Bible Reading April 29 
2 Chronicles 20:1--22:12
Context20:1 Later the Moabites and Ammonites, along with some of the Meunites, 1 attacked Jehoshaphat. 20:2 Messengers 2 arrived and reported to Jehoshaphat, “A huge army is attacking you from the other side of the Dead Sea, 3 from the direction of Edom. 4 Look, they are in Hazezon Tamar (that is, En Gedi).” 20:3 Jehoshaphat was afraid, so he decided to seek the Lord’s advice. 5 He decreed that all Judah should observe a fast. 20:4 The people of Judah 6 assembled to ask for the Lord’s help; 7 they came from all the cities of Judah to ask for the Lord’s help. 8
20:5 Jehoshaphat stood before the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem 9 at the Lord’s temple, in front of the new courtyard. 20:6 He prayed: “O Lord God of our ancestors, 10 you are the God who lives in heaven 11 and rules over all the kingdoms of the nations. You possess strength and power; no one can stand against you. 20:7 Our God, you drove out 12 the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and gave it as a permanent possession 13 to the descendants of your friend 14 Abraham. 20:8 They settled down in it and built in it a temple 15 to honor you, 16 saying, 20:9 ‘If disaster comes on us in the form of military attack, 17 judgment, plague, or famine, we will stand in front of this temple before you, for you are present in this temple. 18 We will cry out to you for help in our distress, so that you will 19 hear and deliver us.’ 20:10 Now the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir are coming! 20 When Israel came from the land of Egypt, you did not allow them to invade these lands. 21 They bypassed them and did not destroy them. 20:11 Look how they are repaying us! They come to drive us out of our allotted land which you assigned to us! 20:12 Our 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.” 22
20:13 All the men of Judah 23 were standing before the Lord, along with their infants, wives, and children. 20:14 Then 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. 20:15 He said: “Pay attention, all you people of Judah, 24 residents of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Don’t be afraid and don’t panic 25 because of this huge army! For the battle is not yours, but God’s. 20:16 Tomorrow march down against them as 26 they come up the Ascent of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the ravine in front of the Desert of Jeruel. 20:17 You will not fight in this battle. Take your positions, stand, and watch the Lord deliver you, 27 O Judah and Jerusalem. Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! 28 Tomorrow march out toward them; the Lord is with you!’”
20:18 Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face toward the ground, and all the people of Judah 29 and the residents of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord and worshiped him. 30 20:19 Then some Levites, from the Kohathites and Korahites, got up and loudly praised the Lord God of Israel. 31
20:20 Early 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 32 and residents of Jerusalem! Trust in the Lord your God and you will be safe! 33 Trust in the message of his prophets and you will win.” 20:21 He met 34 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.” 35
20:22 When they began to shout and praise, the Lord suddenly attacked 36 the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir 37 who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. 20:23 The Ammonites and Moabites attacked the men from Mount Seir 38 and annihilated them. 39 When they had finished off the men 40 of Seir, they attacked and destroyed one another. 41 20:24 When the men of Judah 42 arrived at the observation post overlooking the desert and looked at 43 the huge army, they saw dead bodies on the ground; there were no survivors! 20:25 Jehoshaphat and his men 44 went to gather the plunder; they found a huge amount of supplies, clothing 45 and valuable items. They carried away everything they could. 46 There was so much plunder, it took them three days to haul it off. 47
20:26 On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berachah, where 48 they praised the Lord. So that place is called the Valley of Berachah 49 to this very day. 20:27 Then 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. 20:28 They entered Jerusalem to the sound of stringed instruments and trumpets and proceeded to the temple of the Lord. 20:29 All the kingdoms of the surrounding lands were afraid of God 50 when they heard how the Lord had fought against Israel’s enemies. 20:30 Jehoshaphat’s kingdom enjoyed peace; his God made him secure on every side. 51
20:31 Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king and he reigned for twenty-five years in Jerusalem. 52 His mother was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi. 20:32 He followed in his father Asa’s footsteps and was careful to do what the Lord approved. 53 20:33 However, the high places were not eliminated; the people were still not devoted to the God of their ancestors. 54
20:34 The 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. 55
20:35 Later King Jehoshaphat of Judah made an alliance with King Ahaziah of Israel, who 56 did evil. 20:36 They agreed 57 to make large seagoing merchant ships; 58 they built the ships in Ezion Geber. 20:37 Eliezer son of Dodavahu from Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, “Because 59 you made an alliance with Ahaziah, the Lord will shatter what you have made.” The ships were wrecked and unable to go to sea. 60
21:1 Jehoshaphat passed away 61 and was buried with his ancestors 62 in the City of David. 63 His son Jehoram 64 replaced him as king.
