Once Bitten, Twice Shy Series

Multitasking or doing too many things at one time causes a person to get nothing and lose everything.

Jehoshaphat, the fourth king of Judah, was a powerful and godly king who did what was best for himself and his people and he did an excellent job with what he had, better than most kings. He held his own ground and kept Israel’s enemies away. Of all the southern kings, he found the right balance between political might and spiritual devotion. He believed in divine intervention, but he also believed in military buildup. His biggest influence was his father, the good king Asa (v 4). They were the first father and son team in the southern kingdom that was unflinchingly on God’s side. His father shaped him most but, unlike his father who was stubborn in his old age (2 Chron 16:7-10), the son was teachable throughout his life. The son made a breakthrough and a name for himself in history, and his royal leadership was more impressive than his father’s.

While Jehoshaphat was known for the gifts he received and the great wealth and honor he possessed (v 5), the biggest legacy he left behind was the spiritual revival that he brought continually to the kingdom, that which the thirty-five-year old king ordered and oversaw for the next twenty-five years he was on the throne (1 Kings 22:42). Revival did not come because of the king’s programs and prosperity, but the king’s pursuit of God. The greatest testament to Jehoshaphat’s reign was the seven times the Hebrew text recorded that he “sought” God and not Baal (2 Chron 17:3, 4, 18:4, 6 7 19:3, 20:3). The word “sought” appeared more times in Jehoshaphat’s case and in his favor than all other kings noted together. He did something that even his father could not do (2 Chron 15:17), that is, he removed the high places from Judah (v 6). Also, while his father was credited with cutting down the Asherah poles (2 Chron 15:16), Jehoshaphat was credited with removing them from Judah (v 6). He more than made a difference; he made a dent. He did not follow his father’s footsteps; he matched his father stride by stride and charted his own course in history. The son’s achievement corresponded with the Chinese sayings, “Green stems from blue (color), but surpasses the blue” or “Back waves (those after) pushing the front waves (those before).”

Not one to rest on his laurels after he was firmly seated, settled and secure in his throne, Jehoshaphat made lasting changes instead of cosmetic changes. In the third year of his reign (v 7) he appointed four head officials (Hebrew for “prince”), nine Levites and two priests and sent them throughout the towns of Judah to teach the people the law of the Lord, with the Book of the Law of the Lord in tow. This word “teach” was powerfully used seventeen times in the book of Deuteronomy (Deut 4:1, 4:5, 4:10, 4:10, 4:14, 5:1, 5:31, 6:1, 11:19, 14:23, 17:19, 18:9, 20:18, 31:12, 31:13, 31:19, 31:22), especially in Moses’ commission and reminder to teach the law to the children of Israel (Deut 4:10, 11:19, 31:19), but the teaching ministry had fell on hard times and the teaching of the law was not mentioned after Deuteronomy. What an object lesson the traveling Book of the Law was. The first public exhibition of the Book of the Law of the Lord created a stir, sparked a revival, and dismayed their enemies (v 10), who later showered Jehoshaphat with gold and silver and livestock as tribute and gifts (v 11).