Athaliah Reigns in Judah

11 (A)Now when (B)Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal family. But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took (C)Joash the son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the king's sons who were being put to death, and she put[a] him and his nurse in a bedroom. Thus they[b] hid him from Athaliah, so that he was not put to death. And he remained with her six years, hidden in the house of the Lord, while Athaliah reigned over the land.

Joash Anointed King in Judah

(D)But in the seventh year (E)Jehoiada sent and brought the captains of (F)the Carites and of the guards, and had them come to him in the house of the Lord. And he made a covenant with them and put them under oath in the house of the Lord, and he showed them the king's son. And he commanded them, “This is the thing that you shall do: one third of you, (G)those who come off duty on the Sabbath and guard the king's house ((H)another third being at the gate Sur and a third at the gate behind the guards) shall guard the palace.[c] And the two divisions of you, which come on duty in force on the Sabbath and guard the house of the Lord on behalf of the king, shall surround the king, each with his weapons in his hand. And whoever approaches the ranks is to be put to death. Be with the king (I)when he goes out and when he comes in.”

The captains did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded, and they each brought his men who were to go off duty on the Sabbath, with those who were to come on duty on the Sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest. 10 And the priest gave to the captains the spears and (J)shields that had been King David's, which were in the house of the Lord. 11 And the guards stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, from the south side of the house to the north side of the house, around the altar and the house on behalf of the king. 12 Then he brought out the king's son and put (K)the crown on him and gave him (L)the testimony. And they proclaimed him king and anointed him, and they clapped their hands and said, (M)“Long live the king!”

13 When Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she went into the house of the Lord to the people. 14 And when she looked, there was the king standing (N)by the pillar, according to the custom, and the captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and (O)blowing trumpets. And Athaliah (P)tore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!” 15 Then Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains who were set over the army, “Bring her out between the ranks, and put to death with the sword anyone who follows her.” For the priest said, “Let her not be put to death in the house of the Lord.” 16 So they laid hands on her; and she went through the horses' entrance to the king's house, and there she was put to death.

17 And Jehoiada (Q)made a covenant between the Lord and the king and people, that they should be the Lord's people, and also (R)between the king and the people. 18 Then all the people of the land went to (S)the house of Baal and tore it down; (T)his altars and his images they broke in pieces, and they killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest posted watchmen over the house of the Lord. 19 And he took the captains, (U)the Carites, the guards, and all the people of the land, and they brought the king down from the house of the Lord, marching through (V)the gate of the guards to the king's house. And he took his seat on the throne of the kings. 20 So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet after Athaliah had been put to death with the sword at the king's house.

Jehoash Reigns in Judah

21 [d] (W)Jehoash[e] was seven years old when he began to reign.

12 In the seventh year of Jehu, Jehoash[f] began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Zibiah of Beersheba. And Jehoash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all his days, because Jehoiada the priest instructed him. Nevertheless, (X)the high places were not taken away; the people continued to sacrifice and make offerings on the high places.

Jehoash Repairs the Temple

Jehoash said to the priests, “All the money of the holy things (Y)that is brought into the house of the Lord, the money for which each man is assessed—the money from the assessment of persons—and (Z)the money that a man's heart prompts him to bring into the house of the Lord, let the priests take, each from his donor, and let them repair the house wherever any need of repairs is discovered.” But by the twenty-third year of King Jehoash, the priests had made no repairs on the house. Therefore King Jehoash summoned Jehoiada the priest and the other priests and said to them, “Why are you not repairing the house? Now therefore take no more money from your donors, but hand it over for the repair of the house.” So the priests agreed that they should take no more money from the people, and that they should not repair the house.