21:2 His brothers, Jehoshaphat’s sons, were Azariah, Jechiel, Zechariah, Azariahu, Michael, and Shephatiah. All of these were sons of King Jehoshaphat of Israel. 65 21:3 Their father gave them many presents, including silver, gold, and other precious items, along with fortified cities in Judah. But he gave the kingdom to Jehoram because he was the firstborn.
21:4 Jehoram took control of his father’s kingdom and became powerful. 66 Then he killed all his brothers, 67 as well as some of the officials of Israel. 21:5 Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king and he reigned for eight years in Jerusalem. 68 21:6 He followed in the footsteps of the kings of Israel, just as Ahab’s dynasty had done, for he married Ahab’s daughter. 69 He did evil in the sight of 70 the Lord. 21:7 But the Lord was unwilling to destroy David’s dynasty 71 because of the promise 72 he had made to give David a perpetual dynasty. 73
21:8 During Jehoram’s 74 reign Edom freed themselves from Judah’s control and set up their own king. 75 21:9 Jehoram crossed over to Zair with his officers and all his chariots. The Edomites, who had surrounded him, attacked at night and defeated him and his chariot officers. 76 21:10 So Edom has remained free from Judah’s control to this very day. 77 At that same time Libnah also rebelled and freed themselves from Judah’s control 78 because Jehoram 79 rejected the Lord God of his ancestors. 21:11 He also built high places on the hills of Judah; he encouraged the residents of Jerusalem to be unfaithful to the Lord 80 and led Judah away from the Lord. 81
21:12 Jehoram 82 received this letter from Elijah the prophet: “This is what the Lord God of your ancestor David says: ‘You 83 have not followed in the footsteps 84 of your father Jehoshaphat and of 85 King Asa of Judah, 21:13 but have instead followed in the footsteps of the kings of Israel. You encouraged the people of Judah and the residents of Jerusalem to be unfaithful to the Lord, just as the family of Ahab does in Israel. 86 You also killed your brothers, members of your father’s family, 87 who were better than you. 21:14 So look, the Lord is about to severely afflict 88 your people, your sons, your wives, and all you own. 21:15 And you will get a serious, chronic intestinal disease which will cause your intestines to come out.” 89
21:16 The Lord stirred up against Jehoram the Philistines 90 and the Arabs who lived beside the Cushites. 21:17 They attacked Judah and swept through it. 91 They carried off everything they found in the royal palace, 92 including his sons and wives. None of his sons was left, except for his youngest, Ahaziah. 21:18 After all this happened, the Lord afflicted him with an incurable intestinal disease. 93 21:19 After about two years his intestines came out because of the disease, so that he died a very painful death. 94 His people did not make a bonfire to honor him, as they had done for his ancestors. 95
21:20 Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he became king and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. No one regretted his death; 96 he was buried in the City of David, 97 but not in the royal tombs.
22:1 The residents of Jerusalem 98 made his youngest son Ahaziah king in his place, for the raiding party that invaded the city with the Arabs had killed all the older sons. 99 So Ahaziah son of Jehoram became king of Judah. 22:2 Ahaziah was twenty-two 100 years old when he became king and he reigned for one year in Jerusalem. His mother was Athaliah, the granddaughter 101 of Omri. 22:3 He followed in the footsteps of Ahab’s dynasty, 102 for his mother gave him evil advice. 103 22:4 He did evil in the sight of 104 the Lord like Ahab’s dynasty because, after his father’s death, they 105 gave him advice that led to his destruction. 22:5 He followed their advice and joined Ahab’s son King Joram 106 of Israel in a battle against King Hazael of Syria 107 at Ramoth Gilead in which the Syrians defeated Joram. 22:6 Joram 108 returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds he received from the Syrians 109 in Ramah when he fought against King Hazael of Syria. Ahaziah 110 son of King Jehoram of Judah went down to visit Joram son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he had been wounded. 111
22:7 God brought about Ahaziah’s downfall through his visit to Joram. 112 When Ahaziah 113 arrived, he went out with Joram to meet Jehu son of Nimshi, whom the Lord had commissioned 114 to wipe out Ahab’s family. 115 22:8 While Jehu was dishing out punishment to Ahab’s family, he discovered the officials of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah’s relatives who were serving Ahaziah and killed them. 22:9 He looked for Ahaziah, who was captured while hiding in Samaria. 116 They brought him to Jehu and then executed him. They did give him a burial, for they reasoned, 117 “He is the son of Jehoshaphat, who sought the Lord with his whole heart.” There was no one in Ahaziah’s family strong enough to rule in his place. 118
22:10 When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she was determined to destroy the entire royal line 119 of Judah. 120 22:11 So Jehoshabeath, 121 the daughter of King Jehoram, 122 took Ahaziah’s son Joash and sneaked him away 123 from the rest of the royal descendants who were to be executed. She hid him and his nurse in the room where the bed covers were stored. So Jehoshabeath the daughter of King Jehoram, wife of Jehoiada the priest and sister of Ahaziah, hid him from Athaliah so she could not execute him. 22:12 He remained in hiding in God’s temple 124 for six years, while Athaliah was ruling over the land.
