Day 216 of 365

¹Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in peace to Jerusalem.

²Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king Jehoshaphat, "Should you help the wicked, and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, wrath is on you from before the Lord.

³Nevertheless there are good things found in you, in that you have put away the Asheroth out of the land, and have set your heart to seek God."

⁴Jehoshaphat lived at Jerusalem: and he went out again among the people from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim, and brought them back to the Lord, the God of their fathers.

⁵He set judges in the land throughout all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city,

⁶and said to the judges, "Consider what you do: for you do not judge for man, but for the Lord; and he is with you in the judgment.

⁷Now therefore let the fear of the Lord be on you. Take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of bribes."

⁸Moreover in Jerusalem Jehoshaphat appointed Levites and priests, and of the heads of the fathers' households of Israel, for the judgment of the Lord, and for controversies. They returned to Jerusalem.

⁹He commanded them, saying, "Thus you shall do in the fear of the Lord, faithfully, and with a perfect heart.

¹⁰Whenever any controversy shall come to you from your brothers who dwell in their cities, between blood and blood, between law and commandment, statutes and ordinances, you shall warn them, that they not be guilty towards the Lord, and so wrath come on you and on your brothers. Do this, and you shall not be guilty.

¹¹Behold, Amariah the chief priest is over you in all matters of the Lord; and Zebadiah the son of Ishmael, the ruler of the house of Judah, in all the king's matters: also the Levites shall be officers before you. Deal courageously, and may the Lord be with the good."

¹It happened after this, that the children of Moab, and the children of Ammon, and with them some of the Ammonites, came against Jehoshaphat to battle.

²Then some came who told Jehoshaphat, saying, "A great multitude is coming against you from beyond the sea from Syria. Behold, they are in Hazazon Tamar" (that is, En Gedi).

³Jehoshaphat was alarmed, and set himself to seek to the Lord. He proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.

⁴Judah gathered themselves together, to seek help from the Lord. They came out of all the cities of Judah to seek the Lord.

⁵Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court;

⁶and he said, "O Lord, the God of our fathers, aren't you God in heaven? Aren't you ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in your hand, so that no one is able to withstand you.

⁷Did you not, our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel, and give it to the seed of Abraham your friend forever?

⁸They lived in it, and have built you a sanctuary in it for your name, saying,

⁹'If evil comes on us-the sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine-we will stand before this house, and before you, (for your name is in this house), and cry to you in our affliction, and you will hear and save.'

¹⁰Now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom you would not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned aside from them, and did not destroy them;

¹¹behold, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of your possession, which you have given us to inherit.

¹²Our God, will you not judge them? For we have no might against this great company that comes against us; neither know we what to do, but our eyes are on you."

¹³All Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.

¹⁴Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, the Levite, of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly;

¹⁵and he said, "Listen, all Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you king Jehoshaphat. Thus says the Lord to you, 'Do not be afraid, neither be dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's.

¹⁶Tomorrow go down against them. Behold, they are coming up by the ascent of Ziz. You shall find them at the end of the valley, before the wilderness of Jeruel.

¹⁷You will not need to fight this battle. Set yourselves, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed. Go out against them tomorrow, for the Lord is with you.'"

¹⁸Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground; and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshipping the Lord.

¹⁹The Levites, of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites, stood up to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, with an exceeding loud voice.

²⁰They rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, "Listen to me, Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God, so you shall be established! Believe his prophets, so you shall prosper."

²¹When he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who should sing to the Lord, and give praise in holy array, as they went out before the army, and say, Give thanks to the Lord; for his loving kindness endures forever.

²²When they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushers against the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah; and they were struck.

²³For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, utterly to kill and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, everyone helped to destroy another.

²⁴When Judah came to the place overlooking the wilderness, they looked at the multitude; and behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and there were none who escaped.

²⁵When Jehoshaphat and his people came to take their spoil, they found among them in abundance both riches and dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in taking the spoil, it was so much.