Then Jehoiada the priest took (AA)a chest and bored a hole in the lid of it and set it beside the altar on the right side as one entered the house of the Lord. And the priests who guarded the threshold put in it all the money that was brought into the house of the Lord. 10 And whenever they saw that there was much money in the chest, the king's secretary and the high priest came up and they bagged and counted (AB)the money that was found in the house of the Lord. 11 Then they would give the money that was weighed out into the hands of the workmen who had the oversight of the house of the Lord. And they paid it out to the carpenters and the builders who worked on the house of the Lord, 12 and (AC)to the masons and the stonecutters, as well as to buy timber and quarried stone for making repairs on the house of the Lord, and for any outlay for the repairs of the house. 13 (AD)But there were not made for the house of the Lord (AE)basins of silver, snuffers, bowls, trumpets, or any vessels of gold, or of silver, from the money that was brought into the house of the Lord, 14 for that was given to the workmen who were repairing the house of the Lord with it. 15 And (AF)they did not ask for an accounting from the men into whose hand they delivered the money to pay out to the workmen, for they dealt honestly. 16 The money from (AG)the guilt offerings and the money from the (AH)sin offerings was not brought into the house of the Lord; (AI)it belonged to the priests.

17 At that time (AJ)Hazael king of Syria went up and fought against Gath and took it. But when Hazael set his face (AK)to go up against Jerusalem, 18 Jehoash king of Judah (AL)took all the sacred gifts that Jehoshaphat and Jehoram and Ahaziah his fathers, the kings of Judah, had dedicated, (AM)and his own sacred gifts, and all the gold that was found in the treasuries of the house of the Lord and of the king's house, and sent these to Hazael king of Syria. Then Hazael went away from Jerusalem.

The Death of Joash

19 Now the rest of the acts of Joash and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 20 (AN)His servants arose and made a conspiracy (AO)and struck down Joash in the house of (AP)Millo, on the way that goes down to Silla. 21 It was (AQ)Jozacar the son of Shimeath and Jehozabad the son of (AR)Shomer, his servants, who struck him down, so that he died. And they buried him with his fathers in the city of David, (AS)and Amaziah his son reigned in his place.

Jehoahaz Reigns in Israel

13 In the twenty-third year of Joash the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned seventeen years. He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, (AT)which he made Israel to sin; he did not depart from them. (AU)And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he gave them continually into the hand of (AV)Hazael king of Syria and into the hand of (AW)Ben-hadad the son of Hazael. Then Jehoahaz (AX)sought the favor of the Lord, and the Lord listened to him, (AY)for he saw the oppression of Israel, how the king of Syria oppressed them. (Therefore the Lord gave Israel (AZ)a savior, so that they escaped from the hand of the Syrians, and the people of Israel lived in (BA)their homes as formerly. Nevertheless, they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, (BB)which he made Israel to sin, but walked[g] in them; and (BC)the Asherah also remained in Samaria.) For there was not left to Jehoahaz an army of more than fifty horsemen and ten chariots and ten thousand footmen, for the king of Syria had destroyed them and made them like the dust (BD)at threshing. Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? So Jehoahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria, and Joash his son reigned in his place.

Jehoash Reigns in Israel

10 In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, Jehoash[h] the son of Jehoahaz began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned sixteen years. 11 He also did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, (BE)which he made Israel to sin, but he walked in them. 12 (BF)Now the rest of the acts of Joash (BG)and all that he did, (BH)and the might with which he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 13 So Joash slept with his fathers, and Jeroboam sat on his throne. And Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

The Death of Elisha

14 Now when Elisha had fallen sick with the illness of which he was to die, Joash king of Israel went down to him and wept before him, crying, (BI)“My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” 15 And Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows.” So he took a bow and arrows. 16 Then he said to the king of Israel, “Draw the bow,” and he drew it. And Elisha laid his hands on the king's hands. 17 And he said, “Open the window eastward,” and he opened it. Then Elisha said, “Shoot,” and he shot. And he said, “The Lord's arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Syria! For you shall fight the Syrians in (BJ)Aphek until you have made an end of them.” 18 And he said, “Take the arrows,” and he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground with them.” And he struck three times and stopped. 19 Then (BK)the man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck down Syria until you had made an end of it, but now you will strike down Syria only (BL)three times.”

