2 ChroniclesChapter 20

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¹After this, the Moabites and Ammonites came to make war on Jehoshaphat. Some of the Meunites came with them. ²Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, "A huge army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Sea. They are already in Hazazon-tamar." (That is En-gedi.) ³Jehoshaphat was afraid. He set his mind to seek the LORD. He called for a fast all over Judah. ⁴So the people of Judah came together to seek the LORD. They came from every city of Judah to seek him. ⁵Then Jehoshaphat stood up among the people of Judah and Jerusalem. They were gathered at the house of the LORD, in front of the new courtyard. ⁶He said, "O LORD, God of our fathers, aren't you the God in heaven? Don't you rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and strength are in your hand. No one can stand against you. ⁷Our God, didn't you drive out the people of this land in front of your people Israel? Didn't you give it forever to the children of Abraham your friend? ⁸They have lived in the land. They built a holy place in it for your Name. They said, ⁹'If disaster comes on us, whether sword or judgment, sickness or hunger, we will stand in front of this temple and before you. For your Name is in this temple. We will cry out to you in our trouble, and you will hear us and save us.' ¹⁰Now here are the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir. When Israel came out of Egypt, you did not let them invade these lands. So Israel turned away from them and did not destroy them. ¹¹See how they are paying us back! They are coming to drive us out of the land you gave us to own. ¹²Our God, won't you judge them? We have no power against this huge army that is coming against us. We don't know what to do, but our eyes are on you." ¹³All the men of Judah were standing before the LORD. Their wives and children and little ones were there too. ¹⁴Then the Spirit of the LORD came on Jahaziel as he stood among the people. Jahaziel was the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah. He was a Levite from the family of Asaph. ¹⁵He said, "Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: 'Do not be afraid or lose heart because of this huge army. The battle is not yours. It is God's. ¹⁶Tomorrow, march down against them. You will see them coming up the Pass of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the valley, facing the Wilderness of Jeruel. ¹⁷You will not need to fight this battle. Take your places. Stand firm. Watch the LORD save you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or lose heart. Go out and face them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you.'" ¹⁸Then Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground. All the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down before the LORD to worship him. ¹⁹Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up. They praised the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud shout. ²⁰Early in the morning they got up and went out to the Wilderness of Tekoa. As they left, Jehoshaphat stood up and said, "Listen to me, people of Judah and Jerusalem. Believe in the LORD your God, and you will stand firm. Believe his prophets, and you will win." ²¹Jehoshaphat talked with the people. Then he chose singers to sing to the LORD. They were to praise the beauty of his holiness. They went out ahead of the army, singing, "Give thanks to the LORD, for his faithful love lasts forever." ²²As soon as they began to shout and praise, the LORD set traps against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir. These men had come to attack Judah. And they were beaten. ²³The men of Ammon and Moab turned on the people of Mount Seir. They set them apart to be destroyed. When they had wiped out the people of Seir, they helped destroy each other. ²⁴The men of Judah came to a place that looked out over the wilderness. They looked for the huge army. But they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground. No one had escaped. ²⁵So Jehoshaphat and his people went to take what was left behind. Among the bodies they found lots of goods and valuable things. It was more than they could carry away. It took them three days to gather it all because there was so much. ²⁶On the fourth day they gathered in the Valley of Beracah. There they blessed the LORD. That is why the place is still called the Valley of Beracah today.a ²⁷Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem went back to Jerusalem full of joy. Jehoshaphat led them. They were glad because the LORD had given them joy over their enemies. ²⁸They came into Jerusalem and went to the house of the LORD. They played harps, lyres, and trumpets. ²⁹All the kingdoms of the lands heard that the LORD had fought against Israel's enemies. And the fear of God came on them. ³⁰Then Jehoshaphat's kingdom had peace, because his God had given him rest on every side. ³¹So Jehoshaphat ruled over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king. He ruled in Jerusalem twenty-five years. His mother's name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. ³²Jehoshaphat lived the way his father Asa did and did not turn from it. He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD. ³³But the high places were not taken away. The people had still not set their hearts on the God of their fathers. ³⁴The rest of what Jehoshaphat did, from first to last, is written down. It is in the records of Jehu son of Hanani. These are part of the Book of the Kings of Israel. ³⁵Later, Jehoshaphat king of Judah joined with Ahaziah king of Israel. Ahaziah was a wicked king. ³⁶They agreed to make ships to sail to Tarshish. The ships were built in Ezion-geber. ³⁷Then Eliezer son of Dodavahu from Mareshah spoke as a prophet against Jehoshaphat. He said, "You have joined with Ahaziah. So the LORD has destroyed what you made." So the ships were wrecked and could not sail to Tarshish.