CHOOSE YOUR FRIENDS WISELY

Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, was returning home from being with Ahab, the evil king of Israel. The Lord sent a prophet out to meet him, with these strong words, “Jehu the son of Hanani the [prophet] went out to meet him, and said to King Jehoshaphat, Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Therefore the wrath of the Lord is upon you” (2 Chronicles 19:2).

God was saying to Jehoshaphat, “Ahab was my enemy — an idolator — and you made friends with him. You indulged his wicked life and didn’t take a stand against it. You may think it’s a light thing to join in with someone who is against Me, but you don’t realize the consequences of such actions.”

At this point you may be thinking, “I understand that Ahab was evil, but when I think of my own friends, there’s no way I consider them to be God’s enemies.” Yet, consider what the Word says.

Does your friend take the Lord’s side in all things? “He who is not with Me is against Me” (Luke 11:23). 

Is your friend’s counsel full of rebellion? “Rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft” (1 Samuel 15:23).

Does your friend speak evil of godly people? “He who condemns the just . . . is an abomination to the Lord” (Proverbs 17:15).

This is not a game! Your companions are a serious matter to God because their actions have serious consequences. “You give your mouth to evil . . . [you] speak against your brother. . . . Now consider this, you who forget God, lest I tear you in pieces” (Psalm 50:19-20, 22).

Thank God, the king humbled himself and repented: “Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord” (2 Chronicles 20:3). And God responded to Jehoshaphat’s brokenness by giving Judah total victory over the Moabites. The Bible tells us, “Then the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest all around” (verse 30).