2 Chronicles 20
1 After these things, the sons of Moab, and the sons of Ammon, and with them some from the Ammonites, gathered together so that they might fight against him.
Now after this, the children of Moab and the children of Ammon, and with them some of the Meunim, made war against Jehoshaphat.
2 And messengers arrived and reported to Jehoshaphat, saying: “A great multitude has arrived against you, from those places that are across the sea, and from Syria. And behold, they are standing together at Hazazon-tamar, which is Engedi.”
And they came to Jehoshaphat with the news, saying, A great army is moving against you from Edom across the sea; and now they are in Hazazon-tamar (which is En-gedi).
3 Then Jehoshaphat, being terrified with fear, gave himself entirely to petitioning the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all of Judah.
Then Jehoshaphat, in his fear, went to the Lord for directions, and gave orders all through Judah for the people to go without food.
4 And Judah gathered together to pray to the Lord. Moreover, everyone from their cities came to beseech him.
And Judah came together to make prayer for help from the Lord; from every town of Judah they came to give worship to the Lord.
5 And when Jehoshaphat had stood up in the midst of the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new atrium,
And Jehoshaphat took his place in the meeting of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord in front of the new open space,
6 he said: “O Lord, God of our fathers, you are God in heaven, and you rule over all the kingdoms of the Gentiles. In your hand is strength and power, and no one is able to withstand you.
And said, O Lord, the God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven? are you not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? and in your hands are power and strength so that no one is able to keep his place against you.
7 Did not you, our God, put to death all the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel? And you gave it to the offspring of your friend Abraham, for all time.
Did you not, O Lord our God, after driving out the people of this land before your people Israel, give it to the seed of Abraham, your friend, for ever?
8 And they lived in it. And they built a Sanctuary to your name in it, saying:
And they made it their living-place, building there a holy house for your name, and saying,
9 ‘If evils will have fallen upon us, the sword of judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand in your sight before this house, in which your name is invoked, and we will cry out to you in our tribulations. And you will heed us and accomplish our salvation.’
If evil comes on us, the sword, or punishment, or disease, or need of food, we will come to this house and to you, (for your name is in this house, ) crying to you in our trouble, and you will give us salvation in answer to our cry.
10 Now therefore, behold the sons of Ammon, and of Moab, and mount Seir, through whose lands you did not permit Israel to cross when they were departing from Egypt. Instead, they turned aside from them, and they did not put them to death.
And now, see, the children of Ammon and Moab and the people of Mount Seir, whom you kept Israel from attacking when they came out of Egypt, so that turning to one side they did not send destruction on them:
11 They are doing the contrary, and they are striving to cast us from the possession which you delivered to us.
See now, how as our reward they have come to send us out of your land which you have given us as our heritage.
12 Therefore, will you, our God, not judge them? Certainly, in us there is not enough strength so that we would be able to withstand this multitude, which rushes against us. But although we do not know what we ought to do, we have this alone remaining, that we direct our eyes to you.”
O our God, will you not be their judge? for our strength is not equal to this great army which is coming against us; and we are at a loss what to do: but our eyes are on you.
13 Truly, all of Judah was standing before the Lord with their little ones and wives and children.
And all Judah were waiting before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.
14 But there was Jahaziel, the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite from the sons of Asaph, upon whom the Spirit of the Lord went, in the midst of the crowd.
Then, before all the meeting, the spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel, the son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite and one of the family of Asaph;
15 And he said: “Pay attention, all of Judah, and you who live in Jerusalem, and you, king Jehoshaphat. Thus says the Lord to you: Do not be afraid. Neither should you be dismayed by this multitude. For the fight is not yours, but God’s.
And he said, Give ear, O Judah, and you people of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat: the Lord says to you, Have no fear and do not be troubled on account of this great army; for the fight is not yours but God's.
16 Tomorrow, you shall descend against them. For they will ascend along the incline named Ziz, and will find them at the summit of the torrent, which is opposite the wilderness of Jeruel.
Go down against them tomorrow: see, they are coming up by the slope of Ziz; at the end of the valley, before the waste land of Jeruel, you will come face to face with them.
17 It will not be you who will fight. Instead, only stand with confidence, and you will see the help of the Lord over you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid. Neither should you be dismayed. Tomorrow you shall go forth against them, and the Lord will be with you.”
There will be no need for you to take up arms in this fight; put yourselves in position, and keep where you are, and you will see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: have no fear and do not be troubled: go out against them tomorrow, for the Lord is with you.
18 Then Jehoshaphat, and Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell prone on the ground before the Lord, and they adored him.
Then Jehoshaphat went down with his face to the earth, and all Judah and the people of Jerusalem gave worship to the Lord, falling down before him.
19 And the Levites from the sons of Kohath, and from the sons of Korah, were praising the Lord, the God of Israel, with a great voice, on high.
And the Levites, the children of the Kohathites and the Korahites, got to their feet and gave praise to the Lord, the God of Israel, with a loud voice.
