CHRONICLES II

1

1 And Solomon the son of David was established over his kingdom, and the Lord his God was with him, and increased him exceedingly. 2 And Solomon spoke to all Israel, to the captains of thousands, and to the captains of hundreds, and to the judges, and to all the rulers over Israel, even the heads of the families; 3 and Solomon and all the congregation went to the high place that was in Gabaon, where was God’s tabernacle of witness, which Moses the servant of the Lord made in the wilderness. 4 But David had brought up the ark of God out of the city of Cariathiarim; for David had prepared a place for it, for he had pitched a tabernacle for it in Jerusalem. 5 And the brazen altar which Beseleel the son of Urias, the son of Or, had made, was there before the tabernacle of the Lord: and Solomon and the congregation enquired at it. 6 And Solomon brought victims thither to the brazen altar that was before the Lord in the tabernacle, and offered upon it a thousand whole-burnt-offerings. 7 In that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, Ask what I shall give thee. 8 And Solomon said to God, Thou hast dealt very mercifully with my father David, and hast made me king in his stead. 9 And now, O Lord God, let, I pray thee, thy name be established upon David my father; for thou hast made me king over a people numerous as the dust of the earth. 10 Now give me wisdom and understanding, that I may go out and come in before this people: for who shall judge this thy great people? 11 And God said to Solomon, Because this was in thy heart, and thou hast not asked great wealth, nor glory, nor the life of thine enemies, and thou hast not asked long life; but hast asked for thyself wisdom and understanding, that thou mightest judge my people, over whom I have made thee king: 12 I give thee this wisdom and understanding; and I will give thee wealth, and riches, and glory, so that there shall not have been any like thee among the kings before thee, neither shall there be such after thee. 13 And Solomon came from the high place that was in Gabaon to Jerusalem, from before the tabernacle of witness, and reigned over Israel. 14 And Solomon collected chariots and horsemen: and he had fourteen hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen: and he set them in the cities of chariots, and the people were with the king in Jerusalem. 15 And the king made silver and gold in Jerusalem to be as stones, and cedars in Judea as sycamores in the plain for multitude. 16 And Solomon imported horses from Egypt, and the charge of the king’s merchants for going was as follows , and they traded, 17 and went and brought out of Egypt a chariot for six hundred pieces of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty pieces of silver: and so they brought for all the kings of the Chettites, and for the kings of Syria by their means.

2

1 And Solomon said that he would build a house to the name of the Lord, and a house for his kingdom. 2 And Solomon gathered seventy thousand men that bore burdens, and eighty thousand hewers of stone in the mountain, and there were three thousand six hundred superintendents over them. 3 And Solomon sent to Chiram king of Tyre, saying, Whereas thou didst deal favourably with David my father, and didst send him cedars to build for himself a house to dwell in, 4 behold, I also his son am building a house to the name of the Lord my God, to consecrate it to him, to burn incense before him, and to offer shewbread continually, and to offer up whole-burnt-offerings continually morning and evening, and on the sabbaths, and at the new moons, and at the feasts of the Lord our God: this is a perpetual statute for Israel. 5 And the house which I am building is to be great: for the Lord our God is great beyond all gods. 6 And who will be able to build him a house? for the heaven and heaven of heavens do not bear his glory: and who am I, that I should build him a house, save only to burn incense before him? 7 And now send me a man wise and skilled to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and in scarlet, and in blue, and one that knows how to grave together with the craftsmen who are with me in Juda and in Jerusalem, which materials my father David prepared. 8 And send me from Libanus cedar wood, and wood of juniper, and pine; for I know that thy servants are skilled in cutting timber in Libanus: and, behold, thy servants shall go with my servants, 9 to prepare timber for me in abundance: for the house which I am building must be great and glorious. 10 And, behold, I have given freely to thy servants that work and cut the wood, corn for food, even twenty thousand measures of wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand measures of wine, and twenty thousand measures of oil. 11 And Chiram king of Tyre answered in writing, and sent to Solomon, saying, Because the Lord loved his people, he made thee king over them. 12 And Chiram said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who has given to king David a wise son, and one endowed with knowledge and understanding, who shall build a house for the Lord, and a house for his kingdom. 13 And now I have sent thee a wise and understanding man who belonged to Chiram my father 14 (his mother was of the daughters of Dan, and his father was a Tyrian), skilled to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in stones and wood; and to weave with purple, and blue, and fine linen, and scarlet; and to engrave, and to understand every device, whatsoever thou shalt give him to do with thy craftsmen, and the craftsmen of my lord David thy father. 15 And now, the wheat, and the barley, and the oil, and the wine which my lord mentioned, let him send to his servants. 16 And we will cut timber out of Libanus according to all thy need, and we will bring it on rafts to the sea of Joppa, and thou shalt bring it to Jerusalem. 17 And Solomon gathered all the foreigners that were in the land of Israel, after the numbering with which David his father numbered them; and there were found a hundred and fifty-three thousand six hundred. 18 And he made of them seventy thousand burden-bearers, and eighty thousand hewers of stone, and three thousand six hundred taskmasters over the people.

3

1 And Solomon began to build the house of the Lord in Jerusalem in the mount of Amoria, where the Lord appeared to his father David, in the place which David had prepared in the threshing-floor of Orna the Jebusite. 2 And he began to build in the second month, in the fourth year of his reign. 3 And thus Solomon began to build the house of God: the length in cubits—even the first measurement from end to end, was sixty cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. 4 And the portico in front of the house, its length in front of the breadth of the house was twenty cubits, and its height a hundred and twenty cubits: and he gilded it within with pure gold. 5 And he lined the great house with cedar wood, and gilded it with pure gold, and carved upon it palm-trees and chains. 6 And he garnished the house with precious stones for beauty; and he gilded it with gold of the gold from Pharuim. 7 And he gilded the house, and its inner walls, and the door-posts, and the roofs, and the doors with gold; and he carved cherubs on the walls. 8 And he built the holy of holies, its length was according to the front of the other house , the breadth of the house was twenty cubits, and the length twenty cubits: and he gilded it with pure gold for cherubs, to the amount of six hundred talents. 9 And the weight of the nails, even the weight of each was fifty shekels of gold: and he gilded the upper chamber with gold. 10 And he made two cherubs in the most holy house, wood-work, and he gilded them with gold. 11 And the wings of the cherubs were twenty cubits in length: and one wing of five cubits touched the wall of the house: and the other wing of five cubits touched the wing of the other cherub. 13 And the wings of these cherubs expanded were of the length of twenty cubits: and they stood upon their feet, and their faces were toward the house. 14 And he made the vail of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and wove cherubs in it. 15 Also he made in front of the house two pillars, in height thirty-five cubits, and their chapters of five cubits. 16 And he made chains, as in the oracle, and put them on the heads of the pillars; and he made a hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains. 17 And he set up the pillars in front of the temple, one on the right hand and the other on the left: and he called the name of the one on the right hand ’Stability,’ and the name of the one on the left ’Strength.’

4

1 And he made a brazen altar, the length of it twenty cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits, and the height ten cubits. 2 And he made the molten sea, in diameter ten cubits, entirely round, and the height of it five cubits, and the circumference thirty cubits. 3 And beneath it the likeness of calves, they compass it round about: ten cubits compass the laver round about, they cast the calves two rows in their casting, 4 wherein they made them twelve calves, —three looking northwards, and three westwards, and three southwards, and three eastwards: and the sea was upon them above, and their hinder parts were inward. 5 And its thickness was a hand-breadth, and its brim as the brim of a cup, graven with flowers of lilies, holding three thousand measures: and he finished it . 6 And he made ten lavers, and set five on the right hand, and five on the left, to wash in them the instruments of the whole-burnt-offerings, and to rinse the vessels in them; and the sea was for the priests to wash in. 7 And he made the ten golden candlesticks according to their pattern, and he put them in the temple, five on the right hand, and five on the left. 8 And he made ten tables, and put them in the temple, five on the right hand, and five on the left: and he made a hundred golden bowls. 9 Also he made the priests’ court, and the great court, and doors to the court, and their panels were overlaid with brass. 10 And he set the sea at the corner of the house on the right, as it were fronting the east. 11 And Chiram made the fleshhooks, and the fire-pans, and the grate of the altar, and all its instruments: and Chiram finished doing all the work which he wrought for king Solomon in the house of God: 12 two pillars, and upon them an embossed work for the chapiters on the heads of the two pillars, and two nets to cover the heads of the chapiters which are on the heads of the pillars; 13 and four hundred golden bells for the two nets, and two rows of pomegranates in each net, to cover the two embossed rims of the chapiters which are upon the pillars. 14 And he made the ten bases, and he made the lavers upon the bases; 15 and the one sea, and the twelve calves under it; 16 and the foot-baths, and the buckets, and the caldrons, and the flesh-hooks, and all their furniture (which Chiram made, and brought to king Solomon in the house of the Lord) of pure brass. 17 In the country round about Jordan the king cast them, in the clay ground in the house of Socchoth, and between that and Saredatha. 18 So Solomon made all these vessels in great abundance, for the quantity of brass failed not. 19 And Solomon made all the vessels of the house of the Lord, and the golden altar, and the tables, and upon them were to be the loaves of shewbread; 20 also the candlesticks, and the lamps to give light according to the pattern, and in front of the oracle, of pure gold. 21 And their snuffers, and their lamps were made , and he made the bowls, and the censers, and the fire-pans, of pure gold. 22 And there was the inner door of the house opening into the holy of holies, and he made the inner doors of the temple of gold. So all the work which Solomon wrought for the house of the Lord was finished.

5

1 And Solomon brought in the holy things of his father David, the silver, and the gold, and the other vessels, and put them in the treasury of the house of the Lord. 2 Then Solomon assembled all the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, even the leaders of the families of the children of Israel, to Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, —this is Sion. 3 And all Israel were assembled unto the king in the feast, this is the seventh month. 4 And all the elders of Israel came; and all the Levites took up the ark, 5 and the tabernacle of witness, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle; and the priests and the Levites brought it up. 6 And king Solomon, and all the elders of Israel, and the religious of them, and they of them that were gathered before the ark, were sacrificing calves and sheep, which could not be numbered or reckoned for multitude. 7 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the Lord into its place, into the oracle of the house, even into the holy of holies, under the wings of the cherubs. 8 And the cherubs stretched out their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubs covered the ark, and its staves above. 9 And the staves projected, and the heads of the staves were seen from the holy place in front of the oracle, they were not seen without: and there they were to this day. 10 There was nothing in the ark except the two tables which Moses placed there in Choreb, which God gave in covenant with the children of Israel, when they went out of the land of Egypt. 11 And it came to pass, when the priests when out of the holy place, (for all the priests that were found were sanctified, they were not then arranged according to their daily course,) 12 that all the singing Levites assigned to the sons of Asaph, to Aeman, to Idithun, and to his sons, and to his brethren, of them that were clothed in linen garments, with cymbals and lutes and harps, were standing before the altar, and with them a hundred and twenty priests, blowing trumpets. 13 And there was one voice in the trumpeting and in the psalm-singing, and in the loud utterance with one voice to give thanks and praise the Lord; and when they raised their voice together with trumpets and cymbals, and instruments of music, and said, Give thanks to the Lord, for it is good, for his mercy endures for ever:—then the house was filled with the cloud of the glory of the Lord. 14 And the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God.

