Divine intervention saved John Boehner’s speakership, according to a new Washington Post story detailing GOP infighting.

You may recall that in the midst of the battle to avert the so-called fiscal cliff this year, House Republicans were weighing whether to oust their leader. Some GOP representatives claim they decided not to turn against the House speaker because God told them not to, Paul Kane reports.

Boehner, of course, was ultimately re-elected to the House leadership post.

The Washington Post:

Barely 36 hours after the caustic New Year’s Day vote, Boehner faced a coup attempt from a clutch of renegade conservatives. The cabal quickly fell apart when several Republicans, after a night of prayer, said God told them to spare the speaker. Still, Boehner came within a few votes of failing to secure his speakership on the initial vote, an outcome that would have forced a second ballot for the first time in nearly a century.

…[Rep. Steve] Southerland, who has previously talked about his role only with the conservative Weekly Standard, said he read the Old Testament the night before the vote. He read the story of Saul and David, as the king of Israel tried to kill the future king. David wins and, with a chance to kill the king, decides to spare Saul.

Southerland woke up convinced that Boehner should be spared. Others, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said they, too, prayed before siding with Boehner.

“He’s not a God of chaos, he’s a God of order,” Southerland said.

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