[20:1] 1 tc The Hebrew text has “Ammonites,” but they are mentioned just before this. Most translations, following some
[20:2] 2 tn Heb “they”; the implied referent (messengers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:2] 3 tn Heb “the Sea”; in context (“from the direction of Edom”) this must refer to the Dead Sea, which has been specified in the translation for clarity (cf. NEB, NLT).
[20:2] 4 tc Most Hebrew
[20:3] 5 tn Heb “and he set his face to seek the
[20:4] 6 tn The words “the people of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. The Hebrew text uses the name “Judah” by metonymy for the people of Judah.
[20:4] 7 tn Heb “to seek from the
[20:4] 8 tn Heb “to seek the
[20:5] 9 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[20:6] 10 tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 33).
[20:6] 11 tn Heb “are you not God in heaven?” The rhetorical question expects the answer “yes,” resulting in the positive statement “you are the God who lives in heaven” employed in the translation.
[20:7] 12 tn Heb “did you not drive out?” This is another rhetorical question which expects a positive response; see the note on the word “heaven” in the previous verse.
[20:7] 13 tn Heb “permanently.”
[20:7] 14 tn Or perhaps “your covenantal partner.” See Isa 41:8.
[20:8] 16 tn Heb “for your name.” The word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor (thus the translation here, “to honor you
[20:9] 18 tn Heb “for your name is in this house.” The “name” of the
[20:9] 19 tn Or “so that you may.”
[20:10] 20 tn Heb “now, look, the sons of Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir.”
[20:10] 21 tn Heb “whom you did not allow Israel to enter when they came from the land of Egypt.”
[20:12] 22 tn Heb “for [or “indeed”] upon you are our eyes.”
[20:13] 23 tn Heb “Judah.” The words “the men of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. The Hebrew text uses the name “Judah” by metonymy for the men of Judah.
[20:15] 24 tn Heb “all Judah.” The words “you people of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. The Hebrew text uses the name “Judah” by metonymy for the people of Judah. Unlike the previous instance in v. 13 where infants, wives, and children are mentioned separately, this reference appears to include them all.
[20:15] 25 tn Or perhaps “don’t get discouraged.”
[20:17] 27 tn Heb “the deliverance of the
[20:17] 28 tn Or perhaps “don’t get discouraged.”
[20:18] 29 tn Heb “all Judah.” The words “you people of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. See the note on the word “Judah” in v. 15.
[20:18] 30 tn Heb “to worship the
[20:19] 31 tn Heb “arose to praise the
[20:20] 32 tn Heb “O Judah.” The words “you people of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. See the note on the word “Judah” in v. 15.
[20:20] 33 tn There is a wordplay in the Hebrew text. The Hiphil verb form הַאֲמִינוּ (ha’aminu, “trust”) and the Niphal form תֵאָמֵנוּ (te’amenu, “you will be safe”) come from the same verbal root (אָמַן, ’aman).
[20:21] 35 tn Or “is eternal.”
[20:22] 36 tn Heb “set ambushers against.” This is probably idiomatic here for launching a surprise attack.
[20:22] 37 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir.”
[20:23] 38 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon and Moab stood against the residents of Mount Seir.”
[20:23] 39 tn Heb “to annihilate and to destroy.”
[20:23] 40 tn Heb “residents.”
