1 It came to pass after this also, that the children of Moab, and the children of Ammon, and with them other beside the Ammonites, came against Jehoshaphat to battle. 2 Then there came some that told Jehoshaphat, saying, There cometh a great multitude against thee from beyond the sea on this side Syria; and, behold, they be in Hazazon-tamar, which is En-gedi. 3 And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. 4 And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the LORD: even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the LORD.
5 ¶ And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court, 6 And said, O LORD God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee? 7 Art not thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy friend for ever? 8 And they dwelt therein, and have built thee a sanctuary therein for thy name, saying, 9 If, when evil cometh upon us, as the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we stand before this house, and in thy presence, (for thy name is in this house,) and cry unto thee in our affliction, then thou wilt hear and help. 10 And now, behold, the children of Ammon and Moab and mount Seir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade, when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them, and destroyed them not; 11 Behold, I say, how they reward us, to come to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit. 12 O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee. 13 And all Judah stood before the LORD, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.
14 ¶ Then upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, came the Spirit of the LORD in the midst of the congregation; 15 And he said, Hearken ye, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the LORD unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16 To morrow go ye down against them: behold, they come up by the cliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them at the end of the brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel. 17 Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still , and see the salvation of the LORD with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the LORD will be with you. 18 And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground: and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell before the LORD, worshipping the LORD. 19 And the Levites, of the children of the Kohathites, and of the children of the Korhites, stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel with a loud voice on high.
20 ¶ And they rose early in the morning, and went forth into the wilderness of Tekoa: and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the LORD your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper. 21 And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the LORD, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the LORD; for his mercy endureth for ever.
22 ¶ And when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten. 23 For the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them: and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every one helped to destroy another. 24 And when Judah came toward the watch tower in the wilderness, they looked unto the multitude, and, behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none escaped. 25 And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in gathering of the spoil, it was so much.
26 ¶ And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Berachah; for there they blessed the LORD: therefore the name of the same place was called, The valley of Berachah, unto this day. 27 Then they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat in the forefront of them, to go again to Jerusalem with joy; for the LORD had made them to rejoice over their enemies. 28 And they came to Jerusalem with psalteries and harps and trumpets unto the house of the LORD. 29 And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries, when they had heard that the LORD fought against the enemies of Israel. 30 So the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet: for his God gave him rest round about.
31 ¶ And Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah: he was thirty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. 32 And he walked in the way of Asa his father, and departed not from it, doing that which was right in the sight of the LORD. 33 Howbeit the high places were not taken away: for as yet the people had not prepared their hearts unto the God of their fathers. 34 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of Jehu the son of Hanani, who is mentioned in the book of the kings of Israel.
35 ¶ And after this did Jehoshaphat king of Judah join himself with Ahaziah king of Israel, who did very wickedly: 36 And he joined himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish: and they made the ships in Ezion-geber. 37 Then Eliezer the son of Dodavah of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because thou hast joined thyself with Ahaziah, the LORD hath broken thy works. And the ships were broken, that they were not able to go to Tarshish.
