When you go out as an army against your enemies, guard yourselves against anything impure.

“你出兵攻打仇敌，就要远避诸恶。

“你出兵攻打敌人，要远离一切恶事。

“你出兵攻打敌人，要远离一切恶事。

“你们出兵征战时，一定要远离恶事。

“你出兵安营攻打仇敌的时候，要谨守自己，远避一切恶事。

「你出兵攻打仇敵，就要遠避諸惡。

「你出兵攻打敵人，要遠離一切惡事。

「你出兵攻打敵人，要遠離一切惡事。

「你們出兵征戰時，一定要遠離惡事。

“你出兵安營攻打仇敵的時候，要謹守自己，遠避一切惡事。

『你出兵紮營攻打仇敵的時候、要謹守自己、避開各樣的壞事。

爾出列營攻敵、宜戒諸惡、

與敵戰時、慎勿行惡。

爾出徵攻敵、當自謹慎、戒諸惡事、

When you are encamped against your enemies, keep away from everything impure.

There will be times when you are at war with your enemies. And your soldiers will be in camp. Then keep away from anything that isn’t pure and“ clean.”

“ When you are encamped against your enemies, then you shall keep yourself from every evil thing.

“ When you go to war against your enemies, be sure to stay away from anything that is impure.

“ When you are encamped against your enemies, be careful to avoid anything offensive.

“ When you go out as an army against your enemies, you shall be on guard against every evil thing.

“ When the army goes out against your enemies, then keep yourself from every wicked thing.

When thou goest forth in camp against thine enemies, then thou shalt keep thee from every evil thing.

“ When you are encamped against your enemies, be careful to avoid anything offensive.

When the host goeth forth against thine enemies, then keep thee from every wicked thing.

When you go out and camp against your enemies, then you shall keep yourselves from every evil thing.

But be careful when you are setting apart the riches for the LORD. If you take any of it, you will make the Israelite camp subject to annihilation and cause a disaster.

Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenantal commandment! They have taken some of the riches; they have stolen them and deceitfully put them among their own possessions.The Israelites are unable to stand before their enemies; they retreat because they have become subject to annihilation. I will no longer be with you, unless you destroy what has contaminated you.Get up! Ritually consecrate the people and tell them this:‘ Ritually consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, because the LORD God of Israel says,“ You are contaminated, O Israel! You will not be able to stand before your enemies until you remove what is contaminating you.”

This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah. He did what the LORD his God considered good and right and faithful.He wholeheartedly and successfully reinstituted service in God’s temple and obedience to the law, in order to follow his God.After these faithful deeds were accomplished, King Sennacherib of Assyria invaded Judah. He besieged the fortified cities, intending to seize them.When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had invaded and intended to attack Jerusalem,he consulted with his advisers and military officers about stopping up the springs outside the city, and they supported him.A large number of people gathered together and stopped up all the springs and the stream that flowed through the district. They reasoned,“ Why should the kings of Assyria come and find plenty of water?”Hezekiah energetically rebuilt every broken wall. He erected towers and an outer wall, and fortified the terrace of the City of David. He made many weapons and shields.He appointed military officers over the army and assembled them in the square at the city gate. He encouraged them, saying,“ Be strong and brave! Don’t be afraid and don’t panic because of the king of Assyria and this huge army that is with him! We have with us one who is stronger than those who are with him.He has with him mere human strength, but the LORD our God is with us to help us and fight our battles!” The army was encouraged by the words of King Hezekiah of Judah.Afterward King Sennacherib of Assyria, while attacking Lachish with all his military might, sent his messengers to Jerusalem. The message was for King Hezekiah of Judah and all the people of Judah who were in Jerusalem. It read:“ This is what King Sennacherib of Assyria says:‘ Why are you so confident that you remain in Jerusalem while it is under siege?Hezekiah says,“ The LORD our God will rescue us from the power of the king of Assyria.” But he is misleading you and you will die of hunger and thirst!Hezekiah is the one who eliminated the LORD’s high places and altars and then told Judah and Jerusalem,“ At one altar you must worship and offer sacrifices.”Are you not aware of what I and my predecessors have done to all the nations of the surrounding lands? Have the gods of the surrounding lands actually been able to rescue their lands from my power?Who among all the gods of these nations whom my predecessors annihilated was able to rescue his people from my power?Now don’t let Hezekiah deceive you or mislead you like this. Don’t believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to rescue his people from my power or the power of my predecessors. So how can your gods rescue you from my power?’”Sennacherib’s servants further insulted the LORD God and his servant Hezekiah.He wrote letters mocking the LORD God of Israel and insulting him with these words:“ The gods of the surrounding nations could not rescue their people from my power. Neither can Hezekiah’s god rescue his people from my power.”They called out loudly in the Judahite dialect to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, trying to scare and terrify them so they could seize the city.They talked about the God of Jerusalem as if he were one of the man-made gods of the nations of the earth.King Hezekiah and the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz prayed about this and cried out to heaven.The LORD sent a messenger and he wiped out all the soldiers, princes, and officers in the army of the king of Assyria. So Sennacherib returned home humiliated. When he entered the temple of his god, some of his own sons struck him down with the sword.The LORD delivered Hezekiah and the residents of Jerusalem from the power of King Sennacherib of Assyria and from all the other nations. He made them secure on every side.

Jehoshaphat lived in Jerusalem. He went out among the people from Beer Sheba to the hill country of Ephraim and encouraged them to follow the LORD God of their ancestors.

So all the Israelites, the whole army, went up to Bethel. They wept and sat there before the LORD; they did not eat anything that day until evening. They offered up burnt sacrifices and tokens of peace to the LORD.

Then some soldiers also asked him,“ And as for us– what should we do?” He told them,“ Take money from no one by violence or by false accusation, and be content with your pay.”

Then I saw heaven opened and here came a white horse! The one riding it was called“ Faithful” and“ True,” and with justice he judges and goes to war.His eyes are like a fiery flame and there are many diadem crowns on his head. He has a name written that no one knows except himself.He is dressed in clothing dipped in blood, and he is called the Word of God.The armies that are in heaven, dressed in white, clean, fine linen, were following him on white horses.

Jehoshaphat was afraid, so he decided to seek the LORD’s advice. He decreed that all Judah should observe a fast.The people of Judah assembled to ask for the LORD’s help; they came from all the cities of Judah to ask for the LORD’s help.Jehoshaphat stood before the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem at the LORD’s temple, in front of the new courtyard.He prayed:“ O LORD God of our ancestors, you are the God who lives in heaven and rules over all the kingdoms of the nations. You possess strength and power; no one can stand against you.Our God, you drove out the inhabitants of this land before your people Israel and gave it as a permanent possession to the descendants of your friend Abraham.They settled down in it and built in it a temple to honor you, saying,‘ If disaster comes on us in the form of military attack, judgment, plague, or famine, we will stand in front of this temple before you, for you are present in this temple. We will cry out to you for help in our distress, so that you will hear and deliver us.’Now the Ammonites, Moabites, and men from Mount Seir are coming! When Israel came from the land of Egypt, you did not allow them to invade these lands. They bypassed them and did not destroy them.Look how they are repaying us! They come to drive us out of our allotted land which you assigned to us!Our God, will you not judge them? For we are powerless against this huge army that attacks us! We don’t know what we should do; we look to you for help.”All the men of Judah were standing before the LORD, along with their infants, wives, and children.