20 And when they had risen up in the morning, they went out through the desert of Tekoa. And as they were setting out, Jehoshaphat, standing in their midst, said: “Listen to me, men of Judah and all inhabitants of Jerusalem. Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be secure. Believe in his prophets, and everything will come to prosperity.”
And early in the morning they got up and went out to the waste land of Tekoa: and when they were going out, Jehoshaphat took his station and said to them, Give ear to me, O Judah and you people of Jerusalem: have faith in the Lord your God and you will be safe; have faith in his prophets and all will go well for you.
21 And he gave counsel to the people. And he appointed the singing men of the Lord, so that they would praise him by their companies, and so that they would go before the army, and with one voice say: “Confess to the Lord. For his mercy is eternal.”
And after discussion with the people, he put in their places those who were to make melody to the Lord, praising him in holy robes, while they went at the head of the army, and saying, May the Lord be praised, for his mercy is unchanging for ever.
22 And when they had begun to sing praises, the Lord turned their ambushes upon themselves, that is, those of the sons of Ammon, and of Moab, and of mount Seir, who had gone forth so that they might fight against Judah. And they were struck down.
And at the first notes of song and praise the Lord sent a surprise attack against the children of Ammon and Moab and the people of Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were overcome.
23 For the sons of Ammon and of Moab rose up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, so that they might slay and destroy them. And when they had perpetrated this work, now also turning upon themselves, they cut one another with wounds.
And the children of Ammon and Moab made an attack on the people of Mount Seir with a view to their complete destruction; and when they had put an end to the people of Seir, everyman's hand was turned against his neighbour for his destruction.
24 Then, when Judah had gone to the high point that looks out toward the desert, they saw, from far away, the entire wide region filled with dead bodies. Neither was there anyone who was left alive and had been able to escape death.
And Judah came to the watchtower of the waste land, and looking in the direction of the army, they saw only dead bodies stretched on the earth; no living man was to be seen.
25 Therefore, Jehoshaphat went, and all the people with him, in order to take away the spoils of the dead. And they found, among the dead bodies, diverse equipment, and also garments, and very precious vessels. And they despoiled these, to such an extent that they were unable to carry everything. Neither could they, over three days, take away the spoils because of the magnitude of the plunder.
And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take their goods from them, they saw beasts in great numbers, and wealth and clothing and things of value, more than they were able to take away; all this they took for themselves, and they were three days getting it away, there was so much.
26 Then, on the fourth day, they were gathered together in the Valley of Blessing. For they had blessed the Lord there, and therefore they called that place the Valley of Blessing, even to the present day.
On the fourth day they all came together in the Valley of Blessing, and there they gave blessing to the Lord; for which cause that place has been named the Valley of Blessing to this day.
27 And every man of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, returned, with Jehoshaphat before them, to Jerusalem, with great rejoicing. For the Lord had granted to them gladness concerning their enemies.
Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem went back, with Jehoshaphat at their head, coming back to Jerusalem with joy; for the Lord had made them glad over their haters.
28 And they entered into Jerusalem with psalteries, and harps, and trumpets, into the house of the Lord.
So they came to Jerusalem with corded instruments and wind-instruments into the house of the Lord.
29 Then the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands, when they had heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel.
And the fear of God came on all the kingdoms of the lands, when they had news of how the Lord made war on those who came against Israel.
30 And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was quiet. And God granted to him peace on all sides.
So the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for the Lord gave him rest on every side.
31 And so Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah. And he was thirty-five years old when he had begun to reign. Then he reigned for twenty-five years in Jerusalem. And the name of his mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.
And Jehoshaphat was king over Judah: he was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he was ruling for twenty-five years in Jerusalem: his mother's name was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.
32 And he walked in the way of his father, Asa, and he did not decline from it, doing the things that were pleasing before the Lord.
He went in the ways of his father Asa, not turning away, but doing right in the eyes of the Lord.
33 Yet truly, he did not take away the high places, and the people still had not directed their heart to the Lord, the God of their fathers.
The high places, however, were not taken away, and the hearts of the people were still not true to the God of their fathers.
34 But the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, the first and the last, have been written in the words of Jehu, the son of Hanani, which he digested into the books of the kings of Israel.
Now as for the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last, they are recorded in the words of Jehu, the son of Hanani, which were put in the book of the kings of Israel.
35 After these things, Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, formed a friendship with Ahaziah, the king of Israel, whose works were very impious.
After this Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, became friends with Ahaziah, king of Israel, who did much evil:
36 And he was a partner in the making of ships, which would go to Tarshish. And they made the fleet at Eziongeber.
Together they made ships to go to Tarshish, building them in Ezion-geber.
37 Then Eliezer, the son of Dodavahu, from Mareshah, prophesied to Jehoshaphat, saying: “Because you have made a pact with Ahaziah, the Lord has struck your works, and the ships have been broken, and they have not been able to go to Tarshish.”
Then the word of Eliezer the prophet, the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah, came against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because you have let yourself be joined with Ahaziah, the Lord has sent destruction on your works. And the ships were broken and were not able to go to Tarshish.
