19 When Jehoshaphat king of Judah returned safely to his palace in Jerusalem, ² Jehu^(A) the seer, the son of Hanani, went out to meet him and said to the king, “Should you help the wicked^(B) and love^[a] those who hate the Lord?^(C) Because of this, the wrath^(D) of the Lord is on you. ³ There is, however, some good^(E) in you, for you have rid the land of the Asherah poles^(F) and have set your heart on seeking God.^(G)”

Jehoshaphat Appoints Judges

⁴ Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, and he went out again among the people from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim and turned them back to the Lord, the God of their ancestors. ⁵ He appointed judges^(H) in the land, in each of the fortified cities of Judah. ⁶ He told them, “Consider carefully what you do,^(I) because you are not judging for mere mortals^(J) but for the Lord, who is with you whenever you give a verdict. ⁷ Now let the fear of the Lord be on you. Judge carefully, for with the Lord our God there is no injustice^(K) or partiality^(L) or bribery.”

⁸ In Jerusalem also, Jehoshaphat appointed some of the Levites,^(M) priests^(N) and heads of Israelite families to administer^(O) the law of the Lord and to settle disputes. And they lived in Jerusalem. ⁹ He gave them these orders: “You must serve faithfully and wholeheartedly in the fear of the Lord. ¹⁰ In every case that comes before you from your people who live in the cities—whether bloodshed or other concerns of the law, commands, decrees or regulations—you are to warn them not to sin against the Lord;^(P) otherwise his wrath will come on you and your people. Do this, and you will not sin.

¹¹ “Amariah the chief priest will be over you in any matter concerning the Lord, and Zebadiah son of Ishmael, the leader of the tribe of Judah, will be over you in any matter concerning the king, and the Levites will serve as officials before you. Act with courage,^(Q) and may the Lord be with those who do well.”

Jehoshaphat Defeats Moab and Ammon

20 After this, the Moabites^(R) and Ammonites with some of the Meunites^[b](S) came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.

² Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army^(T) is coming against you from Edom,^[c] from the other side of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar^(U)” (that is, En Gedi).^{(V) 3} Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast^(W) for all Judah. ⁴ The people of Judah^(X) came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him.

⁵ Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the Lord in the front of the new courtyard ⁶ and said:

¹³ All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the Lord.

¹⁵ After this, we started on our way up to Jerusalem.^{(A) 16} Some of the disciples from Caesarea^(B) accompanied us and brought us to the home of Mnason, where we were to stay. He was a man from Cyprus^(C) and one of the early disciples.

Paul’s Arrival at Jerusalem

¹⁷ When we arrived at Jerusalem, the brothers and sisters^(D) received us warmly.^{(E) 18} The next day Paul and the rest of us went to see James,^(F) and all the elders^(G) were present. ¹⁹ Paul greeted them and reported in detail what God had done among the Gentiles^(H) through his ministry.^(I)

²⁰ When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to Paul: “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous^(J) for the law.^{(K) 21} They have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses,^(L) telling them not to circumcise their children^(M) or live according to our customs.^{(N) 22} What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come, ²³ so do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a vow.^{(O) 24} Take these men, join in their purification rites^(P) and pay their expenses, so that they can have their heads shaved.^(Q) Then everyone will know there is no truth in these reports about you, but that you yourself are living in obedience to the law. ²⁵ As for the Gentile believers, we have written to them our decision that they should abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality.”^(R)

²⁶ The next day Paul took the men and purified himself along with them. Then he went to the temple to give notice of the date when the days of purification would end and the offering would be made for each of them.^(S)