6

1 Then said Solomon, The Lord said that he would dwell in thick darkness. 2 But I have built a house to thy name, holy to thee, and prepared for thee to dwell in for ever. 3 And the king turned his face, and blessed all the congregation of Israel: and all the congregation of Israel stood by. 4 And he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel: he has even fulfilled with his hands as he spoke with his mouth to my father David, saying, 5 From the day when I brought up my people out of the land of Egypt, I chose no city of all the tribes of Israel, to build a house that my name should be there; neither did I choose a man to be a leader over my people Israel. 6 But I chose Jerusalem that my name should be there; and I chose David to be over my people Israel. 7 And it came into the heart of David my father, to build a house for the name of the Lord God of Israel. 8 But the Lord said to my father David, Whereas it came into thy heart to build a house for my name, thou didst well that it came into thy heart. 9 Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; for thy son who shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house for my name. 10 And the Lord has confirmed this word, which he spoke; and I am raised up in the room of my father David, and I sit upon the throne of Israel as the Lord said, and I have built the house for the name of the Lord God of Israel: 11 and I have set there the ark in which is the covenant of the Lord, which he made with Israel. 12 And he stood before the altar of the Lord in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread out his hands. 13 For Solomon had made a brazen scaffold, and set it in the midst of the court of the sanctuary; the length of it was five cubits, and the breadth of it five cubits, and the height of it three cubits: and he stood upon it, and fell upon his knees before the whole congregation of Israel, and spread abroad his hands to heaven, 14 and said, Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee in heaven, or on the earth; keeping covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with their whole heart. 15 Even as thou hast kept them with thy servant David my father, as thou hast spoken to him in words:—thou hast both spoken with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thy hands, as it is this day. 16 and now, Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father the things which thou spokest to him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man before me sitting on the throne of Israel, if only thy sons will take heed to their way to walk in my law, as thou didst walk before me. 17 And now, Lord God of Israel, let, I pray thee, thy word be confirmed, which thou hast spoken to thy servant David. 18 For will God indeed dwell with men upon the earth? if the heaven and the heaven of heavens will not suffice thee, what then is this house which I have built? 19 Yet thou shalt have respect to the prayer of thy servant, and to my petition, O Lord God, so as to hearken to the petition and the prayer which thy servant prays before thee this day: 20 so that thine eyes should be open over this house by day and by night, towards this place, whereon thou saidst thy name should be called, so as to hear the prayer which thy servant prays towards this house. 21 And thou shalt hear the supplication of thy servant, and of thy people Israel, whatsoever prayers they shall make towards this place: and thou shalt hearken in thy dwelling-place out of heaven, yea thou shalt hear, and be merciful. 22 If a man sin against his neighbour, and he bring an oath upon him so as to make him swear, and he come and swear before the altar in this house; 23 then shalt thou hearken out of heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, to recompense the transgressor, and to return his ways upon his head: and to justify the righteous, to recompense him according to his righteousness. 24 And if thy people Israel should be put to the worse before the enemy, if they should sin against thee, and then turn and confess to thy name, and pray and make supplication before thee in this house; 25 then shalt thou hearken out of heaven and shalt be merciful to the sins of thy people Israel, and thou shalt restore them to the land which thou gavest to them and to their fathers. 26 When heaven is restrained, and there is no rain, because they shall have sinned against thee, and when they shall pray towards this place, and praise thy name, and shall turn from their sins, because thou shalt afflict them; 27 then shalt thou hearken from heaven, and thou shalt be merciful to the sins of thy servants, and of thy people Israel; for thou shalt shew them the good way in which they shall walk; and thou shalt send rain upon thy land, which thou gavest to thy people for an inheritance. 28 If there should be famine upon the land, if there should be death, a pestilent wind an blight; if there should be locust and caterpiller, and if the enemy should harass them before their cities: in whatever plague and whatever distress they may be ; 29 Then whatever prayer and whatever supplication shall be made by any man and all thy people Israel, if a man should know his own plague and his own sickness, and should spread forth his hands toward this house; 30 then shalt thou hear from heaven, out of thy prepared dwelling-place, and shalt be merciful, and shalt recompense to the man according to his ways, as thou shalt know his heart to be ; for thou alone knowest the heart of the children of men: 31 that they may reverence all thy ways all the days which they live upon the face of the land, which thou gavest to our fathers. 32 And every stranger who is not himself of thy people Israel, and who shall have come from a distant land because of thy great name, and thy mighty hand, and thy high arm; when they shall come and worship toward this place; — 33 then shalt thou hearken out of heaven, out of thy prepared dwelling-place, and shalt do according to all that the stranger shall call upon thee for; that all the nations of the earth may know thy name, and that they may fear thee, as thy people Israel do , and that they may know that thy name is called upon this house which I have built. 34 And if thy people shall go forth to war against their enemies by the way by which thou shalt send them, and shall pray to thee toward this city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built to thy name; 35 then shalt thou hear out of heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause. 36 Whereas if they shall sin against thee, (for there is no man who will not sin,) and thou shalt smite them, and deliver them up before their enemies, and they that take them captive shall carry them away into a land of enemies, to a land far off or near; 37 and if they shall repent in their land whither they were carried captive, and shall also turn and make supplication to thee in their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have transgressed, we have wrought unrighteously; 38 and if they shall turn to thee with all their heart and all their soul in the land of them that carried them captives, whither they carried them captives, and shall pray toward their land which thou gavest to their fathers, and the city which thou didst choose, and the house which I built to thy name:— 39 then shalt thou hear out of heaven, out of thy prepared dwelling-place, their prayer and their supplication, and thou shalt execute justice, and shalt be merciful to thy people that sin against thee. 40 And now, Lord, let, I pray thee, thine eyes be opened, and thine ears be attentive to the petition made in this place. 41 And now, O Lord God, arise into thy resting-place, thou, and the ark of thy strength: let thy priests, O Lord God, clothe themselves with salvation, and thy sons rejoice in prosperity. 42 O Lord God, turn not away the face of thine anointed: remember the mercies of thy servant David.

7

1 And when Solomon had finished praying, then the fire came down from heaven, and devoured the whole-burnt-offerings and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the house. 2 And the priests could not enter into the house of the Lord at that time, for the glory of the Lord filled the house. 3 And all the children of Israel saw the fire descending, and the glory of the Lord was upon the house: and they fell upon their face to the ground on the pavement, and worshipped, and praised the Lord; for it is good to do so , because his mercy endures for ever. 4 And the king and all the people were offering sacrifices before the Lord. 5 And king Solomon offered a sacrifice of calves twenty and two thousand, of sheep a hundred and twenty thousand: so the king and all the people dedicated the house of God. 6 And the priests were standing at their watches, and the Levites with instruments of music of the Lord, belonging to king David, to give thanks before the Lord, for his mercy endures for ever, with the hymns of David, by their ministry: and the priests were blowing the trumpets before them, and all Israel standing. 7 And Solomon consecrated the middle of the court that was in the house of the Lord: for he offered there the whole-burnt-offerings and the fat of the peace-offerings, for the brazen altar which Solomon had made was not sufficient to receive the whole-burnt-offerings, and the meat-offerings, and the fat. 8 And Solomon kept the feast at that time seven days, and all Israel with him, a very great assembly, from the entering in of Aemath, and as far as the river of Egypt. 9 And on the eighth day he kept a solemn assembly: for he kept a feast of seven days as the dedication of the altar. 10 And on the twenty-third day of the seventh month he dismissed the people to their tents, rejoicing, and with a glad heart because of the good deeds which the Lord had done to David, and to Solomon, and to Israel his people. 11 So Solomon finished the house of the Lord, and the king’s house: and in whatever Solomon wished in his heart to do in the house of the Lord and in his own house, he prospered. 12 And the Lord appeared to Solomon by night, and said to him, I have heard thy prayer, and I have chosen this place to myself for a house of sacrifice. 13 If I should restrain the heaven and there should be no rain, and if I should command the locust to devour the trees, and if I should send pestilence upon my people; 14 then if my people, on whom my name is called, should repent, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their evil ways, I also will hear from heaven, and I will be merciful to their sins, and I will heal their land. 15 And now my eyes shall be open, and my ears attentive to the prayer of this place. 16 And now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that my name should be there for ever: and my eyes and my heart shall be there always. 17 And if thou wilt walk before me as David thy father did , and wilt do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my ordinances and my judgments; 18 then will I establish the throne of thy kingdom, as I covenanted with David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man ruling in Israel. 19 But if ye should turn away, and forsake my ordinances and my commandments, which I have set before you, and go and serve other gods, and worship them; 20 then will I remove you from the land which I gave them; and this house which I have consecrated to my name I will remove out of my sight, and I will make it a proverb and a by-word among all nations. 21 And as for this lofty house, every one that passes by it shall be amazed, and shall say, Wherefore has the Lord done thus to this land, and to this house? 22 And men shall say, Because they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they attached themselves to other gods, and worshipped them, and served them: and therefore he has brought upon them all this evil.

8

1 And it came to pass after twenty years, in which Solomon built the house of the Lord, and his own house, 2 that Solomon rebuilt the cities which Chiram had given to Solomon, and caused the children of Israel to dwell in them. 3 And Solomon came to Baesoba, and fortified it. 4 And he built Thoedmor in the wilderness, and all the strong cities which he built in Emath. 5 And he built Baethoron the upper, and Baethoron the lower, strong cities, —they had walls, gates, and bars; 6 and Balaath, and all the strong cities which Solomon had, and all his chariot cities, and cities of horsemen, and all things that Solomon desired according to his desire of building, in Jerusalem, and in Libanus, and in all his kingdom. 7 As for all the people that was left of the Chettites, and the Amorites, and the Pherezites, and the Evites, and the Jebusites, who are not of Israel, 8 but were of the children of them whom the children Israel destroyed not, that were left after them in the land, even them did Solomon make tributaries to this day. 9 But Solomon did not make any of the children of Israel servants in his kingdom; for, behold, they were warriors and rulers, and mighty men , and captains of chariots and horsemen. 10 And these are the chiefs of the officers of king Solomon, two hundred and fifty overseeing the work among the people. 11 And Solomon brought up the daughter of Pharao from the city of David to the house which he had built for her: for he said, My wife shall not dwell in the city of David, the king of Israel, for the place is holy into which the ark of the Lord has entered. 12 Then Solomon offered up to the Lord whole-burnt-offerings on the altar which he had built to the Lord before the temple, 13 according to the daily rate, to offer up sacrifices according to the commandments of Moses, on the sabbaths, and at the new moons, and at the feasts, three times in the year, at the feast of unleavened bread, and at the feast of weeks, and at the feast of tabernacles. 14 And he established, according to the order of his father David, the courses of the priests, and that according to their public ministrations: and the Levites were appointed over their charges, to praise and minister before the priests according to the daily order: and the porters were appointed according to their courses to the different gates: for thus were the commandments of David the man of God. 15 They transgressed not the commandments of the king concerning the priests and the Levites with regard to everything else, and with regard to the treasures. 16 Now all the work had been prepared from the day when the foundation was laid, until Solomon finished the house of the Lord. 17 Then Solomon went to Gasion Gaber, and to Aelath near the sea in the land of Idumea. 18 And Chiram sent by the hand of his servants ships, and servants skilled in naval affairs; and they went with the servants of Solomon to Sophira, and brought thence four hundred and fifty talents of gold, and they came to king Solomon.

9

1 And the queen of Saba heard of the name of Solomon, and she came to Jerusalem with a very large force, to prove Solomon with hard questions, and she had camels bearing spices in abundance, and gold, and precious stones: and she came to Solomon, and told him all that was in her mind. 2 And Solomon told her all her words; and there passed not a word from Solomon which he told her not. 3 And the queen of Saba saw the wisdom of Solomon, and the house which he had built, 4 and the meat of the tables, and the sitting of his servants, and the standing of his ministers, and their raiment; and his cupbearers, and their apparel; and the whole-burnt-offerings which he offered up in the house of the Lord; then she was in ecstasy. 5 And she said to the king, It was a true report which I heard in my land concerning thy words, and concerning thy wisdom. 6 Yet I believed not the reports until I came, and my eyes saw: and, behold, the half of the abundance of thy wisdom was not told me: thou hast exceeded the report which I heard. 7 Blessed are thy men, blessed are these thy servants, who stand before thee continually, and hear thy wisdom. 8 Blessed be the Lord thy God, who took pleasure in thee, to set thee upon his throne for a king, to the Lord thy God: forasmuch as the Lord thy God loved Israel to establish them for ever, therefore he has set thee over them for a king to execute judgment and justice. 9 And she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and spices in very great abundance, and precious stones: and there were not any where else such spices as those which the queen of Saba gave king Solomon. 10 And the servants of Solomon and the servants of Chiram brought gold to Solomon out of Suphir, and pine timber, and precious stones. 11 And the king made of the pine timber steps to the house of the Lord, and to the king’s house, and harps and lutes for the singers: and such were not seen before in the land of Juda. 12 And king Solomon gave to the queen of Saba all that she requested, besides all that she brought to king Solomon: and she returned to her own land. 13 And the weight of the gold that was brought to Solomon in one year was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold, 14 besides what the men who were regularly appointed and the merchants brought, and all the kings of Arabia and princes of the land: all brought gold and silver to king Solomon. 15 And king Solomon made two hundred shields of beaten gold: there were six hundred shekels of pure gold to one shield. 16 And three hundred buckles of beaten gold: the weight of three hundred gold shekels went to one buckler: and the king placed them in the house of the forest of Lebanon. 17 And the king made a great throne of ivory, and he gilded it with pure gold. 18 And there were six steps to the throne, riveted with gold, and elbows on either side of the seat of the throne, and two lions standing by the elbows: 19 and twelve lions standing there on the six steps on each side. There was not the like in any other kingdom. 20 And all king Solomon’s vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were covered with gold: silver was not thought anything of in the days of Solomon. 21 For a ship went for the king to Tharsis with the servants of Chiram: once every three years came vessels from Tharsis to the king, laden with gold, and silver, and ivory, and apes. 22 And Solomon exceeded all other kings both in riches and wisdom. 23 And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 24 And they brought every one his gifts, silver vessels and golden vessels, and raiment, myrrh and spices, horses and mules, a rate every year. 25 And Solomon had four thousand mares for chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; and he put them in the chariot cities, and with the king in Jerusalem. 26 And he rules over all the kings from the river even to the land of the Philistines, and to the borders of Egypt. 27 And the king made gold and silver in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars as the sycamore trees in the plain for abundance. 28 And Solomon imported horses from Egypt, and from every other country. 29 And the rest of the acts of Solomon, the first and the last, behold, these are written in the words of Nathan the prophet, and in the words of Achia the Selonite, and in the visions of Joel the seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nabat. 30 And Solomon reigned over all Israel forty years. 31 And Solomon fell asleep, and they buried him in the city of David his father: and Roboam his son reigned in his stead.

