Summary of Jehoshaphat’s Reign (1 Kings 22:41-50)
“So Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-five years. His mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. And Jehoshaphat walked in the way of his father Asa and did not turn away from it; he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD. The high places, however, were not removed; the people had not yet set their hearts on the God of their fathers. As for the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, from beginning to end, they are indeed written in the Chronicles of Jehu son of Hanani, which are recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel.
Jehoshaphat’s Fleet Is Wrecked
Later, Jehoshaphat king of Judah made an alliance with Ahaziah king of Israel, who acted wickedly. They agreed to make ships to go to Tarshish, and these were built in Ezion-geber. Then Eliezer son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have allied yourself with Ahaziah, the LORD has destroyed your works.” So the ships were wrecked and were unable to sail to Tarshish.”
This summary of Jehoshaphat’s reign appears to contradict some of the earlier accounts in 2 Chronicles 17:6. That verse claims that Jehoshaphat removed the Asherah poles and high places from Judah; now Ezra is claiming that the high places were not removed. Perhaps this discrepancy can be explained if Jehoshaphat only removed the high places dedicated to Asherah but left others. Once more, a king of Judah had the opportunity to bring true revival and once more that king settled for half measures.
Jehoshaphat may have been righteous himself, but he seems to have been a lousy judge of character! Not only did Jehoshaphat ally himself with Ahab by marrying Ahab’s daughter and going to battle with Ahab, but later he also attempted a commercial venture with Ahaziah, Ahab’s successor. The Bible says this about Ahaziah:
1 Kings 22:51 – 53 “In the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat’s reign over Judah, Ahaziah son of Ahab became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria two years. And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the ways of his father and mother, and of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin. Ahaziah served and worshiped Baal, provoking the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger, just as his father had done.”
When Jehoshaphat joined his army with that of Ahab, God sent Micaiah to warn him of disaster. After the battle resulting in Ahab’s death, God sent Jehu, son of Hanani the Seer, to rebuke Jehoshaphat for foolishly involving himself with Ahab. Two direct warnings from God should have been sufficient to keep Jehoshaphat from getting involved with a king of Israel, but no. Tempted by visions of gold from Tarshish, Jehoshaphat made a deal with Ahaziah, his brother – in – law, to build ships and send them for gold. Even though these ships got built, God wrecked them before they were ever able to sail. One wonders if God tried to warn Jehoshaphat not to marry Ahab’s daughter in the first place and he refused to listen!
APPLICATION: The final analysis of Jehoshaphat is of a man who did what was right in the eyes of the Lord but who made several poor decisions. At times, Jehoshaphat truly honored the Lord; at other times, he involved himself with very wicked people. Jehoshaphat’s first mistake was marrying into Ahab’s family. It’s likely that Jehoshaphat thought this marriage would prevent Ahab from attacking Judah; however, this first bad decision led to many others. It is also possible that Jehoshaphat’s failure to totally remove the high places stemmed from the evil spiritual influence of his wife.
It’s a sobering thought to consider what people might say about us after we are gone. Will we be remembered as being kind and loving and merciful, or will we be remembered for being bitter and critical? Will people remember us for our faith in God? May God help us, so that the spiritual legacy we leave is a good one!
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. Help us to be channels of Your love, Your mercy, and Your kindness so that our lives glorify You. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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