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2 Chronicles 20:20-30
New English Translation

20 Early the next morning they marched out to the wilderness of Tekoa. When they were ready to march, Jehoshaphat stood up and said: “Listen to me, you people of Judah[a] and residents of Jerusalem! Trust in the Lord your God and you will be safe![b] Trust in the message of his prophets and you will win.” 21 He met[c] with the people and appointed musicians to play before the Lord and praise his majestic splendor. As they marched ahead of the warriors they said: “Give thanks to the Lord, for his loyal love endures.”[d]

22 When they began to shout and praise, the Lord suddenly attacked[e] the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir[f] who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. 23 The Ammonites and Moabites attacked the men from Mount Seir[g] and annihilated them.[h] When they had finished off the men[i] of Seir, they attacked and destroyed one another.[j] 24 When the men of Judah[k] arrived at the observation post overlooking the wilderness and looked at[l] the huge army, they saw dead bodies on the ground; there were no survivors. 25 Jehoshaphat and his men[m] went to gather the plunder; they found a huge amount of supplies, clothing,[n] and valuable items. They carried away everything they could.[o] There was so much plunder, it took them three days to haul it off.[p]

26 On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berachah, where[q] they praised the Lord. So that place is called the Valley of Berachah[r] to this very day. 27 Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem with Jehoshaphat leading them; the Lord had given them reason to rejoice over their enemies. 28 They entered Jerusalem to the sound of stringed instruments and trumpets and proceeded to the temple of the Lord. 29 All the kingdoms of the surrounding lands were afraid of God[s] when they heard how the Lord had fought against Israel’s enemies. 30 Jehoshaphat’s kingdom enjoyed peace; his God made him secure on every side.[t]

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 20:20 tn Heb “O Judah.” The words “you people of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. See the note on the word “Judah” in v. 15.
  2. 2 Chronicles 20:20 tn There is a wordplay in the Hebrew text. The Hiphil verb form הַאֲמִינוּ (haʾaminu, “trust”) and the Niphal form תֵאָמֵנוּ (teʾamenu, “you will be safe”) come from the same verbal root (אָמַן, ʾaman).
  3. 2 Chronicles 20:21 tn Or “consulted.”
  4. 2 Chronicles 20:21 tn Or “is eternal.”
  5. 2 Chronicles 20:22 tn Heb “set ambushers against.” This is probably idiomatic here for launching a surprise attack.
  6. 2 Chronicles 20:22 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir.”
  7. 2 Chronicles 20:23 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon and Moab stood against the residents of Mount Seir.”
  8. 2 Chronicles 20:23 tn Heb “to annihilate and to destroy.”
  9. 2 Chronicles 20:23 tn Heb “residents.”
  10. 2 Chronicles 20:23 tn Heb “they helped, each one his fellow, for destruction.” The verb עָזַר (ʿazar), traditionally understood as the well-attested verb meaning “to help,” is an odd fit in this context. It is possible that it is from a homonymic root, perhaps meaning to “attack.” This root is attested in Ugaritic in a nominal form meaning “young man, warrior, hero.” For a discussion of the proposed root, see HALOT 811 s.v. II עזר.
  11. 2 Chronicles 20:24 tn Heb “Judah.” The words “the men of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. The Hebrew text uses the name “Judah” by metonymy for the men of Judah.
  12. 2 Chronicles 20:24 tn Heb “turned toward.”
  13. 2 Chronicles 20:25 tn Or “army.”
  14. 2 Chronicles 20:25 tc The MT reads פְגָרִים (fegarim, “corpses”), but this seems odd among a list of plunder. A few medieval Hebrew mss and the Vulgate read בְגָדִים (vegadim, “clothing”), which fits the context much better.
  15. 2 Chronicles 20:25 tn Heb “and they snatched away for themselves so that there was no carrying away.”
  16. 2 Chronicles 20:25 tn Heb “and they were three days looting the plunder for it was great.”
  17. 2 Chronicles 20:26 tn Heb “for there.”
  18. 2 Chronicles 20:26 sn The name Berachah, which means “blessing” in Hebrew, is derived from the verbal root “to praise [or “to bless”],” which appears earlier in the verse.
  19. 2 Chronicles 20:29 tn Heb “and the terror of God [or “a great terror”] was upon all the kingdoms of the lands.” It is uncertain if אֱלֹהִים (ʾelohim) should be understood as a proper name here (“God”), or taken in an idiomatic superlative sense.
  20. 2 Chronicles 20:30 tn Heb “and his God gave him rest all around.”
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2 Chronicles 20:20-30
Legacy Standard Bible

Yahweh Eradicates the Multitude

20 And they rose early in the morning and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa; and when they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, O Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (A)establish your faith in Yahweh your God and you will be established. Establish your faith in His prophets and succeed.” 21 When he had taken counsel with the people, he caused those who sang to Yahweh and those who (B)praised Him to stand in holy attire, as they went out before the army, saying, “(C)Give thanks to Yahweh, for His lovingkindness endures forever.” 22 When they began singing for joy and praising, Yahweh (D)set ambushes against the sons of (E)Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; so they were [a]defeated. 23 Indeed, the sons of Ammon and Moab stood against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to devote them to destruction and to utterly eradicate them; and when they had finished with the inhabitants of Seir, (F)they helped to bring one another to ruin.

24 Now Judah came to the lookout of the wilderness, and they turned toward the multitude, and behold, they were corpses fallen on the ground, and no one had escaped. 25 So Jehoshaphat and his people came to take their spoil and found much among them, including goods, [b]garments, and valuable things which they took for themselves, more than they could carry. And they were three days taking the spoil because there was so much.

Jehoshaphat Returns to Jerusalem

26 Then on the fourth day they assembled in the valley of [c]Beracah, for there they blessed Yahweh. Therefore they have named that place “The Valley of [d]Beracah” until today. 27 And every man of Judah and Jerusalem returned with Jehoshaphat at their head, returning to Jerusalem with gladness, (G)for Yahweh had made them glad over their enemies. 28 And they came to Jerusalem with harps, lyres, and trumpets to the house of Yahweh. 29 And (H)the dread of God was on all the kingdoms of the lands when they heard that Yahweh had fought against the enemies of Israel. 30 So the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was quiet, (I)for his God gave him rest all around.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 20:22 Lit smitten
  2. 2 Chronicles 20:25 As in several ancient mss; others corpses
  3. 2 Chronicles 20:26 Lit blessing
  4. 2 Chronicles 20:26 Lit blessing
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