10

1 And Roboam came to Sychem: for all Israel came to Sychem to make him king. 2 And it came to pass when Jeroboam the son of Nabat heard it , (now he was in Egypt, forasmuch as he had fled thither from the face of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt,) that Jeroboam returned out of Egypt. 3 And they sent and called him: and Jeroboam and all the congregation came to Roboam, saying, 4 Thy father made our yoke grievous: now then abate somewhat of thy father’s grievous rule, and of his heavy yoke which he put upon us, and we will serve thee. 5 And he said to them, Go away for three days, and then come to me. So the people departed. 6 And king Roboam assembled the elders that stood before his father Solomon in his life-time, saying, How do ye counsel me to return an answer to this people? 7 And they spoke to him, saying, If thou wouldest this day befriend this people, and be kind to them, and speak to them good words, then will they be thy servants for ever. 8 But he forsook the advice of the old men, who took counsel with him, and he took counsel with the young men who had been brought up with him, who stood before him. 9 And he said to them, What do ye advise that I should answer this people, who spoke to me, saying, Ease somewhat of the yoke which thy father laid upon us? 10 And the young men that had been brought up with him spoke to him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak to the people that spoke to thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, and do thou lighten somewhat of it from us; thus shalt thou say, My little finger shall be thicker than my father’s loins. 11 And whereas my father chastised you with a heavy yoke, I will also add to your yoke: my father chastised you with whips, and I will chastise you with scorpions. 12 And Jeroboam and all the people came to Roboam on the third day, as the king had spoken, saying, Return to me on the third day. 13 And the king answered harshly; and king Roboam forsook the counsel of the old men, 14 and 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 And the king hearkened not to the people, for there was a change of their minds from God, saying, The Lord has confirmed his word, which he spoke by the hand of Achia the Selonite concerning Jeroboam the son of Nabat, and concerning all Israel; 16 for the king did not hearken to them. And the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David, or inheritance in the son of Jessae? to thy tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house, David. So all Israel went to their tents. 17 But the men of Israel, even those who dwelt in the cities of Juda, remained and made Roboam king over them. 18 And king Roboam sent to them Adoniram that was over the tribute; and the children of Israel stoned him with stones, and he died. And king Roboam hasted to mount his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19 So Israel rebelled against the house of David until this day.

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1 And Roboam came to Jerusalem; and he assembled Juda and Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand young men fit for war, and he waged war with Israel to recover the kingdom to Roboam. 2 And the Word of the Lord came to Samaias the man of God, saying, 3 Speak to Roboam the son of Solomon, and to all Juda and Benjamin, saying, 4 Thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not go up, and ye shall not war against your brethren: return every one to his home; for this thing is of me. And they hearkened to the word of the Lord, and returned from going against Jeroboam. 5 And Roboam dwelt in Jerusalem, and he built walled cities in Judea. 6 And he built Bethleem, and Aetan and Thecoe, 7 and Baethsura, and Sochoth, and Odollam, 8 and Geth, and Marisa, and Ziph, 9 and Adorai, and Lachis, and Azeca, 10 and Saraa, and Aelom, and Chebron, which belong to Juda and Benjamin, walled cities. 11 And he fortified them with walls, and placed in them captains, and stores of provisions, oil and wine, 12 shields and spears in every several city, and he fortified them very strongly, and he had on his side Juda and Benjamin. 13 And the priests and the Levites who were in all Israel were gathered to him out of all the coasts. 14 For the Levites left the tents of their possession, and went to Juda to Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons had ejected them so that they should not minister to the Lord. 15 And he made for himself priests of the high places, and for the idols, and for the vanities, and for the calves which Jeroboam made. 16 And he cast out from the tribes of Israel those who set their heart to seek the Lord God of Israel: and they came to Jerusalem, to sacrifice to the Lord God of their fathers. 17 And they strengthened the kingdom of Juda; and Juda strengthened Roboam the son of Solomon for three years, for he walked three years in the ways of David and Solomon. 18 And Roboam took to himself for a wife, Moolath daughter of Jerimuth the son of David, and Abigaia daughter of Heliab the son of Jessae. 19 And she bore him sons; Jeus, and Samoria, and Zaam. 20 And afterwards he took to himself Maacha the daughter of Abessalom; and she bore him Abia, and Jetthi, and Zeza, and Salemoth. 21 And Roboam loved Maacha the daughter of Abessalom more than all his wives and all his concubines: for he had eighteen wives and sixty concubines; and he begot twenty-eight sons, and sixty daughters. 22 And he made Abia the son of Maacha chief, even a leader among his brethren, for he intended to make him king. 23 And he was exalted beyond all his other sons in all the coasts of Juda and Benjamin, and in the strong cities; and he gave them provisions in great abundance: and he desired many wives.

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1 And it came to pass when the kingdom of Roboam was established, and when he had grown strong, that he forsook the commandments of the Lord, and all Israel with him. 2 And it came to pass in the fifth year of the reign of Roboam, Susakim king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, because they had sinned against the Lord, 3 with twelve hundred chariots, and sixty thousand horses: and there was no number of the multitude that came with him from Egypt; Libyans, Trogodytes, and Ethiopians. 4 And they obtained possession of the strong cities, which were in Juda, and came to Jerusalem. 5 And Samaias the prophet came to Roboam, and to the princes of Juda that were gathered to Jerusalem for fear of Susakim, and said to them, Thus said the Lord, Ye have left me, and I will leave you in the hand of Susakim. 6 And the elders of Israel and the king were ashamed, and said, The Lord is righteous. 7 And when the Lord saw that they repented, then came the word of the Lord to Samaias, saying, They have repented; I will not destroy them, but I will set them in safety for a little while, and my wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem. 8 Nevertheless they shall be servants, and know my service, and the service of the kings of the earth. 9 So Susakim king of Egypt went up against Jerusalem, and took the treasures that were in the house of the Lord, and the treasures that were in the king’s house: he took all; and he took the golden shields which Solomon had made. 10 And king Roboam made brazen shields instead of them. And Susakim set over him captains of footmen, as keepers of the gate of the king. 11 And it came to pass, when the king went into the house of the Lord, the guards and the footmen went in, and they that returned to meet the footmen. 12 And when he repented, the anger of the Lord turned from him, and did not destroy him utterly; for there were good things in Juda. 13 So king Roboam strengthened himself in Jerusalem, and reigned: and Roboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, in the city which the Lord chose out of all the tribes of the children of Israel to call his name there: and his mother’s name was Noomma the Ammanitess. 14 And he did evil, for he directed not his heart to seek the Lord. 15 And the acts of Roboam, the first and the last, behold, are they not written in the book of Samaia the prophet, and Addo the seer, with his achievements. 16 And Roboam made war with Jeroboam all his days. And Roboam died with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David: and Abia his son reigned in his stead.

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1 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam Abia began to reign over Juda. 2 He reigned three years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Maacha, daughter of Uriel of Gabaon. And there was war between Abia and Jeroboam. 3 And Abia set the battle in array with an army, with mighty men of war, even four hundred thousand mighty men: and Jeroboam set the battle in array against him with eight hundred thousand, they were mighty warriors of the host. 4 And Abia rose up from the mount Somoron, which is in mount Ephraim, and said, Hear ye, Jeroboam, and all Israel: 5 Is it not for you to know that the Lord God of Israel has given a king over Israel for ever to David, and to his sons, by a covenant of salt? 6 But Jeroboam the son of Nabat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, is risen up, and has revolted from his master: 7 and there are gathered to him pestilent men, transgressors, and he has risen up against Roboam the son of Solomon, while Roboam was young and fearful in heart, and he withstood him not. 8 And now ye profess to resist the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David; and ye are a great multitude, and with you are golden calves, which Jeroboam made you for gods. 9 Did ye not cast out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and make to yourselves priests of the people of any other land? whoever came to consecrate himself with a calf of the heard and seven rams, he forthwith became a priest to that which is no god. 10 But we have not forsaken the Lord our God, and his priests, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, minister to the Lord; and in their daily courses 11 they sacrifice to the Lord whole-burnt-offering, morning and evening, and compound incense, and set the shewbread on the pure table; and there is the golden candlestick, and the lamps for burning, to light in the evening: for we keep the charge of the Lord God of our fathers; but ye have forsaken him. 12 And, behold, the Lord and his priests are with us at our head, and the signal trumpets to sound an alarm over us. Children of Israel, fight not against the Lord God of our fathers; for ye shall not prosper. 13 Now Jeroboam had caused an ambush to come round upon him from behind: and he himself was before Juda, and the ambush behind. 14 And Juda looked back, and, behold, the battle was against them before and behind: and they cried to the Lord, and the priests sounded with the trumpets. 15 And the men of Juda shouted: and it came to pass, when the men of Juda shouted, that the Lord smote Jeroboam and Israel before Abia and Juda. 16 And the children of Israel fled from before Juda; and the Lord delivered them into their hands. 17 And Abia and his people smote them with a great slaughter: and there fell slain of Israel five hundred thousand mighty men. 18 So the children of Israel were brought low in that day, and the children of Juda prevailed, because they trusted on the Lord God of their fathers. 19 And Abia pursued after Jeroboam, and he took from him the cities, Baethel and her towns, and Jesyna and her towns, and Ephron and her towns. 20 And Jeroboam did not recover strength again all the days of Abia: and the Lord smote him, and he died. 21 But Abia strengthened himself, and took to himself fourteen wives, and he begot twenty-two sons, and sixteen daughters. 22 And the rest of the acts of Abia, and his deeds, and his sayings, are written in the book of the prophet Addo.

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1 And Abia died with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David; and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In the days of Asa the land of Juda had rest ten years. 2 And he did that which was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God. 3 And he removed the altars of the strange gods , and the high places, and broke the pillars in pieces, and cut down the groves: 4 and he told Juda to seek earnestly the Lord God of their fathers, and to perform the law and commandments. 5 And he removed from all the cities of Juda the altars and the idols, and established in quietness 6 fortified cities in the land of Juda; for the land was quiet, and he had no war in these years; for the Lord gave him rest. 7 And he said to Juda, Let us fortify these cities, and make walls, and towers, and gates, and bars: we shall prevail over the land, for as we have sought out the Lord our God, he has sought out us, and has given us rest round about, and prospered us. 8 And Asa had a force of armed men bearing shields and spears in the land of Juda, even three hundred thousand, and in the land of Benjamin two hundred and eighty thousand targeteers and archers: all these were mighty warriors. 9 And Zare the Ethiopian went out against them, with a force of a million, and three hundred chariots; and came to Maresa. 10 And Asa went out to meet him, and set the battle in array in the valley north of Maresa. 11 And Asa cried to the Lord his God, and said, O Lord, it is not impossible with thee to save by many or by few: strengthen us, O Lord our God; for we trust in thee, and in thy name have we come against this great multitude. O Lord our God, let not man prevail against thee. 12 And the Lord smote the Ethiopians before Juda; and the Ethiopians fled. 13 And Asa and his people pursued them to Gedor; and the Ethiopians fell, so that they could not recover themselves; for they were crushed before the Lord, and before his host; and they took many spoils. 14 And they destroyed their towns roundabout Gedor; for a terror of the Lord was upon them: and they spoiled all their cities, for they had much spoil. 15 Also they destroyed the tents of cattle, and the Alimazons, and took many sheep and camels, and returned to Jerusalem.

