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2 Kings 10
New English Translation

Jehu Wipes Out Ahab’s Family

10 Ahab had seventy sons living in Samaria. So Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria to the leading officials of Jezreel and to the guardians of Ahab’s dynasty. This is what the letters said,[a] 2 “You have with you the sons of your master, chariots and horses, a fortified city, and weapons. So when this letter arrives,[b] 3 pick the best and most capable[c] of your master’s sons, place him on his father’s throne, and defend[d] your master’s dynasty.”

4 They were absolutely terrified[e] and said, “Look, two kings could not stop him![f] How can we?”[g] 5 So the palace supervisor,[h] the city commissioner,[i] the leaders,[j] and the guardians sent this message to Jehu, “We are your subjects![k] Whatever you say, we will do. We will not make anyone king. Do what you consider proper.”[l]

6 He wrote them a second letter, saying, “If you are really on my side and are willing to obey me,[m] then take the heads of your master’s sons and come to me in Jezreel at this time tomorrow.”[n] Now the king had seventy sons, and the prominent men[o] of the city were raising them. 7 When they received the letter, they seized the king’s sons and executed all seventy of them.[p] They put their heads in baskets and sent them to him in Jezreel. 8 The messenger came and told Jehu,[q] “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons.” Jehu[r] said, “Stack them in two piles at the entrance of the city gate until morning.” 9 In the morning he went out and stood there. Then he said to all the people, “You are innocent. I conspired against my master and killed him. But who struck down all of these men? 10 Therefore take note that not one of the Lord’s words which he pronounced against Ahab’s dynasty[s] will fail to materialize.[t] The Lord has done what he announced through his servant Elijah.”[u] 11 Then Jehu killed all who were left of Ahab’s family in Jezreel, and all his nobles, close friends, and priests. He left no survivors.

12 Jehu then left there and set out for Samaria.[v] While he was traveling through Beth Eked of the Shepherds, 13 Jehu encountered[w] the relatives[x] of King Ahaziah of Judah. He asked, “Who are you?” They replied, “We are Ahaziah’s relatives. We have come down to see how[y] the king’s sons and the queen mother’s sons are doing.” 14 He said, “Capture them alive!” So they captured them alive and then executed all forty-two of them by the cistern at Beth Eked. He left no survivors.

15 When he left there, he met[z] Jehonadab son of Rekab who had been looking for him.[aa] Jehu greeted him and asked,[ab] “Are you as committed to me as I am to you?”[ac] Jehonadab answered, “I am!” Jehu replied, “If so, give me your hand.”[ad] So he offered his hand and Jehu[ae] pulled him up into the chariot. 16 Jehu[af] said, “Come with me and see how zealous I am for the Lord’s cause.”[ag] So he[ah] took him along in his chariot. 17 He went to Samaria and killed each of Ahab’s remaining family members who were in Samaria until he destroyed them,[ai] in keeping with the Lord’s message which he had announced to Elijah.

Jehu Executes the Prophets and Priests of Baal

18 Jehu assembled all the people and said to them, “Ahab worshiped[aj] Baal a little; Jehu will worship[ak] him with great devotion.[al] 19 So now, bring to me all the prophets of Baal, as well as all his servants and priests.[am] None of them must be absent, for I am offering a great sacrifice to Baal. Any of them who fails to appear will lose his life.” But Jehu was tricking them[an] so he could destroy the servants of Baal. 20 Then Jehu ordered, “Make arrangements for[ao] a celebration for Baal.” So they announced it. 21 Jehu sent invitations throughout Israel, and all the servants of Baal came; not one was absent. They arrived at the temple of Baal and filled it up from end to end.[ap] 22 Jehu ordered the one who was in charge of the wardrobe,[aq] “Bring out robes for all the servants of Baal.” So he brought out robes for them. 23 Then Jehu and Jehonadab son of Rekab went to the temple of Baal. Jehu[ar] said to the servants of Baal, “Make sure there are no servants of the Lord here with you; there must be only servants of Baal.”[as] 24 They went inside to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jehu had stationed eighty men outside. He had told them, “If any of the men inside gets away, you will pay with your lives!”[at]

