2 Chronicles 10-23

New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition

The Revolt against Rehoboam

10 Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king.^{(A) 2} When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard of it (for he was in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), then Jeroboam returned from Egypt.^{(B) 3} They sent and called him, and Jeroboam and all Israel came and said to Rehoboam, ⁴ “Your father made our yoke heavy. Now, therefore, lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke that he placed on us, and we will serve you.” ⁵ He said to them, “Come to me again in three days.” So the people went away.

⁶ Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the older men who had attended his father Solomon while he was still alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?”^{(C) 7} They answered him, “If you will be kind to this people and please them and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever.” ⁸ But he rejected the advice that the older men gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and now attended him. ⁹ He said to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put on us’?”^{(D) 10} The young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Thus should you speak to the people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but you must lighten it for us’; tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins. ¹¹ Now, whereas my father laid on you a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.’ ”

¹² So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had said, “Come to me again the third day.”^{(E) 13} The king answered them harshly. King Rehoboam rejected the advice of the older men; ¹⁴ he spoke to them in accordance with the advice of the young men, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to it; my father disciplined you with whips, but I will discipline you with scorpions.” ¹⁵ So the king did not listen to the people because it was a turn of affairs brought about by God so that the Lord might fulfill his word that he had spoken by Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam son of Nebat.^(F)

¹⁶ When all Israel saw that the king would not listen to them, the people answered the king,

So all Israel departed to their tents.^{(G) 17} But Rehoboam reigned over the people of Israel who were living in the cities of Judah. ¹⁸ When King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, the people of Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam hurriedly mounted his chariot to flee to Jerusalem. ¹⁹ So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.^(H)

Judah and Benjamin Fortified

11 When Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he assembled one hundred eighty thousand chosen troops of the house of Judah and Benjamin to fight against Israel, to restore the kingdom to Rehoboam.^{(I) 2} But the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah the man of God:^{(J) 3} “Say to King Rehoboam of Judah, son of Solomon, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin: ⁴ Thus says the Lord: You shall not go up or fight against your kindred. Let everyone return home, for this thing is from me.” So they heeded the word of the Lord and turned back from the expedition against Jeroboam.^(K)

⁵ Rehoboam resided in Jerusalem, and he built cities for defense in Judah. ⁶ He built up Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, ⁷ Beth-zur, Soco, Adullam, ⁸ Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, ⁹ Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah, ¹⁰ Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron, fortified cities that are in Judah and in Benjamin. ¹¹ He made the fortresses strong and put commanders in them and stores of food, oil, and wine. ¹² He also put large shields and spears in all the cities and made them very strong. So he held Judah and Benjamin.

Priests and Levites Support Rehoboam

¹³ The priests and the Levites who were in all Israel presented themselves to him from all their territories. ¹⁴ The Levites had left their pasturelands and possessions and had come to Judah and Jerusalem because Jeroboam and his sons had prevented them from serving as priests of the Lord^{(L) 15} and had appointed his own priests for the high places and for the goat-demons and for the calves that he had made.^{(M) 16} Those who had set their hearts to seek the Lord God of Israel came after them from all the tribes of Israel to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the Lord, the God of their ancestors.^{(N) 17} They strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they made Rehoboam son of Solomon secure, for they walked for three years in the way of David and Solomon.^(O)

Rehoboam’s Marriages

¹⁸ Rehoboam took as his wife Mahalath daughter of Jerimoth son of David and of Abihail daughter of Eliab son of Jesse.^{(P) 19} She bore him sons: Jeush, Shemariah, and Zaham. ²⁰ After her he took Maacah daughter of Absalom, who bore him Abijah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelomith. ²¹ Rehoboam loved Maacah daughter of Absalom more than all his other wives and concubines (he took eighteen wives and sixty concubines and became the father of twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters).^{(Q) 22} Rehoboam appointed Abijah son of Maacah as chief prince among his brothers, for he intended to make him king.^{(R) 23} He dealt wisely and distributed some of his sons through all the districts of Judah and Benjamin, in all the fortified cities; he gave them abundant provisions and found many wives for them.

