When Azariah the high priest and the other priests looked at ¹  him, there was a skin disease on his forehead. They hurried him out of there; even the king ²  himself wanted to leave quickly because the Lord had afflicted him.

Solomon acquired his horses from Egypt ¹  and from Que; the king’s traders purchased them from Que.

I will build a great temple, for our God is greater than all gods.

to supply me with large quantities of timber, for I am building a great, magnificent temple.

The priests were unable to enter the Lord’s temple because the Lord’s splendor filled the Lord’s temple.

He ordered Judah to seek the Lord God of their ancestors ¹  and to observe his law and commands. ² 

When the chariot commanders realized he was not the king of Israel, they turned away from him.

Jehoshaphat was afraid, so he decided to seek the Lord’s advice. ¹  He decreed that all Judah should observe a fast.

So look, the Lord is about to severely afflict ¹  your people, your sons, your wives, and all you own.

and she said to them: “This is what the Lord God of Israel says: ‘Say this to the man who sent you to me:

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 ¹  and residents of Jerusalem! Trust in the Lord your God and you will be safe! ²  Trust in the message of his prophets and you will win.”

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. ¹  You also killed your brothers, members of your father’s family, ²  who were better than you.

You must serve me as your father David did. Do everything I commanded and obey my rules and regulations. ¹ 

Whenever the king visited the Lord’s temple, the royal guards carried them and then brought them back to the guardroom. ¹ 

Now Jeroboam had sent some men to ambush the Judahite army from behind. ¹  The main army was in front of the Judahite army; ²  the ambushers were behind it.

In those days ¹  no one could travel safely, ²  for total chaos had overtaken all the people of the surrounding lands. ³ 

While the battle raged throughout the day, the king stood propped up in his chariot opposite the Syrians. He died in the evening as the sun was setting.

This is what you must do. One third of you priests and Levites who are on duty during the Sabbath will guard the doors.

He followed ¹  God during the lifetime of ²  Zechariah, who taught him how to honor God. As long as he followed ³  the Lord, God caused him to succeed. ⁴ 

But Manasseh misled the people of ¹  Judah and the residents of Jerusalem so that they sinned more than the nations whom the Lord had destroyed ahead of the Israelites.