Through My Bible Yr 02 – October 28

2 Chronicles 19

¹ Jehoshaphat king of Judah returned to his house in Jerusalem safely.

² Jehu son of Hanani, the seer, went out to meet King Jehoshaphat and said to him, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, wrath from the Lord is upon you. ³ Nevertheless, good things are present in you, because you destroyed the Asherah poles from the land and have set your heart to seek God.”

Jehoshaphat Appoints Judges

⁴ Jehoshaphat ruled from ^[1] Jerusalem.

He once again went out among the people, from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim, and brought them back to the Lord, the God of their fathers. ⁵ He appointed judges throughout the land in all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city.

⁶ He said to the judges, “Watch what you do, because you are not judging for the people, but for the Lord. He is with you as you judge. ⁷ Now may the dread of the Lord be upon you. Watch what you do, because there is no injustice, partiality, or taking bribes with the Lord our God.”

⁸ In Jerusalem too Jehoshaphat appointed men from the Levites, the priests, and the leading fathers of Israel to act as judges on behalf of the Lord and to settle disputes, and they presided in ^[2] Jerusalem.

⁹ He commanded them:

Jehoshaphat Defeats the Moabites and Ammonites

2 Chronicles 20

¹ After this the Moabites, the Ammonites, and some of the Meunites ^[3] with them, all came against Jehoshaphat for battle. ² Jehoshaphat was told, “A huge horde is coming against you from beyond the sea ^[4] and from Edom. ^[5] Look! They are already in Hazazon Tamar” (that is, En Gedi).

³ Jehoshaphat was afraid, but he focused on seeking the Lord. He proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. ⁴ So Judah assembled to seek help from the Lord. From all the cities of Judah people came to seek the Lord.

Jehoshaphat’s Speech

⁵ Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem in the House of the Lord in front of the new courtyard. ⁶ He said:

¹³ All Judah was standing before the Lord along with their dependents, their wives, and their children.

¹⁴ 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 from the descendants of Asaph. He was standing in the middle of the assembly. ¹⁵ He said:

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

²⁰ They got up early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa. As they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and you residents of Jerusalem. Have faith in the Lord your God, and you will find him to be faithful. Believe his prophets and you will succeed.”

²¹ After he consulted with the people, he appointed singers to sing to the Lord and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness, ^[6] as they went out ahead of the army, singing:

²² At the time when they began the jubilant songs of praise to the Lord, he set ambushes against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who were marching against Judah, and they were routed, ²³ because the men of Ammon and Moab rose up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to destroy them and wipe them out. When they were finished with the inhabitants of Seir, they helped destroy each other.

²⁴ When Judah came to a spot overlooking the wilderness and looked out toward that horde, they saw nothing but dead bodies lying on the ground. No one had escaped.

²⁵ Jehoshaphat and his people came to gather the spoils. They found huge amounts of equipment and valuables among the bodies. They collected so much for themselves that they could not carry it. It took them three days to gather the spoils because there was so much.

²⁶ On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berakah, where they blessed the Lord. That is why that place is named the Valley of Berakah ^[7] to this day.

²⁷ Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem joyfully returned to Jerusalem with Jehoshaphat at their head, because the Lord had given them reason to rejoice over their enemies. ²⁸ They came to Jerusalem to the House of the Lord with harps, lyres, and trumpets.

²⁹ The dread of the Lord was upon all the kingdoms of the lands, when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel.

³⁰ Then Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was quiet. His God gave him rest on every side.

The Summary of Jehoshaphat’s Reign

³¹ Jehoshaphat ruled as king over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled in Jerusalem for twenty-five years. His mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi.

³² He walked in the ways of his father Asa by doing what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn from it.

³³ The high places, however, were not removed. The people still did not set their hearts toward the God of their fathers.

³⁴ The rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, from first to last, are recorded in the annals of Jehu son of Hanani, which are included in the Book of the Kings of Israel.

³⁵ After this, Jehoshaphat king of Judah joined with Ahaziah king of Israel, who did wicked things. ³⁶ He joined with him to build ships to go to Tarshish. ^[8] They built the ships in Ezion Geber. ³⁷ Eliezer son of Dodavahu from Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat: “Because you joined with Ahaziah, the Lord has destroyed what you have made.” The ships were wrecked, so they were not able to go to Tarshish.