²²“And Yahweh said to him, ‘How?’ And he said, ‘I will go out and ^abe a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ Then He said, ‘You shall entice him and also prevail. Go out and do so.’

²³“So now, behold, ^aYahweh has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; but Yahweh has spoken calamity against you.”

²⁴Then ^aZedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, “^bHow did the Spirit of Yahweh pass from me to speak to you?”

²⁵And Micaiah said, “Behold, you will see on that day when you ^aenter an inner room to hide.”

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Cross references

a Judg 9:23; 1 Sam 16:14; 18:10; 19:9; Ezek 14:9; 2 Thess 2:11
a Ezek 14:9
a 1 Kin 22:11; Matt 5:39; Acts 23:2, 3
b 2 Chr 18:23
a 1 Kin 20:30

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And the Lord said to him, ‘By what means?’ And he said, ‘I will go out, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go out and do so.’ Now therefore behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the Lord has declared disaster for you.”

Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said, “How did the Spirit of the Lord go from me to speak to you?” And Micaiah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide yourself.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

“ ‘By what means?’ the Lord asked.

“ ‘I will go out and be a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,’ he said.

“ ‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the Lord. ‘Go and do it.’

“So now the Lord has put a deceiving spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours. The Lord has decreed disaster for you.”

Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah went up and slapped Micaiah in the face. “Which way did the spirit from the Lord go when he went from me to speak to you?” he asked.

Micaiah replied, “You will find out on the day you go to hide in an inner room.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

“The Lord asked him, ‘How?’

“He said, ‘I will go and become a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’

“Then he said, ‘You will certainly entice him and prevail. Go and do that.’

“You see, the Lord has put a lying spirit into the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the Lord has pronounced disaster against you.”

Then Zedekiah son of Chenaanah came up, hit Micaiah on the cheek, and demanded, “Did the Spirit of the Lord leave me to speak to you?”

Micaiah replied, “You will soon see when you go to hide in an inner chamber on that day.”

NLTNew Living Translation

“ ‘How will you do this?’ the Lord asked.

“And the spirit replied, ‘I will go out and inspire all of Ahab’s prophets to speak lies.’

“ ‘You will succeed,’ said the Lord. ‘Go ahead and do it.’

“So you see, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all your prophets. For the Lord has pronounced your doom.”

Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah walked up to Micaiah and slapped him across the face. “Since when did the Spirit of the Lord leave me to speak to you?” he demanded.

And Micaiah replied, “You will find out soon enough when you are trying to hide in some secret room!”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

He said, ‘I will go out and I will be a false spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You shall entice and succeed, go out and do so.’ So then, see that Yahweh has placed a false spirit in the mouth of all of these your prophets, and Yahweh has spoken disaster concerning you.”

Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah came near and slapped Micaiah on the cheek and said, “When did the Spirit of Yahweh pass from me to speak with you?” Then Micaiah said, “Behold, you are about to see on that day when you go from room to room to hide.”

KJV 1900King James Version

And the Lord said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so. Now therefore, behold, the Lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil concerning thee. But Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near, and smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said, Which way went the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak unto thee? And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see in that day, when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thyself.

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