| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1It happened after this that the people of Moab with the people of Ammon, and others with them besides the Ammonites, came to battle against Jehoshaphat. | 1Later the Moabites and Ammonites, along with some of the Meunites, attacked Jehoshaphat. |
| 2Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, “A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea, from Syria; and they are in Hazazon Tamar” (which is 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)." |
| 3And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. | 3Jehoshaphat was afraid, so he decided to seek the LORD's advice. He decreed that all Judah should observe a fast. |
| 4So Judah gathered together to ask help from the LORD; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the LORD. | 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. |
| 5Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court, | 5Jehoshaphat stood before the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the LORD's temple, in front of the new courtyard. |
| 6and said: “O LORD God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand 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. |
| 7Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? | 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. |
| 8And they dwell in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name, saying, | 8They settled down in it and built in it a temple to honor you, saying, |
| 9‘If disaster comes upon us—sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine—we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.’ | 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.' |
| 10And now, here are the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir—whom You would not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from 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. |
| 11here they are, rewarding us by coming to throw us out of Your possession which You have given us to inherit. | 11Look how they are repaying us! They come to drive us out of our allotted land which you assigned to us! |
| 12O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.” | 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." |
| 13Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the LORD. | 13All the men of Judah were standing before the LORD, along with their infants, wives, and children. |
| 14Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly. | 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. |
| 15And he said, “Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the LORD to you: ‘Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, 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 go down against them. They will surely come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the brook before 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. |
| 17You will not need to fight in this battle. Position yourselves, stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, who is with you, O Judah and Jerusalem!’ Do not fear or be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, 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!'" |
| 18And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem bowed before the LORD, 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 of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel with voices loud and high. | 19Then some Levites, from the Kohathites and Korahites, got up and loudly praised the LORD God of Israel. |
| 20So they rose early in the morning and went out into the Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the LORD your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” | 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." |
| 21And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the LORD, and who should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army and were saying: “Praise the LORD, For His mercy 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." |
| 22Now when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were defeated. | 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. |
| 23For the people of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to utterly kill and destroy them. And when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, they helped to destroy one another. | 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 Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; and there were their dead bodies, fallen on the earth. No one 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! |
| 25When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away their spoil, they found among them an abundance of valuables on the dead bodies, and precious jewelry, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away; and they were three days gathering the spoil because there was so much. | 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. |
| 26And on the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berachah, for there they blessed the LORD; therefore the name of that place was called The Valley of Berachah until this day. | 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 they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat in front of them, to go back to Jerusalem with joy, for the LORD had made them rejoice 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. |
| 28So they came to Jerusalem, with stringed instruments and harps and trumpets, to the house of the LORD. | 28They entered Jerusalem to the sound of stringed instruments and trumpets and proceeded to the temple of the LORD. |
| 29And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries when they heard that the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel. | 29All the kingdoms of the surrounding lands were afraid of God when they heard how the LORD had fought against Israel's enemies. |
| 30Then the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest all around. | 30Jehoshaphat's kingdom enjoyed peace; his God made him secure on every side. |
| 31So Jehoshaphat was king over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name 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. |
| 32And he walked in the way of his father Asa, and did not turn aside from it, doing what was right in the sight of the LORD. | 32He followed in his father Asa's footsteps and was careful to do what the LORD approved. |
| 33Nevertheless the high places were not taken away, for as yet the people had not directed their hearts to the God of their fathers. | 33However, the high places were not eliminated; the people were still not devoted to the God of their ancestors. |
| 34Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last, indeed they are written in the book of Jehu the son of Hanani, which is mentioned 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. |
| 35After this Jehoshaphat king of Judah allied himself with Ahaziah king of Israel, who acted very wickedly. | 35Later King Jehoshaphat of Judah made an alliance with King Ahaziah of Israel, who did evil. |
| 36And he allied himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Ezion Geber. | 36They agreed to make large seagoing merchant ships; they built the ships in Ezion Geber. |
| 37But Eliezer the son of Dodavah of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have allied yourself with Ahaziah, the LORD has destroyed your works.” Then the ships were wrecked, so that they were not able to go to Tarshish. | 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. |
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