2 Chronicles
1
1 And Solomon the son of David was strengthened in his kingdom, and Jehovah his God was with him and magnified him exceedingly.
2 And Solomon spoke to all Israel, to the captains of thousands and of hundreds and to the judges and to every leader of all Israel, the heads of the fathers’ houses.
3 And Solomon and all the assembly with him went up to the high place that was in Gibeon, for the Tent of Meeting of God was there, which Moses the servant of Jehovah had made in the wilderness.
4 However David had brought up the Ark of God from Kiriath-jearim to the place that David had prepared for it, for he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem.
5 And the bronze altar that Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, had made was there before the tabernacle of Jehovah, and Solomon and the assembly inquired at it.
6 And Solomon went up there before Jehovah to the bronze altar, which was at the Tent of Meeting, and he offered upon it one thousand burnt offerings.
7 During that night God appeared to Solomon and said to him, Ask what I should give you.
8 And Solomon said to God, You have shown great lovingkindness to David my father and have made me king in his place.
9 And now, O Jehovah God, may Your promise to David my father be fulfilled, for You have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth.
10 Now give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may go out and come in before this people; for who can judge this great people of Yours?
11 Then God said to Solomon, Because this is on your heart and you have not asked for riches, wealth, or honor, nor for the life of those who hate you, nor have you even asked for long life, but have asked for wisdom and knowledge for yourself so that you may judge My people over whom I have made you king;
12 Wisdom and knowledge are granted to you; and riches and wealth and honor I will give you, such as no kings who were before you have had, nor any after you will have.
13 Then Solomon came to Jerusalem from the high place that was in Gibeon, from the Tent of Meeting; and he reigned over Israel.
14 And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen together; and he had one thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, which he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king at Jerusalem.
15 And the king caused silver and gold to be as plentiful as stones in Jerusalem; and cedars, like the sycamores that are in the lowlands.
16 And the horses that Solomon had came from Egypt and from Kue; the king’s traders bought them from Kue at a fixed price.
17 And they could import from Egypt a chariot for six hundred shekels of silver and a horse for one hundred fifty shekels, and thus they brought them out to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria by their own means.
2
1 Now Solomon purposed to build a house for the name of Jehovah and his royal palace.
2 And Solomon counted out seventy thousand men to bear burdens and eighty thousand men as stonecutters in the mountains and three thousand six hundred men to oversee them.
3 And Solomon sent word to Huram the king of Tyre, saying, As you did to David my father, in that you sent him cedars to build a house for him to dwell in, so do for me.
4 I am now about to build a house for the name of Jehovah my God to sanctify to Him, for the burning of fragrant incense before Him and the arranging of the rows of bread continually and the offering up of burnt offerings in the morning and in the evening, on Sabbaths and on new moons and on the appointed feasts of Jehovah our God, this being an ordinance for Israel forever.
5 And the house which I am building will be great; for greater is our God than all the gods.
6 But who is able to build Him a house? For the heavens and the heaven of heavens are not able to contain Him. And who am I, that I should build Him a house, except to burn incense before Him?
7 So now send me a man, skillful in working with gold and with silver and with bronze and with iron and with purple and crimson and blue cloth, and who knows how to make engravings, to be with the skillful men who are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father prepared.
8 Send me timber of cedar, cypress, and algum from Lebanon, for I know that your servants know how to cut the timber of Lebanon. And now my servants will be with your servants,
9 To prepare for me timber in abundance; for the house which I am building will be great and wonderful.
10 And now I will give to your servants, the hewers who cut timber, twenty thousand cors of crushed wheat and twenty thousand cors of barley and twenty thousand baths of wine and twenty thousand baths of oil.
11 And Huram the king of Tyre answered by letter, sending it to Solomon, saying, Because Jehovah loves His people, He has made you king over them.
12 Huram also said, Blessed be Jehovah the God of Israel, who made the heavens and the earth, who has given King David a wise son endowed with discernment and understanding, who will build a house for Jehovah and his royal palace.
13 And now I have sent a skillful man, endowed with understanding, Huram-abi,
14 The son of a woman of the daughters of Dan, whose father is a man of Tyre, who knows how to work in gold and in silver and in bronze and in iron, in stones and in wood, in purple, in blue cloth, and in fine linen and in crimson cloth and who knows how to make all kinds of engraving, and to fashion any design which is given to him, to work with your skillful men and the skillful men of my lord David your father.
15 And now let my lord send to his servants the wheat and the barley, the oil and the wine of which he spoke;
16 And we will cut whatever timber you need from Lebanon and bring it to you on rafts by sea to Joppa, and you can bring it up to Jerusalem.
17 And Solomon numbered all the men who were sojourners who were in the land of Israel after the census which David his father had made of them, and they found one hundred fifty-three thousand six hundred.
18 And he appointed seventy thousand of them as burden bearers and eighty thousand as stonecutters in the mountains, and three thousand six hundred overseers to make the people work.
3
1 And Solomon began to build the house of Jehovah in Jerusalem on Mount Moriah, where He had appeared to David his father, at the place that David prepared, on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
2 And he began to build on the second day of the second month in the fourth year of his reign.
3 And these are the foundations which Solomon laid to build the house of God. The length in cubits, according to the former standard, was sixty cubits, and it was twenty cubits wide.
4 And the portico that was at the front was as long as the width of the house, twenty cubits; and its height was one hundred twenty cubits. And he overlaid it within with pure gold.
5 And the greater house he overlaid with cypress wood, and he overlaid it with fine gold and put palm trees and chains on it.
6 And he adorned the house with precious stones for beauty, and the gold was gold from Parvaim.
7 And he overlaid the house — the beams, the thresholds, and its walls and its doors — with gold; and he carved cherubim on the walls.
8 And he made the house of the Holy of Holies; its length, across the width of the house, was twenty cubits, and its width was twenty cubits; and he overlaid it with fine gold amounting to six hundred talents.
9 And the weight of the nails was fifty shekels of gold, and the upper chambers he overlaid with gold.
10 And he made two cherubim of sculptured work in the house of the Holy of Holies, and they overlaid them with gold.
11 And the wingspan of the cherubim was twenty cubits; the wing of one, of five cubits, touched the wall of the house, and its other wing, of five cubits, touched the wing of the other cherub.
12 And the wing of the other cherub, of five cubits, touched the wall of the house, and its other wing, of five cubits, was attached to the wing of the first cherub.
13 The wings of these cherubim were spread out twenty cubits in length; and they stood on their feet, and their faces were toward the house.
14 And he made the veil of blue and purple and crimson cloth and fine linen, and he put cherubim upon it.
15 And at the front of the house he made two pillars, thirty-five cubits high; and the capital that was on the top of each was five cubits high.
16 And he made chains in the innermost sanctuary and set them on the tops of the pillars, and he made one hundred pomegranates and put them on the chains.
17 And he erected the pillars in front of the temple, one on the right and one on the left; and he called the name of the one on the right Jachin and the name of the one on the left Boaz.
4
1 And he made an altar of bronze; its length was twenty cubits, and its width was twenty cubits, and its height was ten cubits.
2 And he made the molten sea, ten cubits from brim to brim, fully round; and it was five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits encompassed it.
3 And under it there were figures of oxen all around, encircling it, for ten cubits, surrounding the sea all around; the oxen were cast in two rows when they were cast.
4 It stood upon twelve oxen, three facing north and three facing west and three facing south and three facing east; and the sea was upon them, and all their hindquarters were within.
5 And it was a handbreadth thick; and its brim was like the work of a cup’s brim, like the flower of a lily; it could hold three thousand baths.
6 And he made ten basins in which to wash, to rinse the things for the burnt offering, and he set five on the right and five on the left; but the sea was for the priests to wash in.
7 Then he made the ten golden lampstands according to the ordinance for them, and he put them in the temple, five on the right and five on the left.
8 And he made ten tables and placed them in the temple, five on the right and five on the left; and he made one hundred golden bowls.
9 And he made the court of the priests and the great court and the doors of the court, and he overlaid their doors with bronze.
10 And he put the sea on the right side of the house, on the east side southward.
11 And Huram made the pots and the shovels and the bowls. Thus Huram finished doing the work that he was doing for King Solomon in the house of God:
12 The two pillars and the bowls and the two capitals that were at the top of the pillars and the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were at the top of the pillars;
13 And the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars.
14 He also made the bases, and he made the basins upon the bases;
15 And the one sea and the twelve oxen under it.
16 And the pots and the shovels and the forks and all their vessels that Huram-abi made for King Solomon for the house of Jehovah were of burnished bronze.
17 The king cast them in the plain of the Jordan, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zeredah.
18 And Solomon made all these vessels in great number, for the weight of bronze could not be ascertained.
19 And Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of God: the golden altar; and the tables upon which the bread of the Presence was put;
20 And the lampstands and their lamps of pure gold to burn according to their ordinance before the innermost sanctuary;
21 And the flowers and the lamps and the tongs, of gold, of purest gold;
22 And the snuffers and the bowls and the small cups and the firepans, of pure gold; and the entrance of the house, its innermost doors for the Holy of Holies, and the doors of the house of the temple, of gold.
5
1 Thus all the work that Solomon did for the house of Jehovah was finished. And Solomon brought in the things that David his father had sanctified, even the silver and the gold and all the vessels, and he put them in the treasuries of the house of God.
2 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the fathers’ houses of the children of Israel, to Jerusalem in order to bring up the Ark of the Covenant of Jehovah from the city of David, which is Zion.
3 And all the men of Israel assembled themselves before the king at the feast, which is in the seventh month.
4 And when all the elders of Israel came, the Levites took up the Ark.
5 And they brought up the Ark and the Tent of Meeting and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; the priests and Levites brought them up.
6 And King Solomon and all the assembly of Israel, who had assembled before him before the Ark, were sacrificing sheep and oxen which could not be counted or numbered for multitude.
7 And the priests brought the Ark of the Covenant of Jehovah to its place, into the innermost sanctuary of the house, into the Holy of Holies under the wings of the cherubim.
8 And the cherubim spread out their wings over the place of the Ark, and the cherubim covered the Ark and its poles overhead.
9 And the poles extended out, so that the ends of the poles could be seen coming out from the Ark before the innermost sanctuary, but they were not seen outside; and they are there to this day.
10 There was nothing in the Ark except the two tablets, which Moses put there at Horeb when Jehovah made a covenant with the children of Israel when they came out of Egypt.
11 And when the priests came out of the Holy Place (for all the priests who were present had sanctified themselves without regard to their divisions),
12 All the Levitical singers, Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, and their sons and their brothers clothed in fine linen, with cymbals and with harps and lyres, were standing east of the altar; and one hundred twenty priests who blew the trumpets were with them.
13 And when the trumpeters and the singers were one to make themselves heard with one voice in praising and in giving thanks to Jehovah, and when they lifted up their voice with trumpets and with cymbals and with musical instruments in praise to Jehovah, saying, For He is good, for His lovingkindness is forever; then the house, the house of Jehovah, was filled with a cloud.
14 And the priests were not able to stand and minister because of the cloud, for the glory of Jehovah filled the house of God.
6
1 Then Solomon said, Jehovah has said that He would dwell in deep darkness.
2 Yet I have built You a lofty house, even a place for You to dwell in forever.
3 And the king turned about and blessed all the congregation of Israel while all the congregation of Israel stood.
4 And he said, Blessed be Jehovah the God of Israel, who spoke with His mouth to David my father and fulfilled it with His hands, saying,
5 Since the day when I brought My people out from the land of Egypt, I have not chosen a city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house for My name that it might be there; nor did I choose a man to be a ruler over My people Israel;
6 But I have chosen Jerusalem that My name might be there, and I have chosen David to be over My people Israel.
7 And it was on David my father’s heart to build a house for the name of Jehovah the God of Israel;
8 But Jehovah said to David my father, Because it was on your heart to build a house for My name, you have done well that it was on your heart;
9 However you will not build the house, but your son, who will come forth from your loins, he will build the house for My name.
10 And Jehovah has established His word which He spoke; for I have risen up in the place of David my father, and I sit upon the throne of Israel, as Jehovah promised, and I have built the house for the name of Jehovah the God of Israel.
11 And there I have set the Ark, in which is the covenant of Jehovah, which He made with the children of Israel.
12 Then he stood before the altar of Jehovah in front of all the congregation of Israel and spread out his hands.
13 Now Solomon had made a bronze platform, five cubits long and five cubits wide and three cubits high and had put it in the midst of the court; and he stood on it. Then he knelt on his knees in front of all the congregation of Israel and spread out his hands toward the heavens.
