Teaching Notes

TH1062: II CHRONICLES

Jehoshaphat, like his father Asa, brought spiritual reform to the Southern Kingdom of Judah. Jehoshaphat not only destroyed the pagan worship places and removed idolatry from the land, but he replaced the false worship with the true worship of God as he had the priests teaching the people the Word of God. And the result of this spiritual reform is seen in II Chronicles 17:10. We read "And the fear of the LORD fell on all the kingdoms of the lands that were around Judah, so that they did not make war against Jehoshaphat." This is where we will pick up our story tonight in II Chronicles chapter 18.

II CHRONICLES 18

VERSE 1

1. To me this is one of those really confusing alliances, and maybe one of the strangest in the whole Bible. Jehoshaphat, who was a godly king, teams up with Ahab who was one of Israel's most wicked kings. In fact Jehoshaphat not only teams up with Ahab, but he allows his son Jehoram to marry the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, the DEMONIC DUO of the Old Testament. Her name was Athaliah, and she too was just as wicked as her parents and she almost wipes out the lineage of David.

2. The only reason I can come up with why Jehoshaphat would do this is that he was trying to heal the wounds between the two kingdoms. But just as oil and water don't mix, neither does good and evil. And you never sacrifice truth and righteousness for the sake of unity!

VERSE 2

1. Because their children were married to each other, these two kings were now related by marriage and they would fellowship together from time to time. As Jehoshaphat goes to visit Ahab, the king of Israel requests the help of Jehoshaphat in regaining Ramoth Gilead back from the Syrians.

VERSES 3-4

1. Jehoshaphat tells Asa that they are one and are more than willing to assist in this battle. But Jehoshaphat has only one request, that they should first pray about it and see what the Lord wanted them to do. And that is always the best thing to do. Instead of rushing on ahead, make sure the Lord is with you in this.

VERSE 5

1. These false prophets were most likely not the prophets of Baal and Asherah, for Elijah destroyed those 800 prophets on Mount Carmel prior to this incident. ( I Kings 18). These 400 prophets were most likely the false prophets of the calf worship that Jeroboam had established. Yes Ahab had prophets, but they were not of God as we shall see. These guys were yes men, that spoke only to please the king and when they used the name of God to speak, it was meaningless.

VERSE 6

1. Why would Jehoshaphat say this when 400 prophets already spoke that they should go into battle? I think Jehoshaphat recognized that something was not right, God had given him discernment and he was looking for a true prophet of God and not a yes man.

VERSE 7

1. Ahab knew where to go to hear from a true prophet, but he was not interested in the truth, only to have his ears tickled. And when people speak the truth, they are hated by the unsaved because it exposes their deeds, which are evil. They are very comfortable living in darkness. But Jehoshaphat sticks up for this prophet of God, rebuking Ahab for his harsh words against this man of God.

VERSE 8

1. How did they know where this prophet was located - for they went to get him quickly? Probably because they put this trouble maker in prison, it was one way to shut him up, and now they were able to get him and bring him to the king quickly.

VERSES 9-10

1. As both these kings sat before these 400 prophets, one of these guys, Zedekiah by name, grabs some horns and places them upon his head and started charging all around the room. A visual aid you might say. And what he was trying to show them was that Ahab and his men were going to push back and defeat the Syrians. That is what he was saying and not necessarily what God was saying.

VERSE 11

1. As Zedekiah finished his little skit, the rest of these prophets shouted in unity that Jehovah God was going to give them the victory. It is interesting that they knew of Him but they did not follow after His commands. Why do I say that? Because only the Levites were to be the priests but Jeroboam kicked out the true priests and allowed anyone to become a priest, all they needed to do was buy their way into the ministry. You see, you can say "Lord, Lord!" all you want, but those words are meaningless if you don't do what the Lord has said, if you don't have a relationship with him. You words are thus, empty and as Jesus said to those that just honored Him with their lips, "...'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'" Matthew 7:23.

