Shalom,
One of the best accounts of God's hand moving on behalf of His people is found in the Spoken Word Bible Reading Plan for today in 2 Chronicles 20:1-3!
1 After this, the Moabites, the Ammonites, and with them the
Meunites came against Jehoshaphat to battle. 2 It was told Jehoshaphat, A great multitude
has come against you from beyond the [Dead] Sea, from Edom; and behold they are
in Hazazon-tamar, which is En-gedi. 3 Then
Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself [determinedly, as his vital need] to seek
the Lord; he proclaimed a fast in all Judah.
THIS was the report that was given to Jehoshaphat! He sought GOD for help! Here is God's response! Verses 14-17:
14 Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly. 15 He said, Hearken, all Judah, you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you King Jehoshaphat. The Lord says this to you: Be not afraid or dismayed at this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16 Tomorrow go down to them. Behold, they will come up by the Ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the ravine before the Wilderness of Jeruel. 17 You shall not need to fight in this battle; take your positions, stand still, and see the deliverance of the Lord [Who is] with you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Fear not nor be dismayed. Tomorrow go out against them, for the Lord is with you.
And here is Jehoshapat's response to GOD'S response! Verses 18-19:
18 And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and
all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord,
worshiping Him. 19 And
some Levites of the Kohathites and Korahites stood up to praise the Lord, the
God of Israel, with a very loud voice.
And verses 20-24 have God's ultimate response to their FAITH!
20 And they rose early in the morning and went out into the
Wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me,
O Judah, and you inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God and you
shall be established; believe and remain steadfast to His
prophets and you shall prosper. 21 When
he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers to sing to the Lord and
praise Him in their holy [priestly] garments as they went out before the army,
saying, Give thanks to the Lord, for His mercy and loving-kindness
endure forever! 22 And
when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the men
of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir who had come against Judah, and they were
[self-] slaughtered; 23 For
[suspecting betrayal] the men of Ammon and Moab rose against those of Mount
Seir, utterly destroying them. And when they had made an end of the men of
Seir, they all helped to destroy one another. 24 And
when Judah came to the watchtower of the wilderness, they looked at the
multitude, and behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none had
escaped!
AMEN! You can COUNT on JESUS! ALL the time! Here is an older music video that does an excellent job of portraying this event! "FEAR NOT!"
Shalom in Him!
