Bible in 90 Days

God’s Second Appearance to Solomon

¹¹ Thus Solomon finished the house of the Lord and the king’s house; all that Solomon had planned to do in the house of the Lord and in his own house he successfully accomplished. ¹² Then the Lord 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 When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command the locust to devour the land, or send pestilence among my people, ¹⁴ if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. ¹⁵ Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place. ¹⁶ For now I have chosen and consecrated this house that my name may be there for ever; my eyes and my heart will be there for all time. ¹⁷ And as for you, if you walk before me, as David your father walked, doing according to all that I have commanded you and keeping my statutes and my ordinances, ¹⁸ then I will establish your royal throne, as I covenanted with David your father, saying, ‘There shall not fail you a man to rule Israel.’

¹⁹ “But if you^[a] turn aside and forsake my statutes and my commandments which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them, ²⁰ then I will pluck you^[b] up from the land which I have given you;^[c] and this house, which I have consecrated for my name, I will cast out of my sight, and will make it a proverb and a byword among all peoples. ²¹ And at this house, which is exalted, every one passing by will be astonished, and say, ‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ ²² Then they will say, ‘Because they forsook the Lord the God of their fathers who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshiped them and served them; therefore he has brought all this evil upon them.’”

Various Activities of Solomon

8 At the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the house of the Lord and his own house, ² Solomon rebuilt the cities which Huram had given to him, and settled the people of Israel in them.

³ And Solomon went to Ha′math-zo′bah, and took it. ⁴ He built Tadmor in the wilderness and all the store-cities which he built in Hamath. ⁵ He also built Upper Beth-hor′on and Lower Beth-hor′on, fortified cities with walls, gates, and bars, ⁶ and Ba′alath, and all the store-cities that Solomon had, and all the cities for his chariots, and the cities for his horsemen, and whatever Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. ⁷ All the people who were left of the Hittites, the Amorites, the Per′izzites, the Hivites, and the Jeb′usites, who were not of Israel, ⁸ from their descendants who were left after them in the land, whom the people of Israel had not destroyed—these Solomon made a forced levy and so they are to this day. ⁹ But of the people of Israel Solomon made no slaves for his work; they were soldiers, and his officers, the commanders of his chariots, and his horsemen. ¹⁰ And these were the chief officers of King Solomon, two hundred and fifty, who exercised authority over the people.

¹¹ Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter up from the city of David to the house which he had built for her, for he said, “My wife shall not live in the house of David king of Israel, for the places to which the ark of the Lord has come are holy.”

¹² Then Solomon offered up burnt offerings to the Lord upon the altar of the Lord which he had built before the vestibule, ¹³ as the duty of each day required, offering according to the commandment of Moses for the sabbaths, the new moons, and the three annual feasts—the feast of unleavened bread, the feast of weeks, and the feast of tabernacles. ¹⁴ According to the ordinance of David his father, he appointed the divisions of the priests for their service, and the Levites for their offices of praise and ministry before the priests as the duty of each day required, and the gatekeepers in their divisions for the several gates; for so David the man of God had commanded. ¹⁵ And they did not turn aside from what the king had commanded the priests and Levites concerning any matter and concerning the treasuries.

¹⁶ Thus was accomplished all the work of Solomon from^[d] the day the foundation of the house of the Lord was laid until it was finished. So the house of the Lord was completed.

¹⁷ Then Solomon went to E′zion-ge′ber and Eloth on the shore of the sea, in the land of Edom. ¹⁸ And Huram sent him by his servants ships and servants familiar with the sea, and they went to Ophir together with the servants of Solomon, and fetched from there four hundred and fifty talents of gold and brought it to King Solomon.

Visit of the Queen of Sheba

9 Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon she came to Jerusalem to test him with hard questions, having a very great retinue and camels bearing spices and very much gold and precious stones. When she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. ² And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from Solomon which he could not explain to her. ³ And when the queen of Sheba had seen the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, ⁴ the food of his table, the seating of his officials, and the attendance of his servants, and their clothing, his cupbearers, and their clothing, and his burnt offerings which he offered at the house of the Lord, there was no more spirit in her.

⁵ And she said to the king, “The report was true which I heard in my own land of your affairs and of your wisdom, ⁶ but I did not believe the^[e] reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it; and behold, half the greatness of your wisdom was not told me; you surpass the report which I heard. ⁷ Happy are your wives!^[f] Happy are these your servants, who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom! ⁸ Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and set you on his throne as king for the Lord your God! Because your God loved Israel and would establish them for ever, he has made you king over them, that you may execute justice and righteousness.” ⁹ Then she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and a very great quantity of spices, and precious stones: there were no spices such as those which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

¹⁰ Moreover the servants of Huram and the servants of Solomon, who brought gold from Ophir, brought algum wood and precious stones. ¹¹ And the king made of the algum wood steps^[g] for the house of the Lord and for the king’s house, lyres also and harps for the singers; there never was seen the like of them before in the land of Judah.

¹² And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, whatever she asked besides what she had brought to the king. So she turned and went back to her own land, with her servants.