Egypt Attacks Judah

12 When the rule of Rehoboam was established and he grew strong, he abandoned the law of the Lord, he and all Israel with him.^{(S) 2} In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, because they had been unfaithful to the Lord, King Shishak of Egypt came up against Jerusalem^{(T) 3} with twelve hundred chariots and sixty thousand cavalry. A countless army came with him from Egypt: Libyans, Sukkiim, and Cushites.^{(U) 4} He took the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem. ⁵ Then the prophet Shemaiah came to Rehoboam and to the officers of Judah who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak and said to them, “Thus says the Lord: You abandoned me, so I have abandoned you to the hand of Shishak.”^{(V) 6} Then the officers of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is in the right.”^{(W) 7} When the Lord saw that they had humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemaiah, saying, “They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance, and my wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.^{(X) 8} Nevertheless, they shall be his servants, so that they may know the difference between serving me and serving the kingdoms of other lands.”^(Y)

⁹ So King Shishak of Egypt came up against Jerusalem; he took away the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s house; he took everything. He also took away the shields of gold that Solomon had made,^{(Z) 10} but King Rehoboam made in place of them shields of bronze and committed them to the hands of the officers of the guard who kept the door of the king’s house. ¹¹ Whenever the king went into the house of the Lord, the guard would come along bearing them and would then bring them back to the guardroom. ¹² Because he humbled himself, the wrath of the Lord turned from him, so as not to destroy them completely; moreover, conditions were good in Judah.^(AA)

Death of Rehoboam

¹³ So King Rehoboam strengthened himself in Jerusalem and reigned. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign; he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city that the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel to put his name there. His mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite.^{(AB) 14} He did evil, for he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.^(AC)

¹⁵ Now the acts of Rehoboam, from first to last, are they not written in the records of the prophet Shemaiah and of the seer Iddo, recorded by genealogy? There were continual wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam.^{(AD) 16} Rehoboam slept with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David, and his son Abijah succeeded him.^(AE)

Abijah Reigns over Judah

13 In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, Abijah began to reign over Judah.^{(AF) 2} He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Micaiah daughter of Uriel of Gibeah.

Now there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam.^{(AG) 3} Abijah engaged in battle, having an army of valiant warriors, four hundred thousand picked men; and Jeroboam drew up his line of battle against him with eight hundred thousand picked mighty warriors. ⁴ Then Abijah stood on the slope of Mount Zemaraim that is in the hill country of Ephraim and said, “Listen to me, Jeroboam and all Israel!^{(AH) 5} Do you not know that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingship over Israel forever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt?^{(AI) 6} Yet Jeroboam son of Nebat, a servant of Solomon son of David, rose up and rebelled against his lord,^{(AJ) 7} and certain worthless scoundrels gathered around him and defied Rehoboam son of Solomon when Rehoboam was young and irresolute and could not withstand them.

⁸ “And now you think that you can withstand the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David, because you are a great multitude and have with you the golden calves that Jeroboam made as gods for you.^{(AK) 9} Have you not driven out the priests of the Lord, the descendants of Aaron, and the Levites and made priests for yourselves like the peoples of other lands? Whoever comes to be consecrated with a young bull or seven rams becomes a priest of what are no gods.^{(AL) 10} But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not abandoned him. We have priests ministering to the Lord who are descendants of Aaron and Levites for their service. ¹¹ They offer to the Lord every morning and every evening burnt offerings and fragrant incense, set out the rows of bread on the table of pure gold, and care for the golden lampstand so that its lamps may burn every evening, for we keep the charge of the Lord our God, but you have abandoned him.^{(AM) 12} See, God is with us at our head, and his priests have their battle trumpets to sound the call to battle against you. O Israelites, do not fight against the Lord, the God of your ancestors, for you cannot succeed.”^(AN)

¹³ Jeroboam had sent an ambush around to come on them from behind; thus his troops^[a] were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them. ¹⁴ When Judah turned, the battle was in front of them and behind them. They cried out to the Lord, and the priests blew the trumpets.^{(AO) 15} Then the people of Judah raised the battle shout. And when the people of Judah shouted, God defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.^{(AP) 16} The Israelites fled before Judah, and God gave them into their hands.^{(AQ) 17} Abijah and his army defeated them with great slaughter; five hundred thousand picked men of Israel fell slain. ¹⁸ Thus the Israelites were subdued at that time, and the people of Judah prevailed because they relied on the Lord, the God of their ancestors.^{(AR) 19} Abijah pursued Jeroboam and took cities from him: Bethel with its villages and Jeshanah with its villages and Ephron^[b] with its villages. ²⁰ Jeroboam did not recover his power in the days of Abijah; the Lord struck him down, and he died.^{(AS) 21} But Abijah strengthened himself. He took fourteen wives and became the father of twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters. ²² The rest of the acts of Abijah, his behavior and his deeds, are written in the story of the prophet Iddo.^(AT)

