At that, Asa lost his temper. Angry, he put Hanani in the stocks. At the same time Asa started abusing some of the people. 2 Chronicles 16:10 (MSG)

“Shoot the messenger.” – Shakespeare, Henry IV

In my daily vocation I have the opportunity to stand in the shoes of the herald, and sometimes those of the prophet. I walk into a boardroom, or perhaps a small conference room, and share what customers think of my client and their service. The news isn’t always pretty and clients haven’t always responded gracefully.

There is a long, historic tradition of responding to truth (often, the truth is ill news) by shooting the messenger. Shakespeare may have been the first to say it in such a way that it stuck in our collective psyche, but the actualy act of shooting the messenger goes as far back as human history. We see it in today’s chapter.

Asa blew it. Hanani confronts him with the plain truth of the matter, and reveals the tragic flaw in Asa’s actions. King Asa responds, not in repentance, but by lashing out in anger. He has poor Hanani, the prophet, thrown into the stocks and takes his anger out on every one around him.

Having been the bearer of bad news, I hope that I am a better hearer of truth when confronted with bad news regarding my own words or actions. I hope that I can listen with humility, and accept truth graciously.

Hearing the truth is often difficult. Responding appropriately is harder still.