2 Chronicles 19-23

GOD’S WORD Translation

King Jehoshaphat’s Religious Reforms

19 King Jehoshaphat of Judah returned safely to his home in Jerusalem. ² Jehu, son of the seer ^[a] Hanani, asked King Jehoshaphat, “Why do you help wicked people and love those who hate the Lord? The Lord’s anger is directed toward you because you have done this. ³ However, you’ve done some good things: You’ve burned the Asherah poles in this country, and you’ve wholeheartedly dedicated your life to serving God.”

⁴ While Jehoshaphat was living in Jerusalem, he regularly went to the people between Beersheba and the mountains of Ephraim. He brought the people back to the Lord God of their ancestors. ⁵ He appointed judges in the country, in each fortified city of Judah. ⁶ He told the judges, “Pay attention to what you’re doing. When you judge, you aren’t doing it for a human but for the Lord. He will be with you when you hear a case. ⁷ May you have the fear of the Lord in you. Be careful about what you do. The Lord our God is never unjust. He is impartial and never takes bribes.”

⁸ In Jerusalem Jehoshaphat also appointed some Levites, priests, and family heads from Israel to administer the Lord’s laws and decide cases. They lived in Jerusalem. ⁹ He ordered them, “Do this wholeheartedly—with the fear of the Lord and with faithfulness. ¹⁰ Warn your relatives living in other cities about every case they bring to you, even if the case involves bloodshed or commands, rules, or regulations derived from Moses’ Teachings. Then your relatives will not become guilty in front of the Lord. Otherwise, he will become angry with you and your relatives. Do this, and you won’t be guilty ⌞of anything⌟. ¹¹ Now, the chief priest Amariah will be in charge of you in every matter involving the Lord. Zebadiah, who is the son of Ishmael and the leader of the tribe of Judah, will be in charge of every matter involving the king. The Levites will serve as officers of the court. Be strong, and do your job. May the Lord be with those who do right.”

King Jehoshaphat Defeats Judah’s Enemies

20 Later the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites ^[b] came to wage war against Jehoshaphat. ² Some men reported to Jehoshaphat, “A large crowd is coming against you from the other side of the Dead Sea, from Edom.^[c] The crowd is already in Hazazon Tamar” (also called En Gedi).

³ Frightened, Jehoshaphat decided to ask for the Lord’s help. He announced a fast throughout Judah. ⁴ The people of Judah gathered to seek the Lord’s help. They came from every city in Judah.

⁵ In the new courtyard at the Lord’s temple, Jehoshaphat stood in front of the people. ⁶ He said, “Lord God of our ancestors, aren’t you the God in heaven? You rule all the kingdoms of the nations. You possess power and might, and no one can oppose you. ⁷ Didn’t you, our God, force those who were living in this country out of Israel’s way? Didn’t you give this country to the descendants of your friend Abraham to have permanently? ⁸ His descendants have lived in it and built a holy temple for your name in it. They said, ⁹ ‘If evil comes in the form of war, flood,^[d] plague, or famine, we will stand in front of this temple and in front of you because your name is in this temple. We will cry out to you in our troubles, and you will hear us and save us.’

¹⁰ “The Ammonites, Moabites, and the people of Mount Seir have come here. However, you didn’t let Israel invade them when they came out of Egypt. The Israelites turned away from them and didn’t destroy them. ¹¹ They are now paying us back by coming to force us out of your land that you gave to us. ¹² You’re our God. Won’t you judge them? We don’t have the strength to face this large crowd that is attacking us. We don’t know what to do, so we’re looking to you.”

¹³ All the people from Judah, their infants, wives, and children were standing in front of the Lord. ¹⁴ Then the Lord’s Spirit came to Jahaziel. (He was the son of Zechariah, grandson of Benaiah, great-grandson of Jeiel, whose father was Mattaniah, a Levite descended from Asaph.) ¹⁵ Jahaziel said, “Pay attention to me, everyone from Judah, everyone living in Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat. This is what the Lord says to you: Don’t be frightened or terrified by this large crowd. The battle isn’t yours. It’s God’s. ¹⁶ Tomorrow go into battle against them. They will be coming up the Ziz Pass. You will find them at the end of the valley in front of the Jeruel Desert. ¹⁷ You won’t fight this battle. ⌞Instead,⌟ take your position, stand still, and see the victory of the Lord for you, Judah and Jerusalem. Don’t be frightened or terrified. Tomorrow go out to face them. The Lord is with you.”