Solomon’s Great Wealth

¹³ Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, ¹⁴ besides that which the traders and merchants brought; and all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land brought gold and silver to Solomon. ¹⁵ King Solomon made two hundred large shields of beaten gold; six hundred shekels of beaten gold went into each shield. ¹⁶ And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three hundred shekels of gold went into each shield; and the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. ¹⁷ The king also made a great ivory throne, and overlaid it with pure gold. ¹⁸ The throne had six steps and a footstool of gold, which were attached to the throne, and on each side of the seat were arm rests and two lions standing beside the arm rests, ¹⁹ while twelve lions stood there, one on each end of a step on the six steps. The like of it was never made in any kingdom. ²⁰ All King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; silver was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon. ²¹ For the king’s ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram; once every three years the ships of Tarshish used to come bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.^[h]

²² Thus King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. ²³ And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put into his mind. ²⁴ Every one of them brought his present, articles of silver and of gold, garments, myrrh, spices, horses, and mules, so much year by year. ²⁵ And Solomon had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. ²⁶ And he ruled over all the kings from the Euphra′tes to the land of the Philistines, and to the border of Egypt. ²⁷ And the king made silver as common in Jerusalem as stone, and cedar as plentiful as the sycamore of the Shephe′lah. ²⁸ And horses were imported for Solomon from Egypt and from all lands.

Death of Solomon

²⁹ Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, from first to last, are they not written in the history of Nathan the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahi′jah the Shi′lonite, and in the visions of Iddo the seer concerning Jerobo′am the son of Nebat? ³⁰ Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. ³¹ And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father; and Rehobo′am his son reigned in his stead.^[i]

The Revolt against Rehoboam

10 Rehobo′am went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king. ² And when Jerobo′am the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was in Egypt, whither he had fled from King Solomon), then Jerobo′am returned from Egypt. ³ And they sent and called him; and Jerobo′am and all Israel came and said to Rehobo′am, ⁴ “Your father made our yoke heavy. Now therefore lighten the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke upon us, and we will serve you.” ⁵ He said to them, “Come to me again in three days.” So the people went away.

⁶ Then King Rehobo′am took counsel with the old men, who had stood before Solomon his father while he was yet alive, saying, “How do you advise me to answer this people?” ⁷ And they said to him, “If you will be kind to this people and please them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants for ever.” ⁸ But he forsook the counsel which the old men gave him, and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him and stood before him. ⁹ And he said to them, “What do you advise that we answer this people who have said to me, ‘Lighten the yoke that your father put upon us’?” ¹⁰ And the young men who had grown up with him said to him, “Thus shall you speak to the people who said to you, ‘Your father made our yoke heavy, but do you lighten it for us’; thus shall you say to them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins. ¹¹ And now, whereas my father laid upon you a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.’”

¹² So Jerobo′am and all the people came to Rehobo′am the third day, as the king said, “Come to me again the third day.” ¹³ And the king answered them harshly, and forsaking the counsel of the old men, ¹⁴ King Rehobo′am spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to it; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.” ¹⁵ So the king did not hearken to the people; for it was a turn of affairs brought about by God that the Lord might fulfil his word, which he spoke by Ahi′jah the Shi′lonite to Jerobo′am the son of Nebat.

¹⁶ And when all Israel saw that the king did not hearken to them, the people answered the king,

So all Israel departed to their tents. ¹⁷ But Rehobo′am reigned over the people of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah. ¹⁸ Then King Rehobo′am sent Hador′am, who was taskmaster over the forced labor, and the people of Israel stoned him to death with stones. And King Rehobo′am made haste to mount his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. ¹⁹ So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.

Judah and Benjamin Fortified

11 When Rehobo′am came to Jerusalem, he assembled the house of Judah, and Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen warriors, to fight against Israel, to restore the kingdom to Rehobo′am. ² But the word of the Lord came to Shemai′ah the man of God: ³ “Say to Rehobo′am the son of Solomon king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, ⁴ ‘Thus says the Lord, You shall not go up or fight against your brethren. Return every man to his home, for this thing is from me.’” So they hearkened to the word of the Lord, and returned and did not go against Jerobo′am.

⁵ Rehobo′am dwelt in Jerusalem, and he built cities for defense in Judah. ⁶ He built Bethlehem, Etam, Teko′a, ⁷ Beth-zur, Soco, Adul′lam, ⁸ Gath, Mare′shah, Ziph, ⁹ Adora′im, Lachish, Aze′kah, ¹⁰ Zorah, Ai′jalon, and Hebron, fortified cities which are in Judah and in Benjamin. ¹¹ He made the fortresses strong, and put commanders in them, and stores of food, oil, and wine. ¹² And he put shields and spears in all the cities, and made them very strong. So he held Judah and Benjamin.

Priests and Levites Support Rehoboam

¹³ And the priests and the Levites that were in all Israel resorted to him from all places where they lived. ¹⁴ For the Levites left their common lands and their holdings and came to Judah and Jerusalem, because Jerobo′am and his sons cast them out from serving as priests of the Lord, ¹⁵ and he appointed his own priests for the high places, and for the satyrs, and for the calves which he had made. ¹⁶ And those who had set their hearts to seek the Lord God of Israel came after them from all the tribes of Israel to Jerusalem to sacrifice to the Lord, the God of their fathers. ¹⁷ They strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and for three years they made Rehobo′am the son of Solomon secure, for they walked for three years in the way of David and Solomon.