25 When he finished offering the burnt sacrifice, Jehu ordered the royal guard[au] and officers, “Come in and strike them down! Don’t let any escape!” So the royal guard and officers struck them down with the sword and left their bodies lying there.[av] Then they entered the inner sanctuary of the temple of Baal.[aw] 26 They hauled out the sacred pillar of the temple of Baal and burned it. 27 They demolished[ax] the sacred pillar of Baal and[ay] the temple of Baal; it is used as[az] a latrine[ba] to this very day. 28 So Jehu eradicated Baal worship[bb] from Israel.

A Summary of Jehu’s Reign

29 However, Jehu did not repudiate the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had encouraged Israel to commit; the golden calves remained in Bethel and Dan.[bc] 30 The Lord said to Jehu, “You have done well. You have accomplished my will and carried out my wishes with regard to Ahab’s dynasty. Therefore four generations of your descendants will rule over Israel.”[bd] 31 But Jehu did not carefully and wholeheartedly obey the law of the Lord God of Israel.[be] He did not repudiate the sins which Jeroboam had encouraged Israel to commit.[bf]

32 In those days the Lord began to reduce the size of Israel’s territory.[bg] Hazael attacked their eastern border.[bh] 33 He conquered all the land of Gilead, including the territory of Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh, extending all the way from the Aroer in the Arnon Valley through Gilead to Bashan.[bi]

