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What
to do when you are up to your ears in
alligators?
(HUNGRY
alligators)
Let’s look at a real life
situation in the Bible where a King finds himself u
p t
o his ears in alligators, big HUNGRY alligators!
In
2 Chronicles 20:1-30 we find King Jehoshaphat surrounded by a vast army
bent on his destruction. He
was so outnumbered that he was utterly powerless.
All the evidence showed the people they were about to be
destroyed. Their eyes showed
them there was no way out. Their
ears heard everyone in despair. They figured they were about to lose
everything. They were all about to die. Do you think they were freaking
out? Does any of this sound
familiar?
You
find out they are going to downsize your company again and you are sure
you will lose your job…
You
know you are barely making it now, so you figure you will lose your
house, your car…
You
find out your teenager is smoking and it’s not cigarettes…
Your
taxes are due and you spent the money on making ends meet, now you need
thousands more in a few days…
Let’s
examine how King Jehoshaphat asked for help…
2
Chronicles 20:1-30 After
this, the armies of the Moabites, Ammonites, and some of the Meunites
declared war on Jehoshaphat
.
2 Messengers came and told Jehoshaphat, "A vast army from
Edom
is marching against you from beyond the
Dead
Sea
.
They are already at Hazazon-tamar
.
"
(This was another name for En-gedi
.
)
3 Jehoshaphat was alarmed by this news and sought the LORD for
guidance
.
He also gave orders that everyone throughout
Judah
should observe a fast
.
4 So people from all the towns of
Judah
came to
Jerusalem
to seek the LORD
.
5 Jehoshaphat stood before the people of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
in front of the new courtyard at the
Temple
of the LORD
.
6 He prayed, "O LORD, G-d of our ancestors, You alone are the
G-d who is in heaven
.
You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth
.
You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against You! 7 O our
G-d, did You not drive out those who lived in this land when your people
arrived? And did You not give this land forever to the descendants of
Your friend Abraham? 8 Your people settled here and built this
Temple
for You
.
9 They said, 'Whenever we are faced with any calamity such as war,
disease, or famine, we can come to stand in Your presence before this
Temple
where Your name is honored
.
We can cry out to You to save us, and You will hear us and rescue us
.
'
10 "And now see what the armies of
Ammon
,
Moab
,
and
Mount
Seir
are doing
.
You would not let our ancestors invade those nations when
Israel
left
Egypt
,
so they went around them and did not destroy them
.
11 Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out
of Your land, which You gave us as an inheritance
.
12 O our G-d, won't You sto
p
t
hem?
We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us
.
We do not know what to do, but we are looking to You for help
.
"
13 As all the men of Judah stood before the LORD with their little
ones, wives, and children, 14 the Spirit of the LORD came upon one
of the men standing there
.
His name was Jahaziel son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel,
son of Mattaniah, a Levite who was a descendant of Asaph
.
15 He said, "Listen, King Jehoshaphat! Listen, all you people
of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
!
This is what the LORD says: Do not be afraid! Don't be discouraged by
this mighty army, for the battle is not yours, but G-d's
.
16 Tomorrow, march out against them
.
You will find them coming u
p
t
hrough
the ascent of Ziz at the end of the valley that opens into the
wilderness of Jeruel
.
17 But you will not even need to fight
.
Take your positions; then stand still and watch the LORD's victory
.
He is with you, O people of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
.
Do not be afraid or discouraged
.
Go out there tomorrow, for the LORD is with you!" 18 Then King
Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face to the ground
.
And all the people of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
did the same, worshipping the LORD
.
19 Then the Levites from the clans of Kohath and Korah stood to
praise the LORD, the G-d of
Israel
,
with a very loud shout
.
20 Early the next morning the army of
Judah
went out into the wilderness of Tekoa
.
On the way Jehoshaphat stopped and said, "Listen to me, all you
people of
Judah
and
Jerusalem
!
Believe in the LORD your G-d, and you will be able to stand firm
.
Believe in His prophets, and you will succeed
.
"
21 After consulting the leaders of the people, the king appointed
singers to walk ahead of the army, singing to the LORD and praising Him
for His holy splendor
.
This is what they sang: "Give thanks to the LORD; His faithful love
endures forever!" 22 At the moment they began to sing and give
praise, the LORD caused the armies of Ammon, Moab, and
Mount
Seir
to start fighting among themselves
.
23 The armies of
Moab
and Ammon turned against their allies from
Mount
Seir
and killed every one of them
.
After they had finished off the army of Seir, they turned on each other
.
24 So when the army of
Judah
arrived at the lookout point in the wilderness, there were dead bodies
lying on the ground for as far as they could see
.
Not a single one of the enemy had escaped
.
25 King Jehoshaphat and his men went out to gather the plunder
.
They found vast amounts of equipment, clothing, and other valuables –
more than they could carry
.
There was so much plunder that it took them three days just to collect
it all! 26 On the fourth day they gathered in the Valley of
Blessing, which got its name that day because the people praised and
thanked the LORD there
.
It is still called the
Valley
of
Blessing
today
.
27 Then they returned to
Jerusalem
,
with Jehoshaphat leading them, full of joy that the LORD had given them
victory over their enemies
.
28 They marched into
Jerusalem
to the music of harps, lyres, and trumpets and proceeded to the
Temple
of the LORD
.
29 When the surrounding kingdoms heard that the LORD
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