“Partial victory is not enough.” This was one of the main points Pastor General Gerald Flurry drove home to the Church’s youth in his sermon during the 2024 session of the Summer Educational Program. God requires total victory. Sometimes, we can convince ourselves that we are doing well when we are really only partially there. It’s easy to overlook where we are lacking.
King Jehoshaphat was, in many ways, a good king. “And the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, because he walked in the first ways of his father David, and sought not unto Baalim; But sought to the Lord God of his father, and walked in his commandments … And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the Lord: moreover he took away the high places and groves out of Judah” (2 Chronicles 17:3-6). Those are good things to say about a king!
That being said, the Bible also records some important lessons—in vividly detailed storytelling—that Jehoshaphat had to learn about what it takes to achieve total victory.
Jehoshaphat’s Origins
Jehoshaphat’s father was Asa—another of Judah’s relatively “good” kings. He got rid of idolatary, pointed the people to God, and even won some notable victories for the kingdom. However, he eventually caved in: using treasure from God’s house to forge an alliance with Syria, locking up a prophet of God, oppressing his own people, and trusting physical doctors instead of God for healing. He started out strong, but ended up falling away and is never recorded as repenting.
Doing the math from Jehoshaphat’s coronation at 35 (1 Kings 22:42) after Asa’s 41-year rule (2 Chronicles 16:13), Jehoshaphat would have been born about 6 years into his father’s reign. Like many of our youth today, he was born into and grew up in a God-fearing house. He would have grown up during Asa’s decade of peace (2 Chronicles 14:1) and witnessed the victories his father achieved. He also would have seen him go off track at the end of his life.
However, when Jehoshaphat started ruling, we see a shift right back toward a God-fearing monarchy! He didn’t let his father’s falling away sway him. That’s quite an example—and one those of us who grew up in the Church need to be ready to follow if that time ever comes.
Jehoshaphat still, however, needed to learn the lesson his father failed to learn about trusting in God—not man.
Jehoshaphat’s Weakness
Asa started going off track when he forged a military alliance with Syria. Jehoshaphat, to his credit, would end this alliance. However, he did it incorrectly. Where his father allied with Syria as a deterrent against neighboring Israel, Jehoshaphat did the opposite: allying against Syria with king Ahab of Israel.
While this was foolish, understand: The ruler of a political entity is somewhat expected to make alliances. Imagine telling the leader of a country today to dissolve all foreign military alliances—whether they be with the United States, European Union, China, Russia, Iran, etc. That would never happen. From a carnal standpoint, Jehoshaphat was just doing his job to solidify national power. But that didn’t make it right.
Total victory requires total trust in God. And as Mr. Flurry has written, “Trusting God 99 percent or less is really a deadly spiritual disease” (The Psalms of David and the Psalter of Tara)!
Plus, he was making an alliance with Ahab—a king who considered it a “light thing” to walk in Jeroboam’s sins, married the wicked Jezebel, and “did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him” (1 Kings 16:30-32).
Down the road, Jehoshaphat’s son would marry Ahab and Jezebel’s daughter Athaliah—who eventually staged a coup against Judah’s throne, murdered her own grandchildren, and nearly wiped out the line of David.
This was not a wise move on Jehoshaphat’s part.
The Battle of Ramoth-Gilead
Jehoshaphat went to Israel’s capital, Samaria, to meet with Ahab. The two kings discussed the possibility of attacking Syria at Ramoth-Gilead: a remote city near the Syrian border. “And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the Lord to day” (2 Chronicles 18:4). Jehoshaphat at least had enough sense here to realize: We need to seek counsel from God first before going to battle.
So Ahab brought in 400 false prophets—all of whom said that the battle was a good idea. But Jehoshaphat knew that none of these men were true prophets. He asked Ahab if there was any prophet of God they could counsel with.