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1 And Azarias the son of Oded—upon him came the Spirit of the Lord, 2 and he went out to meet Asa, and all Juda and Benjamin, and said, Hear me, Asa, and all Juda and Benjamin. The Lord is with you, while ye are with him; and if ye seek him out, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you. 3 And Israel has been a long time without the true God, and without a priest to expound the truth , and without the law. 4 But he shall turn them to the Lord God of Israel, and he will be found of them. 5 And in that time there is no peace to one going out, or to one coming in, for the terror of the Lord is upon all that inhabit the lands. 6 And nation shall fight against nation, and city against city; for God has confounded them with every kind of affliction. 7 But be ye strong, and let not your hands be weakened: for there is a reward for your work. 8 And when Asa heard these words, and the prophesy of Adad the prophet, then he strengthened himself, and cast out the abominations from all the land of Juda and Benjamin, and from the cities which Jeroboam possessed, in mount Ephraim, and he renewed the altar of the Lord, which was before the temple of the Lord. 9 And he assembled Juda and Benjamin, and the strangers that dwelt with him, of Ephraim, and of Manasse, and of Symeon: for many of Israel were joined to him, when they saw that the Lord his God was with him. 10 And they assembled at Jerusalem in the third month, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa. 11 And he sacrificed to the Lord in that day of the spoils which they brought, seven hundred calves and seven thousand sheep. 12 And he entered into a covenant that they should seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul. 13 And that whoever should not seek the Lord God of Israel, should die, whether young or old, whether man or woman. 14 And they swore to the Lord with a loud voice, and with trumpets, and with cornets. 15 And all Juda rejoiced concerning the oath: for they swore with all their heart, and they sought him with all their desires; and he was found of them: and the Lord gave them rest round about. 16 And he removed Maacha his mother from being priestess to Astarte; and he cut down the idol, and burnt it in the brook of Kedron. 17 Nevertheless they removed not the high places: they still existed in Israel: nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect all his days. 18 And he brought in the holy things of David his father, and the holy things of the house of God, silver, and gold, and vessels. 19 And there was no war waged with him until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.

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1 And in the thirty-eighth year of the reign of Asa, the king of Israel went up against Juda, and built Rama, so as not to allow egress or ingress to Asa king of Juda. 2 And Asa took silver and gold out of the treasures of the house of the Lord, and of the king’s house, and sent them to the son of Ader king of Syria, which dwelt in Damascus, saying, 3 Make a covenant between me and thee, and between my father and thy father: behold, I have sent thee gold and silver: come, and turn away from me Baasa king of Israel, and let him depart from me. 4 And the son of Ader hearkened to king Asa, and sent the captains of his host against the cities of Israel; and smote Aeon, and Dan, and Abelmain, and all the country round Nephthali. 5 And it came to pass when Baasa heard it he left off building Rama, and put a stop to his work: 6 then king Asa took all Juda, and took the stones of Rama, and its timber, with which Baasa had built; and he built with them Gabae and Maspha. 7 And at that time came Anani the prophet to Asa king of Juda, and said to him, Because thou didst trust on the king of Syria, and didst not trust on the Lord thy God, therefore the army of Syria is escaped out of thy hand. 8 Were not the Ethiopians and Libyans a great force, in courage, in horsemen, in great numbers? and did not He deliver them into thy hands, because thou trustedst in the Lord? 9 For the eyes of the Lord look upon all the earth, to strengthen every heart that is perfect toward him. In this thou hast done foolishly; henceforth there shall be war with thee. 10 And Asa was angry with the prophet, and put him in prison, for he was angry at this: and Asa vexed some of the people at that time. 11 And, behold, the acts of Asa, the first and the last, are written in the book of the kings of Juda and Israel. 12 And Asa was diseased in his feet in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, until he was very ill: but in his disease he sought not to the Lord, but to the physicians. 13 And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the fortieth year of his reign. 14 And they buried him in the sepulchre which he had dug for himself in the city of David, and they laid him on a bed, and filled it with spices and all kinds of perfumes of the apothecaries; and they made for him a very great funeral.

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1 And Josaphat his son reigned in his stead, Josaphat strengthened himself against Israel. 2 And he put garrisons in all the strong cities of Juda, and appointed captains in all the cities of Juda, and in the cities of Ephraim, which Asa his father had taken. 3 And the Lord was with Josaphat, for he walked in the first ways of his father, and did not seek to idols; 4 but he sought to the Lord God of his father, and walked in the commandments of his father, and not according to the works of Israel. 5 And the Lord prospered the kingdom in his hand; and all Juda gave gifts to Josaphat; and he had great wealth and glory. 6 And his heart was exalted in the way of the Lord; and he removed the high places and the groves from the land of Juda. 7 And in the third year of his reign, he sent his chief men, and his mighty men, Abdias and Zacharias, and Nathanael, and Michaias, to teach in the cities of Juda. 8 And with them were the Levites, Samaias, and Nathanias, and Zabdias, and Asiel, and Semiramoth, and Jonathan, and Adonias, and Tobias, and Tobadonias, Levites, and with them Elisama and Joram, the priests. 9 And they taught in Juda, and there was with them the book of the law of the Lord, and they passed through the cities of Juda, and taught the people. 10 And a terror of the Lord was upon all the kingdoms of the land round about Juda, and they made no war against Josaphat. 11 And some of the Philistines brought to Josaphat gifts, and silver, and presents; and the Arabians brought him seven thousand seven hundred rams. 12 And Josaphat increased in greatness exceedingly, and built in Judea places of abode, and strong cities. 13 And he had many works in Judea: and the mighty men of war, the men of strength, were in Jerusalem. 14 And this is their number according to the houses of their fathers; even the captains of thousands in Juda were , Ednas the chief, and with him mighty men of strength three hundred thousand. 15 And after him, Joanan the captain, and with him two hundred eighty thousand. 16 And after him Amasias the son of Zari, who was zealous for the Lord; and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of strength. 17 And out of Benjamin there was a mighty man of strength, even Eliada, and with him two hundred thousand archers and targeteers. 18 And after him Jozabad, and with him a hundred and eighty thousand mighty men of war. 19 These were the king’s servants besides those whom the king put in the strong cities in all Judea.

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1 And Josaphat had yet great wealth and glory, and he connected himself by marriage with the house of Achaab. 2 And he went down after a term of years to Achaab to Samaria: and Achaab slew for him sheep and calves, in abundance, and for the people with him, and he much desired him to go up with him to Ramoth of the country of Galaad. 3 And Achaab king of Israel said to Josaphat king of Juda, Wilt thou go with me to Ramoth of the country of Galaad? And he said to him, As I am , so also art thou, as thy people, so also is my people with thee for the war. 4 And Josaphat said to the king of Israel, Seek, I pray thee, the Lord to-day. 5 And the king of Israel gathered the prophets, four hundred men, and said to them, Shall I go to Ramoth Galaad to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up, and God shall deliver it into the hands of the king. 6 And Josaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we may enquire of him? 7 And the king of Israel said to Josaphat, There is yet one man by whom to enquire of the Lord; but I hate him, for he does not prophesy concerning me for good, for all his days are for evil: this is Michaias the son of Jembla. And Josaphat said, Let not the king say so. 8 And the king called an eunuch, and said, Fetch quickly Michaias the son of Jembla. 9 And the king of Israel and Josaphat king of Juda were sitting each on his throne, and clothed in their robes, sitting in the open space at the entrance of the gate of Samaria: and all the prophets were prophesying before them. 10 And Sedekias son of Chanaan made for himself iron horns, and said, Thus saith the Lord, With these thou shalt thrust Syria until it be consumed. 11 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth Galaad, and thou shalt prosper; and the Lord shall deliver it into the hands of the king. 12 And the messenger that went to call Michaias spoke to him, saying, Behold, the prophets have spoken favourably concerning the king with one mouth; let now, I pray thee, thy words be as the words of one of them, and do thou speak good things. 13 And Michaias said, As the Lord lives, whatever God shall say to me, that will I speak. 14 And he came to the king, and the king said to him, Michaias, shall I go up to Ramoth Galaad to battle, or shall I forbear? And he said, Go up, and thou shalt prosper, and they shall be given into your hands. 15 And the king said to him, How often shall I solemnly charge thee that thou speak to me nothing but truth in the name of the Lord? 16 And he said, I saw Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep without a shepherd: and the Lord said, These have no commander; let each return to his home in peace. 17 And the king of Israel said to Josaphat, Said I not to thee, that he would not prophesy concerning me good, but evil? 18 But he said, Not so. Hear ye the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven stood by on his right hand and on his left. 19 And the Lord said, Who will deceive Achaab king of Israel, that he may go up, and fall in Ramoth Galaad? And one spoke this way, and another spoke that way. 20 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will deceive him. And the Lord said, Whereby? 21 And he said, I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And the Lord said, Thou shalt deceive him , and shalt prevail: go forth, and do so. 22 And now, behold, the Lord has put a false spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets, and the Lord has spoken evil against thee. 23 Then Sedekias the son of Chanaan drew near, and smote Michaias on the cheek, and said to him, By what way passed the Spirit of the Lord from me to speak to thee? 24 And Michaias said, Behold, thou shalt see in that day, when thou shalt go from chamber to chamber to hide thyself. 25 And the king of Israel said, Take Michaias, and carry him back to Emer the governor of the city, and to Joas the captain, the king’s son; 26 and ye shall say, Thus said the king, Put this fellow into the prison house, and let him eat the bread of affliction, and drink the water of affliction, until I return in peace. 27 And Michaias said, If thou do at all return in peace, the Lord has not spoken by me. And he said, Hear, all ye people. 28 So the king of Israel, and Josaphat king of Juda, went up to Ramoth Galaad. 29 And the king of Israel said to Josaphat, Disguise me, and I will enter into the battle: and do thou put on my raiment. so the king of Israel disguised himself, and entered into the battle. 30 Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of the chariots that were with him, saying, Fight neither against small nor great, but only against the king of Israel. 31 And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw Josaphat, that they said, It is the king of Israel: and they compassed him about to fight against him: and Josaphat cried out, and the Lord delivered him; and God turned them away from him. 32 And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned away from him. 33 And a man drew a bow with a good aim, and smote the king of Israel between the lungs and the breast-plate: and he said to the charioteer, Turn thine hand, drive me out of the battle, for I am wounded. 34 And the battle turned in that day; and the king of Israel remained on the chariot against Syria until evening, and died at sunset.

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1 And Josaphat king of Juda returned to his house at Jerusalem. 2 And there went out to meet him Jeu the prophet the son of Anani, and said to him, King Josaphat, doest thou help a sinner, or act friendly towards one hated of the Lord? Therefore has wrath come upon thee from the Lord. 3 Nevertheless some good things have been found in thee, forasmuch as thou didst remove the groves from the land of Juda, and didst direct thine heart to seek after the Lord. 4 And Josaphat dwelt in Jerusalem: and he again went out among the people from Bersabee to the mount of Ephraim, and turned them back to the Lord God of their fathers. 5 And he appointed judges in all the strong cities of Juda, city by city. 6 And he said to the judges, Take good heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the Lord, and with you are matters of judgment. 7 And now let the fear of the Lord be upon you, and be wary, and do your duty : for there is no unrighteousness with the Lord our God, neither is it for him to respect persons, nor take bribes. 8 Moreover Josaphat appointed in Jerusalem some of the priests, and Levites, and heads of houses of Israel, for the judgment of the Lord, and to judge the dwellers in Jerusalem. 9 And he charged them, saying, Thus shall ye do in the fear of the Lord, in truth and with a perfect heart. 10 Whatsoever man of your brethren that dwell in their cities shall bring the cause that comes before you, between blood and blood, and between precept and commandment, and ordinances and judgments, ye shall even decide for them; so they shall not sin against the Lord, and there shall not be wrath upon you, and upon your brethren: thus ye shall do, and ye shall not sin. 11 And, behold, Amarias the priest is head over you in every matter of the Lord; and Zabdias the son of Ismael is head over the house of Juda in every matter of the king; and the scribes and Levites are before you: be strong and active, and the Lord shall be with the good.

