2 Kings 10-11

21st Century King James Version

10 And Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria, unto the rulers of Jezreel, to the elders, and to those who brought up Ahab’s children, saying,

² “Now as soon as this letter cometh to you, since your master’s sons are with you and there are with you chariots and horses, a fortified city also and armor,

³ choose even out the best and most suitable of your master’s sons and set him on his father’s throne, and fight for your master’s house.”

⁴ But they were exceedingly afraid and said, “Behold, two kings stood not before him. How then shall we stand?”

⁵ And he that was over the house, and he that was over the city, the elders also, and the guardians of the children, sent to Jehu, saying, “We are thy servants and will do all that thou shalt bid us; we will not make any king. Do thou that which is good in thine eyes.”

⁶ Then he wrote a letter the second time to them, saying, “If ye be for me, and if ye will hearken unto my voice, take ye the heads of the men your master’s sons and come to me at Jezreel by tomorrow this time.” Now the king’s sons, being seventy persons, were with the great men of the city, who brought them up.

⁷ And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king’s sons and slew seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets and sent him them at Jezreel.

⁸ And there came a messenger and told him, saying, “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons.” And he said, “Lay ye them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until the morning.”

⁹ And it came to pass in the morning that he went out and stood, and said to all the people, “Ye are righteous. Behold, I conspired against my master and slew him, but who slew all these?

¹⁰ Know now that there shall fall unto the earth nothing of the word of the Lord which the Lord spoke concerning the house of Ahab, for the Lord hath done that which He spoke by His servant Elijah.”

¹¹ So Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men and his kinsfolk and his priests, until he left him none remaining.

¹² And he arose and departed, and came to Samaria. And as he was at the shearing house on the way,

¹³ Jehu met with the brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah, and said, “Who are ye?” And they answered, “We are the brethren of Ahaziah, and we go down to salute the children of the king and the children of the queen.”

¹⁴ And he said, “Take them alive!” And they took them alive and slew them at the pit of the shearing house, even two and forty men; neither left he any of them.

¹⁵ And when he had departed from thence, he happened upon Jehonadab the son of Rechab coming to meet him; and he saluted him and said to him, “Is thine heart right, as my heart is with thy heart?” And Jehonadab answered, “It is.” “If it be, give me thine hand.” And he gave him his hand, and Jehu took him up to him into the chariot.

¹⁶ And he said, “Come with me, and see my zeal for the Lord.” So they made him ride in his chariot.

¹⁷ And when he came to Samaria, he slew all that remained unto Ahab in Samaria till he had destroyed him, according to the saying of the Lord which He spoke to Elijah.

¹⁸ And Jehu gathered all the people together and said unto them, “Ahab served Baal a little, but Jehu shall serve him much.

¹⁹ Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests. Let none be wanting, for I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal. Whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live.” But Jehu did it in subtlety, with the intent that he might destroy the worshipers of Baal.

²⁰ And Jehu said, “Proclaim a solemn assembly for Baal.” And they proclaimed it.

²¹ And Jehu sent through all Israel; and all the worshipers of Baal came, so that there was not a man left who came not. And they came into the house of Baal, and the house of Baal was full from one end to another.

²² And he said unto him that was over the vestry, “Bring forth vestments for all the worshipers of Baal.” And he brought them forth vestments.

²³ And Jehu went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into the house of Baal and said unto the worshipers of Baal, “Search, and look that there be here with you none of the servants of the Lord, but the worshipers of Baal only.”

²⁴ And when they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings, Jehu appointed fourscore men outside and said, “If any of the men whom I have brought into your hands escape, he that letteth him go, his life shall be for the life of him.”

²⁵ And it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains, “Go in and slay them; let none come forth!” And they smote them with the edge of the sword. And the guard and the captains cast them out, and went to the city of the house of Baal.

²⁶ And they brought forth the images out of the house of Baal and burned them;

²⁷ and they broke down the image of Baal and broke down the house of Baal, and made it an outhouse unto this day.

²⁸ Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel.

²⁹ However, from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from them, to wit, from the golden calves that were in Bethel and that were in Dan.

³⁰ And the Lord said unto Jehu, “Because thou hast done well in executing that which is right in Mine eyes, and hast done unto the house of Ahab according to all that was in Mine heart, thy children of the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.”

³¹ But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart; for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, who made Israel to sin.

³² In those days the Lord began to cut Israel short; and Hazael smote them in all the borders of Israel

³³ from the Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the River Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan.

³⁴ Now the rest of the acts of Jehu and all that he did and all his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

³⁵ And Jehu slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. And Jehoahaz his son reigned in his stead.

³⁶ And the time that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty and eight years.

11 And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal.

² But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons who were slain; and they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain.

³ And he was with her hid in the house of the Lord six years. And Athaliah reigned over the land.

⁴ And the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard, and brought them to him into the house of the Lord, and made a covenant with them, and took an oath from them in the house of the Lord, and showed them the king’s son.

⁵ And he commanded them, saying, “This is the thing that ye shall do: A third part of you that enter in on the Sabbath shall be keepers of the watch of the king’s house,

⁶ and a third part shall be at the gate of Sur, and a third part at the gate behind the guard. So shall ye keep the watch of the house, that it be not broken down.

⁷ And two parts of all you that go forth on the Sabbath, even they shall keep the watch of the house of the Lord about the king.

⁸ And ye shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and he that cometh within the ranges, let him be slain. And be ye with the king as he goeth out and as he cometh in.”

⁹ And the captains over the hundreds did according to all things that Jehoiada the priest commanded; and they took every man his men who were to come in on the Sabbath, with those who should go out on the Sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest.

¹⁰ And to the captains over hundreds the priest gave King David’s spears and shields that were in the temple of the Lord.

¹¹ And the guard stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, round about the king, from the right corner of the temple to the left corner of the temple, along by the altar and the temple.

¹² And he brought forth the king’s son, and put the crown upon him, and gave him the testimony; and they made him king and anointed him. And they clapped their hands and said, “God save the king!”

¹³ And when Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she came to the people into the temple of the Lord.

¹⁴ And when she looked, behold, the king stood by a pillar, as the manner was, and the princes and the trumpeters by the king. And all the people of the land rejoiced and blew with trumpets. And Athaliah rent her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!”

¹⁵ But Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of the hundreds, the officers of the host, and said unto them, “Bring her forth outside the ranks; and him that followeth her kill with the sword.” For the priest had said, “Let her not be slain in the house of the Lord.”

¹⁶ And they laid hands on her; and she went by the way by which the horses came into the king’s house, and there was she slain.

¹⁷ And Jehoiada made a covenant between the Lord and the king and the people, that they should be the Lord’S people, and also between the king and the people.

¹⁸ And all the people of the land went into the house of Baal and broke it down; his altars and his images broke they in pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest appointed officers over the house of the Lord.

¹⁹ And he took the rulers over hundreds, and the captains, and the guard, and all the people of the land; and they brought down the king from the house of the Lord, and came by the way of the gate of the guard to the king’s house. And he sat on the throne of the kings.

²⁰ And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was in quiet; and they slew Athaliah with the sword beside the king’s house.

²¹ Seven years old was Joash when he began to reign.