Jehu Rebukes Jehoshaphat

19 Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned safely to his house (palace) in Jerusalem. ² Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him and said to King Jehoshaphat, “Should you help the ungodly and love those who hate the Lord and in doing so bring wrath from the Lord on yourself? ³ But there are some good things found in you, for you have removed the Asherim (idols) from the land and you have set your heart to seek God [with all your soul’s desire].”

⁴ So Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, and he went out again among the people from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim and brought them back to the Lord, the God of their fathers.

Reforms Instituted

⁵ He appointed judges in the land in all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city, ⁶ and he said to the judges, “Be careful what you do, for you do not judge for man, but for the Lord who is with you in the matter of judgment. ⁷ So now let the fear (reverent awe) of the Lord be on you [to keep you from making unjust decisions]; be careful in what you do, for there is no injustice with the Lord our God, or partiality, or acceptance of a bribe.”

⁸ In Jerusalem also Jehoshaphat appointed some of the Levites, priests, and heads of the fathers’ households of Israel to render the judgment of the Lord and to judge disputes among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. ⁹ Then the king commanded them, “Do this in the fear of the Lord, faithfully and wholeheartedly. ¹⁰ Whenever any dispute comes to you from your brothers (relatives) who live in their cities, between blood and blood, between law and commandment, or between statutes and judgments, you are to warn [and instruct] them so that they may not be guilty before the Lord; otherwise [God’s] wrath will come on you and your brothers. Do this and you will not be guilty. ¹¹ Behold, Amariah the chief priest will be over you in all matters of the Lord, and Zebadiah the 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 upright.”

Judah Invaded

20 Now it happened after this that the Moabites and the Ammonites, together with some of the Meunites, came to make war against Jehoshaphat. ² Then it was reported to Jehoshaphat, “A great multitude has come against you from beyond the [Dead] Sea, out of ^[a]Aram (Syria); and behold, they are in Hazazon-tamar (that is, Engedi).” ³ Then Jehoshaphat was afraid and set himself [determinedly, as his vital need] to seek the Lord; and he proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. ⁴ So [the people of] Judah gathered together to seek help from the Lord; indeed they came from all the cities of Judah to seek the Lord [longing for Him with all their heart].

Jehoshaphat’s Prayer

⁵ Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord in front of the new courtyard, ⁶ and said, “O Lord, God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven? And do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand, there is no one able to take a stand against You. ⁷ O our God, did You not drive out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Your friend Abraham? ⁸ They have lived in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your Name, saying, ⁹ ‘If evil comes on us, or the sword of judgment, or plague, or famine, we will stand before this house and before You (for Your Name and Your Presence is in this house) and we will cry out to You in our distress, and You will hear and save us.’ ¹⁰ Now behold, the sons of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom You would not allow Israel to invade when they came from the land of Egypt (for they turned away from them and did not destroy them),^{(A) 11} here they are, rewarding us by coming to drive us out of Your possession which You have given us as an inheritance. ¹² O our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless against this great multitude which is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You.”

¹³ So all Judah stood before the Lord, with their infants, their wives, and their children.

Jahaziel Answers the Prayer

¹⁴ Then in the midst of the assembly the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph. ¹⁵ He said, “Listen carefully, all [you people of] Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat. The Lord says this to you: ‘Be not afraid or dismayed at this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. ¹⁶ Go down against them tomorrow. Behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the river valley, in front of the Wilderness of Jeruel. ¹⁷ You need not fight in this battle; take your positions, stand and witness the salvation of the Lord who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you.’”

¹⁸ Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping Him. ¹⁹ The Levites, from the sons of the Kohathites and the sons of the Korahites, stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel, with a very loud voice.

Enemies Destroy Themselves

²⁰ So they got up early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe and trust in the Lord your God and you will be established (secure). Believe and trust in His prophets and succeed.” ²¹ When he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who sang to the Lord and those who praised Him in their holy (priestly) attire, as they went out before the army and said, “Praise and give thanks to the Lord, for His mercy and lovingkindness endure forever.” ²² When they began singing and praising, the Lord set ambushes against the sons of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; so they were struck down [in defeat]. ²³ For the sons of Ammon and Moab [suspecting betrayal] rose up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, completely destroying them; and when they had finished with the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another.