Rehoboam’s Marriages

¹⁸ Rehobo′am took as wife Ma′halath the daughter of Jer′imoth the son of David, and of Ab′ihail the daughter of Eli′ab the son of Jesse; ¹⁹ and she bore him sons, Je′ush, Shemari′ah, and Zaham. ²⁰ After her he took Ma′acah the daughter of Ab′salom, who bore him Abi′jah, Attai, Ziza, and Shelo′mith. ²¹ Rehobo′am loved Ma′acah the daughter of Ab′salom above all his wives and concubines (he took eighteen wives and sixty concubines, and had twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters); ²² and Rehobo′am appointed Abi′jah the son of Ma′acah as chief prince among his brothers, for he intended to make him king. ²³ And he dealt wisely, and distributed some of his sons through all the districts of Judah and Benjamin, in all the fortified cities; and he gave them abundant provisions, and procured wives for them.^[j]

Egypt Attacks Judah

12 When the rule of Rehobo′am was established and was strong, he forsook the law of the Lord, and all Israel with him. ² In the fifth year of King Rehobo′am, because they had been unfaithful to the Lord, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem ³ with twelve hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen. And the people were without number who came with him from Egypt—Libyans, Suk′ki-im, and Ethiopians. ⁴ And he took the fortified cities of Judah and came as far as Jerusalem. ⁵ Then Shemai′ah the prophet came to Rehobo′am and to the princes of Judah, who had gathered at Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said to them, “Thus says the Lord, ‘You abandoned me, so I have abandoned you to the hand of Shishak.’” ⁶ Then the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves and said, “The Lord is righteous.” ⁷ When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the Lord came to Shemai′ah: “They have humbled themselves; I will not destroy them, but I will grant them some deliverance, and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak. ⁸ Nevertheless they shall be servants to him, that they may know my service and the service of the kingdoms of the countries.”

⁹ So Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem; he took away the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king’s house; he took away everything. He also took away the shields of gold which Solomon had made; ¹⁰ and King Rehobo′am made in their stead shields of bronze, and committed them to the hands of the officers of the guard, who kept the door of the king’s house. ¹¹ And as often as the king went into the house of the Lord, the guard came and bore them, and brought them back to the guardroom. ¹² And when he humbled himself the wrath of the Lord turned from him, so as not to make a complete destruction; moreover, conditions were good in Judah.

Death of Rehoboam

¹³ So King Rehobo′am established himself in Jerusalem and reigned. Rehobo′am was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel to put his name there. His mother’s name was Na′amah the Ammonitess. ¹⁴ And he did evil, for he did not set his heart to seek the Lord.

¹⁵ Now the acts of Rehobo′am, from first to last, are they not written in the chronicles of Shemai′ah the prophet and of Iddo the seer?^[k] There were continual wars between Rehobo′am and Jerobo′am. ¹⁶ And Rehobo′am slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David; and Abi′jah his son reigned in his stead.

Abijah Reigns over Judah

13 In the eighteenth year of King Jerobo′am Abi′jah began to reign over Judah. ² He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Micai′ah the daughter of U′riel of Gib′eah.

Now there was war between Abi′jah and Jerobo′am. ³ Abi′jah went out to battle having an army of valiant men of war, four hundred thousand picked men; and Jerobo′am drew up his line of battle against him with eight hundred thousand picked mighty warriors. ⁴ Then Abi′jah stood up on Mount Zemara′im which is in the hill country of E′phraim, and said, “Hear me, O Jerobo′am and all Israel! ⁵ Ought you not to know that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingship over Israel for ever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt? ⁶ Yet Jerobo′am the son of Nebat, a servant of Solomon the son of David, rose up and rebelled against his lord; ⁷ and certain worthless scoundrels gathered about him and defied Rehobo′am the son of Solomon, when Rehobo′am was young and irresolute and could not withstand them.

⁸ “And now you think to withstand the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David, because you are a great multitude and have with you the golden calves which Jerobo′am made you for gods. ⁹ Have you not driven out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and made priests for yourselves like the peoples of other lands? Whoever comes to consecrate himself with a young bull or seven rams becomes a priest of what are no gods. ¹⁰ But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken him. We have priests ministering to the Lord who are sons of Aaron, and Levites for their service. ¹¹ They offer to the Lord every morning and every evening burnt offerings and incense of sweet spices, set out the showbread on the table of pure gold, and care for the golden lampstand that its lamps may burn every evening; for we keep the charge of the Lord our God, but you have forsaken him. ¹² Behold, God is with us at our head, and his priests with their battle trumpets to sound the call to battle against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the Lord, the God of your fathers; for you cannot succeed.”

¹³ Jerobo′am had sent an ambush around to come on them from behind; thus his troops^[l] were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them. ¹⁴ And when Judah looked, behold, the battle was before and behind them; and they cried to the Lord, and the priests blew the trumpets. ¹⁵ Then the men of Judah raised the battle shout. And when the men of Judah shouted, God defeated Jerobo′am and all Israel before Abi′jah and Judah. ¹⁶ The men of Israel fled before Judah, and God gave them into their hand. ¹⁷ Abi′jah and his people slew them with a great slaughter; so there fell slain of Israel five hundred thousand picked men. ¹⁸ Thus the men of Israel were subdued at that time, and the men of Judah prevailed, because they relied upon the Lord, the God of their fathers. ¹⁹ And Abi′jah pursued Jerobo′am, and took cities from him, Bethel with its villages and Jesha′nah with its villages and Ephron^[m] with its villages. ²⁰ Jerobo′am did not recover his power in the days of Abi′jah; and the Lord smote him, and he died. ²¹ But Abi′jah grew mighty. And he took fourteen wives, and had twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters. ²² The rest of the acts of Abi′jah, his ways and his sayings, are written in the story of the prophet Iddo.

