20
Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir Defeated
1It happened after this that the people of #1 Chr. 18:2Moab with the people of #1 Chr. 19:15Ammon, and others with them besides the #2 Chr. 26:7Ammonites, came to battle against Jehoshaphat. 2Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, “A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, from Syria; and they are #Gen. 14:7in Hazazon Tamar” (which is #Josh. 15:62En Gedi). 3And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to #2 Chr. 19:3seek the Lord, and #1 Sam. 7:6; Ezra 8:21; Jer. 36:9; Jon. 3:5proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. 4So Judah gathered together to ask #2 Chr. 14:11help from the Lord; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.
5Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court, 6and said: “O Lord God of our fathers, are You not #Deut. 4:39; Josh. 2:11; (1 Kin. 8:23); Matt. 6:9God in heaven, and #Ps. 22:28; 47:2, 8; Dan. 4:17, 25, 32do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and #1 Chr. 29:12; 2 Chr. 25:8; Ps. 62:11; Matt. 6:13in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand You? 7Are You not #Gen. 13:14–17; 17:7; Ex. 6:7our God, who #Ps. 44:2drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham #Is. 41:8; James 2:23Your friend forever? 8And they dwell in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name, saying, 9#1 Kin. 8:33, 37; 2 Chr. 6:28–30‘If disaster comes upon us—sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine—we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your #2 Chr. 6:20name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.’ 10And now, here are the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir—whom You #Deut. 2:4, 9, 19would not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but #Num. 20:21they turned from them and did not destroy them— 11here they are, rewarding us #Ps. 83:1–18by coming to throw us out of Your possession which You have given us to inherit. 12O our God, will You not #Judg. 11:27; (1 Sam. 3:13)judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but #Ps. 25:15; 121:1, 2; 123:1, 2; 141:8our eyes are upon You.”
13Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the Lord.
14Then #Num. 11:25, 26; 24:2; 2 Chr. 15:1; 24:20the 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 of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly. 15And he said, “Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the Lord to you: #Ex. 14:13, 14; (Deut. 1:29, 30; 31:6, 8); 2 Chr. 32:7‘Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, #1 Sam. 17:47; Zech. 14:3for the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16Tomorrow go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before the Wilderness of Jeruel. 17#Ex. 14:13, 14You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the Lord, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, #Num. 14:9; (2 Chr. 15:2; 32:8)for the Lord is with you.”
18And Jehoshaphat #Ex. 4:31; 2 Chr. 7:3; 29:28bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem bowed before the Lord, worshiping the Lord. 19Then the Levites of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with voices loud and high.
20So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: #Is. 7:9Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” 21And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, #1 Chr. 16:29; Ps. 29:2; 90:17; 96:9; 110:3and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying:
#1 Chr. 16:34; Ps. 106:1; 136:1“Praise the Lord,
#1 Chr. 16:41; 2 Chr. 5:13For His mercy endures forever.”
22Now when they began to sing and to praise, #Judg. 7:22; 1 Sam. 14:20the Lord set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated. 23For the people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, #Judg. 7:22; 1 Sam. 14:20they helped to destroy one another.
24So when Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; and there were their dead bodies, fallen on the earth. No one had escaped.
25When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away their spoil, they found among them an abundance of valuables on the dead bodies, and precious jewelry, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away; and they were three days gathering the spoil because there was so much. 26And on the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berachah, for there they blessed the Lord; therefore the name of that place was called The Valley of Berachah until this day. 27Then they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat in front of them, to go back to Jerusalem with joy, for the Lord had #Neh. 12:43made them rejoice over their enemies. 28So they came to Jerusalem, with stringed instruments and harps and trumpets, to the house of the Lord. 29And #2 Chr. 14:14; 17:10the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel. 30Then the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his #1 Kin. 22:41–43; 2 Chr. 14:6, 7; 15:15; Job 34:29God gave him rest all around.
The End of Jehoshaphat’s Reign
31#(1 Kin. 22:41–43)So Jehoshaphat was king over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. 32And he walked in the way of his father #2 Chr. 14:2Asa, and did not turn aside from it, doing what was right in the sight of the Lord. 33Nevertheless #2 Chr. 15:17; 17:6the high places were not taken away, for as yet the people had not #2 Chr. 12:14; 19:3directed their hearts to the God of their fathers.
34Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last, indeed they are written in the book of Jehu the son of Hanani, #1 Kin. 16:1, 7which is mentioned in the book of the kings of Israel.
35After this #2 Chr. 18:1Jehoshaphat king of Judah allied himself with Ahaziah king of Israel, #1 Kin. 22:48–53who acted very #(2 Chr. 19:2)wickedly. 36And he allied himself with him #1 Kin. 9:26; 10:22to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Ezion Geber. 37But Eliezer the son of Dodavah of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have allied yourself with Ahaziah, the Lord has destroyed your works.” #1 Kin. 22:48Then the ships were wrecked, so that they were not able to go #2 Chr. 9:21to Tarshish.
