2 chronicles 19 commentary

2 CHRO ICLES 19 COMME TARY
EDITED BY GLE PEASE
1When Jehoshaphat king of Judah returned
safely to his palace in Jerusalem,
BAR ES, "Jehoshaphat ... returned to his house in peace - With the battle of
Ramoth-Gilead, and the death of Ahab, the war came to an end. The combined attack of
the two kings having failed, their troops had been withdrawn, and the enterprise in
which they had joined relinquished. The Syrians, satisfied with their victory, did not
press on the retreating foe, or carry the war into their enemies’ country.
CLARKE, "Returned to his house in peace - That is, in safety, notwithstanding
he had been exposed to a danger so imminent, from which only the especial mercy of
God could have saved him.
GILL, "And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned,.... From Ramothgilead,
after Ahab was slain:
to his house in peace in Jerusalem; to his palace there in safety, having narrowly
escaped losing his life in the battle.
HE RY 1-3, "Here is, I. The great favour God showed to Jehoshaphat,
1. In bringing him back in safety from his dangerous expedition with Ahab, which had
like to have cost him dearly (2Ch_19:1): He returned to his house in peace. Notice is
taken of this to intimate, (1.) That he fared better than he had expected. He had been in
imminent peril, and yet came home in peace. Whenever we return in peace to our houses
we ought to acknowledge God's providence in preserving our going out and our coming
in. But, if we have been kept through more than ordinary dangers, we are in a special
manner bound to be thankful. There was but a step perhaps between us and death, and
yet we are alive. (2.) That he fared better than he deserved. He was out of the way of his
duty, had been out upon an expedition which he could not well account for to God and
his conscience, and yet he returned in peace; for God is not extreme to mark what we do
amiss, nor does he withdraw his protection every time we forfeit it. (3.) That he fared
better than Ahab king of Israel did, who was brought home slain. Though Jehoshaphat
had said to Ahab, I am as thou art, God distinguished him; for he knows and owns the
way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish. Distinguishing mercies
are very obliging. here were two kings in the field together, one taken and the other left,

one brought home in blood, the other in peace.
2. In sending him a reproof for his affinity with Ahab. It is a great mercy to be made
sensible of our faults, and to be told in time wherein we have erred, that we may repent
and amend the error before it be too late. The prophet by whom the reproof is sent is
Jehu the son of Hanani. The father was an eminent prophet in the last reign, as appeared
by Asa's putting him in the stocks for his plain dealing; yet the son was not afraid to
reprove another king. Paul would have his son Timothy not only discouraged, but
animated by his sufferings, 2Ti_3:11, 2Ti_3:14. (1.) The prophet told him plainly that he
had done very ill in joining with Ahab: “Shouldst thou, a godly man, help the ungodly,
give them a hand of fellowship, and lend them a hand of assistance?” Or, “Shouldst thou
love those that hate the Lord; wilt thou lay those in thy bosom whom God beholds afar
off?” It is the black character of wicked people that they are haters of God, Rom_1:30.
Idolaters are so reputed in the second commandment; and therefore it is not for those
that love God to take delight in them or contract an intimacy with them. Do I not hate
those, says David, that hate thee? Psa_139:21, Psa_139:11. Those whom the grace of God
has dignified ought not to debase themselves. Let God's people be of God's mind. (2.)
That God was displeased with him for doing this: “There is wrath upon thee from before
the Lord, and thou must, by repentance, make thy peace with him, or it will be the worse
for thee.” He did so, and God's anger was turned away. Yet his trouble, as recorded in the
next chapter, was a rebuke to him for meddling with strife that belonged not to him. If
he be so fond of war, he shall have enough of it. And the great mischief which his seed
after him fell into by the house of Ahab was the just punishment of his affinity with that
house. (3.) Yet he took notice of that which was praiseworthy, as it is proper for us to do
when we give a reproof (2Ch_19:3): “There are good things found in thee; and therefore,
though God be displeased with thee, he does not, he will not, cast thee off.” His
abolishing idolatry with a heart fixed for God and engaged to seek him was a good thing,
which God accepted and would have him go on with, notwithstanding the displeasure he
had now incurred.
JAMISO , "2Ch_19:1-4. Jehoshaphat visits his kingdom.
Jehoshaphat ... returned to his house in peace — (See 2Ch_18:16). Not long
after he had resumed the ordinary functions of royalty in Jerusalem, he was one day
disturbed by an unexpected and ominous visit from a prophet of the Lord [2Ch_19:2].
This was Jehu, of whose father we read in 2Ch_16:7. He himself had been called to
discharge the prophetic office in Israel. But probably for his bold rebuke to Baasha (1Ki_
16:1), he had been driven by that arbitrary monarch within the territory of Judah, where
we now find him with the privileged license of his order, taking the same religious
supervision of Jehoshaphat’s proceedings as he had formerly done of Baasha’s. At the
interview here described, he condemned, in the strongest terms, the king of Judah’s
imprudent and incongruous league with Ahab - God’s open enemy (1Ki_22:2) - as an
unholy alliance that would be conducive neither to the honor and comfort of his house
nor to the best interests of his kingdom. He apprised Jehoshaphat that, on account of
that grave offense, “wrath was upon him from before the Lord,” a judgment that was
inflicted soon after (see on 2Ch_20:1-37). The prophet’s rebuke, however, was
administered in a mingled strain of severity and mildness; for he interposed “a
nevertheless” (2Ch_19:3), which implied that the threatened storm would be averted, in
token of the divine approval of his public efforts for the promotion of the true religion,
as well as of the sincere piety of his personal character and life.

K&D 1-3, "The prophet Jehu's declaration as to Jehoshaphat's alliance with Ahab,
and Jehoshaphat's further efforts to promote the fear of God and the administration of
justice in Judah. - 2Ch_19:1-3. Jehu's declaration. Jehoshaphat returned from the war
in which Ahab had lost his life, ‫ּום‬‫ל‬ ָ‫שׁ‬ ְ , i.e., safe, uninjured, to his house in Jerusalem; so
that the promise of Micah in 2Ch_18:16 was fulfilled also as regards him. But on his
return, the seer Jehu, the son of Hanani, who had been thrown into the stocks by Asa
(2Ch_16:7.), met him with the reproving word, “Should one help the wicked, and lovest
thou the haters of Jahve!” (the inf. with ְ‫,ל‬ as in 1Ch_5:1; 1Ch_9:25, etc.). Of these sins
Jehoshaphat had been guilty. “And therefore is anger from Jahve upon thee” (‫ל‬ ַ‫ע‬ ‫ף‬ ֶ‫צ‬ ֶ‫ק‬ as
in 1Ch_27:24). Jehoshaphat had already had experience of this wrath, when in the battle
of Ramoth the enemy pressed upon him (2Ch_18:31), and was at a later time to have still
further experience of it, partly during his own life, when the enemy invaded his land (2
Chron 20), and when he attempted to re-establish the sea trade with Ophir (2Ch_
20:35.), partly after his death in his family (2 Chron 21 and 2Ch_22:1-12). “But,”
continues Jehu, to console him, “yet there are good things found in thee (cf. 2Ch_12:12),
for thou hast destroyed the Asheroth...” ‫ּות‬‫ר‬ ֵ‫שׁ‬ ֲ‫א‬ = ‫ים‬ ִ‫ר‬ ֵ‫שׁ‬ ֲ‫,א‬ 2Ch_17:6. On these last words,
comp. 2Ch_12:14 and 2Ch_17:4.
BE SO 1-3, ". Jehoshaphat returned to his house in peace — Safe, being
miraculously delivered from imminent danger, as has just been related. And Jehu,
the seer — Of whom see 1 Kings 16:1-2; went out to meet him — Sent by God for
that purpose. And said to Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the ungodly? — Give
them a hand of fellowship, and lend them a hand of assistance? And love them that
hate the Lord? — Be in a state of intimacy with those that are at enmity with God,
and under his wrath and curse? Was it agreeable to the love and duty which thou
professest to God and godliness, to enter into so strict an alliance and friendship
with wicked Ahab, God’s sworn enemy, and to give him such assistance? Therefore
is wrath come upon thee, &c. — God is angry with thee, and will chastise thee for
this miscarriage. Which he did, partly by stirring up the Moabites and others to
invade him, chap. 20.; partly by permitting his eldest son Jehoram to kill all his
brethren, 2 Chronicles 21:4; and principally by bringing that almost general
destruction upon his grand-children by Jehu, (2 Kings 9:27; and 2 Kings 10:13-14,)
which was the fruit of his alliance with Ahab. And hast prepared thy heart to seek
God — ‫,הכינות‬ hachinota, hast disposed, directed, or set thy heart; that is, thou hast
sought and served God with all thy heart, and not feignedly, as many others do. And
this work of preparing or directing the heart, which is elsewhere attributed to God,
(Proverbs 16:1 ; Philippians 2:13,) is here ascribed to Jehoshaphat, because it is
man’s action, though performed by God’s grace, preventing, enabling, and inclining
him to it.
COFFMA , "In the appraisal of Jehoshaphat's reign, it was, in a general sense,
approved, despite the serious, even sinful, mistakes, one of which was that marriage
with the daughter of Ahab which he arranged for his heir and successor to the

throne.
Also, note that nothing is said here about the removal of the high places, despite the
fact that 2 Chronicles 17:6 states that he took away the high places, indicating that
the citizens had, in the meanwhile, rebuilt them. This was done many times in the
history of Judah.
ELLICOTT, "JEHU THE SO OF HA A I DE OU CES THE ALLIA CE
WITH AHAB.
The whole chapter is original, so far as regards the Book of Kings.
Verse 1
(1) Jehoshaphat . . . returned to his house in peace.—A contrast with the fate of
Ahab is suggested. (Comp. 2 Chronicles 18:27; 2 Chronicles 18:34; and ibid. 16.)
In peace.—In wholeness, soundness, i.e., unhurt.
TRAPP, " And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in peace to
Jerusalem.
Ver. 1. And Jehoshaphat … returned to his house in peace.] He looked upon himself
as "a brand pulled out of the fire"; and having seen another ship wrecked, he
resolveth to look better to his tackling. His soul had escaped as a bird out of the
snare of the fowlers, as a dove out of the claws of a hawk, or talons of an eagle.
POOLE, "Jehoshaphat, reproved by the prophet Jehu, visiteth his kingdom, 2
Chronicles 19:1-4. His instructions to the judges, 2 Chronicles 19:5-7; to the priests
and Levites, 2 Chronicles 19:8-11.
Safe, being miraculously delivered from eminent danger, as was related, 2
Chronicles 18:31,32.
PARKER, "1. And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in peace to
Jerusalem [A contrast with the fate of Ahab is suggested. (Comp. chap. 2 Chronicles
18:27, 2 Chronicles 18:34; and ibid. 2 Chronicles 18:16)].
2. And Jehu, the son of Hanani the seer [the seer whose father had suffered for his
reproof of Asa (chap. 2 Chronicles 16:7-10), and who had himself already witnessed
against Baasha, king of Israel ( 1 Kings 16:1-7)], went out to meet him [unto his
presence ( 1 Chronicles 12:17; chap. 2 Chronicles 15:2)], and said to king
Jehoshaphat [the prophets never shrank from facing the highest representatives of
earthly power (comp. 1 Kings 21:20)], Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love
them that hate the Lord? [And haters of Jehovah lovest thou?] therefore is wrath

