2 Chronicles 20:35-37--The End of Jehoshaphat's Reign

2 Chronicles 20:35-37
English Standard Version
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The End of Jehoshaphat's Reign
35 After this Jehoshaphat king of Judah joined with Ahaziah king of Israel, who acted wickedly. 36 He joined him in building ships to go to Tarshish, and they built the ships in Ezion-geber. 37 Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, “Because you have joined with Ahaziah, the LORD will destroy what you have made.” And the ships were wrecked and were not able to go to Tarshish.

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Things were looking so good for King Jehoshaphat in our passage last time which sounded like it was the last thing to be said of a king of Judah (how long he lived and reigned, how old he was when he ascended to the throne, who his mother was, and how he died and was buried).  Yet, there is one more thing to be said about this king before we start talking about his successor.  Jehoshaphat ignored the LORD's warnings as he got older and once again allied himself with the king of Israel (the northern kingdom).  Together, they tried to rebuild a fleet of ships like those of the time of Solomon that they would send out to the ends of the earth to bring back riches--only they would not be exporting the Law of the LORD.  This time they would be exporting paganism, idolatry and all kinds of wickedness, and the LORD would have none of that happen in His Name.

The LORD then raised up Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Maneshah to prophesy against Jehoshaphat saying, "Because you have joined with Ahaziah, the LORD will destroy what you have made."  The issue wasn't that he had built ships, it's that he once again had allied himself with the LORD's enemies, as Ahaziah was a wicked king--maybe even more wicked than Ahab.  If Jehoshaphat had stayed close to the LORD and the LORD directed him to build ships to bring in the wealth of other nations and to export the Law and the Prophets to the whole world, then Jehoshaphat would have been blessed for being obedient, but we see clearly that he did this in disobedience and defiance to what the LORD had already spoken to him through His prophet.  Because of this, all the ships wrecked and were not able to go out to Tarshish (in Spain near The Straits of Gibraltar).