Elisha responded, “As the Lord of Hosts lives, I stand before Him. If I did not have respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah, I would not look at you; I wouldn’t take notice of you.” – 2 Kings 3:14
In the full biblical story referenced above, the wicked king of Israel and the righteous king of Judah had gone (together) into battle, but only the latter had sought the counsel of God’s prophet (Elisha). When Elisha arrived to speak to the kings, he agreed to speak God’s Word, but only because the righteous king of Judah was present to receive it. He deemed that the wicked king was not even worthy of God’s attention or notice, because he had consistently ignored God’s previous counsel.
While we may not always appreciate God’s advice (in its many forms: the Bible, prayer, or His church), we should always be thankful that it is available. Even the wicked king could “listen in” on God’s counsel, though he could no longer benefit from it or directly receive it because it was no longer there for him.
Let us be careful to live our lives in a manner worthy of the blessed wisdom that God provides and let us also be thankful that He still cares enough to correct.
The word of God is full of sad and grave counsel, full of the knowledge of God, of examples of virtues, and of correction of vices, of the end of this life, and of the life to come. – John Jewel
