2 Chronicles 17 told us that Jehoshaphat sought the Lord and avoided idolatry. He appointed teachers to go throughout the land of Judah to read the law of the Lord to the people and to instruct them in the ways of godliness. Because his heart was fully committed to the Lord, his reign was prosperous and the nation of Judah grew wealthy and militarily powerful while he was king. Even the kings of surrounding nations sent livestock and expensive gifts to King Jehoshaphat because they were eager to be at peace with such a powerful nation.
Jehoshaphat's devotion to the Lord is why we found it so puzzling that he would arrange a marriage between his son and the daughter of the idolatrous King Ahab in order to form a political alliance. The Bible tells us that "Jehoshaphat was at peace with the king of Israel" and I assume the marriage was arranged in order to protect the kingdom of Judah from the much larger kingdom of Israel. But the Lord was capable of protecting Judah without Jehoshaphat affiliating himself with a wicked king. The Lord was not happy that Jehoshaphat became an in-law to Ahab and that he joined forces with him against the kingdom of Aram.
Ahab received a mortal wound during the battle and bled to death by evening. Jehoshaphat made it safely home to Judah but the Lord expresses His displeasure over the fact that Jehoshaphat went to war with Ahab in the first place. "When Jehoshaphat king of Judah returned safely to his palace in Jerusalem, Jehu the seer, the son of Hanani, went out to meet him and said to the king, 'Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, the wrath of the Lord is on you. There is, however, some good in you, for you have rid the land of the Asherah poles and have set your heart on seeking God.'" (2 Chronicles 19:1-3) The Bible warns us about not entering into close partnerships with those who haven't given their hearts to the Lord: "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?" (2 Corinthians 6:14) Jehoshaphat made an unwise choice by yoking his family with the sinful family of the idolatrous Ahab. The Lord wants him to understand it was an unwise choice and not to make similar mistakes again.
Jehoshaphat redoubles his efforts to teach the people about the Lord's laws and to make certain the judges of the land are men with a heart for the Lord who will judge fairly. "Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, and he went out again among the people from Beersheba to the hill country of Ephraim and turned them back to the Lord, the God of their ancestors. He appointed judges in the land, in each of the fortified cities of Judah. He told them, 'Consider carefully what you do, because you are not judging for mere mortals but for the Lord, who is with you whenever you give a verdict. Now let the fear of the Lord be on you. Judge carefully, for with the Lord our God there is no injustice or partiality or bribery.'" (2 Chronicles 19:4-7)
"In Jerusalem also, Jehoshaphat appointed some of the Levites, priests and heads of Israelite families to administer the law of the Lord and to settle disputes. And they lived in Jerusalem. He gave them these orders: 'You must serve faithfully and wholeheartedly in the fear of the Lord. In every case that comes before you from your people who live in the cities---whether bloodshed or other concerns of the law, commands, decrees or regulations---you are to warn them not to sin against the Lord; otherwise His wrath will come on you and your people. Do this, and you will not sin. Amariah the chief priest will be over you in any matter concerning the Lord, and Zebadiah son of Ishmael, the leader of the tribe of Judah, will be over you in any matter concerning the king, and the Levites will serve as officials before you. Act with courage, and may the Lord be with those who do well.'" (2 Chronicles 19:8-11) Jehoshaphat solemnly charges these men to judge cases righteously in the fear of the Lord.
The words of Jehu the prophet regarding the mistake of making an alliance with King Ahab made an impression on Jehoshaphat, I believe, but not enough of an impression to keep him from entering into a partnership with Ahab's successor in order to build a navy for the purpose of importing precious metals. "Later, Jehoshaphat king of Judah made an alliance with Ahaziah king of Israel, whose ways were wicked. He agreed with him to construct a fleet of trading ships. After these were built at Ezion Geber, Eliezer son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, 'Because you have made an alliance with Ahaziah, the Lord will destroy what you have made.' The ships were wrecked and were not able to set sail to trade." (2 Chronicles 20:35-37)
Perhaps Jehoshaphat did some creative thinking to justify to himself his desire to ally himself with Ahaziah in this endeavor since it was not a military alliance but a trading alliance. It doesn't matter what type of alliance it is; Jehoshaphat has no business yoking himself together with an idolater like Ahaziah. As a result of his disobedience, Jehoshaphat suffers financial loss, but this is the mercy of the Lord on him. It would have been far worse for Jehoshaphat to become chummy with a sinful man (and run the risk of being influenced by him) than to lose the money invested in this project. The Lord is being merciful to the nation of Judah too, for the king would have been setting a bad example for the people by turning a blind eye to the sins of Ahaziah because of the prosperity to be gained by operating a trading fleet with him.
The author of 1 Kings gives us far fewer details about how and why the fleet was destroyed but it appears that Ahaziah was not ready to give up on the idea of importing gold from Ophir and proposed trying again. This time Jehoshaphat prudently says no. "Now Jehoshaphat built a fleet of trading ships to go to Ophir for gold, but they never set sail---they were wrecked at Ezion Geber. At that time Ahaziah son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, 'Let my men sail with yours,' but Jehoshaphat refused." (1 Kings 22:48-49)
Even the most godly person experiences fears and doubts at times; Jehoshaphat is an example of this. He made an alliance with King Ahab by becoming in-laws with him, likely because he feared an attack or invasion by the kingdom of Israel. He did not fully place his faith in the Lord to protect the kingdom of Judah. Because he was related to Ahab by marriage, he may have felt obligated to help him win back a city taken by the Arameans, so he unwisely (and against the instructions of the prophet Micaiah) joined military forces with the wicked king in a conflict in which they lost the battle to the Arameans and Ahab lost his life. Upon being admonished by a prophet for having formed a close partnership with an unbeliever, Jehoshaphat worked very hard to make sure all the people and all the judges of the land knew and understood and kept the laws of the Lord, but he himself disobeyed the Lord by forming a trading alliance with Ahab's son. I believe he found a way of justifying this decision and quietening his conscience by telling himself it was okay to form a trading fleet with Ahaziah since this was a peaceful project. He may have been motivated by greed, which has led many a person to justify a foolish decision. It was only after the Lord sent Eliezer to inform Jehoshaphat that the fleet would be destroyed because of his imprudent alliance, and after the fleet actually was destroyed, that Jehoshaphat refrained from further enterprises with Ahaziah.
If we have to justify something to ourselves---if we notice we are trying to talk ourselves into it---that means deep down we know there's something iffy about it. We need to stop and talk to the Lord about it instead of holding conversations with ourselves in our heads about it. I've been guilty of talking myself into things I didn't really feel right about and I should have taken that as a sign that it was either the wrong thing to do or that it was a good thing but the wrong time to do it. This is why the word of God advises us: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:5-6)
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