1 Kings 19-22
On the Providence and Sovereignty of God

The Philistines were replaced as the nemesis' of Israel with the Syrians during the days of the divided kingdom. In chapter 20, Ahab has two skirmishes with them. Before the last one, he is given the charge from God to go to battle, "Because the Syrians have said, The Lord is a god of the hills but he is not a god of the valleys, therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord" (20:28).

The LORD worked powerfully in the conflict, and Israel routed the enemy. Ben Hadad, leader of the Syrians, sought a treaty after his defeat, and Ahab, the foolish Israelite king, gave him one, allowing him to live in exchange for cities and economic access to Damascus.

In verse 35-43, we find the story of a prophet of God sent to rebuke the king for his actions. He delivered this message from God to Ahab: "And he said to him, 'Thus says the Lord, Because you have let go out of your hand the man whom I had devoted to destruction, therefore your life shall be for his life, and your people for his people'" (20:42).

The sovereignty of God is an interesting topic. When we talk of the sovereignty of God, we are talking of God's right to ordain things. We know that God is all-powerful and can do whatever He wants. We also know that God is all-knowing, and knows what is always best. We know as well that His will will be done. This has led some to believe that God has pre-ordained every action of our existence. He alone, as the sovereign God, determines who lives and who dies, who is lost and who is saved, and man has no freewill or sayso in anything.

But, here we have an example of the LORD's will not being done—at least immediately. The LORD's will was for Ben-Hadad to die—he was "devoted to destruction." God expected Ahab to do the task. And, Ahab was rebuked for letting him go, showing that the instruction to Ahab must have been more exhaustive than v. 28 gives—Ahab knew God's will was for Ben Hadad to die, and he was to do it. Yet he exercised his free will and allowed him to live. For that, Ahab was rebuked eventually punished. Did this mean that God was not in control? That the LORD could not accomplish His desire to remove the king of Syria? Certainly not. In 2 Kings 8:7-15, Ben Hadad, the man God "devoted to destruction," is killed by one of his military leaders. So we see God's sovereign will fulfilled, but allowing man's freewill to express itself as well. The New Testament reminds us of this fact as well. 1 Timothy 2 tells us it is God's desire for all men to be saved (2:4), but obviously all won't be. Does this mean God is not sovereign? No, it only means he allows man's freewill in the matter and will accept all who will come to him.

This does not in any way undermine the sovereignty of God. In fact, it enhances it. Man's freewill can, to a degree, encroach upon God's will only because God allows it, which is an expression of His sovereignty. We then can live as people who are used by God to fulfill his will, or as people who express our freewill and reject the will of God. Aside from being an interesting theological discussion, what bearing does this have on our lives? When people submit, good things happen to them. When He wants to use us and we fail to submit, bad things happen. But, God's purpose will be accomplished. Let's make certain we submit so we can be the ones who benefit from playing a part in them.