¹⁸ Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face touching the ground. Everyone from Judah and the people who lived in Jerusalem immediately bowed down in front of the Lord. ¹⁹ The Levites, descendants of Kohath and Korah, stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with very loud songs.

²⁰ They got up early in the morning and went to the desert of Tekoa. As they were leaving, Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, people of Judah and those living in Jerusalem. Trust the Lord your God, and believe. Believe his prophets, and you will succeed.”

²¹ After he had advised the people, he appointed people to sing to the Lord and praise him for the beauty of his holiness. As they went in front of the troops, they sang, “Thank the Lord because his mercy endures forever!” ²² As they started to sing praises, the Lord set ambushes against the Ammonites, Moabites, and the people of Mount Seir who had come into Judah. They were defeated. ²³ Then the Ammonites and Moabites attacked the people from Mount Seir and annihilated them. After they had finished off the people of Seir, they helped destroy one another.

²⁴ The people of Judah went to the watchtower in the desert and looked for the crowd. Corpses were lying on the ground. No one had escaped. ²⁵ When Jehoshaphat and his troops came to take the loot, they found among them a lot of goods, clothes,^[e] and valuables. They found more than they could carry. They spent three days collecting the loot. ²⁶ On the fourth day they gathered in the valley of Beracah. Because they thanked the Lord there, that place is still called the valley of Beracah [Thanks] today.

²⁷ All the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned to Jerusalem. They rejoiced while Jehoshaphat led them. The Lord gave them a reason to rejoice about ⌞what had happened to⌟ their enemies. ²⁸ So they brought harps, lyres, and trumpets to the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem.

²⁹ The fear of the Lord came over the kingdoms in that area when they heard how the Lord waged war against Israel’s enemies. ³⁰ Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was peaceful, since his God surrounded him with peace.

Summary of Jehoshaphat’s Reign^(A)

³¹ Jehoshaphat ruled as king of Judah. He was 35 years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for 25 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah, daughter of Shilhi. ³² Jehoshaphat carefully followed the example his father Asa had set and did what the Lord considered right. ³³ But the illegal worship sites on the hills were not torn down. The people still didn’t have their hearts set on the God of their ancestors.

³⁴ Everything else about Jehoshaphat from first to last is written in the records of Jehu, son of Hanani, which is included in the Book of the Kings of Israel.

³⁵ After this, King Jehoshaphat of Judah allied himself with King Ahaziah of Israel, who led him to do evil. ³⁶ Jehoshaphat joined him in making ships to go to Tarshish. They made the ships in Ezion Geber. ³⁷ Then Eliezer, son of Dodavahu from Mareshah, prophesied against Jehoshaphat. He said, “The Lord will destroy your work because you have allied yourself with Ahaziah.” So the ships were wrecked and couldn’t go to Tarshish.

King Jehoram of Judah^(B)

21 Jehoshaphat lay down in death with his ancestors and was buried with them in the City of David. His son Jehoram succeeded him as king. ² He had the following brothers, sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariahu, Michael, and Shephatiah. All were the sons of King Jehoshaphat of Israel. ³ Their father gave them many gifts: silver, gold, and other expensive things, along with fortified cities in Judah. But Jehoshaphat gave the kingdom to Jehoram, who was the firstborn.

⁴ After Jehoram had taken over his father’s kingdom, he strengthened his position and then executed all his brothers and some of the officials of Israel. ⁵ Jehoram was 32 years old when he became king, and he ruled for 8 years in Jerusalem. ⁶ He followed the ways of the kings of Israel, as Ahab’s family had done, because his wife was Ahab’s daughter. So he did what the Lord considered evil. ⁷ But the Lord, recalling the promise ^[f] he had made to David, didn’t want to destroy David’s family. The Lord had told David that he would always give him and his descendants a ⌞shining⌟ lamp.

