One of history’s most remarkable battles had come to a glorious close. What did it all mean?
Along with glory and praise to the Lord and the enrichment of the people, here’s the divine assessment of the battle’s other results. “Then they returned…to Jerusalem with joy, for the Lord had made them rejoice over their enemies” (2 Chron 20:27). Joy and rejoicing is the result of a people letting God be God in the difficult challenges of life. Second, “the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel” (v 29). Fear in this sense is having respectful awe of God because He has proven Himself worthy of it. You can’t expect pagans to take God seriously if we don’t, but when we do, whole people groups become less antagonistic and more amenable to hearing about Him. Third, “the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest all around” (v 30). So joy in our hearts, respect from our enemies, and rest in our circumstances—quite a day’s work! Having said that, we’re then reminded that there will ever only be one perfect King. “After this,” concluding his 25-year reign (2 Chron 20:31), “Jehoshaphat…allied himself with Ahaziah king of Israel, who acted very wickedly…to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Ezion Geber” (vv 35-36). But Jehoshaphat’s economic unequal yoke with the son was as disastrous as his military unequal yoke with the father. As prophesied, “the ships were wrecked” (v 37). Paul warns of the essentials of “faith and a good conscience, which some having rejected, concerning the faith have suffered shipwreck” (1 Tim 1:19). Faith takes God seriously; a clear conscience takes sin seriously. Paul knew about being shipwrecked for his faith (2 Cor 11:25), but warns us how to keep from making shipwreck of our faith.