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1 And after this came the children of Moab, and the children of Ammon, and with them some of the Minaeans, against Josaphat to battle. 2 And they came and told Josaphat, saying, There is come against thee a great multitude from Syria, from beyond the sea; and, behold, they are in Asasan Thamar, this is Engadi. 3 And Josaphat was alarmed, and set his face to seek the Lord earnestly, and he proclaimed a fast in all Juda. 4 And Juda gathered themselves together to seek after the Lord: even from all the cities of Juda they came to seek the Lord. 5 And Josaphat stood up in the assembly of Juda in Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, in front of the new court. 6 And he said, O Lord God of my fathers, art not thou God in heaven above, and art not thou Lord of all the kingdoms of the nations? and is there not in thy hand the might of dominion, and there is no one who can resist thee? 7 Art not thou the Lord that didst destroy the inhabitants of this land before the face of thy people Israel, and didst give it to thy beloved seed of Abraham for ever? 8 And they dwelt in it, and built in it a sanctuary to thy name, saying, 9 If there should come upon us evils, sword, judgment, pestilence, famine, we will stand before this house, and before thee, (for thy name is upon this house,) and we will cry to thee because of the affliction, and thou shalt hear, and deliver. 10 And now, behold, the children of Ammon, and Moab, and mount Seir, with regard to whom thou didst not permit Israel to pass through their border, when they had come out of the land of Egypt, (for they turned away from them, and did not destroy them;)— 11 yet now, behold, they make attempts against us, to come forth to cast us out from our inheritance which thou gavest us. 12 O Lord our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no strength to resist this great multitude that is come against us; and we know not what we shall do to them: but our eyes are toward thee. 13 And all Juda was standing before the Lord, and their children, and their wives. 14 And Oziel the son of Zacharias, of the children of Banaias, of the sons of Eleiel, the sons of Matthanias the Levite, of the sons of Asaph, —upon him came the Spirit of the Lord in the assembly: 15 and he said, Hear ye, all Juda, and the dwellers in Jerusalem, and king Josaphat: Thus saith the Lord to you, even you, Fear not, neither be alarmed, before all this great multitude; for the battle is not years, but God’s. 16 To-morrow go ye down against them: behold, they come up by the ascent of Assis, and ye shall find them at the extremity of the river of the wilderness of Jeriel. 17 It is not for you to fight: understand these things, and see the deliverance of the Lord with you, Juda and Jerusalem: fear not, neither be afraid to go forth to-morrow to meet them; and the Lord shall be with you. 18 And Josaphat bowed with his face to the ground with all Juda and the dwellers in Jerusalem, and they fell before the Lord to worship the Lord. 19 And the Levites of the children of Caath, and they of the sons of Core, rose up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voice on high. 20 And they rose early in the morning and went out to the wilderness of Thecoe: and as they went out, Josaphat stood and cried, and said, Hear me, Juda, and the dwellers in Jerusalem; put your trust in the Lord God, and your trust shall be honored; trust in his prophet, and ye shall prosper. 21 And he took counsel with the people, and set appointed men to sing psalms and praises, to give thanks, and sing the holy songs of praise in going forth before the host: and they said, Give thanks to the Lord, for his mercy endures for ever. 22 And when they began the praise and thanksgiving, the Lord caused the children of Ammon to fight against Moab, and the inhabitants of mount Seir that came out against Juda; and they were routed. 23 Then the children of Ammon and Moab rose up against the dwellers in mount Seir, to destroy and consume them; and when they had made an end of destroying the inhabitants of Seir, they rose up against one another so that they were utterly destroyed. 24 And Juda came to the watch-tower of the wilderness, and looked, and saw the multitude, and, behold, they were all fallen dead upon the earth, not one escaped. 25 And Josaphat and his people went out to spoil them, and they found much cattle, and furniture, and spoils, and precious things: and they spoiled them, and they were three days gathering the spoil, for it was abundant. 26 And it came to pass on the fourth day they were gathered to the Valley of Blessing; for there they blessed the Lord: therefore they called the name of the place the Valley of Blessing, until this day. 27 And all the men of Juda returned to Jerusalem, and Josaphat led them with great joy; for the Lord gave them joy over their enemies. 28 And they entered into Jerusalem with lutes and harps and trumpets, going into the house of the lord. 29 And there was a terror of the Lord upon all the kingdoms of the land, when they heard that the Lord fought against the enemies of Israel. 30 And the kingdom of Josaphat was at peace; and his God gave him rest round about. 31 And Josaphat reigned over Juda, being thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Azuba, daughter of Sali. 32 And he walked in the ways of his father Asa, and turned not aside from doing that which was right in the sight of the Lord. 33 nevertheless the high places yet remained; and as yet the people did not direct their heart to the Lord God of their fathers. 34 And the rest of the acts of Josaphat, the first and the last, behold, they are written in the history of Jeu the son of Anani, who wrote the book of the kings of Israel. 35 And afterwards Josaphat king of Juda entered into an alliance with Ochozias king of Israel, (now this was an unrighteous man,) 36 by acting with and going to him, to build ships to go to Tharsis: and he built ships in Gasion Gaber. 37 And Eliezer thee son of Dodia of Marisa prophesied against Josaphat, saying, Forasmuch as thou hast allied thyself with Ochozias, the Lord has broken thy work, and thy vessels have been wrecked. And they could not go to Tharsis.

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1 And Josaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David: and Joran his son reigned in his stead. 2 And he had brothers, the six sons of Josaphat, Azarias, and Jeiel, and Zacharias, and Azarias, and Michael, and Zaphatias: all these were the sons of Josaphat king of Juda. 3 And their father gave them many gifts, silver, and gold, and arms, together with fortified cities in Juda: but he gave the kingdom to Joram, for he was the first-born. 4 And Joram entered upon his kingdom, and strengthened himself, and slew all his brothers with the sword, and some of the princes of Israel. 5 When he was thirty and two years old, Joram succeeded to his kingdom, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. 6 And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Achaab; for a daughter of Achaab was his wife: and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord: 7 nevertheless the Lord would not utterly destroy the house of David, because of the covenant which he made with David, and as he said to him that he would give a light to him and his sons for ever. 8 In those days Edom revolted from Juda, and they made a king over themselves. 9 And Joram went with the princes, and all the cavalry with him: and it came to pass that he arose by night, and smote Edom that compassed him about, and the captains of the chariots, and the people fled to their tents. 10 And Edom revolted from Juda until this day. Then Lomna at that time revolted from under his hand, because he forsook the Lord God of his fathers. 11 For he built high places in the cities of Juda, and caused the dwellers in Jerusalem to go a-whoring, and led Juda astray. 12 And there came to him a message in writing from Eliu the prophet, saying, Thus saith the Lord God of thy father David, Because thou hast not walked in the way of thy father Josaphat, nor in the ways of Asa king of Juda, 13 but hast walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and hast caused Juda and the dwellers in Jerusalem to go a-whoring, as the house of Achaab caused Israel to go a-whoring, and thou hast slain thy brethren, the sons of thy father, who were better than thyself; 14 behold, the Lord shall smite thee with a great plague among thy people, and thy sons, and thy wives, and all thy store: 15 and thou shalt be afflicted with a grievous disease, with a disease of the bowels, until thy bowels shall fall out day by day with the sickness. 16 So the Lord stirred up the Philistines against Joram, and the Arabians, and those who bordered on the Aethiopians: 17 and they went up against Juda, and prevailed against them, and took away all the store which they found in the house of the king, and his sons, and his daughters; and there was no son left to him but Ochozias the youngest of his sons. 18 And after all these things the Lord smote him in the bowels with an incurable disease. 19 And it continued from day to day: and when the time of the days came to two years, his bowels fell out with the disease, and he died by a grievous distemper: and his people performed no funeral, like the funeral of his fathers. 20 He was thirty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And he departed without honour, and was buried in the city of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

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1 And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ochozias his youngest son king in his stead: for the band of robbers that came against them, even the Arabians and the Alimazonians, had slain all the elder ones. So Ochozias son of Joram king of Juda reigned. 2 Ochozias began to reign when he was twenty years old, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Gotholia, the daughter of Ambri. 3 And he walked in the way of the house of Achaab; for his mother was his counsellor to do evil. 4 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord as the house of Achaab had done : for they were his counselors after the death of his father to his destruction. 5 And he walked in their counsels, and he went with Joram son of Achaab king of Israel to war against Azael king of Syria to Ramoth Galaad: and the archers smote Joram. 6 And Joram returned to Jezrael to be healed of the wounds wherewith the Syrians smote him in Ramoth, when he fought against Azael king of Syria. And Ochozias son of Joram, king of Juda, went down to see Joram the son of Achaab at Jezrael because he was sick. 7 And destruction from God came upon Ochozias in his coming to Joram; for when he had come, Joram went out with him against Jeu the son of Namessei, the anointed of the Lord against the house of Achaab. 8 And it came to pass, when Jeu was taking vengeance on the house of Achaab, that he found the princes of Juda and the brethren of Ochozias ministering to Ochozias, and he slew them. 9 And he gave orders to seek Ochozias: and they took him while he was healing his wounds in Samaria, and they brought him to Jeu, and he slew him; and they buried him, for they said, He is the son of Josaphat, who sought the Lord with all his heart. So there was none in the house of Ochozias to secure their power in the kingdom. 10 And Gotholia the mother of Ochozias saw that her son was dead, and she arose and destroyed all the seed royal in the house of Juda. 11 But Josabeeth, the daughter of the king, took Joas the son of Ochozias and rescued him secretly out of the midst of the sons of the king that were put to death, and she placed him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So Josabeeth daughter of king Joram, sister of Ochozias, wife of Jodae the priest, hid him, and she even hid him from Gotholia, and she did not slay him. 12 And he was with him hid in the house of God six years; and Gotholia reigned over the land.

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1 And in the eighth year Jodae strengthened himself , and took the captains of hundreds, Azarias the son of Joram, and Ismael the son of Joanan, and Azarias the son of Obed, and Maasaeas the son of Adia, and Elisaphan the son of Zacharias, with him unto the house of the Lord. 2 And they went round about Juda, and gathered the Levites out of all the cities of Juda, and heads of the families of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem. 3 and all the congregation of Juda made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And he shewed them the king’s son, and said to them, Lo, let the king’s son reign, as the Lord said concerning the house of David. 4 Now this is the thing which ye shall do. Let a third part of you, even of the priests and of the Levites, enter in on the sabbath, even into the gates of the entrances; 5 and let a third part be in the house of the king; and another third at the middle gate: and all the people in the courts of the Lord’s house. 6 And let not any one enter into the house of the Lord, except the priests and the Levites, and the servants of the Levites; they shall enter in, because they are holy: and let all the people keep the watch of the Lord. 7 And the Levites shall compass the king round about, every man’s weapon in his hand; and whoever else goes into the house shall die: but they shall be with the king when he goes out, and when he comes in. 8 And the Levites and all Juda did according to all that the priest Jodae commanded them, and they took each his men from the beginning of the sabbath to the end of the sabbath, for Jodae the priest did not dismiss the courses. 9 And Jodae gave to the men the swords, and the shields, and the arms, which had belonged to King David, in the house of God. 10 And he set the whole people, every man with his arms, from the right side of the house to the left side of the altar and the house, over against the king round about. 11 And he brought out the king’s son, and put on him the crown and the testimony, and Jodae the priest and his sons proclaimed him king, and anointed him, and said, Long live the king! 12 And Gotholia heard the sound of the people running, and acknowledging and praising the king: and she went in to the king into the house of the Lord. 13 And she looked, and, behold, the king stood in his place, and the princes and trumpets were at the entrance, and the princes were round the king: and all the people of the land rejoiced, and sounded the trumpets, and there were the singers singing with instruments, and singing hymns of praise. and Gotholia rent her robe, and cried, ye surely are plotting against me . 14 And Jodae the priest went forth, and Jodae the priest charged the captains of hundreds, even the captains of the host, and said to them, Thrust her forth outside the house, and follow her, and let her be slain with the sword. For the priest said, Let her not be slain in the house of the Lord. 15 So they let her go out ; and she went through the horsemen’s gate of the house of the king, and they slew her there. 16 And Jodae made a covenant between himself, and the people, and the king, that the people should be the Lord’s. 17 And all the people of the land went into the house of Baal, and tore down it and its altars, and they ground his images to powder, and they slew Matthan the priest of Baal before his altars. 18 And Jodae the priest committed the works of the house of the Lord into the and of the priests and Levites, and he re-established the courses of the priests and Levites which David appointed over the house of the Lord, and he appointed them to offer whole-burnt-offerings to the Lord, as it is written in the law of Moses, with gladness, and with songs by the hand of David. 19 And the porters stood at the gates of the house of the Lord, that no one unclean in any respect should enter in. 20 And he took the heads of families, and the mighty men, and the chiefs of the people, and all the people of the land, and they conducted the king into the house of the Lord; and he went through the inner gate into the king’s house, and they seated the king on the throne of the kingdom. 21 And all the people of the land rejoiced; and the city was quiet: and they slew Gotholia.

