| New International Version | Holman Christian Standard Bible |
| 1After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat. | 1After this, the Moabites and Ammonites, together with some of the Meunites, came to fight against Jehoshaphat. |
| 2Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, "A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar" (that is, En Gedi). | 2People came and told Jehoshaphat, "A vast number from beyond the Dead Sea and from Edom has come to fight against you; they are already in Hazazon-tamar" (that is, En-gedi). |
| 3Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. | 3Jehoshaphat was afraid, and he resolved to seek the LORD. Then he proclaimed a fast for all Judah, |
| 4The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him. | 4who gathered to seek the LORD. They even came from all the cities of Judah to seek Him. |
| 5Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the LORD in the front of the new courtyard | 5Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem in the LORD's temple before the new courtyard. |
| 6and said: "LORD, the God of our ancestors, are you not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in your hand, and no one can withstand you. | 6He said: Yahweh, the God of our ancestors, are You not the God who is in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand, and no one can stand against You. |
| 7Our God, did you not drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham your friend? | 7Are You not our God who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and who gave it forever to the descendants of Abraham Your friend? |
| 8They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, | 8They have lived in the land and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name and have said, |
| 9If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in your presence before this temple that bears your Name and will cry out to you in our distress, and you will hear us and save us.' | 9"If disaster comes on us--sword or judgment, pestilence or famine--we will stand before this temple and before You, for Your name is in this temple. We will cry out to You because of our distress, and You will hear and deliver." |
| 10"But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory you would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. | 10Now here are the Ammonites, Moabites, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir. You did not let Israel invade them when Israel came out of the land of Egypt, but Israel turned away from them and did not destroy them. |
| 11See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. | 11Look how they repay us by coming to drive us out of Your possession that You gave us as an inheritance. |
| 12Our God, will you not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you." | 12Our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this vast number that comes to fight against us. We do not know what to do, but we look to You. |
| 13All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the LORD. | 13All Judah was standing before the LORD with their infants, their wives, and their children. |
| 14Then the Spirit of the LORD came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly. | 14In the middle of the congregation, the Spirit of the LORD came on Jahaziel (son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah, a Levite from Asaph's descendants), |
| 15He said: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the LORD says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's. | 15and he said, "Listen carefully, all Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat. This is what the LORD says: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast number, for the battle is not yours, but God's. |
| 16Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. | 16Tomorrow, go down against them. You will see them coming up the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the valley facing the Wilderness of Jeruel. |
| 17You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.'" | 17You do not have to fight this battle. Position yourselves, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD. He is with you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Tomorrow, go out to face them, for Yahweh is with you.'" |
| 18Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the LORD. | 18Then Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the LORD to worship Him. |
| 19Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the LORD, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice. | 19Then the Levites from the sons of the Kohathites and the Korahites stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel shouting with a loud voice. |
| 20Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the LORD your God and you will be upheld; have faith in his prophets and you will be successful." | 20In the morning they got up early and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa. As they were about to go out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Hear me, Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem. Believe in Yahweh your God, and you will be established; believe in His prophets, and you will succeed." |
| 21After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the LORD and to praise him for the splendor of his holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying: "Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever." | 21Then he consulted with the people and appointed some to sing for the LORD and some to praise the splendor of His holiness. When they went out in front of the armed forces, they kept singing: Give thanks to the LORD, for His faithful love endures forever. |
| 22As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. | 22The moment they began their shouts and praises, the LORD set an ambush against the Ammonites, Moabites, and the inhabitants of Mount Seir who came to fight against Judah, and they were defeated. |
| 23The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another. | 23The Ammonites and Moabites turned against the inhabitants of Mount Seir and completely annihilated them. When they had finished with the inhabitants of Seir, they helped destroy each other. |
| 24When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. | 24When Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked for the large army, but there were only corpses lying on the ground; nobody had escaped. |
| 25So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry off their plunder, and they found among them a great amount of equipment and clothing and also articles of value--more than they could take away. There was so much plunder that it took three days to collect it. | 25Then Jehoshaphat and his people went to gather the plunder. They found among them an abundance of goods on the bodies and valuable items. So they stripped them until nobody could carry any more. They were gathering the plunder for three days because there was so much. |
| 26On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berakah, where they praised the LORD. This is why it is called the Valley of Berakah to this day. | 26They assembled in the Valley of Beracah on the fourth day, for there they praised the LORD. Therefore, that place is still called the Valley of Beracah today. |
| 27Then, led by Jehoshaphat, all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem, for the LORD had given them cause to rejoice over their enemies. | 27Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem turned back with Jehoshaphat their leader, returning joyfully to Jerusalem, for the LORD enabled them to rejoice over their enemies. |
| 28They entered Jerusalem and went to the temple of the LORD with harps and lyres and trumpets. | 28So they came into Jerusalem to the LORD's temple with harps, lyres, and trumpets. |
| 29The fear of God came on all the surrounding kingdoms when they heard how the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel. | 29The terror of God was on all the kingdoms of the lands when they heard that Yahweh had fought against the enemies of Israel. |
| 30And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side. | 30Then Jehoshaphat's kingdom was quiet, for his God gave him rest on every side. |
| 31So Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king of Judah, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-five years. His mother's name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. | 31Jehoshaphat became king over Judah. He was 35 years old when he became king and reigned 25 years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. |
| 32He followed the ways of his father Asa and did not stray from them; he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD. | 32He walked in the way of Asa his father; he did not turn away from it but did what was right in the LORD's sight. |
| 33The high places, however, were not removed, and the people still had not set their hearts on the God of their ancestors. | 33However, the high places were not taken away; the people had not yet set their hearts on the God of their ancestors. |
| 34The other events of Jehoshaphat's reign, from beginning to end, are written in the annals of Jehu son of Hanani, which are recorded in the book of the kings of Israel. | 34The rest of the events of Jehoshaphat's reign from beginning to end are written in the Events of Jehu son of Hanani, which is recorded in the Book of Israel's Kings. |
| 35Later, Jehoshaphat king of Judah made an alliance with Ahaziah king of Israel, whose ways were wicked. | 35After this, Judah's King Jehoshaphat made an alliance with Israel's King Ahaziah, who was guilty of wrongdoing. |
| 36He agreed with him to construct a fleet of trading ships. After these were built at Ezion Geber, | 36Jehoshaphat formed an alliance with him to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Ezion-geber. |
| 37Eliezer son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, "Because you have made an alliance with Ahaziah, the LORD will destroy what you have made." The ships were wrecked and were not able to set sail to trade. | 37Then Eliezer son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, "Because you formed an alliance with Ahaziah, the LORD has broken up what you have made." So the ships were wrecked and were not able to go to Tarshish. |
| New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. | Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. |
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