Chronological

19 And Yehoshaphat Melech Yehudah returned to his Bais (Palace) in shalom in Yerushalayim.

² And Yehu ben Chanani HaChozer (the Seer) went out to meet him, and said to HaMelech Yehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the rasha, and love them that hate Hashem? Therefore ketzef (wrath) is upon thee from before Hashem.

³ Nevertheless there are devarim tovim (good things) found in thee, in that thou hast removed HaAsherot from HaAretz, and hast prepared thine lev to seek HaElohim.

⁴ And Yehoshaphat dwelt in Yerushalayim; and he went out again among HaAm from Beer Sheva to Mt Ephrayim, and he turned them back unto Hashem Elohei Avoteihem.

⁵ And he appointed Shofetim in HaAretz throughout all the fortified cities of Yehudah, city by city,

⁶ And said to the Shofetim, Take heed what ye do, for ye judge not for adam, but for Hashem, Who is with you in the devar mishpat (verdict).

⁷ Wherefore now let the Pachad Hashem be upon you; be shomer and do it, for there is no avlah (injustice) with Hashem Eloheinu, nor massa panim (respect of persons), nor mikkach shochad (taking of bribes).

⁸ Moreover in Yerushalayim did Yehoshaphat station Levi’im, and Kohanim, and Rashei HaAvot Yisroel, for the Mishpat Hashem, and for riv (disputes), and they returned to Yerushalayim.

⁹ And he charged them, saying, Thus shall ye do in the yirat Hashem, be’emunah and with a levav shalem.

¹⁰ And what riv soever shall come before you of your achim that dwell in your cities, between dahm and dahm, between torah and mitzvah, chukkot and mishpatim, ye shall even warn them that they trespass not against Hashem, and so ketzef (wrath) come upon you, and upon your achim; this do, and ye shall not trespass.

¹¹ And, hinei, Amaryahu Kohen HaRosh is over you in all matters of Hashem; and Zevadyahu ben Yishmael, the Nagid of the Bais Yehudah, for all the matters of HaMelech; also the Levi’im shall be shoterim (officers) before you. Deal courageously, and Hashem be with hatov.

20 It came to pass after this also, that the Bnei Moav, and the Bnei Ammon, and with them some Ammonim, came against Yehoshaphat to make milchamah.

² Then there came some that told Yehoshaphat, saying, There cometh a great multitude against thee from beyond the Yam (Dead Sea), from Aram; and, hinei, they are in Chatzatzon-Tamar, which is Ein-Gedi.

³ And Yehoshaphat feared, and set his face to inquire of Hashem, and proclaimed a tzom throughout all Yehudah.

⁴ And Yehudah gathered themselves together, to ask help of Hashem, even from all the towns of Yehudah they came to seek help of Hashem.

⁵ And Yehoshaphat stood in the Kehal Yehudah and Yerushalayim, in the Beis Hashem, before the khatzer hachadashah,

⁶ And he said, Hashem Elohei Avoteinu, art not Thou Elohim in Shomayim? And moshel (rulest) not Thou over kol mamlechot haGoyim? And in Thine yad is there not ko’ach and gevurah, so that none is able to withstand thee?

⁷ Art not Thou Eloheinu, Who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before Thy people Yisroel, and gavest it to the Zera Avraham ohav’cha l’olam (Thy friend forever)?

⁸ And they dwelt therein, and have built Thee a Mikdash therein for Thy Shem, saying,

⁹ If, when ra’ah cometh upon us, as the cherev, shefot, or dever, or ra’av (famine), we stand before HaBeis HaZeh, and in Thy presence, (for Thy Shem is in HaBeis HaZeh,) and cry unto Thee in tzarateinu (our affliction), then Thou wilt hear and save.

¹⁰ And now, hinei, the Bnei Ammon and Moav and Mt Seir, whom Thou wouldest not let Yisroel invade, when they came out of Eretz Mitzrayim, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not,

¹¹ Hinei, what gomelim (ones repaying) they are to us, to come to drive us out of Thy yerushah (inheritance), which Thou hast given us.

