Chapter 20

1 Jehoshaphat in his fear proclaimeth a fast. 5 His prayer. 14The prophecy of Jahaziel. 20 Jehoshaphat exhorteth the people, and setteth singers to praise the Lord. 22 The great overthrow of the enemies. 26 The people, having blessed God at Berachah, return in triumph. 31 Jehoshaphat’s reign. 35 His convoy of ships, which he made with Ahaziah, according to the prophecy of Eliezer, unhappily perished.

1. The children. The narrative of vs. 1–30 is not found in Kings. Verses 31–37 are parallel to 1 Kings 22:41–49.

Other beside the Ammonites. Literally, “from the Ammonites.” Instead of Ammonites the LXX reads “Mehunim,” the same people mentioned in ch. 26:7. Since the Ammonites have already been referred to in the earlier part of the verse, Mehunim is probably the correct reading here. The Mehunim (Meunites, RSV) are believed to have inhabited MaФaЖn, 19 mi. (30.4 km. southeast of Petra, and seem to have occupied the country in the vicinity of Mt. Seir (v. 10).

2. The sea. The Dead Sea. Ammon and Moab were east of this sea and Seir was to the south.

On this side Syria. Literally, “from ХAram.” One Hebrew manuscript reads ХEdom, “from Edom,” and this is probably the original reading, inasmuch as the invaders approached from the south, around the southern end of the Dead Sea, where they would naturally be described as coming from Edom. In consonantal Hebrew the words for Syria and Edom are sometimes confused, since they differ in only one letter, and the two letters are very similar in appearance (see on 2 Sam. 8:12).

Hazazon-tamar. A city in the Dead Sea area (see Gen. 14:7).

En-gedi. A fountain and town near the middle of the west shore of the Dead Sea. The spring bursting from a cliff creates an oasis with a rich vegetation (see on Joshua 15:61).

3. Jehoshaphat feared. It is not wrong to fear when face to face with danger, but it is wrong to succumb to fear. Strong and courageous men are often afraid, but in spite of their fears they go forward to do resolute deeds.

Seek the Lord. Jehoshaphat had for years been building up the strength of his nation by equipping armies and fortifying cities (ch. 17:12–19). But at this time of crisis he placed his trust, not in men, but in God.

Proclaimed a fast. Compare Judges 20:26; 1 Sam. 7:6; Ezra 8:21; Joel 2:12–14; Jonah 3:5–9.

4. Help of the Lord. Judah faced a threat to its very existence, and the nation met that threat by gathering together and unitedly seeking help from God. In the not-far-distant future the children of God will face a similar threat from their enemies, and they too will find comfort and help by turning to God (Rev. 12:17; 13:15; 17:14; GC 619).

5. House of the Lord. This term in its more extended sense includes the Temple courts.

Before the new court. There were two courts in Solomon’s Temple (2 Kings 23:12; 2 Chron. 4:9; Jer. 36:10); one of these may have been recently renovated, perhaps by Jehoshaphat or his father, and thus would be termed “the new court.”

6. Over all. Compare 1 Chron. 29:12; Ps. 47:2, 8; Dan. 4:17, 25, 32. Jehoshaphat knew that God ruled over all the earth, and he also knew that if the enemies of God should now triumph it would bring reproach upon the name of the Lord. Hence he called upon God to vindicate Himself before the heathen.

7. Abraham thy friend. This is the first use of this term in the Scriptures. It occurs again in Isa. 41:8 and in James 2:23.

8. For thy name. Compare ch. 6:5–8. God’s name signifies His character.

9. If, when evil cometh. This is a condensation of Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the Temple (ch. 6:24–30). God had heard the prayer of Solomon and gave him a token to this effect (ch. 7:1–3). Jehoshaphat now claimed the answer to that prayer.

10. Mount Seir. This expression seems to be parallel to the Mehunim (Meunites, RSV) of v. 1 (see comments there).

Wouldest not let. See Deut. 2:4, 5, 9, 19; also Num. 20:14–21. Israel was commanded to spare the Edomites (see on 2 Chron. 20:2), for they were the children of Esau, and the Moabites and the Ammonites, for they were the children of Lot.

11. To cast us out. Since this was the objective of the enemy, it was an attack not only on the people of God but on God Himself.

12. Upon thee. Jehoshaphat was saying in effect, “We are utterly helpless and at the mercy of our enemies unless Thou dost come to our rescue; we know not which way to turn for help, but we are looking to Thee” (see Ps. 25:15; 123:2; 141:8).

15. But God’s. God identified Himself with His people. The enemies of Judah were God’s enemies, and the battle that was to follow was the Lord’s battle.

16. Cliff of Ziz. Generally identified with the Wadi H\as\aЖs\ah north of En-gedi, about 12 mi. southeast of Bethlehem.

Wilderness of Jeruel. The exact location of this site is unknown, but it must have been somewhere in the vicinity of the cliff of Ziz, probably near Tekoa.

17. Not need to fight. This was the Lord’s battle, not man’s. The enemies of Judah were fighting against God, and He would intervene in behalf of His people.

Stand ye still. These words are almost identical with those that Moses employed at the Red Sea (Ex. 14:13), immediately before the Lord destroyed the armies of Pharaoh. Now, as then, the victory would be entirely from God, with men acting as witnesses of His mighty power in their behalf.

