Jehoshaphat

Jehoshaphat (“the LORD is judge”), son of Asa, was the fourth king of Judah (c. 873–848 BC) and one of its most godly rulers. “He walked in the earlier ways of his father David… seeking the God of his father and walking in his commandments” (2 Chronicles 17:3-4); the LORD established his kingdom, and he grew great in riches and honour.

His reign was marked by thorough reform. He took away high places and Asherim, and — uniquely — in the third year of his reign he sent princes, Levites, and priests throughout the towns of Judah with the Book of the Law of the LORD to teach the people (2 Chronicles 17:7-9). He appointed judges across the fortified cities with a solemn charge: “Consider what you do, for you judge not for man but for the LORD… let the fear of the LORD be upon you” (2 Chronicles 19:5-7). These administrative and spiritual reforms are the most fully described of any Judean king before Hezekiah.

His most famous hour came when a vast coalition of Moabites, Ammonites, and others marched against Judah. Jehoshaphat “set his face to seek the LORD,” proclaimed a fast, and prayed before the assembly, “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you” (2 Chronicles 20:3-12). Through a Levite the Spirit answered, “The battle is not yours but God’s… stand firm and see the salvation of the LORD” (2 Chronicles 20:15-17). He then sent singers ahead of the army praising the LORD, and the enemy turned on one another and destroyed themselves (2 Chronicles 20:21-24) — a striking display that worship and faith are weapons of God’s deliverance.

Jehoshaphat’s great flaw was his alliance with the wicked house of Ahab, sealed by his son Jehoram’s marriage to Ahab’s daughter Athaliah. He joined Ahab in the disastrous battle at Ramoth-gilead and was rebuked by the seer Jehu, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the LORD?” (2 Chronicles 19:1-2; 1 Kings 22:1-4). That union later brought Baal worship and near-ruin to the Davidic line. The Valley of Jehoshaphat (“the LORD judges”) bears his name as the prophesied site of God’s judgment of the nations (Joel 3:2; Joel 3:12).