In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa developed a foot disease. Though his disease was severe, he did not seek the Lord, but only the doctors.

The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he followed in his ancestor David’s footsteps at the beginning of his reign. He did not seek the Baals,

The Lord made his kingdom secure; all Judah brought tribute to Jehoshaphat, and he became very wealthy and greatly respected.

The Lord put fear into all the kingdoms surrounding Judah; they did not make war with Jehoshaphat.

Zedekiah son of Kenaanah made iron horns and said, “This is what the Lord says, ‘With these you will gore Syria until they are destroyed!’”

All the prophets were prophesying the same, saying, “Attack Ramoth Gilead! You will succeed; the Lord will hand it over to the king!”

The king said to him, “How many times must I make you solemnly promise in the name of the Lord to tell me only the truth?”

Micaiah said, “If you really do return safely, then the Lord has not spoken through me!” Then he added, “Take note, all you people.”

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

He told the judges, “Be careful what you do, for you are not judging for men, but for the Lord, who will be with you when you make judicial decisions.

Then some Levites, from the Kohathites and Korahites, got up and loudly praised the Lord God of Israel.

When they began to shout and praise, the Lord suddenly attacked the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated.

All the kingdoms of the surrounding lands were afraid of God when they heard how the Lord had fought against Israel’s enemies.

He followed in the footsteps of the kings of Israel, just as Ahab’s dynasty had done, for he married Ahab’s daughter. He did evil in the sight of the Lord.

He did evil in the sight of the Lord like Ahab’s dynasty because, after his father’s death, they gave him advice that led to his destruction.

When Athaliah heard the royal guard shouting and praising the king, she joined the crowd at the Lord’s temple.

(Wicked Athaliah and her sons had broken into God’s temple and used all the holy items of the Lord’s temple in their worship of the Baals.)

An edict was sent throughout Judah and Jerusalem requiring the people to bring to the Lord the tax that Moses, God’s servant, imposed on Israel in the wilderness.

They abandoned the temple of the Lord God of their ancestors, and worshiped the Asherah poles and idols. Because of this sinful activity, God was angry with Judah and Jerusalem.

King Joash disregarded the loyalty his father Jehoiada had shown him and killed Jehoiada’s son. As Zechariah was dying, he said, “May the Lord take notice and seek vengeance!”