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1 Joas was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Sabia of Bersabee. 2 And Joas did that which right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jodae the priest. 3 And Jodae took to himself two wives, and they bore sons and daughters. 4 And it came to pass afterward that it came into the heart of Joas to repair the house of the Lord. 5 And he gathered the priests and the Levites, and said to them, Go out into the cities of Juda, and collect money of all Israel to repair the house of the Lord from year to year, and make haste to speak of it . But the Levites hasted not. 6 And king Joas called Jodae the chief, and said to him, Why hast thou not looked after the Levites, so that they should bring from Juda and Jerusalem that which was prescribed by Moses the man of God, when he assembled Israel at the tabernacle of witness? 7 For Gotholia was a transgressor, and her sons tore down the house of God; for they offered the holy things of the house of the Lord to Baalim. 8 And the king said, Let a box be made, and let it be put at the gate of the house of the Lord without. 9 And let men proclaim in Juda an in Jerusalem, that the people should bring to the Lord, as Moses the servant of God spoke concerning Israel in the wilderness. 10 And all the princes and all the people gave, and brought in, and cast into the box until it was filled. 11 And it came to pass, when they brought in the box to the officers of the king by the hand of the Levites, and when they saw that the money was more than sufficient, then came the king’s scribe, and the officer of the high priest, and emptied the box, and restored it to its place. Thus they did day by day, and collected much money. 12 And the king and Jodae the priest gave it to the workmen employed in the service of the house of the Lord, and they hired masons and carpenters to repair the house of the Lord, also smiths and braziers to repair the house of the Lord. 13 And the workmen wrought, and the works prospered in their hands, and they established the house of the Lord on its foundation, and strengthened it . 14 And when they had finished it , they brought to the king and to Jodae the remainder of the money, and they made vessels for the house of the Lord, vessels of service for whole-burnt-offerings, and gold and silver censers : and they offered up whole-burnt-offerings in the house of the Lord continually all the days of Jodae. 15 And Jodae grew old, being full of days, and he died, being a hundred and thirty years old at his death. 16 And they buried him with the kings in the city of David, because he had dealt well with Israel, and with God and his house. 17 And it came to pass after the death of Jodae, that the princes of Juda went in, and did obeisance to the king. Then the king hearkened to them. 18 And they forsook the house of the Lord God of their fathers, and served the Astartes and idols: and there was wrath upon Juda and Jerusalem in that day. 19 yet he sent prophets to them, to turn them to the Lord; but they hearkened not: and he testified to them, but they obeyed not. 20 And the Spirit of God came upon Azarias the son of Jodae the priest, and he stood up above the people, and said, Thus saith the Lord, Why do ye transgress the commandments of the Lord? so shall ye not prosper; for ye have forsaken the Lord, and he will forsake you. 21 And they conspired against him, and stone him by command of king Joas in the court of the Lord’s house. 22 So Joas remembered not the kindness which his father Jodae had exercised towards him, but slew his son. And as he died, he said, The Lord look upon it , and judge. 23 And it came to pass after the end of the year, that the host of Syria went up against him, and came against Juda and Jerusalem: and they slew all the chiefs of the people among the people, and all their spoils they sent to the king of Damascus. 24 For the army of Syria came with few men, yet God gave into their hands a very large army, because they had forsaken the God of their fathers; and he brought judgments on Joas. 25 And after they had departed from him, when they had left him in sore diseases, then his servants conspired against him because of the blood of the son of Jodae the priest, and slew him on his bed, and he died, and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not in the sepulchre of the kings. 26 And they that conspired against him were Zabed the son of Samaath the Ammanite, and Jozabed the son of Samareth the Moabite. 27 And all his sons, and the five came to him: and the other matters , behold, they are written in the book of the kings. And Amasias his son reigned in his stead.

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1 Amasias began to reign when he was twenty and five years old, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Joadaen of Jerusalem. 2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, but not with a perfect heart. 3 And it came to pass, when the kingdom was established in his hand, that he slew his servants who had slain the king his father. 4 But he slew not their sons, according to the covenant of the law of the Lord, as it is written, and as the Lord commanded, saying, The fathers shall not die for the children, and the sons shall not die for the fathers, but they shall die each for his own sin. 5 And Amasias assembled the house of Juda, and appointed them according to the houses of their families for captains of thousands and captains of hundreds in all Juda and Jerusalem: and he numbered them from twenty years old and upwards, and found them three hundred thousand able to go out to war, holding spear and shield. 6 Also he hired of Israel a hundred thousand mighty men for a hundred talents of silver. 7 And there came a man of God to him, saying, O king, let not the host of Israel go with thee; for the Lord is not with Israel, even all the sons of Ephraim. 8 For if thou shalt undertake to strengthen thyself with these, then the lord shall put thee to flight before the enemies: for it is of the Lord both to strengthen and to put to flight. 9 And Amasias said to the man of God, But what shall I do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God said, The Lord can give thee much more than these. 10 And Amasias separated from the army that came to him from Ephraim, that they might go away to their place; and they were very angry with Juda, and they returned to their place with great wrath. 11 And Amasias strengthened himself , and took his people, and went to the valley of salt, and smote there the children of Seir ten thousand. 12 And the children of Juda took ten thousand prisoners, and they carried them to the top of the precipice, and cast them headlong from the top of the precipice, and they were all dashed to pieces. 13 And the men of the host whom Amasias sent back so that they should not go with him to battle, went and attacked the cities of Juda, from Samaria to Baethoron; and they smote three thousand among them, and took much spoil. 14 And it came to pass, after Amasias had returned from smiting Idumea, that he brought home the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up for himself as gods, and bowed down before them, and he sacrificed to them. 15 And the anger of the Lord came upon Amasias, and he sent him a prophet, and he said to him, Why hast thou sought the gods of the people, which have not rescued their own people out of thine hand? 16 And it came to pass when the prophet was speaking to him, that he said to him, have I made thee king’s counsellor? take heed lest thou be scourged: and the prophet forebore, and said, I know that God is disposed against thee to destroy thee, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not hearkened to my counsel. 17 And Amasias king of Juda took counsel, and sent to Joas, son of Joachaz, son of Jeu, king of Israel, saying, Come, and let us look one another in the face. 18 And Joas king of Israel sent to Amasias king of Juda, saying, The thistle that was in Libanus sent to the cedar that was in Libanus, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife; but, behold, thy wild beasts of the field that are in Libanus shall come: and the wild beasts did come, and trod down the thistle. 19 Thou hast said, Behold, I have smitten Idumea, and thy stout heart exalts thee: now stay at home; for why dost thou implicate thyself in mischief, that thou shouldest fall, and Juda with thee. 20 Nevertheless Amasias hearkened not, for it was of the Lord to deliver him into the enemy’s hands, because he sought after the gods of the Idumeans. 21 So Joas king of Israel went up; and they saw one another, he and Amasias king of Juda, in Baethsamys, which is of Juda. 22 And Juda was put to flight before Israel, and they fled every man to his tent. 23 And Joas king of Israel took prisoner Amasias king of Juda, son of Joas, son of Joachaz, in Baethsamys, and brought him to Jerusalem; and he pulled down part of the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four hundred cubits. 24 And he took all the gold and the silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the Lord and with Abdedom, and the treasures of the king’s house, and the hostages, and he returned to Samaria. 25 And Amasias the son of Joas king of Juda lived after the death of Joas the son of Joachaz king of Israel fifteen years. 26 And the rest of the acts of Amasias, the first and the last, Lo! are they not written in the book of the kings of Juda and Israel? 27 And at the time when Amasias departed from the Lord, then they formed a conspiracy against him; and he fled from Jerusalem to Lachis: and they sent after him to Lachis, and slew him there. 28 And they took him up on horses, and buried him with his fathers in the city of David.

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1 Then all the people of the land took Ozias, and he was sixteen years old, and they made him king in the room of his father Amasias. 2 He built Aelath, he recovered it to Juda, after the king slept with his fathers. 3 Ozias began to reign at the age of sixteen years, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Jechelia of Jerusalem. 4 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that Amasias his father did. 5 And he sought the Lord in the days of Zacharias, who understood the fear of the Lord; and in his days he sought the Lord, and the Lord prospered him. 6 And he went out and fought against the Philistines, and pulled down the walls of Geth, and the walls of Jabner, and the walls of Azotus, and he built cities near Azotus, and among the Philistines. 7 And the Lord strengthened him against the Philistines, and against the Arabians that dwelt on the rock, and against the Minaeans. 8 And the Minaeans gave gifts to Ozias; and his fame spread as far as the entering in of Egypt, for he strengthened himself exceedingly. 9 And Ozias built towers in Jerusalem, both at the gate of the corners, and at the valley gate, and at the corners and he fortified them. 10 And he built towers in the wilderness, and dug many wells, for he had many cattle in the low country and in the plain; and vinedressers in the mountain country and in Carmel: for he was a husbandman. 11 And Ozias had a host of warriors, and that went out orderly to war, and returned orderly in number; and their number was made by the hand of Jeiel the scribe, and Maasias the judge, by the hand of Ananias the king’s deputy. 12 The whole number of the chiefs of families of the mighty men of war was two thousand six hundred; 13 and with them was a warrior force, three hundred thousand and seven thousand and five hundred: these waged war mightily to help the king against his enemies. 14 And Ozias prepared for them, even for all the host, shields, and spears, and helmets, and breastplates, and bows, and slings for stones. 15 And he made in Jerusalem machines invented by a wise contriver, to be upon the towers and upon the corners, to cast darts and great stones: and the fame of their preparation was heard at a distance; for he was wonderfully helped, till he was strong. 16 And when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction; and he transgressed against the Lord his God, and went into the temple of the Lord to turn incense on the altar of incense. 17 And there went in after him Azarias the priest, and with him eighty priests of the Lord, mighty men. 18 And they withstood Ozias the king, and said to him, It is not for thee, Ozias, to burn incense to the Lord, but only for the priests the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to sacrifice: go forth of the sanctuary, for thou hast departed from the Lord; and this shall not be for glory to thee from the Lord god. 19 And Ozias was angry, and in his hand was the censer to burn incense in the temple: and when he was angry with the priests, then the leprosy rose up in his forehead before the priests in the house of the Lord, over the altar of incense. 20 And Azarias the chief priest, and the other priests, turned to look at him, and, behold, he was leprous in his forehead; and they got him hastily out thence, for he also hasted to go out, because the Lord had rebuked him. 21 And Ozias the king was a leper to the day of his death, and he dwelt as a leper in a separate house; for he was cut off from the house of the Lord: and Joathan his son was set over his kingdom, judging the people of the land. 22 And the rest of the acts of Ozias, the first and the last, are written by Jessias the prophet. 23 And Ozias slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the field of the burial place of the kings, for they said, He is a leper; and Joatham his son reigned in his stead.

27

1 Joatham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Jerusa, daughter of Sadoc. 2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Ozias did: but he went not into the temple of the Lord. And still the people corrupted themselves. 3 He built the high gate of the house of the Lord, and he built much in the wall of Opel. 4 In the mountain of Juda, and in the woods, he built both dwelling-places and towers. 5 He fought against the king of the children of Ammon, and prevailed against him: and the children of Ammon gave him even annually a hundred talents of silver, and ten thousand measures of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. These the king of the children of Ammon brought to him annually in the first and second and third years. 6 Joatham grew strong, because he prepared his ways before the Lord his God. 7 And the rest of the acts of Joatham, and his war, and his deeds, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Juda and Israel. 9 And Joatham slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David: and Achaz his son reigned in his stead.

