By Jennifer Hutchins and Elizabeth Simkins
Life isn’t always easy. It can be full of battles, struggles and hard times. This doesn’t mean that you can’t have a long happy, joyful life. It depends on how you handle each of these times. The way that King Jehoshaphat handled his fear when facing a threat from his enemies in chapter 20, is a great example of how to have joy even in the hardest times. As you walk through this scripture with us you will see fear, joy, praise, and faith beyond belief. This 2 Chronicles 20 commentary and chapter study will walk you through battling the enemy.
Verse 1-3: 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. 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). 3And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.
Jehoshaphat was the King of Judah. You see many times throughout chapter 20 he is referred to by his name Jehoshaphat and not King Jehoshaphat. I’m not certain why this happens here but in these verses we’re reading he is still the King of Judah.
He was being warned by a messenger that on the other side of the sea a great army (multitude) was coming after him. This caused Jehoshophat to become scared. The thought of the other armies was frightening. What is the first thing he does? He went straight to the Lord. Before panicking, asking others, talking to his wife or anything else.
A note from Jennifer: I can only imagine the mental and physical state of King Jehoshaphat after surviving the last battle he was in. If that weren’t enough now he has more armies rising up against him ready to cover him on all sides. I would like to tell you that this is my first instinct when I’m afraid or troubled. I usually experience total panic or what we refer to in our family as the “chicken little syndrome” and run in circles. After a bit, the Lord calms my heart and I begin to think a little more rationally and then take it to the Lord. You know, the long way around.
King Jehoshaphat called all of Judah to fast. He might not have made all of the best decisions allying with King Ahab in Chapter 18 but by chapter 19 when his sin was shown to him through a prophet named Jehu, he was back on track again. Asking everyone to fast or calling a public fast is a lot to ask of his people, but we see no hesitation from anyone here. Together, everyone would refrain from food for a specific amount of time and drink only water.
Verse 4: 4So Judah gathered together to ask [help] from the LORD; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the LORD.
You can see God moving across Judah here in verse 4. The people of Judah had gathered together not only to agree to the fast declared by Jehoshophat but also asked the Lord for help. God had drawn His people close to Himself.
A note from Jennifer: If you’ve ever asked yourself or have been asked by someone if the heart and spiritual state of our country’s leader is important, I think this scripture makes it clear. By the end of chapter 20 it will be even more so.
King Jehoshaphat’s Prayer:
Verse 5-8: 5Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court, 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? 7″[Are] 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? 8″And they dwell in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name, saying,
King Jehoshaphat prays with his people in verses 5-12. This is a man who knows armies are coming after him. Scripture said he was afraid. Instead of armoring up and getting his army in line he understands that his first line of defense is to lead his people straight to the one who can save them. Calling on the God of Heaven.
A note from Jennifer: What a great example of leadership we are seeing from King Jehoshaphat.
Starting in verse 6 while praying Jehoshaphat is describing God in question form. Are you not the God in Heaven and do you not rule over all? Are your hands not full of power and might and no one is able to withstand you? These words are so powerful and true. The King of Judah, a very important man, knows the power of God and acknowledges it before his people.
Then in verses 7 and 8, King Jehoshaphat shows his knowledge of God by describing things that have happened previously and is praying about those things. Are you not the one who gave this land to your friend Abraham’s descendents? God had made promises to Abraham in Genesis 17. A promise to make him the father of many nations and would give Canaan to his descendants as an everlasting possession.
“As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations.” Genesis 17: 4
“Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.” Genesis 17:8
Verse 9: 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.
King Jehoshaphat continues his prayer in verse 9 that if any disaster happens, no matter what is to come they will stand in the presence of God and cry out to Him. The end of this verse says we will cry out to you Lord and You will hear and save!
