And he joined himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish: and they made the ships in Eziongeber.
To make ships. A combined fleet was built at Ezion-geber, the destination of which was to voyage to Tartessus, but it was wrecked. Jehoshaphat's motive for entering into this partnership was to secure a free passage through Israel, because the vessels were to be conveyed across the Isthmus of Suez, and to sail to the west of Europe from one of the ports of Palestine on the Mediterranean. Eliezer, a prophet, denounced this unholy alliance, and foretold, as a divine judgment, the total wreck of the whole fleet. The consequence was, that although Jehoshaphat broke off in obedience to the divine will, his league with Ahaziah, he formed a new scheme of a merchant fleet, and Ahaziah wished to be admitted a partner. The proposal of the Israelite king was respectfully declined. The destination of this new fleet was to Ophir, because the Israelite seaports were not accessible to him for the Tartessus trade; but the ships, when just for the docks, were wrecked in the rocky creek of Ezion-geber.