Asa Reigns

14 ^[n] So Abi′jah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David; and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In his days the land had rest for ten years. ^2 [o] And Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. ³ He took away the foreign altars and the high places, and broke down the pillars and hewed down the Ashe′rim, ⁴ and commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, and to keep the law and the commandment. ⁵ He also took out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the incense altars. And the kingdom had rest under him. ⁶ He built fortified cities in Judah, for the land had rest. He had no war in those years, for the Lord gave him peace. ⁷ And he said to Judah, “Let us build these cities, and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars; the land is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought him, and he has given us peace on every side.” So they built and prospered. ⁸ And Asa had an army of three hundred thousand from Judah, armed with bucklers and spears, and two hundred and eighty thousand men from Benjamin, that carried shields and drew bows; all these were mighty men of valor.

Ethiopian Invasion Repulsed

⁹ Zerah the Ethiopian came out against them with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots, and came as far as Mare′shah. ¹⁰ And Asa went out to meet him, and they drew up their lines of battle in the valley of Zeph′athah at Mare′shah. ¹¹ And Asa cried to the Lord his God, “O Lord, there is none like thee to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on thee, and in thy name we have come against this multitude. O Lord, thou art our God; let not man prevail against thee.” ¹² So the Lord defeated the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. ¹³ Asa and the people that were with him pursued them as far as Gerar, and the Ethiopians fell until none remained alive; for they were broken before the Lord and his army. The men of Judah^[p] carried away very much booty. ¹⁴ And they smote all the cities round about Gerar, for the fear of the Lord was upon them. They plundered all the cities, for there was much plunder in them. ¹⁵ And they smote the tents of those who had cattle,^[q] and carried away sheep in abundance and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.

15 The Spirit of God came upon Azari′ah the son of Oded, ² and he went out to meet Asa, and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The Lord is with you, while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you. ³ For a long time Israel was without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law; ⁴ but when in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought him, he was found by them. ⁵ In those times there was no peace to him who went out or to him who came in, for great disturbances afflicted all the inhabitants of the lands. ⁶ They were broken in pieces, nation against nation and city against city, for God troubled them with every sort of distress. ⁷ But you, take courage! Do not let you hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.”

⁸ When Asa heard these words, the prophecy of Azari′ah the son of Oded,^[r] he took courage, and put away the abominable idols from all the land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities which he had taken in the hill country of E′phraim, and he repaired the altar of the Lord that was in front of the vestibule of the house of the Lord.^{[s] 9} And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and those from E′phraim, Manas′seh, and Simeon who were sojourning with them, for great numbers had deserted to him from Israel when they saw that the Lord his God was with him. ¹⁰ They were gathered at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa. ¹¹ They sacrificed to the Lord on that day, from the spoil which they had brought, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep. ¹² And they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul; ¹³ and that whoever would not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, should be put to death, whether young or old, man or woman. ¹⁴ They took oath to the Lord with a loud voice, and with shouting, and with trumpets, and with horns. ¹⁵ And all Judah rejoiced over the oath; for they had sworn with all their heart, and had sought him with their whole desire, and he was found by them, and the Lord gave them rest round about.

¹⁶ Even Ma′acah, his mother, King Asa removed from being queen mother because she had made an abominable image for Ashe′rah. Asa cut down her image, crushed it, and burned it at the brook Kidron. ¹⁷ But the high places were not taken out of Israel. Nevertheless the heart of Asa was blameless all his days. ¹⁸ And he brought into the house of God the votive gifts of his father and his own votive gifts, silver, and gold, and vessels. ¹⁹ And there was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.

Alliance with Aram Condemned

16 In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Ba′asha king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might permit no one to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. ² Then Asa took silver and gold from the treasures of the house of the Lord and the king’s house, and sent them to Ben-ha′dad king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying, ³ “Let there be a league between me and you, as between my father and your father; behold, I am sending to you silver and gold; go, break your league with Ba′asha king of Israel, that he may withdraw from me.” ⁴ And Ben-ha′dad hearkened to King Asa, and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, and they conquered I′jon, Dan, A′bel-ma′im, and all the store-cities of Naph′tali. ⁵ And when Ba′asha heard of it, he stopped building Ramah, and let his work cease. ⁶ Then King Asa took all Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber, with which Ba′asha had been building, and with them he built Geba and Mizpah.

⁷ At that time Hana′ni the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said to him, “Because you relied on the king of Syria, and did not rely on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Syria has escaped you. ⁸ Were not the Ethiopians and the Libyans a huge army with exceedingly many chariots and horsemen? Yet because you relied on the Lord, he gave them into your hand. ⁹ For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show his might in behalf of those whose heart is blameless toward him. You have done foolishly in this; for from now on you will have wars.” ¹⁰ Then Asa was angry with the seer, and put him in the stocks, in prison, for he was in a rage with him because of this. And Asa inflicted cruelties upon some of the people at the same time.

