![]() In fact, make a list of these situations. Take a minute to think of all the situations you have in your life in which you could say right now: I don’t know what to do. Things turned out really well for Jehoshaphat and his people. You might want to check out 2 Chronicles 20:18-30 to see how the story ended. When Jehoshaphat prayed, there was one thing he and his people were certain of in the middle of the uncertainty: their eyes were on God. In all of these situations, you may find yourself saying at some point, “I do not know what to do.”Īs you now know, you’re not the first person to feel this way. OK, you may not have a vast army surrounding you ready to attack, but you are surrounded by an array of forces that can defeat you: anxiety about the future, decisions about dating relationships, pain from hurt or loss and on top of all that, confusion from the enemy who tries to deceive you. Things looked bleak, so he prayed to God. By the time he got the news the enemies were close by and advancing from several directions. Their king, Jehoshaphat, got word that some enemies had unified and were marching their way. God’s people in the Old Testament faced a similar predicament-not with regard to making a career choice, but with regard to not knowing what to do. The thing is, that’s not a bad place to be in fact, it can be good and maybe even preferred. The reality is, we often find ourselves in situations where we don’t know what to do, whether it’s serious life choices or simple daily decisions. Jehoram did evil in God's sight, but not to the extent that his father Ahab had, as he did put away his father's sacred pillar of Baal (verses 2-3).For some, this next life step can be nerve-wracking, especially if you have no idea what you want to do when you grow up. God, however, made it very clear that He was with Elijah, and that He would protect him from the king's evil devices (2 Kings 2:10-15).Īfter King Ahaziah's death (2 Kings 1:18), his brother Jehoram (called Joram in 2 Kings 8:25), another son of evil King Ahab, became king over Israel since Ahaziah himself had no son (2 Kings 1:17 2 Kings 3:1). He attempted to have Elijah arrested (2 Kings 1:9). Even then, King Ahaziah did not humble himself and repent, as his father Ahab had done at least temporarily (1 Kings 21:17-29). As a consequence, God sent the prophet Elijah to the king and informed him that he would not be healed (2 Kings 1:1-6, 2 Kings 1:15-16). Despite Jehoshaphat's errors in this regard, it appears that he later recognized that he should not have allied himself with Ahaziah (compare 1 Kings 22:49).Īhaziah became sick, and rather than establishing a relationship with the true God and placing his trust in Him, he attempted to inquire of the pagan god Baal-Zebub whether he would live or die. But any that are considered must be given close scrutiny without glossing over potential difficulties. Of course, there may be some business arrangements where such matters would never be at issue. Ungodly partners can lead to spiritual compromise (see 1 Corinthians 15:33). The way people who live righteously think is as different from those who disregard God's laws as day is from night (compare 2 Corinthians 6:14-18). His warnings are still the same today: How can two walk together unless they are agreed? (Amos 3:3.) In general, Christians can't work effectively in close relationships with unbelievers-in godly peace and harmony-any more than mismatched animals can make a useful plowing team for a farmer. God does not want us to enter into binding partnerships with the wicked that could conflict with our commitment to Him and His ways. Though God will sometimes intervene for the sake of a righteous person in such circumstances (compare 2 Kings 3:14), we shouldn't count on it-particularly when we know better. But their joint ventures would not prosper, since God does not generally bless such dealings (compare 2 Chronicles 20:35-37). A more apparent weakness of Jehoshaphat can be seen in the compromising nature of his allying himself with evil rulers, a fault that became evident again near the end of his life when he allied himself with Israel's wicked King Ahaziah, son of Ahab (1 Kings 22:51-53). Yet it should be noted, as mentioned previously in the Beyond Today Bible Commentary, that this was a common oversight attributed to most of Judah's righteous kings, and is perhaps equally if not more due to a lack of wholeheartedness in obeying God on the part of the nation. But he did not do all that he should have, as he did not remove all the high places from Judah (2 Chronicles 20:33). ![]() Generally speaking, Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, walked in the way of God.
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