A note from Jennifer: Wow! Do you see how he is not only showing a dependence on God to his people in this prayer but telling God as well that they need Him. Not just King Jehoshaphat but all the people of Judah who are ruled by him will cry out to God in their time of need. This is so powerful. I can’t say it enough this is the kind of leadership we need in our homes, churches, cities, state and country. Best of all he knows that when they cry out God will hear and save them. What a mighty God we serve. Always ready to help his children. Powerful & beautiful!
Verses 10-12: 10″And 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– 11″here they are, rewarding us by coming to throw us out of Your possession which You have given us to inherit. 12″O 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.”
Starting in verse 10 he gets a little more personal. He isn’t just saying whenever disaster comes but he is praying about a specific time that he is in. There are three armies of people coming against him and it could end in a disaster.
“Our God, will you not judge them? We have no power against them?” Powerful words are being spoken in this prayer. We know that we are weak against them and we can’t defeat them, but Lord you can. We trust and believe in you God and our eyes are on you.
A note from Jennifer: What a great example King Jehoshaphat is for us all here in verse 12. When you are afraid, trust God and believe he will do what only he can do and keep your eyes on him. He is our king! Thank you God for your protection in our times of trouble!
Verses 13-15: 13Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the LORD. 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. 15 And 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. (2Ch 20 NKJV)
Starting in verse 13 as King Jehoshaphat prayed, all of Judah, men, women and children stood before the Lord. Still, quiet and worshiping the one true God. A quote from Spurgeon describes this moment as a “Solemn worship of there spirit”. Out of this huge crowd the Spirit of the Lord falls on one man. He begins to speak to the people on behalf of God. Jahaziel said Listen all of Judah and the King as well. This is what the Lord has to say! Some people wait for their prayers to be answered for years and others may never get the answer they desire but here in an instant God speaks through Jahaziel to His people. What a great time to be alive and experience God’s presence in this way. Then God says something that He repeats over and over throughout the Bible “Do not be afraid nor dismayed”!
A note from Jennifer: If God says this multiple times, I think it’s important and we need to listen. Then he finishes that with “for the battle is not yours, but Gods”. God’s people, the battle you are exhausted from fighting, the battle you are in fear of, the battle that has you wrapped in anxiety and depression isn’t even yours. Let it go and give it to God because you are tired, weary and worn fighting a battle he never asked you to fight. God is going to fight your battle the same way that he is going to fight the armies coming against Judah. Hold on to your seat because it’s going to get better than this if you can even believe it!
Verses 16-17: 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. 17’You 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.”
In verse 16 Jahaziel continues giving the people God’s message. He tells them to go down against the other armies and exactly where to find them. But in verse 17 he says, you will not need to fight in this battle. Go get into position but stand still and watch God’s saving power. The Lord who is with you! Just because God told them they wouldn’t have to fight in this battle didn’t mean that He didn’t have something for them to do. He was asking them to step out in faith. God didn’t need the people to go in order to win this battle but he needed to see them trust, believe and act in obedience. He commanded the people to go out against the enemy but not to fear for he was with them.
A note from Jennifer: No matter the circumstance or how hard your situation seems, God promises to be with you. As long as we have that, we have everything!
Verses 18-19: 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. 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.
After being told that they needed to go and stand against their enemies even though they were told they wouldn’t have to fight, how did King Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah respond? In verses 18 and 19 it says he bowed his head with his face to the ground before the Lord, worshiping him. Everyone stood up to praise the Lord loud and high! They haven’t even been delivered from the enemy yet but they had faith and knew God would deliver them. Instead of fretting, worrying and planning all night they lifted their voices, singing praises to the Lord.
A note from Jennifer: Wow may not be a good description but this amazes me so much that I’m almost at a loss for words. What a lesson for each of us. Yes Lord we will go where you lead and give you the glory with praise and thankfulness! This is great guidance in dealing with a scary situation.
Verses 20-21: 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.” 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.”
Early the next morning, they head out just like they were commanded. King Jehoshaphat stands before the people to speak to them and to get them organized for battle. He reminds them if they want to survive and prosper they must remember to believe in the Lord God. Then he split them into two different groups. One group was to sing to the Lord as they marched forward and the other group was to praise the Lord. As they marched to battle they lifted their voices to say “Praise the Lord, for his mercy endures forever.”