28

1 Achaz was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: and he did not that which was right in the sight of the Lord, as David his father. 2 But he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, for he made graven images. 3 And he sacrificed to their idols in the valley of Benennom, and passed his children through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel. 4 And he burnt incense upon the high places, and upon the roofs, and under every shady tree. 5 And the Lord his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and he smote him, and took captive of them a great band of prisoners, and carried him to Damascus. Also God delivered him into the hands of the king of Israel, who smote him with a great slaughter. 6 And Phakee the son of Romelias king of Israel, slew in Juda in one day a hundred and twenty thousand mighty men; because they had forsaken the Lord God of their fathers. 7 And Zechri, a mighty man of Ephraim, slew Maasias the king’s son, and Ezrican the chief of his house, and Elcana the king’s deputy. 8 And the children of Israel took captive of their brethren three hundred thousand, women, and sons, and daughters, and they spoiled them of much property, and brought the spoils to Samaria. 9 And there was there a prophet of the Lord, his name was Oded: and he went out to meet the host that were coming to Samaria, and said to them, Behold, the wrath of the Lord God of your fathers is upon Juda, and he has delivered them into your hands, and ye have slain them in wrath, and it has reached even to heaven. 10 And now ye talk of keeping the children of Juda and Jerusalem for servants and handmaidens. Lo, am I not with you to testify for the Lord your God? 11 And now hearken to me, and restore the prisoners of your brethren whom ye have taken: for the fierce anger of the Lord is upon you. 12 And the chiefs of the sons of Ephraim rose up, Udias the son of Joanas, and Barachias the son of Mosolamoth, and Ezekias the son of Sellem, and Amasias the son of Eldai, against those that came from the war, 13 and said to them, Ye shall not bring in hither the prisoners to us, for whereas sin against the Lord is upon us, ye mean to add to our sins, and to our trespass: for our sin is great, and the fierce anger of the Lord is upon Israel. 14 So the warriors left the prisoners and the spoils before the princes and all the congregation. 15 And the men who were called by name rose up, and took hold of the prisoners, and clothed all the naked from the spoils, and gave them garments and shoes, and gave them food to eat, and oil to anoint themselves with , and they helped also every one that was weak with asses, and placed them in Jericho, the city of palm-trees, with their brethren; and they returned to Samaria. 16 At that time king Achaz sent to the king of Assyria to help him, and on this occasion, 17 because the Idumeans had attacked him , and smitten Juda, and taken a number of prisoners. 18 Also the Philistines had made an attack on the cities of the plain country, and the cities of the south of Juda, and taken Baethsamys, and the things in the house of the Lord, and the things in the house of the king, and of the princes: and they gave to the king Aelon, and Galero, and Socho and her villages, and Thamna and her villages, and Gamzo and her villages: and they dwelt there. 19 For the Lord humbled Juda because of Achaz king of Juda, because he grievously departed from the Lord. 20 And there came against him Thalgaphellasar king of Assyria, and he afflicted him. 21 And Achaz took the things that were in the house of the Lord, and the things in the house of the king, and of the princes, and gave them to the king of Assyria: but he was no help to him, 22 but only troubled him in his affliction: and he departed yet more from the Lord, and king Achaz said, 23 I will seek after the gods of Damascus that smite me. And he said, Forasmuch as the gods of the king of Syria themselves strengthen them, therefore will I sacrifice to them, and they will help me. But they became a stumbling-block to him, and to all Israel. 24 And Achaz removed the vessels of the house of the Lord, and cut them in pieces, and shut the doors of the house of the Lord, and made to himself altars in every corner in Jerusalem: 25 and in each several city in Juda he made high places to burn incense to strange gods: and they provoked the Lord God of their fathers. 26 And the rest of his acts, and his deeds, the first and the last, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Juda and Israel. 27 And Achaz slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David; for they did not bring him into the sepulchres of the kings of Israel: and Ezekias his son reigned in his stead.

29

1 And Ezekias began to reign at the age of twenty-five years, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Abia, daughter of Zacharias. 2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done. 3 And it came to pass, when he was established over his kingdom, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of the Lord, and repaired them. 4 And he brought in the priests and the Levites, and put them on the east side, 5 and said to them, Hear, ye Levites: now sanctify yourselves, and sanctify the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and cast out the impurity from the holy places. 6 For our fathers have revolted, and done that which was evil before the Lord our God, and have forsaken him, and have turned away their face from the tabernacle of the Lord, and have turned their back. 7 And they have shut up the doors of the temple, and put out the lamps, and have not burnt incense, and have not offered whole-burnt-offerings in the holy place to the God of Israel. 8 And the Lord was very angry with Juda and Jerusalem, and made them an astonishment, and a desolation, and a hissing, as ye see with your eyes. 9 And, behold, your fathers have been smitten with the sword, and your sons and your daughters and your wives are in captivity in a land not their own, as it is even now. 10 Therefore it is now in my heart to make a covenant, a covenant with the Lord God of Israel, that he may turn away his fierce wrath from us. 11 And now be not wanting to your duty , for the Lord has chosen you to stand before him to minister, and to be ministers and burners of incense to him. 12 Then the Levites rose up, Maath the son of Amasi, and Joel the son of Azarias, of the sons of Caath: and of the sons of Merari, Kis the son of Abdi, and Azarias the son of Haelel: and of the sons of Gedsoni, Jodaad the son of Zemmath, and Joadam: these were the sons of Joacha. 13 And of the sons of Elisaphan; Zambri, and Jeiel: and of the sons of Asaph; Zacharias, and Matthanias: 14 and of the sons of Aeman; Jeiel, and Semei: and of the sons of Idithun; Samaisa, and Oziel. 15 And they gathered their brethren, and they purified themselves according to the king’s command by the order of the Lord, to purify the house of the Lord. 16 And the priests entered into the house of the Lord, to purify it , and they cast out all the uncleanness that was found in the house of the Lord, even into the court of the house of the Lord: and the Levites received it to cast into the brook of Kedron without. 17 And Ezekias began on the first day, even on the new moon of the first month, to purify, and on the eighth day of the month they entered into the temple of the Lord: and they purified the house of the Lord in eight days; and on the thirteenth day of the first month they finished the work . 18 And they went in to king Ezekias, and said, We have purified all the things in the house of the Lord, the altar of whole-burnt-offering, and its vessels, and the table of shew-bread, and its vessels; 19 and all the vessels which king Achaz polluted in his reign, in his apostasy, we have prepared and purified: behold, they are before the altar of the Lord. 20 And king Ezekias rose early in the morning, and gathered the chief men of the city, and went up to the house of the Lord. 21 And he brought seven calves, seven rams, seven lambs, seven kids of goats for a sin-offering, for the kingdom, and for the holy things, and for Israel: and he told the priests the sons of Aaron to go up to the altar of the Lord. 22 And they slew the calves, and the priests received the blood, and poured it on the altar: and they slew the rams, and poured the blood upon the altar: also they slew the lambs, and poured the blood round the altar. 23 And they brought the goats for a sin-offering before the king and the congregation; and laid their hands upon them. 24 And the priests slew them, and offered their blood as a propitiation on the altar; and they made atonement for all Israel: for the king said, The whole-burnt-offering, and the sin-offering are for all Israel. 25 And he stationed the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, and lutes, and harps, according to the commandment of king David, and of Gad the king’s seer, and Nathan the prophet: for by the commandment of the Lord the order was in the hand of the prophets. 26 And the Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets. 27 And Ezekias told them to offer up the whole-burnt-offering on the altar: and when they began to offer the whole-burnt-offering, they began to sing to the Lord, and the trumpets accompanied the instruments of David king of Israel. 28 And all the congregation worshipped, and the psalm-singers were singing, and the trumpets sounding, until the whole-burnt-sacrifice had been completely offered. 29 And when they had done offering it , the king and all that were present bowed, and worshipped. 30 And king Ezekias and the princes told the Levites to sing hymns to the Lord in the words of David, and of Asaph the prophet: and they sang hymns with gladness, and fell down and worshipped. 31 Then Ezekias answered and said, Now ye have consecrated yourselves to the Lord, bring near and offer sacrifices of praise in the house of the Lord. And the congregation brought sacrifices and thank-offerings into the house of the Lord; and every one who was ready in his heart brought whole-burnt-offerings. 32 And the number of the whole-burnt-offerings which the congregation brought, was seventy calves, a hundred rams, two hundred lambs: all these were for a whole-burnt-offering to the Lord. 33 And the consecrated calves were six hundred, and the sheep three thousand. 34 But the priests were few, and could not flay the whole-burnt-offering, so their brethren the Levites helped them, until the work was finished, and until the priests had purified themselves: for the Levites more zealously purified themselves than the priests. 35 And the whole-burnt-offering was abundant, with the fat of the complete peace-offering, and the drink-offerings of the whole-burnt-sacrifice. So the service was established in the house of the Lord. 36 And Ezekias and all the people rejoiced, because God has prepared the people: for the thing was done suddenly.

30

1 And Ezekias sent to all Israel and Juda, and wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasse, that they should come into the house of the Lord to Jerusalem, to keep the passover to the Lord God of Israel. 2 For the king, and the princes, and all the congregation in Jerusalem, designed to keep the passover in the second month. 3 For they could not keep it at that time, because a sufficient number of priest had not purified themselves, and the people was not gathered to Jerusalem. 4 And the proposal pleased the king and the congregation. 5 And they established a decree that a proclamation should go through all Israel, from Bersabee to Dan, that they should come and keep the passover to the Lord God of Israel at Jerusalem: for the multitude had not done it lately according to the scripture. 6 And the posts went with the letters from the king and the princes to all Israel and Juda, according to the command of the king, saying, Children of Israel, return to the Lord God of Abraam, and Isaac, and Israel, and bring back them that have escaped even those that were left of the hand of the king of Assyria. 7 And be not as your fathers, and your brethren, who revolted from the Lord God of their fathers, and he gave them up to desolation, as ye see. 8 And now harden not your hearts, as your fathers did : give glory to the Lord God, and enter into his sanctuary, which he has sanctified for ever: and serve the Lord your God, and he shall turn away his fierce anger from you. 9 For when ye turn to the Lord, your brethren and your children shall be pitied before all that have carried them captives, and he will restore you to this land: for the Lord our God is merciful and pitiful, and will not turn away his face from you, if we return to him. 10 So the posts went through from city to city in mount Ephraim, and Manasse, and as far as Zabulon: and they as it were laughed them to scorn, and mocked them. 11 But the men of Aser, and some of Manasses and of Zabulon, were ashamed, and came to Jerusalem and Juda. 12 And the hand of the Lord was present to give them one heart to come, to do according to the commands of the king and of the princes, by the word of the Lord. 13 And a great multitude were gathered to Jerusalem to keep the feast of unleavened bread in the second month, a very great congregation. 14 And they arose, and took away the altars that were in Jerusalem, and all on which they burnt incense to false gods they tore down and cast into the brook Kedron. 15 Then they killed the passover on the fourteenth day of the second month: and the priests and the Levites repented, and purified themselves , and brought whole-burnt-offerings into the house of the Lord. 16 And they stood at their post, according to their ordinance, according to the commandment of Moses the man of God: and the priests received the blood from the hand of the Levites. 17 For a great part of the congregation was not sanctified; and the Levites were ready to kill the passover for every one who could not sanctify himself to the Lord. 18 For the greatest part of the people of Ephraim, and Manasse, and Issachar, and Zabulon, had not purified themselves , but ate the passover contrary to the scripture. On this account also Ezekias prayed concerning them, saying, 19 The good Lord be merciful with regard to every heart that sincerely seeks the Lord God of their fathers, and is not purified according to the purification of the sanctuary. 20 And the Lord hearkened to Ezekias, and healed the people. 21 And the children of Israel who were present in Jerusalem kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with great joy; and they continued to sing hymns to the Lord daily, and the priests and the Levites played on instruments to the Lord. 22 And Ezekias encouraged all the Levites, and those that had good understanding of the Lord: and they completely kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days, offering peace-offerings, and confessing to the Lord God of their fathers. 23 And the congregation purposed together to keep other seven days: and they kept seven days with gladness. 24 For Ezekias set apart for Juda, even for the congregation, a thousand calves and seven thousand sheep; and the princes set apart for the people a thousand calves and ten thousand sheep: and the holy things of the priests abundantly. 25 And all the congregation, the priests and the Levites, rejoiced, and all the congregation of Juda, and they that were present of Jerusalem, and the strangers that came from the land of Israel, and the dwellers in Juda. 26 And there was great joy in Jerusalem: from the days of Solomon the son of David king of Israel there was not such a feast in Jerusalem. 27 Then the priests the Levites rose up and blessed the people: and their voice was heard, and their prayer came into his holy dwelling-place, even into heaven.