20 So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of (BM)Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. 21 And as a man was being buried, behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha, and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.

22 (BN)Now Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 (BO)But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them, (BP)and he turned toward them, (BQ)because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, nor has he cast them from his presence until now.

24 When Hazael king of Syria died, Ben-hadad his son became king in his place. 25 Then Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again from Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities (BR)that he had taken from Jehoahaz his father in war. (BS)Three times Joash defeated him and recovered the cities of Israel.

Amaziah Reigns in Judah

14 (BT)In the (BU)second year of Joash the son of Joahaz, king of Israel, (BV)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, began to reign. He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, yet not like David his father. He did in all things as Joash his father had done. (BW)But the high places were not removed; (BX)the people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. And as soon as the royal power was (BY)firmly in his hand, he struck down his servants (BZ)who had struck down the king his father. But he did not put to death the children of the murderers, according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, where the Lord commanded, (CA)“Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers. But each one shall die for his own sin.”

(CB)He struck down ten thousand Edomites in (CC)the Valley of Salt and took (CD)Sela by storm, and called it (CE)Joktheel, which is its name to this day.

(CF)Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash[i] the son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, (CG)let us look one another in the face.” And Jehoash king of Israel sent word to Amaziah king of Judah, (CH)“A thistle on Lebanon sent to a cedar on Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son for a wife,’ and a wild beast of Lebanon passed by and trampled down the thistle. 10 You have indeed (CI)struck down Edom, (CJ)and your heart has lifted you up. Be content with your glory, and stay at home, for why should you provoke trouble so that you fall, you and Judah with you?”

11 But Amaziah would not listen. So Jehoash king of Israel went up, and he and Amaziah king of Judah (CK)faced one another in battle at (CL)Beth-shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 12 And Judah was defeated by Israel, (CM)and every man fled to his home. 13 And Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and came to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem for four hundred cubits,[j] from (CN)the Ephraim Gate to (CO)the Corner Gate. 14 And he seized (CP)all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king's house, also hostages, and he returned to Samaria.

15 (CQ)Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash that he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 16 And Jehoash slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.

17 (CR)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. 18 Now the rest of the deeds of Amaziah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 19 And they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to (CS)Lachish. But they sent after him to Lachish and put him to death there. 20 And they brought him on horses; and he was buried in Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David. 21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. 22 He built (CT)Elath and restored it to Judah, after the king slept with his fathers.

Jeroboam II Reigns in Israel

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to reign in Samaria, and he reigned forty-one years. 24 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, (CU)which he made Israel to sin. 25 (CV)He restored the border of Israel (CW)from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of (CX)the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant (CY)Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was from (CZ)Gath-hepher. 26 For the Lord (DA)saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter, (DB)for there was none left, bond or free, and there was none to help Israel. 27 (DC)But the Lord had not said that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, so he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.

28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam and all that he did, and his might, how he fought, and how he restored (DD)Damascus and (DE)Hamath to Judah in Israel, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 29 And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, the kings of Israel, and Zechariah his son reigned in his place.

Azariah Reigns in Judah

15 (DF)In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, (DG)Azariah the son of Amaziah, king of Judah, began to reign. He was (DH)sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. (DI)Nevertheless, the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. (DJ)And the Lord touched the king, so that he was a leper[k] to the day of his death, (DK)and he lived in a separate house.[l] And Jotham the king's son was over the household, governing the people of the land. Now the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? And Azariah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers (DL)in the city of David, and Jotham his son reigned in his place.

Zechariah Reigns in Israel

In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in Samaria six months. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, as his fathers had done. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, (DM)which he made Israel to sin. 10 Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him and (DN)struck him down at Ibleam and put him to death and reigned in his place. 11 Now the rest of the deeds of Zechariah, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 12 (This was (DO)the promise of the Lord that he gave to Jehu, “Your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.” And so it came to pass.)

