2 Chronicles 17

Jehoshaphat, Asa's son, became king in his father's place. He built up his strength against the northern kingdom of Israel.

1And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead, and strengthened himself against Israel.

NoteJehoshaphat inherited only the southern kingdom. After Solomon's death the nation had split in two: ten northern tribes kept the name Israel, while the south, ruled from Jerusalem by David's descendants, was called Judah. "Strengthened himself against Israel" therefore means he fortified his border against the rival Hebrew kingdom to the north, not against a foreign people.

2He stationed troops in every walled city of Judah. He also placed groups of soldiers throughout the land of Judah and in the towns of Ephraim that his father Asa had captured.

2And he placed forces in all the fenced cities of Judah, and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim, which Asa his father had taken.

NoteEphraim was the leading tribe of the northern kingdom, so its towns lay across the border. Asa, Jehoshaphat's father, had seized some of them in earlier fighting; posting garrisons there held on to that gain. A "fenced" city in the King James simply means a walled one.

3The LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he lived the way his ancestor David had lived in his early years. He did not go after the Baals.

3And the LORD was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim;

NoteDavid was Jehoshaphat's ancestor, several generations back, not his father; "father" in Hebrew usage covers any forebear. "The first ways" means David's earlier conduct, before the failures recorded later in his reign, though some ancient copies read simply "the ways of his father," without David's name. "Baalim" is the Hebrew plural of Baal, the Canaanite storm-and-fertility god: the plural points to the many local shrines and images of him scattered through the countryside.

4Instead he looked to the God his father had served, and he obeyed God's commands. He did not copy what the northern kingdom of Israel was doing.

4But sought to the Lord God of his father, and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel.

5So the LORD made his rule firm and secure. All Judah brought Jehoshaphat gifts, and he had great wealth and was highly respected.

5Therefore the LORD stablished the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought to Jehoshaphat presents; and he had riches and honour in abundance.

NoteBringing "presents" to a king was a formal act, not a spontaneous kindness. Subjects and lesser rulers handed over gifts or produce as a public sign that they accepted his authority; a steady flow of them was a measure of how secure a reign was.

6He took pride and delight in following the LORD's ways. He also removed the worship sites on the hills and the Asherah poles from Judah.

6And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the LORD: moreover he took away the high places and groves out of Judah.

Note"His heart was lifted up" elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible almost always means someone grew arrogant; here the same phrase is used approvingly, so it carries the sense of taking courage or delight in what he was doing. "High places" were open-air worship sites, usually on hilltops, where sacrifices were offered outside Jerusalem. "Groves" is the King James rendering of asherim, wooden poles or stylised trees set up beside an altar as emblems of the goddess Asherah.

7In the third year of his reign he sent out his officials to teach in the cities of Judah. They were Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah.

7Also in the third year of his reign he sent to his princes, even to Benhail, and to Obadiah, and to Zechariah, and to Nethaneel, and to Michaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah.

Note"Princes" here does not mean royal sons; the word means high officials or nobles of the court. Sending civil administrators, rather than only clergy, to teach was unusual and suggests the instruction had the force of royal policy.

8He sent Levites with them: Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tob-adonijah. Two priests went along too: Elishama and Jehoram.

8And with them he sent Levites, even Shemaiah, and Nethaniah, and Zebadiah, and Asahel, and Shemiramoth, and Jehonathan, and Adonijah, and Tobijah, and Tobadonijah, Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram, priests.

NoteLevites were members of the tribe of Levi, assigned to support the temple and its worship and traditionally responsible for instructing people in the law. Priests were the narrower group descended from Aaron, who alone could offer sacrifice. The names ending in -iah contain a shortened form of the divine name, roughly "the LORD is..."

9They taught throughout Judah, carrying the Book of the Law of the LORD with them. They traveled to all the towns of Judah and taught the people.

9And they taught in Judah, and had the book of the law of the LORD with them, and went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught the people.

Note"The book of the law" was a scroll, the written collection of Moses' instructions. Copies were rare and costly, so carrying one from town to town was itself the point: most people would only ever encounter the law by hearing it read aloud.

10All the kingdoms around Judah became afraid of the LORD, so none of them went to war against Jehoshaphat.

10And the fear of the LORD fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, so that they made no war against Jehoshaphat.

Note"The fear of the LORD fell upon" them describes dread of Judah's God as a military deterrent, an idea familiar across the ancient Near East, where a nation's strength and its god's strength were spoken of together.

11Some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat gifts and silver as payment. The Arabs brought him animals from their flocks: 7,700 rams and 7,700 male goats.

11Also some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents, and tribute silver; and the Arabians brought him flocks, seven thousand and seven hundred rams, and seven thousand and seven hundred he goats.

NoteThe Philistines occupied the coastal plain to Judah's west and had been Israel's chief rivals for generations. "Tribute silver" is a payment made by a weaker party to a stronger one, acknowledging its dominance, distinct from a gift freely given. The Arabians were nomadic herding tribes of the desert south and east, who would naturally pay in livestock rather than coin.

12Jehoshaphat grew stronger and stronger. He built forts and storage cities in Judah,

12And Jehoshaphat waxed great exceedingly; and he built in Judah castles, and cities of store.

Note"Castles" in the King James means fortresses or fortified strongholds. "Cities of store" were supply depots holding grain, oil, wine and military equipment, positioned so an army could be provisioned on the march.

13and he kept large supplies in the cities of Judah. He also had soldiers in Jerusalem, brave and skilled fighting men.

13And he had much business in the cities of Judah: and the men of war, mighty men of valour, were in Jerusalem.

14Here are their numbers, listed by family group. From the tribe of Judah, these were the commanders over units of a thousand: Adnah was the chief commander, and 300,000 brave fighting men served under him.

14And these are the numbers of them according to the house of their fathers: Of Judah, the captains of thousands; Adnah the chief, and with him mighty men of valour three hundred thousand.

Note"Captains of thousands" refers to officers commanding units nominally a thousand strong. The Hebrew word for thousand, eleph, can also mean a clan or a military contingent of unspecified size, which is why the enormous totals in these verses, over a million men in all, are read by some as counts of units rather than of individuals.

15Next to him was the commander Jehohanan, with 280,000 men under him.

15And next to him was Jehohanan the captain, and with him two hundred and fourscore thousand.

16Next to him was Amasiah son of Zichri, who volunteered himself for the LORD's service, with 200,000 brave fighting men under him.

16And next him was Amasiah the son of Zichri, who willingly offered himself unto the LORD; and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of valour.

Note"Willingly offered himself unto the LORD" uses the vocabulary of a freewill offering: Amasiah dedicated himself for service without being conscripted, the way a worshiper might bring a sacrifice no rule required of him.

17From the tribe of Benjamin: Eliada, a brave fighting man, with 200,000 men under him armed with bows and shields.

17And of Benjamin; Eliada a mighty man of valour, and with him armed men with bow and shield two hundred thousand.

NoteBenjamin was the one small northern tribe that stayed with Judah when the kingdom divided; its territory bordered Jerusalem. Benjaminites had a long-standing reputation as skilled archers and slingers, which fits the bows and shields mentioned here.

18Next to him was Jehozabad, with 180,000 men under him who were equipped and ready for battle.

18And next him was Jehozabad, and with him an hundred and fourscore thousand ready prepared for the war.

19These were the men who served the king, in addition to the ones the king had stationed in the walled cities all over Judah.

19These waited on the king, beside those whom the king put in the fenced cities throughout all Judah.

Note"Waited on the king" means served him in person, these were the standing troops stationed with him in the capital, as opposed to the men distributed among the frontier fortresses.