19:4 Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem. 4 He went out among the people from Beer Sheba to the hill country of Ephraim and encouraged them to follow 5 the Lord God of their ancestors. 6 19:5 He appointed judges throughout the land and in each of the fortified cities of Judah. 7 19:6 He told the judges, “Be careful what you do, 8 for you are not judging for men, but for the Lord, who will be with you when you make judicial decisions. 19:7 Respect the Lord and make careful decisions, for the Lord our God disapproves of injustice, partiality, and bribery.” 9
19:8 In Jerusalem Jehoshaphat appointed some Levites, priests, and Israelite family leaders to judge on behalf of the Lord 10 and to settle disputes among the residents of Jerusalem. 11 19:9 He commanded them: “Carry out your duties with respect for the Lord, with honesty, and with pure motives. 12
1 tn Heb “nevertheless good things are found with you.”
2 tn Here בָּעַר (ba’ar) is not the well attested verb “burn,” but the less common homonym meaning “devastate, sweep away, remove.” See HALOT 146 s.v. II בער.
3 tn Heb “and you set your heart to seek the
4 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
5 tn Heb “and turned them back to.”
6 tn Heb “fathers.”
7 tn Heb “in all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city.”
8 tn Heb “see what you are doing.”
9 tn Heb “and now let the terror of the
10 tn Heb “for the judgment of the
11 tc Heb “and to conduct a case [or “for controversy”], and they returned [to] Jerusalem.” Some emend וַיָּשֻׁבוּ (vayyashuvu, “and they returned”) to וַיֵּשְׁבוּ (vayyeshÿvu, “and they lived [in]”). The present translation assumes an emendation to יֹשְׁבֵי (yoshÿvey, “residents of”).
12 tn Heb “This you must do with the fear of the