2 Chronicles 20
1 Then, after this, the Moabites and Ammonites, as well as some of the Meunites, came to attack Jehoshaphat.
And it comes to pass after this, the sons of Moab have come in, and the sons of Ammon, and with them of the peoples, to battle against Jehoshaphat.
2 Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A large army is coming to fight you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea. They have already reached Hazazon-tamar,” (otherwise called En-gedi).
And [some] come in and declare [it] to Jehoshaphat, saying, “A great multitude has come against you from beyond the sea, from Aram, and behold, they [are] in Hazezon-Tamar—it [is] En-Gedi.”
3 Jehoshaphat was afraid, and went to ask the Lord what to do. He also ordered everyone throughout Judah to fast.
And Jehoshaphat fears, and sets his face to seek for YHWH, and proclaims a fast over all Judah;
4 So the people of Judah gathered in Jerusalem to pray to the Lord—in fact, they came from all the towns of Judah to commit themselves to him.
and Judah is gathered to inquire of YHWH; also, from all the cities of Judah they have come to seek YHWH.
5 Jehoshaphat stood before the assembled people of Judah and Jerusalem at the Temple, in front of the new courtyard,
And Jehoshaphat stands in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of YHWH, at the front of the new court,
6 and said, “Lord, God of our forefathers, aren't you the God of heaven? Don't you rule over all earthly kingdoms? You possess strength and power, and no one can stand against you!
and says, “O YHWH, God of our fathers, are You not God in the heavens? Indeed, You are ruling over all kingdoms of the nations, and power and might [are] in Your hand, and there is none with You to station himself.
7 Our God, didn't you drive out before your people Israel those who living in this land? Didn't you give this land to the descendants of your friend Abraham forever?
Are You not our God? You have dispossessed the inhabitants of this land from before Your people Israel, and give it to the seed of Your friend Abraham for all time,
8 They are living in the land and have built a Temple for you here to honor you, saying,
and they dwell in it, and build a sanctuary in it for You, for Your Name, saying,
9 ‘If disaster strikes us, whether it's invasion or judgment, disease or famine, we will stand in front of this Temple and before you, for this Temple is yours. We will cry out to you to help us in our suffering, and you will hear us and save us.’
If evil comes on us—sword, judgment, and pestilence, and famine—we stand before this house, and before You, for Your Name [is] in this house, and cry to You out of our distress, and You hear and save.
10 Look, here come the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, those very countries you did not let Israel invade when they came out of Egypt. Israel left them alone and did not destroy them.
And now, behold, sons of Ammon, and Moab, and Mount Seir, whom You did not grant to Israel to go in against in their coming out of the land of Egypt, for they turned aside from off them and did not destroy them,
11 See how they're rewarding us, coming to steal the land you gave us to possess forever!
and behold, they are repaying to us—to come to drive us out of Your possession that You have caused us to possess.
12 Our God, won't you punish them, because we don't have the power to confront such a great army that is marching against us? We don't know what to do. We're looking to you for help.”
O our God, do You not execute judgment on them? For there is no power in us before this great multitude that has come against us, and we do not know what we do, but our eyes [are] on You.”
13 All the men of Judah stood before the Lord, together with their wives and children and babies.
And all Judah is standing before YHWH, also their infants, their wives, and their sons.
14 Then the Spirit of the Lord came over Jahaziel while he was standing there in the assembly. He was the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite from the descendants of Asaph.
And the Spirit of YHWH has been on Jahaziel, son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, the Levite, of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly,
15 He said, “Listen, everyone from Judah, people of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat. This is what the Lord has to say to you: Don't be afraid or discouraged because of this large army. This isn't your battle—it's God's!
and he says, “Attend, all Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and O King Jehoshaphat, Thus said YHWH to you: You do not fear, nor be afraid of the face of this great multitude, for the battle [is] not for you, but for God.
16 Tomorrow march down to face them. You will see them coming up the pass at Ziz—you'll find them at the end of the valley in front of the desert of Jeruel.
Tomorrow, go down against them, behold, they are coming up by the ascent of Ziz, and you have found them in the end of the valley, the front of the wilderness of Jeruel.
17 But you do not need to fight this battle. Just stand still and watch the Lord's victory. He is with you, Judah and Jerusalem! Don't be afraid or discouraged! March down to face them, for the Lord is with you!”
[It is] not for you to fight in this; station yourselves, stand, and see the salvation of YHWH with you, O Judah and Jerusalem—do not be afraid nor fear—tomorrow go out before them, and YHWH [is] with you.”
18 Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell to the ground before the Lord, worshiping him.
And Jehoshaphat bows—face to the earth—and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem have fallen before YHWH, to bow themselves to YHWH.
19 Then the Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, shouting loudly.
And the Levites, of the sons of the Kohathites, and of the sons of the Korahites, rise to give praise to YHWH, God of Israel, with a loud voice on high.
