In 2 Chronicles 20, we see that Judah is faced with an existential threat, and the people respond to that threat with prayer and worship. It’s a powerful story that has significant lessons for the modern reader regarding the nature of worship.
As we begin, it’s important to note: The biblical concept of worship should not be reduced to only musical worship. Certainly, worship through music is the primary form of worship in this passage, but there are other types of worship. So yes, for a modern reader, the sort of worship that God calls us to will frequently include musical worship, but a proper concept of worship will also entail a lifestyle of obedience to God (1 Samuel 15:20-22, Romans 12:1, etc.) as well as thanksgiving (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Colossians 3:15-17, etc.) Which is to say: Singing praises to God, and obeying Him, and thanking Him, are all genuine forms of worship.
In this article, we will first look at the text itself, offering a few observations. Then we’ll move to application, what this passage might mean for us today. We’ll close with a few questions for consideration.
2 Chronicles 20:1-30
2 Chronicles 20:1-30: After this, the Moabites and Ammonites with some of the Meunites came to wage war against Jehoshaphat.
2 Some people came and told Jehoshaphat, “A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Dead Sea. It is already in Hazezon Tamar” (that is, En Gedi). 3 Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. 4 The people of Judah came together to seek help from the Lord; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek Him.
5 Then Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the temple of the Lord in the front of the new courtyard 6 and said:
“Lord, the God of our ancestors, are You not the God who is in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. Power and might are in Your hand, and no one can withstand You. 7 Our God, did You not drive out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and give it forever to the descendants of Abraham Your friend? 8 They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for Your Name, saying, 9 ‘If calamity comes upon us, whether the sword of judgment, or plague or famine, we will stand in Your presence before this temple that bears Your Name and will cry out to You in our distress, and You will hear us and save us.’
10 “But now here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir, whose territory You would not allow Israel to invade when they came from Egypt; so they turned away from them and did not destroy them. 11 See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession You gave us as an inheritance. 12 Our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power to face this vast army that is attacking us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You.”
13 All the men of Judah, with their wives and children and little ones, stood there before the Lord.
14 Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph, as he stood in the assembly.
15 He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16 Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the gorge in the Desert of Jeruel. 17 You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’”
18 Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground, and all the people of Judah and Jerusalem fell down in worship before the Lord. 19 Then some Levites from the Kohathites and Korahites stood up and praised the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.
20 Early in the morning they left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they set out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Listen to me, Judah and people of Jerusalem! Have faith in the Lord your God and you will be upheld; have faith in His prophets and you will be successful.” 21 After consulting the people, Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord and to praise Him for the splendor of His holiness as they went out at the head of the army, saying:
“Give thanks to the Lord,
for His love endures forever.”22 As they began to sing and praise, the Lord set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated. 23 The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir to destroy and annihilate them. After they finished slaughtering the men from Seir, they helped to destroy one another.
24 When the men of Judah came to the place that overlooks the desert and looked toward the vast army, they saw only dead bodies lying on the ground; no one had escaped. 25 So Jehoshaphat and his men went to carry off their plunder, and they found among them a great amount of equipment and clothing and also articles of value—more than they could take away. There was so much plunder that it took three days to collect it. 26 On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berakah, where they praised the Lord. This is why it is called the Valley of Berakah to this day.
27 Then, led by Jehoshaphat, all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned joyfully to Jerusalem, for the Lord had given them cause to rejoice over their enemies. 28 They entered Jerusalem and went to the temple of the Lord with harps and lyres and trumpets.
29 The fear of God came on all the surrounding kingdoms when they heard how the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel. 30 And the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace, for his God had given him rest on every side.
Observations
The Problem and the Initial Response: Verses 1-4
Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, is made aware of an enormous invading army. He responds by mandating a fast, and the people gather in Jerusalem to seek God.
Let’s start our observations with noting that Jehoshaphat’s first response to this crisis was to turn to God. Throughout the Bible, and throughout my life (and probably yours too) there are many examples of times when people have a problem and make it worse because they don’t bring that problem to God in faithful trust. Happily, this isn’t the case here: faced with an impossible problem (v 1-2), Jehoshaphat and the people immediately turn to God. (v 3) The people join in to seek the Lord in response to this threat. (v 4)
So, Jehoshaphat takes authority over the problem, and uses that authority to point himself and the people towards God.
A Prayer of Faith: Verses 5-13
Jehoshaphat prays before the gathered peoples to God. In this prayer, Jehoshaphat acknowledges the power and previous actions of God, and also brings their dire need to Him; only He can deliver them from this invading army.
Jehoshaphat’s prayer shows significant faith and understanding of God. His prayer starts with an acknowledgement of the power and character of God. He knows that God’s action is the decisive determinant in all situations; what He wills, happens. (Verses 5-9)
Then, in verses 10-12, Jehoshaphat puts the ball in God’s court; he claims in his prayer that is was God’s command that led to this dire threat. That’s not an empty or childish complaint; for Jehoshaphat, the God of history led them into this moment, and Jehoshaphat rightly brings the issue to Him for Him to solve. In my mind, verse 12 is one of the great statements of faith in Scripture: “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on You.” Jehoshaphat knows of no solution but to look to God.