Shallum Reigns in Israel

13 Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the thirty-ninth year of (DP)Uzziah[m] king of Judah, and he reigned one month in (DQ)Samaria. 14 Then Menahem the son of Gadi came up from (DR)Tirzah and came to Samaria, and he struck down Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria and put him to death and reigned in his place. 15 Now the rest of the deeds of Shallum, and the conspiracy that he made, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 16 At that time Menahem sacked Tiphsah and all who were in it and its territory from Tirzah on, because they did not open it to him. Therefore he sacked it, (DS)and he ripped open all the women in it who were pregnant.

Menahem Reigns in Israel

17 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem the son of Gadi began to reign over Israel, and he reigned ten years in Samaria. 18 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart all his days from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin. 19 (DT)Pul[n] the king of Assyria came against the land, and Menahem gave (DU)Pul a thousand talents[o] of silver, that he might help him (DV)to confirm his hold on the royal power. 20 Menahem exacted the money from Israel, that is, from all the wealthy men, fifty shekels[p] of silver from every man, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back and did not stay there in the land. 21 Now the rest of the deeds of Menahem and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 22 And Menahem slept with his fathers, and Pekahiah his son reigned in his place.

Pekahiah Reigns in Israel

23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned two years. 24 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, (DW)which he made Israel to sin. 25 And Pekah the son of Remaliah, his captain, conspired against him with fifty men of the people of Gilead, and struck him down in Samaria, in the citadel of the king's house with Argob and Arieh; he put him to death and reigned in his place. 26 Now the rest of the deeds of Pekahiah and all that he did, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

Pekah Reigns in Israel

27 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned twenty years. 28 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, (DX)which he made Israel to sin.

29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel, (DY)Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured (DZ)Ijon, (EA)Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, (EB)Kedesh, (EC)Hazor, Gilead, and (ED)Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and he carried the people captive to Assyria. 30 Then Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah and struck him down and put him to death and reigned in his place, (EE)in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah. 31 Now the rest of the acts of Pekah and all that he did, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

Jotham Reigns in Judah

32 In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, Jotham the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, began to reign. 33 He was (EF)twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok. 34 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, (EG)according to all that his father Uzziah had done. 35 (EH)Nevertheless, the high places were not removed. The people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. He built (EI)the upper gate of the house of the Lord. 36 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 37 In those days the Lord began to send (EJ)Rezin the king of Syria and (EK)Pekah the son of Remaliah against Judah. 38 Jotham slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father, and Ahaz his son reigned in his place.

Ahaz Reigns in Judah

16 In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah, Ahaz the son of Jotham, king of Judah, began to reign. Ahaz was (EL)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 eyes of the Lord his God, as his father David had done, but he walked in the way of the kings of Israel. (EM)He even burned his son as an offering,[q] (EN)according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. (EO)And he sacrificed and made offerings (EP)on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree.

(EQ)Then Rezin king of Syria and (ER)Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to wage war on Jerusalem, and they besieged Ahaz (ES)but could not conquer him. At that time Rezin the king of Syria recovered (ET)Elath for Syria and drove the men of Judah from (EU)Elath, and the Edomites came to Elath, where they dwell to this day. (EV)So Ahaz sent messengers to (EW)Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. Come up and rescue me from the hand of the king of Syria and from the hand of the king of Israel, who are attacking me.” Ahaz also (EX)took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasures of the king's house and sent a present to the king of Assyria. (EY)And the king of Assyria listened to him. The king of Assyria marched up against Damascus (EZ)and took it, carrying its people captive to (FA)Kir, and he killed Rezin.

