2 Chronicles 17:3-9

17:3 The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he followed in his ancestor ¹  David’s footsteps at the beginning of his reign. ²  He did not seek the Baals, 17:4 but instead sought the God of his ancestors ³  and obeyed ⁴  his commands, unlike the Israelites. ⁵  17:5 The Lord made his kingdom secure; ⁶  all Judah brought tribute to Jehoshaphat, and he became very wealthy and greatly respected. ⁷  17:6 He was committed to following the Lord; ⁸  he even removed the high places and Asherah poles from Judah.

17:7 In the third year of his reign he sent his officials Ben-Hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah to teach in the cities of Judah. 17:8 They were accompanied by the Levites Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tob-Adonijah, and by the priests Elishama and Jehoram. 17:9 They taught throughout Judah, taking with them the scroll of the law of the Lord. They traveled to all the cities of Judah and taught the people.

2 Chronicles 19:3-4

19:3 Nevertheless you have done some good things; ⁹  you removed ¹⁰  the Asherah poles from the land and you were determined to follow the Lord.” ¹¹ 

Jehoshaphat Appoints Judges

19:4 Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem. ¹²  He went out among the people from Beer Sheba to the hill country of Ephraim and encouraged them to follow ¹³  the Lord God of their ancestors. ¹⁴ 

Psalms 15:4

15:4 He despises a reprobate, ¹⁵ 

but honors the Lord’s loyal followers. ¹⁶ 

He makes firm commitments and does not renege on his promise. ¹⁷ 

[17:3]  ¹ tn Heb “father.”

[17:3]  ² tn Heb “for he walked in the ways of David his father [in] the beginning [times].”

[17:4]  ³ tn Heb “fathers.”

[17:4]  ⁴ tn Heb “walked in.”

[17:4]  ⁵ tn Heb “and not like the behavior of Israel.”

[17:5]  ⁶ tn Heb “established the kingdom in his hand.”

[17:5]  ⁷ tn Heb “and he had wealth and honor in abundance.”

[17:6]  ⁸ tn Heb “and his heart was high in the ways of the Lord.” Perhaps גָּבַהּ (gavah, “be high”) here means “be cheerful” (HALOT 171 s.v.) or “be encouraged” (BDB 147 s.v. 3.a).

[19:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “nevertheless good things are found with you.”

[19:3]  ¹⁰ 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.

[19:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and you set your heart to seek the Lord.”

[19:4]  ¹² map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[19:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “and turned them back to.”

[19:4]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “fathers.”

[15:4]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “despised in his eyes [is] a rejected [one].” The Hebrew term נִמְאָס (nim’as, “rejected [one]”) apparently refers here to one who has been rejected by God because of his godless behavior. It stands in contrast to “those who fear God” in the following line.

[15:4]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “those who fear the Lord.” The one who fears the Lord respects his sovereignty and obeys his commandments. See Ps 128:1; Prov 14:2.

[15:4]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “he takes an oath to do harm and does not change.” The phrase “to do harm” cannot mean “do harm to others,” for the preceding verse clearly characterizes this individual as one who does not harm others. In this context the phrase must refer to an oath to which a self-imprecation is attached. The godly individual takes his commitments to others so seriously he is willing to “swear to his own hurt.” For an example of such an oath, see Ruth 1:16-17.