Old/New Testament
Chapter 17
Jehoshaphat’s Zeal for the Law. 1 His son Jehoshaphat succeeded him as king and strengthened his position against Israel.(A) 2 He placed armed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah, and set garrisons in the land of Judah and in the cities of Ephraim which Asa his father had taken. 3 The Lord was with Jehoshaphat,[a] for he walked in the earlier ways of David his father, and did not seek the Baals. 4 Rather, he sought the God of his father and walked in his commands, and not the practices of Israel. 5 Through him, the Lord made the kingdom secure, and all Judah gave Jehoshaphat gifts, so that great wealth and glory was his. 6 Thus he was encouraged[b] to follow the Lord’s ways, and once again he removed the high places and the asherahs from Judah.(B)
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. 8 With them he sent the Levites Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, and Tobijah, together with Elishama and Jehoram the priests.(C) 9 They taught in Judah, having with them the book of the law of the Lord; they traveled through all the cities of Judah and taught among the people.(D)
His Power. 10 Now the fear of the Lord was upon all the kingdoms of the countries surrounding Judah, so that they did not war against Jehoshaphat. 11 Some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat gifts and a tribute of silver; the Arabians also brought him a flock of seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred he-goats.
12 Jehoshaphat grew ever greater. He built strongholds and store cities in Judah. 13 He carried out many works in the cities of Judah, and he had soldiers, valiant warriors, in Jerusalem. 14 This was their mustering according to their ancestral houses. From Judah, the commanders of thousands: Adnah the commander, and with him three hundred thousand valiant warriors. 15 Next to him, Jehohanan the commander, and with him two hundred eighty thousand. 16 Next to him, Amasiah, son of Zichri, who offered himself to the Lord, and with him two hundred thousand valiant warriors. 17 From Benjamin: Eliada, a valiant warrior, and with him two hundred thousand armed with bow and buckler. 18 Next to him, Jehozabad, and with him one hundred and eighty thousand equipped for war. 19 These attended the king; in addition to those whom the king had stationed in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.
Chapter 18
Alliance with Israel. 1 (E)Jehoshaphat therefore had wealth and glory in abundance; but he became related to Ahab by marriage. 2 After some years he went down to Ahab at Samaria; Ahab slaughtered numerous sheep and oxen for him and for the people with him, and incited him to go up against Ramoth-gilead. 3 Ahab, king of Israel, asked Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, “Will you come with me to Ramoth-gilead?” He answered, “You and I are as one, and your people and my people as well. We will be with you in the battle.” 4 Jehoshaphat also said to the king of Israel, “Seek the word of the Lord at once.”
Prophets in Conflict. 5 The king of Israel assembled the prophets, four hundred of them, and asked, “Shall we go to fight against Ramoth-gilead, or shall I refrain?” They said, “Attack. God will give it into the power of the king.” 6 But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there no other prophet of the Lord here we might consult?” 7 The king of Israel answered, “There is one other man through whom we may consult the Lord; but I hate him, because he prophesies not good but always evil about me. He is Micaiah, son of Imlah.” Jeshoshaphat said, “Let not the king say that.” 8 So the king of Israel called an official, and said to him, “Get Micaiah, son of Imlah, at once.” 9 The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, were seated, each on his throne, clothed in their robes of state in the square at the entrance of the gate of Samaria, and all the prophets were prophesying before them.
10 Zedekiah, son of Chenaanah, made himself two horns of iron and said: “The Lord says: With these you shall gore Aram until you have destroyed them.” 11 The other prophets prophesied in the same vein, saying: “Attack Ramoth-gilead, and conquer! The Lord will give it into the power of the king.” 12 [c]Meanwhile the messenger who had gone to call Micaiah said to him: “Look now, the words of the prophets are as one in speaking good for the king. Let your word be at one with theirs; speak a good word.” 13 Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, I shall speak whatever my God says.”