²⁶On the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Beracah; for there they blessed the Lord: therefore the name of that place was called The valley of Beracah to this day.

²⁷Then they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat in their forefront, to go again to Jerusalem with joy; for the Lord had made them to rejoice over their enemies.

²⁸They came to Jerusalem with stringed instruments and harps and trumpets to the house of the Lord.

²⁹The fear of God was on all the kingdoms of the countries, when they heard that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel.

³⁰So the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet; for his God gave him rest all around.

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

³²He walked in the way of Asa his father, and did not turn aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of the Lord.

³³However the high places were not taken away; neither as yet had the people set their hearts to the God of their fathers.

³⁴Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last, behold, they are written in the history of Jehu the son of Hanani, which is inserted in the book of the kings of Israel.

³⁵After this Jehoshaphat king of Judah joined himself with Ahaziah king of Israel. The same did very wickedly:

³⁶and he joined himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish; and they made the ships in Ezion Geber.

³⁷Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, "Because you have joined yourself with Ahaziah, the Lord has destroyed your works." The ships were broken, so that they were not able to go to Tarshish.

¹Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and Jehoram his son reigned in his place.

²He had brothers, the sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, and Jehiel, and Zechariah, and Azariah, and Michael, and Shephatiah; all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of Israel.

³Their father gave them great gifts, of silver, and of gold, and of precious things, with fortified cities in Judah: but the kingdom gave he to Jehoram, because he was the firstborn.

⁴Now when Jehoram was risen up over the kingdom of his father, and had strengthened himself, he killed all his brothers with the sword, and various also of the princes of Israel.

⁵Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.

⁶He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab; for he had the daughter of Ahab as wife: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.

⁷However the Lord would not destroy the house of David, because of the covenant that he had made with David, and as he promised to give a lamp to him and to his children always.

⁸In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves.

⁹Then Jehoram passed over with his captains, and all his chariots with him: and he rose up by night, and struck the Edomites who surrounded him, along with the captains of the chariots.

¹⁰So Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah to this day: then Libnah revolted at the same time from under his hand, because he had forsaken the Lord, the God of his fathers.

¹¹Moreover he made high places in the mountains of Judah, and made the inhabitants of Jerusalem to play the prostitute, and led Judah astray.

¹²A letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying, "Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father, 'Because you have not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat your father, nor in the ways of Asa king of Judah,

¹³but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and have made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to play the prostitute, like the house of Ahab did, and also have slain your brothers of your father's house, who were better than yourself:

¹⁴behold, the Lord will strike with a great plague your people, and your children, and your wives, and all your substance;

¹⁵and you shall have great sickness by disease of your bowels, until your bowels fall out by reason of the sickness, day by day.'"

¹⁶The Lord stirred up against Jehoram the spirit of the Philistines, and of the Arabians who are beside the Ethiopians:

¹⁷and they came up against Judah, and broke into it, and carried away all the substance that was found in the king's house, and his sons also, and his wives; so that there was never a son left him, except Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.

¹⁸After all this the Lord struck him in his bowels with an incurable disease.

¹⁹It happened, in process of time, at the end of two years, that his bowels fell out by reason of his sickness, and he died of severe diseases. His people made no burning for him, like the burning of his fathers.

²⁰Thirty-two years old was he when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years: and he departed without being desired; and they buried him in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

¹Make a joyful shout to God, all the earth!

²Sing to the glory of his name! Offer glory and praise!

³Tell God, "How awesome are your deeds! Through the greatness of your power, your enemies submit themselves to you.

⁴All the earth will worship you, and will sing to you; they will sing to your name." Selah.

⁵Come, and see God's deeds- awesome work on behalf of the children of men.

⁶He turned the sea into dry land. They went through the river on foot. There, we rejoiced in him.

⁷He rules by his might forever. His eyes watch the nations. Do not let the rebellious rise up against him. Selah.