10 When King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet (FB)Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, he saw the altar that was at Damascus. And King Ahaz sent to (FC)Uriah the priest a model of the altar, and its pattern, exact in all its details. 11 And Uriah the priest built the altar; in accordance with all that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so Uriah the priest made it, before King Ahaz arrived from Damascus. 12 And when the king came from Damascus, the king viewed the altar. (FD)Then the king drew near to the altar and went up on it 13 and burned his burnt offering and his grain offering and poured his drink offering and threw the blood of his peace offerings on the altar. 14 And (FE)the bronze altar that was before the Lord he removed (FF)from the front of the house, from the place between (FG)his altar and the house of the Lord, and put it on the north side of (FH)his altar. 15 And King Ahaz commanded Uriah the priest, saying, “On the great altar burn (FI)the morning burnt offering and the evening grain offering and the king's burnt offering and his grain offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their grain offering and their drink offering. And throw on it all the blood of the burnt offering and all the blood of the sacrifice, but (FJ)the bronze altar shall be for me to inquire by.” 16 Uriah the priest did all this, as King Ahaz commanded.

17 And King Ahaz cut off the frames of the stands and removed the basin from them, and he took down (FK)the sea[r] from off the bronze oxen that were under it and put it on a stone pedestal. 18 And the covered way for the Sabbath that had been built inside the house and the outer entrance for the king he caused to go around the house of the Lord, because of the king of Assyria. 19 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz that he did, are they not written (FL)in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 20 And Ahaz slept with his fathers and (FM)was buried with his fathers in the city of David, and Hezekiah his son reigned in his place.

Hoshea Reigns in Israel

17 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, (FN)Hoshea the son of Elah began to reign in Samaria over Israel, and he reigned nine years. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, yet not as the kings of Israel who were before him. (FO)Against him came up (FP)Shalmaneser king of Assyria. And Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute. But the king of Assyria found treachery in Hoshea, for he had sent messengers to So, king of Egypt, and offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria shut him up and bound him in prison. Then the king of Assyria invaded all the land and came to Samaria, and for three years he besieged it.

The Fall of Israel

In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria (FQ)captured Samaria, (FR)and he carried the Israelites away to Assyria (FS)and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of (FT)Gozan, and in the cities of (FU)the Medes.

Exile Because of Idolatry

And this occurred because the people of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, (FV)who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods (FW)and walked in the customs of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel, (FX)and in the customs that the kings of Israel had practiced. And the people of Israel did secretly against the Lord their God things that were not right. They built for themselves high places in all their towns, (FY)from watchtower to fortified city. 10 They set up for themselves (FZ)pillars and Asherim on every high hill and under every green tree, 11 and there they made offerings on all the high places, as the nations did whom the Lord carried away before them. And they did wicked things, provoking the Lord to anger, 12 and they served idols, (GA)of which the Lord had said to them, “You shall not do this.” 13 Yet the Lord (GB)warned Israel and Judah (GC)by every prophet (GD)and every seer, saying, (GE)“Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by my servants the prophets.”

14 But they would not listen, (GF)but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the Lord their God. 15 They despised his statutes (GG)and his covenant that he made with their fathers and the warnings that he gave them. They went after (GH)false idols (GI)and became false, and they followed the nations that were around them, concerning whom the (GJ)Lord had commanded them that they should not do like them. 16 And they abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God, and made for themselves metal images of (GK)two calves; and they (GL)made an Asherah and (GM)worshiped all the host of heaven and served (GN)Baal. 17 (GO)And they burned their sons and their daughters as offerings[s] and used (GP)divination and (GQ)omens and (GR)sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. 18 Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them out of his sight. None was left but (GS)the tribe of Judah only.

19 (GT)Judah also did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but walked in the customs that Israel had introduced. 20 And the Lord rejected all the descendants of Israel and afflicted them (GU)and gave them into the hand of plunderers, until he had cast them out of his sight.

21 (GV)When he had torn Israel from the house of David, (GW)they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. And Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord (GX)and made them commit great sin. 22 The people of Israel walked in all the sins that Jeroboam did. They did not depart from them, 23 until the Lord removed Israel out of his sight, (GY)as he had spoken by all his servants the prophets. (GZ)So Israel was exiled from their own land to Assyria until this day.

