1 files changed, 3 insertions, 1 deletions
diff --git a/activerecord/lib/active_record/associations/has_many_through_association.rb b/activerecord/lib/active_record/associations/has_many_through_association.rb
index 009ac7c53a..e242b9f7a1 100644
--- a/activerecord/lib/active_record/associations/has_many_through_association.rb
+++ b/activerecord/lib/active_record/associations/has_many_through_association.rb
@@ -61,7 +61,9 @@ module ActiveRecord
         end
 
         def construct_conditions
-          through_reflection = @owner.class.reflections[@reflection.options[:through]]
+          unless through_reflection = @owner.class.reflections[@reflection.options[:through]]
+            raise ActiveRecordError, "Could not find the association '#{@reflection.options[:through]}' in model #{@reflection.klass}"
+          end
           
           if through_reflection.options[:as]
             conditions =