since Ahab didn’t tell them about the second request, I can only assume that the elders are telling him to refuse the first request which Ahab had already agreed to.

Ahab, though, knows that Ben-Hadad had already moved past that.

He was no longer solely interested in Ahab’s wives and money, he wanted more.

So, Ahab sends word back to him and refuses the second request.

He tells Ben-Hadad that he will honor the first request, but not the second one, it is too much.

By doing this, Ahab doesn’t have to go back on what he said, but he also appears to be strong in front of his elders.

Ahab knows that Ben-Hadad will not be okay with just the first request.

And, he’s right.

When Ben-Hadad doesn’t get what he wants, he sends one last messenger to Ahab.

If Ahab will not freely allow Israel to be destroyed, then Ben-Hadad will destroy it by force.

So complete will be the destruction that dust will be all that remains of the city.

Ahab, surprisingly, sends word back.

This is actually a pretty good comeback.

He tells Ben-Hadad that he shouldn’t boast as though he is taking his armor off when he is putting his armor on.

In other words, don’t count your chickens until they are hatched.

In other words, it ain’t over till it’s over.

Ahab was willing to let Ben-Hadad steal from him, but he eventually woke up to how much that would really cost him.

This is a powerful illustration of sin’s affect on our lives.

We are willing to give in to sin, as long as the cost is something we are willing to part with.

Sin is never satisfied.

Sin always wants more.

We need people in our lives that will encourage us to hearken not nor consent to the temptations we face.

Even if it seems like you are surrounded by sin, don’t let sin claim victory before the battle has even started.