¹² O Eloheinu, wilt Thou not judge them? For we have no ko’ach against this great multitude that cometh against us; neither know we what to do, but our eyes are upon Thee.

¹³ And all Yehudah stood before Hashem, with their little ones, their nashim, and their banim.

¹⁴ Then upon Yachziel ben Zecharyahu ben Benayah ben Ye’i’el ben Matanyah, a Levi of the Bnei Asaph, came the Ruach Hashem in the midst of the Kahal,

¹⁵ And he said, Pay heed ye, all Yehudah, and ye inhabitants of Yerushalayim, and thou Melech Yehoshaphat. Thus saith Hashem unto you: Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the milchamah is not yours, but that of Elohim.

¹⁶ Makhar (tomorrow) go ye down against them; hinei, they come up by the Ascent of Tzitz; and ye shall find them at the end of the wadi, before the midbar of Yeruel.

¹⁷ Ye shall not need to fight in this; take up your battle positions, stand ye firm, and see the Yeshuat Hashem with you, O Yehudah and Yerushalayim. Fear not, nor be dismayed; makhar (tomorrow) go out against them, for Hashem will be with you.

¹⁸ And Yehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground; and all Yehudah and the inhabitants of Yerushalayim fell down before Hashem, worshiping Hashem.

¹⁹ And the Levi’im, of the Bnei HaKehatim, and of the Bnei HaKorchim, stood up to praise Hashem Elohei Yisroel with an exceeding kol gadol.

²⁰ And they rose early in the boker, and went forth into the Midbar Tekoa; and as they went forth, Yehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Yehudah, and ye inhabitants of Yerushalayim. Ha’aminu BaHashem Eloheichem (Believe in Hashem Eloheichem), so shall ye be established; have faith in His Nevi’im, so shall ye be victorious.

²¹ And when he had consulted with HaAm, he appointed meshorarim (singers) unto Hashem, and that should praise the hadrat kodesh, as they went out before the army, and to say, Hodu L’Adonoi ki l’olam chasdo (Give thanks to Hashem, for His mercy endureth forever).

²² And when they began with rinnah and tehillah, Hashem set me’arevim (ambushers) against the Bnei Ammon, Moav, and Mt Seir, which were come against Yehudah, and they were struck down.

²³ For the Bnei Ammon and Moav stood up against the inhabitants of Mt Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.

²⁴ And when Yehudah came toward the mitzpeh (guard tower) in the midbar, they looked toward the multitude, and, hinei, they were pegarim (corpses) fallen on the ground, and there was no escapee.

²⁵ And when Yehoshaphat and his people came to carry off the plunder of them, they found among them in abundance both property with the pegarim, and articles of value, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away, and they were yamim shelosha in gathering of the plunder, it was so much.

²⁶ And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the Berachah Valley, for there they blessed Hashem; therefore the shem of that place was called, The Berachah Valley unto this day.

²⁷ Then they returned, kol ish Yehudah and Yerushalayim, and Yehoshaphat in the forefront of them, to go again to Yerushalayim with simcha; for Hashem had made them to rejoice over their enemies.

²⁸ And they came to Yerushalayim with nevalim and kinnorot and chatzotzerot unto the Beis Hashem.

²⁹ And the Pachad Elohim was on all the kingdoms of those lands, when they had heard that Hashem fought against the oyevei Yisroel.

³⁰ So the Malchut Yehoshaphat was at peace, for Elohav gave him rest on every side.

³¹ And Yehoshaphat reigned over Yehudah. He was thirty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and five years in Yerushalayim. And shem immo was Azuvah bat Shilchi.

³² And he walked in the derech Aviv Asa, and departed not from it, doing that which was yashar in the sight of Hashem.

