When it is said
Pray it when trouble is coming and you cannot see a way through.
Its last line is short enough to say on its own, at any hour.
Where it comes from
Author known
A king facing an army
Word came to King Jehoshaphat of Judah that a great army from Moab and Ammon was marching against him. He was afraid, and he called a fast across Judah. People came from every town to seek the LORD. Jehoshaphat stood among them at the temple and prayed, while all Judah stood before the LORD with their wives and children (2 Chronicles 20:1-13).
How God answered
The Spirit of the LORD came on a Levite named Jahaziel. He told the people not to fear the great army, because the battle was God’s. As singers went out praising the LORD, He set ambushes, and the invaders turned on one another. On the fourth day the people blessed the LORD in a valley they named Berachah, which means blessing (2 Chronicles 20:14-26).
Which verses it keeps
Only the first and last verses of the king’s prayer, 6 and 12, are printed. The verses between recall how God gave the land to Abraham’s descendants and how they built Him a temple, and they name the armies of Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir. The question that opens verse 12, “wilt Thou not judge them?”, speaks of those armies and is left out too.
The Scripture in it
… and said, “O LORD, God of our fathers, are You not the God Who is in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? Power and might are in Your hand, and no one can stand against You.”
“Our God, will You not judge them? For we are powerless before this vast army that comes against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon You.”
Bible text: Berean Standard Bible, public domain.