1 NOW Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And Jehoram his son reigned in his stead.
2 And he had brethren the sons of Jehoshaphat, Azariah, and Jehiel, and Zechariah, and Azariah, and Michael, and Shephatiah: all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat king of Israel.
3 And their father gave them great gifts of silver, and of gold, and of precious things, with fenced cities in Judah: but the kingdom gave he to Jehoram; because he was the firstborn.
4 Now when Jehoram was risen up to the kingdom
of his father, he strengthened himself, and slew all his brethren with
the sword, and divers also of the princes of
Israela.
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4a slew all his brethren with the sword,
and divers also of the princes of Israel There must be a
saying somewhere that states that 'no liberal stance of
tolerance goes unpunished'. Jehoshaphat did right in the sight
of the LORD but allowed the worship of the pagan gods upon the high places to
continue. It is not known if all of Jehoshaphat's sons were effected by the
liberal allowances held in the kingdom and deserved to die being wicked,
but of the seven, Jehoram the eldest and the others, Jehoram who gained the
kingdom had been effected to the extent that he murdered his other six
brothers upon becoming king and most likely the 'divers' of the
ruling princes he also had killed where those of conservative religious
views of correctly worshipping Jehovah. And thus so easily the whole of the
kingdom is turned for having such a liberal allowance made of tolerance.
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