³³ Howbeit the high places were not removed; for HaAm as yet had not set their hearts unto Elohei Avoteihem.

³⁴ Now the rest of the acts of Yehoshaphat, harishonim and ha’acharonim, hinei, they are written in the Annals of Yehu ben Chanani, who is recorded in the Sefer of the Melachim of Yisroel.

³⁵ And after this did Yehoshaphat Melech Yehudah join himself in alliance with Achazyah Melech Yisroel, who did very wickedly;

³⁶ And he joined himself with him to make oniyot (ships) to go to Tarshish, and they made the oniyot in Etzyon-Gever.

³⁷ Then Eliezer ben Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Yehoshaphat, saying, Because thou hast joined thyself in alliance with Achazyahu, Hashem hath wrecked thy ma’asim. And the oniyot were wrecked, that they were not able to sail to Tarshish. [T.N. Yehoshaphat had a weakness for entangling himself with non-believers and suffering the consequences.]

21 Now Yehoshaphat slept with his avot, and was buried with his avot in Ir Dovid. And Yehoram bno reigned in his place.

² And he had achim, the Bnei Yehoshaphat, Azaryah, and Yechiel, and Zecharyahu, and Azaryahu, and Michael, and Shephatyahu. All these were the Bnei Yehoshaphat Melech Yisroel.

³ And their av have given them mattanot rabbot of kesef, and of zahav, and of precious things, with fortified cities in Yehudah, but the Mamlachah (Kingdom) he gave to Yehoram; because he was the bechor.

⁴ Now when Yehoram was risen up to the Mamlachah of his av, he strengthened himself, and slaughtered all his achim with the cherev, and also a number of the sarim (leading political figures) of Yisroel.

⁵ Yehoram was thirty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned shemoneh shanim in Yerushalayim.

⁶ And he walked in the derech of the melachim of Yisroel, as did the Bais Ach’av, for he had the Bat Ach’av to wife, and he wrought that which was rah in the eyes of Hashem.

⁷ However, Hashem was not willing to destroy the Bais Dovid, for the sake of HaBrit that He had cut with Dovid, and since He promised to give a ner (lamp) to him and to his banim kol hayamim.

⁸ In the days of Yehoram, Edom rebelled from under the yad Yehudah, and made themselves a melech.

⁹ Then Yehoram went forth with his sarim (princes), and all his chariots with him, and he rose up by lailah, and struck down Edom which had surrounded him, and the commanders of the chariots.

¹⁰ So the Edomites rebelled from under the yad Yehudah unto this day. At the same time also did Livnah rebel from under his yad, because he had forsaken Hashem Elohei Avotav.

¹¹ Moreover he built high places [unlawful altars] in the mountains of Yehudah and caused the inhabitants of Yerushalayim to commit fornication, and led Yehudah astray.

¹² And there came a miktav (letter) to him from Eliyahu HaNavi, saying, Thus saith Hashem Elohei Dovid Avicha, Because thou hast not walked in the darkhei Yehoshaphat Avicha, nor in the darkhei Asa Melech Yehudah,

¹³ But hast walked in the derech of the melachim of Yisroel, and hast made Yehudah and the inhabitants of Yerushalayim to go awhoring, like the whoredoms of the Bais Ach’av, and also hast murdered thy achim of Bais Avicha, which were better than thee;

¹⁴ Hinei, with a maggefah gedolah (great plague) will Hashem strike thy people, and thy banim, and thy nashim, and all thy possessions;

¹⁵ And thou shalt have cholayim rabbim with machla (disease) of thy bowels, until thy bowels come out by reason of the choli yamim al yamim.

¹⁶ Moreover Hashem stirred up against Yehoram the ruach HaPelishtim, and of the Arabs, who lived near the Kushim;

¹⁷ And they came up against Yehudah, and invaded, and carried away all the possessions that were found in the Bais HaMelech, and also his banim, and his nashim; so that there was left him not a ben except Yehoachaz (Achazyahu, Ahaziah), the youngest of his banim.

