God dealt gently (cf. 19:12) with the Northern Kingdom to continue to move His people back to Himself. This pericope records the first of three battles the writer recorded in 1 Kings between Ahab and the kings of Aram, Israel's antagonistic neighbor to the northeast. The first of these evidently took place early in Ahab's reign (ca. 874).214Ahab's adversary would have been Ben-Hadad I (900-860 B.C.). The political reasons for these encounters were of no interest to the writer of Kings, but we know what they were.215
The danger Ben-Hadad posed as his demands on Ahab continued to escalate made the Israelite king receptive to the directives of Yahweh's prophet. The prophet presented Yahweh as Israel's real deliverer (v. 13). The deliverance would demonstrate Yahweh's power and superiority over Baal (v. 13). Ahab willingly followed God's orders since he had no other hope (v. 14). God's strategy resulted in victory for Israel (v. 21). The Lord further directed Ahab to prepare for the Aramean army's return the next spring (v. 22). Late spring and early summer were seasons for military expeditions because then in the Middle East grass was readily available for the horses. Victory was certain, though perhaps not known to Ahab, because of the Arameans' limited view of Yahweh's power (vv. 23, 28).