VERSE 12

1. This messenger that goes to get the true prophet of God warns him to speak only good to the king, just as the other prophets were speaking. Everyone knew that Micaiah spoke the truth of God, but they were not interested in the truth, they only wanted a positive message!

VERSE 13

1. It is not always easy to speak the truth, but the heart of a true man or woman of God will always speak the truth. You see, our first responsibility must be to the Lord. We should not water down what we say or try to placate people, just speak the truth in love.

VERSE 14

1. Now we don't know the inflection in the voice of this prophet of God, but I'm sure it was sarcastic. Not only does the king pick up on this but so did all those who where there. But he was saying what the king wanted to hear, but the king could not just let that go for all knew this prophet was not speaking the truth.

VERSE 15

1. Ahab did not want the truth, he only wanted Micaiah to speak in a convincing way. Today we see people speak in the name of Christ all kinds of lies, but they speak in such a way as to convince the people. That is what Ahab wanted, not necessarily the truth.

VERSE 16

1. So this prophet of God tells the king that he will be killed in the battle and that his men will be scattered like sheep without a shepherd.

VERSE 17

1. You see, he really did not want to hear the truth, for once it was spoken he shuns the words of this prophet and says to Jehoshaphat that he is such a negative person.

VERSES 18-22

1. Now some people have great difficulty with this passage. They can't understand how a holy and righteous God can send forth a lying spirit. First of all we have to understand that Satan and his demons, which are nothing more than fallen angels, still have access to heaven. We think they are in Hell, but that is totally wrong. And I guess that destroys those faith teachers that say Jesus was in Hell 3 days and 3 nights being tortured by Satan, for Satan is not bound nor is his domain in Hell. In Job 1:6 we read "Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them." Now there is coming a day when they will be cast from heaven but that has not taken place as yet. It is not till the midpoint of the tribulation period that Satan and his demons no longer have access to God, they can no longer come before Him. In Revelation 12:7-9 we read "And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."

2. God gives all of us a choice, thus, if you reject the truth you open yourself up to receive a lie, just as Ahab did. Ahab heard the truth, but he rejected it, and because of that he opened himself up to be deceived by the enemy. In II Thessalonians chapter 2 Paul says of those that reject the love of the truth, the salvation message, that God will send them a strong delusion, that they will believe a lie for they have rejected the truth. Because of that they will be condemned. When you see what people believe today you can see the demonic lies they have opened themselves up to, because they have rejected the truth of God. Here, God allows this demon to go to Ahab with these lies, for he rejected the truth.

VERSE 23

1. Zedekiah was a false prophet. Now a prophet not only told things that would happen in the future, foretell things, but also spoke the truths of God, being His representative, or forthtelling the things of God. That is what Zedekiah was doing, but he was a false representative because he contradicted what God has said. Today we have the Word of God and when people say things contrary to what God has said, then they are not representing God and in a sense, are false prophets.

VERSES 24-27

1. Again, to see if someone is speaking for God, they must speak according to His Word. And for those that speak of future events, time will tell if they speak the truth or not. The prophets of the Bible have been 100% accurate so far and as we look to what God has said about the days we are living in, we see them come flashing across our television and newspapers. God's prophets are always right. Once again we see this prophet of God thrown into jail for speaking the truth.

VERSE 28

1. After hearing these words of Micaiah, I don't know why Jehoshaphat followed after Ahab. God was telling him not to go, and Jehoshaphat did just the opposite.

VERSE 29

1. Now Ahab must have thought, "What if this prophet is right and they want to kill me? I don't want to die in battle." So Ahab disguises himself as a regular soldier and not as a king. On the other end, Jehoshaphat goes into battle as a king, he was like a man who had a giant bull's eye on his chest. And again, I can't understand why he agreed to this.

VERSE 30

1. The king of Syria was smart. He knew that if you killed the king, his army would be scattered. So he tells his men to focus on the king, set your sights on him and destroy him. So Ahab was wise in disguising himself.