14 When he came to the king, the king said to him, “Micah, shall we go to fight at Ramoth-gilead, or shall I refrain?” He said, “Attack and conquer! They will be delivered into your power.” 15 But the king answered him, “How many times must I adjure you to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?” 16 So Micaiah said:
“I see all Israel
scattered on the mountains,
like sheep without a shepherd,
And the Lord saying,
These have no masters!
Let each of them go back home in peace.”
17 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you, he does not prophesy good about me, but only evil?” 18 Micaiah continued: “Therefore hear the word of the Lord. I saw the Lord seated on his throne, with the whole host of heaven standing to his right and to his left. 19 The Lord asked: Who will deceive Ahab, king of Israel, so that he will go up and fall on Ramoth-gilead? And one said this, another that, 20 until this spirit came forth and stood before the Lord, saying, ‘I will deceive him.’ The Lord asked: How? 21 He answered, ‘I will go forth and become a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.’ The Lord replied: You shall succeed in deceiving him. Go forth and do this. 22 So now the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouths of these prophets of yours; but the Lord himself has decreed evil against you.”
23 Thereupon Zedekiah, son of Chenaanah, came up and struck Micaiah on the cheek, saying, “Has the spirit of the Lord, then, passed from me to speak with you?” 24 Micaiah said, “You shall find out on the day you go into an innermost room to hide.” 25 The king of Israel then said: “Seize Micaiah and take him back to Amon, prefect of the city, and to Joash the king’s son, 26 and say, ‘This is the king’s order: Put this man in prison and feed him scanty rations of bread and water until I come back in safety!’” 27 But Micaiah said, “If ever you return in safety, the Lord has not spoken through me.” (He also said, “Hear, O peoples, all of you!”)[d]
Ahab’s Death. 28 The king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, went up to Ramoth-gilead, 29 and the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle. But you, put on your own robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and they entered the battle. 30 In the meantime, the king of Aram had given his chariot commanders the order, “Fight with no one, great or small, except the king of Israel alone.” 31 When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat, they thought, “There is the king of Israel!” and wheeled to fight him. But Jehoshaphat cried out and the Lord helped him; God induced them to leave him alone. 32 The chariot commanders, seeing that he was not the king of Israel, turned away from him. 33 But someone drew his bow at random and hit the king of Israel between the joints of his breastplate. He ordered his charioteer, “Rein about and take me out of the ranks, for I am wounded.”(F) 34 The battle grew fierce during the day, and the king of Israel braced himself up in his chariot facing the Arameans until evening. He died as the sun was setting.
III. The Book of Glory[a]
Chapter 13
The Washing of the Disciples’ Feet.[b] 1 Before the feast of Passover,[c] Jesus knew that his hour had come to pass from this world to the Father. He loved his own in the world and he loved them to the end.(A) 2 The devil had already induced[d] Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, to hand him over. So, during supper,(B) 3 fully aware that the Father had put everything into his power and that he had come from God and was returning to God,(C) 4 he rose from supper and took off his outer garments. He took a towel and tied it around his waist. 5 [e]Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet(D) and dry them with the towel around his waist. 6 He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Master, are you going to wash my feet?” 7 Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing, you do not understand now, but you will understand later.” 8 Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “Unless I wash you, you will have no inheritance with me.”(E) 9 Simon Peter said to him, “Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and head as well.” 10 Jesus said to him, “Whoever has bathed[f] has no need except to have his feet washed, for he is clean all over; so you are clean, but not all.”(F) 11 For he knew who would betray him; for this reason, he said, “Not all of you are clean.”(G)
12 So when he had washed their feet [and] put his garments back on and reclined at table again, he said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you? 13 You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am.(H) 14 If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 I have given you a model to follow, so that as I have done for you, you should also do.(I) 16 Amen, amen, I say to you, no slave is greater than his master nor any messenger[g] greater than the one who sent him.(J) 17 If you understand this, blessed are you if you do it. 18 I am not speaking of all of you. I know those whom I have chosen. But so that the scripture might be fulfilled, ‘The one who ate my food has raised his heel against me.’(K) 19 From now on I am telling you before it happens, so that when it happens you may believe that I AM. 20 Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.”(L)
Announcement of Judas’s Betrayal.(M)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.