17:1 And Jehoshaphat his son became king in his place, and made himself strong against Israel.
17:2 He put forces in all the walled towns of Judah, and responsible chiefs in the land of Judah and in the towns of Ephraim, which Asa his father had taken.
17:3 And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he went in the early ways of his father, not turning to the Baals,
17:4 But turning to the God of his father and keeping his laws, and not doing as Israel did.
17:5 So the Lord made his kingdom strong; and all Judah gave offerings to Jehoshaphat, and he had great wealth and honour.
17:6 His heart was lifted up in the ways of the Lord; and he went so far as to take away the high places and the wood pillars out of Judah.
17:7 In the third year of his rule he sent Benhail and Obadiah and Zechariah and Nethanel and Micaiah, his captains, as teachers into the towns of Judah;
17:8 And with them, Shemaiah and Nethaniah and Zebadiah and Asahel and Shemiramoth and Jehonathan and Adonijah and Tobijah and Tob-adonijah, the Levites; and Elishama and Jehoram the priests.
17:9 And they gave teaching in Judah and had the book of the law of the Lord with them; they went through all the towns of Judah teaching the people.
17:10 And the fear of the Lord was on all the kingdoms of the lands round Judah, so that they made no wars against Jehoshaphat.
17:11 And some of the Philistines took offerings to Jehoshaphat, and made him payments of silver; and the Arabians gave him flocks, seven thousand, seven hundred sheep, and seven thousand, seven hundred he-goats.
17:12 Jehoshaphat became greater and greater, and made strong towers and store-towns in Judah.
17:13 He had much property in the towns of Judah; he had forces of armed men, great and strong, in Jerusalem.
17:14 This is the number of them, listed by their families, the captains of thousands of Judah: Adnah, the captain, and with him three hundred thousand men of war;
17:15 Second to him Jehohanan, the captain, and with him two hundred and eighty thousand;
17:16 After him Amasiah, the son of Zichri, who freely gave himself to the Lord, and with him two hundred thousand men of war;
17:17 And the captains of Benjamin: Eliada, a great man of war, and with him two hundred thousand armed with bows and body-covers;
17:18 And after him Jehozabad, and with him a hundred and eighty thousand trained for war.
17:19 These were the men who were waiting on the king, in addition to those placed by the king in the walled towns through all Judah.