King Jehoshaphat

How He Became King: After the death of his father Asa
When He Began Reigning: 35 years old
Reign Length: 25 years
Ruled Over: Judah
Type of King: Good
Prophet: Jehu, Eliezer
Death: Uncertain
Burial: Buried in Jerusalem

Jehoshaphat became king after his father Asa died. He began reigning when he was 35 years old and he reigned over Judah for 25 years. Jehoshaphat did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord and served God the same way his father had:

1 Kings 22:42: “Jehoshaphat was thirty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi.
43 And he walked in all the ways of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of the Lord: nevertheless the high places were not taken away; for the people offered and burnt incense yet in the high places.”

Like his father, he was also zealous to cleanse the land of sodomites:

1 Kings 22:46: “And the remnant of the sodomites, which remained in the days of his father Asa, he took out of the land.”

Because Jehoshaphat sought the Lord, God was with him and gave him great riches and honor:

2 Chronicles 17:3: “And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim;
4 But sought to the Lord God of his father, and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel.
5 Therefore the Lord stablished the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought to Jehoshaphat presents; and he had riches and honour in abundance.”

The king even sent men throughout the land to teach the people the law of the Lord (2 Chronicles 17:7-9). However, although Jehoshaphat meant well and sought the Lord, he made many poor decisions in his life. Time and time again the king teamed up with wicked rulers in order to help them, and time and time again God rebuked him for it. God tried to teach Jehoshaphat that the righteous should not join forces with the wicked, but Jehoshaphat never learned.

For example, during his reign Jehoshaphat agreed to help wicked king Ahab attack Ramothgilead. The prophet Micaiah warned that God had arranged the battle in order to kill Ahab, but Jehoshaphat refused to listen. After the battle was over and Jehoshaphat had returned home, God sent the prophet Jehu to rebuke him for helping the ungodly:

2 Chronicles 19:1: “And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in peace to Jerusalem.
2 And 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.”

After this Jehoshaphat sent judges throughout the land of Judah and told them to make godly decisions and serve the Lord faithfully. Despite Jehoshaphat’s failings, he did have a heart after God and he did trust in Him. When Moab and Ammon came against him, the king proclaimed a fast and urged the people to seek the Lord:

2 Chronicles 20:1: “It came to pass after this also, that the children of Moab, and the children of Ammon, and with them other beside the Ammonites, came against Jehoshaphat to battle.
2 Then there came some that told Jehoshaphat, saying, There cometh a great multitude against thee from beyond the sea on this side Syria; and, behold, they be in Hazazontamar, which is Engedi.
3 And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.
4 And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the Lord: even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.”

Because they sought the Lord and trusted in Him, the Lord fought for Judah. God ambushed the invaders and they fought each other:

2 Chronicles 20:22: “And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten.
23 For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another.
24 And when Judah came toward the watch tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the multitude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none escaped.”

God gave Jehoshaphat a great victory because he trusted in the Lord. However, Jehoshaphat continued to make alliances with wicked kings. After Ahab was killed in battle, his son Jehoram became king over Israel. (Interestingly enough, both Ahab and Jehoshaphat had sons named Jehoram. Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram even married Ahab’s daughter – a fact that led to tragic consequences.) When Jehoram asked Jehoshaphat to help him attack Moab (the very people that had just attacked Jehoshaphat), the king agreed:

2 Kings 3:6: “And king Jehoram went out of Samaria the same time, and numbered all Israel.
7 And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab hath rebelled against me: wilt thou go with me against Moab to battle? And he said, I will go up: I am as thou art, my people as thy people, and my horses as thy horses.”

At this point in history Jehu the prophet had already rebuked Jehoshaphat for helping the wicked king Ahab, yet here he was helping Ahab’s wicked son Jehoram. Jehoshaphat had learned nothing at all from Jehu’s rebuke. It is true that the Moabites were a common enemy between the two kings, but God had already told Jehoshaphat that He did not want him helping the wicked.

As it turned out, the joint venture did not go well. The kings ran out of water and nearly died:

2 Kings 3:9: “So the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah, and the king of Edom: and they fetched a compass of seven days’ journey: and there was no water for the host, and for the cattle that followed them.
10 And the king of Israel said, Alas! that the Lord hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab!”

Jehoshaphat asked if there was a prophet of the Lord who could help them, and they called Elisha. The prophet was not happy about helping these wicked kings, but since Jehoshaphat was there he agreed to seek the Lord for help:

2 Kings 3:13: “And Elisha said unto the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy father, and to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him, Nay: for the Lord hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab.
14 And Elisha said, As the Lord of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.
15 But now bring me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him.
16 And he said, Thus saith the Lord, Make this valley full of ditches.
17 For thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.
18 And this is but a light thing in the sight of the Lord: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand.
19 And ye shall smite every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.”

Elisha’s word came to pass. The country was filled with water, and God deliver the Moabites into their hand. The kings did indeed destroy the Moabite cities, just as Elisha had said.

Nor is that the last time that Jehoshaphat committed this sin. Later in life Jehoshaphat teamed up with the wicked king Ahaziah to send ships to Tarshish. However, God sent Eliezer to rebuke him for helping the wicked king:

2 Chronicles 20:36: “And he joined himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish: and they made the ships in Eziongaber.
37 Then Eliezer the son of Dodavah of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because thou hast joined thyself with Ahaziah, the Lord hath broken thy works. And the ships were broken, that they were not able to go to Tarshish.”

As you can see, God destroyed the ships that the two kings had made. God told Jehoshaphat time and time again that it was a sin for the righteous to team up with the wicked, even if they had a common enemy and common goals, but Jehoshaphat never learned.

When Jehoshaphat died, he was buried in Jerusalem:

2 Chronicles 21:1: “Now Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And Jehoram his son reigned in his stead.”

His son Jehoram then reigned over Judah.