Edom Wins Independence from Judah^(C)

⁸ During Jehoram’s time Edom rebelled against Judah and chose its own king. ⁹ Jehoram took all his chariot commanders to attack. The Edomites and their chariot commanders surrounded him, but he got up at night and broke through their lines. ¹⁰ So Edom rebelled against Judah’s rule and is still independent today. At the same time Edom rebelled, Libnah rebelled because Jehoram had abandoned the Lord God of his ancestors. ¹¹ Jehoram made illegal places of worship in the hills of Judah. This caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to chase after foreign gods as if they were prostitutes. So he led Judah astray.

¹² Then a letter came to him from the prophet Elijah. It read, “This is what the Lord God of your ancestor David says: You haven’t followed the ways of your father Jehoshaphat or the ways of King Asa of Judah. ¹³ Instead, you have followed the ways of the kings of Israel. You, like Ahab’s family, have caused Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to chase after foreign gods as if they were prostitutes. You have killed your brothers, your father’s family. Your brothers were better than you. ¹⁴ The Lord will strike a great blow to your people, your sons, your wives, and all your property because you did this. ¹⁵ You will suffer from a chronic intestinal disease until your intestines come out.”

¹⁶ The Lord prompted the Philistines and the Arabs who lived near the people of Sudan to attack Jehoram. ¹⁷ They fought against Judah, broke into the country, and took away everything that could be found in the royal palace. They even took Jehoram’s sons and wives. The only son left was Ahaziah,^[g] Jehoram’s youngest son. ¹⁸ After this, the Lord struck Jehoram with an incurable intestinal disease. ¹⁹ Two years later, as his life was coming to an end, his intestines fell out because of his sickness. He died a painful death.

His people did not make a bonfire in his honor as they had done for his ancestors. ²⁰ He was 32 years old when he became king, and he ruled for 8 years in Jerusalem. No one was sorry to see him die. He was buried in the City of David but not in the tombs of the kings.

King Ahaziah of Judah^(D)

22 The people of Jerusalem made Jehoram’s youngest son Ahaziah king in his place, because the raiders who came to the camp with the Arabs had killed all the older sons. So Jehoram’s son Ahaziah became king of Judah. ² Ahaziah ^[h] was 42 years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for one year in Jerusalem. His mother was Athaliah, the granddaughter of Omri. ³ Ahaziah also followed the ways of Ahab’s family, because his mother gave him advice that led him to sin. ⁴ He did what the Lord considered evil, as Ahab’s family had done. After his father died, they advised him to do what Ahab’s family had done. They did this to destroy him.

⁵ Ahaziah followed their advice and went with Ahab’s son King Joram ^[i] of Israel to fight against King Hazael of Aram at Ramoth Gilead. There the Arameans wounded Joram. ⁶ Joram returned to Jezreel to let his wounds heal. (He had been wounded by the Arameans at Ramah when he fought against King Hazael of Aram.) Then Jehoram’s son Ahaziah ^[j] went to Jezreel to see Ahab’s son Joram, who was sick.

⁷ God brought about Ahaziah’s downfall when he went to Joram. He went with Joram to meet Jehu, grandson of Nimshi. (The Lord had anointed Jehu to destroy Ahab’s family.) ⁸ When Jehu was executing judgment on Ahab’s family, he found Judah’s leaders (Ahaziah’s nephews) who were serving Ahaziah, and he killed them. ⁹ He searched for Ahaziah, and Jehu’s men captured him while he was hiding in Samaria. They brought him to Jehu and killed him. Then they buried him. They explained, “Ahaziah is Jehoshaphat’s grandson. Jehoshaphat dedicated his life to serving the Lord with all his heart.” But no one in Ahaziah’s family was able to rule as king.

