2 Chronicles 20

2 Chronicles Chapter 20 KJV

1Jehoshaphat invaded by the Moabites and others in his fear proclaimeth a fast. 5His prayer. 14The prophecy of Jahaziel. 20Jehoshaphat exhorteth the people, and appointeth singers to praise the Lord. 22The enemies destroy one another, and leave much spoil for Israel. 26The people, having blessed God at Berachah, return in triumph, and dwell unmolested. 31Jehoshaphat's good reign and acts. 35He joineth with Ahaziah in sending ships to Tarshish, which, according to the prediction of Eliezer, are wrecked.
1 It came to pass after this also, that 1the children of Moab, and the children of 2Ammon, and with them other beside the Ammonites, came 3against Jehoshaphat to battle.
2 Then there came some that told Jehoshaphat, saying, There cometh a great multitude against thee from beyond the sea on this side Syria; and, behold, they be in 1Hazazon-tamar, which is 2En-gedi.
3 And Jehoshaphat 1feared, and set ahimself to seek the Lord, and 2proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.
4 And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the Lord: even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.
5 ¶ And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court,
6 And said, O Lord God of our fathers, art not thou 1God in heaven? and 2rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee?
7 art not thou 1our God, awho didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and 2gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy 3friend 4for ever?
8 And they dwelt therein, and have 1built thee a sanctuary therein for thy name, saying,
9 If, when 1evil cometh upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand 2before this house, and in thy presence, (for 3thy name is in this house,) and cry unto thee in our affliction, then thou wilt hear and help.
10 And now, behold, the children of 1Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou 2wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not;
11 Behold, I say, how 1they reward us, to come 2to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit.
12 O our God, wilt thou not 1judge them? for 2we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; 3neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee.
13 And 1all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.
14 ¶ Then 1upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, 2came the Spirit of the Lord in the midst of the congregation;
15 And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the Lord unto you, 1Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for 2the battle is not yours, but 3God's.
16 To morrow go ye down against them: behold, they come up by the acliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them at the end of the bbrook, before the wilderness of Jeruel.
17 Ye 1shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you.
18 And Jehoshaphat 1bowed his head with his face to the ground: and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell before the Lord, worshipping the Lord.
19 And 1the Levites, of the children of the 2Kohathites, and of the children of the 3Korhites, stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voice on high.
20 ¶ And they 1rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of 2Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; 3Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.
21 And when he 1had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and athat should praise the 2beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, 3Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever.
22 ¶ And awhen they began bto sing and to praise, the Lord 1set ambushments against the children of 2Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and cthey were smitten.
23 For the children of Ammon and Moab 1stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly ato slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.
24 And when Judah came toward the watch tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the multitude, and, behold, they were 1dead bodies fallen to the earth, and anone escaped.
25 And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and 1precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much.
26 ¶ And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of aBerachah; for there they blessed the Lord: therefore 1the name of the same place was called, The valley of Berachah, unto this day.
27 Then they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat in the aforefront of them, to go again to Jerusalem with joy; for the Lord 1had made them to rejoice over their enemies.
28 And they came to Jerusalem with 1psalteries and harps and trumpets unto the house of the Lord.
29 And the 1fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries, when they had heard that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel.
30 So the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet: for his God 1gave him rest round about.
31 ¶ And 1Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah: he was thirty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi.
32 And he 1walked in the way of Asa his father, and departed not from it, doing that which was right in the sight of the Lord.
33 Howbeit the 1high places were not taken away: for as yet the people 2had not prepared their hearts unto the God of their fathers.
34 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last, behold, they are written in the abook of Jehu the son of Hanani, who bis mentioned in the 1book of the kings of Israel.
35 ¶ And after this 1did Jehoshaphat king of Judah join himself with Ahaziah king of Israel, who did very wickedly:
36 And he joined himself with him to make ships to go to 1Tarshish: and they made the ships in 2Ezion-geber.
37 Then Eliezer the son of Dodavah of 1Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, Be-cause thou hast 2joined thyself with Ahaziah, the Lord 3hath broken thy works. And the ships were broken, that they were not able to go to Tarshish.
2 Chronicles 20