“And he (Jahaziel) said, 'Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the Lord to you: "Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s”'" (2 Chronicles 20:15).

Jahaziel, along with all of Judah and King Jehoshaphat, were on the doorsteps of a huge impending battle that was being waged against them by the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir in the late 800s B.C. In 2 Chronicles 20:3 it says that Jehoshaphat feared. Who could blame him? A huge multitude was coming against him!

Do you ever fear or get dismayed due to the physical and/or spiritual battles you are currently in? Perhaps you can see one brewing in the distance and your mind begins to twist and toil in anticipation of what might be yet another financial, physical, or emotional battle, taking form on the heels of one you just went through! Have you been going to battle for years on end and are a little down and dismayed? Are you lacking the hope and joy you once had because you're now currently buried under pessimistic and despondent attitudes?

It’s not unnatural for us humans to try to fix our problems or to overcome our battles on our own! But what you will find is that there is no real, long-lasting success in doing so. So if you are currently in a battle, is there anything you can cling to for hope that will get you through it? Yes! It begins by shifting your focus off of yourself and onto the Lord and proclaiming His wondrous power! The rest of verse 3 says that he (Jehoshaphat) set himself to seek the Lord! Let’s read what Jehoshaphat said starting in verse 5:

"Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court, ⁶and said: 'O LORD God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand You? ⁷Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? ⁸And they dwell in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name, saying, ^9"If disaster comes upon us—sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine—we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save." ¹⁰And now, here are the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir—whom You would not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them and did not destroy them—¹¹here they are, rewarding us by coming to throw us out of Your possession which You have given us to inherit. ¹²O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.' ¹³Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the LORD" (2 Chronicles 20:5-13).

Do we stand before the Lord or do we stand before men? We stand before a great and awesome Creator God whose arm is not short that He cannot save us! (Isaiah 59:1). Do you know who God is? He’s the one who created it all, including you and me! He’s the one who sustains us each and every moment! (Psalm 54:4). Do we acknowledge our weakness in our spiritual and physical battles and give way to God to do awesome things by setting our eyes and our mind upon Him? Do we let go of our fear and pride and give the battle over to our God and receive a peace that surpasses all understanding? (Philippians 4:7) If not, it will be hard to find deliverance in and of ourselves from the battles of life. Let’s notice what the Lord had to say as the Spirit descended onto Jahaziel: “And he (Jahaziel) said, 'Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and you, King Jehoshaphat! Thus says the Lord to you: "Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s”'" (2 Chronicles 20:15).

The battle is not yours, but God’s, my friends. He (God) wants us to overcome the battles we face, no question. But He wants you and me to learn to rely completely on Him and His wisdom. He will gladly bear our pain and struggles if only we hand it over to Him and ask earnestly for His deliverance. It may not come quickly, but it will come because our God is not a liar! Let me summarize the rest of the story here in 2 Chronicles 20.

In verse 18 Jehoshaphat and all of Judah bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord and praised God with voices loud and high. In verse 20 they rose up early the next morning to hear the assuring words of their King that should resound within us today! Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem: Believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be established; believe His prophets, and you shall prosper.” Judah began to sing and praise the Lord, and the Lord ambushed the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, defeating them! Jehoshaphat and his people came and took away spoils for three days because there was so much. Then they gathered and blessed the Lord! They returned to Jerusalem with joy, for the Lord had made them rejoice over their enemies. Then it says that “The realm of Johoshaphat was quiet, for his God game him rest all around” (2 Chronicles 20:30).

May the Lord give you rest from your battles as you let go and let God do what He does best and win the battles for you!

Additional scriptures of God’s promise of deliverance:

Numbers 23:19-"God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?”

Deuteronomy 31:6– “Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”