upon thee from before the Lord [See the same phrase in 1 Chronicles 27:24. In the
case of David, the divine wrath was embodied in pestilence; with regard to
Jehoshaphat the following chapters show that his land suffered invasion and his
fleet shipwreck; his posterity was evil, and came to an evil end].
3. evertheless ["Yet the divine wrath will not pursue thee to destruction, for there
are good things found in thee." (So chap. 2 Chronicles 12:12; comp. also 1 Kings
14:13)], there are good things [chap. 1 Chronicles 17:4, 1 Chronicles 17:6] found in
thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves [thou hast consumed (or exterminated)
the Asherahs. ( Deuteronomy 13:6; 2 Kings 23:24.) So Asa had done (chap. 2
Chronicles 17:4)] out of the land, and hast prepared [or directed. The contrary was
said of Rehoboam (chap. 2 Chronicles 12:14)] thine heart to seek God.
4. And Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem: and he went out again [Heb. he returned
and went out] through the people from Beersheba to mount Ephraim, and brought
them back unto the Lord God of their fathers.
Faithful Expostulations
"A D Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in peace," not in peace
of soul, or in contentment of mind, but, literally, in wholeness; or, as we should say
in English, safe and sound: he had been engaged in an unholy war in alliance with a
most wicked man; that wicked man had been slain in the battle, but Jehoshaphat
returned in peace, in wholeness, without scar or wound or mark of injury. It is
important to mark this distinction, lest we should imagine that a man can go out and
fight with whom he pleases, and carry out all his own will, and come back with the
seal of divine peace impressed upon his mind and heart. This is only a physical
wholeness, a bodily immunity from danger. Jehoshaphat did not figure well in the
war; he was thought to be the king of Israel, and the soldiers of the opposing king
had received instructions not to think of great or small, but to fight only with the
king, so they gathered around the chariot of Jehoshaphat, and in the moment of
supreme danger he cried out, and he was sent away, coming to Jerusalem in peace,
without having sustained any bodily injury. A whole skin after a war is about the
worst medal a soldier can wear. Let Jehoshaphat have his little enjoyment, and we
shall see what came of it
GUZIK, "A. The goodness of God to Jehoshaphat.
1. (2 Chronicles 19:1) He returns safely after the battle.
Then Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned safely to his house in Jerusalem.
a. Then Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned safely: This was the mercy of God.
Jehoshaphat, clothed in the robes of the king targeted for death by the army of
Syria, should have been killed in battle. Yet he cried out to the LORD and was
preserved, returning safely to his house in Jerusalem.

i. “The fact that Jehoshaphat reached home safely is significant. It contrasts his fate
with Ahab’s, and testifies to God’s grace given to a person who was almost
destroyed by undiscerning folly.” (Selman)
SIMEO , "JEHOSHAPHAT’S CO EXIO WITH AHAB REPROVED
2 Chronicles 19:2. 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 time from before the Lord.
IT is happy when pious children rise up in the places of their parents, and, unmoved
by the sufferings which their fathers have experienced, dare to tread in their steps
with fidelity and zeal. Hanani, the father of Jehu, had been cast into prison for
faithful reproof which he administered to King Asa [ ote: 2 Chronicles 16:7-10.]:
yet does Jehu give a similar reproof to Asa’s son and successor, Jehoshaphat: and,
us he was enabled to temper his reproof with seasonable commendation, he
succeeded in convincing the monarch of his fault, and in stirring him up to a more
becoming conduct.
The conduct here blamed, was, Jehoshaphat’s uniting himself with Ahab against the
king of Syria: but the terms in which the censure was conveyed, are of more general
import, and may be applied to all alliances with the ungodly. We will endeavour
therefore to improve them, by shewing,
I. What is that intimacy with the ungodly which God forbids—
We are not to suppose that all connexion with them is forbidden; for then, as the
Apostle says, “We must needs go out of the world,” since the necessities of our
nature constrain us to keep up some sort of intercourse with them. Moreover, there
is an attention to them which compassion itself demands, and which our blessed
Saviour himself manifested to such a degree, as to incur the reproach of being “a
friend of publicans and sinners.” or are we to forget, that courtesy is one of the
most amiable and important of Christian graces. “Be pitiful, be courteous,” is the
command of God himself: and they who are grossly deficient in relation to this duty,
as too many professors of religion are, have greatly mistaken the true genius of
Christianity, which is, in every possible modification of it, a religion of love.
Yet is there a very broad line of distinction to be drawn between the extremes of
unmeasured union with the world, and a contemptuous abstraction from it. Though
the righteous are not to despise the ungodly, they are carefully to avoid,
1. An alliance with them—
[Under the law, all intermarriages with the heathen were strictly forbidden: and
under the Gospel the same law applies to the ungodly: the Apostle’s direction

respecting those who are seeking a matrimonial alliance, is, “Let them marry, only
in the Lord [ ote: 1 Corinthians 7:39.].” In many places of Scripture are the evils
arising from unequal marriages of believers with unbelievers, strongly marked
[ ote: Genesis 6:2-3 and in Jehoshaphat’s own son; 2 Chronicles 21:6.]: we must not
wonder then that such contracts are expressly forbidden [ ote: 2 Corinthians 6:14-
16.].]
2. A conformity to them—
[They who are of the world, both speak of the world, and act agreeably to its
dictates: they have no higher objects in view, than “the lust of the flesh, the lust of
the eye, and the pride of life.” But these are wholly unsuited to the Christian’s state:
they are in direct opposition to that holy and heavenly course which he is
commanded to pursue [ ote: 1 John 2:15-16.]: and therefore he is enjoined “on no
account to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of his
mind, that he may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God
[ ote: Romans 12:2.].”]
3. An unnecessary association with them—
[We should not choose them as our friends and companions: for “how can two walk
together, except they be agreed?” We almost of necessity imbibe the spirit of our
associates; and therefore we should select for our acquaintance those who will help
us forward, and not those who will retard us, in our heavenly course. We can never
too attentively consider that instructive declaration of Solomon, “He that walketh
with wise men, will be wise; but a companion of fools will be destroyed [ ote:
Proverbs 13:20.].”]
That such intimacy with the ungodly is not prohibited by God without reason, will
appear, whilst we shew,
II. Why it is so displeasing to him—
God was greatly offended with Jehoshaphat, and severely punished him for his
fault. It was in consequence of his alliance with Ahab that his eldest son Jehoram
slew all his younger brethren [ ote: 2 Chronicles 21:4.], and that all his
grandchildren were slain by Jehu [ ote: 2 Kings 10:13-14 and especially 2
Chronicles 22:7-8.]. And in every instance, such intimacy with the ungodly is
offensive to him;
1. On account of the state of mind it implies—
[It is evident that any person professing godliness, and at the same time affecting the
society of the ungodly, must be in a very degenerate state. Such a state of mind
indicates in a very high degree, a want of love to God—a want of aversion to sin—a
want of self-knowledge—and a want of common prudence.

How low must be his love to God! Would any man who loved his parents and his
family select for his intimate friend a man that was the avowed enemy of them all?
Yet the character of the ungodly is, that they are “haters of God [ ote: Romans
1:30; Romans 8:7.]:” how then can any one who truly loves God, take such a person
for his bosom friend, or maintain, except from necessity, any intercourse with him?
And small indeed must be his aversion to sin, when he can find pleasure in those
who belong to “a world that lieth in wickedness,” and whose whole life is a
continued and voluntary course of sin.
His self-knowledge too must be at a very low ebb, if he think that he can frequent
such company without having both his principles and his practice greatly vitiated.
Even to common prudence he is almost an utter stranger: for would any man on the
brink of a stupendous precipice go unnecessarily to the utmost edge of it, where it
was exceeding rough and slippery, rather than pursue a path which was
comparatively both safe and easy? Yet this is his conduct, who chooses to mix
unnecessarily with a tempting and ensnaring world: and the absurdity of it is
strongly marked in the expressions of our text, where an appeal is made to the
common sense and reason of mankind; “Shouldest thou love them that hate the
Lord?”]
2. On account of its pernicious tendency—
[We form very erroneous calculations on this subject. We are ready to think that we
shall ingratiate ourselves with the world, and recommend religion to their
favourable acceptance: but the very reverse is the case; we lower ourselves in their
estimation, and make them think better of their own religion than they would
otherwise do. They take for granted that religion sanctions all that conformity to
their customs that they see in us; and consequently that they are much nearer to the
standard of true religion than they really are: nor are they a whit more reconciled to
those practices which they do not choose to follow, and which, in spite of all our
efforts, they will account over-righteous, unnecessary, and absurd. It will be found
almost invariably that little, if any, good accrues to the ungodly from such sacrifices,
and that great injury is sustained by those who make them.
In the chapter preceding our text, we may see the experiment fairly made.
Jehoshaphat having joined affinity with Ahab, paid him a friendly visit, and was
hospitably received by him [ ote: 2 Chronicles 18:1-2.]. Presently Ahab proposed to
him an union of their forces in an attack on the king of Syria; to which proposal
Jehoshaphat, unwilling to refuse him, accedes; but, being a pious character,
recommends that an inquiry should be first made of God for his direction. To this
Ahab apparently agrees; but consults none except his own idolatrous prophets
[ ote: 2 Chronicles 18:3-5.]. Jehoshaphat, not quite satisfied with their advice, asks
if there be not a prophet of Jehovah by whom their inquiry may be made? Ahab
acknowledges that there is; but that he cannot endure that prophet, because he
never prophesied good concerning him, but evil. This aversion Jehoshaphat tries to

