Old/New Testament
Jehoshaphat Succeeds Asa
17 Asa’s son Jehoshaphat succeeded him as king, and he consolidated his authority over Israel 2 by placing troops in all of the fortified citadels through Judah and by establishing garrisons throughout the land of Judah and in the cities that his father Asa had captured.
3 The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the example set during his ancestor David’s preliminary years by not pursuing the Baals.[a] 4 Instead, Jehoshaphat[b] sought the God of his ancestors and obeyed his commands, unlike Israel. 5 Therefore the Lord secured Jehoshaphat’s[c] kingdom under his control, with all of Judah paying him tribute, and Jehoshaphat became very wealthy and greatly respected. 6 He remained committed to following the Lord, and he removed the high places and Asherah poles from Judah.
Jehoshaphat Institutes Teaching Programs
7 During the third year of his reign, Jehoshaphat sent his officials Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah to teach throughout the cities of Judah. 8 They were accompanied by the descendants of Levi, including[d] Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tobadonijah. These descendants of Levi were accompanied by the priests Elishama and Jehoram. 9 They taught throughout Judah from a copy of the Book of the Law of the Lord that they took with them as they passed through all the cities of Judah, teaching among all the people.
Jehoshaphat’s Military and Economic Stability
10 Because they were afraid of the Lord, none of the kingdoms of the lands that surrounded Judah dared go to war against Jehoshaphat. 11 Some of the Philistines brought gifts and silver as tribute to Jehoshaphat, and Arabians brought him flocks of 7,700 rams and 7,700 male goats. 12 As a result, Jehoshaphat grew more and more powerful, and built up fortresses and storage centers throughout Judah. 13 He placed a large amount of supplies into storage throughout the cities of Judah and stationed soldiers—all of them valiant men—in Jerusalem. 14 Here’s how they were mustered, listed according to their ancestral houses and listed by commanders of thousands: Adnah commanded 300,000 elite forces. 15 Near him was Johanan, commander of 280,000 16 and next to him was Zichri’s son Amasiah, who had volunteered to serve the Lord. He commanded 200,000 elite forces. 17 There was also Eliada from Benjamin, himself a valiant soldier. He was accompanied by 200,000 expert archers bearing shields. 18 Near him was Jehozabad, who was accompanied by 180,000 soldiers equipped for warfare. 19 These men served the king, and there were others whom the king garrisoned inside fortified cities throughout all of Judah.
Jehoshaphat Allies with Ahab(A)
18 After Jehoshaphat had become wealthy and was enjoying abundant honor, he allied himself to Ahab. 2 After a few years, he visited Ahab in Samaria. Ahab slaughtered lots of sheep and oxen for him, and the people who were with him persuaded Jehoshaphat to attack Ramoth-gilead. 3 King Ahab of Israel asked King Jehoshaphat of Judah, “Will you join me in attacking Ramoth-gilead?”
“I’m with you,” Jehoshaphat[e] replied. “and my army is with you. We’ll join you in the battle.” 4 But then Jehoshaphat asked the king of Israel, “Please ask for a message from the Lord, first.”
5 So the king of Israel gathered together 400 prophets and asked them, “Should we go attack Ramoth-gilead, or should I call off the attack?”[f]
“Go attack them,” they all said, “because God will drop them right in the king’s hand.”
6 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Isn’t there a prophet of the Lord left here that we could talk to?”
7 “There is still one man left by whom we could ask the Lord what to do,” the king of Israel replied to Jehoshaphat, “but I hate him because he won’t prophesy anything good about me. Instead, he always prophesies evil. He is Imla’s son Micaiah.”
But Jehoshaphat rebuked Ahab, “Kings[g] should never talk like that.”
8 Nevertheless, the king of Israel called an officer and ordered him, “Bring me Imla’s son Micaiah quickly.”
9 Now the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah were each sitting on their own thrones, arrayed in their robes, and sitting on the threshing floor at the entrance to the city gate of Samaria, and all of the prophets were prophesying in front of them. 10 Chenaanah’s son Zedekiah made iron horns for himself and told them, “This is what the Lord says, ‘With these horns you are to gore the Arameans until they are eliminated!’”
11 All the other prophets were saying similar things, like “Go up to Ramoth-gilead and you will be successful, because the Lord will hand it over to the king!”
Micaiah the True Prophet Warns Ahab and Jehoshaphat(B)
12 Meanwhile, the messenger who had gone off to summon Micaiah advised him, “Look, everything that the other prophets were saying has been unanimously favorable to the king. So please, cooperate with them and speak favorably.”
13 “As the Lord lives,” Micaiah replied, “I’ll say what my God tells me to say.”
14 When Micaiah[h] approached the king, the king asked him, “Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should I not?”
“Go to war,” Micaiah[i] replied, “and you will be successful, because the Lord will hand it over to the king!”
