Old/New Testament
Uzziah King of Judah(A)
15 Uzziah son of Amaziah became king of Judah during Jeroboam’s twenty-seventh year as king of Israel. 2 Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he ·ruled [reigned] fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother was named Jecoliah, and she was from Jerusalem. 3 He did ·what the Lord said was right [L right in the eyes/sight of the Lord], just as his father Amaziah had done. 4 But the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places; 12:3] were not removed, so the people still made sacrifices and burned incense there.
5 The Lord struck Uzziah with ·a skin disease [T leprosy; 5:1], which he had until the day he died. So he had to live in a separate house. Jotham, the king’s son, was in charge of the ·palace [L king’s house], and he ·governed [judged] the people of the land.
6 All the other things Uzziah did ·are [L are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Judah. 7 Uzziah ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors] and was buried ·near his ancestors [with his ancestors/fathers] in the City of David [C Jerusalem], and his son Jotham became king in his place.
Zechariah King of Israel
8 Zechariah son of Jeroboam was king over Israel in Samaria. He ·ruled [reigned] for six months during Uzziah’s [C also called Azariah] thirty-eighth year as king of Judah. 9 Zechariah did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord], just as his ·ancestors [fathers] had done. Jeroboam son of Nebat had led the people of Israel to sin, and Zechariah did not ·stop doing [depart/turn away from] the same sins.
10 Shallum son of Jabesh ·made plans [conspired; plotted] against Zechariah and ·killed [assassinated] him in front of the people. Then Shallum became king in his place. 11 The other acts of Zechariah ·are [L are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Israel. 12 The Lord had told Jehu: “Your sons down to ·your great-great-grandchildren [the fourth generation; 10:30] will be kings of Israel,” and ·the Lord’s word came true [so it was/happened].
Shallum King of Israel
13 Shallum son of Jabesh became king during Uzziah’s thirty-ninth year as king of Judah. Shallum ·ruled [reigned] for a month in Samaria. 14 Then Menahem son of Gadi came up from Tirzah to Samaria and attacked Shallum son of Jabesh in Samaria. He ·killed [assassinated] him and became king in Shallum’s place.
15 The other acts of Shallum and his ·secret plans [conspiracy; plot] ·are [L are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Israel.
Menahem King of Israel
16 Menahem ·started out from Tirzah and attacked Tiphsah, destroying the city and the area nearby [or destroyed Tiphsah and everyone in it and the surrounding region/countryside as far as Tirzah]. This was because the people had refused to open the city gate for him. He defeated them and ripped open all their pregnant women.
17 Menahem son of Gadi became king over Israel during Uzziah’s thirty-ninth year as king of Judah. Menahem ·ruled [reigned] ten years in Samaria, 18 and he did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to sin, and all the time Menahem was king, he did not ·stop doing [depart/turn away from] the same sins.
19 Pul [C another name for Tiglath-pileser] king of Assyria ·came to attack [invaded] the land. Menahem gave him ·about seventy-four thousand pounds [L a thousand talents] of silver so Pul would support him ·and make his hold on the kingdom stronger [in tightening his grip/hold on royal power/the kingdom]. 20 Menahem ·taxed [exacted/extorted the money from] the rich in Israel to pay ·about one and one-fourth pounds [L fifty shekels] of silver for each soldier to the king of Assyria. So the king left and did not stay in the land.
21 Everything else Menahem did ·is [L is it not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Israel. 22 Then Menahem ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors], and his son Pekahiah became king in his place.
Pekahiah King of Israel
23 Pekahiah son of Menahem became king over Israel in Samaria during Uzziah’s [C also called Azariah] fiftieth year as king of Judah. Pekahiah ·ruled [reigned] two years, 24 and he did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to sin, and Pekahiah did not ·stop doing [depart/turn away from] the same sins.
25 Pekah son of Remaliah was one of Pekahiah’s captains, and he ·made plans [conspired; plotted] against Pekahiah. He took fifty men of Gilead with him and ·killed [assassinated] Pekahiah, as well as Argob and Arieh, in the ·palace [king’s house] at Samaria. Then Pekah became king in Pekahiah’s place.
26 Everything else Pekahiah did ·is [is it not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Israel.
Pekah King of Israel
27 Pekah son of Remaliah became king over Israel in Samaria during Uzziah’s [C also called Azariah] fifty-second year as king of Judah. Pekah ·ruled [reigned] twenty years, 28 and he did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to sin, and Pekah did not ·stop doing [depart/turn away from] the same sins.