soften; and for a moment prevails [ ote: 2 Chronicles 18:6-8.]: but, as soon as
Micaiah has delivered his message from the Lord, Ahab is filled with rage against
him, and orders him to be put in prison, and to be fed with the bread and water of
affliction: and Jehoshaphat, contrary to God’s revealed will, proceeds with Ahab to
execute the plan proposed [ ote: 2 Chronicles 18:16-17; 2 Chronicles 18:25-28.].
ow here is an exact representation of what generally takes place in such
connexions: the compliances that are required by the ungodly, are too faintly
refused; whilst the barriers interposed by the godly, produce no adequate effect.
The two parties may not unfitly be compared to persons pulling against each other
on a steep declivity: the one who is on the more elevated site, may think he shall
prevail; but a moment’s experience will suffice to shew him, that his adversary
draws against him with a ten-fold advantage, both as it respects the comparative
force which he is able to exert, and the greater facility with which a descending
motion may be produced. Thus it is between the godly and the ungodly, when too
intimate a fellowship subsists between them: the conscience of the one is ensnared
and violated, whilst the other retains all his principles, dispositions, and habits.]
3. On account of its opposition to his revealed will—
[ othing can be plainer than God’s declaration respecting the friendship of the
world: it is actually a state of “enmity against God:” yea, the very desire to possess
its friendship is constructive treason against God himself; and actually constitutes
treason, as much as the holding of forbidden intercourse with an earthly enemy
constitutes treason against the king [ ote: James 4:4. See the Greek.]. It is in vain to
dispute against such a solemn declaration as this, or to think that we can ever
reconcile such opposite interests as those of “God and Mammon.” We must hold to
the one, or to the other: and if we choose the friendship of the world, then must we
expect to be dealt with as the enemies of God. If we are found associated with the
goats in this world, it is in vain to hope that we shall be numbered with the sheep in
the world to come [ ote: Matthew 25:32-33.].]
Address—
[The character of Jehoshaphat was on the whole good: “good things were found in
him; and he had prepared his heart to seek God [ ote: ver. 3.].” ow it is to persons
of this character more particularly that our subject must be addressed: for the
ungodly, when mixing with the world, are in their proper element; and the
established Christian feels but little temptation to go back to worldly pleasures, or to
worldly society. But the temptation to young and inexperienced Christians is great.
Be it remembered however by all, that the true disciples of our Lord “are not of the
world, even as he was not of the world.” They cannot say to an ungodly man, “I am
as thou art;” for they are as different from him as light from darkness. “By the cross
of Christ, they are crucified unto the world, as the world also is to them [ ote:
Galatians 6:14.].” Let me entreat you then, Brethren, not to “be unequally yoked
together with unbelievers, but to come out from among them, and be separate [ ote:
2 Corinthians 6:14; 2 Corinthians 6:17.];” and endeavour to be in reality, what all
the Lord’s people are by profession “a city set upon a hill,” and “lights shining in a

dark place.”]
PULPIT, "The matter of this chapter is preserved for us by the writer of Chronicles
alone, and is of much significance. After glancing at the moment's outward "peace"
(2 Chronicles 19:1), which Jehoshaphat had on his return to Jerusalem, the
narrative, leaving in deep oblivion all he must have thought and felt and may have
spoken of the end of his brother-king, and of his own late private intimacy and
public alliance with him, tells how he was reined up by Jehu, the son of Hanani the
seer (2 Chronicles 19:2, 2 Chronicles 19:3); and thereupon how he wisely revisited
his kingdom, as it were through its length and breadth, sought to "bring them back
to the Lord God of their fathers," remodelling and reviling the various offices of the
judges, priests, and Levites (2 Chronicles 19:4-11), and earnestly exhorted them.
2 Chronicles 19:1
In peace. Compare the use of the phrase in verses 16 and 26, 27 of last chapter. The
only peace in which it could be reasonably supposed Jehoshaphat returned to his
house and the metropolis was that of freedom from war, and of present "assurance
of his life."
BI 1-9, "And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in peace
to Jerusalem.
Jehoshaphat’s declension and recovery
I. God makes a difference between a backslidden child and an apostate.
1. He preserves the life of the child (2Ch_19:1).
2. God reproves in grace His backslidden child (2Ch_19:2-3).
3. God commends His backslidden child for the good he has done.
II. Jehoshaphat exemplifies the true spirit in which we should receive
Divine reproof.
1. He received the Divine reproof without resentment and with real
contrition for his sin.
2. He sought to make amends for past misconduct by greater personal
efforts to promote the spiritual interests of his people.
III. Jehoshaphat lays down rules for the judges of the people which are
applicable and essential to our own times.
1. That a true judge must have reference to God in his decisions (2Ch_
19:6).
2. That a true judge should be a real Christian (2Ch_19:7).
Lessons:
1. Unholy alliances are fraught with the greatest danger to every child of

God.
2. In his backslidden state the child of God should at once heed God’s
warning and reproof through His servants.
3. God requires personal efforts for the promotion of His cause from the
rich as well as poor; from those in the highest positions of State as well
as from the obscure and lowly. (D. C. Hughes.)
Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord?
Entangling alliances
I. The friendship of wicked men one of the most dangerous temptations to
which Christians are subject. Modern life in cities illustrates this with
special force.
1. The wealth of the world is largely in the hands of men who are not
friends of Christ.
2. In many communities intelligence and culture are possessed mainly
by the irreligious.
3. Interests of business sometimes create similar peril.
4. In a higher circle of life professional success often tempts young men
of aspiring mind to ally themselves with those who love not God.
II. While Christian principle requires no narrow or ascetic seclusion from
the world, yet it forbids seeking worldly friendships and alliances for selfish
ends and to the peril of religious usefulness and religious character.
III. The irreligious friendships of religious men violate the ruling spirit of
the Scriptures.
IV. Entangling alliances with the world often involve immense sacrifice of
Christian usefulness.
V. Christian alliances with the wicked do not command the respect of the
very man for whose favour they are formed.
VI. Loving those that hate God inflicts a wound of great severity on the
feelings of Jesus Christ. It is from Calvary that the voice comes to each in
our solitude, “Shouldest thou love them that hate the Lord?” (A. Phelps.)
Jehoshaphat’s connection with Ahab
I. What is that intimacy with the ungodly which God forbids?
1. An alliance with them.
2. A conformity with them.
3. An unnecessary association with them.
II. Why is it so displeasing to God?

1. On account of the state of mind it implies.
2. On account of its pernicious tendency.
3. On account of its Opposition to His revealed will. (J. Chapin.)
Associating with the ungodly
It is told of a sweet-voiced canary that it forgot how to sing by having its cage
hung outside where it was constantly surrounded by sparrows. It gave up its
once sweet notes and learned to chatter the meaningless, tuneless notes of
the sparrow. The constant association with the Christless is apt to make our
hearts grow Christless.
Jehoshaphat; or the dangers of indecision
I have to describe to you a man, not lost, but continually in danger of being
lost; a man not wicked, but weak; a man possessing in his character much
that was good, but allowing his goodness to be sullied by approach to evil
and evil men. I have to show you how one ill-considered step, in the earlier
part of his career, embarrassed his whole reign. Affinity with Ahab’s family
affected more or less the whole life of Jehoshaphat. This should make us
cautious.
I. In such serious matters as forming family connections, or partnerships in
business.
II. In what appear minor things. Observe the man who is over-persuaded to
what he believes to be evil; the man who consents to do what is wrong, and
justifies himself by saying some good will come of it; the man who frequents
the society of the vicious, yet believes that he can escape corruption; the
man who enjoys the jest of the profane, yet supposes that his mind can
retain its reverence for holy things; the man who is silent when he should
declare openly his disapprobation of evil; the man who runs himself into
temptation, yet trusts that God will find him a way out of it. All these
persons do, in their measure and degree, expose themselves to danger—
commit acts of indecision—take a step which may necessitate others,
against which they may exert themselves in vain—impress a stain on their
conscience which it may require years to efface—and plant on the soil of
their souls a weed so vivacious, so self-spreading, so absorbent of moisture
and nutriment, that by and by it may choke the growth of all Christian
graces and virtues. (J. Hessey.)
Nevertheless there are good things found in thee.—
The stimulus of an encouraging word
The Lord will analyse a man’s disposition and a man’s character, and will
assign to him all that is due. What man is wholly bad? Surely in the very
worst of men there are excellences, and it ought to be our delight to
consider these, and where possible, with due regard to justice, to magnify
them and to call the man’s attention to them. A man may take heart when he
sees some of his best points. Here is a lesson for parents, magistrates, and

teachers and monitors of every name and position. Tell a boy that he has
done something well. We are too much afraid of what is called flattery,
forgetting that flattery is a lie; but we are called upon simply to state the
truth, and to state it with affection and emphasis, that it may become an
encouragement to hearts that are very easily cast down. (J. Parker, D.D.)
Good and bad things in moral character
Is a man whose character is good to the extent of six-sevenths to be
pronounced a bad man? Is there not a spiritual arithmetic which looks into
majorities and minorities of a moral kind? Will God, then, at last drive away
from Him men who have had six good points out of seven? As business men,
suppose a man be recommended to you in these terms: This man has seven
qualities, and six of them are really admirable; the only thing about him is
that you cannot trust him with money. Would you take him? Six points are
good out of seven: will you go by the majority or by the minority? Another
man is also good in six points, admirable; the only fault he has is that you
cannot believe a word he says. Will you take him into your business? There
is a minority greater than any majority can be. That is the doctrine which we
have omitted when we have been criticising eternal providence and
wondering about the issues of human action. Amongst ourselves it is right
that we should say of one another, “He is a good man take him on the
whole.” But what is the meaning of the reservation? Is it a grace, a posture
that may be taught by a hired master? Or is it a morality, the want of which
turns the whole being into a bog on which you cannot rest with security? (J.
Parker, D. D.)
Jehu’s commendation
We may very well admit that the nearer we get to God and to His sunlight
the more freely and fully we shall admit that there is no good thing to be
found in us. But yet God sometimes allows His angels to say of a mortal
man, “There are good things in him,” without any frown of supreme
displeasure. This should—
1. Comfort us. Our good deeds are not useless, not forgotten.
2. Encourage us. If God speak so like an indulgent master to a trying
servant, then we need not fear Him. We need dread no impatient frowns
upon our insufficient strivings.
3. Humble us. We are perhaps not so good as Jehoshaphat. For his one
backsliding ours, perhaps, are many.
Lessons:
1. Mutual forbearance. Let us not set down any of our neighbours as
altogether bad.
2. Let us see that our good qualities are definite and discoverable.
3. Let us pray earnestly, agonisingly, that the good in us may overcome
the evil. Evil must not for a moment be tolerated. Christ must reign. (S.

