Jehoshaphat

Scripture

The prophet Jehu son of Hanani confronted him; he said to King Jehoshaphat, “Is it right to help the wicked and be an ally of those who oppose the LORD? Because you have done this the LORD is angry with you!

~2 Chronicles 19:2, NET

Quote

It is better to be alone than to be in bad company.

~Booker T. Washington

Jehoshaphat was a good king; actually one of the best. I rate David, Josiah and Hezekiah above him but that puts him at number four, an honor Jimmy Carter would covet. But, Jehoshaphat had one besetting sin, one terrible weakness: he fraternized with Ahab and his family. Ahab and Jezebel were pure evil and Jehoshaphat should have kept his distance. Remember what Paul said to the Corinthians, “Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” The LORD warned Jehoshaphat that this would lead to trouble but the king didn’t listen. Jehoshaphat crown prince Joram married Ahab’s daughter with the kings approval. Her name was Athaliah {Ah-the-iah} and she was a witch; as bad if not worse than her mammy {Jezebel}. By doing this, Jehoshaphat corrupted the blood line of the House of David with pagan genes. Jehoshaphat’s son Joram was weak and pathetic and he allowed his wife to tell him what to do. The first act of business as king was to kill all his brothers.

Joram’s behavior was so bad that he got a letter from Elijah who called him out. Elijah called him a murderer and he also told him that the LORD would strike him with a disease of the bowels which He did and Joram died just a few years later and his death went unsung because no one cared. The inhabitants of Jerusalem made Joram’s son Ahaziah king. He was 22 years old and reigned for only one year. He too was heavily influenced by his wicked mother Athaliah. Ahaziah was killed by Jehu for hanging out with his uncle Jehoram {son of Ahab and Jezebel}. As soon as his mother heard about his death she had all his sons executed and declared herself queen. Ahaziah’s aunt hid one of the sons without Athaliah knowing about it but she killed the rest and they were her grandsons.

All this pain and suffering because Jehoshaphat allied himself to Ahab. Although Jehoshaphat did not live to see this saga unfolding, he was the initiator. Don’t compromise with evil; it doesn’t pay.

We are getting a much needed rain at 1120 Iron Man. Thank You Jesus! Have a great day everyone and thanks for reading the blog.

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