14 And he said, O Jehovah, God of Israel, there is no god like You, in heaven or on earth, who keeps covenant and lovingkindness with Your servants who walk before You with all their heart;
15 You who have kept with Your servant David my father that which You have promised him; indeed You have spoken with Your mouth and have fulfilled with Your hand this day.
16 And now, O Jehovah, God of Israel, keep with Your servant David my father that which You promised him, saying, There shall not fail you a man in My sight to sit upon the throne of Israel, if only your children keep their way by walking in My law as you have walked before Me.
17 Now therefore, O Jehovah, God of Israel, may Your word that You spoke to Your servant David be confirmed.
18 But will God indeed dwell with man on the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heaven of heavens are not able to contain You, how much less this house which I have built.
19 Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplication, O Jehovah my God, and listen to the cry and to the prayer which Your servant is praying before You;
20 That Your eyes may be open toward this house day and night, toward the place of which You have said that You would put Your name there, to listen to the prayer which Your servant will pray toward this place.
21 And listen to the supplications of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear then from Your dwelling place, from the heavens; and when You hear, forgive.
22 If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath, and he comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this house;
23 Then hear from the heavens and act and judge Your servants, repaying the wicked by bringing his way on his head and justifying the righteous by giving to him according to his righteousness.
24 And if Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and they turn and confess Your name and pray and make supplication before You in this house;
25 Then hear from the heavens, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave to them and to their fathers.
26 When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name and turn from their sin when You afflict them;
27 Then hear in the heavens and forgive the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel; indeed teach them the good way in which they should walk, and bring rain upon Your land, which You have given to Your people for an inheritance.
28 If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, swarming locust or consuming locust, if their enemies besiege them in the land of their cities, whatever plague, and whatever sickness there is;
29 Whatever prayer, whatever supplication, which will be made by any man or by all Your people Israel, each knowing his own plague and his own pain, when he spreads out his hands toward this house;
30 Then hear from the heavens Your dwelling place, and forgive and render to each man according to all his ways, whose heart You know; for You, You alone know the hearts of the children of men;
31 That they may fear You to walk in Your ways all the days that they live in the land which You have given to our fathers.
32 And also concerning the foreigner, who is not of Your people Israel but comes from a distant country for the sake of Your great name and Your strong hand and Your outstretched arm, when they come and pray toward this house;
33 Then hear from the heavens, from Your dwelling place, and act according to all that the foreigner calls upon You for, that all the peoples of the earth may know Your name and that they may fear You, as do Your people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by Your name.
34 If Your people go out to battle against their enemies by the way which You have sent them, and they pray to You toward this city which You have chosen and the house which I have built for Your name;
35 Then hear their prayer and their supplication from the heavens, and maintain their cause.
36 If they have sinned against You (for there is no man who does not sin) and You are angry with them and deliver them up to the enemy, so that they are carried away captive unto a land, far away or nearby;
37 But if they take it to heart in the land where they were carried captive, and they repent and make supplication to You in the land of those who carried them away captive, saying, We have sinned and committed iniquity and acted wickedly;
38 And if they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity, where they have been carried captive, and they pray toward their land that You have given to their fathers, and the city that You have chosen, and to the house that I have built for Your name;
39 Then hear their prayer and their supplications from the heavens, from Your dwelling place, and maintain their cause, and forgive Your people who have sinned against You.
40 Now, O my God, may Your eyes be open and Your ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place.
41 And now arise, O Jehovah God, to Your resting place, / You and the Ark of Your strength. / Let Your priests, O Jehovah God, be clothed with salvation, / And let Your saints rejoice in what is good.
42 O Jehovah God, do not turn away the face of Your anointed one, / Remember Your lovingkindness to David Your servant.
7
1 And when Solomon had finished praying, the fire came down from heaven and devoured the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of Jehovah filled the house.
2 And the priests were not able to enter the house of Jehovah, for the glory of Jehovah filled the house of Jehovah.
3 And all the children of Israel, seeing the fire coming down and the glory of Jehovah upon the house, bowed down on the pavement with their faces to the ground and worshipped and thanked Jehovah, saying, For He is good; for His lovingkindness endures forever.
4 And the king and all the people offered sacrifices before Jehovah.
5 And King Solomon offered a sacrifice of twenty-two thousand oxen and one hundred twenty thousand sheep. Thus the king and all the people dedicated the house of God.
6 And the priests stood at their posts and the Levites with the musical instruments of Jehovah, which David the king had made for praising Jehovah (for His lovingkindness endures forever) whenever David praised with their help. And the priests sounded the trumpets opposite them, and all Israel was standing.
7 And Solomon sanctified the middle of the court that was before the house of Jehovah, for there he offered the burnt offering and the fat of peace offerings because the bronze altar which Solomon had made was not able to receive the burnt offering and the meal offering and the fat.
8 And Solomon held a feast at that time for seven days, and all Israel with him, a very great congregation, from the entrance of Hamath to the Brook of Egypt.
9 And on the eighth day they held a solemn assembly, for they held the dedication of the altar seven days and the feast seven days;
10 And on the twenty-third day of the seventh month he sent the people away to their tents, rejoicing and happy in heart for the goodness that Jehovah had shown to David and to Solomon and to Israel His people.
11 Thus Solomon finished the house of Jehovah and the king’s house; and all that had come up in Solomon’s heart to do in the house of Jehovah and in his own house he successfully accomplished.
12 And Jehovah appeared to Solomon in the night and said to him, I have heard your prayer and have chosen this place for Myself as a house of sacrifice.
13 If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people,
14 And My people, who are called by My name, humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their evil ways; then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land.
15 Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to the prayer from this place.
16 For now I have chosen and have sanctified this house, that My name may be there forever; and My eyes and My heart will be there continually.
17 And as for you, if you walk before Me, as David your father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded you and keep My statutes and My ordinances;
18 Then I will establish the throne of your kingdom, as I covenanted with David your father, saying, You will not lack a man to be ruler in Israel.
19 But if you turn away and forsake My statutes and My commandments that I have put before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them;
20 Then I will pluck them out of My land which I have given them, and this house, which I have sanctified for My name, I will cast out of My sight and make it a proverb and a byword among all the peoples.
21 And concerning this house, which is so high, everyone who passes by it will be astonished and say, Why has Jehovah done this to this land and to this house?
22 And they will say, Because they forsook Jehovah, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold of other gods, and they worshipped them and served them; therefore He has brought all this evil upon them.
8
1 And at the end of the twenty years in which Solomon had built the house of Jehovah and his own house,
2 He built the cities which Huram had given to him and settled the children of Israel there.
3 Then Solomon went to Hamath-zobah and overcame it.
4 And he built Tadmor in the wilderness and all the storage cities which he built in Hamath.
5 And he built upper Beth-horon and lower Beth-horon, fortified cities with walls, gates, and bars,
6 And Baalath and all the storage cities that Solomon had, even all the cities for the chariots, and the cities for the horsemen and all that Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem and in Lebanon and in all the land of his dominion.
7 All the people who were left of the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, who were not of Israel,
8 From their descendants who were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel had not destroyed utterly, these Solomon levied as forced labor, as they are unto this day.
9 But Solomon did not make slaves of the children of Israel for his work, for they were the men of war and the officers over his captains and the officers over his chariots and his horsemen.
10 And these were the chief of the officers of King Solomon, two hundred fifty, who ruled over the people.
11 Then Solomon brought up Pharaoh’s daughter from the city of David into the house which he had built for her; for he said, My wife shall not dwell in the house of David the king of Israel, for the places where the Ark of Jehovah has entered are holy.
12 Then Solomon offered up burnt offerings to Jehovah on the altar of Jehovah which he had built before the portico,
13 Even as required daily, offering them up according to the commandment of Moses, on the Sabbaths and on the new moons and on the appointed feasts three times in a year, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Tabernacles.
14 And according to the ordinance of David his father, he appointed the divisions of the priests for their service, and the Levites for their charges to praise and to minister before the priests even as required daily, and the gatekeepers by their divisions at every gate; for thus was the commandment of David the man of God.
15 And they did not turn aside from the commandment of the king concerning the priests and the Levites concerning any matter and concerning the treasuries.
16 So all the work of Solomon was carried out, from the day of the foundation of the house of Jehovah even until its completion. Thus the house of Jehovah was finished.
17 Then Solomon went to Ezion-geber and to Eloth on the shore of the sea, in the land of Edom.
18 And Huram sent him ships by his servants, and servants who knew the sea; and they went with the servants of Solomon to Ophir and took four hundred fifty talents of gold from there and brought it to King Solomon.
9
1 And the queen of Sheba had heard of Solomon’s fame, and she came to Jerusalem with a very large retinue and with camels bearing spices and much gold and precious stones to test Solomon with hard questions. And when she came to Solomon, she spoke with him all that was on her heart.
2 And Solomon answered every matter of hers, and there was nothing hidden from Solomon that he did not answer her.
3 And when the queen of Sheba saw the wisdom of Solomon and the house that he had built
4 And the food of his table and the seating of his servants and the service and apparel of his ministers and his cupbearers and their apparel and his ascent by which he went up to the house of Jehovah, there was no more spirit in her.
5 And she said to the king, The word that I heard in my land concerning your deeds and your wisdom is true,
6 But I did not believe their words until I came and my own eyes saw. And indeed the half of the greatness of your wisdom was not told me, and you exceed the report that I heard.
7 Happy are your men! And happy are these your servants, who stand before you continually and hear your wisdom!
8 Blessed be Jehovah your God, who has delighted in you and set you upon His throne as king for Jehovah your God. Because your God loves Israel to establish them forever, He has placed you as king over them to execute justice and righteousness.
9 And she gave the king one hundred twenty talents of gold and a very great store of spices and precious stones, and there had never been spices like those which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
10 Moreover Huram’s servants and Solomon’s servants who brought gold from Ophir brought algum trees and precious stones.
11 And the king made of the algum trees steps for the house of Jehovah and for the king’s house and lyres and harps for the singers; such as these had not been seen before in the land of Judah.
12 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, whatever she asked for, besides that which she brought to the king. And she turned and went to her own land, she and her servants.
13 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred sixty-six talents of gold,
14 Besides that which was brought by the traders and the merchants and by all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land, who brought gold and silver to Solomon.
15 And King Solomon made two hundred large shields of beaten gold; he put six hundred shekels of beaten gold upon each large shield.
16 And he made three hundred smaller shields of beaten gold; he put three hundred shekels of gold upon each smaller shield. And the king put them in the Lebanon Forest House.
17 And the king made a large ivory throne and overlaid it with pure gold.
18 And the throne had six steps, and a footstool of gold was attached to the throne, and there were armrests on either side next to the place of the seat, and two lions stood next to the armrests.
19 And twelve lions stood there upon the six steps on either side. Nothing like it had ever been made in any kingdom.
20 And all King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the Lebanon Forest House were of pure gold; silver was considered as nothing in the days of Solomon.
21 For the king had a fleet which went to Tarshish with Huram’s servants. Once every three years the fleet from Tarshish came bearing gold and silver and ivory and apes and peacocks.
22 And King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in wealth and in wisdom.
23 And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
24 And they each brought their tribute, vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and robes, weapons and spices, horses and mules, so much year by year.
25 And Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots; and twelve thousand horsemen, which he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king at Jerusalem.
26 And he was the ruler over all the kings from the River unto the land of the Philistines and unto the border of Egypt.
27 And the king caused silver to be as plentiful as stones in Jerusalem, and cedars, like the sycamores that are in the lowlands.
28 And they brought horses for Solomon from Egypt and from all the lands.
29 And the rest of the acts of Solomon, the first and the last, are they not written in the chronicles of Nathan the prophet and in the prophecy of Ahijah the Shilonite and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nebat?
30 And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.
31 And Solomon slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son reigned in his place.
10
1 Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king.
2 And when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was in Egypt, where he had fled from Solomon the king; and Jeroboam returned from Egypt;
3 And they sent word to him and called him), Jeroboam and all of Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying,
4 Your father made our yoke hard. Now therefore make the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke that he put upon us lighter, and we will serve you.
5 And he said to them, Go away for another three days, then return to me. And the people went away.
6 Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the elders who attended Solomon his father while he was alive, saying, What counsel do you give me to return as an answer to this people?
7 And they spoke to him, saying, If you will be good to this people and please them and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants always.
8 But he forsook the counsel of the elders with which they counseled him and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him, who attended him.
9 And he said to them, What counsel do you give me that we may return an answer to this people who have spoken to me, saying, Lighten the yoke that your father put upon us?
10 And the young men who grew up with him spoke with him, saying, Thus shall you say to the people who have spoken to you, saying, Your father made our yoke heavy, but you must make it lighter on us; thus shall you say to them, My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins.