20 They got up early the next morning and went to the desert of Tekoa. As they left, Jehoshaphat stood up and said, “Listen to me, people of Judah and Jerusalem. Trust in the Lord your God, and you will be vindicated; trust in his prophets, and you will be successful.”
And they rise early in the morning, and go out to the wilderness of Tekoa, and in their going out Jehoshaphat has stood and says, “Hear me, O Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, remain steadfast in your God YHWH, and be steadfast; remain steadfast in His prophets and prosper.”
21 After discussion with the people, he appointed singers to praise the Lord for his glorious, holy goodness. They led the way at the front of the army, singing, “Praise the Lord, for his trustworthy love lasts forever!”
And he takes counsel with the people, and appoints singers for YHWH, and those giving praise for the honor of holiness, in the going out before the armed [men], and saying, “Give thanks to YHWH, for His kindness [is] for all time.”
22 As soon as they started singing and praising, the Lord ambushed the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir who were coming to attack Judah, and they were defeated.
And at the time they have begun with singing and praise, YHWH has put ambushes against the sons of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who are coming in to Judah, and they are struck,
23 The men of Ammon and Moab turned on the men from Mount Seir, killing all of them. Once they'd finished wiping out the army from Seir, they turned on each other, destroying themselves.
and the sons of Ammon stand up, and Moab, against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, to devote and to destroy, and at their finishing with the inhabitants of Seir, they helped, a man against his neighbor, to destroy.
24 So when the men of Judah came to the watchtower in the desert, they looked out to see the enemy army and all they saw were corpses lying on the ground! No one had escaped.
And Judah has come to the watchtower in the wilderness, and they look toward the multitude, and behold, they [are] carcasses fallen to the earth, and none [had] an escape,
25 When Jehoshaphat and his people came to collect the plunder, they found a great deal of cattle, equipment, clothing, and other valuable articles, more than they could carry. It took three days to collect the plunder because there was so much of it.
and Jehoshaphat comes in, and his people, to seize their spoil, and they find among them, in abundance, both goods and carcasses, and desirable vessels, and they take spoil for themselves without prohibition, and they are seizing the spoil [for] three days, for it [is] abundant.
26 On the fourth day they gathered in the Valley of Blessing. They gave it this name because this was where they blessed the Lord. It is still called the Valley of Blessing to this day.
And on the fourth day they have been assembled at the Valley of Blessing, for there they blessed YHWH: therefore they have called the name of that place, “Valley of Blessing,” to this day.
27 Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem celebrated as they returned to Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat leading them, full of joy for the Lord's victory over their enemies.
And they return, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat at their head, to go back to Jerusalem with joy, for YHWH has made them rejoice over their enemies.
28 They entered Jerusalem and went straight to the Temple of Lord, accompanied by music from harps, lyres, and trumpets.
And they come to Jerusalem with psalteries, and with harps, and with trumpets, to the house of YHWH.
29 All the kingdoms around were in awe of God when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel.
And there is a fear of God on all kingdoms of the lands in their hearing that YHWH has fought with the enemies of Israel,
30 Jehoshaphat and his kingdom were at peace, for God gave him rest—there were no attacks from any direction.
and the kingdom of Jehoshaphat is quiet, and his God gives rest to him all around.
31 So Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah, having become king when he was thirty-five years, and he reigned in Jerusalem for twenty-five years. His mother's name was Azubah, daughter of Shilhi.
And Jehoshaphat reigns over Judah, a son of thirty-five years in his reigning, and he has reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother [is] Azubah daughter of Shilhi.
32 Jehoshaphat followed the way of his father Asa and did not turn away from it. He did what was right in the Lord's sight.
And he walks in the way of his father Asa, and has not turned aside from it, to do that which is right in the eyes of YHWH.
33 However, the high places were not removed, and the people were not committed to the God of their forefathers.
Only, the high places have not been removed, and still the people have not prepared their heart for the God of their fathers.
34 The rest of what Jehoshaphat did, from beginning to end, is written down in the chronicles of Jehu, son of Hanani, recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel.
And the rest of the matters of Jehoshaphat, the first and the last, behold, they are written among the matters of Jehu son of Hanani, who has been mentioned on the scroll of the kings of Israel.
35 Later in his life, Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, allied himself with Ahaziah, king of Israel, who did wicked things.
And after this Jehoshaphat king of Judah has joined himself with Ahaziah king of Israel (he did wickedly in doing [this]),
36 They agreed to work together and send ships to Tarshish. The ships were built in Ezion-geber.
and he joins him with himself to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they make ships in Ezion-Geber,
37 But Eliezer, son of Dodavahu of Mareshah, prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have made an alliance with Ahaziah, the Lord will destroy what you're doing.” The ships were wrecked and couldn't sail to Tarshish.
and Eliezer son of Dodavah, of Mareshah, prophesies against Jehoshaphat, saying, “For your joining yourself with Ahaziah, YHWH has broken up your works”; and the ships are broken, and have not retained [power] to go to Tarshish.
