The Jehoshaphat Strategy

In 2 Chronicles 20, we find the extraordinary story of Jehoshaphat who, when faced with an impossible situation (an army of overwhelming size), discovered a unique and seemingly counter-intuitive solution. In verses 2-4, we find this account:

"Some men came and told Jehoshaphat, 'A vast army is coming against you from Edom, from the other side of the Sea. It is already in Hazazon Tamar' (that is, En Gedi). Alarmed, Jehoshaphat resolved to inquire of the LORD, and he proclaimed a fast for all Judah. The people of Judah came together to seek help from the LORD; indeed, they came from every town in Judah to seek him."

Jehoshaphat's first reaction was one of alarm, but he immediately "resolved to inquire of the Lord."

What happens next is significant for me, particularly in the light of this weekend. So I want to walk through the following events briefly, then explore the practical implications for our lives.

Jehoshaphat's prayer is found in 2 Chronicles 20:6-12:

"O LORD, God of our fathers, 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. O 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? They have lived in it and have built in it a sanctuary for your Name, saying, '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.'

'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. See how they are repaying us by coming to drive us out of the possession you gave us as an inheritance. O 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 upon you."

As I read Jehoshaphat's prayer, I noticed that it contained three parts:

1. A focus on the Lord (verses 6-9)


2. A plea for help (verses 10-11)


3. A refocus on the Lord (verse 12)

I notice this happens a lot in scriptural examples of prayer (see Acts 4:24-30). Rather than focusing on the need itself, the biblical pattern is first to exalt the Lord. This shift of focus from the need to God is, I believe, an important element of faith itself, since faith by definition is God-centric, not need-centric.

The Lord then speaks through Jahaziel the prophet, and brings this direction to the people of Judah in 2 Chronicles 20:15-17:

"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. 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. You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you.'"

What is remarkable about this prophecy is that it contains two clear instructions:

1. You will not need to fight this battle (because God will fight for you)




2. March down against them and take up your positions

These two instructions might appear, at first glance, to be contradictory. If they didn't need to fight this battle, why take up battle positions? If the battle is the Lord's, and not theirs, why face the enemy in the first place?

But this is a beautiful picture of how faith works. Faith is about trusting God, but it also about taking an active step in response to that trust.

The next morning, Jehoshaphat rehearses the words of the Lord again before the people, and then verse 21 tells us:

"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.'"

I'd never realised that before. God didn't actually instruct Jehoshaphat to put singers at the front of his army; all he had said was:

• "...the battle is not yours, but God's."


• "Tomorrow march down against them."


• "You will not have to fight this battle."


• "Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you."


• "Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you."

Yet such was the faith of the people that they decided that the way they would enact these instructions was through a spirit of worship. Once again, this was simple faith in action. Like Jehoshaphat's initial prayer, this strategy was designed to shift the focus from the need to God. Through worship, they shifted their attention from the enemy to the Lord.

2 Chronicles 20:22-23 then records the result of this worship strategy:

"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. The men of Ammon and Moab 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.

This morning I wasn't feeling 100%. Although I've had no serious ADR (adverse drug reaction) to the chemotherapy (a wonderful answer to prayer), fatigue has been a major hurdle for me. But, regardless, I was determined to join the worship team on stage at Evangelical Community Church for the 9am morning service. For me this was an important step for a number of reasons:

• I want to express my faith in practical ways, and taking this step of faith was an important way I could do this.

• It is important for the church to see me, not just as a recipient of prayer, but as someone who is facing my challenges positively and proactively

• This is for me an enactment of the Jehoshaphat strategy - worship is, so to speak, the frontline in my battle against cancer.

Praise and worship have always been an important part of my walk with the Lord, but I'm stirred again to enter into a new dimension in this area. And so my battle cry, like that of Jehoshaphat, is:

"Give thanks to the LORD, for his love endures forever."