VERSES 31-32

1. As they enter the battle, Jehoshaphat recognizes that he is a sitting duck, and they are trying to kill him. So he yells out to them, "It's not me your looking for, I'm not the guy!" Now I don't think that his words stopped their attack, for it says "The LORD helped him, and God moved them to turn away from Him."

2. Jehoshaphat worked so hard to relate to Ahab, to unite the kingdom, that the enemy mistakes him for Ahab. I think we do the same from time to time. We try so hard to relate to the world, that we are mistaken for the world. We must be careful that in our desire to see people turn to Christ that we don't water down the message or lower our standards. When we do that we dim our light and we can dim it so much that they can't see Christ in us, but the world. As James 4:4 says "Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God."

VERSES 33-34

1. This tells me that nothing happens by chance, but all is ordained by God. This archer lets his arrow fly, not trying for any target in particular, and it strikes Ahab between his armor with a mortal wound. You see, you can't escape the judgment of God no matter how hard you try. Many, like Ahab, pretend to be something they are not. Ahab dressed as a soldier, and many today dress like Christians, and outwardly they look good. But inwardly their heart is far from the Lord. You may fool others with your disguise, but you can't fool God and you can't escape His judgment. If you have not accepted the free gift of God through His Son Jesus Christ, then it doesn't matter how good you look, you are lost in your sins. But as Paul said in Ephesians 2:8-9 "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast."

II CHRONICLES 19

VERSES 1-2

1. As Jehoshaphat returns home, the prophet Jehu rebukes him for his actions. And he tells him "Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord?" Now as you read that it seems confusing, for we are told to love those that hate us, to reach out to the Lost. I think what God is saying here is this. Jehoshaphat was fellowshiping with Ahab, and light and darkness don't mix. It is one thing to share Christ with the lost, it is another thing to be one with them. As Paul said in II Corinthians 6:14-16 "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: 'I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.'"

VERSE 3

1. God looks at Jehoshaphat's heart and the good that he has done, and God extends His mercy to him.

VERSE 4

1. Now we don't know how long Jehoshaphat was away from his people, but during that time they strayed from the Lord. Now Jehoshaphat is going around trying to get the people back on track, for without a shepherd, the sheep were scattered, and strayed from the Lord.

VERSES 5-7

1. If this is how our court systems were run today we truly would be blessed. These verses should be placed in every courtroom and on every desk of judges to remind them that they hold a man's life in their hands and need to honestly judge. They need to do their job uprightly for they were representing God. But what we see today is what Solomon spoke of in Proverbs 17:23 "A wicked man accepts a bribe behind the back To pervert the ways of justice."

VERSES 8-11

1. How important it was to have godly judges in office to deal with civil matters. When ungodly judges are in office we see anarchy - much like we see in our own country today.

II CHRONICLES 20

VERSE 1

1. Now we see 3 nations rise up against the Southern Kingdom of Judah. The Moabites, the Ammonites and the Edomites, who were all blood relatives of Israel. The Moabites and the Ammonites were the children of an incestuous relationship between Lot and his two daughters. It was right after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah that his daughters thought they were the only ones left, thus, they got their father drunk and had sex with him bringing forth Moab and Ben-Ammi, the fathers of these two nations. And Esau, the son of Isaac and the brother of Jacob, was the father of the Edomites dwelling in the area of Mount Seir, as we see in verse 10.

VERSES 2-3

1. As Jehoshaphat gets word that these nations are gathered around the west shore of the Dead Sea, he is fearful. Now this is not a fear that paralyzes, but it causes him to seek the Lord. To me, this is a good fear. We all need to experience this for it truly gets us to re-focus our lives back on the Lord. Jehoshaphat set his face to seek the Lord and called for a national fast.

VERSES 4-5

1. How exciting to see that when they needed to, they came together as a nation to seek the Lord. They knew He was the only one who could truly help. Now as they are gathered at the temple, Jehoshaphat begins to pray before the Lord.

