2 Chronicles 17

17 ¹ His son Jehoshaphat became king in his place and strengthened himself against Israel. ² He stationed troops in all the fortified cities of Judah and garrisons in the land of Judah and in the cities of Ephraim that his father Asa had captured. ³ Our Father was with Jehoshaphat, because he followed the earlier ways of his father David and did not seek the Baals. ⁴ Rather, he sought the Father his own father had served, and obeyed his commandments rather than following the practices of Israel. ⁵ So our Father established the kingdom under his control, and all Judah brought tribute to Jehoshaphat; and he had riches and honor in abundance. ⁶ His heart was devoted to the ways of our Father; and he went further and removed the high places and the Asherah poles from Judah. ^a a v6 High places were hilltop outdoor shrines used for idol worship; Asherah poles were carved wooden cult objects dedicated to the Canaanite goddess Asherah.

⁷ In the third year of his reign he sent his officials — Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah — to teach in the cities of Judah, ⁸ and with them the Levites: Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tob-adonijah, the Levites; and with them Elishama and Jehoram, the priests. ⁹ They taught in Judah, taking the Book of our Father's Instruction with them; they went throughout all the cities of Judah and taught among the people.

¹⁰ The dread of our Father fell upon all the kingdoms surrounding Judah, so that they did not make war against Jehoshaphat. ¹¹ Some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat gifts and silver as tribute, and the Arabs too brought him flocks: seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred male goats. ¹² Jehoshaphat grew more and more powerful, and he built fortresses and storage cities in Judah. ¹³ He had large supplies in the cities of Judah, and mighty warriors in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ This was their enrollment by ancestral families: from Judah, commanders of thousands — Adnah the commander, and with him three hundred thousand mighty warriors; ¹⁵ next to him was Jehohanan the commander, and with him two hundred eighty thousand; ¹⁶ next to him Amasiah son of Zichri, who freely offered himself to our Father, and with him two hundred thousand mighty warriors. ¹⁷ From Benjamin: Eliada, a mighty warrior, and with him two hundred thousand armed with bow and shield; ¹⁸ next to him Jehozabad, and with him a hundred eighty thousand equipped for war. ¹⁹ These were the men who served the king, besides those the king had stationed in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.