Asa Reigns

14 ^[c]So Abijah slept with his ancestors, and they buried him in the city of David. His son Asa succeeded him. In his days the land was quiet for ten years.^{(AU) 2 [d]}Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God. ³ He took away the foreign altars and the high places, broke down the pillars, cut down the sacred poles,^{[e](AV) 4} and commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to keep the law and the commandment. ⁵ He also removed from all the cities of Judah the high places and the incense altars. And the kingdom was quiet under him.^{(AW) 6} He built fortified cities in Judah while the land was quiet. He had no war in those years, for the Lord gave him rest.^{(AX) 7} He said to Judah, “Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars; the land is still ours because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought him, and he has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered. ⁸ Asa had an army of three hundred thousand from Judah armed with large shields and spears and two hundred eighty thousand troops from Benjamin who carried shields and drew bows; all these were mighty warriors.

Ethiopian Invasion Repulsed

⁹ Zerah the Cushite came out against them with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots and came as far as Mareshah.^{(AY) 10} Asa went out to meet him, and they drew up their lines of battle in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. ¹¹ Asa cried to the Lord his God, “O Lord, there is no difference for you between helping the mighty and the weak. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this multitude. O Lord, you are our God; let no mortal prevail against you.”^{(AZ) 12} So the Lord defeated the Cushites before Asa and before Judah, and the Cushites fled.^{(BA) 13} Asa and the army with him pursued them as far as Gerar, and the Cushites fell until no one remained alive, for they were broken before the Lord and his army. The people of Judah^[f] carried away a great quantity of spoil.^{(BB) 14} They defeated all the cities around Gerar, for the fear of the Lord was on them. They plundered all the cities, for there was much plunder in them.^{(BC) 15} They also attacked the tents of those who had livestock^[g] and carried away sheep and goats in abundance and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.

15 The spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded.^{(BD) 2} He went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The Lord is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you abandon him, he will abandon you.^{(BE) 3} For a long time Israel was without the true God and without a teaching priest and without law,^{(BF) 4} but when in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought him, he was found by them.^{(BG) 5} In those times it was not safe for anyone to go or come, for great disturbances afflicted all the inhabitants of the lands.^{(BH) 6} They were broken in pieces, nation against nation and city against city, for God troubled them with every sort of distress.^{(BI) 7} But you, take courage! Do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.”^(BJ)

⁸ When Asa heard these words, the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded,^[h] he took courage and put away the abominable idols from all the land of Judah and Benjamin and from the towns that he had taken in the hill country of Ephraim. He repaired the altar of the Lord that was in front of the vestibule of the house of the Lord.^{[i](BK) 9} He gathered all Judah and Benjamin and those from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who were residing as aliens with them, for great numbers had deserted to him from Israel when they saw that the Lord his God was with him.^{(BL) 10} They were gathered at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa. ¹¹ They sacrificed to the Lord on that day, from the spoil that they had brought, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep.^{(BM) 12} They entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, with all their heart and with all their soul,^{(BN) 13} and whoever would not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, was to be put to death, whether young or old, man or woman.^{(BO) 14} They took an oath to the Lord with a loud voice and with shouting and with trumpets and with horns. ¹⁵ All Judah rejoiced over the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart and had sought him with their whole desire, and he was found by them, and the Lord gave them rest all around.^(BP)

¹⁶ King Asa even removed his mother Maacah from being queen mother because she had made an abominable image for Asherah. Asa cut down her image, crushed it, and burned it at the Wadi Kidron.^{(BQ) 17} But the high places were not taken out of Israel. Nevertheless, the heart of Asa was true all his days. ¹⁸ He brought into the house of God the votive gifts of his father and his own votive gifts: silver, gold, and utensils. ¹⁹ And there was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.

