2 Chronicles 21 — FBV
21Verse 1Jehoshaphat died and was buried with his forefathers in the City of David, and his son Jehoram took over as king.Verse 2His brothers, the sons of Jehoshaphat, were Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, and Shephatiah. All were sons of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah.+Verse 3Their father had given them many gifts of silver and gold and valuable items, as well as the fortified towns in Judah; but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram because he was the firstborn.Verse 4But once Jehoram had secured the kingdom, he made sure of his position by killing all his brothers, along with some of the princes of Judah.Verse 5Jehoram was thirty-two when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for eight years.Verse 6He followed the evil ways of the kings of Israel, and was as bad as Ahab, for he had married one of Ahab's daughters. He did evil in the Lord's sight.Verse 7However, the Lord did not want to destroy David's line because of the agreement he had made with David, and he had promised that David's descendants would rule forever like an ever-burning lamp.Verse 8During Jehoram's reign, Edom rebelled against Judah's rule and chose their own king.Verse 9So Jehoram crossed into Edom with his officers and all his chariot army. The Edomites surrounded him and his chariot commanders, but he broke through during the night.+Verse 10From this time on Edom was in rebellion against Judah's rule, and remains so to this day. At the same time Libnah also rebelled against his rule, because he had abandoned the Lord, the God of his forefathers.Verse 11He also built high places on the mountains of Judah; he made the people of Jerusalem unfaithful to God and led Judah away from him.Verse 12Jehoram received a letter from Elijah the prophet that said, “This is what the Lord, the God of David your forefather says, ‘You have not followed the ways of your father Jehoshaphat, or Asa, king of Judah,Verse 13but instead you have followed the ways of the kings of Israel, and have made the people of Jerusalem unfaithful, and the people of Jerusalem as unfaithful as the family of Ahab. You have even killed your brothers, your father's family, who were better than you.Verse 14Watch out, for the Lord is going to hit your people hard—your sons, your wives, and all that you own.Verse 15You yourself will be struck with a terrible illness—a disease of the bowels which will get worse day by day until they come out.’”Verse 16The Lord stirred up the hostility of the Philistines and of the Arabians (who live near the Ethiopians) against Jehoram.Verse 17They came and invaded Judah, and took away everything they found in the king's palace, along with his sons and his wives, so that only the youngest son Jehoahaz+was left.Verse 18After all this, the Lord struck Jehoram with a disease of the bowels for which there was no cure.Verse 19Day after day it grew worse, until after two full years passed his bowels came out because of his disease, and he died in agony. His people did not make a fire to honor him as they had done for his forefathers.Verse 20Jehoram was thirty-two when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for eight years. When he died, no one mourned him. He was buried in the City of David, but not in the royal tombs.