Daily Devotional for Saturday, April 19

Jehoshaphat as King

   “And Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem: and he went out again through the people from Beer-sheba to mount Ephraim, and brought them back unto the Lord God of their fathers,” 2 Chronicles 19:4.

When one reads the beginning of Jehoshaphat’s reign, hope wells up. Second Chronicles 17 says the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, and he walked in the ways of his ancestor, David. He sought God, and he had a courageous heart in the ways of the Lord. In 2 Chronicles 17:10, the fear of the Lord fell on the nations around Judah so that none of them made war with Jehoshaphat. Instead, they brought him gifts! His early reign mirrors that of young Solomon.

Jehoshaphat then made a marriage alliance with wicked Ahab, king of Israel. Jehoshaphat’s son married Ahab’s daughter. After some time, Jehoshaphat went to Samaria to visit. While there, he got caught up in Ahab’s war and was almost killed (2 Chronicles 18:31, 32). When he returned to Jerusalem, Jehu the seer met him with a message from the Lord. He was rebuked for aligning with a wicked king. The Lord had protected him from war, and yet, he let himself get into a war after aligning himself with King Ahab. Like Solomon, he allowed idol worshipers into his home. But unlike Solomon, he was not led astray, and his heart remained set on the Lord (2 Chronicles 19:3). He appointed just judges to rule over Judah and charged them to serve faithfully with fear of the Lord as their guide.

Later, war came to Jehoshaphat’s doorstep. Three nations bonded together to attack Jehoshaphat, and he was afraid. He sought the Lord and brought all of Judah together to pray. As a united assembly, they humbled themselves and asked the Lord for help. Jehoshaphat publicly recognized God as the head of his people, and God honored their request and stepped up to fight for them.

THOUGHT

 Jehoshaphat charged the men of God to “deal courageously, and the Lord shall be with the good”

(2 Chronicles 19:11). What a great charge for men and women of God today!

Kelli Reynolds