“And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, by whom we may enquire of the Lord: but I hate him; for he never prophesied good unto me, but always evil: the same is Micaiah the son of Imla ….” (verse 7). You’ll notice, in this story, that Ahab comes across as pretty whiny and pathetic.
Nevertheless, they sent for Micaiah. Upon reaching him, the messenger actually tried convincing the prophet to just say what the 400 false prophets said (verse 12). But Micaiah showed some character here—speaking what God wanted him to say. He went to the kings and told them that, while Israel would win the battle, Ahab would be killed (verses 14-16). It would be a victory for Israel, but not a total victory: they would lose their king.
After Micaiah relayed a vision about how the 400 were being enticed by a lying spirit (verses 18-22), one of them hit him in the face (verse 23).
For all this, Ahab had Micaiah arrested (verses 25-26), and he was going to fight at Ramoth-Gilead anyway. To get around the possibility of him being killed, he simply would disguise himself. However, Jehoshaphat would still wear his royal garments (verses 28-29).
When the day of the battle came, the king of Syria gave his chariot captains a very unique order: “Fight you not with small or great, save only with the king of Israel” (verse 30). The Syrian king wanted to specifically target Ahab. But Ahab was disguised as a private soldier. So when they saw Jehoshaphat—the only man dressed like a king—they mistook him for Ahab. All Syria’s chariot captains began specifically targeting Jehoshaphat.
Jehoshaphat was now in extreme danger. As the Syrians surrounded him, the king cried out to God, and He intervened. Miraculously, they realized he wasn’t Ahab and turned back (verses 31-32).
Meanwhile, some random soldier aimlessly shot an arrow that happened to hit the disguised Ahab. He remained in his chariot and died around sunset.
Partial Victory
When the victorious Jehoshaphat returned to Jerusalem, the prophet Jehu confronted him. “And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him, and said to king Jehoshaphat, Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord? therefore is wrath upon thee from before the Lord” (2 Chronicles 19:2). God was angry with Jehoshaphat for doing this. He had some stern correction for the king.
But notice what the prophet said next: “Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God” (verse 3).
In a sense, Jehoshaphat was achieving partial victories here. He was certainly doing some things right: going after God, keeping the law, setting up righteous judges, and ridding the land of sin after his father went off track. Even during his encounters with Ahab, he sought counsel from God’s prophet and cried out to God for deliverance. However, he also was getting too close to the ungodly and wasn’t completely trusting in God. He made a big mistake allying with an evil king who wouldn’t listen to God’s prophet. What’s more, he unwisely went with him into a highly dangerous situation that almost cost him his life.
How about us? Maybe we are praying and studying every day, keeping the Sabbath, and are in good standing with the Church—but at the same time, we get too caught up in material things, focus on ourselves too much, and draw too close to the world. That’s not trusting in God 100 percent. That’s not a path to total victory.
God didn’t curse Jehoshaphat right then and there for this: He was patiently working with him. However, Jehoshaphat still had to learn this lesson. And so God gave him another test—a “re-do” test—to see how he would respond the next time.
The Battle of Tekoa
A new threat was forming in the southeast: Moabites and Ammonites gathering forces to attack Judah (2 Chronicles 20:1-2). And as it turned out, they were right on Judah’s doorstep. The kingdom was in grave danger.
Jehoshaphat’s immediate response? “And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. And Judah gathered themselves together, to ask help of the Lord: even out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord” (verses 3-4).
Previously, Jehoshaphat had witnessed a king who unilaterally made a decision to go to war without consulting God, and he experienced firsthand the dangers of going into battle with a foreign military alliance. This time, though, was going to be different. He sought God’s help and issued a nation-wide fast.
Verses 6-12 record his humble prayer requesting help. “O our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do: but our eyes are upon thee” (verse 12). Look at Jehoshaphat’s attitude: We have no might. We can’t do this. We don’t even know what to do. We’re looking to you for the answer. He didn’t try to reason his own solution or ally with another power. He simply went to God with 100 percent trust.