11 And now, whereas my father laid a heavy yoke upon you, I will increase your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
12 And Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day as the king had spoken, saying, Return to me on the third day.
13 And the king answered them harshly; and King Rehoboam forsook the counsel of the elders
14 And spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, I will make your yoke heavy, and I will add to it; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
15 So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was of God that Jehovah might establish His word which He had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16 And when all Israel saw that the king would not listen to them, the people returned an answer to the king, saying, What portion do we have in David? Neither do we have an inheritance in the son of Jesse. Each one to your tents, O Israel. Now see to your own house, O David. And all Israel went to their tents.
17 But as for the children of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.
18 Then King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, who was over the forced labor, and the children of Israel stoned him to death. And King Rehoboam made haste to get up into his chariot and flee to Jerusalem.
19 So Israel has rebelled against the house of David until this day.
11
1 And when Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he gathered the house of Judah and Benjamin, one hundred eighty thousand choice warriors, to wage war with Israel in order to return the kingdom to Rehoboam.
2 But the word of Jehovah came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying,
3 Speak to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, the king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, saying,
4 Thus says Jehovah, You shall not go up and wage war with your brothers. Every man return to his house; for this matter is of Me. So they listened to the words of Jehovah and returned from going against Jeroboam.
5 And Rehoboam dwelt in Jerusalem and built cities for defense in Judah.
6 He built Bethlehem and Etam and Tekoa
7 And Beth-zur and Soco and Adullam
8 And Gath and Mareshah and Ziph
9 And Adoraim and Lachish and Azekah
10 And Zorah and Aijalon and Hebron, which are in Judah and in Benjamin, fortified cities.
11 And he strengthened the fortresses and put commanders in them, as well as stores of food and oil and wine,
12 And in every city, shields and spears; and he made them exceedingly strong. And Judah and Benjamin belonged to him.
13 And the priests and the Levites who had been throughout all Israel presented themselves to him out of all their territory;
14 For the Levites abandoned their pasture lands and their property and went to Judah and Jerusalem because Jeroboam and his sons cast them out so that they could not function as priests to Jehovah.
15 And he appointed priests for himself for the high places and for the goats and the calves that he had made.
16 And those from all the tribes of Israel who set their hearts to seek Jehovah the God of Israel came after them to Jerusalem to sacrifice to Jehovah, the God of their fathers.
17 And they strengthened the kingdom of Judah and supported Rehoboam the son of Solomon for three years, for they walked in the way of David and Solomon for three years.
18 And Rehoboam took to himself for his wife Mahalath the daughter of Jerimoth the son of David and of Abihail the daughter of Eliab the son of Jesse.
19 And she bore him sons: Jeush and Shemariah and Zaham.
20 And after her he took Maacah the daughter of Absalom; and she bore him Abijah and Attai and Ziza and Shelomith.
21 And Rehoboam loved Maacah the daughter of Absalom above all his wives and his concubines. (For he had taken eighteen wives and sixty concubines and begot twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.)
22 And Rehoboam appointed Abijah the son of Maacah to be chief prince, the leader among his brothers; for he intended to make him king.
23 And he acted wisely and dispersed all his sons throughout all the lands of Judah and Benjamin, to all the fortified cities; and he gave them food in abundance and sought many wives for them.
12
1 And when the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and when it was strong, he and all Israel with him forsook the law of Jehovah.
2 Then in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak the king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, because they had been unfaithful to Jehovah,
3 With one thousand two hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen. And the people who came with him from Egypt were without number: Libyans, Sukkiim, and Cushites.
4 And he captured the fortified cities which belonged to Judah and came as far as Jerusalem.
5 And Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and the princes of Judah who were gathered in Jerusalem because of Shishak; and he said to them, Thus says Jehovah, You have forsaken Me, so I also have forsaken you, delivering you into the hand of Shishak.
6 So the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, Jehovah is righteous.
7 And when Jehovah saw that they had humbled themselves the word of Jehovah came to Shemaiah, saying, They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them, but I will give them a little deliverance, and My wrath will not be poured out on Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak;
8 For they will become his servants that they may know the difference between serving Me and serving the kingdoms of the lands.
9 And Shishak the king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem and took away the treasures of the house of Jehovah and the treasures of the king’s house; indeed he took away all. And he took away the shields of gold that Solomon had made.
10 And King Rehoboam made shields of bronze in their place and committed them into the hands of the captains of the guard, who kept the entrance of the king’s house.
11 And whenever the king went into the house of Jehovah, the guards came and carried them and returned them to the guardroom.
12 And when he humbled himself, the anger of Jehovah turned away from him, and He did not destroy them completely; and also things in Judah were good.
13 So King Rehoboam strengthened himself in Jerusalem and reigned. Now Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city where Jehovah had chosen, out of all the tribes of Israel, to put His name. And his mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess.
14 And he did what was evil, because he did not prepare his heart to seek Jehovah.
15 And the acts of Rehoboam, the first and the last, are they not written in the chronicles of Shemaiah the prophet and Iddo the seer according to the genealogical records? And there were wars between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually.
16 And Rehoboam slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David. And Abijah his son reigned in his place.
13
1 In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, Abijah began to reign over Judah.
2 He reigned three years in Jerusalem, and his mother’s name was Micaiah, the daughter of Uriel from Gibeah. And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam.
3 And Abijah began the battle with an army of valiant men of war, four hundred thousand choice men. And Jeroboam set the battle in array against him with eight hundred thousand choice men, mighty men of valor.
4 And Abijah stood up on Mount Zemaraim, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, and said, Hear me, Jeroboam and all Israel:
5 Do you not know that Jehovah the God of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel to David forever, to him and to his sons, by a covenant of salt?
6 But Jeroboam the son of Nebat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, rose up and rebelled against his lord.
7 And worthless men, just scoundrels, gathered around him and strengthened themselves against Rehoboam the son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was young and tender in heart and could not withstand them.
8 And now you think that you can withstand the kingdom of Jehovah in the hand of the sons of David because you are a great multitude and with you are the golden calves that Jeroboam made as gods for you.
9 Have you not cast out the priests of Jehovah, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites? And you made for yourselves priests like those of the peoples of other lands, so that anyone who comes to consecrate himself with a bull of the herd and seven rams becomes a priest of what are not gods.
10 But as for us, Jehovah is our God, and we have not forsaken Him; and the priests who minister to Jehovah are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites are in their work.
11 And they offer in smoke to Jehovah burnt offerings morning by morning and evening by evening as well as fragrant incense, and they set the rows of bread upon the pure table, and they care for the golden lampstand and its lamps that it may burn evening by evening; for we keep the charge of Jehovah our God, but you have forsaken Him.
12 And here with us is God at our head and His priests with the trumpets of alarm to sound out against you. O children of Israel, do not fight against Jehovah, the God of your fathers, for you will not succeed.
13 Now Jeroboam had sent an ambush around to come up from behind them. So they were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them.
14 And when Judah looked back, the battle was right on them, before and behind; and they cried out to Jehovah, and the priests sounded the trumpets.
15 And the men of Judah shouted; and when the men of Judah shouted, God struck Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.
16 And the children of Israel fled before Judah, and God gave them into their hand.
17 And Abijah and his people struck a great blow on them, so that five hundred thousand choice men from Israel fell slain.
18 Thus the children of Israel were subdued at that time; and the children of Judah prevailed, because they relied on Jehovah, the God of their fathers.
19 And Abijah pursued after Jeroboam and took cities from him: Bethel and its villages, and Jeshanah and its villages, and Ephron and its villages.
20 And Jeroboam never regained power during the days of Abijah; but Jehovah struck him, and he died.
21 And Abijah grew stronger; and he took to himself fourteen wives and begot twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.
22 And the rest of the acts of Abijah and his ways and his words are written in the commentary of the prophet Iddo.
14
1 And Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David. And Asa his son reigned in his place. In his days the land was quiet for ten years.
2 And Asa did what was good and upright in the sight of Jehovah his God;
3 For he removed the foreign altars and the high places and smashed the pillars and hewed down the Asherahs,
4 And he commanded Judah to pursue Jehovah, the God of their fathers, and perform the law and the commandment.
5 And from all the cities of Judah he removed the high places and the incense altars. And the kingdom was quiet before him.
6 And he built fortress cities in Judah; for the land was quiet and there was no war against him during those years, because Jehovah had given him rest.
7 For he said to Judah, Let us build these cities and put around them walls with towers, gates, and bars. The land is still before us because we have pursued Jehovah our God; we have pursued Him, and He has given us rest all around. So they built and prospered.
8 And Asa had an army of three hundred thousand from Judah who bore shields and spears and of two hundred eighty thousand from Benjamin who bore hand shields and drew bows; all these were mighty men of valor.
9 And Zerah the Cushite went out to them with an army of one million men and three hundred chariots, and he came to Mareshah.
10 And Asa went out before him and set the battle in array in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.
11 And Asa called out to Jehovah his God and said, O Jehovah, there is none besides You to help us, between the mighty and those without strength. Help us, O Jehovah our God, for we trust in You, and in Your name we have come against this multitude. O Jehovah, You are our God; do not let mortal man prevail against You.
12 And Jehovah struck the Cushites before Asa and before Judah, and the Cushites fled.
13 And Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar; and so many of the Cushites fell that they could not recover, for they were shattered before Jehovah and before His army. And they carried away very much spoil.
14 And they struck all the cities surrounding Gerar, for the fear of Jehovah was upon them. And they plundered all the cities, for there was much plunder in them.
15 And they also struck the cattle tents and carried away sheep in abundance and camels, and they returned to Jerusalem.
15
1 And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded.
2 And he went out to meet Asa and said to him, Hear me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin: Jehovah is with you while you are with Him; and if you pursue Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you.
3 Now for a long time Israel has been without the true God and without a teaching priest and without law.
4 But in their distress they turned to Jehovah the God of Israel and sought Him, and He was found by them.
5 For in those times there was no peace to him who went out or to him who came in, for great afflictions were upon all the inhabitants of the lands.
6 For they were crushed, nation against nation and city against city, for God afflicted them with every distress.
7 But you be strong and do not let your hands fail, for there is reward for your labor.
8 And when Asa heard these words, that is, the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he strengthened himself and put away the detestable things from all the land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities that he had taken in the hill country of Ephraim. And he restored the altar of Jehovah, which was before the portico of Jehovah.
9 And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin and the sojourners with them from Ephraim and Manasseh and Simeon, for many from Israel threw in their lot with him when they saw that Jehovah his God was with him.
10 So they gathered themselves at Jerusalem in the third month in the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa.
11 And they sacrificed to Jehovah on that day from the spoil they had brought, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep.
12 And they entered into a covenant to pursue Jehovah, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul,
13 And covenanted that anyone who did not pursue Jehovah the God of Israel would be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman.
14 And they swore to Jehovah with a loud voice and with shouting and with trumpets and with horns.
15 And all Judah rejoiced over the oath, for with all their heart they swore and with all their desire they sought Him. And He was found by them, and Jehovah gave them rest all around.
16 And he also removed Maacah, the mother of Asa the king, from being queen mother because she had made for Asherah an abominable image; and Asa cut down her abominable image and crushed it to powder and burned it at the brook Kidron.
17 But the high places were not taken away from Israel; otherwise Asa’s heart was perfect all his days.
18 And he brought into the house of God the things that his father had sanctified and that he had sanctified — silver and gold and vessels.
19 And there was no war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign.
16
1 In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha the king of Israel went up against Judah and built Ramah that he might prevent anyone from going out or coming to Asa the king of Judah.
2 And Asa brought out silver and gold from the treasures of the house of Jehovah and the king’s house and sent them to Ben-hadad the king of Syria who was dwelling in Damascus, saying,
3 There is an alliance between me and you as there was between my father and your father. I am now sending you silver and gold; go, break your alliance with Baasha the king of Israel, so that he goes away from me.
4 And Ben-hadad listened to King Asa. And he sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel, and they struck Ijon and Dan and Abel-maim and all the store cities of Naphtali.
5 And when Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah and ceased his work.
6 And Asa the king took all Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber, with which Baasha had built it, and built Geba and Mizpah with them.
7 And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa the king of Judah and said to him, Because you have trusted in the king of Syria and have not trusted in Jehovah your God, therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped out of your hand.
8 Were not the Cushites and the Lubim a large host, with a very great abundance of chariots and horsemen? And because you trusted in Jehovah, He gave them into your hands.
9 For the eyes of Jehovah run to and fro throughout all the earth to strengthen those whose heart is perfect toward Him. You have acted foolishly in this matter; hence from this time on you will have wars.