The Priest Jehoiada Opposes Queen Athaliah^(E)

¹⁰ When Ahaziah’s mother, Athaliah, saw that her son was dead, she began to destroy the entire royal family of the house of Judah. ¹¹ But Jehoshebath, daughter of the king and sister of Ahaziah, took Ahaziah’s son Joash. She saved him from being killed with the king’s other sons, and she put him and his nurse in a bedroom. Jehoshebath was the daughter of King Jehoram and wife of Jehoiada the priest. Because she was also Ahaziah’s sister, she hid Joash from Athaliah. So he wasn’t killed. ¹² Joash was with the priests. He was hidden in God’s temple for six years while Athaliah ruled the country.

23 In the seventh year of Athaliah’s reign, Jehoiada strengthened his position by making an agreement with the company commanders: Azariah, son of Jeroham, Ishmael, son of Jehohanan, Azariah, son of Obed, Maaseiah, son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat, son of Zichri. ² They went around Judah, gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah and the leaders of the families of Israel, and came to Jerusalem. ³ The whole assembly made an agreement with the king in God’s temple.

Then Jehoiada said to them, “Here is the king’s son. He should be king, as the Lord said about David’s descendants. ⁴ This is what you must do: One third of you, the priests and Levites who are on duty on the day of rest—a holy day, must guard the gates. ⁵ Another third must be at the royal palace. And another third must be at Foundation Gate. All the people must be in the courtyards of the Lord’s temple. ⁶ No one should come into the Lord’s temple except the priests and the Levites who are on duty with them. They may enter because they are holy, but all other people should follow the Lord’s regulations. ⁷ The Levites should surround the king. Each man should have his weapon in his hand. Kill anyone who tries to come into the temple. Stay with the king wherever he goes.”

⁸ So the Levites and all the Judeans did what the priest Jehoiada had ordered them. Each took his men who were coming on duty on the day of rest—a holy day, as well as those who were about to go off duty. Jehoiada had not dismissed the priestly divisions.

⁹ Jehoiada gave the commanders the spears and the small and large shields that had belonged to King David but were now in God’s temple. ¹⁰ All the troops stood with their weapons drawn. They were stationed around the king and around the altar and the temple (from the south side to the north side of the temple). ¹¹ Then they brought out the king’s son, gave him the crown and the religious instructions, and Jehoiada and his sons made him king by anointing him. They said, “Long live the king!”

¹² When Athaliah heard the people running and praising the king, she went into the Lord’s temple, where the people were. ¹³ She looked, and the king was standing by the pillar at the entrance. The commanders and the trumpeters were by his side. All the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets. The singers were leading the celebration with songs accompanied by musical instruments. As Athaliah tore her clothes ⌞in distress⌟, she said, “Treason, treason!”

¹⁴ Then the priest Jehoiada brought the company commanders who were in charge of the army out ⌞of the temple⌟. He said to them, “Take her out of the temple. Use your sword to kill anyone who follows her.” (The priest had said, “Don’t kill her in the Lord’s temple.”) ¹⁵ So they arrested her as she entered Horse Gate of the royal palace, and they killed her there.

¹⁶ Jehoiada made a promise to the Lord on behalf of the king and his people that they would be the Lord’s people. ¹⁷ Then all the people went to the temple of Baal and tore it down. They smashed Baal’s altars and his statues and killed Mattan, the priest of Baal, in front of the altars.

¹⁸ Next, Jehoiada appointed officials to be in charge of the Lord’s temple under the direction of the priests and Levites.^[k] (David had arranged them in divisions for the Lord’s temple. They were appointed to sacrifice burnt offerings to the Lord as it is written in Moses’ Teachings. They made these offerings with joy and singing as David had directed.) ¹⁹ Jehoiada appointed gatekeepers for the gates of the Lord’s temple so that no one who was unclean ^[l] for any reason could enter.

²⁰ He took the company commanders, the nobles, the people’s governors, and all the people of the land, and they brought the king from the Lord’s temple. They went through Upper Gate to the royal palace and seated the king on the royal throne. The nobles, the governors of the people, and ²¹ all the people of the land were celebrating. But the city was quiet because they had killed Athaliah with a sword.