⁸Praise our God, you peoples! Make the sound of his praise heard,

⁹who preserves our life among the living, and doesn't allow our feet to be moved.

¹⁰For you, God, have tested us. You have refined us, as silver is refined.

¹¹You brought us into prison. You laid a burden on our backs.

¹²You allowed men to ride over our heads. We went through fire and through water, but you brought us to the place of abundance.

¹³I will come into your temple with burnt offerings. I will pay my vows to you,

¹⁴which my lips promised, and my mouth spoke, when I was in distress.

¹⁵I will offer to you burnt offerings of fat animals, with the offering of rams, I will offer bulls with goats. Selah.

¹⁶Come, and hear, all you who fear God. I will declare what he has done for my soul.

¹⁷I cried to him with my mouth. He was extolled with my tongue.

¹⁸If I cherished sin in my heart, the Lord wouldn't have listened.

¹⁹But most certainly, God has listened. He has heard the voice of my prayer.

²⁰Blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer, nor his loving kindness from me.

¹The words of Agur the son of Jakeh, the oracle: the man says to Ithiel, to Ithiel and Ucal:

²"Surely I am the most ignorant man, and do not have a man's understanding.

³I have not learned wisdom, neither do I have the knowledge of the Holy One.

⁴Who has ascended up into heaven, and descended? Who has gathered the wind in his fists? Who has bound the waters in his garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is his son's name, if you know?

⁵"Every word of God is flawless. He is a shield to those who take refuge in him.

⁶Do not add to his words, lest he reprove you, and you be found a liar.

⁷"Two things I have asked of you; do not deny me before I die:

⁸Remove far from me falsehood and lies. Give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with the food that is needful for me;

⁹lest I be full, deny you, and say, 'Who is the Lord?' or lest I be poor, and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.

¹⁰"Do not slander a servant to his master, lest he curse you, and you be held guilty.

¹¹There is a generation that curses their father, and doesn't bless their mother.

¹²There is a generation that is pure in their own eyes, yet are not washed from their filthiness.

¹³There is a generation, oh how lofty are their eyes! Their eyelids are lifted up.

¹⁴There is a generation whose teeth are like swords, and their jaws like knives, to devour the poor from the earth, and the needy from among men.

¹⁵"The leach has two daughters: 'Give, give.' "There are three things that are never satisfied; four that do not say, 'Enough:'

¹⁶Sheol, the barren womb; the earth that is not satisfied with water; and the fire that doesn't say, 'Enough.'

¹⁷"The eye that mocks at his father, and scorns obedience to his mother: the ravens of the valley shall pick it out, the young eagles shall eat it.

¹⁸"There are three things which are too amazing for me, four which I do not understand:

¹⁹The way of an eagle in the air; the way of a serpent on a rock; the way of a ship in the midst of the sea; and the way of a man with a maiden.

²⁰"So is the way of an adulterous woman: she eats and wipes her mouth, and says, 'I have done nothing wrong.'

²¹"For three things the earth tremble, and under four, it can't bear up:

²²For a servant when he is king; a fool when he is filled with food;

²³for an unloved woman when she is married; and a handmaid who is heir to her mistress.

²⁴"There are four things which are little on the earth, but they are exceedingly wise:

²⁵the ants are not a strong people, yet they provide their food in the summer.

²⁶The conies are but a feeble folk, yet make they their houses in the rocks.

²⁷The locusts have no king, yet they advance in ranks.

²⁸You can catch a lizard with your hands, yet it is in kings' palaces.

²⁹"There are three things which are stately in their march, four which are stately in going:

³⁰The lion, which is mightiest among animals, and doesn't turn away for any;

³¹the greyhound, the male goat also; and the king against whom there is no rising up.

³²"If you have done foolishly in lifting up yourself, or if you have thought evil, put your hand over your mouth.

³³For as the churning of milk brings forth butter, and the wringing of the nose brings forth blood; so the forcing of wrath brings forth strife."