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

All Judah was happy about the oath, because they made the vow with their whole heart. They willingly sought the Lord and he responded to them. ¹  He made them secure on every side. ² 

The Lord made his kingdom secure; ¹  all Judah brought tribute to Jehoshaphat, and he became very wealthy and greatly respected. ² 

The Lord put fear into all the kingdoms surrounding Judah; ¹  they did not make war with Jehoshaphat.

He replied, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.’ The Lord ¹  said, ‘Deceive and overpower him. ²  Go out and do as you have proposed.’

Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem with Jehoshaphat leading them; the Lord had given them reason to rejoice over their enemies.

All the kingdoms of the surrounding lands were afraid of God ¹  when they heard how the Lord had fought against Israel’s enemies.

His brothers, Jehoshaphat’s sons, were Azariah, Jechiel, Zechariah, Azariahu, Michael, and Shephatiah. All of these were sons of King Jehoshaphat of Israel. ¹ 

Jehoram took control of his father’s kingdom and became powerful. ¹  Then he killed all his brothers, ²  as well as some of the officials of Israel.

When Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she was determined to destroy the entire royal line ¹  of Judah. ² 

All the people went and demolished ¹  the temple of Baal. They smashed its altars and idols. ²  They killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altars.

(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.)

All the people of Judah took Uzziah, ¹  who was sixteen years old, and made him king in his father Amaziah’s place.

We have prepared and consecrated all the items that King Ahaz removed during his reign when he acted unfaithfully. They are in front of the altar of the Lord.”

Then the priests slaughtered them. They offered their blood as a sin offering on the altar to make atonement for all Israel, because the king had decreed ¹  that the burnt sacrifice and sin offering were for all Israel.

The assembly brought a total of 70 bulls, 100 rams, and 200 lambs as burnt sacrifices to the Lord, ¹ 

They removed the altars in Jerusalem; they also removed all the incense altars and threw them into the Kidron Valley. ¹ 

The celebration included ¹  the entire assembly of Judah, the priests, the Levites, the entire assembly of those who came from Israel, the resident foreigners who came from the land of Israel, and the residents of Judah.

“Be strong and brave! Don’t be afraid and don’t panic ¹  because of the king of Assyria and this huge army that is with him! We have with us one who is stronger than those who are with him. ² 

The Lord delivered Hezekiah and the residents of Jerusalem from the power of King Sennacherib of Assyria and from all the other nations. ¹  He made them secure on every side. ²