2 Chronicles 20:1-37 When Attackers Approached Jehoshaphat & All Judah Returned to the Lord

When Attackers Approached Jehoshaphat & All Judah Returned to the Lord

2 Chronicles 20:1-37                    2 Chronicles in [Smaller Chunks]

It also [happened] after this, that the children, [a.k.a. people:] of Moab & Ammon, with others [in addition to] the Ammonites, came with them to battle against Jehoshaphat. Then, [someone] came there, [who] told Jehoshaphat, saying, A [large] multitude against you, [comes] there from beyond the sea on this side of Syria. And [look,] they [are] in Hazazon Tamar, which is Engedi.

[And Jehoshaphat [was afraid, & prepared] himself to seek the Lord, & proclaimed a fast throughout all [of] Judah. And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask [for] the [Lord’s] help. They came to seek the Lord, even out of all the cities of Judah.

And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah & Jerusalem, in the [Lords] house, [in front of] the new [courtyard,] & said, O Lord God of our [forefathers, aren’t] You, God, in heaven?

[Don’t] You [rule] over all the kingdoms of the heathen? And in Your hand, isn’t there power & might, so that none [are] able to [stand against] You? [Aren’t] You our God, Who [drove] out the inhabitants of this land [in front of] Your people, Israel, & [gave] it to seed, [a.k.a. the descendants,] of Abraham, Your friend forever?

And they [lived in it,] & have built You a sanctuary [there,] for Your Name, saying, If, & when evil [comes] upon us, [like:] the sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine, & [if] we stand [in front of] this house, in Your presence, (for Your Name is in this house,) & cry [out] to You in our affliction, then You [will] hear & help [us.]

And now, [see,] the children, [a.k.a. people,] of: Ammon, Moab, & Mount Seir, whom You [wouldn’t] let Israel invade, when [the Israelites] came out of the land of Egypt, but the [Israelites] turned from them, & [didn’t destroy] them.

I say, [Look,] how they reward us. [They’ve] come to cast us out of Your possession, which You [have] given us to inherit. O our God, [won’t] You judge them? For we have no [strength] against this [large] company that [comes] against us. Neither [do] we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.

And all Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, & their children. Then, in the midst of the congregation, the [Holy] Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel, [Zechariah’s] son. [Zechariah was] the son of Benaiah. [Beniah was] the son of Jeiel. [Jeiel was] the son of Mattaniah, a Levite [from] the sons, [a.k.a. descendants,] of Asaph.

And [Jahaziel] said, [Listen,] all you inhabitants of: Judah & Jerusalem, & you, king Jehoshaphat. The Lord [says this] to you, [Don’t] be afraid, nor [worried, because] of this [large] multitude; for the battle isn’t yours, but God’s. Tomorrow, you go down against them.

[Look,] they [will] come up by the Cliff of Ziz; & you shall find them at the end of the brook, [in front of] the Wilderness of Jeruel. You shall not need to fight in this battle. [Position] yourselves, & you stand still, & see the Salvation of the Lord, [Who is:] with you, O Judah & Jerusalem. [Don’t be fearful, nor discouraged.]

Tomorrow, go out against them: for the Lord will be with you. And Jehoshaphat bowed his head, [facing] the ground, & all Judah & the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell [down] before the Lord, worshiping the Lord.

And the Levites, of the children, [a.k.a. people,] of: the Kohathites, & the Korhites, stood up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voice on high. And they rose [up] early in the morning, & went [forward] into the Wilderness of Tekoa.

And as they went [forward,] Jehoshaphat stood & said, Hear me, O Judah, & you inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the Lord your God, so you shall be established. Believe His prophets, so you shall prosper.

And when [king Jehoshaphat] had consulted with the people, he appointed singers to the Lord, [so they] [could] praise the beauty of [the Lord God’s] holiness, [while] they went out, [in front of] the army, & [said,] Praise the Lord; for His mercy [endures] forever.

And when they began to sing & to praise, the Lord set [ambushes] against the children, [a.k.a. people,] of: Ammon, Moab, & Mount Seir, [who had] come against Judah, & they were [defeated.]

For the [people] of: Ammon & Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, [totally slaying & destroying] them. And when they had [finished] [killing] the inhabitants of [Mount] Seir, everyone helped to destroy [each other.]

And when Judah came toward the Watch Tower in the Wilderness, they looked [at] the multitude, & [saw,] they were [all] dead bodies, fallen to the [ground,] & none escaped.

And when Jehoshaphat & his people came to take away the [plunder from] them, they found among the dead bodies, [an] abundance [of:] riches, & precious jewels, which they stripped off [the dead, & took plunder] for themselves, more than they could carry away.

They were [there] 3 days gathering the [plunder.] And on the 4th day, they assembled themselves in the Valley of Berachah, [a.k.a. Blessing;] for they blessed the Lord [God] there. [That’s why] the name of the same place was called, The Valley of Berachah, to this day.

Then, Jehoshaphat [was in the front of] them, [when] every man of Judah & Jerusalem, returned again to Jerusalem with joy. For the Lord had made them rejoice over their enemies.

[Nehemiah 12:43 Also, that day, they offered great sacrifices, & rejoiced with great joy. The wives, & also the children rejoiced: so that the joy of Jerusalem was even heard [far away.]

And they came to Jerusalem with [lyres,] harps, & trumpets to the [Lord’s] house. And the fear, [a.k.a. respect,] of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries, when they heard that the Lord [God] had fought against the enemies of Israel.

So, [Jehoshaphat’s kingdom] was quiet, for his God gave him rest, [a.k.a. peace, all around.] And Jehoshaphat [ruled] over Judah. He was 35 years old when he began to [rule,] & he [ruled] 25 years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.

And [king Jehoshaphat] walked, [a.k.a. followed,] in the [paths] of his father, Asa, & [didn’t depart] from it, & doing [what] was right in the sight of the Lord. [Still] the high places weren’t taken away yet, for the people hadn’t prepared their hearts to the God of their [forefathers.]

[1 Kings 22:43 And [Jehoshaphat followed] in all the ways of Asa, his father, & he [didn’t] turn aside from doing [what] was right in the eyes of the Lord. [However,] the high places weren’t taken away, [because] the people [still] offered, & burnt incense in the high places.]

Now, the rest of [Jehoshaphat’s actions,] 1st & last, are written in the book of Jehu, [Hanani’s] son, who is mentioned in the Book of [the] Kings of Israel. And [prior to his death,] Jehoshaphat, [Judah’s] king, [joined] himself with Ahaziah, [Israel’s] king, who did very wickedly.

And [Jehoshaphat] joined himself with [Ahaziah] to make ships go to Tarshish, & they made ships in Ezion Gaber, [a.k.a. Ezion Geber.]

[1 Kings 10:22 For the king had a navy at [the] sea of Tharshish, [a.k.a. Tarshish,] with the navy of Hiram, [that] came once [every] 3 years, & the navy of [Tarshish,] came bringing: gold, silver, ivory, apes, & peacocks.]

Then, Eliezer, [Dodavah’s] son, [from] Mareshah, prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because you have joined yourself with Ahaziah, the Lord [has] broken your works, [a.k.a. what you made.] And the ships were broken, [so] that they weren't able to go to Tarshish.