34 The rest of the events of Jehu’s reign, including all his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[bj] 35 Jehu passed away[bk] and was buried in Samaria. His son Jehoahaz replaced him as king. 36 Jehu reigned over Israel for twenty-eight years in Samaria.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 10:1 tn Heb “to the officers of Jezreel, the elders, and to the guardians of Ahab, saying.” It is not certain why the officials of Jezreel would be in Samaria. They may have fled there after they heard what happened to Joram and before Jehu entered the city. They would have had time to flee while Jehu was pursuing Ahaziah.
  2. 2 Kings 10:2 tn Heb “And now when this letter comes to you—with you are the sons of your master and with you are chariots and horses and a fortified city and weapons.”
  3. 2 Kings 10:3 tn Hebrew יָשָׁר (yashar) does not have its normal moral/ethical nuance here (“upright”), but a more neutral sense of “proper, right, suitable.” For the gloss “capable,” see HALOT 450 s.v. יָשָׁר.
  4. 2 Kings 10:3 tn Or “fight for.”
  5. 2 Kings 10:4 tn Heb “they were very, very afraid.” The term מְאֹד (meʾod) “very,” is repeated for emphasis.
  6. 2 Kings 10:4 tn Heb “did not stand before him.”
  7. 2 Kings 10:4 tn Heb “How can we stand?”
  8. 2 Kings 10:5 tn Heb “the one who was over the house.”
  9. 2 Kings 10:5 tn Heb “the one who was over the city.”
  10. 2 Kings 10:5 tn Or “elders.”
  11. 2 Kings 10:5 tn Heb “servants.”
  12. 2 Kings 10:5 tn Heb “Do what is good in your eyes.”
  13. 2 Kings 10:6 tn Heb “If you are mine and you are listening to my voice.”
  14. 2 Kings 10:6 sn Jehu’s command is intentionally vague. Does he mean that they should bring the guardians (those who are “heads” over Ahab’s sons) for a meeting, or does he mean that they should bring the literal heads of Ahab’s sons with them (so reads Lucian’s Greek translation, the Syriac Peshitta, and some mss of the Targum)? The city leaders interpret his words in the literal sense, but Jehu’s command is so ambiguous he is able to deny complicity in the executions (see v. 9).
  15. 2 Kings 10:6 tn Heb “great men,” probably in wealth, position, and prestige.
  16. 2 Kings 10:7 tn Heb “and when the letter came to them, they took the sons of the king and slaughtered seventy men.”
  17. 2 Kings 10:8 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  18. 2 Kings 10:8 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  19. 2 Kings 10:10 tn Heb “the house of Ahab.”
  20. 2 Kings 10:10 tn Heb “will fall to the earth.”
  21. 2 Kings 10:10 tn Heb “by the hand of his servant Elijah.”
  22. 2 Kings 10:12 tn Heb “and he arose and went and came to Samaria.”
  23. 2 Kings 10:13 tn Heb “found.”
  24. 2 Kings 10:13 tn Or “brothers.”
  25. 2 Kings 10:13 tn Heb “for the peace of.”
  26. 2 Kings 10:15 tn Heb “found.”
  27. 2 Kings 10:15 tn Heb “and he went from there and found Jehonadab son of Rekab [who was coming] to meet him.”
  28. 2 Kings 10:15 tn Heb “and he blessed him and said to him.”
  29. 2 Kings 10:15 tn Heb “Is there with your heart [what is] right, as my heart [is] with your heart?”
  30. 2 Kings 10:15 tc Heb “Jehonadab said, ‘There is and there is. Give your hand.’” If the text is allowed to stand, there are two possible ways to understand the syntax of וָיֵשׁ (vayesh), “and there is”: (1) The repetition of יֵשׁ (yesh, “there is and there is”) could be taken as emphatic, “indeed I am.” In this case, the entire statement could be taken as Jehonadab’s words or one could understand the words “give your hand” as Jehu’s. In the latter case the change in speakers is unmarked. (2) וָיֵשׁ begins Jehu’s response and has a conditional force, “if you are.” In this case, the transition in speakers is unmarked. However, it is possible that וַיֹּאמֶר (vayyoʾmer), “and he said,” or וַיֹּאמֶר יֵהוּא (vayyoʾmer yehu), “and Jehu said,” originally appeared between יֵשׁ and וָיֵשׁ and has accidentally dropped from the text by homoioarcton (note that both the proposed וַיֹּאמֶר and וָיֵשׁ begin with vav, ו). The present translation assumes such a textual reconstruction; it is supported by the LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate.
  31. 2 Kings 10:15 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  32. 2 Kings 10:16 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  33. 2 Kings 10:16 tn Heb “and see my zeal for the Lord.”
  34. 2 Kings 10:16 tc The MT has a plural form, but this is most likely an error. The LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate all have the singular.
  35. 2 Kings 10:17 tn Heb “him.” The pronoun refers to Ahab who represents his entire family.
  36. 2 Kings 10:18 tn Or “served.
  37. 2 Kings 10:18 tn Or “serve.”
  38. 2 Kings 10:18 tn Heb “much” or “greatly.”
  39. 2 Kings 10:19 tn Heb “and now, all the prophets of Baal, all his servants and all his priests summon to me.”
  40. 2 Kings 10:19 tn Heb “acted with deception [or, ‘trickery’].”
  41. 2 Kings 10:20 tn Heb “set apart”; or “observe as holy.”
  42. 2 Kings 10:21 tn Heb “and the house of Baal was filled mouth to mouth.”
  43. 2 Kings 10:22 tn Heb “and he said to the one who was over the wardrobe.”
  44. 2 Kings 10:23 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  45. 2 Kings 10:23 tn Heb “Search carefully and observe so that there are not here with you any servants of the Lord, but only the servants of Baal.”
  46. 2 Kings 10:24 tn Heb “The man who escapes from the men whom I am bringing into your hands, [it will be] his life in place of his life.”
  47. 2 Kings 10:25 tn Heb “runners.”
  48. 2 Kings 10:25 tn Heb “and they threw.” No object appears. According to M. Cogan and H. Tadmor (II Kings [AB], 116), this is an idiom for leaving a corpse unburied.
  49. 2 Kings 10:25 tn Heb “and they came to the city of the house of Baal.” It seems unlikely that a literal city is meant. Some emend עִיר (ʿir), “city,” to דְּבִיר (devir) “holy place,” or suggest that עִיר is due to dittography of the immediately preceding עַד (ʿad) “to.” Perhaps עִיר is here a technical term meaning “fortress” or, more likely, “inner room.”
  50. 2 Kings 10:27 tn Or “pulled down.”
  51. 2 Kings 10:27 tn The verb “they demolished” is repeated in the Hebrew text.
  52. 2 Kings 10:27 tn Heb “and they made it into.”
  53. 2 Kings 10:27 tn The consonantal text (Kethib) has the hapax legomenon מַחֲרָאוֹת (makharaʾot), “places to defecate” or “dung houses” (note the related noun חֶרֶא (khereʾ)/חֲרִי (khari), “dung,” HALOT 348-49 s.v. *חֲרָאִים). The marginal reading (Qere) glosses this, perhaps euphemistically, מוֹצָאוֹת (motsaʾot), “outhouses.”
  54. 2 Kings 10:28 tn Heb “destroyed Baal.”
  55. 2 Kings 10:29 tn Heb “Except the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat which he caused Israel to commit, Jehu did not turn aside from after them—the golden calves which [were in] Bethel and which [were] in Dan.”
  56. 2 Kings 10:30 tn Heb “Because you have done well by doing what is proper in my eyes—according to all which was in my heart you have done to the house of Ahab—sons of four generations will sit for you on the throne of Israel.” In the Hebrew text the Lord’s statement is one long sentence (with a parenthesis). The translation above divides it into shorter sentences for stylistic reasons.sn Jehu ruled over Israel from approximately 841-814 b.c. Four of his descendants (Jehoahaz, Jehoash, Jeroboam II, and Zechariah) ruled from approximately 814-753 b.c. The dynasty came to an end when Shallum assassinated Zechariah in 753 b.c. See 2 Kgs 15:8-12.
  57. 2 Kings 10:31 tn Heb “But Jehu was not careful to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart.”
  58. 2 Kings 10:31 tn Heb “He did not turn aside from the sins of Jeroboam which he caused Israel to commit.”
  59. 2 Kings 10:32 tn Heb “began to cut off Israel.”
  60. 2 Kings 10:32 tn Heb “Hazael struck them down in all the territory of Israel, from the Jordan on the east.” In the Hebrew text the phrase “from the Jordan on the east” begins v. 33.
  61. 2 Kings 10:33 tn Heb “all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassehites, from Aroer which is near the Arnon Valley, and Gilead, and Bashan.”
  62. 2 Kings 10:34 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jehu, and all which he did and all his strength, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
  63. 2 Kings 10:35 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
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列王纪下 10
Chinese New Version (Simplified)