10 Then Asa became angry with the seer and put him in prison in stocks, for he was in a rage against him because of this matter. And Asa oppressed some of the people at that time.
11 And the acts of Asa, the first and the last, are there written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
12 And in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa became diseased in his feet; his disease was very severe, yet even in his disease he pursued not Jehovah but the physicians.
13 And Asa slept with his fathers and died in the forty-first year of his reign.
14 And they buried him in his own grave, which he had hewn out for himself in the city of David. And they laid him in the resting place, which he had filled with various kinds of spices blended in the perfumer’s art, and they made a very great burning for him.
17
1 And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place, and he strengthened himself against Israel.
2 And he put forces in all the fortified cities of Judah and put garrisons in the land of Judah and in the cities of Ephraim that Asa his father had taken.
3 And Jehovah was with Jehoshaphat because he walked in the former ways of David his father; and he did not pursue the Baals
4 But pursued the God of his father and walked in His commandments and did not do as Israel had done.
5 Therefore Jehovah established the kingdom in his hand. And all Judah gave tribute to Jehoshaphat, and he had riches and honor in abundance.
6 And his heart was exalted in the ways of Jehovah; and even more, he removed the high places and the Asherahs from Judah.
7 And in the third year of his reign he sent his officials Ben-hail and Obadiah and Zechariah and Nethanel and Micaiah to teach in the cities of Judah;
8 And with them he sent the Levites Shemaiah and Nethaniah and Zebadiah and Asahel and Shemiramoth and Jehonathan and Adonijah and Tobijah and Tob-adonijah, the Levites; and with them, Elishama and Jehoram, the priests.
9 And they taught in Judah, having the book of the law of Jehovah; and they went around all the cities of Judah and taught among the people.
10 And the fear of Jehovah was upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were around Judah, and they waged no war against Jehoshaphat.
11 And some of the Philistines would bring presents to Jehoshaphat and silver as tribute; even the Arabians would bring him flocks, seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred male goats.
12 And Jehoshaphat grew exceedingly great, and he built fortresses and store cities in Judah.
13 And he conducted many works in the cities of Judah and had men of war, mighty men of valor, in Jerusalem.
14 And this was the muster of them according to their fathers’ house: of Judah, the captains of thousands: Adnah the captain, and with him three hundred thousand mighty men of valor;
15 And next to him was Jehohanan the captain, and with him two hundred eighty thousand;
16 And next to him was Amasiah the son of Zichri, who offered himself willingly to Jehovah, and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of valor.
17 And of Benjamin: Eliada, a mighty man of valor, and with him two hundred thousand men armed with bow and shield;
18 And next to him was Jehozabad, and with him one hundred eighty thousand armed for war.
19 These were those who served the king, besides those whom the king had put in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.
18
1 And Jehoshaphat had great riches and honor, and he allied himself in marriage with Ahab.
2 And after a number of years he came down to Ahab in Samaria. And Ahab slaughtered sheep and oxen in abundance for him and for the people who were with him, and persuaded him to go up against Ramoth-gilead.
3 And Ahab the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, Will you go with me to Ramoth-gilead? And Jehoshaphat said to him, I will be as you are; my people will be as your people; we will be with you in battle.
4 And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, Ask today, I beg you, for the word of Jehovah.
5 And the king of Israel assembled the prophets, four hundred men, and said to them, Shall we go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I refrain? And they said, Go up, and God will give it into the king’s hand.
6 But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not yet another prophet of Jehovah here, that we might inquire of him?
7 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of Jehovah; but I hate him, for he prophesies no good concerning me, but always evil. He is Micaiah the son of Imla. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so.
8 Then the king of Israel called a certain officer and said, Quickly bring Micaiah the son of Imla.
9 Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, sitting on the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying before them.
10 And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made for himself horns of iron, and he said, Thus says Jehovah, With these you will push the Syrians until you have destroyed them.
11 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and succeed; for Jehovah will deliver it into the king’s hand.
12 And the messenger who went to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, See, the words of the prophets, being of one accord, seem good to the king. So let your word, I beg you, be like one of them, and speak good.
13 And Micaiah said, As Jehovah lives, that which my God says, that will I speak.
14 And when he came to the king, the king said to him, Micaiah, shall we go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I refrain? And he said, Go up, and succeed; for they will be delivered into your hand.
15 And the king said to him, How many times shall I adjure you to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of Jehovah?
16 And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, like sheep that have no shepherd. And Jehovah said, These have no master; let each of them return to his house in peace.
17 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell you that he prophesies no good concerning me, but evil?
18 And Micaiah said, Hear therefore the word of Jehovah, I saw Jehovah sitting on His throne and all the host of heaven standing on His right hand and His left.
19 And Jehovah said, Who shall entice Ahab the king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said after this manner, and another said after that manner.
20 And there came forth a certain spirit and stood before Jehovah and said, I will entice him. And Jehovah said unto him, How?
21 And he said, I will go forth and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And He said, You shall entice him and surely prevail. Go forth, and do so.
22 So now Jehovah has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these your prophets, and Jehovah has spoken evil concerning you.
23 Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah approached and struck Micaiah upon the cheek and said, Which way did the Spirit of Jehovah pass from me to speak to you?
24 And Micaiah said, You will see on that day when you go from room to room to hide yourself.
25 And the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah and carry him back to Amon the governor of the city and to Joash the king’s son.
26 And you shall say, Thus says the king, Put this man in prison, and feed him with the bread of affliction and with the water of affliction until I return in peace.
27 And Micaiah said, If you return in peace at all, Jehovah has not spoken by me. And he said, Listen, O peoples, all of you!
28 And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead.
29 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself and enter into the battle; but you put on your robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and they went into the battle.
30 And the king of Syria commanded the captains of his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, but with the king of Israel only.
31 And when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, This is the king of Israel. And they surrounded him to fight, and Jehoshaphat cried out. And Jehovah helped him, and God diverted them from him.
32 And when the captains of the chariots perceived that he was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him.
33 And a man drew a bow at random and hit the king of Israel between the scale armor and the breastplate. And the king of Israel said to his charioteer, Turn your hand, and drive me out of the camp; for I am wounded.
34 And the battle increased that day; and the king of Israel was propped up in his chariot before the Syrians until the evening, and he died at the time of the setting of the sun.
19
1 Then Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned to his house in Jerusalem in peace.
2 And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer went out to meet him; and he said to King Jehoshaphat, Should you help the wicked and love those who hate Jehovah? Because of this matter wrath has come upon you from Jehovah.
3 Nevertheless there are some good things found in you, for you have purged the Asherahs out of the land and have set your heart to pursue God.
4 And Jehoshaphat dwelt in Jerusalem. And he went out again among the people, from Beer-sheba to the hill country of Ephraim, and brought them back to Jehovah, the God of their fathers.
5 And he set up judges in the land throughout all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city.
6 And he said to the judges, Consider what you are doing, for you judge not for man but for Jehovah, and He is with you in pronouncing judgment.
7 Now therefore let the fear of Jehovah be upon you; be careful how you act, for there is no iniquity with Jehovah our God, nor respect of persons, nor the taking of bribes.
8 And also in Jerusalem Jehoshaphat set up some of the Levites and priests and heads of the fathers’ houses in Israel for the judgment of Jehovah and for disputes. And they came back to Jerusalem.
9 And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall you do in the fear of Jehovah, faithfully and with a perfect heart.
10 And for every dispute that comes to you from among your brothers who dwell in their cities, whether concerning bloodshed or concerning law or commandment, statute or ordinance, you shall warn them, so that they are not guilty before Jehovah and so that wrath does not come upon you and your brothers. Thus shall you act, and you will not be guilty.
11 And now Amariah the chief priest is over you in all matters concerning Jehovah; and Zebadiah the son of Ishmael, the ruler of the house of Judah, is over you in all matters concerning the king. And the Levites will serve before you as officers. Be strong and take action, and may Jehovah be with the good.
20
1 Then after this the children of Moab and the children of Ammon and with them some of the Meunim came against Jehoshaphat for battle.
2 And some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, A great multitude has come upon you from beyond the sea, from Syria; and they are now in Hazazon-tamar (this is En-gedi).
3 And Jehoshaphat was afraid and set his face to pursue Jehovah, and he proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.
4 And Judah gathered themselves to seek help from Jehovah; indeed out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek Jehovah.
5 And Jehoshaphat stood up in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of Jehovah, before the new court;
6 And he said, O Jehovah, the God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven? And are You not ruler over all the kingdoms of the nations? And in Your hand is strength and might, and there is no one who can stand against You.
7 Did You not, O our God, dispossess the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel and give it forever to the seed of Abraham Your friend?
8 And they have dwelt in it and built in it for You a sanctuary for Your name, saying,
9 If evil comes upon us, the sword or judgment or pestilence or famine, we will stand before this house and before You — for Your name is in this house — and cry unto You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.
10 And now at this moment the children of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir, whom You would not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned away from them and did not destroy them —
11 At this moment they are rewarding us by coming to cast us out of Your possession, which You gave us as a possession.
12 O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no strength before this great multitude that is coming against us, and we do not know what to do; but our eyes are upon You.
13 And all Judah stood before Jehovah with their little ones, their wives, and their children.
14 Then the Spirit of Jehovah came upon Jahaziel the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, the Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly;
15 And he said, Listen, all you of Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat. Thus says Jehovah to you, Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of this great multitude, for the battle is not yours but God’s.
16 Tomorrow go down against them. They are coming up at the ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the river valley before the wilderness of Jeruel.
17 It is not for you to fight in this battle. Station yourselves; stand and see the salvation of Jehovah among you, O Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid nor dismayed. Tomorrow go out to meet them, for Jehovah is with you.
18 And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell before Jehovah to worship Jehovah.
19 And the Levites, of the children of the Kohathites and of the children of the Korahites, rose up to praise Jehovah the God of Israel with an exceedingly loud voice.
20 And they rose up early in the morning and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa. And as they went out, Jehoshaphat stood up and said, Hear me, O Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem. Believe in Jehovah your God, and you will be established; believe in His prophets, and you will succeed.
21 And when he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed them to sing to Jehovah and give thanks in holy array as they went out before the army and say, Give thanks to Jehovah, for His lovingkindness endures forever.
22 And when they began to shout in song and to praise, Jehovah set ambushes for the children of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who were coming out against Judah; and they were struck.
23 And the children of Ammon and Moab stood up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir to absolutely destroy and demolish them; and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, every man helped to destroy his neighbor.
24 And Judah came to the wilderness watchtower and looked upon the multitude; and there they were, fallen corpses on the ground, and no one escaped.
25 And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take the spoil of them as plunder, they found among them in abundance both possessions and corpses and precious vessels, and stripped these for themselves, more than they could carry. And they spent three days taking spoil, for there was much.
26 And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Beracah (for there they blessed Jehovah; therefore they have called the name of that place the valley of Beracah to this day).
27 And they turned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, with Jehoshaphat at their head, to go back to Jerusalem with rejoicing; for Jehovah had caused them to rejoice over their enemies.
28 And they came to Jerusalem with harps and lyres and trumpets, to the house of Jehovah.
29 And the fear of God was upon all the kingdoms of the lands when they heard that Jehovah had fought with the enemies of Israel.
30 So the kingdom of Jehoshaphat was quiet, for his God had given him rest all around.
31 And Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah; he was thirty-five years old when he began to reign. And he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.
32 And he walked in the way of his father Asa and did not turn away from it, doing what was right in the sight of Jehovah.
33 However the high places were not removed, nor as yet did the people set their heart after the God of their fathers.
34 And the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, the first and the last, are there written in the chronicle of Jehu the son of Hanani, which is inserted in the book of the kings of Israel.
35 Then after this, Jehoshaphat the king of Judah joined himself to Ahaziah the king of Israel; he acted wickedly in so doing.
36 And he joined himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Ezion-geber.
37 Then Eliezer the son of Dodavahu from Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because you have joined yourself with Ahaziah, Jehovah has destroyed your works. And the ships were shattered and were unable to go to Tarshish.
21
1 And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And Jehoram his son reigned in his place.
2 And he had brothers, the sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah and Jehiel and Zechariah and Azariahu and Michael and Shephatiah; all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah.
3 And their father gave them many gifts of silver and gold and precious things, along with fortified cities in Judah; but the kingdom he gave to Jehoram, for he was the firstborn.
4 And when Jehoram rose up over the kingdom of his father and strengthened himself, he slew all his brothers with the sword as well as the princes of Israel.
5 Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.
6 And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel and as the house of Ahab had done, for Ahab’s daughter was his wife; and he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah.
7 But Jehovah would not destroy the house of David, because of the covenant He had made with David and since He had promised that He would provide a lamp for him and for his children always.