18. Bowed his head. Jehoshaphat and the people returned thanks to God for the promised victory. The battle had not yet begun, but the Lord’s promise was accepted. God is honored when His people show sufficient faith to thank Him for promised blessings and victories.

19. To praise the Lord. This was a striking offering of praise before, rather than after, the victory. The people gave thanks to God as soon as He gave the promise of victory.

20. The wilderness of Tekoa. Tekoa is about 10 mi. south of Jerusalem.

Believe. There is nothing that provides greater confidence and security for man than to believe in the Lord. No man is truly established till he is established in God.

So shall ye prosper. In the ancient Jewish economy this was true materially as well as spiritually. God sent His prophets primarily that they might bring spiritual regeneration to the hearts of men. But the deeper the spiritual prosperity of a nation, the more certain was its continued material prosperity.

21. Before the army. As the armies of Judah advanced against the enemy the singers constituted the vanguard, shouting, not a cry of battle, but praises to God.

22. Began to sing. Seldom has the world seen such a battle as this—men singing hymns of praise to God as the attack is about to begin. The people were living their faith, and God saw fit to honor it. The Lord had promised victory, and the people took Him at His word. Victory was theirs because they claimed it.

Set ambushments. The nature of these is not disclosed, but the result was that the forces sent against the Hebrews mutually exterminated each other (see v. 23).

23. To destroy another. Compare Eze. 38:21; Zech. 14:13.

24. The watch tower. The scene of battle was a wild, desolate region, in which a watchtower would be used to observe the approach of an enemy.

26. Valley of Berachah. Literally, “valley of blessing.” This valley has been identified with the Wadi elРФArruЖb, south of Tekoa. Jehoshaphat thus names the site in commemoration of the remarkable deliverance God granted His people from their enemies. What might have been a valley of death became a valley of life, and what might have been a place of cursing became a place of blessing.

29. On all the kingdoms. This may have been the time when the Philistines brought “presents and tribute silver” and the Arabians brought their gifts to Jehoshaphat and when “the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about” (ch. 17:10, 11). Certain of the main features of Jehoshaphat’s reign have been summarized in ch. 17.

31. Jehoshaphat reigned. Verses 31–37 present a number of closing notices concerning the reign of Jehoshaphat. They are closely parallel to 1 Kings 22:41–49, the entire account of Jehoshaphat’s reign that is given in Kings. The parallel passage adds that Jehoshaphat began his reign in the 4th year of Ahab (1 Kings 22:41).

32. He walked. Jehoshaphat was one of the few kings of Judah of whom it could be said that he followed the example of a good king. But in the northern kingdom of Israel the rulers who followed Jeroboam in point of time also followed his unworthy example of apostasy.

34. Rest of the acts. The parallel passage includes the following remark, “and his might that he shewed, and how he warred” (1 Kings 22:45). This statement apparently refers to such items as Jehoshaphat’s building activities (2 Chron. 17:12, 13), the strength of his armies (ch. 17:14–19), and his victory over Moab, Ammon, and Mt. Seir (ch. 20).

36. Ships to go to Tarshish. The parallel passage reads, “ships of Tharshish to go to Ophir for gold” (1 Kings 22:48). This Tarshish was probably not the city identified with Tartessus in Spain (see on 1 Kings 10:22). Ophir was probably Punt (see on Gen. 10:29; 1 Kings 9:28).

37. Eliezer. This seems to be the only Biblical reference to this prophet.

Mareshah. A town in the Shephelah (see 2 Chron. 11:8; Joshua 15:44; Micah 1:15).

Joined thyself. The record in Chronicles places emphasis on the mistake of Jehoshaphat in associating himself with the king of Israel (v. 35), whereas the writer of Kings refers to this alliance only incidentally (1 Kings 22:48, 49).

Ellen G. White comments

1-25PP 45-51

1 DA 769

1-3GC 455; PK 180; PP 47, 336; 9T 212

2 GC 453; ML 140

2, 3 EW 217; GC 52; MM 215; PP 111; SR 145; 8T 197

3 DA 281; MB 99; 4T 147, 247

4 PP 112

6 PP 96; SR 66

7 MH 415; PP 56; 2T 300; 8T 264

8 AH 27; ML 136; PP 46; SR 58; 3T 77, 153

8, 9 Ed 20

8-17MYP 364

9 AH 27; Ed 23; PP 47, 48, 84; 6T 368; 8T 288

15 AH 27; CD 396; CT 147; Ed 21; FE 314, 327, 419, 512; LS 355;MH 261; ML 112; PP 47, 50; SR 24; 1T 568; 3T 77, 153; 4T 410

16 3T 50

16, 17 CH 108; Ed 23; 3T 72; 4T 11

17 CS 65; CT 12; EW 125, 147; GC 532; MH 449; PP 48, 53, 60; SR 24; 2T 561; 5T 365; 6T 386

18 AH 25; PP 56

18-20PP 46

19, 20 PP 51

21-23PP 56

22 AH 99; 3T 484

23 MB 99

23-25COL 310; FE 141

24 AH 25, 341; MB 99; PP 46

25 PP 445; SR 38