AB - II Chronicles - 20

20:1  And it came about after this, that the children of Moab and the children of Ammon, and with them some of the Mineans, came up against Jehoshaphat to battle.

20:2  And they came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, A great multitude is coming against you from Syria, from beyond the sea; and behold, they are in Hazazon Tamar, which is En Gedi.

20:3  And Jehoshaphat was alarmed, and set his face to seek the Lord earnestly, and he proclaimed a fast in all Judah.

20:4  And Judah gathered themselves together to seek after the Lord; even from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.

20:5  And Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah in Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, in front of the new court.

20:6  And he said, O Lord God of my fathers, are not You God in heaven above, and are not You Lord of all the kingdoms of the nations? And is there not in Your hand the might of dominion, and there is no one who can resist You?

20:7  Are not You the Lord that destroyed the inhabitants of this land before the face of Your people Israel, and gave it to Your beloved seed of Abraham forever?

20:8  And they dwelt in it, and built in it a sanctuary to Your name, saying,

20:9  If there should come upon us evils, sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house, and before You, (for Your name is upon this house) and we will cry to You because of the affliction, and You shall hear, and deliver.

20:10  And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, with regard to whom You did not permit Israel to pass through their border, when they had come out of the land of Egypt, (for they turned away from them, and did not destroy them)-

20:11  yet now, behold, they make attempts against us, to come forth to cast us out from our inheritance which You have given to us.

20:12  O Lord our God, will You not judge them? For we have no strength to resist this great multitude that has come against us; and we know not what we shall do to them, but our eyes are toward You.

20:13  And all Judah was standing before the Lord, and their children, and their wives.

20:14  Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, of the sons of Benaiah, of the sons of Jeiel, of the sons of Matthaniah the Levite, of the sons of Asaph, in the assembly.

20:15  And he said, Hear, all Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat; Thus says the Lord to you, even you: Fear not, neither be alarmed, before all this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's.

20:16  Tomorrow go down against them. Behold, they come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you shall find them at the extremity of the river of the Wilderness of Jeruel.

20:17  It is not for you to fight. Understand these things, and see the deliverance of the Lord with you, Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, neither be afraid to go forth tomorrow to meet them; and the Lord shall be with you.

20:18  And Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground with all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and they fell before the Lord, to worship the Lord.

20:19  And the Levites of the children of Kohath, and those of the sons of Korah, rose up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voice on high.

20:20  And they rose early in the morning and went out to the Wilderness of Tekoa. And as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and cried, and said, Hear me, O Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem; put your trust in the Lord God, and your trust shall be honored; trust in His prophet, and you shall prosper.

20:21  And he took counsel with the people, and set appointed men to sing psalms and praises, to give thanks, and sing the holy songs of praise in going forth before the army. And they said, Give thanks to the Lord, for His mercy endures forever.

20:22  And when they began the praise and thanksgiving, the Lord caused the children of Ammon to fight against Moab, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir that came out against Judah; and they were defeated.

20:23  Then the children of Ammon and Moab rose up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, to destroy and consume them. And when they had made an end of destroying the inhabitants of Seir, they rose up against one another so that they were utterly destroyed.

20:24  And Judah came to the watchtower of the wilderness, and looked, and saw the multitude, and behold, they were all fallen dead upon the earth; not one escaped.

20:25  And Jehoshaphat and his people went out to plunder them, and they found much cattle, and furniture, and spoils, and precious things. And they plundered them, and they were three days gathering the spoil, for it was abundant.

20:26  And it came to pass on the fourth day they were gathered to the Valley of Blessing; for there they blessed the Lord. Therefore they called the name of the place the Valley of Blessing, until this day.

20:27  And all the men of Judah returned to Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat led them with great joy; for the Lord gave them joy over their enemies.

20:28  And they entered into Jerusalem with lutes and harps and trumpets, going into the house of the lord.

20:29  And the terror of the Lord was upon all the kingdoms of the land, when they heard that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel.

20:30  And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace; and his God gave him rest round about.

20:31  And Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah, being thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Azubah, daughter of Shilhi.

20:32  And he walked in the ways of his father Asa, and turned not aside from doing that which was right in the sight of the Lord.

20:33  Nevertheless the high places still remained; and as yet the people did not direct their heart to the Lord God of their fathers.

20:34  And the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, the first and the last, behold, they are written in the history of Jehu the son of Hanani, who wrote the book of the kings of Israel.

20:35  And afterwards Jehoshaphat king of Judah entered into an alliance with Ahaziah king of Israel, (now this was an unrighteous man)

20:36  by acting with and going to him, to build ships to go to Tarshish. And he built ships in Ezion Geber.

20:37  But Eliezer the son of Dodavah of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because you have allied yourself with Ahaziah, the Lord has broken your work, and your vessels have been wrecked. And they could not go to Tarshish.