Alliance with Aram Condemned

16 In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, King Baasha of Israel went up against Judah and built Ramah to prevent anyone from going out or coming into the territory of^[j] King Asa of Judah.^{(BR) 2} Then Asa took silver and gold from the treasures of the house of the Lord and the king’s house and sent them to King Ben-hadad of Aram, who resided in Damascus, saying, ³ “Let there be an alliance between me and you, like that between my father and your father; I am sending to you silver and gold; go, break your alliance with King Baasha of Israel, so that he may withdraw from me.” ⁴ Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel. They conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel-maim, and all the store cities of Naphtali.^{(BS) 5} When Baasha heard of it, he stopped building Ramah and let his work cease. ⁶ Then King Asa brought all Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber with which Baasha had been building, and with them he built up Geba and Mizpah.

⁷ At that time the seer Hanani came to King Asa of Judah and said to him, “Because you relied on the king of Aram and did not rely on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped you.^{(BT) 8} Were not the Cushites and the Libyans a huge army with exceedingly many chariots and cavalry? Yet because you relied on the Lord, he gave them into your hand.^{(BU) 9} For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the entire earth to strengthen those whose heart is true to him. You have done foolishly in this, for from now on you will have wars.”^{(BV) 10} Then Asa was angry with the seer and put him in the stocks, in prison, for he was in a rage with him because of this. And Asa inflicted cruelties on some of the people at the same time.

Asa’s Disease and Death

¹¹ The acts of Asa, from first to last, are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.^{(BW) 12} In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was diseased in his feet, and his disease became severe; yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord but sought help from physicians.^{(BX) 13} Then Asa slept with his ancestors, dying in the forty-first year of his reign.^{(BY) 14} They buried him in the tomb that he had cut out for himself in the city of David. They laid him on a bier that had been filled with various kinds of spices prepared by the perfumer’s art, and they made a very great fire in his honor.^(BZ)

Jehoshaphat’s Reign

17 His son Jehoshaphat succeeded him and strengthened himself against Israel.^{(CA) 2} He placed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah and set garrisons in the land of Judah and in the cities of Ephraim that his father Asa had taken.^{(CB) 3} The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he walked in the earlier ways of his father;^[k] he did not seek the Baals ⁴ but sought the God of his father and walked in his commandments and not according to the ways of Israel.^{(CC) 5} Therefore the Lord established the kingdom in his hand. All Judah brought tribute to Jehoshaphat, and he had great riches and honor.^{(CD) 6} His heart was courageous in the ways of the Lord; furthermore, he removed the high places and the sacred poles^[l] from Judah.^(CE)

⁷ In the third year of his reign he sent his officials Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah to teach in the cities of Judah.^{(CF) 8} With them were the Levites Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tob-adonijah; and with these Levites the priests Elishama and Jehoram.^{(CG) 9} They taught in Judah, having the book of the law of the Lord with them; they went around through all the cities of Judah and taught among the people.^(CH)

¹⁰ The fear of the Lord fell on all the kingdoms of the lands around Judah, and they did not make war against Jehoshaphat.^{(CI) 11} Some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents and silver for tribute, and the Arabs also brought him seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred male goats.^{(CJ) 12} Jehoshaphat grew steadily greater. He built fortresses and storage cities in Judah. ¹³ He carried out great works in the cities of Judah. He had soldiers, mighty warriors, in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ This was the muster of them by ancestral houses: Of Judah, the commanders of the thousands: Adnah the commander, with three hundred thousand mighty warriors, ¹⁵ and next to him Jehohanan the commander, with two hundred eighty thousand, ¹⁶ and next to him Amasiah son of Zichri, a volunteer for the service of the Lord, with two hundred thousand mighty warriors.^{(CK) 17} Of Benjamin: Eliada, a mighty warrior, with two hundred thousand armed with bow and shield, ¹⁸ and next to him Jehozabad with one hundred eighty thousand armed for war. ¹⁹ These were in the service of the king, besides those whom the king had placed in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.

Micaiah Predicts Failure

18 Now Jehoshaphat had great riches and honor, and he made a marriage alliance with Ahab.^{(CL) 2} After some years he went down to Ahab in Samaria. Ahab slaughtered an abundance of sheep and oxen for him and for the people who were with him and induced him to go up against Ramoth-gilead.^{(CM) 3} King Ahab of Israel said to King Jehoshaphat of Judah, “Will you go with me to Ramoth-gilead?” He answered him, “I am as you are; my people are your people. We will be with you in the war.”

