This is a simplified version of the Bible story found in 1 Kings 20, written for children to understand. For the original version, please refer to the Bible passage.
Once upon a time, there was a king named Ahab who ruled over Israel. One day, a powerful king named Ben-hadad, who ruled over Syria, came with his army to attack Samaria, the capital city of Israel. Ben-hadad had thirty-two other kings with him, and they had many horses and chariots.
Ben-hadad and his army closed in on Samaria and started fighting against it. Then he sent messengers to Ahab with a demand: “Your silver and your gold are mine; your best wives and children also are mine.” Ahab didn’t want to fight, so he agreed to Ben-hadad’s demands.
However, Ben-hadad changed his mind and wanted more. He sent messengers to Ahab to say that they would come and take whatever they wanted from Ahab’s house and his servants’ houses. This made Ahab and the people of Samaria very angry, and they refused to give in.
Ahab called all the elders of the land and told them about Ben-hadad’s demands. They advised him not to listen to Ben-hadad and not to give in to his demands. So Ahab sent messengers back to Ben-hadad and told him that he would give him everything he asked for before, but not this time.
Ben-hadad was furious when he heard this and swore to take revenge. He gathered his army and went to fight against Ahab and his people. However, God had a plan to help Ahab win the battle.
A prophet came to Ahab and told him that God would give him the victory. Ahab asked the prophet who would start the battle, and he said that Ahab should. So Ahab gathered his army, and they went out to fight against Ben-hadad’s army.
As the battle was about to begin, the servants of Ben-hadad saw that Ahab’s army was much larger than they had anticipated. They warned Ben-hadad, who was drinking himself drunk in the booths with the other kings. Ben-hadad ordered his army to attack, but Ahab and his army were ready for them. A fierce battle broke out, and Ahab and his army defeated Ben-hadad’s army. They killed many of Ben-hadad’s soldiers and captured many of his horses and chariots.
After the battle, the prophet came to Ahab again and warned him that Ben-hadad would come back in the spring to attack him again. He told Ahab to prepare for the battle and trust in God to help him win.
Sure enough, in the spring, Ben-hadad came back with his army to fight against Ahab again. Ahab and his army were ready for them. The two armies camped opposite each other for seven days before the battle began.
On the seventh day, the two armies fought against each other, and Ahab and his army won again. They killed 100,000 of Ben-hadad’s foot soldiers, and the rest of his army fled into the city of Aphek. The city’s wall fell upon 27,000 men who were left.
Ben-hadad was afraid and ran to hide in a room. His servants came to Ahab and begged him to spare Ben-hadad’s life. Ahab agreed to let Ben-hadad go free, but a prophet condemned him for his decision.
The prophet disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes and waited for Ahab on the road. When Ahab passed by, the prophet told him a story about a soldier who lost his prisoner, and the soldier’s life was to be taken if he couldn’t find the prisoner. Ahab agreed with the story and said that the soldier was responsible for his own mistake. The prophet then revealed himself and told Ahab that he had made a similar mistake by letting Ben-hadad go free. The prophet said that God had wanted Ben-hadad to be destroyed, but because Ahab let him go, bad things would happen to him and his people.
The prophet’s warning came true. Ahab’s disobedience led to more problems for him and his people. In the end, God punished Ahab for his actions.
Biblical Lessons
- We should be careful not to trust in our own strength or abilities, but trust in God to help us in times of trouble.
- We should be willing to stand up for what is right and not give in to demands or threats that go against God’s commands.
- God can use even the smallest or weakest among us to achieve great things for His glory.
- Our actions have consequences, and we should be mindful of the impact they have on ourselves and others.
- God’s plans and purposes will always prevail, even in the face of difficult or seemingly impossible situations.