B. James, M. A.)
MACLAREN, "‘A MIRROR FOR MAGISTRATES’
Jehoshaphat is distinguished by two measures for his people’s good: one,
his sending out travelling preachers through the land (2Ch_17:7-9);
another, this provision of local judges and a central court in Jerusalem. The
former was begun as early as the third year of his reign, but was probably
interrupted, like other good things, by his ill-omened alliance with Ahab.
The prophet Jehu’s plain speaking seems to have brought the king back to
his better self, and its fruit was his going ‘among the people,’ from south to
north, as a missionary, ‘to bring them back to Jehovah.’ The religious
reformation was accompanied by his setting judges throughout the land.
Our modern way of distinguishing between religious and civil concerns is
foreign to Eastern thought, and was especially out of the question in a
theocracy. Jehovah was the King of Judah; therefore the things that are
Caesar’s and the things that are God’s coalesced, and these two objects of
Jehoshaphat’s journeyings were pursued simultaneously. We have travelled
far from his simple institutions, and our course has not been all progress.
His supreme concern was to deal out even-handed justice between man and
man; is not ours rather to give ample doses of law? To him the judicial
function was a copy of God’ s, and its exercise a true act of worship, done in
His fear, and modelled after His pattern. The first impression made in one
of our courts is scarcely that judge and counsel are engaged in worship.
There had been local judges before Jehoshaphat-elders in the villages, the
‘heads of the fathers’ houses’ in the tribes. We do not know whether the
great secession had flung the simple old machinery somewhat out of gear,
or whether Jehoshaphat’s action was simply to systematise and make
universal the existing arrangements. But what concerns us most is to note
that all the charge which he gives to these peasant magistrates bears on the
religious aspect of their duties. They are to think themselves as acting for
Jehovah and with Jehovah. If they recognise the former, they may be
confident of the latter. They are to ‘let the fear of Jehovah be upon you,’ for
that awe resting on a spirit will, like a burden or water-jar on a woman’s
shoulder, make the carriage upright and the steps firm. They are not only to
act for and with Jehovah, but to do like Him, avoiding injustice, favouritism,
and corruption, the plague-spots of Eastern law-courts. In such a state of
society, the cases to be adjudicated were mostly such as mother-wit, honesty
and the fear of God could solve; other times call for other qualifications. But
still, let us learn from this charge that even in our necessarily complicated
legal systems and political life, there is room and sore need for the
application of the same principles. What a different world it would be if our
judges and representatives carried some tincture of Jehoshaphat’s simple
and devout wisdom into their duties! Civic and political life ought to be as
holy as that of cloister and cell. To judge righteously, to vote honestly, is as
much worship as to pray. A politician may be ‘a priest of the Most High
God.’
And for us all the spirit of Jehoshaphat’s charge is binding, and every trivial

and secular task is to be discharged for God, with God, in the fear of God.
‘On the bells of the horses shall be Holiness unto Jehovah.’ If our religion
does not drive the wheels of daily life, so much the worse for our life and
our religion. But, above all, this charge reminds us that the secret of right
living is to imitate God. These peasants were to find direction, as well as
inspiration, in gazing on Jehovah’s character, and trying to copy it. And we
are to be ‘imitators of God, as beloved children,’ though our best efforts may
only produce poor results. A masterpiece may be copied in some wretched
little newspaper blotch, but the great artist will own it for a copy, and
correct it into complete likeness.
The second step was to establish a ‘supreme court’ in Jerusalem, which had
two divisions, ecclesiastical and civil, as we should say, the former presided
over by the chief priest, and the latter by ‘the ruler of the house of Judah.’
Murder cases and the graver questions involving interpretation of the law
were sent up thither, while the village judges had probably to decide only
points that shrewdness and integrity could settle. But these superior judges,
too, received charges as to moral, rather than intellectual or learned
qualifications. Religiously, uprightly, ‘with a perfect heart,’ courageously,
they were to act, ‘and Jehovah be with the good!’ That may be a prayer, like
the old invocation with which heralds sent knights to tilt at each other, and
with which, in some legal proceedings, the pleas are begun, ‘God defend the
right!’ But more probably it is an assurance that God will guide the judges to
favour the good cause, if they on their parts will bring the aforesaid
qualities to their decisions. And are not these qualities just such as will, for
the most part, give similar results to us, if in our various activities we
exercise them? And may we not see a sequence worth our practically putting
to the proof in these characteristics enjoined on Jehoshaphat’s supreme
court? Begin with ‘the fear of the Lord’; that will help us to ‘faithfulness and
a perfect heart’; and these again by taking away occasions of ignoble fear,
and knitting together the else tremulous and distracted nature, will make
the fearful brave and the weak strong.
But another thought is suggested by Jehoshaphat’s language. Note how this
court does not seem to have inflicted punishments, but to have had only
counsels and warnings to wield. It was a board of conciliation rather than a
penal tribunal. Two things it had to do-to press upon the parties the weighty
consideration that crimes against men were sins against God, and that the
criminal drew down wrath on the community. This remarkable provision
brings out strongly thoughts that modern society will be the better for
incorporating. The best way to deal with men is to get at their hearts and
consciences. The deeper aspect of civil crimes or wrongs to men should be
pressed on the doer; namely, that they are sins against God. Again, all such
acts are sins against the mystical sacred bond of brotherhood. Again, the
solidarity of a nation makes it inevitable that ‘one sinner destroyeth much
good,’ and pulls down with him, when God smites him, a multitude of
innocents. So finely woven is the web of the national life that, if a thread run
in any part of it, a great rent gapes. If one member sins, all the members
suffer with it. And lastly, the cruellest thing that we can do is to be dumb
when we see sin being committed. It is not public men, judges and the like,
alone, who are called on thus to warn evil-doers, but all of us in our degree.
If we do not, we are guilty along with a guilty nation; and it is only when, to

the utmost of our power, we have warned our brethren as to national sins,
that we can wash our hands in innocency, ‘This do, and ye shall not be
guilty.’
2 Jehu the seer, the son of Hanani, went out to
meet him and said to the king, “Should you help
the wicked and love[a] those who hate the Lord?
Because of this, the wrath of the Lord is on you.
BAR ES, "Jehu ... went out to meet him - Compare 2Ch_15:2. The monarch
was therefore rebuked at the earliest possible moment, and in the most effective way, as
he was entering his capital at the head of his returning army. Jehu, 35 years previously,
had worked in the northern kingdom, and prophesied against Baasha 1Ki_16:1-7, but
had now come to Jerusalem, as prophet and historian (compare 2Ch_20:34).
Shouldest thou help ... - As a matter of mere human policy, the conduct of
Jehoshaphat in joining Ahab against the Syrians was not only justifiable but wise and
prudent. And the reasonings upon which such a policy was founded would have been
unexceptionable but for one circumstance. Ahab was an idolater, and had introduced
into his kingdom a false religion of a new and most degraded type. This should have led
Jehoshaphat to reject his alliance. Military success could only come from the blessing
and protection of Yahweh, which such an alliance, if persisted in, was sure to forfeit.
CLARKE, "Jehu the son of Hanani - We have met with this prophet before; see
the note on 1Ki_16:7.
Therefore is wrath upon thee - That is, Thou deservest to be punished. And who
can doubt this, who knows that he did help the ungodly, and did love them that hated
Jehovah? And is not the wrath of God upon all those alliances which his people form
with the ungodly, whether they be social, matrimonial, commercial, or political?
GILL, "And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer,.... The son of him that reproved Asa,
for which he put him in prison, 2Ch_17:7, but that did not deter this his son from
reproving Jehoshaphat:

went out to meet him; as he was returning:
and said to King Jehoshaphat, shouldest thou help the ungodly; such an one
as Ahab, an idolater, murderer, and persecutor:
and love them that hate the Lord? his laws, worship, and ordinances, as he had;
intimating, that he had done wrong, by entering into alliance and affinity with him, by
showing him friendship, and assisting him in his war against the Syrians:
therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord; which appeared in the war of
the Ammonites and Moabites with him, related in the next chapter, and in the calamities
that came upon his family, his sons being slain by Jehoram that succeeded him, and his
grandsons by Jehu.
ELLICOTT, "(2) And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer.—The seer whose father had
suffered for his reproof of Asa (2 Chronicles 16:7-10), and who had himself already
witnessed against Baasha, king of Israel (1 Kings 16:1-7).
To meet him.—Unto his presence (1 Chronicles 12:17; 2 Chronicles 15:2).
King.—The king. The prophets never shrank from facing the highest
representatives of earthly power (comp. 1 Kings 21:20).
Shouldest thou help.—Literally, to help the ungodly. The infinitive (as in 1
Chronicles 5:1; 1 Chronicles 9:25), i.e., oughtest thou to help.
The ungodly.—.The emphatic word. (See Psalms 139:21-22; Psalms 119:158 : “I
beheld the transgressors with loathing.”)
Them that hate the Lord.—And haters of Jehovah lovest thou? (The particle le
prefixed to the word for “haters” is characteristic of the chronicler’s style.)
Therefore is wrath upon thee.—See the same phrase, 1 Chronicles 27:24. In the case
of David, the Divine wrath was embodied in pestilence; what form did it take with
Jehoshaphat? The following chapters seem to supply the answer. His land suffered
invasion and his fleet shipwreck; his posterity was evil, and came to an evil end (2
Chronicles 20, 21, 22). There may be reference also to the failure of the campaign in
which Jehoshaphat had engaged, and his inglorious return to his own land.
TRAPP, "2 Chronicles 19:2 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.
Ver. 2. And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer.] Jehu delivered his message with better
success than his father had done. [2 Chronicles 16:7] Asa had gall in his ears, as

some creatures are said to have; but good Jehoshaphat had aures purgatissimas, a
"hearing ear," [Proverbs 20:12] an "obedient ear," [Proverbs 25:12] upon which "a
wise reprover is as an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold." {See Trapp on
"Proverbs 25:12"}
Shouldest thou help the ungodly,] i.e., That wicked wretch Ahab, of whom it might
be said, as afterwards it was of the Jews in St Paul’s time, that "they pleased not
God, and were contrary to all men," [1 Thessalonians 2:15] or as the historian said
of Commodus, the emperor, that he was called "the enemy of God and men."
And love them that hate the Lord?] I think not. Idolaters are God-haters - whatever
they pretend - and are therefore to be heartily "hated," [Psalms 139:22] provided
that we hate non virum, sed vitium, not the man, but his manners.
Therefore is wrath upon thee.] Thy late great danger was a fair warning, and must
be kept in recent remembrance. The Moabites and the Ammonites, &c., are
preparing against thee. The prophet also might have respect - as one (a) hath well
observed - to some dissension that began at present betwixt his sons; the seeds of
that horrid slaughter Jehoram did afterwards make amongst them. [2 Chronicles
21:4]
POOLE, "Jehu the son of Hanani the seer; of whom see 1 Kings 16:1.
Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord? was this
agreeable to thy duty and love which thou professest to God and godliness, that thou
hast entered into so strict an alliance and friendship with wicked Ahab, my sworn
enemy, and given such assistance to him?
Therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord; therefore God is angry with
thee, and will chastise thee for this miscarriage: which he did, partly, by stirring up
the Moabites and others to invade him, 2Ch 20; partly, by permitting his eldest son
Jehoram to kill all his brethren, 2 Chronicles 21:4; and principally, by bringing that
sore and almost general destruction upon his grandchildren by Jehu, 2 Kings 9:27
10:13,14, which was the proper fruit of his alliance with Ahab.
WHEDO , "2. Jehu — This prophet had previously exercised his office in the
kingdom of Israel, and had foretold the doom of Baasha. 1 Kings 16:1, note.
Went out to meet him — As he was returning to his house from the war. So Azariah
went out to meet Asa as the latter returned from the war with Zerah. 2 Chronicles
15:2. But Jehu received a better treatment from Jehoshaphat than his father Hanani
had received from Asa. 2 Chronicles 16:10.

