2 Chronicles 19

Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, came back safely to his own house in Jerusalem.

1And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in peace to Jerusalem.

NoteIn the previous chapter Jehoshaphat had joined Ahab, king of the northern kingdom of Israel, in a battle at Ramoth-gilead in which Ahab was killed and Jehoshaphat himself narrowly escaped. "Came back safely" points back to that; it is what prompts the confrontation in the next verse.

2Jehu son of Hanani, a seer, went out to meet him and said to King Jehoshaphat, "Should you help wicked people and be a friend to those who hate the LORD? Because you did this, the LORD is angry with you.

2And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the LORD? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the LORD.

NoteA "seer" is an older Hebrew term for a prophet, literally one who sees, a person understood to receive messages from God through visions. Jehu's father Hanani had confronted an earlier king of Judah in the same way (2 Chronicles 16). "Help wicked people" refers to Jehoshaphat's military alliance with Ahab; the marriage of his son to Ahab's family had tied the two royal houses together.

3Even so, there is good found in you. You got rid of the Asherah poles in the land, and you have set your heart on seeking God."

3Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God.

NoteAsherah poles were wooden poles or carved wooden objects set up at places of worship, representing the goddess Asherah, a Canaanite deity. Kings of Judah are repeatedly measured by whether they removed them. "Set your heart on" is a Hebrew idiom for a fixed, deliberate intention, not a passing feeling.

4Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem. He went out among the people again, from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim, and he brought them back to the LORD, the God of their ancestors.

4And Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem: and he went out again through the people from Beersheba to mount Ephraim, and brought them back unto the LORD God of their fathers.

NoteBeersheba was the southernmost town of Judah and the hill country of Ephraim marked its northern edge, so the phrase is a standard way of saying "the whole kingdom, end to end." "The God of their ancestors" identifies the LORD as the God worshiped by Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the point being a return to older practice rather than a new religion.

5He appointed judges in the land, in every one of the walled cities of Judah, city by city.

5And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city by city,

NoteWalled (or fortified) cities were the towns with defensive walls, which also served as the regional administrative centers for the surrounding countryside. Placing judges in them put a court within reach of everyone.

6He said to the judges, "Be careful about what you do. You are not judging for people but for the LORD, and he is with you when you decide a case.

6And said to the judges, Take heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the LORD, who is with you in the judgment.

7So now, let the fear of the LORD be on you. Be careful how you act, because the LORD our God is never unfair. He never takes anyone's side because of who they are, and he never takes a bribe."

7Wherefore now let the fear of the LORD be upon you; take heed and do it: for there is no iniquity with the LORD our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of gifts.

Note"The fear of the LORD" is a set Hebrew phrase meaning reverent awe and the sense of being answerable to God (not fright. It is used throughout the Old Testament for a serious, obedient attitude toward God. The King James "respect of persons" means favoritism) deciding a case according to who the parties are rather than the facts.

8In Jerusalem, Jehoshaphat also appointed some of the Levites, some of the priests, and some of the heads of the families of Israel. They were to judge cases for the LORD and to settle arguments, and they lived in Jerusalem.

8Moreover in Jerusalem did Jehoshaphat set of the Levites, and of the priests, and of the chief of the fathers of Israel, for the judgment of the LORD, and for controversies, when they returned to Jerusalem.

NoteThe Levites were members of the tribe of Levi, who served at the temple and also worked as teachers, record-keepers and officials; the priests were the branch of that tribe descended from Aaron. "Heads of the families" are the senior men of the extended family groups that made up each tribe, the traditional local authorities. Jerusalem functioned here as a central court for cases the local courts could not settle.

9He gave them these orders: "This is how you are to act: in the fear of the LORD, faithfully, and with your whole heart.

9And he charged them, saying, Thus shall ye do in the fear of the LORD, faithfully, and with a perfect heart.

10Whenever a case comes to you from your fellow Israelites who live in their own cities, whether it is about bloodshed or about some law, command, rule, or ruling, you are to warn them not to sin against the LORD. If you do not, his anger will come on you and on them. Do this, and you will not be guilty.

10And what cause soever shall come to you of your brethren that dwell in their cities, between blood and blood, between law and commandment, statutes and judgments, ye shall even warn them that they trespass not against the LORD, and so wrath come upon you, and upon your brethren: this do, and ye shall not trespass.

Note"Between blood and blood" (King James) is a Hebrew legal phrase for distinguishing one kind of killing from another, deliberate murder from accidental death, for instance. The distinction mattered because it decided whether the killer could claim asylum in a city of refuge or was liable to execution. "Law, command, rule, ruling" translates a standard four-part Hebrew series covering the whole body of legal instruction; the piling up of near-synonyms is a way of saying "every kind of legal question," not four sharply separate categories. The warning is that judges who let a wrong go unaddressed share the guilt for it.

11Take note: Amariah the chief priest is over you in everything that has to do with the LORD, and Zebadiah son of Ishmael, the leader of the house of Judah, is over you in everything that has to do with the king. The Levites will serve as officers under you. Act with courage, and may the LORD be with those who do right."

11And, behold, Amariah the chief priest is over you in all matters of the LORD; and Zebadiah the son of Ishmael, the ruler of the house of Judah, for all the king’s matters: also the Levites shall be officers before you. Deal courageously, and the LORD shall be with the good.

NoteThe chief priest, or high priest, was the senior religious official, in charge of temple worship and matters of religious law. The "leader of the house of Judah" held the parallel civil office under the king. Jehoshaphat is dividing the court's business into religious cases and cases arising from royal law and administration. "Officers" here translates a Hebrew word for court clerks and enforcement officials, men who kept records, summoned parties and carried out decisions.