Historical

IX. Kings of Judah and Israel^[a]

Chapter 12

Reign of Joash of Judah. ¹ Joash was seven years old when he became king. ² In the seventh year of Jehu, Joash became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah, from Beer-sheba.

³ Joash did what was right in the Lord’s sight as long as he lived, because Jehoiada the priest guided him, ⁴ though the high places did not disappear; the people continued to sacrifice and to burn incense on the high places.

⁵ Joash said to the priests: “All the funds for sacred purposes that are brought to the house of the Lord—the census tax, personal redemption money—and all funds that are freely brought to the house of the Lord, ⁶ the priests may take for themselves, each from his own vendor. However, they must make whatever repairs on the temple may prove necessary.” ⁷ Nevertheless, as late as the twenty-third year of the reign of King Joash, the priests had not made needed repairs on the temple. ⁸ Accordingly, King Joash summoned the priest Jehoiada and the other priests. He asked, “Why do you not repair the temple? You must no longer take funds from your vendors, but you shall turn them over for the repairs.” ⁹ So the priests agreed that they would neither take funds from the people nor make the repairs on the temple.

¹⁰ Jehoiada the priest then took a chest, bored a hole in its lid, and set it beside the altar, on the right as one entered the house of the Lord. The priests who kept the doors would put into it all the silver that was brought to the house of the Lord. ^11 (A)When they noticed that there was a large amount of silver in the chest, the royal scribe would come up with the high priest, and they would gather up and weigh all the silver that was in the house of the Lord. ¹² The amount thus realized they turned over to the workers assigned to the house of the Lord. They in turn would pay it to the carpenters and builders working in the house of the Lord, ¹³ and to the masons and stone cutters, and for the purchase of the wood and hewn stone used in repairing the breaches, and for any other expenses that were necessary to repair the house of the Lord. ¹⁴ None of the valuables brought to the house of the Lord were used there to make silver basins, snuffers, bowls, trumpets, or any gold or silver article. ¹⁵ Instead, they were given to the workers, and with them they repaired the house of the Lord. ¹⁶ Moreover, no reckoning was asked of those who were provided with the funds to give to the workers, because they held positions of trust. ¹⁷ The funds from reparation offerings and from purification offerings, however, were not brought to the house of the Lord; they belonged to the priests.

¹⁸ Then Hazael, king of Aram, came up and attacked Gath. When he had taken it, Hazael resolved to go on to attack Jerusalem. ¹⁹ Joash,^[b] king of Judah, took all the sacred offerings presented by his forebears, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah, kings of Judah, as well as his own, and all the gold there was in the treasuries of the house of the Lord and the king’s house, and sent them to King Hazael of Aram, who then turned away from Jerusalem.

²⁰ The rest of the acts of Joash, with all that he did, are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah. ²¹ Certain of his officials^[c] entered into a conspiracy and struck Joash down at Beth-millo. ²² Jozacar, son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad, son of Shomer, were the officials who struck and killed him. He was buried with his ancestors in the City of David, and his son Amaziah succeeded him as king.

Chapter 13

Reign of Jehoahaz of Israel. ¹ In the twenty-third year of Joash, son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, became king over Israel in Samaria for seventeen years.

² He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight: he did not depart from following the sins that Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit. ³ The Lord was angry with Israel and for a long time gave them into the power of Hazael, king of Aram, and of Ben-hadad, son of Hazael. ⁴ Then Jehoahaz entreated the Lord, who heard him, since he saw the oppression to which the king of Aram had subjected Israel.^{(B) 5} So the Lord gave Israel a savior,^[d] and the Israelites, freed from the power of Aram, dwelt in their own tents as formerly. ⁶ Nevertheless, they did not desist from the sins the house of Jeroboam had caused Israel to commit, but persisted in them. The Asherah^[e] remained even in Samaria.^{(C) 7} No army was left to Jehoahaz, except fifty horses with ten chariots and ten thousand foot soldiers, since the king of Aram had destroyed them and trampled them like dust.

⁸ The rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, with all that he did and his valor, are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. ⁹ Jehoahaz rested with his ancestors; he was buried in Samaria and his son Joash succeeded him as king.

Reign of Joash of Israel. ¹⁰ In the thirty-seventh year of Joash, king of Judah, Joash, son of Jehoahaz, became king over Israel in Samaria sixteen years.

¹¹ He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; he did not desist from any of the sins Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit, but persisted in them.

^12 [f]The rest of the acts of Joash, with all that he did and his valor, and how he fought with Amaziah, king of Judah, are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. ¹³ Joash rested with his ancestors. Then Jeroboam sat on his throne. Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

Elisha’s Deathbed Prophecy. ¹⁴ When Elisha was suffering from the sickness of which he was to die, Joash, king of Israel, went down to weep over him. “My father, my father!”^[g] he exclaimed, “Israel’s chariot and steeds!”^{(D) 15} Elisha said to him, “Take bow and arrows,” and he took bow and arrows. ^16 [h]Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Rest your hand on the bow,” and he rested his hand on it. Elisha placed his hands over the king’s hands ¹⁷ and said, “Open the window toward the east.” He opened it. Elisha said, “Shoot,” and he shot. He said,

¹⁸ Then he said to the king of Israel, “Take the arrows,” which he did. Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Beat the ground!” He beat the ground three times and stopped. ¹⁹ The man of God became angry with him and said, “You should have beat five or six times. You would have beaten Aram and finished him. Now you will beat Aram only three times.”

