Chapter Seventeen

1–6. The distribution of troops by Jehoshaphat to the fortified cities; God’s help to Jehoshaphat for his piety. 7–9. The officials and Levites sent by Jehoshaphat teach the people the law of God. 10–12. Tribute from peoples subject to Jehoshaphat and the increase of his wealth and power. 13–19. The names of Jehoshaphat’s commanders and the number of his army.

2 Chronicles 17:1. And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place; and he strengthened himself against Israel. 2 Chronicles 17:2. He placed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah, and set garrisons in the land of Judah and in the cities of Ephraim which his father Asa had captured. The permanent army (verse 2) among the biblical Hebrews originates from the time of David (2 Sam 8:14-18): from that time, “besides the general obligation of every citizen of a certain age to go out to war, the kings had standing armies” (Prof. Gulyaev, “Historical Books of the Scripture of the Old Testament”, p. 554). Jehoshaphat had such a large regular force, according to verses 14–18, up to 1,160,000 men, and he could more easily provide a strong garrison not only to the properly Judean fortified cities, but also to the cities that belonged to the territory of the northern Kingdom of Israel, but had been taken from the Israelites by Jehoshaphat’s father Asa (2 Chr 15:8). Nevertheless, Jehoshaphat’s hostile relations to the Kingdom of Israel (verse 1) could have taken place only at the beginning of his reign, but then were replaced by friendly and allied relations on the basis of kinship between the ruling houses of both kingdoms and the commonality of political interests (see below (2 Chr 18:1-3); compare (1 Kgs 22:2-4); see “Commentary on the Bible”, vol. II, pp. 472–473), although the alliance of the pious king of Judah with the impious house of Ahab of Israel did not bring prosperity to the Kingdom of Judah.

2 Chronicles 17:3. And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and did not seek the Baals. 2 Chronicles 17:4. But he sought the God of his father, and walked in His commandments, and not according to the practices of Israel. 2 Chronicles 17:5. And the Lord established the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought him gifts, so he had very great wealth and honor. 2 Chronicles 17:6. And his heart was elevated in the ways of the Lord; moreover he also removed the high places and the Asherim from Judah. The piety of Jehoshaphat, which attracted God’s mercy to him and the Kingdom of Judah under him, was expressed, as it was with Asa, especially in zealous care for the purity of the worship of Jehovah not only from pagan elements that had been attached to it from the time of Solomon (1 Kgs 11:4-8), but also from the remnants of ancient superstition: “he also removed... the high places and the Asherim from Judah” (verse 6). However, like Asa (compare (2 Chr 14:3) and (2 Chr 15:17)), Jehoshaphat removed only pagan high places, not those dedicated from ancient times to Jehovah.

2 Chronicles 17:7. In the third year of his reign he sent his princes Benhail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah. 2 Chronicles 17:8. And with them the Levites: Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tob-adonijah; and with them the priests Elishama and Jehoram. 2 Chronicles 17:9. And they taught in Judah, having the book of the law of the Lord with them; and they went about through all the cities of Judah and taught the people. Here there is an exceptionally noteworthy account of Jehoshaphat’s measures to promote religious education among the people of Judah through the agency of a commission of royal officials, priests, and Levites sent by the king throughout all the cities with the book of the law. On the part of the king this was as much an act of political wisdom as it was, or even more, the fruit of his deep personal piety and religious zeal, in virtue of which he also organized the judicial branch in his state on religiously-theocratic principles (see below (2 Chr 19:5-11)). The priests and Levites, appearing here in religious instruction, fulfilled merely their direct duty of their office according to the law of Moses (Deut 33:9-10); although in the Old Testament generally little is said of the teaching activity of priests and Levites, their constant fulfillment of the mentioned important service duty cannot be doubted (the authenticity of the accounts (2 Chr 17:7-9) and (2 Chr 19:5-11) is questioned, for example, by Wellhausen because of his prejudiced view of the post-exilic origin of the so-called “Priestly Code”, that is, among the books of the Pentateuch, in particular the Levitical priesthood: Wellhausen, “Prolegomena zur Geschichte Israels”, 3rd edition, Berlin, 1886, p. 196. But Wellhausen’s theory no longer has the former credit and influence even in the West). As it is, the section (verses 14–18) with the roster of troops and military commanders, as is evident from the names of the latter, has undoubtedly the character of a documentary account. The simplicity and naturalness inherent in it in turn speak to the historical reliability of the fact related here. The participation of officials in the commission for popular education in the spirit of religion and law is explained by the high state significance of the measure undertaken by Jehoshaphat; besides, it was foreign to biblical-Hebrew antiquity to make a sharp distinction or antagonism between civil and religious relations, state and church, secular and spiritual education, as is the case in most European states; the idea of theocracy, which prevailed among the Hebrew people, on the contrary, very closely united all these, in the modern world often opposite, spheres of life. From the fact that the commission of priests takes with them the “book of the law of the Lord” (verse 9) and travels about the country with it, one can conclude that copies of the Bible were not yet widely distributed among the people.

2 Chronicles 17:10. And the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, and they did not make war against Jehoshaphat. 2 Chronicles 17:11. And from the Philistines they brought gifts to Jehoshaphat and silver tribute; the Arabs also brought him flocks: seven thousand seven hundred sheep and seven thousand seven hundred goats. 2 Chronicles 17:12. And Jehoshaphat became increasingly great, and he built fortresses and store-cities in Judah. The consequence of Jehoshaphat’s internal measures for the promotion of religious education was the elevation of the authority of the Kingdom of Judah among the surrounding peoples—the Arabs and Philistines, who paid tribute to Jehoshaphat: thus internal organization of the state was accompanied by the same raising of the external prestige of the state as was the brilliant victory of Asa over Zerah (2 Chr 14:14).

2 Chronicles 17:13. Great numbers of stores were in the cities of Judah, and brave warriors in Jerusalem. 2 Chronicles 17:14. And this is the enrollment of them by their fathers’ houses: Of Judah, the commanders of thousands: Adnah the commander, with three hundred thousand mighty men of valor. 2 Chronicles 17:15. Next to him was Jehohanan the commander, with two hundred eighty thousand. 2 Chronicles 17:16. Next to him was Amasiah the son of Zichri, who offered himself to the Lord, and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of valor. 2 Chronicles 17:17. Of Benjamin: Eliada a mighty man of valor, and with him two hundred thousand men armed with bow and shield. 2 Chronicles 17:18. Next to him was Jehozabad, and with him one hundred eighty thousand armed men. 2 Chronicles 17:19. These were in the service of the king, besides those whom the king had placed in the fortified cities throughout all Judah. The number of active troops of Jehoshaphat shown here, more than a million (verses 14–18), raises serious questions and suggests scribal error in the numerical data of this passage. But the section itself (verses 14–18), with a list of troops and military commanders, as is evident from the names of the latter, has indisputably the character of a documentary account. Characteristic is the detail (verse 16): “Amasiah the son of Zichri, who offered himself to the Lord” (Hebrew hamitnaddeb lajhovah). According to the opinion of some commentators, this expression denotes his Nazirite vow; however, the parallel (Judg 5:2) (where the same verb “nadab” in the Hithpael form appears) permits us to see here the idea of military prowess, of military valor of the mentioned person.