Apr 14 - 2 Chronicles 25-28
2 Chronicles
1Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jehoaddan, from Jerusalem2And he accomplished good in the sight of the Lord. Yet truly, not with a perfect heart3And when he saw himself to be strengthened in his rule, he cut the throats of the servants who had killed his father, the king4But he did not put to death their sons, just as it was written in the book of the law of Moses, where the Lord instructed, saying: "The fathers shall not be slain because of the sons, nor the sons because of their fathers. Instead, each one shall die for his own sin.5And then Amaziah gathered together Judah, and he organized them by families, and tribunes, and centurions, throughout all of Judah and Benjamin. And he numbered them from twenty years old and upward. And he found three hundred thousand young men, who could go forth to battle, and who could hold spear and shield6Also, he hired for pay from Israel one hundred thousand experienced men, for one hundred talents of silver7Then a man of God came to him, and he said: "O king, let not the army of Israel go forth with you. For the Lord is not with Israel, nor with all the sons of Ephraim8But if you think that a war stands by the strength of the army, God will cause you to be overwhelmed by the enemies. For indeed, it belongs to God to assist, and to put to flight.9And Amaziah said to the man of God, "Then what will become of the one hundred talents, which I gave to the soldiers of Israel?" And the man of God responded to him, "The Lord has that from which he is able to give much more than this to you.10And so, Amaziah separated the army, which had come to him from Ephraim, so that they would return to their place. But having become very angry against Judah, they returned to their own region11Then Amaziah confidently led forth his people. And he went away to the Valley of the Salt Pits, and he struck down ten thousand of the sons of Seir12And the sons of Judah captured another ten thousand of the men. And they led them to the precipice of a certain rock. And they threw them from the summit, and they were all broken apart13But the army that Amaziah had sent away, so that they would not go with him into battle, spread out among the cities of Judah, from Samaria as far as Beth-horon. And having killed three thousand, they took away much plunder14Truly, after the slaughter of the Edomites, and when the gods of the sons of Seir were brought, Amaziah chose them as gods for himself. And he was adoring them, and burning incense to them15For this reason, the Lord became angry against Amaziah, and he sent a prophet to him, who would say to him, "Why have you adored gods who did not free their own people from your hand?16And after he spoke these things, he responded to him: "Are you the counselor of the king? Be quiet! Otherwise I will put you to death." And departing, the prophet said, "I know that God has decided to kill you, because you have done this evil, and also because you have not agreed to my counsel.17And so Amaziah, the king of Judah, undertaking a very wicked counsel, sent to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, the king of Israel, saying: "Come, let us see one another.18But he sent back messengers, saying: "The thistle which is in Lebanon sent to the cedar of Lebanon, saying: ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife.’ And behold, the beasts that were in the forest of Lebanon passed through, and they trampled the thistle19You said, ‘I struck down Edom.’ And for this reason, your heart is lifted up with pride. Settle in your own house. Why do you provoke evil against yourself, so that you may fall, and then Judah with you?20Amaziah was not willing to listen to him, because it was the will of the Lord that he be delivered into the hands of the enemies, because of the gods of Edom21And so Joash, the king of Israel, ascended, and they presented themselves within the sight of one another. Now Amaziah, the king of Judah, was in Beth-shemesh of Judah22And Judah fell before Israel. And each one fled to his own tent23Then Joash, the king of Israel, captured Amaziah, the king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, at Beth-shemesh, and he led him to Jerusalem. And he destroyed its walls, from the gate of Ephraim as far as the gate of the corner, four hundred cubits24Also, he brought back to Samaria all the gold and silver, and all the vessels, which he had found in the house of God, and with Obededom in the treasuries of the king’s house, as well as sons for hostages25Then Amaziah, the son of Joash, the king of Judah, lived for fifteen years after the death of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the king of Israel26Now the rest of the words of Amaziah, the first and the last, have been written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel27And after he withdrew from the Lord, they set up an ambush against him in Jerusalem. But since he had fled into Lachish, they sent and killed him in that place28And having carried him back upon horses, they buried him with his fathers in the City of David