耶户写信给撒玛利亚的领袖

10 亚哈有七十个儿子在撒玛利亚。耶户写了一批信，送到撒玛利亚，对耶斯列的首领、长老和亚哈众子的导师说： 2 “你们主人的儿子都在你们那里，你们也有战车、马匹、设防城和武器，那么这封信到达你们那里的时候， 3 你们就要看看在你们主人的儿子中，哪一个是最好最合适的，把他立在父亲的宝座上；你们又要为你们主人的家作战。” 4 他们就十分害怕，说：“看哪，两个王尚且不能在他面前站立得住，我们又怎能站得住呢？” 5 于是内务长、市长、长老和亚哈众子的导师送信给耶户说：“我们是你的仆人，你吩咐我们的，我们都必照办；我们也不会立甚么人作王；你看怎样好，我们就怎样作。”

杀尽亚哈的子孙

6 于是耶户写第二封信给他们说：“如果你们是归从我，听我的话的，就要把你们主人的儿子们的头颅取下，明天大约这个时候，带来耶斯列给我。”那时，王的七十个儿子是住在抚养他们的城中的大臣那里。 7 这信到达他们那里的时候，他们就拿住王的众子，把这七十人杀了，然后把他们的头放在篮子里，送到耶斯列耶户那里。 8 有使者来告诉耶户说：“王的众子的头送到了。”他说：“把它们分作两堆放在城门口，直到早上。” 9 第二天早上的时候，耶户出来，站着对众民说：“你们都是无罪的，看哪，是我自己背叛了我的主人，把他杀了，但这所有的人又是谁击杀的呢？ 10 你们要知道耶和华的话，就是耶和华所说攻击亚哈家的话，一句也没有落空；耶和华借着他的仆人以利亚所说的话，他都作成了。” 11 于是耶户击杀了亚哈家在耶斯列剩下的人，还有他所有的大臣、有关的人、祭司，没有一个给他存留。