²⁴ When [the men of] Judah came to the lookout tower of the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude, and behold, they were dead bodies lying on the ground, and no one had escaped. ²⁵ When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take their spoil, they found much among them, including equipment, garments, and valuable things which they took for themselves, more than they could carry away; so much that they spent three days gathering the spoil.

Triumphant Return to Jerusalem

²⁶ Then on the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Beracah, for it was there that they blessed the Lord. For that reason they named that place “The Valley of Beracah (blessing)” until today. ²⁷ Then they returned to Jerusalem with joy, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, led by Jehoshaphat, for the Lord had made them rejoice over their enemies. ²⁸ They came to Jerusalem with harps, lyres, and trumpets to the house (temple) of the Lord. ²⁹ And the fear of God came on all the kingdoms of those countries when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel. ³⁰ So the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest on all sides.

³¹ Now Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for twenty-five years. His mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. ³² He walked in the way of his father Asa and did not depart from it, doing what was right in the sight of the Lord. ³³ Only the high places [for pagan sacrifices] were not removed, for the people had not yet set their hearts firmly on the God of their fathers.

³⁴ Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, from the first to the last, behold, they are written in the records of Jehu the son of Hanani, which are recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel.

Alliance Displeases God

³⁵ After [all] this Jehoshaphat king of Judah made an alliance with Ahaziah king of Israel, and he acted wickedly in doing so. ³⁶ He joined him in building ships to go to Tarshish [for trade], and they built them in Ezion-geber. ³⁷ Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have allied yourself with Ahaziah, the Lord has broken down what you have built.” So the ships were wrecked and were unable to go to Tarshish.

Jehoram Succeeds Jehoshaphat in Judah

21 Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers [in death] and was buried with them in the City of David; and his son Jehoram became king in his place. ² He had brothers, the sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, ^[b]Azaryahu, Michael, and Shephatiah. All of these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of Israel. ³ Their father gave them many gifts of silver, gold, and valuable things, in addition to fortified cities in Judah; but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram because he was the firstborn.

⁴ When Jehoram had ascended over the kingdom of his father and made himself secure, he killed all his brothers with the sword [to eliminate any rivals], and some of the leaders of Israel as well. ⁵ Jehoram was thirty-two years of age when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. ⁶ He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done (for he married the daughter of Ahab), and 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 which He had made with David, and because He had promised to give a ^[c]lamp to him and to his sons forever.^(B)

Revolt against Judah

⁸ In the days of Jehoram Edom revolted against the rule of Judah and set up a king over themselves. ⁹ Then Jehoram crossed over [the Jordan River] with his commanders and all his chariots, and rose up by night and struck down the Edomites who were surrounding him and the commanders of the chariots. ¹⁰ So Edom revolted against the rule of Judah to this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time against Jehoram’s rule, because he had abandoned (turned away from) the Lord God of his fathers. ¹¹ Moreover, he made [idolatrous] high places in the hill country of Judah, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to be unfaithful [to God], and he led Judah astray [compelling the people’s cooperation].

¹² Then a letter came to Jehoram from Elijah the prophet, saying, “Thus says the Lord God of David your father (ancestor): ‘Because you have not walked in the ways of your father Jehoshaphat nor in the ways of Asa king of Judah, ¹³ but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and caused Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to be unfaithful [to God] as the house of Ahab was unfaithful, and you have also murdered your brothers, your father’s house (your own family), who were better than you, ¹⁴ behold, the Lord is going to strike your people, your sons, your wives, and all your possessions with a great disaster; ¹⁵ and you will suffer a severe illness, an intestinal disease, until your intestines come out because of the sickness, day after day.’”

¹⁶ Then the Lord stirred up against Jehoram the spirit (anger) of the Philistines and of the Arabs who bordered the Ethiopians. ¹⁷ They came against Judah and invaded it, and carried away all the possessions found in the king’s house (palace), together with his sons and his wives; so there was not a son left to him except Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.

¹⁸ After all this, the Lord struck Jehoram with an incurable intestinal disease. ¹⁹ Now it came about in the course of time, at the end of two years, that his intestines came out because of his disease and he died in excruciating pain. And his people did not make a funeral fire to honor him, like the fire for his fathers. ²⁰ Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years; and he departed with no one’s regret (sorrow). They buried him in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.