²⁰ And so Elisha died and was buried.

At that time of year, bands of Moabites used to raid the land. ²¹ Once some people were burying a man, when suddenly they saw such a raiding band. So they cast the man into the grave of Elisha, and everyone went off. But when the man came in contact with the bones of Elisha, he came back to life and got to his feet.^(E)

²² King Hazael of Aram oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. ²³ But the Lord was gracious with Israel and looked on them with compassion because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He was unwilling to destroy them or to cast them out from his presence even up to now. ²⁴ So when King Hazael of Aram died and his son Ben-hadad succeeded him as king, ²⁵ Joash, son of Jehoahaz, took back from Ben-hadad, son of Hazael, the cities Hazael had taken in battle from Jehoahaz, his father. Three times Joash beat him, and thus recovered the cities of Israel.

Chapter 14

Reign of Amaziah of Judah. ¹ In the second year^[i] of Joash, son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, Amaziah, son of Joash, king of Judah, became king. ² He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin, from Jerusalem.

³ He did what was right in the Lord’s eyes, though not like David his father. He did just as his father Joash had done, ⁴ though the high places did not disappear, and the people continued to sacrifice and to burn incense on the high places.

⁵ When Amaziah had the kingdom firmly in hand, he struck down the officials who had struck down the king, his father. ⁶ But their children he did not put to death, according to what is written in the book of the law of Moses, which the Lord commanded: “Parents shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall children be put to death for their parents; only for one’s own crimes shall a person be put to death.”^(F)

⁷ Amaziah struck down ten thousand Edomites in the Salt Valley. He took Sela in battle and renamed it Joktheel, the name it has to this day.^(G)

⁸ Then Amaziah sent messengers to Joash, son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, with this message: “Come, let us meet face to face.” ⁹ Joash, king of Israel, sent this reply to Amaziah, king of Judah: “A thistle of Lebanon sent word to a cedar of Lebanon, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage,’ but an animal of Lebanon passed by and trampled the thistle underfoot.^{(H) 10} You have indeed struck down Edom, and your heart is lifted up; enjoy your glory, but stay home! Why bring misfortune and failure on yourself and on Judah with you?” ¹¹ But Amaziah did not listen. So Joash, king of Israel, advanced, and he and Amaziah, king of Judah, met face to face at Beth-shemesh of Judah, ¹² and Judah was defeated by Israel, and all fled to their tents. ¹³ But Amaziah, king of Judah, son of Joash, son of Ahaziah, was captured by Joash, king of Israel, at Beth-shemesh. When they came to Jerusalem Joash tore down the wall of Jerusalem, from the Gate of Ephraim to the Corner Gate, four hundred cubits. ¹⁴ He took all the gold and silver and all the vessels found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house, and hostages as well. Then he returned to Samaria.

^15 [j]The rest of the acts of Joash, what he did and his valor, and how he made war against Amaziah, king of Judah, are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. ¹⁶ Joash rested with his ancestors; he was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and his son Jeroboam succeeded him as king.

^17 [k]Amaziah, son of Joash, king of Judah, survived Joash, son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, by fifteen years. ¹⁸ The rest of the acts of Amaziah are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah. ¹⁹ When a conspiracy was formed against him in Jerusalem, he fled to Lachish. But he was pursued to Lachish and killed there. ²⁰ He was brought back on horses and was buried in Jerusalem with his ancestors in the City of David. ²¹ Thereupon all the people of Judah^[l] took Azariah, who was only sixteen years old, and made him king to succeed Amaziah, his father. ²² It was he who rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah, after the king rested with his ancestors.

Reign of Jeroboam II of Israel. ²³ In the fifteenth year of Amaziah, son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam, son of Joash, king of Israel, became king in Samaria for forty-one years.

²⁴ He did evil in the Lord’s sight; he did not desist from any of the sins that Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit. ²⁵ He restored the boundaries of Israel from Lebo-hamath to the sea of the Arabah,^[m] as the Lord, the God of Israel, had foretold through his servant, the prophet Jonah, son of Amittai, from Gath-hepher. ²⁶ For the Lord saw the very bitter affliction of Israel, where there was neither bond nor free, no one at all to help Israel. ²⁷ Since the Lord had not resolved to wipe out the name of Israel from under the heavens, he saved them through Jeroboam, son of Joash.

²⁸ The rest of the acts of Jeroboam, with all that he did and his valor, how he fought, and how he regained Damascus and Hamath for Israel, are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. ²⁹ Jeroboam rested with his ancestors, the kings of Israel, and his son Zechariah succeeded him as king.