VERSE 6

1. How important it is to have a proper perspective on God, especially in the midst of battle. He is in total control, nothing happens without His knowledge and without His permission. We saw that in the book of Job, as Satan told God that the only reason Job was praising Him was because He was blessing Job. But if something bad would happen, Job would surly curse You. Job's faith was on the line, and God allowed Satan to do to Job what he could, but put certain boundaries on what could be done. And Satan could not do anything without God allowing it.

VERSES 7-8

1. I think it is important to look at the past, to remember what God has done, His faithfulness, which gives us confidence to pray for the situations we find ourselves in. God has done all this for them, He is not going to give up on them now!

VERSE 9

1. Remember when Solomon dedicated the temple, his prayer was that God would answer their cry when they were in trouble, as they prayed towards this temple. And God told Solomon that He would indeed answer his prayer. Thus, Jehoshaphat is echoing the prayer of Solomon.

VERSES 10-11

1. When they came out of Egypt; Ammon, Moab and the Edomites refused Israel passage through their land, and God forbid Israel from destroying them, and now this is how they were repaying them. Now they were joining forces to destroy Judah. (Moab: Judges 11:17-18, Ammon: Deuteronomy 23:3-4, Edom: Numbers 20:18-20).

VERSE 12

1. Again, a proper perspective of the situation - we have no strength, we can't do it on our own, and so our eyes are upon you Lord! It speaks of a total dependence upon God. Psalm 46:1-2 says "God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, Even though the earth be removed, And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea." It is when we lose the consciousness of God in our life that things get out of focus and we become anxious and terrified. Remember what David said in Psalm 31:24 "Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the LORD."

VERSE 13

1. Now, after the prayer they waited for God's answer - they stood still before the Lord. It is during those times we are strengthened and refreshed as Isaiah 40:31 says. "But those who wait on the LORD Shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint."

VERSES 14-15

1. God puts things in proper perspective, its His battle. Because of that, we need to bring our requests before Him and ask for guidance, for direction in the situations we find ourselves in.

VERSES 16-21

1. Tekoa was located approximately 12 miles south of Jerusalem. Now this battle plan was simple, put your worship people out in front. Let them led the army into battle. Go into this battle with praise and worship and see the salvation that the Lord will bring. We would call that a foolish military plan, but God will use it to bring about a great victory.

VERSES 22-24

1. As they came upon the enemy with praise, God put the enemy into confusion and they killed each other, none were left. The enemy hates praise because it throws them into confusion. They can't understand how we can praise the Lord in the midst of difficulty.

VERSES 25-26

1. It took them 3 days to gather together the spoils of their victory, and on the fourth day they assembled in the valley. Now this valley was at one time the valley of the shadow of death for them. It was where the enemy was going to destroy them. But that valley is now the valley of Berachah or the valley of blessing. You see, it is when you get your eyes on the Lord, pray and praise Him, and as dark and hopeless as a situation may seem, sit back and see the salvation that the Lord will bring as He turns that valley of the shadow of death into the valley of blessing in your life.

VERSES 27-30

1. They entered the battle with praise and in the victory they came home singing praise unto the Lord. And as the other nations saw what the Lord had done, how He fought for Judah, then the fear of the Lord came upon them. And now God gives the Southern Kingdom of Judah rest.

VERSES 31-35

1. Jehoshaphat, as I have said, was a godly king. Why he continues to make these alliances with the ungodly kings of the Northern Kingdom, I don't fully understand that except for him trying to bring unity between the two nations. Here he makes an alliance with Ahaziah, the son of Ahab. And if you think unity should come about in the church today regardless of truth and righteousness, see what God has to say about that in the following verses.

VERSES 36-37

1. God is not going to bless an endeavor you make with the enemy, with unbelievers. Here Jehoshaphat makes an alliance with Ahaziah to gather some ships together, some merchant ships, but before it even gets off the ground, God puts an end to it. Yes you can do whatever you want, but if you do, don't expect God to bless it.