דברי הימים ב, פרק י״ח, פסוק ו׳

Faced with a large group of men claiming to speak on behalf of God, King Jehoshaphat grows deeply dissatisfied and seeks a truly authentic voice of God. He suspects that the men standing before him are not genuine messengers, but merely hired prophets [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. This skepticism even leads him to wonder if Queen Jezebel had successfully wiped out all the true prophets, leaving no one behind to speak for God [מצודת דוד]. Driven by this doubt, he asks if there is even one more prophet available from whom they might seek genuine guidance [ביאור שטיינזלץ].

Jehoshaphat’s suspicion is triggered by two glaring issues with the prophets' delivery. First, he notices a distinct lack of traditional prophetic language. The men do not use the classic opening statement expected of a messenger of God, such as "Thus says God." Instead, their words sound more like basic promises or general blessings. This keen observation also sheds light on a later moment in the event, when one specific prophet, Zedekiah son of Chenaanah, goes out of his way to use iron horns and explicitly declare "Thus says God," making a deliberate attempt to give his words the ring of true prophetic authority [חומת אנך].

Second, the sheer uniformity of the group's message raises a major red flag. A well-known tradition teaches that no two prophets ever deliver their visions using the exact same style or wording. Because every single prophet in the group speaks in an identical manner, Jehoshaphat immediately realizes that they cannot possibly be delivering a genuine message from God [מצודת דוד, חומת אנך].