2 Chronicles 20:1-8

The Lord Gives Jehoshaphat Military Success

20:1 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,

¹ tc The Hebrew text has “Ammonites,” but they are mentioned just before this. Most translations, following some mss of the LXX, read “Meunites” (see 1 Chr 26:7; so NASB, NIV, NRSV).

² tn Heb “they”; the implied referent (messengers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

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).

⁴ tc Most Hebrew mss read “from Aram” (i.e., Syria), but this must be a corruption of “Edom,” which is the reading of the LXX and Vulgate.

⁵ tn Heb “and he set his face to seek the Lord.”

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.

⁷ tn Heb “to seek from the Lord.” The verb here (בָּקַשׁ, baqash) is different from the one translated “seek” in v. 3 (דָּרַשׁ, darash).

⁸ tn Heb “to seek the Lord.” The verb here (ָָבּקַשׁ, baqash) is different from the one translated “seek” in v. 3 (דָּרַשׁ, darash).

⁹ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹⁰ tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 33).

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.

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.

¹³ tn Heb “permanently.”

¹⁴ tn Or perhaps “your covenantal partner.” See Isa 41:8.

¹⁵ tn Or “sanctuary.”

¹⁶ tn Heb “for your name.” The word “name” sometimes refers to one’s reputation or honor (thus the translation here, “to honor you”).