The stakes of this situation are emphasized in verse 13. There are men and women, fathers and mothers, crying out to God, desperately afraid for their families. It can be hard for a modern reader to relate to the fear here: Should the Israelites lose, the men of fighting age would be likely be killed or crippled, the women would be taken (with all the harrowing implications), and the children and elderly would be enslaved or killed. I, like most modern people, cannot relate to such an existential threat to my family; I’ve never known a situation like that, but it’s chilling for me, as a husband and a father, to imagine this scene. With this in mind, we can imagine both the faith and the desperation of Jehoshaphat’s prayer.
The Lord Answers: Verses 14-17
The Lord sends a prophet, Jahaziel son of Zechariah, to answer Jehoshaphat’s prayer. His message: God is going to fight this battle on behalf of the people of Judah.
The God of the Bible isn’t some wooden idol, powerless to respond to prayers. No, in these verses we see God respond by prophetically giving instructions to His people.
What is God’s response? “Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.” God not only allows them to bring this problem to Him, but He says that He’ll take care of it. In fact, the Israelites need to show up for the fight (16), but they aren’t going to fight themselves (17).
The People Respond: Verses 18-20
The people worship and obey.
At hearing this response to their plight by God Almighty, the people respond rightly, worshipping God for His kindness, provision, and power (v18-19).
Then, the next day, the people obey the command of God, and assemble at the battlefield (v 20).
Worship and Winning: Verses 21-23
The people worship God, and as they do so, the Lord delivers them.
Facing down an enemy army utterly beyond their strength, the Jews get ready for the battle by… sending out your church’s Contemporary Service Praise Band. It’s both inspiring and almost comical: They get some scrawny priests, in their religious garments, to march in front of the army, praising their God (v 21).
And at that action, full of both power and powerlessness, God utterly destroys the enemy army. While we don’t know how, exactly, this scene played out, we do know that God did something to utterly confuse the enemy army, such that they destroyed themselves (v 22-23).
The Aftermath: Verses 24-30
After the battle, the people of Judah go to collect the spoils of God’s victory, and again worship the God who had saved them.
This story has a happy ending (for the people of Judah). This vast army that came against Jews is destroyed utterly; all that’s left is bodies and all the valuables, supplies, and gear that the opposing army carried. There’s so much valuable stuff that it takes days to finish collecting the spoils of God’s victory (v 24-25).
Finally done collecting the spoils, the people rejoice, worship God, and go home (26-28).
The last section of this passage notes the response to this miracle by the surrounding nations and peoples: There is an understanding that the God of the Jews is alive, active, and powerful. So, the surrounding peoples have very little interest in waging war against the Jews for the rest of Jehoshaphat’s reign (29-30).
Application: What Might We Learn?
This is a dramatic and memorable story in Scripture. But, how should a modern reader try to apply this passage?
Certainly, this passage is descriptive, not prescriptive: this passage is primarily conveying a historic occasion, rather than giving a timeless command to obey. But I still think this passage can show some significant truths regarding the nature of worship.
- Worship is Proper. (2 Chronicles 20:5-6) God is worthy to receive our worship. And so, we worship not just because we need to, not just to benefit ourselves, but because He is worthy. In all situations, seasons, and hardships, God remains worthy of praise and worship.
- Worship is Persevering. (2 Chronicles 20: 12-13) In the seasons and moments when worship, praise and trust are most difficult, those are the times when we most need to worship. He is always worthy of our worship (Worship is Proper), and so God’s people are called to persevering, or costly worship, when times are hard.
- Worship is Powerful. (2 Chronicles 20:18-23) In moments of hardship, choosing to worship, making a willful decision to worship the Living God, has a powerful effect. Worship affects:
- Ourselves: By directing our thoughts and emotions towards God, worship points ourselves to the God Who is transcendent over our difficulties. By choosing to worship, we are centering our minds on the God who is, in all things, the source of goodness and hope. (See, for example, Philippians 4:4-8, Psalm 27:3-6, Romans 12:1, and Psalm 16:11, etc.)
- Other Believers: Not only does my worship act to center myself on God, it also helps the other Christians around me! (See Colossians 3:16.)
- Non-Christians: 1 Peter 3:15 tells us to be ready to give an answer to people who see “the hope that you have.” Worship is a testimony to the world about the hope we have in Jesus. (See 1 Peter 3:15,Acts 2:42-47, Acts 16:25.)
- Unseen Spiritual Entities: Both angels and demons are also affected by worship. (See Ephesians 3:10-11, Hebrews 12:22-24, 1 Samuel 16:14-23.)
Conclusion and Questions to Consider
This passage calls a modern reader (that’s you and me) to be a person who presses into worship, especially when it is difficult, when the situation or diagnosis is grim. There is no situation in which worship is not both proper and powerful, and thus we are all called to persevering worship.
That’s not to say that worship comes easily to us, especially during times of hardship.
Here are a few questions for us to ponder as we consider our own lives, circumstance, and worship:
- When a situation is hard, or emotions are heavy, do you let those things inhibit your worship?
- Who are the people that you turn to when you realize there’s a lack of worship in your life? How do those people help you center yourselves on the Lord?
- What is a difficulty you currently face? How can you respond to God in worship regarding that situation?
- Lastly, how can you invite others into worship alongside of you?
May we all grow in our worship of He Who is worthy.
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