Shouldest thou help the ungodly — Such as the idolatrous Ahab, whose kingdom is
so largely given over to the worship of Baal and Ashtoreth.
Love them that hate the Lord — Jehoshaphat’s affinity with Ahab’s family by
marriage exposed him to this charge of loving those that hated Jehovah. Jezebel,
and all whom she could influence, seem to have had a hatred towards Jehovah and
his worshippers. Comp. 1 Kings 18:4; 1 Kings 19:2.
Wrath upon thee — Jehovah’s indignation, which will result in future woes to
Judah.
PARKER, ""And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him" ( 2
Chronicles 19:2).
How comfortably we should proceed but for these seers! If there were no religion in
the world, how admirably we could get along! If we did not strike our feet against
the altar we might walk straightforwardly on courses of selfishness and worldliness.
If suddenly the whole cloud outlook did not take the shape of a great white throne
we could preserve a completer equanimity. But there are prophets, there are
religious critics, there are spiritual censors, and we cannot bribe them into silence.
They are not afraid of kings. A truly spiritual man should not be afraid of anybody.
Religion should never give way; true spiritual feeling, high spiritual illumination,
should always be at the front. The man who can pray as he ought to pray should
never feel the blush of shame upon his cheek, or the trembling of weakness in his
knees, in the presence of earth"s mightiest sons. What has this man to fear?
othing. Why does Jehoshaphat listen to him? Because he cannot help it. We are
bound sometimes to be our best selves. Occasionally conscience will assert its
dominion, and the least attentive ears must incline themselves in an attitude of
listening. If there were no Sabbath day, how we could riot in all manner of evil, and
have a whole seven days" week at it! If there were no church, no sanctuary, no stone
finger pointing upwards eternally to brighter and higher things, we could do better
behind the counter, in the way of business, in the calculated relationships which are
dignified by the name of society. Why will seers meet us? Why will Jehu always
come when we do not want to see him? He may not be a speaking Prayer of
Manasseh , he is a looking man. Christ said some of his most eloquent things by
looking them. Sometimes he had a grief which could not be expressed in words, but
could only be written in the scorching fire of an indignant countenance. Once he
broke a man"s heart by looking at him. There are looks that have yet to come upon
us, and they will burn us like hell. So it would be more comfortable if there were no
affliction, no loss, no fluctuation of fortune, if every time we went out we brought
sheaves back. Yet sometimes we come loaded with darkness, and when we seek our
profit we thrust our eager fingers into nothingness.
How critical are these prophets! We cannot put them off with general phrases; they
will take our words to pieces, they are gifted in moral as in literal analysis; they hold

each syllable up between their eyes and the sun that the light may shine well
through what they are looking at. A wave of the hand will not dismiss them, or if
they be dismissed in grief or in anger the sound of their retreating footsteps is itself
a judgment, a thing that the memory cannot shake off, a sound hollow as the grave.
They are not only so critical, they are so audacious; they are not afraid of a
millionaire, of a king, of all kings, of a congregated body. They will assail us as we
are sitting down to the feast, they like to choke our hunger; they will speak to us
over the frothing flagon, and intoxicate with a deadlier alcohol. They will not be
shut out by our folding doors, by our guards, constabulary, or military; they will
whisper to the king as he goes to his throne, and say, "Thou hast offended God."
Could we but get rid of these pests! If there were no preachers to listen to, and no
prophets who preached to themselves, if we could have nothing but music and
dancing and profit and health and sunshine, what a changed world it would be! But
such is not the constitution of things; we are constrained therefore to look at facts
and realities of the grimmest kind, we are compelled to own that life is a tragedy.
Even if there were no religion, there would remain conscience in a certain degree or
form; if even there were no preacher there would be an internal monitor, saying to
us now and again, What doest thou? and these monitors—call them prophets, seers;
call them by abstract names, as conscience, reason, judgment—will insist upon
following us all through life and meddling with everything. We live under criticism.
Blessed is that man who hears his own inward voice, and listens to it; he may have
to blanch before the accuser, he may have to end his terror in prayer. If there were
no such hindrances on the way, the lawyer might go home and quietly smile over his
misled and impoverished client; the merchant might go home congratulating himself
that he had taken the purse of some other man along with him; the liar might return
to his rest, praising his eloquent falsehood; the base Prayer of Manasseh , who has
taken advantage of the weak, the helpless, the homeless, might say, Who knows?
Who cares? I only am master, there is no God, no death, no judgment, no hell, I will
do tomorrow as I have done to-day. But we cannot take our food quietly, thankfully,
and enjoyingly, because there is a demon whispering over the shoulder, there is a
spectre touching the throat as we swallow the gluttonous viands, and there is in the
air something that spoils the feast. God has set these things about us for our
education, for our control; he has tethered us to certain centres, and given us
permission of a limited kind, which we call freedom, but which in reality is but an
enlarged enslavement.
"And Jehu said to king Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love
them that hate the Lord?" ( 2 Chronicles 19:2).
We know the kind of man with whom Jehoshaphat had been allied. Baser man
probably never lived; in some respects he prefigured the Iscariot of a later day:
There was nothing too bad for that king to do. The reference therefore here is not to
difference of opinion, but to difference of character. "What communion hath Christ
with Belial?" one; not because there is some intellectual difference between them,
but because they do not belong to the same moral zone. "The liar," said a zealous
saint in Old Testament times, "shall not dwell in my presence." We are to have
nothing to do with men who delight in wickedness. Find a man who is given to

injustice, and we are called upon to hate his injustice as an unpardonable offence
against right and against society. Find a man who is the victim of his passions, and
we are bound to hate his sensuality. Thus we are warned in the direction of
character, not in the direction of opinion. Besides, coming to this matter of opinion,
whose is right? How long will it be right? Opinion has a history, and that history
has proved beyond all things that opinion develops, enlarges, purifies itself, corrects
its judgments, enlarges its outlooks, and reverses its verdicts. Your opinion to-day
about many things is not what it was a quarter of a century ago. Who is right in
opinion? Who has any authority in opinion? Who can say to another, You must
follow my judgment and not your own? Blessed be God, there is no man who is
charged with that wicked and foolish authority. But find a man who breaks the
commandments, who violates all social sanctities, who laughs at morality, who
tramples virtue under foot, and we are called upon, whatever our opinion may be, to
repel him, to dissociate ourselves from him by the breadth of an immeasurable
chasm.
"Therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord" ( 2 Chronicles 19:2).
Jehoshaphat was punished because of his wicked alliances: his land was invaded, his
fleet was wrecked, his posterity was of an evil kind. We cannot understand why this
should be Song of Solomon , except we have this doctrine to guide us, that God must
in some way at some point get hold of the human race. The question is infinitely
larger than can settled by our judgment. When actions are lifted up into a judicial
sphere, and are treated by God in his judicial capacity, God is not dealing with the
individual or the individual family alone, he is exemplifying the morale of his
government before all ages. Better for us not to sit in judgment upon things we have
never seen, quantities we cannot comprehend, and issues and consequences we
cannot measure. Men can find their rest only in this sublime doctrine, that when all
comes to all it will be found that God is love. We are not asked now to empanel
ourselves and constitute ourselves into a jury; all the parties are not before us, all
the questions cannot be expounded to us, all the perplexities cannot be disentangled;
we therefore happily escape the responsibilities of juryship, and accept the rock-
doctrine, the granite-foundation, that he who has made so beautiful a universe will
not belie himself by moral confusion, but at the end his righteousness shall outshine
the sun"s, and as for his love, it shall be softer, purer, tenderer than all the dewy
morning, than all the rain that ever baptised the tender herb.
GUZIK, "2. (2 Chronicles 19:2-3) God rebukes Jehoshaphat through Jehu the
prophet.
And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to King
Jehoshaphat, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the LORD?
Therefore the wrath of the LORD is upon you. evertheless good things are found
in you, in that you have removed the wooden images from the land, and have
prepared your heart to seek God.”

a. Jehu the son of Hanani: His father was a brave prophet, speaking to king Asa.
The son Jehu also prophesied to Baasha the king of Israel (1 Kings 16:1; 1Ki_16:7).
b. Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the LORD? Jehu exposed the
sin of too much love in Jehoshaphat. He professed to love God, but he also
demonstrated love to those who hate the LORD. He should never have entered his
personal and military alliances with Ahab and the kingdom of Israel.
i. Jehoshaphat should have read and considered Psalms 97:10 : You who love the
LORD, hate evil!
ii. “Love and hate in this context are formal terms for actions within a covenant or
treaty relationship rather than emotional feelings, and help is a typical Chronicles
expression for formal support.” (Selman)
c. evertheless good things are found in you: God did not want Jehoshaphat to be
crushed by the rebuke through the words of Jehu, so He included a word of
encouragement.
· That you have removed the wooden images from the land: God knew that
Jehoshaphat did not approve of all evil, so He encouraged the king in the places
where he did hate evil and refuse compromise.
· And have prepared your heart to seek God: ot only did Jehoshaphat seek
God, but he also prepared his heart to do so. This demonstrated the high priority
Jehoshaphat placed on seeking God.
i. “And this work of preparing or directing his heart is here ascribed to
Jehoshaphat, as elsewhere it is attributed to God, Proverbs 16:1; Philippians 2:13,
because it is man’s action, but performed by God’s grace, preventing, enabling, and
inclining him to do it.” (Poole)
PULPIT, "And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him. For Hanani,
the faithful father of a faithful son, see 2 Chronicles 16:7-10, where we read that he
"came to Asa King of Judah," etc. Also for Jehu, see 1 Kings 16:1-4, where we read
of his commission at the word of the Lord to rebuke Baasha the King of Israel, at a
date upwards of thirty years before the present; and see 2 Chronicles 20:34, which
would lead us to infer, though not with certainty, that he outlived Jehoshaphat. The
book called by his name, however, was not necessarily finished by him. It is evident
that neither the word of the Lord nor the messengers and prophets of the Lord were
bound by the orthodox limits of the divided kingdom. The powerful character and
the moral force of the true prophet is again seen in the way in which he was wont to
go out to meet the evil-doer, though he were a king. We are accustomed to set the
whole of this down to the account of the special inspiration of the prophet of old; yet
that was but typical of the intrinsic force that truth faithfully spoken should wield in
its own right in later times. Religion is established in the nation and people that