1Then all the people of Judah appointed his son, Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, as king in place of his father, Amaziah2He built up Eloth, and he restored it to the dominion of Judah. After this, the king slept with his fathers3Uzziah was sixteen years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for fifty-two years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jecoliah, from Jerusalem4And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, in accord with all that his father, Amaziah, had done5And he sought the Lord, during the days of Zechariah, who understood and saw God. And while he was seeking the Lord, he directed him in all things6Indeed, he went out and fought against the Philistines. And he destroyed the wall of Gath, and the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod. Also, he built towns in Ashdod, and among the Philistines7And God helped him against the Philistines, and against the Arabians, who were living in Gurbaal, and against the Ammonites8And the Ammonites weighed out gifts to Uzziah. And his name became widely known, even to the entrance of Egypt, because of his frequent victories9And Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem, above the gate of the corner, and above the gate of the valley, and others on the same side of the wall, and he fortified them10Then he also constructed towers in the wilderness, and dug many cisterns, because he had much cattle, both in the plains and in the starkness of the wilderness. Also, he had vineyards and dressers of vines in the mountains and at Carmel. Certainly, he was a man devoted to agriculture11Now the army of his warriors, who would go forth to battle, was under the hand of Jeiel, the scribe, and Maaseiah, the teacher, and under the hand of Hananiah, who was among the king’s commanders12And the entire number of the leaders, by the families of strong men, was two thousand six hundred13And the entire army under them was three hundred and seven thousand five hundred, who were fit for war, and who fought on behalf of the king against the adversaries14Also, Uzziah prepared for them, that is, for the entire army, shields, and spears, and helmets, and breastplates, and bows, as well as slings for the casting of stones15And in Jerusalem, he made various kinds of machines, which he placed in the towers, and at the corners of the walls, so as to shoot arrows and large stones. And his name went forth to far away places, for the Lord was helping him and had strengthened him16But when he had become strong, his heart was lifted up, even to his own destruction. And he neglected the Lord his God. And entering into the temple of the Lord, he intended to burn incense upon the altar of incense17And entering immediately after him, Azariah the priest, and with him eighty priests of the Lord, very valiant men18withstood the king, and they said: "It is not your office, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord; rather, it is the office of the priests, that is, of the sons of Aaron, who have been consecrated for this same ministry. Depart from the sanctuary, otherwise you will be in contempt. For this act will not be reputed to you for your glory by the Lord God.19And Uzziah, having become angry, while holding in his hand the censer so that he might burn incense, threatened the priests. And immediately a leprosy arose on his forehead, in the sight of the priests, in the house of the Lord, at the altar of incense20And when the high priest Azariah, and all the rest of the priests, had gazed upon him, they saw the leprosy on his forehead, and they hurried to expel him. Then too, he himself, becoming terrified, rushed to depart, because immediately he had become aware of the wound of the Lord21And so, king Uzziah was a leper, even until the day of his death. And he lived in a separate house, being full of leprosy, because of which he had been ejected from the house of the Lord. Then Jotham, his son, directed the house of the king, and he was judging the people of the land22But the rest of the words of Uzziah, the first and the last, were written by the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz23And Uzziah slept with his fathers. And they buried him in the field of the royal sepulchers, because he was a leper. And Jotham, his son, reigned in his place
1Jotham was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok2And he did what was right before the Lord, in accord with all that his father, Uzziah, had done, except that he did not enter into the temple of the Lord, and still the people were transgressing3He improved the high gate of the house of the Lord. And he built many things upon the wall of Ophel4Also, he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and fortresses and towers in the forests5He fought against the king of the sons of Ammon, and he defeated them. And at that time, the sons of Ammon gave to him one hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand cor of wheat, and the same number of cor of barley. These things the sons of Ammon offered to him in the second and third year6And Jotham was strengthened, because he had directed his way before the Lord his God7Now the rest of the words of Jotham, and all his battles and works, have been written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah8He was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem9And Jotham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. And his son, Ahaz, reigned in his place