Assyria Resettles Samaria

24 (HA)And the king of Assyria brought people from (HB)Babylon, Cuthah, (HC)Avva, (HD)Hamath, and (HE)Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the people of Israel. And they took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities. 25 And at the beginning of their dwelling there, they did not fear the Lord. Therefore the Lord sent lions among them, which killed some of them. 26 So the king of Assyria was told, “The nations that you have carried away and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the law of the god of the land. Therefore he has sent lions among them, and behold, they are killing them, because they do not know the law of the god of the land.” 27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, “Send there one of the priests whom you carried away from there, and let him[t] go and dwell there and teach them the law of the god of the land.” 28 So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and lived in (HF)Bethel and taught them how they should fear the Lord.

29 But every nation still made gods of its own and put them (HG)in the shrines of the high places that the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities in which they lived. 30 The men of (HH)Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima, 31 and the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak; and the Sepharvites (HI)burned their children in the fire to (HJ)Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of (HK)Sepharvaim. 32 (HL)They also feared the Lord (HM)and appointed from among themselves all sorts of people as priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the shrines of (HN)the high places. 33 So they feared the Lord but also served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.

34 To this day they do according to the former manner. They do not fear the Lord, and they do not follow the statutes or the rules or the law or the commandment that the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, (HO)whom he named Israel. 35 The Lord made a covenant with them and commanded them, (HP)“You shall not fear other gods (HQ)or bow yourselves to them or serve them or sacrifice to them, 36 but (HR)you shall fear the Lord, (HS)who brought you out of the land of Egypt with great power and (HT)with an outstretched arm. You shall bow yourselves to him, and to him you shall sacrifice. 37 And the statutes and the rules and the law and the commandment that he wrote for you, (HU)you shall always be careful to do. (HV)You shall not fear other gods, 38 and (HW)you shall not forget the covenant that I have made with you. (HX)You shall not fear other gods, 39 but (HY)you shall fear the Lord your God, and he will deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.” 40 However, they would not listen, but they did according to their former manner.

41 (HZ)So these nations feared the Lord and also served their carved images. Their children did likewise, and their children's children—as their fathers did, so they do to this day.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 11:2 Compare 2 Chronicles 22:11; Hebrew lacks and she put
  2. 2 Kings 11:2 Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate (compare 2 Chronicles 22:11) she
  3. 2 Kings 11:6 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
  4. 2 Kings 11:21 Ch 12:1 in Hebrew
  5. 2 Kings 11:21 Jehoash is an alternate spelling of Joash (son of Ahaziah) as in verse 2
  6. 2 Kings 12:1 Jehoash is an alternate spelling of Joash (son of Ahaziah) as in 11:2; also verses 2, 4, 6, 7, 18
  7. 2 Kings 13:6 Septuagint, Syriac, Targum, Vulgate; Hebrew he walked
  8. 2 Kings 13:10 Jehoash is an alternate spelling of Joash (son of Jehoahaz) as in verses 9, 12–14; also verse 25
  9. 2 Kings 14:8 Jehoash is an alternate spelling of Joash (son of Jehoahaz) as in 13:9, 12–14; also verses 9, 11–16
  10. 2 Kings 14:13 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
  11. 2 Kings 15:5 Leprosy was a term for several skin diseases; see Leviticus 13
  12. 2 Kings 15:5 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
  13. 2 Kings 15:13 Another name for Azariah
  14. 2 Kings 15:19 Another name for Tiglath-pileser III (compare verse 29)
  15. 2 Kings 15:19 A talent was about 75 pounds or 34 kilograms
  16. 2 Kings 15:20 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
  17. 2 Kings 16:3 Or made his son pass through the fire
  18. 2 Kings 16:17 Compare 1 Kings 7:23
  19. 2 Kings 17:17 Or made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire
  20. 2 Kings 17:27 Syriac, Vulgate; Hebrew them

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