Asa’s Disease and Death

¹¹ The acts of Asa, from first to last, are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel. ¹² In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was diseased in his feet, and his disease became severe; yet even in his disease he did not seek the Lord, but sought help from physicians. ¹³ And Asa slept with his fathers, dying in the forty-first year of his reign. ¹⁴ They buried him in the tomb which he had hewn out for himself in the city of David. They laid him on a bier which had been filled with various kinds of spices prepared by the perfumer’s art; and they made a very great fire in his honor.

Jehoshaphat’s Reign

17 Jehosh′aphat his son reigned in his stead, and strengthened himself against Israel. ² He placed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah, and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of E′phraim which Asa his father had taken. ³ The Lord was with Jehosh′aphat, because he walked in the earlier ways of his father;^[t] he did not seek the Ba′als, ⁴ but sought the God of his father and walked in his commandments, and not according to the ways of Israel. ⁵ Therefore the Lord established the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought tribute to Jehosh′aphat; and he had great riches and honor. ⁶ His heart was courageous in the ways of the Lord; and furthermore he took the high places and the Ashe′rim out of Judah.

⁷ In the third year of his reign he sent his princes, Ben-hail, Obadi′ah, Zechari′ah, Nethan′el, and Micai′ah, to teach in the cities of Judah; ⁸ and with them the Levites, Shemai′ah, Nethani′ah, Zebadi′ah, As′ahel, Shemi′ramoth, Jehon′athan, Adoni′jah, Tobi′jah, and Tobadoni′jah; and with these Levites, the priests Elish′ama and Jehor′am. ⁹ And they taught in Judah, having the book of the law of the Lord with them; they went about through all the cities of Judah and taught among the people.

¹⁰ And the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, and they made no war against Jehosh′aphat. ¹¹ Some of the Philistines brought Jehosh′aphat presents, and silver for tribute; and the Arabs also brought him seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred he-goats. ¹² And Jehosh′aphat grew steadily greater. He built in Judah fortresses and store-cities, ¹³ and he had great stores in the cities of Judah. He had soldiers, mighty men of valor, in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ This was the muster of them by fathers’ houses: Of Judah, the commanders of thousands: Adnah the commander, with three hundred thousand mighty men of valor, ¹⁵ and next to him Jeho-ha′nan the commander, with two hundred and eighty thousand, ¹⁶ and next to him Amasi′ah the son of Zichri, a volunteer for the service of the Lord, with two hundred thousand mighty men of valor. ¹⁷ Of Benjamin: Eli′ada, a mighty man of valor, with two hundred thousand men armed with bow and shield, ¹⁸ and next to him Jeho′zabad with a hundred and eighty thousand armed for war. ¹⁹ These were in the service of the king, besides those whom the king had placed in the fortified cities throughout all Judah.

Micaiah Predicts Failure

18 Now Jehosh′aphat had great riches and honor; and he made a marriage alliance with Ahab. ² After some years he went down to Ahab in Samar′ia. And Ahab killed an abundance of sheep and oxen for him and for the people who were with him, and induced him to go up against Ra′moth-gil′ead. ³ Ahab king of Israel said to Jehosh′aphat king of Judah, “Will you go with me to Ra′moth-gil′ead?” He answered him, “I am as you are, my people as your people. We will be with you in the war.”

⁴ And Jehosh′aphat said to the king of Israel, “Inquire first for the word of the Lord.” ⁵ Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall we go to battle against Ra′moth-gil′ead, or shall I forbear?” And they said, “Go up; for God will give it into the hand of the king.” ⁶ But Jehosh′aphat said, “Is there not here another prophet of the Lord of whom we may inquire?” ⁷ And the king of Israel said to Jehosh′aphat, “There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord, Micai′ah the son of Imlah; but I hate him, for he never prophesies good concerning me, but always evil.” And Jehosh′aphat said, “Let not the king say so.” ⁸ Then the king of Israel summoned an officer and said, “Bring quickly Micai′ah the son of Imlah.” ⁹ Now the king of Israel and Jehosh′aphat the king of Judah were sitting on their thrones, arrayed in their robes; and they were sitting at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samar′ia; and all the prophets were prophesying before them. ¹⁰ And Zedeki′ah the son of Chena′anah made for himself horns of iron, and said, “Thus says the Lord, ‘With these you shall push the Syrians until they are destroyed.’” ¹¹ And all the prophets prophesied so, and said, “Go up to Ra′moth-gil′ead and triumph; the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.”

¹² And the messenger who went to summon Micai′ah said to him, “Behold, the words of the prophets^[u] with one accord are favorable to the king; let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably.” ¹³ But Micai′ah said, “As the Lord lives, what my God says, that I will speak.” ¹⁴ And when he had come to the king, the king said to him, “Micai′ah, shall we go to Ra′moth-gil′ead to battle, or shall I forbear?” And he answered, “Go up and triumph; they will be given into your hand.” ¹⁵ But the king said to him, “How many times shall I adjure you that you speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?” ¹⁶ And he said, “I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd; and the Lord said, ‘These have no master; let each return to his home in peace.’” ¹⁷ And the king of Israel said to Jehosh′aphat, “Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?” ¹⁸ And Micai′ah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing on his right hand and on his left; ¹⁹ and the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab the king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at Ra′moth-gil′ead?’ And one said one thing, and another said another. ²⁰ Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, saying, ‘I will entice him.’ And the Lord said to him, ‘By what means?’ ²¹ And he said, ‘I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go forth and do so.’ ²² Now therefore behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these your prophets; the Lord has spoken evil concerning you.”