29 Tiglath-pileser [C also called Pul; 15:19] was king of Assyria. He attacked while Pekah was king of Israel, capturing the cities of Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, and Hazor. He also captured Gilead and Galilee and all the land of Naphtali and carried the people away to Assyria as captives. 30 Then Hoshea son of Elah ·made plans [conspired; plotted] against Pekah son of Remaliah and attacked and ·killed [assassinated] him. Then Hoshea became king in Pekah’s place during the twentieth year Jotham son of Uzziah was king.
31 Everything else Pekah did ·is [L is it not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Israel.
Jotham King of Judah(B)
32 Jotham son of Uzziah became king of Judah during the second year Pekah son of Remaliah was king of Israel. 33 Jotham was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he ·ruled [reigned] sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerusha daughter of Zadok. 34 Jotham did ·what the Lord said was right [L right in the eyes/sight of the Lord], just as his father Uzziah had done. 35 But the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places; 12:3] were not removed, and the people still made sacrifices and burned incense there. Jotham rebuilt the Upper Gate of the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord.
36 The other things Jotham did while he was king ·are [L are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Judah. 37 At that time the Lord began to send Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah against Judah. 38 Jotham ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors] and was buried with his ·ancestors [fathers] in the City of David [C Jerusalem], his ·ancestor [father]. Then Jotham’s son Ahaz became king in his place.
Ahaz King of Judah(C)
16 Ahaz was the son of Jotham king of Judah. Ahaz became king of Judah in the seventeenth year Pekah son of Remaliah was king of Israel. 2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he ·ruled [reigned] sixteen years in Jerusalem. Unlike his ·ancestor [father] David, he did not do ·what the Lord his God said was right [right in the eyes/sight of the Lord his God]. 3 Ahaz ·did the same things the kings of Israel had done [L walked in the way/path of the kings of Israel]. He even ·made his son pass through fire [sacrificed his son in the fire; C a reference to human sacrifice]. He did the same ·hateful sins [detestable/abominable practices] as the nations had done whom the Lord had ·forced [driven] out of the land ahead of the ·Israelites [L sons/T children of Israel]. 4 Ahaz offered sacrifices and burned incense at the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places: 12:3], on the hills, and under every ·green [spreading] tree.
5 Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah, the king of Israel, came up to attack Jerusalem. They ·surrounded [besieged] Ahaz but could not ·defeat [conquer; overpower] him. 6 At that time Rezin king of Aram ·took back [recovered] the city of Elath for Aram, and he forced out all the people of Judah. Then ·Edomites [Arameans] moved into Elath, and they still live there today.
7 Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your ·friend [vassal; L son]. Come and ·save [rescue; T deliver] me from the hand of the king of Aram and the king of Israel, who are attacking me.” 8 Ahaz took the silver and gold that was in the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord and in the treasuries of the ·palace [L king’s house], and he sent these as a gift to the king of Assyria. 9 So the king of Assyria listened to Ahaz. He attacked Damascus and captured it and ·sent all [exiled; deported] its people away to Kir. And he killed Rezin.
10 Then King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria. Ahaz saw an altar at Damascus, and he sent ·plans [a model] and a ·pattern [detailed plan] of this altar to Uriah the priest. 11 So Uriah the priest built an altar, just like the plans King Ahaz had sent him from Damascus. Uriah finished the altar before King Ahaz came back from Damascus. 12 When the king arrived from Damascus, he saw the altar and went ·near [up to it/onto it] and offered sacrifices on it [C the building of this altar was an act of apostasy]. 13 He ·burned [offered; presented] his burnt offerings and grain offerings and poured out his drink offering. He also sprinkled the blood of his ·fellowship [or peace; well-being] offerings [Lev. 3:1] on the altar.
14 Ahaz moved the bronze altar that was previously before the Lord at the front of the ·Temple [L house]. It was between Ahaz’s altar [C the new one] and the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord [C the Temple entrance], but he put it on the north side of his altar. 15 King Ahaz commanded Uriah the priest, “On the ·large [great; C the new one] altar ·burn [offer; present] the morning burnt offering [Lev. 1:1–17], the evening grain offering, the king’s burnt offering and ·grain [L gift; tribute] offering [Lev. 2:1], and the whole burnt offering, the ·grain [L gift; tribute] offering, and the drink offering for all the people of the land. Sprinkle on the altar all the blood of the burnt offering and of the sacrifice. But I will use the bronze altar to ·ask questions [inquire] of God.” 16 So Uriah the priest did everything as King Ahaz commanded him.