¹⁸ And after all this Hashem struck him in his bowels with a choli for which there was no marpeh.

¹⁹ And it came to pass that in process of time, after the end of two years, his bowels protruded out by reason of his choli; so he died in great pain. And his people kindled no pyre in his honor, as they had done for his avot.

²⁰ Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign, and he reigned in Yerushalayim shemoneh shanim, and departed without chemdah (desire [for him]). Howbeit they buried him in the Ir Dovid, but not in the kevarot hamelachim.

22 And the inhabitants of Yerushalayim made Achazyahu (Ahaziah of Judah) his (i.e., Yehoram’s) youngest son melech in his place; for the troops that came with the Arabs into the machaneh had slain all the eldest. So Achazyahu (Ahaziah) ben Yehoram Melech Yehudah reigned.

² Twenty and two years old was Achazyahu (Ahaziah) when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Yerushalayim And shem immo was Atalyah bat Omri (i.e., granddaughter of Omri the father of Ahab).

³ He also walked in the darkhei Bais Ach’av (Ahab); for immo (his mother) was his counselor to do rah.

⁴ Therefore he did rah in the eyes of Hashem like the Bais Ach’av (House of Ahab); for they were his yo’atzim (counselors) after the mot (death) of his av to his (i.e., Achazyahu’s, Ahaziah’s) ruin.

⁵ He walked also after their etza (advice, counsel), and went with Yehoram ben Ach’av Melech Yisroel to war against Chatzael Melech Aram (Syria) at Ramot Gil’ad; and the Syrians wounded Yoram.

⁶ And he (Yoram) returned to Yizre’el (Jezreel) to recover from his wounds which were inflicted upon him at Ramah, when he fought with Chatzael Melech Aram. And Achazyahu (Ahaziah) ben Yehoram Melech Yehudah went down to see Yehoram ben Ach’av at Yizre’el (Jezreel), because he was wounded.

⁷ And the tevusat Achazyahu (downfall of Ahaziah) was of Elohim in coming to Yoram, for when he arrived, he went out with Yehoram against Yehu ben Nimshi, whom Hashem had anointed to cut off the Bais Ach’av (the House of Ahab).

⁸ And it came to pass, that, when Yehu was executing mishpat upon the Bais Ach’av, and found the sarei Yehudah, and the bnei achei Achazyahu that were in attendance with Achazyahu, he slaughtered them.

⁹ And he searched for Achazyahu, and they captured him while he was hiding in Shomron (Samaria), and brought him to Yehu; and when they had slain him, they buried him. Because, they said, he is a ben Yehoshaphat, who sought Hashem with all his levav. So the Bais Achazyahu had no koach to retain the mamlachah (kingdom).

¹⁰ But when Atalyah em Achazyahu saw that her son was dead, she arose and began destroying kol zera hamamlachah (all the royal seed) of the Bais Yehudah.

¹¹ But Yehoshavat Bat HaMelech, took Yoash ben Achazyahu, and stole him away from among the Bnei HaMelech that were being murdered, and put him and his nurse in a cheder hamittot (bedroom). So Yehoshavat Bat HaMelech Yehoram, the isha of Yehoyada HaKohen, (for she was the achot of Achazyahu), hid him from Atalyah, so that she slaughtered him not.

¹² And he was with them hid in the Bais Elohim shesh shanim. And Atalyah reigned over HaAretz.

23 And in the seventh year Yehoyada strengthened himself, and took the commanders of hundreds, Azaryah ben Yerocham, and Yishmael ben Yehochanan, and Azaryahu ben Oved, and Ma’aseiyahu ben Adayahu, and Elishaphat ben Zichri, into brit with him.

² And they went about in Yehudah, and gathered the Levi’im out of all the towns of Yehudah, and the Rashei HaAvot of Yisroel, and they came to Yerushalayim.