²³ Then Zedeki′ah the son of Chena′anah came near and struck Micai′ah on the cheek, and said, “Which way did the Spirit of the Lord go from me to speak to you?” ²⁴ And Micai′ah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide yourself.” ²⁵ And the king of Israel said, “Seize Micai′ah, and take him back to Amon the governor of the city and to Jo′ash the king’s son; ²⁶ and say, ‘Thus says the king, Put this fellow in prison, and feed him with scant fare of bread and water, until I return in peace.’” ²⁷ And Micai′ah said, “If you return in peace, the Lord has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Hear, all you peoples!”

Defeat and Death of Ahab

²⁸ So the king of Israel and Jehosh′aphat the king of Judah went up to Ra′moth-gil′ead. ²⁹ And the king of Israel said to Jehosh′aphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes.” And the king of Israel disguised himself; and they went into battle. ³⁰ Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of his chariots, “Fight with neither small nor great, but only with the king of Israel.” ³¹ And when the captains of the chariots saw Jehosh′aphat, they said, “It is the king of Israel.” So they turned to fight against him; and Jehosh′aphat cried out, and the Lord helped him. God drew them away from him, ³² for when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him. ³³ But a certain man drew his bow at a venture, and struck the king of Israel between the scale armor and the breastplate; therefore he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn about, and carry me out of the battle, for I am wounded.” ³⁴ And the batle grew hot that day, and the king of Israel propped himself up in his chariot facing the Syrians until evening; then at sunset he died.

19 Jehosh′aphat the king of Judah returned in safety to his house in Jerusalem. ² But Jehu the son of Hana′ni the seer went out to meet him, and said to King Jehosh′aphat, “Should you help the wicked and love those who hate the Lord? Because of this, wrath has gone out against you from the Lord. ³ Nevertheless some good is found in you, for you destroyed the Ashe′rahs out of the land, and have set your heart to seek God.”

The Reforms of Jehoshaphat

⁴ Jehosh′aphat dwelt at Jerusalem; and he went out again among the people, from Beer-sheba to the hill country of E′phraim, and brought them back to the Lord, the God of their fathers. ⁵ He appointed judges in the land in all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city, ⁶ and said to the judges, “Consider what you do, for you judge not for man but for the Lord; he is with you in giving judgment. ⁷ Now then, let the fear of the Lord be upon you; take heed what you do, for there is no perversion of justice with the Lord our God, or partiality, or taking bribes.”

⁸ Moreover in Jerusalem Jehosh′aphat appointed certain Levites and priests and heads of families of Israel, to give judgment for the Lord and to decide disputed cases. They had their seat at Jerusalem. ⁹ And he charged them: “Thus you shall do in the fear of the Lord, in faithfulness, and with your whole heart: ¹⁰ whenever a case comes to you from your brethren who live in their cities, concerning bloodshed, law or commandment, statutes or ordinances, then you shall instruct them, that they may not incur guilt before the Lord and wrath may not come upon you and your brethren. Thus you shall do, and you will not incur guilt. ¹¹ And behold, Amari′ah the chief priest is over you in all matters of the Lord; and Zebadi′ah the son of Ish′mael, the governor of the house of Judah, in all the king’s matters; and the Levites will serve you as officers. Deal courageously, and may the Lord be with the upright!”

Invasion from the East

20 After this the Moabites and Ammonites, and with them some of the Me-u′nites,^[v] came against Jehosh′aphat for battle. ² Some men came and told Jehosh′aphat, “A great multitude is coming against you from Edom,^[w] from beyond the sea; and, behold, they are in Haz′azon-ta′mar” (that is, En-ged′i). ³ Then Jehosh′aphat feared, and set himself to seek the Lord, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. ⁴ And Judah assembled to seek help from the Lord; from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the Lord.

Jehoshaphat’s Prayer and Victory

⁵ And Jehosh′aphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, before the new court, ⁶ and said, “O Lord, God of our fathers, art thou not God in heaven? Dost thou not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations? In thy hand are power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee. ⁷ Didst thou not, O our God, drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel, and give it for ever to the descendants of Abraham thy friend? ⁸ And they have dwelt in it, and have built thee in it a sanctuary for thy name, saying, ⁹ ‘If evil comes upon us, the sword, judgment,^[x] or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house, and before thee, for thy name is in this house, and cry to thee in our affliction, and thou wilt hear and save.’ ¹⁰ And now behold, the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Se′ir, whom thou wouldest not let Israel invade when they came from the land of Egypt, and whom they avoided and did not destroy— ¹¹ behold, they reward us by coming to drive us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit. ¹² O our God, wilt thou not execute judgment upon them? For we are powerless against this great multitude that is coming against us. We do not know what to do, but our eyes are upon thee.”