17 Then King Ahaz ·took [cut] off the side panels from the bases and removed the ·washing bowls [basins] from the top of the ·bases [movable stands; portable water carts]. He also took the large bowl, which was called the Sea, off the bronze ·bulls [oxen] that held it up, and he put it on ·a [the] stone ·base [pavement; pediment]. 18 Ahaz took away the ·platform [dais; or canopy; covered portal] for the royal throne, which had been built at the ·Temple [L house] of the Lord. He also took away the outside entrance for the king. He did these things because of the king of Assyria [C to show deference and submission].
19 The other things Ahaz did as king ·are [L are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Judah. 20 Ahaz ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors] and was buried with his ·ancestors [fathers] in the City of David [C Jerusalem], and Ahaz’s son Hezekiah ·became king [reigned] in his place.
Nicodemus Comes to Jesus
3 There was a man named Nicodemus who was one of the Pharisees [C a religious party which strictly observed OT laws and later customs] and ·an important Jewish leader [L a ruler of the Jews; C probably a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish court of the time]. 2 ·One night [or By night; C perhaps with connotations that he could not “see” spiritually] Nicodemus came to Jesus and said, “·Teacher [L Rabbi], we know you are a teacher sent from God, because no one can do the ·miracles [L signs; 2:11] you do unless God is with him.”
3 Jesus answered, “·I tell you the truth [L Truly, truly I say to you], unless you are born ·again [or from above; C this may be a play on words, meaning both “again” and “from above”], you cannot ·be in [experience; L see] God’s kingdom.”
4 Nicodemus said to him, “But if a person is already old, how can he be born ·again [or from above; 3:3]? ·He cannot enter his mother’s womb again. So how can a person be born a second time [L Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time and be born]?”
5 But Jesus answered, “·I tell you the truth [L Truly, truly I say to you], unless you are born from water and the Spirit [C equivalent to being born again (3:3); water could symbolize physical birth, but more likely symbolizes spiritual cleansing which brings renewal; Ezek. 36:25–27], you cannot enter God’s kingdom. 6 ·Human life comes from human parents [L That which is born of the flesh is flesh; C flesh here means human nature], but ·spiritual life comes from the Spirit [L that which is born of the Spirit is spirit]. 7 Don’t be ·surprised [amazed; astonished] when I tell you, ‘You [C plural, referring to the Jews or the Jewish leaders] must be born ·again [or from above; 3:3].’ 8 The wind [C one word means both “wind” and “spirit” in Greek] blows where it wants to and you hear the sound of it, but you don’t know where the wind comes from or where it is going. It is the same with every person who is born from the Spirit.” [C We cannot comprehend or control the Spirit, but we experience his effect.]
9 Nicodemus ·asked [replied], “How can this ·happen [be]?”
10 Jesus ·said [replied; answered], “You are ·an important teacher in Israel [L the teacher of Israel], and you don’t ·understand [know] these things? 11 ·I tell you the truth [L Truly, truly I say to you], we talk about what we know, and we ·tell [testify; bear witness] about what we have seen, but you don’t ·accept what we tell you [L receive our testimony/witness]. 12 I have told you about things here on earth [C the teaching about being born again], and you do not believe me. ·So you will not [L So how will you…?] believe me if I tell you about things of heaven. 13 ·The only one who has ever gone up to heaven is [L No one has gone up into heaven except] the One who came down from heaven—the Son of Man[a] [C a title for the Messiah; Dan. 7:13–14].
14 “Just as Moses lifted up the ·snake [T serpent] in the ·desert [wilderness; C Moses put a bronze snake statue on a pole, and those who looked at it were healed of snake bites; Num. 21:4–9], the Son of Man must also be lifted up [C an allusion to the cross and resurrection]. 15 So that everyone who ·believes can have eternal life in him [or believes in him can have eternal life].
16 “[L For] God loved the world so much that he gave his ·one and only [only; unique; T only begotten; 1:14, 18] Son so that whoever believes in him may not ·be lost [T perish], but have eternal life. 17 [L For; Indeed] God did not send his Son into the world to ·judge the world guilty [condemn the world], but to save the world through him. 18 People who believe in God’s Son are not ·judged guilty [condemned]. Those who do not believe have already been ·judged guilty [condemned], because they have not believed in [L the name of] God’s ·one and only [only; unique; T only begotten; 3:16] Son.
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