8 In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and they installed a king over themselves.
9 So Jehoram crossed over with his captains and all his chariots with him. And he rose up at night and struck the Edomites all around him and the captains of the chariots.
10 So Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, as it is to this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time from under his hand, for he had forsaken Jehovah, the God of his fathers.
11 He also made high places in the hill country of Judah and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit harlotries and led Judah astray.
12 And a letter came to him from Elijah the prophet, saying, Thus says Jehovah, the God of David your father, Because you have not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat your father and in the ways of Asa the king of Judah
13 But have walked in the way of the kings of Israel and caused Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit harlotries, as the house of Ahab committed harlotries, and also have slain your brothers, those of your father’s house, who were better than you,
14 Jehovah is now striking your people and your children and your wives and all your possessions with a great plague;
15 And you yourself will be severely ill with a disease of your bowels, to the point that your bowels will come out day by day because of the illness.
16 And Jehovah stirred up the spirit of the Philistines and Arabians who are next to the Cushites against Jehoram.
17 And they came up against Judah and broke through into it and carried away all the possessions that were found in the king’s house as well as his sons and his wives; and no son was left to him except Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.
18 And after all this, Jehovah struck him in his bowels with the incurable illness.
19 And in the course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out because of the illness, and he died with severe illnesses. And his people did not make a burning for him, like the burning they had made for his fathers.
20 He was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And he departed with no one’s regret; and they buried him in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.
22
1 And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahaziah, his youngest son, king in his place, for the band of men who had come up to the camp with the Arabians had slain all the older sons; so Ahaziah the son of Jehoram the king of Judah reigned.
2 Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri.
3 He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor in acting wickedly.
4 And he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah, like the house of Ahab; for they were his counselors after the death of his father, to his own destruction.
5 He walked also in their counsel and went with Jehoram the son of Ahab the king of Israel to battle against Hazael the king of Syria at Ramoth-gilead. And the Syrians struck Joram,
6 And he returned to heal in Jezreel because of the wounds that they had inflicted on him in Ramah when he fought with Hazael the king of Syria. And Ahaziah the son of Jehoram, the king of Judah, went down to see Jehoram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, for he was sick.
7 Now the downfall of Ahaziah was of God, because he went to Joram. And when he arrived, he went out with Jehoram against Jehu the son of Nimshi, whom Jehovah had anointed to cut off the house of Ahab.
8 And when Jehu was executing judgment on the house of Ahab, he found the captains of Judah and the sons of Ahaziah’s brothers serving Ahaziah; and he slew them.
9 And he sought for Ahaziah, and they caught him; for he had been hiding in Samaria. And they brought him to Jehu and killed him. And they buried him, for they said, He is the son of Jehoshaphat, who pursued Jehovah with all his heart. And the house of Ahaziah did not have the strength to retain the kingdom.
10 And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she rose up and destroyed all the royal seed of the house of Judah.
11 But Jehoshabeath the daughter of the king took Joash the son of Ahaziah and stole him from among the sons of the king who were being killed. And she put him and his nurse in the bedroom. So Jehoshabeath the daughter of King Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest — for she was the sister of Ahaziah — hid him from Athaliah, so that she could not kill him.
12 And he was with them, hidden in the house of God, for six years. And Athaliah reigned over the land.
23
1 Then in the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened himself and took the captains of the hundreds — Azariah the son of Jeroham and Ishmael the son of Johanan and Azariah the son of Obed and Maaseiah the son of Adaiah and Elishaphat the son of Zichri — into a covenant with him.
2 And they went around in Judah and gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah and the chief fathers of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.
3 And all the congregation made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And Jehoiada said to them, Now, the king’s son shall reign, as Jehovah spoke concerning the sons of David.
4 This is the thing that you shall do: A third of you who come on duty on the Sabbath, of the priests and of the Levites, shall be the doorkeepers;
5 And another third shall keep watch in the king’s house, and another third shall keep watch in the Gate of the Foundation, and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of Jehovah.
6 But let no one come into the house of Jehovah except the priests and the ministering Levites; they can come because they are holy; but all the people shall keep the charge of Jehovah.
7 And the Levites shall surround the king, each man with his weapons in his hand; and whoever enters the house shall be put to death; and you shall be with the king in his comings and goings.
8 And the Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded them. And each took his men, those who came on duty on the Sabbath with those who went off duty on the Sabbath; for Jehoiada the priest did not dismiss the divisions.
9 And Jehoiada the priest gave the spears and the large and small shields that had belonged to King David, which were in the house of God, to the captains of the hundreds.
10 And he set all the people, each man with his javelin in his hand, from the right flank of the house to the left flank of the house, by the altar and by the house, to guard the king all around.
11 And they brought the king’s son out and put the crown on him and gave him the testimony, and they made him king. And Jehoiada and his sons anointed him, and they said, Long live the king!
12 Now when Athaliah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she went to the people at the house of Jehovah.
13 And she looked, and there was the king, standing by the pillar at the entrance, with the captains and their trumpets near the king. And all the people of the land rejoiced and blew the trumpets, and the singers with their musical instruments were leading the praise. And Athaliah tore her clothes and said, Treason! Treason!
14 And Jehoiada the priest brought out the captains of the hundreds who had been set over the army and said to them, Bring her out between the ranks, and anyone who follows her shall be killed with a sword; for the priest said, They shall not kill her in the house of Jehovah.
15 And they made way for her, and she went to the king’s house through the entrance of the horses’ gate; and they killed her there.
16 And Jehoiada made a covenant between himself and all the people and the king that they would be Jehovah’s people.
17 And all the people went to the house of Baal and broke it down: The altars to him and his images they broke up, and they slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars.
18 And Jehoiada placed officers of the house of Jehovah under the authority of the Levitical priests whom David had apportioned over the house of Jehovah, to offer up the burnt offerings of Jehovah, as was written in the law of Moses, with rejoicing and singing, according to the order of David.
19 And he set the doorkeepers at the doors of the house of Jehovah so that no one would enter who was unclean in any respect.
20 And Jehoiada gathered the captains of the hundreds and the nobles and the rulers of the people and all the people of the land and brought the king down from the house of Jehovah. And they went through the upper gate to the king’s house and set the king upon the throne of the kingdom.
21 And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet; for they had slain Athaliah with the sword.
24
1 Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Zibiah of Beer-sheba.
2 And Joash did what was right in the sight of Jehovah all the days of Jehoiada the priest.
3 And Jehoiada took two wives for him, and he begot sons and daughters.
4 Now after this it came up in Joash’s heart to restore the house of Jehovah.
5 And he gathered the priests and Levites and said to them, Go out to the cities of Judah, and collect from all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year; and you shall do the matter quickly. But the Levites did not act quickly.
6 So the king called for Jehoiada the chief priest and said to him, Why have you not required of the Levites to bring from Judah and from Jerusalem the tax levied by Moses the servant of Jehovah on the congregation of Israel for the Tent of the Testimony?
7 For the sons of the wicked Athaliah had broken up the house of God and even used the holy things of the house of Jehovah for the Baals.
8 And the king gave orders, and they made a chest and put it outside, by the gate of the house of Jehovah.
9 And they made a proclamation in Judah and in Jerusalem to bring to Jehovah the tax levied by Moses the servant of God on Israel in the wilderness.
10 And all the officers and all the people rejoiced, and they brought their taxes and cast them into the chest until they had finished.
11 And whenever the chest was brought to the king’s officer by the Levites, and whenever they saw that there was a large amount of money, the king’s scribe and the officer of the chief priest would come and empty the chest and take it and return it to its place. They did so daily, and they collected a large amount of money.
12 And the king and Jehoiada would give it to those who did the work of service of the house of Jehovah, and they would hire stone hewers and carpenters to restore the house of Jehovah, and also workers in iron and bronze to repair the house of Jehovah.
13 And those who did the work worked, and the restoration work progressed in their hands; and they restored the house of God to its proper proportions and strengthened it.
14 And when they had finished, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada and made with it vessels for the house of Jehovah, vessels for service and for offering up burnt offerings, and cups and vessels of gold and silver. And they offered up burnt offerings in the house of Jehovah continually all the days of Jehoiada.
15 And when Jehoiada became old and full of days, he died; and he was one hundred thirty years old when he died.
16 And they buried him in the city of David with the kings, because he had done well in Israel and with God and His house.
17 And after the death of Jehoiada the captains of Judah came and bowed down to the king; then the king listened to them.
18 And they forsook the house of Jehovah, the God of their fathers, and they served the Asherahs and the idols; so wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs.
19 And He sent prophets to them to bring them back to Jehovah; and they testified to them, but they did not pay attention.
20 Then the Spirit of God clothed Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest; and he stood above the people and said to them, Thus says God, Why do you transgress the commandments of Jehovah, so that you do not prosper? For you have forsaken Jehovah, and He has forsaken you.
21 So they conspired against him, and at the command of the king they stoned him to death in the court of the house of Jehovah.
22 Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness which Jehoiada his father had shown him, and he slew his son; and when he died he said, May Jehovah see and avenge!
23 And at the turn of the year the army of the Syrians came up against him and came to Judah and Jerusalem and destroyed all the leaders of the people from among the people and sent all their spoil to the king of Damascus.
24 Although the army of the Syrians had come with a small number of men, Jehovah delivered into their hand a very great army, because they had forsaken Jehovah, the God of their fathers. Thus they executed judgment on Joash.
25 And when they went from him — for they left him in great sickness — his servants conspired against him because of the blood of the sons of Jehoiada the priest and slew him on his bed; and he died, and they buried him in the city of David. However they did not bury him among the tombs of the kings.
26 Now those who conspired against him were Zabad the son of Shimeath the Ammonitess and Jehozabad the son of Shimrith the Moabitess.
27 And concerning his sons and the many oracles against him and his laying the foundations of the house of Jehovah, indeed these things are written in the record of the book of the kings. And Amaziah his son reigned in his place.
25
1 Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Jehoaddan from Jerusalem.
2 And he did what was right in the sight of Jehovah, but not with a perfect heart.
3 And when the kingdom was firmly in his control, he slew those servants who had struck down his father the king;
4 But their children he did not put to death, but acted according to what is written in the law in the book of Moses, where Jehovah commanded, saying, Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers; but every man shall be put to death for his own sin.
5 And Amaziah gathered Judah together and arranged them according to the fathers’ houses, by captains of thousands and by captains of hundreds, throughout all Judah and Benjamin. And he numbered them from twenty years old and upward and found them to be three hundred thousand chosen men able to go out to war, who could handle spear and shield.
6 He also hired from Israel one hundred thousand mighty men of valor for one hundred talents of silver.
7 But a man of God came to him, saying, O king, do not let the army of Israel go out with you, for Jehovah is not with Israel, not with any of the children of Ephraim.
8 Rather go by yourself and do it; be strong for the battle. Otherwise God will cast you down before your enemies, for in God there is power to help or cast down.
9 And Amaziah said to the man of God, And what shall be done with the hundred talents of silver, which I have given to the company of Israel? And the man of God said, Jehovah can give you much more than this.
10 So Amaziah separated them (the company that had come to him from Ephraim) and let them go to their own place. And their anger was greatly kindled against Judah, and they returned to their place in fierce anger.
11 And Amaziah strengthened himself and led forth his people. And he went to the Valley of Salt and struck down ten thousand of the children of Seir;
12 And the children of Judah captured ten thousand alive. And they brought them to the top of Sela and cast them down from the top of Sela, so that all of them were dashed to pieces.
13 But the men of the company whom Amaziah had sent back from going into battle with him raided the cities of Judah, from Samaria to Beth-horon; and they struck down three thousand of them and took much spoil.
14 And after Amaziah came from striking the Edomites, he brought the gods of the children of Seir and set them up as his gods; and he worshipped before them and burned incense to them.
15 And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Amaziah; and He sent a prophet to him and said to him, Why do you seek after the gods of the people who did not deliver their own people from your hand?
16 And when he spoke to him, the king said to him, Have we made you a counselor to the king? Stop; why should you be struck down? So the prophet stopped and said, I know that God has determined to destroy you, for you have done this and have not listened to my counsel.
17 Then Amaziah the king of Judah took counsel and sent word to Joash the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, the king of Israel, saying, Come, let us confront each other.
18 And Joash the king of Israel sent word to Amaziah the king of Judah, saying, The thornbush that was in Lebanon sent word to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give your daughter to my son as his wife; but a wild beast that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thornbush.
19 You say that you have just struck Edom, and your heart exalts you to glorify yourself. Remain now in your home; why should you stir up trouble so that you and Judah with you fall?
20 But Amaziah would not listen, for it was of God, so that He might deliver them into his hand, for they had sought after the gods of Edom.