Then, the prophet Jahaziel addressed the king: “Thus saith the Lord unto you, Be not afraid nor dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God’s … Ye shall not need to fight in this battle: set yourselves, stand ye still, and see the salvation of the Lord with you, O Judah and Jerusalem: fear not, nor be dismayed; to morrow go out against them: for the Lord will be with you” (verses 15-17). What could have been a bloody and costly battle was now promised to be a miraculous victory.
The people went to the wilderness near Tekoa—a town not far from Jerusalem. As they prepared for the battle, Jehoshaphat declared to the people: “Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper” (verse 20).
Last time, Jehoshaphat was allied with a king who didn’t listen to God’s prophet, and he saw where that ended. But this time, Jehoshaphat was relying entirely on what God revealed through his prophet.
If we want total victories, we need to do the same. Do we follow God’s government 100 percent? Do we respect and adhere closely to the teachings and judgments of Herbert W. Armstrong and Mr. Flurry? Do we listen to the ministry and our parents under them? In the Chronicles booklet, Mr. Flurry wrote: “Believe God, and that will establish you. And if you want to prosper, and if you really believe God, you will believe His prophets! Yes—God has prophets. God uses human beings. That is the system of government” (emphasis his).
Notice how Jehoshaphat set up his military: “And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed singers unto the Lord, and that should praise the beauty of holiness, as they went out before the army, and to say, Praise the Lord; for his mercy endureth for ever” (verse 21).
Jehoshaphat put musicians out on the front lines. Humanly, this would be foolish, but look at the outcome: “And when they began to sing and to praise, the Lord set ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they were smitten” (verse 22).
The Ammonites and Moabites began to turn on the Edomites from mount Seir. The infighting escalated, and the invading force destroyed itself (verses 23-24). Other than perhaps the necessary motions required to play a musical instrument or hold a hymnal, Judah didn’t have to lift a finger.
Mr. Armstrong wrote: “Jehoshaphat did not merely leave this trouble with God and then do nothing about it himself. First, he prayed and asked for wisdom, guidance and help. Then he did what God said. He had to do his part but the battle was God’s, and Jehoshaphat did not try to fight God’s battle. He merely did his own part. But he believed God, and relied on God. … your battles are not really yours, but God’s. If you look to Him, He makes them His battles, and He fights them for you” (“Let God Fight Your Battles!” The Good News, March 1985).
The spoil of victory was so great that it took three days to gather as much as they could—and there was still plenty they didn’t have room to bring back (verse 25). What’s more, all the kingdoms in the area were now too afraid to attack Judah (verses 29-30).
Jehoshaphat trusted in God to fight his battles. As a result, he had total victory.
Total Victory
Jehoshaphat was not perfect. After the battle of Tekoa, Jehoshaphat still had more lessons to learn. He joined with Ahab’s evil son, Ahaziah, in building ships along the Red Sea—for which he was corrected and the ships were destroyed (2 Chronicles 20:35-37). When Ahaziah proposed they rebuild the fleet, Jehoshaphat learned his lesson and refused to go any further in the business venture (1 Kings 22:49).
After Ahaziah died, his brother Jehoram took over Israel. He asked Jehoshaphat about going together to fight Moab, to which Jehoshaphat hastily agreed (2 Kings 3:6-7). As they led their armies through the southern deserts, the men almost died of thirst (verse 9). It was only then that Jehoshaphat sought to get God’s counsel. They found the famous prophet Elisha, who admitted he wouldn’t have even looked at the king of Israel were it not for Jehoshaphat being there (verse 14)—so the king still had a good reputation. God sent water into the valley and promised that they would be victorious against the Moabites (verse 18).
Jehoshaphat was, in many ways, a good king. But he was also a flawed human being who had to learn lessons from his mistakes. God had to work with him to overcome his weaknesses. After all, partial victory wouldn’t be enough: God requires nothing less than total victory.
That’s what God wanted from king Jehoshaphat. And that’s what He wants from us too.