1. King Jehoshaphat of Judah returned safely to his palace in Jerusalem.
2. A prophet, Jehu son of Hanani, went to meet the king and said to him, “Do you think it is right to help those who are wicked and to take the side of those who hate the Lord? What you have done has brought the Lord's anger on you.
3. But even so, there is some good in you. You have removed all the symbols of the goddess Asherah which people worshipped, and you have tried to follow God's will.”
4. Even though King Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem, he travelled regularly among the people, from Beersheba in the south to the edge of the hill country of Ephraim in the north, in order to call the people back to the Lord, the God of their ancestors.
5. He appointed judges in each of the fortified cities of Judah
6. and instructed them: “Be careful in pronouncing judgement; you are not acting on human authority, but on the authority of the Lord, and he is with you when you pass sentence.
7. Honour the Lord and act carefully, because the Lord our God does not tolerate fraud or partiality or the taking of bribes.”
8. In Jerusalem Jehoshaphat appointed Levites, priests, and some of the leading citizens as judges in cases involving a violation of the Law of the Lord or legal disputes between inhabitants of the city.