know and do this, by the accredited teachers of it, vie. the plain rebuke of the
wrong. Shouldest thou … love them that hate the Lord? Strong suspicion must
attend upon Jehoshaphat, that he had been not a little misled by answering to some
personal fascination in Ahab. The prophet's rebuke is not that Jehoshaphat helped
both Israel and therein Judah also against a common foe, but that he helped the
ungodly, etc. Therefore wrath upon thee, etc. The significance of this sentence was
probably not merely retrospective, glancing at the fact that Jehoshaphat returned to
Jerusalem minus the victory for which he had bid, but was probably an intimation
of troubles that should ripen, were already ripening for Jehoshaphat, in the coming
invasion of his own kingdom (2 Chronicles 20:1-3).
3 There is, however, some good in you, for you
have rid the land of the Asherah poles and have
set your heart on seeking God.”
GILL, "Nevertheless, there are good things found in thee,.... Principles of grace,
righteousness, and holiness, faith, love, zeal, and other graces, true and genuine, from
whence sprung many good works done by him:
in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land; cut down the groves of
trees, and destroyed the idols and images in them:
and hast prepared thine heart to seek God; through the grace of God his heart
was disposed to serve and worship the Lord, and to seek his honour and glory.
ELLICOTT, "(3) evertheless.—Yet the Divine wrath will not pursue thee to
destruction, for there are good things found in thee. (So 2 Chronicles 12:12; comp.
also 1 Kings 14:13.)
Thou hast taken away the groves.—Thou hast consumed (or exterminated ) the
Ashçrahs. (Deuteronomy 13:6; 2 Kings 23:24.) So Asa had done (2 Chronicles 17:4).
(Ashçrôth, as equivalent to Ashçrîm, recurs in 2 Chronicles 33:3 and in Judges 3:7
only.)
And hast prepared.—Or, directed. The contrary was said of Rehoboam (2
Chronicles 12:14.)

TRAPP, "2 Chronicles 19:3 evertheless 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.
Ver. 3. evertheless there are good things found in thee.] Therefore God, rewarding
his own graces in thee, will not suffer his whole wrath to arise against thee, but even
in judgment remember mercy. Thus God "spareth" his people, "as a man spareth
his own son that serveth him." [Malachi 3:17] {See Trapp on "Malachi 3:17"} As
for the good works we do, Certum est nos facere quod facimus, sed Deus facit ut
faciamus; He doeth all.
POOLE, "There are good things found in thee, i.e. good works proceeding from an
honest heart; which God more regards than this particular error; and therefore
though he will chasten thee, yet he will not utterly destroy thee. Or, directed or set
thy heart, i.e. thou hast sought and served God with all thy heart, and not feignedly,
as many others do. And this work of preparing or directing his heart is here
ascribed to Jehoshaphat, as elsewhere it is attributed to God, Proverbs 16:1
Philippians 2:13, because it is man’s action, but performed by God’s grace,
preventing, enabling, and inclining him to it.
WHEDO , "3. evertheless — The seer has for Jehoshaphat words of
encouragement as well as words of blame, and reminds the king that in taking away
the groves [the Asherah images, 1 Kings 14:15, note] he had shown the true
theocratic spirit, which would not fail to be recognized and blessed of God. And this
oracle of blame and of praise inspired the king to attempt further reforms.
PARKER, "" evertheless, there are good things found in thee" ( 2 Chronicles 19:3).
Here is an instance of the compassion and tender criticism of God. The criticism of
heaven is never ruthless; that is to say, it is never inconsistent with reason, and
justice, and fairness, of every kind. The Lord will analyse a man"s disposition and a
man"s character, and will assign to him all that is due. "There are good things
found in thee": what man is wholly bad? Surely in the very worst of men there are
excellences, and it ought to be our delight to consider these, and, where possible,
with due regard to justice, to magnify them, and to call the man"s attention to them.
A man may take heart when he sees some of his best points, and he may fail in hope
when nothing is held before him but his infirmity and his blameworthiness. Here is
a lesson for parents, here also is a lesson for magistrates, and here is instruction for
teachers and monitors of every name and position. Tell a boy that he has done
something well. We are too much afraid of what we call flattery, forgetting that
flattery is a lie: but we are called upon simply to state the truth, and to state it with
affection and emphasis, that it may become an encouragement to hearts that are
very easily cast down. Recognise everything that is good in a Prayer of Manasseh ,

and tell him that if he can be good up to this point it is perfectly possible for him to
be good up to the further point, and urge him by tender appeal to attempt the
higher grade; and he may take heart when you speak to him thus with apostolic
hopefulness and Christlike sympathy. Suppose the character of a man to be divisible
into seven parts; it is perfectly possible for six of those parts to be what is called by
the seer "good." Is a man whose character is good to the extent of six-sevenths to be
pronounced a bad man? Is there not a spiritual arithmetic which looks into
majorities and minorities of a moral kind? Will God then at last drive away from
him men who have had six good points out of seven? From which point will he begin
his judgment? That is a solemn question. We may be helped by a reference to our
own action in the matter. It would seem a cruel issue that a man who has six good
points out of seven should be driven into outer darkness because of the lack of the
seventh excellence. Will God count us, attribute by attribute, excellence by
excellence, and will he set the evil on one side, and the good upon the other, and
strike an average, and report to us the balance of his audit? How do we do? As
business men suppose a man be recommended to you in these terms: This man has
seven qualities, and six of them are really admirable; the only thing about him is
that you cannot trust him with money; he has excellent temper, wonderful patience,
great kindness, his energy is hardly to be surpassed, and as for his quickness of
apprehension and rapidity of execution too much cannot be said; but he is a thief.
Would you take him? Six points are good out of seven: Will you go by the majority
or by the minority? Another man is also good in six points, admirable; the only fault
he has is that you cannot believe a word he says; you think that it is hard for a man
to be condemned because of one point when six are good. Will you take him into
your business? There is a minority greater than any majority can be. That is the
doctrine which we have omitted when we have been criticising eternal providence
and wondering about the issues of human action. Whatever is done on a human
plane cannot of course measure what is done upon the eternal disc, the infinite line,
but we get peeps of God through our humanity: "Like as a father... so the Lord" is
an analogical argument, which is not only permitted but employed in inspired writ.
So we may put the question to ourselves, whether we would admit to our confidence
a man who has six good qualities out of a sum-total of seven when the seventh
quality strikes at the very root of things, and is needful to the very cohesion of
society. One thing is certain—God will be just. Sometimes good things are mere
accidents in a man"s character; they come to him through birth, they are part of his
education, he has never seen anything but courtesy, civility, and unselfishness, and
he has been called upon from his earliest days to display certain virtues and certain
graces: but let him live his life, and he will show you where his vulnerable point is.
Achilles had a heel not dipped in the all-protecting stream. o man is stronger than
his weakest point. Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. Amongst
ourselves it is right that we should say of one another, "He is a good Prayer of
Manasseh , take him on the whole." But what is the meaning of the reservation?
What is it that is reserved? Is it a grace, a posture that may be taught by a hired
master? Or is it a morality the want of which turns the whole being into a bog on
which you cannot rest with sense of security? What is it that is wanting? must be
our continual question. On the other hand, let us never forget that God does not
allow a single excellence of character to escape his attention.

Then comes the great vital doctrine that we are not to be changed in points. Human
character is not a question of isolated aspects, of self-complete phases; human
character is a spiritual entity, a spiritual reality, and according to its central quality
will be all the circumference which touches society at a thousand points. Better be
right at the soul, than be conventionally right and socially acceptable, either because
of negativeness or simple inoffensiveness. A man is what he is in his soul. Has God
touched your soul? Have you asked him to touch it? How does God touch soul? By
soul. How can spirit be born again? By Spirit. ot by education? ever by
education. Education is a temptation, education is a mockery, education is a tribute
to your vanity; it may be the mischief and the ruin of your life. The great change is
mysterious, subjective, internal, of the mysterious nature of God"s own Spirit:
"Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Your little
excellences are like jewels which you can take off and lay down and resume again
tomorrow, but a man"s soul, by which is meant a man"s character, his real
disposition, that must be a recreation of God. So let us go to our Father with a heart-
prayer, and say, "Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within
me." And let us understand by what agency all this is done—not merely
intellectually comprehend it, but let us know of a surety that there is only one way
revealed in the Scriptures by which a man can become a new man. Is it possible for
a man to throw off his old self and become a new creature in Christ Jesus? That is
the miracle which the gospel was sent not only to proclaim but to accomplish. o
man can come into vital connection with Christ Jesus without throwing off his old
self. It is impossible to approach the cross, and yet keep our selfishness, our love of
sin, our ignorance, and our folly: To want to see and touch the cross is the beginning
of the new life. If you propose to yourselves to analyse the metaphysics of
regeneration, I cannot assist you. "The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou
hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth:
so is every one that is born of the Spirit." This is partially true of intellectual birth,
intellectual emancipation: we cannot tell when the meaning of words really came to
us; it is impossible in many cases to put down upon a record the moment at which
we said, Eureka! We found the blessing, the liberty, the new life, so suddenly as to
do away with the encumbrance and weight of time. Let every man take heart
therefore in this, that if he wants to be good he is beginning to be good; and there is
no need to be ashamed of saying that every upward desire we form is a creation of
the Holy Spirit of the living God. Why not? The Holy Spirit is everywhere. Every
flower that opens in the springtime is a creation of the divine energy, a signification
of the divine presence, a pledge of some further revelation. What is there to be
ashamed of in saying that every upward look, every heavenward desire, is the gift of
God, the work of the Spirit, the miracle of the Holy Ghost? And what is there to be
ashamed of in saying that having tried to get rid of sin we never succeeded in the
spiritual endeavour, but at the moment we saw the cross and felt its power sin died,
and our whole life was filled with the ineffable grace and the unutterable peace of
God? I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto
salvation. Cease to think of your little moralities as sufficient, cease to count the
beads of your good-doing, as if you were laying on virtue before God, and remember
that character is not a question of good things, numerable, and distinct, and

