“Jehoshaphat was a good king, following the ways of his father, Asa. He did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight. During his reign, however, he failed to remove all the pagan shrines, and the people never fully committed themselves to follow the God of their ancestors. The rest of the events of Jehoshaphat’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded in The Record of Jehu Son of Hanani, which is included in The Book of the Kings of Israel. Some time later King Jehoshaphat of Judah made an alliance with King Ahaziah of Israel, who was very wicked. Together they built a fleet of trading ships at the port of Ezion-geber. Then Eliezer son of Dodavahu from Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat. He said, “Because you have allied yourself with King Ahaziah, the Lord will destroy your work.” So the ships met with disaster and never put out to sea.”
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2 Chronicles‬ ‭20‬:‭32‬-‭37‬ ‭NLT

It is important to constantly orient ourselves on God. Jehoshaphat’s legacy was a net positive for Israel, but the end of his portion of the text has a bit of a sour aftertaste. He is seen as missing the mark in two distinct ways. The first is an omission. He failed to destroy everything that he could that would lead others into idolatry. This result of this is that people were faithful for a time, but not in the roots of their legacies. They were outwardly faithful, but not inwardly so. The second issue was that he allied with a wicked king in a business decision. This sin was seen as a rebellious act of commission. Perhaps it wasn’t a sin, but it did willfully overlook Ahaziah’s active wickedness in favor of profit. God does not offer covenant without confession. He does not compromise his character and so blessings were withheld and the venture failed. All of this shows the potential drift of a godly legacy. Jehoshaphat’s end of his reign was marred by a lack of focus. In an otherwise brilliant rule, as time went on, he felt more comfortable straying from the center of God’s character and word. He stopped seeking God. Though it never resulted in falling off the center, it did result in a drunken stumble that is unbecoming of those who follow God. The result was that an excellent king, became a good one, and a faithful community, would quickly return to evil once more.

Jehoshaphat’s Legacy: Overall positive, but marred by a lack of focus on God in later years.

Jehoshaphat’s Sins: Failed to destroy all idolatrous objects and allied with a wicked king for profit.

Consequences of Jehoshaphat’s Actions: A faithful community returned to evil and blessings were withheld.