⁴ But Jehoshaphat also said to the king of Israel, “Inquire first for the word of the Lord.”^{(CN) 5} Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, four hundred of them, and said to them, “Shall we go to battle against Ramoth-gilead, or shall I refrain?” They said, “Go up, for God will give it into the hand of the king.” ⁶ But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there no other prophet of the Lord here of whom we may inquire?” ⁷ The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one other by whom we may inquire of the Lord, Micaiah son of Imlah, but I hate him, for he never prophesies anything favorable about me but only disaster.” Jehoshaphat said, “Let the king not say such a thing.”^{(CO) 8} Then the king of Israel summoned an officer and said, “Bring quickly Micaiah son of Imlah.” ⁹ Now the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah were sitting on their thrones, arrayed in their robes, and they were sitting at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria, and all the prophets were prophesying before them.^{(CP) 10} Zedekiah son of Chenaanah made for himself horns of iron, and he said, “Thus says the Lord: With these you shall gore the Arameans until they are destroyed.” ¹¹ All the prophets were prophesying the same and saying, “Go up to Ramoth-gilead and triumph; the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.”^(CQ)

¹² The messenger who had gone to summon Micaiah said to him, “Look, the words of the prophets with one accord are favorable to the king; let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably.” ¹³ But Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, whatever my God says, that I will speak.”^(CR)

¹⁴ When he had come to the king, the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I refrain?” He answered, “Go up and triumph; they will be given into your hand.” ¹⁵ But the king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?” ¹⁶ Then Micaiah^[m] said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep without a shepherd, and the Lord said, ‘These have no master; let each one go home in peace.’ ”^{(CS) 17} The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy anything favorable about me but only disaster?”

¹⁸ Then Micaiah^[n] said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, with all the host of heaven standing to the right and to the left of him. ¹⁹ And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice King Ahab of Israel, so that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ Then one said one thing, and another said another, ²⁰ until a certain spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, saying, ‘I will entice him.’ The Lord asked him, ‘How?’^{(CT) 21} He replied, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ Then the Lord^[o] said, ‘You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go out and do it.’ ²² So you see, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these your prophets; the Lord has decreed disaster for you.”^(CU)

²³ Then Zedekiah son of Chenaanah came up to Micaiah, slapped him on the cheek, and said, “Which way did the spirit of the Lord pass from me to speak to you?”^{(CV) 24} Micaiah replied, “You will find out on that day when you go in to hide in an inner chamber.” ²⁵ The king of Israel then ordered, “Take Micaiah, and return him to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king’s son,^{(CW) 26} and say: Thus says the king: Put this fellow in prison, and feed him on reduced rations of bread and water until I return in peace.”^{(CX) 27} Micaiah said, “If you return in peace, the Lord has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Hear, you peoples, all of you!”^(CY)

Defeat and Death of Ahab

²⁸ So the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead. ²⁹ The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself, and they went into battle. ³⁰ Now the king of Aram had commanded the captains of his chariots, “Fight with no one small or great but only with the king of Israel.” ³¹ When the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “It is the king of Israel.” So they turned to fight against him, and Jehoshaphat cried out, and the Lord helped him. God drew them away from him,^{(CZ) 32} for when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him. ³³ But a certain man drew his bow and unknowingly struck the king of Israel between the scale armor and the breastplate, so he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn around, and carry me out of the battle, for I am wounded.”^{(DA) 34} The battle grew hot that day, and the king of Israel propped himself up in his chariot facing the Arameans until evening; then at sunset he died.

19 King Jehoshaphat of Judah returned in peace to his house in Jerusalem. ² Jehu son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him and said to King Jehoshaphat, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, wrath has gone out against you from the Lord.^{(DB) 3} Nevertheless, some good is found in you, for you destroyed the sacred poles^[p] out of the land and have set your heart to seek God.”^(DC)

The Reforms of Jehoshaphat

⁴ Jehoshaphat resided at Jerusalem; then he went out again among the people, from Beer-sheba to the hill country of Ephraim, and brought them back to the Lord, the God of their ancestors.^{(DD) 5} He appointed judges in the land in all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city, ⁶ and said to the judges, “Consider what you are doing, for you judge not on behalf of humans but on the Lord’s behalf; he is with you in giving judgment.^{(DE) 7} Now, let the fear of the Lord be upon you; take care what you do, for there is no perversion of justice with the Lord our God or partiality or taking of bribes.”^(DF)

