Was Jehoshaphat King of Israel?
In 2 Chronicles 19:1, Jehoshaphat is called the "king of Judah," but in 2 Chronicles 21:2, he is called "king of Israel." Since the kings of Judah and the kings of Israel were of two different lines, is this a mistake in the Bible record?
No, it is not a mistake. It is an example of the flexibility of biblical language.
The expression "king of Israel" can be employed in either a specific sense (of a certain lineage) or in a generic sense (nationally). More technically, Jehoshaphat was a king of Judah, i.e., a king over the two principal tribes (Judah and Benjamin) that composed the southern kingdom of Judah. However, since the entire nation was "Israel" in a more general sense, it was not incorrect to speak of Jehoshaphat as "king of Israel."
There was likely a spiritual reason for that designation in this passage. C. F. Keil noted: "Jehoshaphat is called king of Israel instead of king of Judah, because he, as king, walked in the footsteps of Israel, Jacob the wrestler with God, and was a true king of God's people" (1978, 395).
Whenever there is a reasonable way to explain an alleged conflict between historical statements, that explanation should be considered, rather than frivolously charging the sacred text with a discrepancy. A genuine contradiction exists only when there is no possible way to reconcile accounts that appear to disagree.
Sources
Keil, C. F. and F. Delitzsh. 1978. Commentary on the Old Testament. Vol. 3. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.
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