¹³ Meanwhile all the men of Judah stood before the Lord, with their little ones, their wives, and their children. ¹⁴ And the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jaha′ziel the son of Zechari′ah, son of Benai′ah, son of Je-i′el, son of Mattani′ah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, in the midst of the assembly. ¹⁵ And he said, “Hearken, all Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehosh′aphat: Thus says the Lord to you, ‘Fear not, and be not dismayed at this great multitude; for the battle is not yours but God’s. ¹⁶ Tomorrow go down against them; behold, they will come up by the ascent of Ziz; you will find them at the end of the valley, east of the wilderness of Jeru′el. ¹⁷ You will not need to fight in this battle; take your position, stand still, and see the victory of the Lord on your behalf, O Judah and Jerusalem.’ Fear not, and be not dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, and the Lord will be with you.”

¹⁸ Then Jehosh′aphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the Lord, worshiping the Lord. ¹⁹ And the Levites, of the Ko′hathites and the Kor′ahites, stood up to praise the Lord, the God of Israel, with a very loud voice.

²⁰ And they rose early in the morning and went out into the wilderness of Teko′a; and as they went out, Jehosh′aphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in the Lord your God, and you will be established; believe his prophets, and you will succeed.” ²¹ And when he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to the Lord and praise him in holy array, as they went before the army, and say,

22 And when they began to sing and praise, the Lord set an ambush against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Se′ir, who had come against Judah, so that they were routed. ²³ For the men of Ammon and Moab rose against the inhabitants of Mount Se′ir, destroying them utterly, and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Se′ir, they all helped to destroy one another.

²⁴ When Judah came to the watchtower of the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude; and behold, they were dead bodies lying on the ground; none had escaped. ²⁵ When Jehosh′aphat and his people came to take the spoil from them, they found cattle^[y] in great numbers, goods, clothing, and precious things, which they took for themselves until they could carry no more. They were three days in taking the spoil, it was so much. ²⁶ On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Bera′cah,^[z] for there they blessed the Lord; therefore the name of that place has been called the Valley of Bera′cah to this day. ²⁷ Then they returned, every man of Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehosh′aphat at their head, returning to Jerusalem with joy, for the Lord had made them rejoice over their enemies. ²⁸ They came to Jerusalem, with harps and lyres and trumpets, to the house of the Lord. ²⁹ And the fear of God came on all the kingdoms of the countries when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel. ³⁰ So the realm of Jehosh′aphat was quiet, for his God gave him rest round about.

The End of Jehoshaphat’s Reign

³¹ Thus Jehosh′aphat reigned over Judah. He was thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azu′bah the daughter of Shilhi. ³² He walked in the way of Asa his father and did not turn aside from it; he did what was right in the sight of the Lord. ³³ The high places, however, were not taken away; the people had not yet set their hearts upon the God of their fathers.

³⁴ Now the rest of the acts of Jehosh′aphat, from first to last, are written in the chronicles of Jehu the son of Hana′ni, which are recorded in the Book of the Kings of Israel.

³⁵ After this Jehosh′aphat king of Judah joined with Ahazi′ah king of Israel, who did wickedly. ³⁶ He joined him in building ships to go to Tarshish, and they built the ships in E′zion-ge′ber. ³⁷ Then Elie′zer the son of Dodav′ahu of Mare′shah prophesied against Jehosh′aphat, saying, “Because you have joined with Ahazi′ah, the Lord will destroy what you have made.” And the ships were wrecked and were not able to go to Tarshish.

Jehoram’s Reign

21 Jehosh′aphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and Jehor′am his son reigned in his stead. ² He had brothers, the sons of Jehosh′aphat: Azari′ah, Jehi′el, Zechari′ah, Azari′ah, Michael, and Shephati′ah; all these were the sons of Jehosh′aphat king of Judah. ³ Their father gave them great gifts, of silver, gold, and valuable possessions, together with fortified cities in Judah; but he gave the kingdom to Jehor′am, because he was the first-born. ⁴ When Jehor′am had ascended the throne of his father and was established, he slew all his brothers with the sword, and also some of the princes of Israel. ⁵ Jehor′am was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. ⁶ And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done; for the daughter of Ahab was his wife. And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. ⁷ Yet the Lord would not destroy the house of David, because of the covenant which he had made with David, and since he had promised to give a lamp to him and to his sons for ever.

Revolt of Edom

⁸ In his days Edom revolted from the rule of Judah, and set up a king of their own. ⁹ Then Jehor′am passed over with his commanders and all his chariots, and he rose by night and smote the E′domites who had surrounded him and his chariot commanders. ¹⁰ So Edom revolted from the rule of Judah to this day. At that time Libnah also revolted from his rule, because he had forsaken the Lord, the God of his fathers.

Elijah’s Letter

¹¹ Moreover he made high places in the hill country of Judah, and led the inhabitants of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness, and made Judah go astray. ¹² And a letter came to him from Eli′jah the prophet, saying, “Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father, ‘Because you have not walked in the ways of Jehosh′aphat your father, or in the ways of Asa king of Judah, ¹³ but have walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and have led Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem into unfaithfulness, as the house of Ahab led Israel into unfaithfulness, and also you have killed your brothers, of your father’s house, who were better than yourself; ¹⁴ behold, the Lord will bring a great plague on your people, your children, your wives, and all your possessions, ¹⁵ and you yourself will have a severe sickness with a disease of your bowels, until your bowels come out because of the disease, day by day.’”