⁸ Moreover, in Jerusalem Jehoshaphat appointed certain Levites and priests and heads of families of Israel to give judgment for the Lord and to decide disputed cases. They had their seat at Jerusalem.^{(DG) 9} He charged them, “This is how you shall act: in the fear of the Lord, in faithfulness, and with your whole heart;^{(DH) 10} whenever a case comes to you from your kindred who live in their cities concerning bloodshed, law or commandment, statutes or ordinances, then you shall instruct them, so that they may not incur guilt before the Lord and wrath may not come on you and your kindred. Do so, and you will not incur guilt.^{(DI) 11} See, Amariah the chief priest is over you in all matters of the Lord; and Zebadiah son of Ishmael, the governor of the house of Judah, in all the king’s matters; and the Levites will serve you as officers. Deal courageously, and may the Lord be with the good!”^(DJ)

Invasion from the East

20 After this the Moabites and Ammonites, and with them some of the Meunites,^[q] came against Jehoshaphat for battle. ² Messengers^[r] came and told Jehoshaphat, “A great multitude is coming against you from Edom,^[s] from beyond the sea; already they are at Hazazon-tamar” (that is, En-gedi).^{(DK) 3} Jehoshaphat was afraid; he set himself to seek the Lord and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.^{(DL) 4} Judah assembled to seek help from the Lord; from all the towns of Judah they came to seek the Lord.

Jehoshaphat’s Prayer and Victory

⁵ Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court, ⁶ and said, “O Lord, God of our ancestors, are you not God in heaven? Do you not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? In your hand are power and might, so that no one is able to withstand you.^{(DM) 7} Did you not, O our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham?^{(DN) 8} They have lived in it and in it have built you a sanctuary for your name, saying, ⁹ ‘If disaster comes upon us, the sword, judgment,^[t] or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before you, for your name is in this house, and cry to you in our distress, and you will hear and save.’^{(DO) 10} See now, the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, whom you would not let Israel invade when they came from the land of Egypt and whom they avoided and did not destroy,^{(DP) 11} they reward us by coming to drive us out of your possession that you have given us to inherit.^{(DQ) 12} O our God, will you not execute judgment upon them? For we are powerless against this great multitude that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.”^(DR)

¹³ Meanwhile, all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children. ¹⁴ Then the spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the middle of the assembly.^{(DS) 15} He said, “Listen, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat: Thus says the Lord to you: Do not fear or be dismayed at this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God’s.^{(DT) 16} Tomorrow go down against them; they will come up by the ascent of Ziz; you will find them at the end of the valley, before the wilderness of Jeruel. ¹⁷ This battle is not for you to fight; take your position, stand still, and see the victory of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, and the Lord will be with you.”^(DU)

¹⁸ Then Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping the Lord.^{(DV) 19} And the Levites of the Kohathites and the Korahites stood up to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.

²⁰ They rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Tekoa, and as they went out Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, O Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God and you will be established; believe his prophets and you will succeed.”^{(DW) 21} When he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to the Lord and praise him in holy splendor, as they went before the army, saying,

²² As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set an ambush against the Ammonites, Moab, and Mount Seir who had come against Judah, so that they were routed.^{(DY) 23} For the Ammonites and Moab attacked the inhabitants of Mount Seir, destroying them utterly, and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they all helped to destroy one another.^(DZ)

²⁴ When Judah came to the watchtower of the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; they were corpses lying on the ground; no one had escaped. ²⁵ When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take the spoil from them, they found livestock^[u] in great numbers, goods, clothing, and precious things, which they took for themselves until they could carry no more. They spent three days taking the spoil because of its abundance. ²⁶ On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Beracah, for there they blessed the Lord; therefore that place has been called the Valley of Beracah^[v] to this day. ²⁷ Then all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat at their head, returned to Jerusalem with joy, for the Lord had enabled them to rejoice over their enemies.^{(EA) 28} They came to Jerusalem with harps and lyres and trumpets to the house of the Lord. ²⁹ The fear of God came on all the kingdoms of the countries when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel.^{(EB) 30} And the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest all around.^(EC)