Ngwa ye Bajuta ne Baedomu
1 Shule kwaikoku, bathu be Moabu ne be Amoni ne bamwe be nshanganyila bakazha kuwogwa na Jehoshafati. 2 Ngono bamwe balume bakazha kuna Jehoshafati bakati, “Kwaswika mbunga usinshoma kudwa seli ye gungwa unodwa ku Edomu kowogwa namwi, batjibe mu Hazazonitamari kale!” Hazazonitamari ilimwe zina le Enigedi. 3 Ngono Jehoshafati kapalukamoyo kwazo kabona kuti ashake gumbuludzo muna Yahwe kakale kalaula kuti kube ne kuzwinyima zojiwa mu Juda yose. 4 Bathu be Juda bakakubungana kukumbila bhatsho muna Yahwe, mizi mikulu ikabuya kuwoshaka gumbuludzo muna Yahwe. 5 Kudwapo Jehoshafati kamilika mbeli kwe gubungano le Juda ne Jerusalema lakabe lili pa tjibata tje Ng'umba ya Yahwe, 6 ngono kabe eti, “Yahwe Ndzimu wa bobatategulu bedu, apa ate imwi Ndzimu ukudzimu kene? Apa ate imwi munolaula mibuso yose ye zwitjaba kene? Simba lose limu luboko gwenyu ngono kakale akuna ungama mbeli kwenyu. 7 Awu Ndzimu wedu, apa ate imwi makatatila kutjena bagali be shango iyeyi mbeli kwe bathu benyu Baiziraela, muipa zwizekugwana ibo zwizekugwana zwa Abhurahama nkwinya wenyu kene? 8 Ngono bakagala muili bakabakila zina lenyu bugalo gwakayengemala, beti, 9 ‘Ha bubi gungatiwila kene thumo kene kusumikilisiwa kene bugwele kene bhamba towozha mu Ng'umba iyeyi mbeli kwenyu ngobe zina lenyu limu ng'umba iyeyi, tikalilila kumuli mu buyendasi gwedu, ngono imwi mowohwa mukatitjidza.’
10 “Koga ngwenu bonani bathu be Amoni ne Moabu ne Dombo le Seiri ibo bamusakaletja Iziraela ikabanginilila tjibaka Iziraela idwa ku shango ye Egipiti, ibo babakaleya bakasibalobese, 11 bonani, botjitiboka nge kuzha betola shango yamakatipa iyo ili thaka. 12 Awu Ndzimu wedu modwa kuti amungabasumikilise kene? Atina simba le kulingisana ne babhayani bangapa batinginilila. Atitoziba kuti tithame tjini koga tolinga kumuli kutibhatsha.”
13 Balume bose be Juda bakama mbeli kwa Yahwe, kose ne ngawana dzabo ne bakadzi babo ne bana babo. 14 Kukati pakati gwe gubungano meya ya Yahwe ikadelukila muna Jahaziele nkololo wa Zekariya, Zekariya ali nkololo wa Bhenaya, Bhenaya ali nkololo wa Jeyele, Jeyele ali nkololo wa Mataniya, Jahaziele wakabe ali Nlevi we nsha wa Asafa. 15 Ngono kalebeleka kati, “Bhulutanani imwi mose Bajuta na bose banogala mu Jerusalema na Mambo Jehoshafati! Yahwe bakati kumuli, ‘Musitje kakale musitemeke mafupa ngoti babhayani ibaba bali banjinji. Ngwa iyeyi ate yenyu koga ngeye Ndzimu. 16 Mangwana delukilani ku bali kunobanginilila, bonani, ibo banowotathila nge matathilo e Zizi ngono mowobawana ku bupelo gwe nkuku, bhezhuba kwe tjilambanyika tje Jeruele. 17 Akutowosheteka kuti mugwe ngwa iyeyi, imwi muswike mume nge mamo yenyu koga, mudzikame ngono mowobona kuti Yahwe banokunda tjini. Bathu be Juda ne Jerusalema wee! Musitje kene kuli kutemeka mafupa, mukani muyende mangwana, Yahwe banamwi.’ ” 18 Ipapo Jehoshafati kathigama buso gugwe kwakakutha pasi ne Juda yose ne bagali bose be Jerusalema bakawa nge zwidwi mbeli kwa Yahwe benamata Yahwe. 19 Balevi be Bakohati ne Bakora bakamilika bakakudza Yahwe Ndzimu we Iziraela nge mahwi apezhugwi.
20 Bakamuka bebinduka beyenda ku tjilambanyika tje Tekowa ngono bakati bemilika, betangisa gwendo Jehoshafati kama ngono kabe eti, “Munditeedze imwi bathu be Juda ne bagali be Jerusalema! Galanibgwe muna Yahwe Ndzimu wenyu ngono mowosima, galanibgwe mu balebesambeli babo ngono mowokunda.” 21 Wakati apedza lebeleka ne bathu Jehoshafati kashalula balume kuti bambile Yahwe babakudze bali mu gudzo lakayengemala se bakabe bali mbeli kwe bhayani beti, “Kudzani Yahwe! Ngobe ludo gwabo gusingazunguzike gugelile tjatjose.”