1Ahaz was twenty years old when he had begun to reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He did not do what is right in the sight of the Lord, as his father David did2Instead, he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. Moreover, he also cast statues for the Baals3It is he who burned incense in the Valley of the son of Hinnom. And he purified his sons by fire, in accord with the ritual of the nations that the Lord put to death at the advent of the sons of Israel4Also, he was sacrificing and burning incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every leafy tree5And so the Lord, his God, delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria, who struck him and took great plunder from his kingdom. And he carried it away to Damascus. Also, he was delivered into the hands of the king of Israel, and he struck him with great affliction6And Pekah, the son of Remaliah, killed, on one day, one hundred twenty thousand, all of them men of war from Judah, because they had forsaken the Lord, the God of their fathers7In the same time, Zichri, a powerful man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah, the son of the king, and Azrikam, the governor of his house, and also Elkanah, who was second to the king8And the sons of Israel seized, from their brothers, two hundred thousand women, boys, and girls, and immense plunder. And they took it away to Samaria9At that time, there was a prophet of the Lord there, named Oded. And going out to meet the army arriving in Samaria, he said to them: "Behold, the Lord, the God of your fathers, having become angry against Judah, has delivered them into your hands. But you have killed them by atrocities, so that your cruelty has reached up to heaven10Moreover, you wanted to subjugate the sons of Judah and Jerusalem as your men and women servants, which is a work that should never be done. And so you sinned in this matter against the Lord your God11But listen to my counsel, and release the captives, whom you have brought from your brothers. For a great fury of the Lord is hanging over you.12And so, some of the leaders of the sons of Ephraim, Azariah, the son of Johanan, Berechiah, the son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah, the son of Shallum, and Amasa, the son of Hadlai, stood up against those who were arriving from the battle13And they said to them: "You shall not lead back captives to here, lest we sin against the Lord. Why are you willing to add to our sins, and to build upon our old offenses? For indeed, the sin is great, and the furious anger of the Lord is hanging over Israel.14And the warriors released the spoils and all that they had seized, in the sight of the leaders and the entire multitude15And the men, whom we mentioned above, rose up and took the captives. All those who were naked, they clothed from the spoils. And when they had clothed them, and had given them shoes, and had refreshed them with food and drink, and had anointed them because of the hardship, and had cared for them, whoever was not able to walk and whoever was feeble in body, they set them upon beasts of burden, and they led them to Jericho, the city of palm trees, to their brothers, and they themselves returned to Samaria16In that time, king Ahaz sent to the king of the Assyrians, requesting assistance17And the Edomites arrived and struck down many of Judah, and they seized great plunder18Also, the Philistines spread out among the cities of the plains, and to the south of Judah. And they seized Beth-shemesh, and Aijalon, and Gederoth, and also Soco, and Timnah, and Gimzo, with their villages, and they lived in them19For the Lord had humbled Judah because of Ahaz, the king of Judah, since he had stripped it of help, and had shown contempt for the Lord20And he led against him Tilgath-pilneser, the king of the Assyrians, who also afflicted him and laid waste to him, without resistance21And so Ahaz, despoiling the house of the Lord, and the house of the kings and the leaders, gave gifts to the king of the Assyrians, and yet it profited him nothing22Moreover, in the time of his anguish, he also added to his contempt against the Lord. King Ahaz himself, by himself23immolated victims to the gods of Damascus, those who had struck him. And he said: "The gods of the kings of Syria assist them, and so I will please them with victims, and they will help me." But to the contrary, they had been the ruin of him and of all Israel24And so, Ahaz, having despoiled and broken apart all the vessels of the house of God, closed up the doors of the temple of God, and made for himself altars in all the corners of Jerusalem25Also, he constructed altars in all the cities of Judah, in order to burn frankincense, and so he provoked the Lord, the God of his fathers, to wrath26But the rest of his words, and all his works, the first and the last, have been written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel27And Ahaz slept with his fathers. And they buried him in the city of Jerusalem. And they did not allow him to be in the sepulchers of the kings of Israel. And his son, Hezekiah, reigned in his place