15 When he heard this, the king asked him, “How many times do I have to ask you? Tell me nothing but the truth, and do it in the name of the Lord!”
16 And so Micaiah replied:
“I saw all of Israel
scattered on the mountains
like sheep without a shepherd.
And the Lord told me,
‘These have no master,
so let them each return to his own home in peace.’”
17 Then the king of Israel told Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you that he wouldn’t prophesy anything good about me, but only evil?”
18 But Micaiah responded, “Therefore, listen to what the Lord has to say. I saw the Lord, sitting on his throne, and the entire Heavenly Army was surrounding him on his right hand and on his left hand.
19 “The Lord asked, ‘Who will tempt King Ahab of Israel to attack Ramoth-gilead, so that he will die there?’ And one was saying one thing and one was saying another.
20 “But then a spirit approached, stood in front of the Lord, and said, ‘I will entice him.’
“And the Lord asked him, ‘How?’
21 “‘I will go,’ he announced, ‘and I will be a deceiving spirit in the mouth of all of his prophets!’
“So the Lord said, ‘You’re just the one to deceive him. You will be successful. Go and do it.’
22 Now therefore, listen! The Lord has placed a lying spirit in the mouth of all of these prophets of yours, because the Lord has determined to bring disaster upon you.”
23 As if on cue, Chenaanah’s son Zedekiah approached Micaiah and struck him on the cheek. Then he asked him, “How did the Spirit of the Lord move from me to speak to you?”
24 Micaiah replied, “You’ll learn the answer to that question when the day comes that you run away to hide yourself in a closet!”
25 Then the king of Israel ordered, “Take Micaiah and place him in the custody of Amon, the city governor. Hand him over to Joash, the king’s son. 26 Give him this order: ‘Place him in prison on survival rations only until I come back safely.’”
27 “If you return alive,” Micaiah responded, “then the Lord has not spoken by me.” Then he added, “Listen, everybody!”
Ahab’s Dies at Ramoth-gilead(C)
28 So the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah both attacked Ramoth-gilead. 29 The king of Israel suggested to Jehoshaphat, “I’ll go into battle in disguise, but you keep your royal uniform on.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and they both went into the battle.
30 Meanwhile, the king of Aram had issued these orders to his chariot commanders: “Don’t attack unimportant soldiers or ranking officers. Go after only the king of Israel.” 31 So when the chariot commanders observed Jehoshaphat, they said by mistake, “It’s the king of Israel!” and they turned aside to attack him. But Jehoshaphat cried out to the Lord, who helped him, and God diverted them from him. 32 When the chariot commanders saw that their target[j] was not the king of Israel, they stopped pursuing him.
33 Meanwhile, somebody drew his bow and struck the king of Israel at a weak spot where his armor plates joined, so he instructed his chariot driver, “Turn around and take me out of the battle, because I’ve been severely wounded.” 34 The battle continued on for the rest of the day while the king of Israel propped himself up in front of the Arameans until the sun set, at which time he died.
Jesus Washes the Disciples’ Feet
13 Now before the Passover Festival, Jesus realized that his hour had come to leave this world and return to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.[a] 2 By supper time, the Devil had already put it into the heart of Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray him. 3 Because Jesus knew that the Father had given everything into his control,[b] that he had come from God, and that he was returning to God, 4 therefore he got up from the table, removed his outer robe, and took a towel and fastened it around his waist. 5 Then he poured some water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to dry them with the towel that was tied around his waist.
6 Then he came to Simon Peter, who asked him, “Lord, are you going to wash my feet?”
7 Jesus answered him, “You don’t realize now what I’m doing, but later on you’ll understand.”
8 Peter told him, “You must never wash my feet!”
Jesus answered him, “Unless I wash you, you cannot be involved with me.”
9 Simon Peter told him, “Lord, not just my feet, but my hands and my head as well!”
10 Jesus told him, “Whoever has bathed is entirely clean. He doesn’t need to wash himself further, except for his feet. And you men[c] are clean, though not all of you.” 11 For he knew who was going to betray him. That’s why he said, “Not all of you are clean.”
12 When Jesus[d] had washed their feet and put on his outer robe, he sat down again and told them, “Do you realize what I’ve done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right[e] because that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you must also wash one another’s feet. 15 I’ve set an example for you, so that you may do as I have done to you. 16 Truly, I tell all of you[f] emphatically, a servant isn’t greater than his master, and a messenger isn’t greater than the one who sent him. 17 If you understand these things, how blessed you are if you put them into practice! 18 I’m not talking about all of you. I know the ones I have chosen. But the Scripture must be fulfilled: ‘The one who ate bread with me[g] has turned against me.’[h] 19 I’m telling you this now, before it happens, so that when it does happen, you may believe that I AM. 20 Truly, I tell all of you[i] emphatically, the one who receives whomever I send receives me, and the one who receives me receives the one who sent me.”
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