杀尽亚哈谢的兄弟

12 耶户动身，往撒玛利亚去。在路上，他经过牧羊人的伯艾吉那里。 13 他遇见了犹大王亚哈谢的兄弟们。他说：“你们是谁？”他们说：“我们是亚哈谢的兄弟。我们下来要向王的众子和太后的众子请安。” 14 他说：“活捉他们！”他的手下就活捉了他们，在伯艾吉的坑边杀了他们；一共是四十二个人，没有留下一人。

15 他又从那里往前行，看见利甲的儿子约拿达来迎接他。耶户向他请安，然后说：“你的心对我忠诚，就像我的心对你的心一样吗？”约拿达说：“是的。”耶户说：“如果是的话，伸出你的手来。”他伸出他的手，耶户就把他拉上他的战车。 16 耶户说：“你和我一起去，看看我对耶和华的热诚。”于是用自己的战车载他同去。 17 他来到撒玛利亚，就击杀亚哈家所有在撒玛利亚剩下的人，把他们完全消灭，正如耶和华对以利亚所说的话。

设计杀尽拜巴力的人

18 耶户集合众民，对他们说：“从前亚哈信奉巴力还算是少，耶户要信奉更多。 19 现在，所有的巴力先知、所有信奉他的和他所有的祭司都要给我召来，不要走漏一人；因为我要向巴力献一个极大的祭，缺席的必不得活。”耶户用诡计这样行，是要除灭所有信奉巴力的人。 20 耶户又说：“要为巴力召开一个严肃会。”于是众人宣告召开大会。 21 耶户派人走遍以色列各地，所有信奉巴力的人都来了，没有一个不来的。他们都进了巴力庙，以致巴力庙从这边到那边都塞满了人。 22 耶户对掌管衣橱的说：“把礼服拿出来，给所有拜巴力的人穿。”他就把礼服拿出来给他们穿上。 23 耶户和利甲的儿子约拿达来到巴力的庙中。他对信奉巴力的人说：“搜查看看，这里不要有信奉耶和华的人和你们同在一起，只可以有信奉巴力的人。” 24 他们进去献祭和献燔祭。耶户布置了八十个人在外面，说：“如果我带来交在你们手中的人，有一个从他们中间逃脱了，你们就要以命抵命。”

25 耶户献完了燔祭，就对卫兵和军长说：“你们进去，杀死他们，一个也不让他们出来。”卫兵和军长于是用刀击杀他们，又把他们的尸体拋出去，然后往巴力庙的内室去了。 26 他们又把巴力庙内的神柱搬出去烧了。 27 他们毁坏了巴力的神柱，又拆毁了巴力庙，作为厕所，直到今日。 28 这样，耶户从以色列中消灭了巴力。

耶户仍拜金牛犊

29 只是耶户没有离弃尼八的儿子耶罗波安的罪，就是他使以色列人陷于罪中的那些罪，敬拜在伯特利和但的金牛犊。 30 耶和华对耶户说：“因为你办好了我看为正的事，照我的一切心意对付亚哈家，你的子孙要坐在以色列的王位上，直到第四代。” 31 可是耶户没有尽心遵行耶和华以色列　神的律法，离弃耶罗波安使以色列人陷于罪中的那些罪。

哈薛入侵以色列地

32 在那些日子，耶和华开始削弱以色列，哈薛在以色列各处的边境攻击他们： 33 从约旦河以东，基列的全地，迦得人、流本人和玛拿西人之地，从靠近亚嫩河的亚罗珥起，至基列和巴珊。 34 耶户其余的事迹和他所行的一切，以及他的一切英雄事迹，不是都写在以色列诸王的年代志上吗？

耶户逝世

35 耶户和他的祖先同享安息，葬在撒玛利亚，他儿子约哈斯接续他作王。 36 耶户在撒玛利亚作王统治以色列共二十八年。

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