22 Bakati betangisa kumba ne kukudza Yahwe, Yahwe bakakomba bathu be Amoni ne Moabu ne bagali be Dombo le Seiri bakabe bazha kuwonginilila bathu be Juda ngono bakabakunda. 23 Ngobe bathu be Amoni ne Moabu bakamukila bagali be Dombo le Seiri bakabalobesa tjoselele ngono bakati balobesa bagali be Seiri bakamukilana tjekwabo ngono bakalobesana. 24 Ngono babhayani be Juda bakati bazha pa thungamakole yakabe yakalingisana ne ku tjilambanyika kulingisana ne babhayani babo basi bashoma, bakawana kuli kuti bose bakakandalala pasi, kusina ndodwa ne limbelimbe.
25 Ndizo Jehoshafati ne babhayani babe bakati bezha kunotapa thundu yabo, bakawana matanga e ng'ombe ne thundu dze zwija ne zwiambalo ne zwimwe zwe ntengo upezhugwi ngono bakazwitolegwa izo kudzina bema pabanoshaka. Bakatola mazhuba ali matatu betuta ngoti kwakabe kuli kunjinji. 26 Mu zhuba le bunna bakanokubunganila pa Nkuku we Bheraka ngono ikoku bakakudza Yahwe, ndizo zina le pathu ipapo lakadang'wa kuyi Nkuku we Bheraka kuswikila nasi. 27 Kudwapo Jehoshafati katungamila balume be Juda ne Jerusalema mmwe ne mmwe kabgwilila ku Jerusalema akashatha ngobe Yahwe bakabe babashathisa ngokunda zwita zwabo. 28 Bakaswika ku Ng'umba ya Yahwe mu Jerusalema belidza zwilidzo zwe matende ne nyele ne nyanga. 29 Ngono kutja Ndzimu kukawila mibuso yose ye shango abehwa kuti Yahwe bakagwa ne zwita zwe Iziraela. 30 Ndizo mbuso wa Jehoshafati ukabe ne kunyalala ngobe Ndzimu wakabe wampa kunyaluluka kose koga.
Bhelelo lekubusa kwa Jehoshafati
(1 Bomambo 22:41-50)31 Ndizo Jehoshafati kabusa Juda. Wakabe ana makole ali makumi matatu ana bushanu (35) ha ebe mambo we Juda ngono kabusa mu Jerusalema kwe makole ali makumi mabili ana bushanu (25). Mmeyabe bakabe bedang'wa Azuba, Azuba ali nkololokadzi wa Shilihi. 32 Jehoshafati kangina mu thambo dza Asa tate babe, kasipambuke mu dzili kathama tjakabe tjakalulwama mbeli kwa Yahwe, 33 nenguba magalo apezhugwi e kunamata asakakolomogwa, bathu bakabe basinga namate Ndzimu wa bobatategulu babo nge mimoyo yabo yose.
34 Tjimwe ne tjimwe tjakashingwa ndi Jehoshafati kudwa tjose mu kutangisa kwe mbuso uwe kunoti ku bhelelo le mbuso uwe zwakakwagwa mu zwiyitikalo zwa Jehu nkololo wa Hanani izo zwakatshambisiwa mu Lukwalo gwa Bomambo be Iziraela.
35 Ngono shule kwa ikoku Jehoshafati kathama nshanganyila na Ahaziya mambo we Iziraela, Ahaziya wakabe ethama mbipo inotjenamisa. 36 Bakashanganyila kuthama zwikepe zwinoyenda ku Tashishi, bakathama zwikepe zwe gungwa be zwithamila ku mamilo e zwikepe e Eziyonigeberi. 37 Koga Eliezeri nkololo wa Dodavahu wakabe edwa ku nzi we Mareshahi kalebelambeli Jehoshafati nge kwako ngono kandwa kati, “Ngoti wathama nshanganyila na Ahaziya, Yahwe bawokolomola kose kwawathama.” Ngono zwikepe zwikafa kukasheta ne tjayenda ku Tashishi.