The End of Jehoshaphat’s Reign

³¹ So Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he began to reign; he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi.^{(ED) 32} He walked in the way of his father Asa and did not turn aside from it, doing what was right in the sight of the Lord. ³³ Yet the high places were not removed; the people had not yet set their hearts upon the God of their ancestors.^(EE)

³⁴ Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, from first to last, are written in the Annals of Jehu son of Hanani, which are recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel.^(EF)

³⁵ After this King Jehoshaphat of Judah joined with King Ahaziah of Israel, who did wickedly.^{(EG) 36} He joined him in building ships to go to Tarshish; they built the ships in Ezion-geber. ³⁷ Then Eliezer son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have joined with Ahaziah, the Lord will destroy what you have made.” And the ships were wrecked and were not able to go to Tarshish.^(EH)

Jehoram’s Reign

21 Jehoshaphat slept with his ancestors and was buried with his ancestors in the city of David; his son Jehoram succeeded him.^{(EI) 2} He had brothers, the sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, and Shephatiah; all these were the sons of King Jehoshaphat of Judah.^{[w] 3} Their father gave them many gifts of silver, gold, and valuable possessions, together with fortified cities in Judah, but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram because he was the firstborn.^{(EJ) 4} Jehoram ascended the throne of his father, and he strengthened himself, and he put all his brothers to the sword, as well as some of the officials of Israel. ⁵ Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he began to reign; he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.^{(EK) 6} He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done, for the daughter of Ahab was his wife. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. ⁷ Yet the Lord would not destroy the house of David because of the covenant that he had made with David and since he had promised to give a lamp to him and to his descendants forever.^(EL)

Revolt of Edom

⁸ In his days Edom revolted against the rule of Judah and set up a king of their own.^{(EM) 9} Then Jehoram crossed over with his commanders and all his chariots. He set out by night and attacked the Edomites, who had surrounded him and his chariot commanders. ¹⁰ So Edom has been in revolt against the rule of Judah to this day. At that time Libnah also revolted against his rule because he had forsaken the Lord, the God of his ancestors.

Elijah’s Letter

¹¹ Moreover he made high places in the hill country of Judah and led the inhabitants of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness and made Judah go astray.^{(EN) 12} A letter came to him from the prophet Elijah, saying, “Thus says the Lord, the God of your father David: Because you have not walked in the ways of your father Jehoshaphat or in the ways of King Asa of Judah^{(EO) 13} but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel and have led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness, as the house of Ahab led Israel into unfaithfulness, and because you also have killed your brothers, members of your father’s house, who were better than you,^{(EP) 14} see, the Lord will bring a great plague on your people, your children, your wives, and all your possessions, ¹⁵ and you yourself will have a severe sickness with a disease of your bowels until your bowels come out, day after day, because of the disease.”^(EQ)

¹⁶ The Lord aroused against Jehoram the anger of the Philistines and of the Arabs who are near the Cushites.^{(ER) 17} They came up against Judah, invaded it, and carried away all the possessions they found that belonged to the king’s house, along with his sons and his wives, so that no son was left to him except Jehoahaz, his youngest son.^(ES)

Disease and Death of Jehoram

¹⁸ After all this the Lord struck him in his bowels with an incurable disease.^{(ET) 19} In the course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great agony. His people made no fire in his honor like the fires made for his ancestors.^{(EU) 20} He was thirty-two years old when he began to reign; he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. He departed with no one’s regret. They buried him in the city of David but not in the tombs of the kings.^(EV)

Ahaziah’s Reign

22 The inhabitants of Jerusalem made his youngest son Ahaziah king as his successor, for the troops who came with the Arabs to the camp had killed all the older sons. So Ahaziah son of Jehoram reigned as king of Judah.^{(EW) 2} Ahaziah was forty-two years old when he began to reign; he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athaliah, a granddaughter of Omri.^{(EX) 3} He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor in doing wickedly. ⁴ He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord like the house of Ahab, for after the death of his father they were his counselors, to his ruin. ⁵ He even followed their advice and went with Jehoram son of King Ahab of Israel to make war against King Hazael of Aram at Ramoth-gilead. The Arameans wounded Joram,^{(EY) 6} and he returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds that he had received at Ramah, when he fought King Hazael of Aram. And Ahaziah son of King Jehoram of Judah went down to see Joram son of Ahab in Jezreel because he was sick.^(EZ)