21 So Jehoash the king of Israel went up, and he and Amaziah the king of Judah confronted each other in Beth-shemesh, which belongs to Judah.
22 And Judah was defeated before Israel, and they fled, each man to his tent.
23 And Joash the king of Israel captured Amaziah the king of Judah the son of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz in Beth-shemesh, and he brought him to Jerusalem and tore down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the Corner Gate, four hundred cubits.
24 And he took all the gold and silver and all the vessels that were found in the house of God with Obed-edom and the treasures of the king’s house as well as hostages, and returned to Samaria.
25 And Amaziah the son of Joash, the king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, the king of Israel.
26 And the rest of the acts of Amaziah, the first and the last, are they not there, written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel?
27 And from the time that Amaziah turned away from following Jehovah, they formed a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish; and they sent men after him to Lachish, and they killed him there.
28 And they brought him on horses and buried him with his fathers in the city of Judah.
26
1 And all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah.
2 It was he who built Eloth and restored it to Judah after the king slept with his fathers.
3 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Jechiliah, from Jerusalem.
4 And he did what was right in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that Amaziah his father had done.
5 And he set himself to seek after God during the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the vision of God; and as long as he sought after Jehovah, God caused him to prosper.
6 And he went out and waged war against the Philistines. And he broke down the wall of Gath and the wall of Jabneh and the wall of Ashdod, and he built cities in the vicinity of Ashdod and among the Philistines.
7 And God helped him against the Philistines and against the Arabians who dwelt in Gur-baal and against the Meunim.
8 And the Ammonites gave tribute to Uzziah; and his fame went as far as the entrance of Egypt, for he became exceedingly strong.
9 And Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate and at the Valley Gate and at the Angle, and he fortified them.
10 And he built towers in the wilderness and hewed out many cisterns, for he had much cattle, both in the lowlands and in the plain; he had farmers and vinedressers in the hills and in the fruitful fields, for he loved the soil.
11 Furthermore Uzziah had an army of soldiers that went out to war in companies according to the number of their muster done by Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the officer under the hand of Hananiah, one of the king’s captains.
12 The whole number of heads of fathers’ houses, of mighty men of valor, was two thousand six hundred.
13 And under their hand was an army force of three hundred seven thousand five hundred who could make war with mighty power to help the king against the enemy.
14 And Uzziah prepared for them, for all the army, shields and spears and helmets and body armor and bows and sling stones.
15 And in Jerusalem he made machines, invented by skillful men, to be on the towers and at the corners for shooting with arrows and great stones. And his fame went out far abroad, for he was marvelously helped until he was strong.
16 But when he had become strong, his heart became uplifted, to his own destruction. And he trespassed against Jehovah his God and went into the temple of Jehovah to burn incense upon the incense altar.
17 And Azariah the priest went in after him, and with Azariah were eighty priests of Jehovah who were valiant men.
18 And they withstood Uzziah the king and said to him, It does not belong to you, Uzziah, to burn incense to Jehovah, but to the priests, the sons of Aaron, who have been consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed and there will be no honor for you from Jehovah God.
19 Then Uzziah became angry, and in his hand was a censer for burning incense. And when he became angry with the priests, leprosy broke out on his forehead before the priests in the house of Jehovah beside the incense altar.
20 And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and there he was, leprous on his forehead; and they rushed him out of there, and he himself also hurried out to go out, for Jehovah had stricken him.
21 So Uzziah the king was a leper until the day of his death; and he dwelt in a separate house as a leper, for he was cut off from the house of Jehovah. And Jotham his son was over the king’s house, judging the people of the land.
22 And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, wrote down the rest of the acts of Uzziah, the first and the last.
23 And Uzziah slept with his fathers; and they buried him with his fathers in the burial field which belonged to the kings, for they said, He is a leper. And Jotham his son reigned in his place.
27
1 Jotham was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok.
2 And he did what was right in the sight of Jehovah according to all that his father Uzziah had done; only he did not enter into the temple of Jehovah. Yet the people still acted corruptly.
3 He built the upper gate of the house of Jehovah and built much on the wall of the Ophel.
4 And he built cities in the hill country of Judah, and in the forests he built fortresses and towers.
5 And he fought with the king of the children of Ammon and prevailed against them. And the children of Ammon gave him that same year one hundred talents of silver and ten thousand cors of wheat and ten thousand of barley. This much did the children of Ammon pay him also in the second and third years.
6 So Jotham became strong, because he ordered his ways before Jehovah his God.
7 And the rest of the acts of Jotham and all his wars and his ways are there written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
8 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.
9 And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David. And Ahaz his son reigned in his place.
28
1 Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the sight of Jehovah as David his father had done,
2 But he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel and even made molten images for the Baals.
3 And he burned incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom and burned his children in fire, according to the abominations of the nations that Jehovah had dispossessed before the children of Israel.
4 And he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places and on the hills and under every flourishing tree.
5 Therefore Jehovah his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and they struck him and carried away captive from him a great multitude. And they brought them to Damascus. And he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, and he struck a great blow on him.
6 For Pekah the son of Remaliah slew one hundred twenty thousand in Judah on one day, all of them valiant men, because they had forsaken Jehovah, the God of their fathers.
7 And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, slew Maaseiah, the king’s son, and Azrikam, the ruler of the house, and Elkanah, who was second to the king.
8 And the children of Israel carried away captive two hundred thousand women, sons, and daughters of their brothers, and also plundered much spoil from them; and they brought the spoil to Samaria.
9 But a prophet of Jehovah was there, whose name was Oded; and he went out to meet the army that was coming to Samaria and said to them, Now, because Jehovah, the God of your fathers, was angry with Judah, He has given them into your hand, and you have slain them in a rage which has reached up to heaven.
10 And now you intend to subjugate the children of Judah and Jerusalem as your male and female slaves. Is there not even with you anything but trespasses against Jehovah your God?
11 Now therefore listen to me, and return the captives that you have carried away captive from among your brothers, for the burning anger of Jehovah is upon you.
12 Then some of the heads of the children of Ephraim, Azariah the son of Johanan and Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth and Jehizkiah the son of Shallum and Amasa the son of Hadlai, rose up against those coming from the war;
13 And they said to them, You shall not bring the captives here, for you intend to bring a trespass against Jehovah upon us to add to our sins and our trespass; for our trespass is great, and there is burning anger upon Israel.
14 So the soldiers left the captives and the plunder before the leaders and all the assembly.
15 And those men who have been mentioned by name rose up and took the captives, and with the spoil clothed all who were naked among them. And they clothed them and gave them sandals and fed them and gave them something to drink, and they anointed them and carried all the feeble among them on asses and brought them to Jericho, the city of palms, to their brothers. And they returned to Samaria.
16 At that time King Ahaz sent word to the kings of Assyria to help him,
17 For again the Edomites came and struck Judah and carried away captives.
18 And the Philistines raided the cities of the lowlands and the south of Judah and took Beth-shemesh and Aijalon and Gederoth and Soco with its villages and Timnah with its villages and Gimzo with its villages; and they dwelt there.
19 For Jehovah humbled Judah on account of Ahaz the king of Israel, for he cast off restraint in Judah and trespassed greatly against Jehovah.
20 And Tilgath-pilneser the king of Assyria came against him and distressed him and did not strengthen him.
21 For Ahaz took away a portion of the house of Jehovah and of the house of the king and the officials and gave it to the king of Assyria, but it did not help him.
22 And at the time of his distress, he added to his trespass against Jehovah, this same King Ahaz;
23 For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus, which had struck him, for he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, to them will I sacrifice, so that they will help me. But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel.
24 And Ahaz gathered together the vessels of the house of God and cut the vessels of the house of God into pieces, and he shut up the doors of the house of Jehovah and made himself altars in every corner in Jerusalem.
25 And in every city of Judah he made high places for burning incense to other gods and provoked Jehovah, the God of his fathers, to anger.
26 Now the rest of his acts and all his ways, the first and the last, are there written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
27 And Ahaz slept with his fathers; and they buried him in the city, in Jerusalem, for they did not bring him to the tombs of the kings of Israel. And Hezekiah his son reigned in his place.
29
1 Hezekiah began to reign at the age of twenty-five years, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah.
2 And he did what was right in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that David his father had done.
3 He, in the first year of his reign, in the first month, opened the doors of the house of Jehovah and repaired them.
4 And he brought in the priests and the Levites and gathered them at the east square.
5 And he said to them, Listen to me, you Levites: Sanctify yourselves now, and sanctify the house of Jehovah, the God of your fathers; and bring out the impurity from the holy place.
6 For our fathers were unfaithful and did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah our God, and they forsook Him and turned their faces from the dwelling place of Jehovah, and they turned their backs on Him.
7 They also shut up the doors of the portico and extinguished the lamps; and they did not burn the incense, nor did they offer up the burnt offering in the holy place to the God of Israel.
8 Therefore the wrath of Jehovah was upon Judah and Jerusalem, and He made them an object of horror, astonishment, and hissing, as you see with your own eyes.
9 For indeed, our fathers fell by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are captives because of this.
10 Now it is on my heart to make a covenant with Jehovah the God of Israel, that His burning anger may turn away from us.
11 My sons, do not now be negligent, for Jehovah has chosen you to stand before Him to minister to Him and to be His ministers and burn incense.
12 Then the Levites rose up: Mahath the son of Amasai and Joel the son of Azariah, from among the sons of the Kohathites; and from among the sons of Merari, Kish the son of Abdi and Azariah the son of Jehallelel; and of the Gershonites, Joah the son of Zimmah and Eden the son of Joah;
13 And of the sons of Elizaphan, Shimri and Jeuel; and of the sons of Asaph, Zechariah and Mattaniah;
14 And of the sons of Heman, Jehuel and Shimei; and of the sons of Jeduthun, Shemaiah and Uzziel.
15 And they gathered their brothers together and sanctified themselves. And they went in, according to the command of the king by the words of Jehovah, to cleanse the house of Jehovah.
16 And the priests went into the inner part of the house of Jehovah to cleanse it; and they brought out into the court of the house of Jehovah all the uncleanness that they found in the temple of Jehovah, and the Levites took it to carry it outside to the brook Kidron.
17 And they began on the first day of the first month to sanctify the house, and on the eighth day of the month they came to the portico of Jehovah; then they sanctified the house of Jehovah for eight days, and on the sixteenth day of the first month they finished.
18 Then they went in to Hezekiah the king and said, We have cleansed the whole house of Jehovah: the altar of burnt offering with all its vessels and the table of the rows of bread with all its vessels.
19 And all the vessels that King Ahaz cast out during his reign when he trespassed we have prepared and sanctified, and they are now before the altar of Jehovah.
20 Then Hezekiah the king rose up early and gathered all the leaders of the city and went up to the house of Jehovah.
21 And they brought seven bulls and seven rams and seven lambs and seven male goats as a sin offering for the kingdom and for the sanctuary and for Judah. And he ordered the sons of Aaron, the priests, to offer them up on the altar of Jehovah.
22 So they slaughtered the cattle, and the priests took the blood and sprinkled it on the altar; then they slaughtered the rams and sprinkled the blood on the altar, and they slaughtered the lambs and sprinkled the blood on the altar.
23 Then they brought the male goats of the sin offering before the king and the congregation, and they laid their hands on them.
24 And the priests slaughtered them and offered their blood as a sin offering upon the altar to make expiation for all Israel, for the king had commanded the burnt offering and the sin offering for all Israel.
25 And he set the Levites in the house of Jehovah with cymbals, with harps, and with lyres in the way David and Gad the king’s seer and Nathan the prophet had commanded, for the commandment was from Jehovah through His prophets.
26 And the Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests, with the trumpets.
27 And Hezekiah ordered the offering up of the burnt offering at the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of Jehovah began also, as well as the trumpets with the accompaniment of the instruments of David the king of Israel.
28 And the whole congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters trumpeted — all this until the burnt offering was finished.
29 And when the offering was finished, the king and all who were found with him bowed down and worshipped.
30 And Hezekiah the king and the leaders commanded the Levites to praise Jehovah with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. And they praised with rejoicing and bowed down and worshipped.
31 Then Hezekiah responded and said, Now you have consecrated yourselves to Jehovah; come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the house of Jehovah. So the congregation brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all who were willing in heart brought burnt offerings.
32 And the number of burnt offerings that the congregation brought was seventy cattle, one hundred rams, and two hundred lambs; all these were for a burnt offering to Jehovah.
33 And the things consecrated were six hundred cattle and three thousand sheep;
34 However the priests were too few and could not flay all the burnt offerings, so their brothers the Levites aided them until the work was finished and until the rest of the priests had sanctified themselves, for the Levites were more upright in heart than the priests in sanctifying themselves.
