However, some good is found in you, for you have removed the Asherah poles from the land and have set your heart on seeking God.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Nevertheless there are good things found in you, in that you have put away the Asheroth out of the land, and have set your heart to seek God.”
- KJV Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God.
- NKJV Nevertheless good things are found in you, in that you have removed the wooden images from the land, and have prepared your heart to seek God.”
- NASB But there is some good in you, for you have removed the Asheroth from the land and you have set your heart to seek God.”
- NLT Even so, there is some good in you, for you have removed the Asherah poles throughout the land, and you have committed yourself to seeking God.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Yet Jehu acknowledges genuine good in Jehoshaphat, who removed idols and set his heart to seek God.
Overview
God's rebuke is tempered by honest commendation, recognizing the king's true devotion. Removing the Asherah poles and seeking the LORD mark Jehoshaphat as a reformer at heart. The balanced word shows that God both corrects His servants' sins and affirms their faithfulness.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- 2 Chr 12:12Because Rehoboam humbled himself, the anger of the LORD turned away from him, and He did not destroy him completely. Indeed, conditions were good in Judah.
- Ezra 7:10For Ezra had set his heart to study the Law of the LORD, to practice it, and to teach its statutes and ordinances in Israel.
- 1 Kgs 14:13All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. For this is the only one belonging to Jeroboam who will receive a proper burial, because only in him has the LORD, the God of Israel, found any good in the house of Jeroboam.
- 2 Chr 30:19who sets his heart on seeking God—the LORD, the God of his fathers—even if he is not cleansed according to the purification rules of the sanctuary.”
- 2 Chr 17:3–6Now the LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he walked in the earlier ways of his father David. He did not seek out the Baals,
- 2 Chr 12:14And Rehoboam did evil because he did not set his heart to seek the LORD.
- Rom 7:18I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh; for I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.
- Ps 57:7My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast. I will sing and make music.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Temple, priesthood, and the repeated need for a faithful king who seeks the LORD all point past every imperfect reign to the King and Temple who finally and fully dwell with God's people.
How 2 Chronicles 19:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.