³ And Kol HaKahal made a brit with HaMelech in the Beis Elohim. And he (i.e., Kohen Gadol Yehoyada) said unto them, Hinei, the Ben HaMelech shall reign, just as Hashem hath said of the Bnei Dovid.

⁴ This is the thing that ye shall do: A third part of you coming on duty on Shabbos, of the Kohanim and of the Levi’im, shall keep watch at the doors;

⁵ And a third part shall be at the Bais HaMelech; and a third part at the Sha’ar HaYesod; and Kol HaAm shall be in the Khatzerot of the Beis Hashem.

⁶ But let none enter into the Beis Hashem, except the Kohanim, and the ministering Levi’im; they shall go in, for they are kodesh; but Kol HaAm shall be shomer over the mishmeret Hashem (the instructions of Hashem).

⁷ And the Levi’im shall surround HaMelech, every ish with his weapon in his yad; and whosoever else cometh into the Beis, he shall be put to death, but be ye with HaMelech when he cometh in, and when he goeth out.

⁸ So the Levi’im and all Yehudah did according to all things that Yehoyada HaKohen had commanded, and took every ish his men that were to go on duty on Shabbos, with them that were to go off duty on Shabbos; for Yehoyada HaKohen dismissed not the machlekot.

⁹ Moreover Yehoyada HaKohen delivered to the commanders of hundreds spears, and large shields, and small shields, that had belonged to Dovid HaMelech, which were in the Beis Elohim.

¹⁰ And he stationed kol haAm, every ish having his weapon in his yad, from the right side of the Beis to the left side of the Beis, near the Mizbe’ach and Beis , and around HaMelech.

¹¹ Then they brought out the Ben HaMelech, and put upon him the nezer, and gave him the Edut, and proclaimed him Melech. And Yehoyada and his banim anointed him, and shouted, Yechi HaMelech!

¹² Now when Atalyah heard the noise of HaAm running and cheering HaMelech, she came to HaAm into the Beis Hashem,

¹³ And she looked, and, hinei, HaMelech stood at his ammud at the entrance, and the sarim and the chatzotzerot (trumpeters) beside HaMelech; and Kol HaAm HaAretz same’ach (rejoiced), and sounded the chatzotzerot, also the meshorarim with instruments of music, and the praise leaders. Then Atalyah tore her robe, shouted, Kesher, Kesher!

¹⁴ Then Yehoyada HaKohen brought out the commanders of hundreds that were set over the army, and said unto them, Bring her out between the sederot (ranks); and whosoever followeth her, let him be put to death with the cherev. For the Kohen said, Do not put her to death in the Beis Hashem.

¹⁵ So they laid hands on her; and when she was come to the entrance of the Sha’ar HaSusim by the Beis HaMelech, they put her to death there.

¹⁶ And Yehoyada made a brit between him, and between Kol HaAm, and between HaMelech, that they should be Am LaHashem.

¹⁷ Then kol HaAm went to the Beis HaBa’al, and tore it down, and broke in pieces its mizbechot and its tzelem, and slaughtered Mattan Kohen HaBaal in front of the mizbechot.

¹⁸ Also Yehoyada assigned the Pekudot of the Beis Hashem by the yad of the Kohanim the Levi’im, whom Dovid had assigned in the Beis Hashem, to offer olot Hashem, as it is written in the Torat Moshe, with simcha and with shir, as it was ordained by Dovid.

¹⁹ And he set the Sho’arim at the Sha’arei Beis Hashem, that none tamei in any thing should enter in.

²⁰ And he took the commanders of hundreds, and the nobles, and the moshelim of HaAm, and Kol HaAm HaAretz, and brought down HaMelech from the Beis Hashem; and they came through the Sha’ar HaElyon into the Beis HaMelech, and seated HaMelech upon the Kisse HaMamlachah.

²¹ And kol Am HaAretz rejoiced; and the Ir was quiet after that they had put to death Atalyah with the cherev.