valuable, but is a question of the soul. As the soul is the man is. And none can touch
the soul redeemingly, regeneratingly, but God the Holy Ghost.
PULPIT, " evertheless; Hebrew, ‫ָל‬‫כ‬ֲ‫א‬ one of the few particles that were affirmative
in the earlier Hebrew (Genesis 42:21), but adversative in the later (2 Chronicles 1:4;
Daniel 10:7, Daniel 10:21). It may be well rendered, "on the other hand." The
expression here recalls the less favourable "notwithstanding" of Revelation 2:20.
There are good things found in thee (see 2 Chronicles 17:1-9).
Jehoshaphat Appoints Judges
4 Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, and he went out
again among the people from Beersheba to the hill
country of Ephraim and turned them back to the
Lord, the God of their ancestors.
BAR ES, "Jehoshaphat, while declining to renounce the alliance with Israel
(compare the 2Ki_3:7 note), was careful to show that he had no sympathy with idolatry,
and was determined to keep his people, so far as he possibly could, free from it. He
therefore personally set about a second reformation, passing through the whole land,
from the extreme south to the extreme north 2Ch_13:19.
CLARKE, "From Beer-sheba to Mount Ephraim - Before the separation of the
ten tribes, in speaking of the extent of the land it was said, From Dan to Beer-sheba; but
since that event, the kingdom of Judah was bounded on the south by Beer-sheba, and on
the north by the mountains of Ephraim. This shows that Jehoshaphat had gone through
all his territories to examine every thing himself, to see that judgment and justice were
properly administered among the people.
GILL, "And Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem,.... And went out no more to
Samaria, nor concerned himself about the affairs of Israel, but attended to his own:

and he went out again through the people; took a tour throughout his dominions
now, in his own person, as before by his princes, with the priests and Levites:
from Beersheba to Mount Ephraim; Beersheba was the southern boundary of the
land of Judah, and Mount Ephraim lay to the north, and was the northern boundary of it
since the division of the kingdom:
and brought them back to the Lord God of their fathers; from idolatry to the
pure worship of God, such who had relapsed since the first reformation, or had not been
influenced by it.
HE RY, "II. The return of duty which Jehoshaphat made to God for this favour. he
took the reproof well, was not wroth with the seer as his father was, but submitted. Let
the righteous smite me, it shall be a kindness. See what effect the reproof had upon him.
1. He dwelt at Jerusalem (2Ch_19:4), minded his own business at home, and would not
expose himself by paying any more such visits to Ahab. Rebuke a wise man, and he will
be yet wiser, and will take warning, Pro_9:8, Pro_9:9. 2. To atone (as I may say) for the
visit he had paid to Ahab, he made a pious profitable visitation of his own kingdom: He
went out through the people in his own person from Beersheba in the south to Mount
Ephriam in the north, and brought them back to the Lord God of their fathers, that is,
did all he could towards recovering them. (1.) By what the prophet said he perceived that
his former attempts for reformation were well pleasing to God, and therefore he revived
them, and did what was then left undone. It is good when commendations thus quicken
us to our duty, and when the more we are praised for doing well the more vigorous we
are in well-doing. (2.) Perhaps he found that his late affinity with the idolatrous house of
Ahab and kingdom of Israel had had a bad influence upon his own kingdom. Many, we
may suppose, were emboldened to revolt to idolatry when they saw even their reforming
king so intimate with idolaters; and therefore he thought himself doubly obliged to do all
he could to restore them. If we truly repent of our sin, we shall do our utmost to repair
the damage we have any way done by it to religion or the souls of others. We are
particularly concerned to recover those that have fallen into sin, or been hardened in it,
by our example.
JAMISO , "he went out again through the people — This means his
reappointing the commissioners of public instruction (2Ch_17:7-9), perhaps with new
powers and a larger staff of assistants to overtake every part of the land. The
complement of teachers required for that purpose would be easily obtained because the
whole tribe of Levites was now concentrated within the kingdom of Judah.
K&D, "Jehoshaphat's further arrangements for the revival of the Jahve-worship,
and the establishment of a proper administration of justice. - The first two clauses in
2Ch_19:4 are logically connected thus: When Jehoshaphat (after his return from the
war) sat (dwelt) in Jerusalem, he again went forth (‫א‬ ֵ‫צ‬ֵ ַ‫ו‬ ‫ב‬ ָ‫שׁ‬ָ ַ‫ו‬ are to be taken together)
among the people, from Beersheba, the southern frontier (see 1Ch_21:2), to Mount
Ephraim, the northern frontier of the kingdom of Judah, and brought them back to
Jahve, the God of the fathers. The “again” (‫ּב‬‫שׁ‬ָ‫)י‬ can refer only to the former provision
for the instruction of the people, recorded in 2Ch_17:7.; all that was effected by the

commission which Jehoshaphat had sent throughout the land being regarded as his
work. The instruction of the people in the law was intended to lead them back to the
Lord. Jehoshaphat now again took up his work of reformation, in order to complete the
work he had begun, by ordering and improving the administration of justice.
BE SO , "2 Chronicles 19:4. He went out again through the people — He went out
before by his officers, (2 Chronicles 17:7,) now he went in his own person. From
Beer-sheba to mount Ephraim — That is, through his whole kingdom, whereof
these were the two bounds. And brought them back unto the God of their fathers —
Such of them as had revolted from God to idols, he reclaimed by his counsel and
example, and by the instructions of the Levites and priests whom he carried with
him. Many, probably, had revolted to idolatry, when they saw their king so intimate
with idolaters. Therefore he thought himself doubly obliged to do all he could to
reduce them. If we truly repent of sin, we shall do our utmost to repair the damage
we have done to religion, or the souls of others.
COFFMA , "JEHOSHAPHAT AGAI STRESSES THE LAW OF GOD
"And Jehoshaphat dwelt in Jerusalem: and he went out again among the people
from Beersheba to the hill-country of Ephraim, and brought them back unto
Jehovah, the God of their fathers. And he set judges in the land throughout all the
fortified cities of Judah, city by city, and said to the judges, Consider what ye do:
for ye judge not for man, but for Jehovah; and he is with you in the judgment. ow
therefore let the fear of Jehovah be upon you; take heed and do it: for there is no
iniquity with Jehovah our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of bribes."
By his placement of this paragraph, the Chronicler intends for us to understand
that Jehoshaphat had been sternly warned by the Lord at Ramoth-gilead, and that,
for the time present at least, he did an about-face, attempting to bring all the people
back to the proper worship and obedience of God. It is highly commendable that the
king himself set a good example in this.
It must have come as a severe shock to him that his evil friend Ahab had received a
mortal blow from the God he despised, and that only the intervention of God had
saved Jehoshaphat himself from a similar fate.
ELLICOTT, "FURTHER PROCEEDI GS I THE REFORM OF JUSTICE A D
RELIGIO .
(4) And he went out again.—This refers to the former Visitation or Royal
Commission for the instruction of the people in the sacred Law (2 Chronicles 17:7-
9).
From Beer-sheba, the southern, to the hill country of Ephraim, the northern limit of
his dominions.

He went out.— ot necessarily in person, but by his accredited representatives.
Brought them back.—Made them return (2 Chronicles 24:19).
Unto the Lord God of their fathers.—From the worship of the Baals and the illicit
cultus of Jehovah. The local worship of the God of Israel “necessarily came into
contact with the Canaanite service of Baal, and, apart from the fact that the
luxurious festivals of the latter had a natural attraction for the sensuous Semitic
nature of the Hebrews, there was a more innocent motive which tended to assimilate
the two worships. The offerings and festivals of Jehovah were acts of homage in
which the people consecrated to Him the good things of His bestowing. These were
no longer the scanty products of pastoral life, but the rich gifts of a land of corn and
wine . . . Thus, the religious feasts necessarily assumed a new and more luxurious
character, and, rejoicing before Jehovah in the enjoyment of the good things of
Canaan, the Israelites naturally imitated the agricultural feasts which the
Canaanites celebrated before Baal. It is not, therefore, surprising that we find many
indications of a gradual fusion between the two worships; that many of the great
Hebrew sanctuaries are demonstrably identical with Canaanite holy places; that the
autumn feast, usually known as the Feast of Tabernacles, has a close parallel in the
Canaanite Vintage Feast, that Canaanite immorality tainted the worship of
Jehovah; and that at length Jehovah Himself, who was addressed by His
worshippers by the same general appellation of ‘Baal’ or ‘Lord’ which was the
ordinary title of the Canaanite nature-god, was hardly distinguished by the masses
who worshipped at the local shrines from the local Baalim of their Canaanite
neighbours” (Prof. Robertson Smith, Prophets of Israel, p. 38).
TRAPP, "2 Chronicles 19:4 And 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.
Ver. 4. And Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem.] He made no more journeys to
Samaria; as he who had escaped with his life at the fall of Blackfriars, cried out, "I
will go no more to mass"; and another, "Mass is misery." A third - nothing so wise -
said, that nothing grieved him more, than that he had not died by that mischance.
But see the just hand of God upon such wild wishers. This Parker - for that was his
name - going over to Douay to take priestly orders the week following, was drowned
in his passage. (a)
And he went out again through the people.] Heb., He returned, and went out. He
had reformed all places before; but in his absence, at the siege of Ramothgilead, all
fell out of order again; like as when Moses was gone but forty days only to converse
with God, the people had corrupted themselves, and made a golden calf. It may very
well be, too, that by Jehoshaphat’s evil example, in loving those that hated the Lord,
the people took heart to slight the service of God, and to hanker after idols.
Jehoshaphat, therefore, the first thing he doth after his return - when once he had

recovered his fright, and considered the prophet’s reproof - he setteth upon a
reformation - which is optima et aptissima poenitentia, as I have before noted out of
Luther - and because it shall be thoroughly done from one end of the land to the
other, he goeth himself in person, to see it done.
POOLE, "He went out again; once he went by his officers, 2 Chronicles 17:7, &c.,
now he went in his own person.
From Beer-sheba to Mount Ephraim, i.e. through his whole kingdom, whereof these
were the two bounds.
Brought them back unto the Lord; such of them as had revolted from God to idols,
he reclaimed by his good counsel and example, and by the instructions of the Levites
and priests, whom doubtless now he carried with him, as he sent them before with
his officers of state.
WHEDO , "JEHOSHAPHAT’S FURTHER REFORMS, 2 Chronicles 19:4-11.
4. He went out again through the people — The again refers to his previous reforms
described in chapter 17. In spite of all his efforts to obliterate idolatry, here and
there throughout the kingdom the idol images and worship on “the high places”
would again and again appear. Comp. 2 Chronicles 20:33.
GUZIK, "B. Jehoshaphat’s response.
1. (2 Chronicles 19:4) Jehoshaphat furthers godliness in the kingdom of Judah.
So Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem; and he went out again among the people from
Beersheba to the mountains of Ephraim, and brought them back to the LORD God
of their fathers.
a. So Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem: This means that he restricted his adventures
abroad. He no longer went to the northern kingdom of Israel and was content to
stay where he should.
b. And brought them back to the LORD God of their fathers: The wording implies
that Jehoshaphat did this personally (he went out again). This was wonderful
personal work in the cause of godliness on behalf of the king of Judah.
i. “These itinerant campaigns have no real equivalent in the Old Testament, and the
prophets, even though they traveled about, were not involved in systematic teaching
of the word of God. The nearest parallel is in the ew Testament, in Jesus’ own
itinerant ministry.” (Selman)