¹⁶ And the Lord stirred up against Jehor′am the anger of the Philistines and of the Arabs who are near the Ethiopians; ¹⁷ and they came up against Judah, and invaded it, and carried away all the possessions they found that belonged to the king’s house, and also his sons and his wives, so that no son was left to him except Jeho′ahaz, his youngest son.

Disease and Death of Jehoram

¹⁸ And after all this the Lord smote him in his bowels with an incurable disease. ¹⁹ In course of time, at the end of two years, his bowels came out because of the disease, and he died in great agony. His people made no fire in his honor, like the fires 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. They buried him in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

Ahaziah’s Reign

22 And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahazi′ah his youngest son king in his stead; for the band of men that came with the Arabs to the camp had slain all the older sons. So Ahazi′ah the son of Jehor′am king of Judah reigned. ² Ahazi′ah was forty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athali′ah, the granddaughter of Omri. ³ He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counselor in doing wickedly. ⁴ He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, as the house of Ahab had done; for after the death of his father they were his counselors, to his undoing. ⁵ He even followed their counsel, and went with Jehor′am the son of Ahab king of Israel to make war against Haz′ael king of Syria at Ra′moth-gil′ead. And the Syrians wounded Joram, ⁶ and he returned to be healed in Jezre′el of the wounds which he had received at Ramah, when he fought against Haz′ael king of Syria. And Ahazi′ah the son of Jehor′am king of Judah went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezre′el, because he was sick.

⁷ But it was ordained by God that the downfall of Ahazi′ah should come about through his going to visit Joram. For when he came there he went out with Jehor′am to meet Jehu the son of Nimshi, whom the Lord had anointed to destroy the house of Ahab. ⁸ And when Jehu was executing judgment upon the house of Ahab, he met the princes of Judah and the sons of Ahazi′ah’s brothers, who attended Ahazi′ah, and he killed them. ⁹ He searched for Ahazi′ah, and he was captured while hiding in Samar′ia, and he was brought to Jehu and put to death. They buried him, for they said, “He is the grandson of Jehosh′aphat, who sought the Lord with all his heart.” And the house of Ahazi′ah had no one able to rule the kingdom.

Athaliah Seizes the Throne

¹⁰ Now when Athali′ah the mother of Ahazi′ah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal family of the house of Judah. ¹¹ But Jeho-shab′e-ath, the daughter of the king, took Jo′ash the son of Ahazi′ah, and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were about to be slain, and she put him and his nurse in a bedchamber. Thus Jeho-shab′e-ath, the daughter of King Jehor′am and wife of Jehoi′ada the priest, because she was a sister of Ahazi′ah, hid him from Athali′ah, so that she did not slay him; ¹² and he remained with them six years, hid in the house of God, while Athali′ah reigned over the land.

23 But in the seventh year Jehoi′ada took courage, and entered into a compact with the commanders of hundreds, Azari′ah the son of Jero′ham, Ish′mael the son of Jeho-ha′nan, Azari′ah the son of Obed, Ma-asei′ah the son of Adai′ah, and Elisha′phat the son of Zichri. ² And they went about through Judah and gathered the Levites from all the cities of Judah, and the heads of fathers’ houses of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. ³ And all the assembly made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And Jehoi′ada^[aa] said to them, “Behold, the king’s son! Let him reign, as the Lord spoke concerning the sons of David. ⁴ This is the thing that you shall do: of you priests and Levites who come off duty on the sabbath, one third shall be gatekeepers, ⁵ and one third shall be at the king’s house and one third at the Gate of the Foundation; and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the Lord. ⁶ Let no one enter the house of the Lord except the priests and ministering Levites; they may enter, for they are holy, but all the people shall keep the charge of the Lord. ⁷ The Levites shall surround the king, each with his weapons in his hand; and whoever enters the house shall be slain. Be with the king when he comes in, and when he goes out.”

Joash Crowned King

⁸ The Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoi′ada the priest commanded. 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; for Jehoi′ada the priest did not dismiss the divisions. ⁹ And Jehoi′ada the priest delivered to the captains the spears and the large and small shields that had been King David’s, which were in the house of God; ¹⁰ and he set all the people as a guard for the king, every man with his weapon in his hand, from the south side of the house to the north side of the house, around the altar and the house. ¹¹ Then he brought out the king’s son, and put the crown upon him, and gave him the testimony; and they proclaimed him king, and Jehoi′ada and his sons anointed him, and they said, “Long live the king.”

Athaliah Murdered

¹² When Athali′ah heard the noise of the people running and praising the king, she went into the house of the Lord to the people; ¹³ and when she looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance, and the captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and blowing trumpets, and the singers with their musical instruments leading in the celebration. And Athali′ah rent her clothes, and cried, “Treason! Treason!” ¹⁴ Then Jehoi′ada the priest brought out the captains who were set over the army, saying to them, “Bring her out between the ranks; any one who follows her is to be slain with the sword.” For the priest said, “Do not slay her in the house of the Lord.” ¹⁵ So they laid hands on her; and she went into the entrance of the horse gate of the king’s house, and they slew her there.