35 And besides the abundance of burnt offerings there were also the fat of the peace offerings and the drink offerings for the burnt offerings. So the service of the house of Jehovah was established.
36 And Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced over what God had prepared for the people, for the thing had happened so suddenly.
30
1 And Hezekiah sent word to all Israel and Judah and also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh telling them to come to the house of Jehovah in Jerusalem to hold the Passover to Jehovah the God of Israel.
2 For the king and his officers and all the congregation in Jerusalem had taken counsel to hold the Passover in the second month,
3 Because they could not hold it at that time, for the priests had not sanctified themselves in sufficient number nor had the people gathered to Jerusalem.
4 And the matter seemed right in the sight of the king and in the sight of all the congregation.
5 So they established a decree to send a proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beer-sheba to Dan, telling them to come to hold the Passover to Jehovah the God of Israel in Jerusalem; for they had not held it for a long time, as it was decreed in writing.
6 And as the king had commanded, the runners went with the letters from the hand of the king and his officers throughout all Israel and Judah, saying, You children of Israel, return to Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and He will return to the remnant of you who have escaped from the hand of the kings of Assyria.
7 And do not be like your fathers and like your brothers, who trespassed against Jehovah, the God of their fathers, so that He made them a desolation, as you now see.
8 Do not now be stiff-necked, as your fathers were; yield to Jehovah, and come to His sanctuary, which He has sanctified forever, and serve Jehovah your God, that His burning anger may turn away from you.
9 For when you turn to Jehovah, your brothers and your children will find compassion before those who led them captive and will return to this land, for Jehovah your God is gracious and compassionate, and will not turn His face away from you if you return to Him.
10 So the runners passed from city to city in the land of Ephraim and Manasseh and as far as Zebulun, but they laughed them to scorn and mocked them.
11 Nevertheless some men from Asher and Manasseh and Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem.
12 Moreover the hand of God was on Judah, giving them one heart to perform the commandment of the king and the officers by the word of Jehovah.
13 And many people gathered at Jerusalem to hold the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the second month, a very great congregation.
14 And they rose up and removed the altars that were in Jerusalem, and they removed all the incense altars and threw them into the brook Kidron.
15 Then they slaughtered the passover sacrifice on the fourteenth day of the second month. And the priests and the Levites were ashamed, and they sanctified themselves and brought burnt offerings to the house of Jehovah.
16 And they stood at their station after their custom, according to the law of Moses, the man of God: The priests sprinkled the blood that they received from the hand of the Levites.
17 For there were many in the congregation who had not sanctified themselves; therefore the Levites were charged with slaughtering the passover sacrifices for everyone who was not clean, to sanctify them to Jehovah.
18 For a great number of the people, many from Ephraim and Manasseh and Issachar and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the passover otherwise than as prescribed; for Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, May Jehovah the Good expiate for everyone
19 Who has prepared his heart to seek after God, after Jehovah, the God of his fathers, even though he is not according to the rules of purification for the sanctuary.
20 And Jehovah heard Hezekiah and healed the people.
21 And the children of Israel who were found at Jerusalem held the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with great rejoicing, and the Levites and the priests praised Jehovah day by day, with loud instruments played to Jehovah.
22 And Hezekiah encouraged all the Levites who showed themselves well-skilled in their service to Jehovah, and so they ate the food of the appointed feast for seven days, sacrificing sacrifices of peace offerings and extolling Jehovah, the God of their fathers.
23 And the whole congregation took counsel to hold the feast another seven days, and they held the feast those seven days with rejoicing.
24 For Hezekiah the king of Judah contributed one thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep to the congregation, and the leaders contributed one thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep to the congregation, and a great number of priests sanctified themselves.
25 And all the congregation of Judah with the priests and the Levites and all the congregation who came from Israel and the sojourners who came from the land of Israel and dwelt in Judah rejoiced,
26 And there was great rejoicing in Jerusalem, for since the days of Solomon the son of David, the king of Israel, there had not been the like in Jerusalem.
27 Then the Levitical priests rose up and blessed the people; and their voice was heard and their prayer went up to His holy habitation, to heaven.
31
1 And when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and broke down the pillars and hewed down the Asherahs and pulled down the high places and the altars out of all Judah and Benjamin and in Ephraim and Manasseh until they destroyed them all. And all the children of Israel returned to their cities, each man to his own possessions.
2 And Hezekiah appointed the divisions of the priests and the Levites by their divisions, each of the priests and the Levites according to his service, for the burnt offering and for the peace offerings, to minister and give thanks and praise in the gates of the temple of Jehovah.
3 Also he appointed the king’s portion of his substance for the burnt offerings, the morning and evening burnt offerings and the burnt offerings of the Sabbaths and the new moon and the appointed feasts, as written in the law of Jehovah.
4 And he commanded the people who dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion for the priests and the Levites, that they might devote themselves to the law of Jehovah.
5 And when the commandment went out, the children of Israel gave in abundance the firstfruits of the grain and of the new wine and of the fresh oil and of the honey and of all the produce of the field; and they brought the tithe of everything in abundance.
6 And the children of Israel and Judah who dwelt in the cities of Judah also brought the tithe of the herd and of the flock and the tithe of the dedicated things, which had been dedicated to Jehovah their God, and laid them heap upon heap.
7 In the third month they began to lay the foundation of the heaps, and in the seventh month they finished.
8 And when Hezekiah and the leaders came and saw the heaps, they blessed Jehovah and His people Israel.
9 And Hezekiah inquired of the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps;
10 And Azariah the chief priest, of the house of Zadok, spoke to him and said, Since the time that the people began to bring the contributions into the house of Jehovah, there has been eating and satisfaction and an abundance left over, for Jehovah has blessed His people and this great amount is left over.
11 Then Hezekiah gave orders to prepare storechambers in the house of Jehovah, and they prepared them.
12 And they brought in the contribution and the tithe and dedicated things faithfully. And Conaniah the Levite was ruler over them, and Shimei his brother was second,
13 And Jehiel and Azaziah and Nahath and Asahel and Jerimoth and Jozabad and Eliel and Ismachiah and Mahath and Benaiah were overseers under Conaniah and Shimei his brother by appointment of Hezekiah the king and Azariah the ruler of the house of God.
14 And Kore the son of Imna the Levite, the gatekeeper on the east, was over the freewill offerings of God, to distribute the contributions of Jehovah and the most holy things.
15 And under him were Eden and Miniamin and Jeshua and Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah, serving faithfully in the cities of the priests, to distribute the portion to their brothers by divisions, great and small alike,
16 Except for those who were enrolled by genealogy, males from three years old and upward, all who went to the house of Jehovah for their day-to-day duties, for their service in their offices by their divisions.
17 Now concerning the enrollment of the priests by genealogy, it was by their fathers’ houses; and that of the Levites of those twenty years old and upward was by their offices in their divisions.
18 And the enrollment by genealogy included all their little ones, their wives, and their sons and daughters, the whole congregation of them; for they sanctified themselves faithfully in holiness.
19 And for the sons of Aaron the priests, who were in the pasture lands of their cities, in each and every city, there were men who were mentioned by name, to distribute portions to all the males among the priests and to all who were enrolled by genealogy among the Levites.
20 And Hezekiah did this throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and upright and faithful before Jehovah his God.
21 And in every work that he began in service to the house of God and in accordance with the law and the commandment, to seek after his God, he did it with all his heart and prospered.
32
1 After these things and this faithfulness, Sennacherib the king of Assyria came and entered Judah. And he encamped against the fortified cities and intended to break into them for himself.
2 And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come and that his face was set to fight against Jerusalem,
3 He took counsel with his officers and mighty men to stop the water of the fountains that were outside the city, and they helped him.
4 So many people gathered together and stopped all the fountains and the brook that flowed through the land, saying, Why should the kings of Assyria come and find an abundance of water?
5 And he took courage and built up all the wall that was broken down and erected towers on it and built another wall outside; and he strengthened the Millo in the city of David and made weapons and shields in abundance.
6 And he set battle captains over the people and gathered them to himself in the square at the gate of the city. And he encouraged them, saying,
7 Be strong and be bold; do not be afraid or dismayed because of the king of Assyria or because of all the multitude that is with him, for there is Someone greater with us than with him:
8 With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is Jehovah our God to help us and to fight our battles. And the people relied on the words of Hezekiah the king of Judah.
9 After this Sennacherib the king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem — now he was before Lachish and all his forces were with him — to Hezekiah the king of Judah and to all Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying,
10 Thus says Sennacherib the king of Assyria, In what are you trusting, that you remain in a siege in Jerusalem?
11 Is not Hezekiah trying to persuade you to give yourselves up to die by famine and by thirst, saying, Jehovah our God will deliver us from the hand of the king of Assyria?
12 Was it not the same Hezekiah who took away His high places and His altars and who commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying, Before one altar you shall worship, and upon it shall you burn incense?
13 Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of the lands? Were the gods of the nations of the lands at all able to deliver their land out of my hand?
14 Who was there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers destroyed who could deliver his people out of my hand, that your God would be able to deliver you out of my hand?
15 Now therefore do not let Hezekiah deceive you, nor persuade you in this way, and do not believe him; for there is no god of any nation or kingdom who was able to deliver his people out of my hand and out of the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you out of my hand!
16 And his servants said still more against Jehovah God and against Hezekiah His servant.
17 And he wrote letters to cast contempt on Jehovah the God of Israel and to speak against Him, saying, Like the gods of the nations of the lands that did not deliver their people out of my hand, so the God of Hezekiah will not deliver His people out of my hand.
18 And they cried out in a loud voice in the Jews’ language against the people of Jerusalem who were upon the wall in order to frighten them and terrify them, so that they might take the city.
19 And they spoke against the God of Jerusalem as they had against the gods of the peoples of the land, the work of men’s hands.
20 But Hezekiah the king and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, prayed about this, and they cried out to heaven.
21 And Jehovah sent an angel, who annihilated all the mighty men of valor and the leaders and the captains in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned with shame of face to his own land. And when he entered the house of his god, some of those who had come forth from his bowels felled him there with the sword.
22 Thus Jehovah saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem out of the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria and out of the hand of everyone, and He protected them on all sides.
23 And many brought gifts to Jehovah at Jerusalem and precious things to Hezekiah the king of Judah, so that he was exalted in the sight of all the nations thereafter.
24 In those days Hezekiah became mortally ill, and he prayed to Jehovah. And He spoke to him and gave him a sign.
25 But Hezekiah did not respond according to the benefit he had received, for his heart was proud; therefore wrath came upon him and upon Judah and Jerusalem.
26 But Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of Jehovah did not come upon them in the days of Hezekiah.
27 Now Hezekiah had very much wealth and honor, and he made for himself treasuries for silver and gold and precious stones and for spices and shields and all kinds of valuable goods,
28 As well as storehouses for produce of grain and new wine and fresh oil, and stalls for all kinds of cattle, and flocks in sheepfolds.
29 And he built cities and acquired many flocks and herds, for God had given him very many possessions.
30 And it was this Hezekiah who stopped the upper spring of the water of Gihon and directed it down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah prospered in all his works.
31 So also in the matter of the envoys of the princes of Babylon, who had been sent to him to inquire about the wonders that had happened in the land, God forsook him only to test him and know all that was in his heart.
32 And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah and his deeds of faithfulness are there written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
33 And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the upper part of the tombs of David’s sons; and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem honored him when he died. And Manasseh his son reigned in his place.
33
1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem.
2 And he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah, like the abominations of the nations whom Jehovah had dispossessed before the children of Israel.
3 And he rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah his father had torn down; and he raised up altars to the Baals and made Asherahs, and he worshipped all the host of heaven and served them.
4 And he built altars in the house of Jehovah, concerning which Jehovah had said, In Jerusalem will My name be forever.
5 And he built altars to all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of Jehovah.
6 And he caused his children to pass through fire in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and practiced soothsaying and enchantments and sorcery, and appointed mediums and spiritists; he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah beyond measure, provoking Him to anger.
7 And he put the engraved image of the idol that he had made in the house of God, concerning which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put My name forever;
8 And I will no longer remove the foot of Israel from the land that I have appointed for your fathers, if only they will be certain to do all that I have commanded them according to all the law and the statutes and the ordinances given through Moses.
9 And Manasseh led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem astray to do more evil than the nations which Jehovah had destroyed before the children of Israel.
10 And Jehovah spoke to Manasseh and to his people, but they would not listen.
11 Therefore Jehovah brought upon them the captains of the army which belonged to the king of Assyria, and they took Manasseh captive with hooks and bound him in bronze fetters and took him to Babylon.