PULPIT, "From Beershsba to Mount Ephraim. The length of the good land is not to
be quoted, as of old, the undivided "Dan to Beersheba," but Beersheba to Mount
Ephraim (2 Chronicles 13:16-19). Jehoshaphat makes another conscientious and
vigorous endeavour to reform his own kingdom, to keep it steadfast in the worship
of God, and free from idolatry. It is to be noticed that he does not turn away his ear
from the rebuke which had been given him, but turns his heart to it. As it does not
appear that he broke with Israel and Israel's kings (2 Chronicles 20:35, 2 Chronicles
20:37; 2 Kings 3:7, 2 Kings 3:14, 2 Kings 3:24), it is possible, especially in view of
verse 37 in our 2 Chronicles 20:1-37; that the severity of the Divine rebuke was
understood to apply to the occasions which found Jehoshaphat in alliance with a
king notably bad, and for some supposed chance of advantage to himself. This last
element of consideration will difference sufficiently the two cases just cited, to wit,
the case in which Jehoshaphat joined himself with Azariah, and is sternly
"prophesied against," and that in which he helped Jehoram, and through Elisha's
intervention gained him the day.
5 He appointed judges in the land, in each of the
fortified cities of Judah.
BAR ES, "What exact change Jehoshaphat made in the judicial system of Judah
Deu_16:18; 1Ch_23:4, it is impossible to determine. Probably he found corruption
widely spread 2Ch_19:7, and the magistrates in some places tainted with the prevailing
idolatry. He therefore made a fresh appointment of judges throughout the whole
country; concentrating judicial authority in the hands of a few, or creating superior
courts in the chief towns (“fenced cities”), with a right of appeal to such courts from the
village judge.
GILL, "And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of
Judah, city by city,.... Inferior judges in lesser courts of judicature than that at
Jerusalem, and that in every city, that judgment and justice might be executed
everywhere; such were appointed by David, but had been neglected, and now restored,
see 1Ch_26:29.
HE RY 5-6, "Jehoshaphat, having done what he could to make his people good, is
here providing, if possible, to keep them so by the influence of a settled magistracy. He
had sent preachers among them, to instruct them (2Ch_17:7-9), and that provision did

well; but now he saw it further requisite to send judges among them, to see the laws put
in execution, and to be a terror to evil-doers. It is probable that there were judges up and
down the country before, but either they neglected their business or the people slighted
them, so that the end of the institution was not answered; and therefore it was necessary
it should be new-modelled, new men employed, and a new charge given them. That is it
which is here done.
I. He erected inferior courts of justice in the several cities of the kingdom, 2Ch_19:5.
The judges of these courts were to keep the people in the worship of God, to punish the
violations of the law, and to decide controversies between man and man. Here is the
charge he gave them (2Ch_19:6), in which we have,
1. The means he prescribes to them for the keeping of them closely to their duty; and
these are two: - (1.) Great caution and circumspection: Take heed what you do, 2Ch_
19:6. And again, “Take heed and do it, 2Ch_19:7. Mind your business; take heed of
making any mistakes; be afraid of misunderstanding any point of law, or the matter of
fact.” Judges, of all men, have need to be cautious, because so much depends upon the
correctness of their judgment. (2.) Great piety and religion: “Let the fear of God be upon
you, and that will be a restraint upon you to keep you from doing wrong (Neh_5:15;
Gen_42:18) and an engagement to you to be active in doing the duty of your place.” Let
destruction from God be a terror to them, as Job speaks (Job_31:23), and then they will
be a terror to none but evil-doers.
2. The motives he would have them consider, to engage them to faithfulness. These are
three, all taken from God: - (1.) That from him they had their commission; his ministers
they were. The powers that be are ordained by him and for him: “You judge not for man,
but for the Lord; your business is to glorify him, and serve the interests of his kingdom
among men.” (2.) That his eye was upon them: “He is with you in the judgment, to take
notice what you do and call you to an account if you do amiss.” (3.) That he is the great
example of justice to all magistrates: There is no iniquity with him, no bribery, nor
respect of persons. Magistrates are called gods, and therefore must endeavour to
resemble him.
JAMISO 5-7, "2Ch_19:5-7. His instructions to the judges.
he set judges in the land — There had been judicial courts established at an early
period. But Jehoshaphat was the first king who modified these institutions according to
the circumstances of the now fragmentary kingdom of Judah. He fixed local courts in
each of the fortified cities, these being the provincial capitals of every district (see on
Deu_16:18).
K&D, "2Ch_19:5-7
He set judges in the land, in all the fenced cities of Judah; they, as larger cities, being
centres of communication for their respective neighbourhoods, and so best suited to be
the seats of judges. ‫יר‬ ִ‫ע‬ָ‫ו‬ ‫יר‬ ִ‫ע‬ ְ‫,ל‬ in reference to every city, as the law (Deu_16:18)
prescribed. He laid it upon the consciences of these judges to administer justice
conscientiously. “Not for men are ye to judge, but for Jahve;” i.e., not on the
appointment and according to the will of men, but in the name and according to the will
of the Lord (cf. Pro_16:11). In the last clause of 2Ch_19:6, Jahve is to be supplied from
the preceding context: “and Jahve is with you in judgment,” i.e., in giving your decisions
(cf. the conclusion of 2Ch_19:11); whence this clause, of course, only serves to

strengthen the foregoing, only contains the thoughts already expressed in the law, that
judgment belongs to God (cf. Deu_1:17 with Exo_21:6; Exo_22:7.). Therefore the fear of
the Lord should keep the judges from unrighteousness, so that they should neither allow
themselves to be influenced by respect of persons, nor to be bribed by gifts, against
which Deu_16:19 and Deu_1:17 also warns. ‫שׂוּ‬ ֲ‫ע‬ַ‫ו‬ ‫רוּ‬ ְ‫מ‬ ִ‫שׁ‬ is rightly paraphrased by the
Vulgate, cum diligentia cuncta facite. The clause, “With God there is no respect of
persons,” etc., recalls Deu_10:17.
BE SO , "2 Chronicles 19:5-6. He set judges in the land, city by city — In every
city, for itself and the country adjacent, that justice might be administered with the
most ease and convenience to the people, and they might not all be forced to go up to
Jerusalem. And said to the judges, Take heed, &c. — Mind your business; take heed
of making any mistakes; be afraid of misunderstanding any point of law, or the
matter of fact. Judges, of all men, have need to be cautious, because so much
depends on their understanding a matter right. For ye judge not for man, but for
the Lord — You represent God’s person, to whom judgment belongeth; you have
your commission from God, and not from man only; and your administration of
justice is not only for man’s good, but also for God’s honour and service. Who is
with you in judgment — Both to observe your carriage, and to defend you against
all those enemies whom the impartial exercise of justice may provoke.
ELLICOTT, "(5) And he set.—Appointed, or stationed.
The fenced cities.—As being the chief centres of each district.
City by city.—For every city, according to the Law, Deuteronomy 16:18, “in all thy
gates.” (Comp. 1 Chronicles 23:4; 1 Chronicles 26:29.) The judges would be Levites,
and probably also priests and family chiefs, as in the case of Jerusalem (2
Chronicles 19:8).
TRAPP, "2 Chronicles 19:5 And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced
cities of Judah, city by city,
Ver. 5. And he set judges in the land.] Judges they had before; but some of them,
haply, fell in the late war with the Syrians, or were otherwise wanting to their places
and duties. It is a mercy to have judges, modo audeant quae sentiunt, saith the
orator, (a) so they be as they should be.
Throughout all the fenced cities.] Lest soldiers should abuse their power unto
violence and wrong, as they are apt to do. [Luke 3:14]
WHEDO , "5. Set judges in the land… city by city — Appointed local magistrates
in all the principal cities to attend to the administration of justice, according to the
directions of the law. Deuteronomy 16:18-20. Probably Jehoshaphat discovered

irregularities and wrongs in the administration of justice, such as respect of persons,
and taking of bribes, (2 Chronicles 19:7,) and he accordingly undertook an extensive
reform in the matter, and solemnly charged his newly-appointed judges to exercise
their office in the fear of Jehovah.
GUZIK, "2. (2 Chronicles 19:5-11) The judicial reforms of Jehoshaphat.
Then he set judges in the land throughout all the fortified cities of Judah, city by
city, and said to the judges, “Take heed to what you are doing, for you do not judge
for man but for the LORD, who is with you in the judgment. ow therefore, let the
fear of the LORD be upon you; take care and do it, for there is no iniquity with the
LORD our God, no partiality, nor taking of bribes.” Moreover in Jerusalem, for the
judgment of the LORD and for controversies, Jehoshaphat appointed some of the
Levites and priests, and some of the chief fathers of Israel, when they returned to
Jerusalem. And he commanded them, saying, “Thus you shall act in the fear of the
LORD, faithfully and with a loyal heart: Whatever case comes to you from your
brethren who dwell in their cities, whether of bloodshed or offenses against law or
commandment, against statutes or ordinances, you shall warn them, lest they
trespass against the LORD and wrath come upon you and your brethren. Do this,
and you will not be guilty. And take notice: 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 will be officials before you. Behave
courageously, and the LORD will be with the good.”
a. Take heed to what you are doing, for you do not judge for man but for the LORD,
who is with you in the judgment: This was a high and appropriate charge to the
judges of Judah. We can understand the interest the Chronicler had in including
this material not recorded in 1 or 2 Kings, using the example of Jehoshaphat as an
encouragement to the leaders of the rebuilding community of Jerusalem and Judah
after the exile.
i. “A very solemn and very necessary caution: judges should feel themselves in the
place of God, and judge as those who know they shall be judged for their
judgments.” (Clarke)
b. Behave courageously, and the LORD will be with the good: The prominent theme
of courageous obedience is repeated again in Chronicles. It was the job of the judges
to courageously do what was good, and to then trust that the LORD will be with the
good.
i. “WITHOUT good and wholesome laws, no nation can be prosperous; and vain
are the best laws if they be not judiciously and conscientiously administered.”
(Clarke)
PULPIT, "Judges … fenced cities. Jehoshaphat proceeds from direct religious

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