Verses 22-24: 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. 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. 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.
As they marched, praised and sang to the Lord, ambushes were set against the enemies. It’s like they started fighting against themselves. Three armies looking for a fight turned on each other. Then came along the people of Judah, who the armies were supposed to fight, to a place where they could overlook the wilderness. Thinking they would see the enemy armies waiting for them. But instead what they saw were their enemies laying dead from the battle. Not one escaped alive. Just as God had said they would not need to fight but they must go.
Verses 25-28: 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. 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. 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. 28So they came to Jerusalem, with stringed instruments and harps and trumpets, to the house of the LORD.
It’s hard to say what might have happened if Judah had not surrendered to the Lord’s plan and if they had hid in fear instead of marching forward in faith. But this next part for sure would have been missed. Because the armies were defeated and not one was alive, Judah was able to carry away so many valuables. So many that it took three full days to gather and carry it away.
On the fourth day they gathered together in the Valley of Berachah to Praise the Lord for delivering them from the hand of the enemies. King Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah returned with joy and rejoicing. Playing stringed instruments, harps and trumpets to the house of the Lord.
A note from Jennifer: God is still fighting these battles for us against the enemy every day. Sometimes he asks us to be still and other times He calls us to the front lines. The biggest battle God fought and won for each of us was the battle against sin and evil. This battle was won when Jesus Christ died on the cross, resurrected and rose to the heavens. Knowing this, I completely understand the joy that Judah felt that day!
Verse 29: 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.
The fear of God fell on all of the kingdoms after hearing about this battle.
A note from Jennifer: You know it did! When they heard that three armies were defeated without a fight they knew who God was. God is powerful and there wouldn’t be a kingdom that would rise against Him after seeing it.
A note from Elizabeth: I think this speaks heavily into salvation as well. Many times, we can spread the gospel without having to scream it. Sure, the power of God is worthy of screaming from the rooftops, but that’s not always what God calls us to or is his plan. Sometimes, he will use us in ways you wouldn’t expect or believe to indirectly spread his word. And sometimes, we won’t even see this with our own eyes. A life circumstance that maybe is hard or even something happy and exciting for you could show another that the word of God is true and plant that seed for future salvation. This amazing battle spread the fear of God onto all of these kingdoms simply because Jehoshaphat did what the Lord called him to do. He didn’t go to each kingdom and preach the word of God. The Lord used his circumstance instead. If you’re in a tough situation, I pray this gives you hope to see beyond the struggle. We are all working for his good in our daily lives, during the good and the hard times!
Verses 30-37: 30Then the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest all around. 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. 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. 33Nevertheless the high places were not taken away, for as yet the people had not directed their hearts to the God of their fathers. 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. 35After this Jehoshaphat king of Judah allied himself with Ahaziah king of Israel, who acted very wickedly. 36And he allied himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made 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. (2Ch 20:1-37 NKJV)
God gave them rest. King Jehoshaphat just survived two big battles back to back and rest seems to be exactly what they needed. Starting in verse 31 we are seeing more details about Jehoshaphat. God’s word says that King Jehoshaphat became the King of Judah when he was 35 years old and his reign was 25 years. He walked in the way of his father King Asa and did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. So the high places were not taken away from him. Verse 34 tells us that we can see more of what King Jehoshaphat did during his reign in the book of Kings. He again tries to ally with a wicked king and God destroys those works to get King Jehoshaphat back on track again.
A note from Jennifer: I think Jehoshaphat tried to influence the people in a Godly way but they just didn’t seem to stay faithful and for some reason he leaned towards them. This last move God destroys what Jehoshaphat was doing and as sad as it seemed, it was the best move to keep him from sinning against God again.
Thank You Lord for protecting us and fighting for us even if it means you have to destroy our plans sometimes!
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