Jehu was the Prophet of Israel and Judah who prophesied to Jehoshaphat about having incured the wrath of God by joining hands with king Ahab. He had in earlier years prophesied the end of King Baasha’s dynasty which came true.
The prophet Jehu was known to be straight at calling a sin a sin regardless of the sinner’s status.
When Jehoshaphat king of Judah returned safely to his palace in Jerusalem, Jehu the seer, the son of Hanani, went out to meet him and said to the king, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the LORD? Because of this, the wrath of the LORD is upon you.” 2 CHRONICLES 19:1–2
Jehu was no respecter of persons. He faithfully called sin “sin” no matter if it was being committed by the very wicked or the very righteous.
Jehu was a prophet whose ministry spanned the reigns of King Baasha of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah. The Bible only ascribes two prophecies to him, but these prophecies reveal that Jehu was unswerving in his faithfulness to carry out his prophetic duties.
Jehu’s first prophecy was given during the reign of Baasha, a wicked king who promoted idolatry throughout Israel. Because of Baasha’s wickedness, Jehu announced that Baasha’s family would die humiliating deaths. This prophecy came true several years later after a man named Zimri assassinated Baasha’s son Elah, took over the kingdom, and killed off Baasha’s entire family.
Years later, Jehu prophesied again, this time against Jehoshaphat, who was generally regarded as a righteous king in the Bible, because he agreed to join forces with wicked King Ahab of Israel and fight the Arameans. Jehu prophesied that the “wrath of the LORD” was upon him, although it is not clear what exactly this meant. Even so, Jehu recognized that Jehoshaphat had done many things well.
When a person who generally lives a godly life falls into sin, it is tempting to turn a blind eye to his or her wrongdoing. But sin is sin no matter who commits it, and we do a person no favors by pretending it is not important or harmful.