| New Living Translation | NET Bible |
| 1After this, the armies of the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites declared war on Jehoshaphat. | 1Later the Moabites and Ammonites, along with some of the Meunites, attacked Jehoshaphat. |
| 2Messengers came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army from Edom is marching against you from beyond the Dead Sea. They are already at Hazazon-tamar.” (This was another name for En-gedi.) | 2Messengers arrived and reported to Jehoshaphat, "A huge army is attacking you from the other side of the Dead Sea, from the direction of Edom. Look, they are in Hazezon Tamar (that is, En Gedi)." |
| 3Jehoshaphat was terrified by this news and begged the LORD for guidance. He also ordered everyone in Judah to begin fasting. | 3Jehoshaphat was afraid, so he decided to seek the LORD's advice. He decreed that all Judah should observe a fast. |
| 4So people from all the towns of Judah came to Jerusalem to seek the LORD’s help. | 4The people of Judah assembled to ask for the LORD's help; they came from all the cities of Judah to ask for the LORD's help. |
| 5Jehoshaphat stood before the community of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the Temple of the LORD. | 5Jehoshaphat stood before the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the LORD's temple, in front of the new courtyard. |
| 6He prayed, “O LORD, God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you! | 6He prayed: "O LORD God of our ancestors, you are the God who lives in heaven and rules over all the kingdoms of the nations. You possess strength and power; no one can stand against you. |
| 7O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people Israel arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham? | 7Our God, you drove out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and gave it as a permanent possession to the descendants of your friend Abraham. |
| 8Your people settled here and built this Temple to honor your name. | 8They settled down in it and built in it a temple to honor you, saying, |
| 9They said, ‘Whenever we are faced with any calamity such as war, plague, or famine, we can come to stand in your presence before this Temple where your name is honored. We can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us.’ | 9If disaster comes on us in the form of military attack, judgment, plague, or famine, we will stand in front of this temple before you, for you are present in this temple. We will cry out to you for help in our distress, so that you will hear and deliver us.' |
| 10“And now see what the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir are doing. You would not let our ancestors invade those nations when Israel left Egypt, so they went around them and did not destroy them. | 10Now the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir are coming! When Israel came from the land of Egypt, you did not allow them to invade these lands. They bypassed them and did not destroy them. |
| 11Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out of your land, which you gave us as an inheritance. | 11Look how they are repaying us! They come to drive us out of our allotted land which you assigned to us! |
| 12O our God, won’t you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help.” | 12Our God, will you not judge them? For we are powerless against this huge army that attacks us! We don't know what we should do; we look to you for help." |
| 13As all the men of Judah stood before the LORD with their little ones, wives, and children, | 13All the men of Judah were standing before the LORD, along with their infants, wives, and children. |
| 14the Spirit of the LORD came upon one of the men standing there. His name was Jahaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite who was a descendant of Asaph. | 14Then in the midst of the assembly, the LORD's Spirit came upon Jachaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph. |
| 15He said, “Listen, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Listen, King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid! Don’t be discouraged by this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. | 15He said: "Pay attention, all you people of Judah, residents of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat! This is what the LORD says to you: 'Don't be afraid and don't panic because of this huge army! For the battle is not yours, but God's. |
| 16Tomorrow, march out against them. You will find them coming up through the ascent of Ziz at the end of the valley that opens into the wilderness of Jeruel. | 16Tomorrow march down against them as they come up the Ascent of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the ravine in front of the Desert of Jeruel. |
| 17But you will not even need to fight. Take your positions; then stand still and watch the LORD’s victory. He is with you, O people of Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Go out against them tomorrow, for the LORD is with you!” | 17You will not fight in this battle. Take your positions, stand, and watch the LORD deliver you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Don't be afraid and don't panic! Tomorrow march out toward them; the LORD is with you!'" |
| 18Then King Jehoshaphat bowed low with his face to the ground. And all the people of Judah and Jerusalem did the same, worshiping the LORD. | 18Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face toward the ground, and all the people of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem fell down before the LORD and worshiped him. |
| 19Then the Levites from the clans of Kohath and Korah stood to praise the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud shout. | 19Then some Levites, from the Kohathites and Korahites, got up and loudly praised the LORD God of Israel. |