[20:23] 41 tn Heb “they helped, each one his fellow, for destruction.” The verb עָזַר (’azar), traditionally understood as the well-attested verb meaning “to help,” is an odd fit in this context. It is possible that it is from a homonymic root, perhaps meaning to “attack.” This root is attested in Ugaritic in a nominal form meaning “young man, warrior, hero.” For a discussion of the proposed root, see HALOT 811 s.v. II עזר.
[20:24] 42 tn Heb “Judah.” The words “the men of” are supplied in the translation for clarity. The Hebrew text uses the name “Judah” by metonymy for the men of Judah.
[20:24] 43 tn Heb “turned toward.”
[20:25] 45 tc The MT reads פְגָרִים (fÿgarim, “corpses”), but this seems odd among a list of plunder. A few medieval Hebrew
[20:25] 46 tn Heb “and they snatched away for themselves so that there was no carrying away.”
[20:25] 47 tn Heb “and they were three days looting the plunder for it was great.”
[20:26] 48 tn Heb “for there.”
[20:26] 49 sn The name Berachah, which means “blessing” in Hebrew, is derived from the verbal root “to praise [or “to bless”],” which appears earlier in the verse.
[20:29] 50 tn Heb “and the terror of God [or “a great terror”] was upon all the kingdoms of the lands.” It is uncertain if אֱלֹהִים (’elohim) should be understood as a proper name here (“God”), or taken in an idiomatic superlative sense.
[20:30] 51 tn Heb “and his God gave him rest all around.”
[20:31] 52 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[20:32] 53 tn Heb “he walked in the way of his father Asa and did not turn from it, doing what is right in the eyes of the
[20:33] 54 tn Heb “and still the people did not set their heart[s] on the God of their fathers.”
[20:34] 55 tn Heb “the rest of the events of Jehoshaphat, the former and the latter, look, they are written in the records of Jehu son of Hanani, which are taken up in the scroll of the kings of Israel.”
[20:35] 56 tn Heb “he.” The pronoun has been translated as a relative pronoun for stylistic reasons.
[20:36] 57 tn Heb “he made an alliance with him.”
[20:36] 58 tn Heb “make ships to go to Tarshish.” This probably refers to large ships either made in or capable of traveling to the distant western port of Tarshish; a “Tarshish-ship” was essentially a large seagoing merchant ship.
[20:37] 60 tn Heb “to go to Tarshish.”
[21:1] 61 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
[21:1] 62 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 10, 12, 19).
[21:1] 63 sn The phrase the City of David refers here to the fortress of Zion in Jerusalem, not to Bethlehem. See 2 Sam 5:7.
[21:1] 64 tn The parallel account in 2 Kgs 8:16-24 has the variant spelling “Jehoram.”
[21:2] 65 sn A number of times in 2 Chronicles “Israel” is used instead of the more specific “Judah”; see 2 Chr 12:6; 23:2). In the interest of consistency some translations (e.g., NAB, NRSV) substitute “Judah” for “Israel” here.
[21:4] 66 tn Heb “and Jehoram arose over the kingdom of his father and strengthened himself.”
[21:4] 67 tn Heb “and he killed all his brothers with the sword.”
[21:5] 68 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[21:6] 69 tn Heb “he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab did, for the daughter of Ahab was his wife.”
[21:6] 70 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[21:7] 73 tn Heb “which he made to David, just as he had promised to give him and his sons a lamp all the days.” Here “lamp” is metaphorical, symbolizing the Davidic dynasty.
[21:8] 74 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Jehoram) has been specified in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
[21:8] 75 tn Heb “in his days Edom rebelled from under the hand of Judah and enthroned a king over them.”
[21:9] 76 tc Heb “and he arose at night and defeated Edom, who had surrounded him, and the chariot officers.” The Hebrew text as it stands gives the impression that Jehoram was surrounded and launched a victorious nighttime counterattack. Yet v. 10 goes on to state that the Edomite revolt was successful. The translation above assumes an emendation of the Hebrew text. Adding a third masculine singular pronominal suffix to the accusative sign before Edom (reading אֹתוֹ [’oto, “him”] instead of just אֶת [’et]) and taking Edom as the subject of verbs allows one to translate the verse in a way that is more consistent with the context, which depicts an Israelite defeat, not victory. See also 2 Kgs 8:21.
[21:10] 77 tn Heb “and Edom rebelled from under the hand of Judah until this day.”
