- verses
- 4
- first named
- 1 Kings 22:8
- last named
- 2 Chronicles 18:8
- period
- Divided Monarchy
- role
- Man
Description
Who was Imlah?
Imlah is mentioned in the Bible as the father of the prophet Micaiah, who lived during the reign of King Ahab of Israel. Micaiah is known for his unwavering commitment to speaking the truth, even when it was unpopular or unwelcome.
In 1Kings 22 and 2Chronicles 18, King Ahab of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah are preparing to go to battle against the Arameans at Ramoth-gilead. Ahab gathers his prophets, who all prophesy victory for the king. However, Jehoshaphat asks if there is another prophet of the Lord who can be consulted.
Ahab reluctantly mentions Micaiah, son of Imlah, but expresses his disdain for him, saying, "I hate him, for he never prophesies good concerning me, but always evil" (1Ki.22.8; 2Ch.18.7).
Despite Ahab's reluctance, Micaiah is summoned and initially seems to prophesy victory for the kings. However, when pressed to speak the truth, Micaiah reveals that he saw a vision of Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep without a shepherd, indicating that Ahab would be killed in battle (1Ki.22.17; 2Ch.18.16).
Micaiah's prophecy angers Ahab, who orders him to be imprisoned and fed with minimal food and water until the king returns safely from battle. However, Micaiah stands firm, declaring that if Ahab returns in peace, then the Lord has not spoken through him (1Ki.22.27-28; 2Ch.18.26-27).
Although Imlah himself is not mentioned beyond being identified as Micaiah's father, his son's role as a prophet and his unwavering commitment to speaking the truth, even in the face of opposition from the king, suggests that Imlah may have raised his son with a strong faith in God and a commitment to integrity.
Relations
Direct connections
Every entity the graph places in a stated relation with this one, grouped by the kind of link. Each relation is authored once and its inverse derived, so both ends always agree. Rows marked “registry” come from the identity spine rather than from a verse, and a row marked “which bearer is the source’s decision” is one where the name could have meant more than one person. The last group is not a relation at all — it counts the events two entities stand in together.
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Where this happens
A person is placed by the events they take part in, and an event has to clear three things to place them: it must say where it happened, that place must be one the gazetteer can put a coordinate on, and the verse must report it rather than foretell, command or ask it. Nothing anchored here clears all three. Where the text names a setting no gazetteer surveys — a vineyard, a palace, a plot of ground — it is left off rather than guessed at; where a place is named only in a prophecy, the map does not draw what was said to be coming as though it had happened; and a place reached only through a relation is not inherited, because standing beside somebody is not being somewhere.
No verse Atlas has read as a report puts this person anywhere.
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Every verse of the text carried here that names this entity — 4, across 2 books.
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Not the direct relations above — these are one hop further out, ranked so that a rare shared connection outweighs a common one.
Sources