| 20Early the next morning the army of Judah went out into the wilderness of Tekoa. On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, “Listen to me, all you people of Judah and Jerusalem! Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be able to stand firm. Believe in his prophets, and you will succeed.” | 20Early the next morning they marched out to the Desert of Tekoa. When they were ready to march, Jehoshaphat stood up and said: "Listen to me, you people of Judah and residents of Jerusalem! Trust in the LORD your God and you will be safe! Trust in the message of his prophets and you will win." |
| 21After consulting the people, the king appointed singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the LORD and praising him for his holy splendor. This is what they sang: “Give thanks to the LORD; his faithful love endures forever!” | 21He met with the people and appointed musicians to play before the LORD and praise his majestic splendor. As they marched ahead of the warriors they said: "Give thanks to the LORD, for his loyal love endures." |
| 22At the very moment they began to sing and give praise, the LORD caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir to start fighting among themselves. | 22When they began to shout and praise, the LORD suddenly attacked the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. |
| 23The armies of Moab and Ammon turned against their allies from Mount Seir and killed every one of them. After they had destroyed the army of Seir, they began attacking each other. | 23The Ammonites and Moabites attacked the men from Mount Seir and annihilated them. When they had finished off the men of Seir, they attacked and destroyed one another. |
| 24So when the army of Judah arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, all they saw were dead bodies lying on the ground as far as they could see. Not a single one of the enemy had escaped. | 24When the men of Judah arrived at the observation post overlooking the desert and looked at the huge army, they saw dead bodies on the ground; there were no survivors! |
| 25King Jehoshaphat and his men went out to gather the plunder. They found vast amounts of equipment, clothing, and other valuables—more than they could carry. There was so much plunder that it took them three days just to collect it all! | 25Jehoshaphat and his men went to gather the plunder; they found a huge amount of supplies, clothing and valuable items. They carried away everything they could. There was so much plunder, it took them three days to haul it off. |
| 26On the fourth day they gathered in the Valley of Blessing, which got its name that day because the people praised and thanked the LORD there. It is still called the Valley of Blessing today. | 26On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berachah, where they praised the LORD. So that place is called the Valley of Berachah to this very day. |
| 27Then all the men returned to Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat leading them, overjoyed that the LORD had given them victory over their enemies. | 27Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem with Jehoshaphat leading them; the LORD had given them reason to rejoice over their enemies. |
| 28They marched into Jerusalem to the music of harps, lyres, and trumpets, and they proceeded to the Temple of the LORD. | 28They entered Jerusalem to the sound of stringed instruments and trumpets and proceeded to the temple of the LORD. |
| 29When all the surrounding kingdoms heard that the LORD himself had fought against the enemies of Israel, the fear of God came over them. | 29All the kingdoms of the surrounding lands were afraid of God when they heard how the LORD had fought against Israel's enemies. |
| 30So Jehoshaphat’s kingdom was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side. Summary of Jehoshaphat’s Reign | 30Jehoshaphat's kingdom enjoyed peace; his God made him secure on every side. |
| 31So Jehoshaphat ruled over the land of Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-five years. His mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi. | 31Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king and he reigned for twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi. |
| 32Jehoshaphat was a good king, following the ways of his father, Asa. He did what was pleasing in the LORD’s sight. | 32He followed in his father Asa's footsteps and was careful to do what the LORD approved. |
| 33During his reign, however, he failed to remove all the pagan shrines, and the people never fully committed themselves to follow the God of their ancestors. | 33However, the high places were not eliminated; the people were still not devoted to the God of their ancestors. |
| 34The rest of the events of Jehoshaphat’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded in The Record of Jehu Son of Hanani, which is included in The Book of the Kings of Israel. | 34The rest of the events of Jehoshaphat's reign, from start to finish, are recorded in the Annals of Jehu son of Hanani which are included in Scroll of the Kings of Israel. |
| 35Some time later King Jehoshaphat of Judah made an alliance with King Ahaziah of Israel, who was very wicked. | 35Later King Jehoshaphat of Judah made an alliance with King Ahaziah of Israel, who did evil. |
| 36Together they built a fleet of trading ships at the port of Ezion-geber. | 36They agreed to make large seagoing merchant ships; they built the ships in Ezion Geber. |
| 37Then Eliezer son of Dodavahu from Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat. He said, “Because you have allied yourself with King Ahaziah, the LORD will destroy your work.” So the ships met with disaster and never put out to sea. | 37Eliezer son of Dodavahu from Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, "Because you made an alliance with Ahaziah, the LORD will shatter what you have made." The ships were wrecked and unable to go to sea. |
|