[21:10] 78 tn Or “from Jehoram’s control”; Heb “from under his hand.” The pronominal suffix may refer to Judah in general or, more specifically, to Jehoram.
[21:10] 79 tn Heb “he.” This pronoun could refer to Judah, but the context focuses on Jehoram’s misdeeds. See especially v. 11.
[21:11] 80 tn Heb “and he caused the residents of Jerusalem to commit adultery.” In this context spiritual unfaithfulness to the
[21:11] 81 tn Heb “and drove Judah away.”
[21:12] 82 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehoram) has been specified in the translation for clarity and for stylistic reasons.
[21:12] 83 tn Heb “Because you…” In the Hebrew text this lengthy sentence is completed in vv. 14-15. Because of its length and complexity (and the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences), the translation has divided it up into several English sentences.
[21:12] 84 tn Heb “walked in the ways.”
[21:12] 85 tn Heb “in the ways of.”
[21:13] 86 tn Heb “and you walked in the way of the kings of Israel and caused Judah and the residents of Jerusalem to commit adultery, like the house of Ahab causes to commit adultery.”
[21:13] 87 tn Heb “the house of your father.”
[21:14] 88 tn Heb “to strike with a great striking.”
[21:15] 89 tn Heb “and you [will have] a serious illness, an illness of the intestines until your intestines come out because of the illness days upon days.”
[21:16] 90 tn Heb “the spirit of the Philistines.”
[21:17] 91 tn Heb “broke it up.”
[21:17] 92 tn Heb “all the property which was found in the house of the king.”
[21:18] 93 tn Heb “in his intestines with an illness [for which] there was no healer.”
[21:19] 94 tn Heb “and it was to days from days, and about the time of the going out of the end for the days, two, his intestines came out with his illness and he died in severe illness.”
[21:19] 95 tn Heb “and his people did not make for him a fire, like the fire of his fathers.”
[21:20] 96 tn Heb “and he went without desire.”
[21:20] 97 sn The phrase the City of David refers here to the fortress of Zion in Jerusalem, not to Bethlehem. See 2 Sam 5:7.
[22:1] 98 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[22:1] 99 tn Heb “for all the older [ones] the raiding party that came with the Arabs to the camp had killed.”
[22:2] 100 tc Heb “forty-two,” but the parallel passage in 2 Kgs 8:26 reads “twenty-two” along with some
[22:2] 101 tn The Hebrew term בַּת (bat, “daughter”) can refer, as here, to a granddaughter. See HALOT 165-66 s.v. I בַּת 1.
[22:3] 102 tn Heb “and also he walked in the ways of the house of Ahab.”
[22:3] 103 tn Heb “for his mother was his adviser to do evil.”
[22:4] 104 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[22:4] 105 tn That is, the members of Ahab’s royal house.
[22:5] 106 sn Jehoram and Joram are alternate spellings of the Israelite king’s name (also in vv. 6-7). The shorter form is used in these verse to avoid confusion with King Jehoram of Judah, father of Azariah.
[22:5] 107 tn Heb “Aram” (also in v. 6).
[22:6] 108 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Joram) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[22:6] 109 tn Heb “which the Syrians inflicted [on] him.”
[22:6] 110 tc Most Hebrew
[22:6] 111 tn Heb “because he was sick,” presumably referring to the wounds he received in the battle with the Syrians.
[22:7] 112 tn Heb “From God was the downfall of Ahaziah by going to Joram.”
[22:7] 113 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ahaziah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[22:7] 115 tn Heb “to cut off the house of Ahab.”
[22:9] 116 map For location see Map2 B1; Map4 D3; Map5 E2; Map6 A4; Map7 C1.
[22:9] 117 tn Heb “they said.”
[22:9] 118 tn Heb “and there was no one belonging to the house of Ahaziah to retain strength for kingship.”
[22:10] 119 tn Heb “she arose and she destroyed all the royal offspring.” The verb קוּם (qum, “arise”) is here used in an auxiliary sense to indicate that she embarked on a campaign to destroy the royal offspring. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 125.
[22:10] 120 tn Heb “house of Judah.”
[22:11] 121 sn Jehoshabeath is a variant spelling of the name Jehosheba (2 Kgs 11:2).
[22:11] 122 tn Heb “the king”; the referent (King Jehoram, see later in this verse) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[22:12] 124 tn Heb “and he was with them in the house of God hiding.”