⁷ But it was ordained by God that the downfall of Ahaziah should come about through his going to visit Joram. For when he came there he went out with Jehoram to meet Jehu son of Nimshi, whom the Lord had anointed to destroy the house of Ahab.^{(FA) 8} When Jehu was executing judgment on the house of Ahab, he met the officials of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah’s brothers, who attended Ahaziah, and he killed them.^{(FB) 9} He searched for Ahaziah, who was captured while hiding in Samaria and was brought to Jehu and put to death. They buried him, for they said, “He is the grandson of Jehoshaphat, who sought the Lord with all his heart.” And the house of Ahaziah had no one able to rule the kingdom.^(FC)

Athaliah Seizes the Throne

¹⁰ Now when Athaliah, Ahaziah’s mother, saw that her son was dead, she set about to destroy all the royal family of the house of Judah.^{(FD) 11} But Jehoshabeath, the king’s daughter, took Joash son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the king’s children who were about to be killed; she put him and his nurse in a bedroom. Thus Jehoshabeath daughter of King Jehoram and wife of the priest Jehoiada—because she was a sister of Ahaziah—hid him from Athaliah, so that she did not kill him; ¹² he remained with them six years hidden in the house of God, while Athaliah reigned over the land.

23 But in the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened himself and entered into a compact with the commanders of the hundreds, Azariah son of Jeroham, Ishmael son of Jehohanan, Azariah son of Obed, Maaseiah son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat son of Zichri.^{(FE) 2} They went around through Judah and gathered the Levites from all the towns of Judah and the heads of families of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. ³ Then the whole assembly made a covenant with the king in the house of God. Jehoiada^[x] said to them, “Here is the king’s son! Let him reign, as the Lord promised concerning the sons of David.^{(FF) 4} This is what you are to do: one-third of you, priests and Levites, who come on duty on the Sabbath shall be gatekeepers,^{(FG) 5} one-third shall be at the king’s house, and one-third at the Gate of the Foundation, and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the Lord. ⁶ Do not let anyone enter the house of the Lord except the priests and ministering Levites; they may enter, for they are holy, but all the other^[y] people shall observe the instructions of the Lord. ⁷ The Levites shall surround the king, each with his weapons in his hand, and whoever enters the house shall be killed. Stay with the king in his comings and goings.”^(FH)

Joash Crowned King

⁸ The Levites and all Judah did according to all that the priest Jehoiada commanded; each brought his men who were to come on duty on the Sabbath with those who were to go off duty on the Sabbath, for the priest Jehoiada did not dismiss the divisions.^{(FI) 9} The priest Jehoiada delivered to the captains the spears and the large and small shields that had been King David’s, which were in the house of God,^{(FJ) 10} and he set all the people as a guard for the king, everyone with weapon in hand, from the south side of the house to the north side of the house, around the altar and the house. ¹¹ Then he brought out the king’s son, put the crown on him, and gave him the covenant; they proclaimed him king, and Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and they shouted, “Long live the king!”^(FK)

Death of Athaliah

¹² When Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she went into the house of the Lord to the people;^{(FL) 13} when she looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and the singers with their musical instruments leading in the celebration. Athaliah tore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!” ¹⁴ Then the priest Jehoiada brought out the captains who were set over the army, saying to them, “Bring her out between the ranks; anyone who follows her is to be put to the sword.” For the priest said, “Do not put her to death in the house of the Lord.” ¹⁵ So they laid hands on her; she went into the entrance of the Horse Gate of the king’s house, and there they put her to death.^(FM)

¹⁶ Jehoiada made a covenant between himself and all the people and the king that they should be the Lord’s people. ¹⁷ Then all the people went to the house of Baal and tore it down; his altars and his images they broke in pieces, and they killed Mattan, the priest of Baal, in front of the altars.^{(FN) 18} Jehoiada assigned the care of the house of the Lord to the Levitical priests whom David had organized to be in charge of the house of the Lord, to offer burnt offerings to the Lord, as it is written in the law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, according to the order of David.^{(FO) 19} He stationed the gatekeepers at the gates of the house of the Lord so that no one should enter who was in any way unclean.^{(FP) 20} And he took the captains, the nobles, the governors of the people, and all the people of the land, and they brought the king down from the house of the Lord, marching through the upper gate to the king’s house. They set the king on the royal throne.^{(FQ) 21} So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet after Athaliah had been killed with the sword.