12 And in his distress he entreated Jehovah his God and humbled himself greatly before the God of his fathers.
13 And he prayed to Him, and He was entreated by him and heard his supplication; and He brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then Manasseh knew that Jehovah indeed was God.
14 And afterward he built an outer wall for the city of David on the west side of the Gihon in the valley even to the entrance of the Fish Gate, and he surrounded the Ophel with it and raised it very high. And he put the valorous captains in all the fortified cities in Judah.
15 And he removed the foreign gods and the idol from the house of Jehovah and all the altars that he had built on the mount of the house of Jehovah and in Jerusalem, and he cast them out of the city.
16 And he restored the altar of Jehovah, and he sacrificed on it sacrifices of peace offerings and thank offerings; and he commanded Judah to serve Jehovah the God of Israel.
17 Nevertheless the people still sacrificed at the high places but did so to Jehovah their God.
18 Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh and his prayer to his God and the words of the seers who spoke to him in the name of Jehovah the God of Israel are there, written among the records of the kings of Israel.
19 His prayer also and how God was entreated by him, and all his sin and his trespass, and the sites where he built high places and set up the Asherahs and the idols before he humbled himself are there written among the records of Hozai.
20 And Manasseh slept with his fathers, and they buried him in his house. And Amon his son reigned in his place.
21 Amon was twenty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem.
22 And he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah, as Manasseh his father had done. And Amon sacrificed to all the idols that Manasseh his father had made and served them.
23 And he did not humble himself before Jehovah as Manasseh his father had humbled himself, but this Amon multiplied trespass.
24 And his servants conspired against him and killed him in his own house.
25 But the people of the land struck down all those who had conspired against King Amon. And the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his place.
34
1 Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem.
2 And he did what was right in the eyes of Jehovah and walked in the ways of David his father and did not turn to the right or to the left.
3 And in the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek after the God of David his father. And in the twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of the high places and the Asherahs and the idols and the molten images.
4 And they tore down the altars to the Baals in his presence, and the incense altars that were set upon them he hewed down; and the Asherahs and the idols and the molten images he shattered and ground them to dust and scattered it upon the graves of those who had sacrificed to them.
5 And he burned the bones of the priests upon their own altars and so purged Judah and Jerusalem.
6 And in the cities of Manasseh and Ephraim and Simeon, as far as Naphtali, in their ruins all around,
7 He also tore down the altars and beat the Asherahs and idols into dust, and he hewed down all the incense altars throughout the land of Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem.
8 And in the eighteenth year of his reign, when he had purged the land and the house, he sent Shaphat the son of Azaliah and Maaseiah the governor of the city and Joah the son of Joahaz the recorder to repair the house of Jehovah his God.
9 And they came to Hilkiah the high priest and delivered the money that had been brought into the house of God, which the Levites, the doorkeepers, had collected from the hands of Manasseh and Ephraim and from all the remnant of Israel and from all Judah and Benjamin and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
10 And they delivered it into the hand of those who did the work, who had the oversight of the house of Jehovah; and those who did the work, who worked in the house of Jehovah, used it to mend and repair the house.
11 And they gave it to the carpenters and the builders for the purchase of hewn stones and timber for couplings and to make beams for the buildings that the kings of Judah had destroyed.
12 And the men did the work faithfully, and the overseers over them were Jahath and Obadiah the Levites, of the sons of Merari, and Zechariah and Meshullam, of the sons of the Kohathites, to supervise; and the Levites who were all skilled in musical instruments
13 Were over the burden bearers and supervised all who did the work from task to task; and some of the Levites were scribes and officials and gatekeepers.
14 And when they brought out the money that had been brought into the house of Jehovah, Hilkiah the priest found the book of the law of Jehovah given through Moses.
15 And Hilkiah responded and said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the house of Jehovah. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan.
16 And Shaphan brought the book to the king and in addition brought back word to the king, saying, All that was committed to the hand of your servants they are doing.
17 They have emptied out the money that was found in the house of Jehovah and have delivered it into the hand of the overseers and into the hand of those who do the work.
18 Then Shaphan the scribe reported to the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest has given me a book. And Shaphan read aloud in it before the king.
19 And when the king heard the words of the law, he tore his clothes.
20 And the king commanded Hilkiah and Ahikam the son of Shaphan and Abdon the son of Micah and Shaphan the scribe and Asaiah the king’s servant, saying,
21 Go; inquire of Jehovah for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah concerning the words of the book that has been found; for great is the wrath of Jehovah that has been poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of Jehovah by doing according to all that is written in this book.
22 And Hilkiah and those whom the king had commanded went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tokhath, the son of Hasrah, the keeper of the wardrobe (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the second quarter); and they spoke to her to that effect.
23 And she said to them, Thus says Jehovah the God of Israel: Tell the man who sent you to me,
24 Thus says Jehovah, I am now bringing evil upon this place and upon its inhabitants, even all the curses that are written in the book that they have read aloud before the king of Judah.
25 Because they have forsaken Me and have burned incense to other gods, so as to provoke Me to anger with all the works of their hands. Therefore My wrath will be poured out on this place, and it shall not be quenched.
26 But to the king of Judah who sent you to inquire of Jehovah, thus shall you say to him: Thus says Jehovah the God of Israel, regarding the words which you have heard,
27 Because your heart was tender, and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and against its inhabitants and humbled yourself before Me and tore your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you, declares Jehovah.
28 I will then gather you to your fathers, and you will be gathered to your grave in peace; and your eyes will not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place and upon its inhabitants. And they brought word back to the king.
29 And the king sent word and gathered all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
30 And the king went up to the house of Jehovah, with all the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the priests and the Levites and all the people, both great and small; and he read aloud, in their hearing, all the words of the book of the covenant, which had been found in the house of Jehovah.
31 And the king stood up where he was and made a covenant before Jehovah to walk after Jehovah and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes with all his heart and with all his soul by performing the words of the covenant which were written in this book.
32 And he made all who were found in Jerusalem and Benjamin enter into the covenant. So the inhabitants of Jerusalem did according to the covenant of God, the God of their fathers.
33 And Josiah removed all the abominations out of all the lands that belonged to the children of Israel, and he made all who were found in Israel serve Jehovah their God; throughout his days they did not turn from following after Jehovah, the God of their fathers.
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1 And Josiah held the Passover to Jehovah in Jerusalem, and they slaughtered the passover sacrifice on the fourteenth day of the first month.
2 And he set the priests in their offices and encouraged them in the service of the house of Jehovah.
3 And he said to the Levites who taught all Israel, who were sanctified to Jehovah, Put the holy Ark into the house that Solomon the son of David, the king of Israel, built; it shall no longer be the burden on your shoulders. Now serve Jehovah your God and His people Israel,
4 And prepare yourselves according to your fathers’ houses by your divisions according to what David the king of Israel wrote and according to the document of Solomon his son.
5 And stand in the holy place for the groups of the fathers’ houses of your brothers, the common people, and let each division of Levites stand for a portion of a father’s house.
6 And slaughter the passover sacrifice, and sanctify yourselves and prepare it for your brothers, to act according to the word of Jehovah given through Moses.
7 And Josiah contributed to the common people lambs and kids from the flock, all for the passover offerings, to all who were found there, thirty thousand animals in number, and three thousand cattle; these were from the king’s possessions.
8 And his officers contributed a freewill offering to the people, to the priests, and to the Levites; Hilkiah and Zechariah and Jehiel, the rulers of the house of God, gave to the priests for the passover offerings two thousand six hundred from the flock and three hundred cattle.
9 Conaniah also, and Shemaiah and Nethanel, his brothers, and Hashabiah and Jeiel and Jozabad, the leaders of the Levites, contributed to the Levites for the passover offerings five thousand from the flock and five hundred cattle.
10 So the service was prepared, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites by their divisions, according to the command of the king.
11 And they slaughtered the passover sacrifices; and while the priests sprinkled the blood that they received from their hand, the Levites flayed them.
12 And they removed the burnt offerings that they might give them to the groups of the fathers’ houses of the common people to offer to Jehovah, as it is written in the book of Moses. And so they did with the cattle.
13 And they roasted the passover in fire according to the ordinance, and they boiled the holy offerings in pots and in cauldrons and in pans, and carried them quickly to all the common people.
14 And afterward they provided for themselves and for the priests, because the priests, the sons of Aaron, were busy offering the burnt offerings and the fat until night; therefore the Levites provided for themselves and for the priests, the sons of Aaron.
15 And the singers, the sons of Asaph, were in their place according to the command of David and Asaph and Heman and Jeduthun the king’s seer. And the gatekeepers were at each gate; they did not need to turn from their service, for their brothers the Levites provided for them.
16 Thus all the service of Jehovah was prepared that same day, in order to hold the Passover and offer up burnt offerings upon the altar of Jehovah according to the command of King Josiah.
17 And the children of Israel who were found there held the Passover at that time, and the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days.
18 And a Passover like that had never been held in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet, nor did any of the kings of Israel hold such a Passover as was held by Josiah and the priests and the Levites and all Judah and Israel who were found there and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
19 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah this Passover was held.
20 After all this, when Josiah had set the temple in order, Neco the king of Egypt went up to fight against Carchemish by the Euphrates; and Josiah went out against him.
21 And Neco sent messengers to him, saying, What have I to do with you, O king of Judah? I have not come up against you today but against the house with which I am at war, and God has commanded me to hurry. Refrain for your own sake from interfering with God, who is with me, and He will not destroy you.
22 But Josiah would not turn his face from him, but he disguised himself so that he might fight with him; and he did not listen to the words of Neco from the mouth of God but came to fight in the valley of Megiddo.
23 And the archers shot at King Josiah; and the king said to his servants, Take me away, for I have been wounded severely.
24 So his servants took him out of the chariot and put him in the chariot of his second-in-command, and they brought him to Jerusalem; and he died and was buried in the tombs of his fathers. And all Judah and Jerusalem mourned for Josiah.
25 And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah. And all the male singers and female singers speak of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, for they have made it a custom in Israel; and they are there written in the lamentations.
26 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah and his good deeds according to what is written in the law of Jehovah
27 And his acts, first and last, are there written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.
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1 Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah and made him king in the place of his father in Jerusalem.
2 Joahaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem.
3 And the king of Egypt deposed him at Jerusalem and imposed on the land a fine of one hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold.
4 And the king of Egypt made Eliakim his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem and changed his name to Jehoiakim. But Neco took Joahaz his brother and carried him away to Egypt.
5 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah his God.
6 Against him Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon came up and bound him in bronze fetters to carry him to Babylon.
7 Nebuchadnezzar also carried away some of the vessels of the house of Jehovah to Babylon and put them in his temple in Babylon.
8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim and his abominations which he did and that which was found against him are there written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. And Jehoiachin his son reigned in his place.
9 Jehoiachin was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem; and he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah.
10 And at the turn of the year King Nebuchadnezzar sent men and brought him to Babylon with the precious vessels of the house of Jehovah. And he made Zedekiah his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem.
11 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem.
12 And he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah his God; he did not humble himself before Jeremiah the prophet whose speaking was from the mouth of Jehovah.
13 And he also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar, who had made him swear by God; but he stiffened his neck and hardened his heart from turning to Jehovah the God of Israel.
14 Moreover all the leaders of the priests and the people acted exceedingly unfaithfully according to all the abominations of the nations, and they polluted the house of Jehovah which He had sanctified in Jerusalem.
15 And Jehovah, the God of their fathers, sent word to them day after day through His messengers because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place.
16 But they mocked the messengers of God and despised His words and scoffed at His prophets until the wrath of Jehovah rose up against His people, until there was no remedy.
17 Therefore He brought up against them the king of the Chaldeans, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary and had no compassion on young man or virgin, on old man or feeble; He delivered them all into his hand.
18 And all the vessels of the house of God, great and small, and the treasures of the house of Jehovah and the treasures of the king and of his princes, all these he brought to Babylon.
19 And they burned down the house of God; and they broke down the wall of Jerusalem and burned down all its palaces with fire, and all its precious vessels were given up to destruction.
20 And those who escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon, and they became servants to him and to his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia,
21 So as to fulfill the word of Jehovah by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed its sabbaths: As long as it lay desolate it kept sabbath, until seventy years were fulfilled.
22 And in the first year of Cyrus the king of Persia, so that the word of Jehovah by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, Jehovah stirred up the spirit of Cyrus the king of Persia; and he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and put it also in writing, saying,
23 Thus says Cyrus the king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth has Jehovah the God of heaven given to me; and He has charged me to build Him a house in Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever there is among you of all His people, may Jehovah his God be with him, and let him go up!