31

1 And when all these things were finished, all Israel that were found in the cities of Juda went out, and broke in pieces the pillars, and cut down the groves, and tore down the high places and the altars out of all Judea and Benjamin, also of Ephraim and Manasse, till they made an end: and all Israel returned, every one to his inheritance, and to their cities. 2 And Ezekias appointed the courses of the priests and the Levites, and the courses of each one according to his ministry, to the priests and to the Levites, for the whole-burnt-offering, and for the peace-offering, and to praise, and to give thanks, and to minister in the gates, and in the courts of the house of the Lord. 3 And the king’s proportion out of his substance was appointed for the whole-burnt-offerings, the morning and the evening one, and the whole-burnt-offerings for the sabbaths, and for the new moons, and for the feasts that were ordered in the law of the Lord. 4 And they told the people who dwelt in Jerusalem, to give the portion of the priests and the Levites, that they might be strong in the ministry of the house of the Lord. 5 And as he gave the command, Israel brought abundantly first-fruits of corn, and wine, and oil, and honey, and every fruit of the field: and the children of Israel and Juda brought tithes of everything abundantly. 6 And they that dwelt in the cities of Juda themselves also brought tithes of calves and sheep, and tithes of goats, and consecrated them to the Lord their God, and they brought them and laid them in heaps. 7 In the third month the heaps began to be piled, and in the seventh month they were finished. 8 And Ezekias and the princes came and saw the heaps, and blessed the Lord, and his people Israel. 9 Then Ezekias enquired of the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps. 10 And Azarias the priest, the chief over the house of Sadoc, spoke to him, and said, From the time that the first-fruits began to be brought into the house of the Lord, we have eaten and drunk, and left even abundantly; for the Lord has blessed his people, and we have left to this amount. 11 And Ezekias told them yet farther to prepare chambers for the house of the Lord; and they prepared them , 12 and they brought thither the first-fruits and the tithes faithfully: and Chonenias the Levite was superintendent over them, and Semei his brother was next. 13 and Jeiel, and Ozias, and Naeth, and Asael, and Jerimoth, and Jozabad, and Eliel, and Samachia, and Maath, and Banaias, and his sons, were appointed by Chonenias and Semei his brother, as Ezekias the king, and Azarias who was over the house of the Lord commanded. 14 And Core, the son of Jemna the Levite, the porter eastward, was over the gifts, to distribute the first-fruits of the Lord, and the most holy things, 15 by the hand of Odom, and Benjamin, and Jesus, and Semei, and Amarias, and Sechonias, by the hand of the priests faithfully, to give to their brethren according to the courses, as well to great as small; 16 besides the increase of males from three years old and upward, to every one entering into the house of the Lord, a portion according to a daily rate, for service in the daily courses of their order. 17 This is the distribution of the priests according to the houses of their families; and the Levites in their daily courses from twenty years old and upward were in their order, 18 to assign stations for all the increase of their sons and their daughters, for the whole number: for they faithfully sanctified the holy place. 19 As for the sons of Aaron that executed the priests’ office, —even those from their cities the men in each several city who were named expressly, — were appointed to give a portion to every male among the priests, and to every one reckoned among the Levites. 20 And Ezekias did so through all Juda, and did that which was good and right before the Lord his God. 21 And in every work which he began in service in the house of the Lord, and in the law, and in the ordinances, he sought his God with all his soul, and wrought, and prospered.

32

1 And after these things and this faithful dealing, came Sennacherim king of the Assyrians, and he came to Juda, and encamped against the fortified cities, and intended to take them for himself. 2 And Ezekias saw that Sennacherim was come, and that his face was set to fight against Jerusalem. 3 And he took counsel with his elders and his mighty men to stop the wells of water which were without the city: and they helped him. 4 And he collected many people, and stopped the wells of water, and the river that flowed through the city, saying, Lest the king of Assyria come, and find much water, and strengthen himself . 5 And Ezekias strengthened himself , and built all the wall that had been pulled down, and the towers, and another wall in front without, and fortified the strong place of the city of David, and prepared arms in abundance. 6 And he appointed captains of war over the people, and they were gathered to meet him to the open place of the gate of the valley, and he encouraged them, saying, 7 Be strong and courageous, and fear not, neither be dismayed before the King of Assyria, and before all the nation that is with him: for there are more with us than with him. 8 With him are arms of flesh; but with us is the Lord our God to save us , and to fight our battle. And the people were encouraged at the words of Ezekias king of Juda. 9 And afterward Sennacherim king of the Assyrians sent his servants to Jerusalem; and he went himself against Lachis, and all his army with him, and sent to Ezekias king of Juda, and to all Juda that was in Jerusalem, saying, 10 Thus says Sennacherim king of the Assyrians, On what do ye trust, that ye will remain in the siege in Jerusalem? 11 Does not Ezekias deceive you, to deliver you to death and famine and thirst, saying, The Lord our God will deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria? 12 Is not this Ezekias who has taken down his altars and his high places and has spoken to Juda and the dwellers in Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall worship before this altar and burn incense upon it? 13 Know ye not what I and my fathers have done to all the nations of the countries? Could the gods of the nations of all the earth at all rescue their people out of my hand? 14 Who is there among all the gods of those nations whom my fathers utterly destroyed, worthy of trust ? Could they deliver their people out of my hand, that your God should deliver you out of my hand? 15 Now then, let not Ezekias deceive you, and let him not make you thus confident, and believe him not: for no god of any kingdom or nation is at all able to deliver his people out of my hand, or the hand of my fathers: therefore your God shall not deliver you out of my hand. 16 And his servants continued to speak against the Lord God, and against his servant Ezekias. 17 And he wrote a letter to reproach the Lord God of Israel, and spoke concerning him, saying, As the gods of the nations of the earth have not delivered their people out of my hand, so the God of Ezekias shall by no means deliver his people out of my hand. 18 And he cried with a loud voice in the Jews’ language to the people of Jerusalem on the wall, calling them to assist them, and pull down the walls , that they might take the city. 19 And he spoke against the God of Jerusalem, even as against the gods of the nations of the earth, the works of the hands of men. 20 And king Ezekias and Esaias the prophet the son of Amos prayed concerning these things, and they cried to heaven. 21 And the Lord sent an angel, and he destroyed every mighty man and warrior, and leader and captain in the camp of the king of Assyria: and he returned with shame of face to his own land and came into the house of his god: and some of them that came out of his bowels slew him with the sword. 22 So the Lord delivered Ezekias and the dwellers in Jerusalem out of the hand of Sennacherim King of Assyria, and out of the hand of all his enemies , and gave them rest round about. 23 And many brought gifts to the Lord to Jerusalem, and presents to Ezekias king of Juda; and he was exalted in the eyes of all the nations after these things. 24 In those days Ezekias was sick even to death, and prayed to the Lord: and he hearkened to him, and gave him a sign. 25 But Ezekias did not recompense the Lord according to the return which he made him, but his heart was lifted up: and wrath came upon him, and upon Juda and Jerusalem. 26 And Ezekias humbled himself after the exaltation of his heart, he and the dwellers in Jerusalem; and the wrath of the Lord did not come upon them in the days of Ezekias. 27 And Ezekias had wealth and very great glory: and he made for himself treasuries of gold, and silver, and precious stones, also for spices, and stores for arms, and for precious vessels; 28 and cities for the produce of corn, and wine, and oil; and stalls and mangers for every kind of cattle, and folds for flocks; 29 and cities which he built for himself, and store of sheep and oxen in abundance, for the Lord gave him a very great store. 30 The same Ezekias stopped up the course of the water of Gion above, and brought the water down straight south of the city of David. And Ezekias prospered in all his works. 31 Notwithstanding, in regard to the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, who were sent to him to enquire of him concerning the prodigy which came upon the land, the Lord left him, to try him, to know what was in his heart. 32 And the rest of the acts of Ezekias, and his kindness, behold, they are written in the prophecy of Esaias the son of Amos the prophet, and in the book of the kings of Juda and Israel. 33 And Ezekias slept with his fathers, and they buried him in a high place among the sepulchres of the sons of David: and all Juda and the dwellers in Jerusalem gave him glory and honour at his death. And Manasses his son reigned in his stead.

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1 Manasses was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. 2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all the abominations of the heathen, whom the Lord destroyed from before the face of the children of Israel. 3 And he returned and built the high places, which his father Ezekias had pulled down, and set up images to Baalim, and made groves, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served them. 4 And he built altars in the house of the Lord, concerning which the Lord said, In Jerusalem shall be my name for ever. 5 And he built altars to all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. 6 He also passed his children through the fire in the valley of Benennom; and he divined, and used auspices, and sorceries, and appointed those who had divining spirits, and enchanters, and wrought abundant wickedness before the Lord, to provoke him. 7 And he set the graven image , the molten statue , the idol which he made, in the house of God, of which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house, and Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name for ever; 8 and I will not again remove the foot of Israel from the land which I gave to their fathers, if only they will take heed to do all things which I have commanded them, according to all the law and the ordinances and the judgments given by the hand of Moses. 9 So Manasses led astray Juda and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to do evil beyond all the nations which the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel. 10 And the Lord spoke to Manasses, and to his people: but they hearkened not. 11 And the Lord brought upon them the captains of the host of the king of Assyria, and they took Manasses in bonds, and bound him in fetters, and brought him to Babylon. 12 And when he was afflicted, he sought the face of the Lord his God, and was greatly humbled before the face of the God of his fathers; 13 and he prayed to him: and he hearkened to him, and listened to his cry, and brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom: and Manasses knew that the Lord he is God. 14 And afterward he built a wall without the city of David, from the southwest southward in the valleys and at the entrance through the fish-gate, as men go out by the gate round about, even as far as Opel: and he raised it much, and set captains of the host in all the fortified cities in Juda. 15 And he removed the strange gods, and the graven image out of the house of the Lord, and all the altars which he had built in the mount of the house of the Lord, and in Jerusalem, and without the city. 16 And he repaired the altar of the Lord, and offered upon it a sacrifice of peace-offering and thank-offering, and he told Juda to serve the Lord God of Israel. 17 Nevertheless the people still sacrificed on the high places, only to the Lord their God. 18 And the rest of the acts of Manasses, and his prayer to God, and the words of the seers that spoke to him in the name of the God of Israel, 19 behold, they are in the account of his prayer; and God hearkened to him. And all his sins, and his backslidings, and the spots on which he built the high places, and set there groves and graven images, before he repented, behold, they are written in the books of the seers. 20 And Manasses slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the garden of his house: and Amon his son reigned in his stead. 21 Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. 22 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, as his father Manasses did: and Amon sacrificed to all the idols which his father Manasses had made, and served them. 23 And he was not humbled before the Lord as his father Manasses was humbled; for his son Amon abounded in transgression. 24 And his servants conspired against him, and slew him in his house. 25 And the people of the land slew the men who had conspired against king Amon; and the people of the land made Josias his son king in his stead.

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1 Josias was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. 2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the ways of his father David, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left. 3 And in the eighth year of his reign, and he being yet a youth, he began to seek the Lord God of his father David: and in the twelfth year of his reign he began to purge Juda and Jerusalem from the high places, and the groves, and the ornaments for the altars, and the molten images. 4 And he pulled down the altars of Baalim that were before his face, and the high places that were above them; and he cut down the groves, and the graven images, and broke in pieces the molten images, and reduced them to powder, and cast it upon the surface of the tombs of those who had sacrificed to them. 5 And he burnt the bones of the priests upon the altars, and purged Juda and Jerusalem. 6 And he did so in the cities of Manasse, and Ephraim, and Symeon, and Nephthali, and the places round about them. 7 And he pulled down the altars and the groves, and he cut the idols in small pieces, and cut off all the high places from all the land of Israel, and returned to Jerusalem. 8 And in the eighteenth year of his reign, after having cleansed the land, and the house, he sent Saphan the son of Ezelias, and Maasa prefect of the city, and Juach son of Joachaz his recorder, to repair the house of the Lord his God. 9 And they came to Chelcias the high priest, and gave the money that was brought into the house of God, which the Levites who kept the gate collected of the hand of Manasse and Ephraim, and of the princes, and of every one that was left in Israel, and of the children of Juda and Benjamin, and of the dwellers in Jerusalem. 10 And they gave it into the hand of the workmen, who were appointed in the house of the Lord, and they gave it to the workmen who wrought in the house of the Lord, to repair and strengthen the house. 11 They gave it also to the carpenters and builders, to buy squared stones, and timber for beams to cover the houses which the kings of Juda had destroyed. 12 And the men were faithfully engaged in the works: and over them were superintendents, Jeth and Abdias, Levites of the sons of Merari, and Zacharias and Mosollam, of the sons of Caath, appointed to oversee; and every Levite, and every one that understood how to play on musical instruments. 13 And overseers were over the burden-bearers, and over all the workmen in the respective works; and of the Levites were appointed scribes, and judges, and porters. 14 And when they brought forth the money that had been brought into the house of the Lord, Chelcias the priest found a book of the law of the Lord given by the hand of Moses. 15 And Chelcias answered and said to Saphan the scribe, I have found a book of the law in the house of the Lord. And Chelcias gave the book to Saphan. 16 And Saphan brought in the book to the king, and moreover gave an account to the king, saying, This is all the money given into the hand of thy servants that work. 17 And they have collected the money that was found in the house of the Lord, and given it into the hand of the overseers, and into the hand of them that do the work. 18 And Saphan the scribe brought word to the king, saying, Chelcias the priest has given me a book. And Saphan read it before the king. 19 And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the law, that he rent his garments. 20 And the king commanded Chelcias, and Achicam the son of Saphan, and Abdom the son of Michaias, and Saphan the scribe, and Asia the servant of the king, saying, 21 Go, enquire of the Lord for me, and for every one that is left in Israel and Juda, concerning the words of the book that is found: for great is the wrath of the Lord which has been kindled amongst us, because our fathers have not hearkened to the words of the Lord, to do according to all the things written in this book. 22 And Chelcias went, and the others whom the king told, to Olda the prophetess, the wife of Sellem son of Thecoe, son of Aras, who kept the commandments; and she dwelt in Jerusalem in the second quarter : and they spoke to her accordingly. 23 And she said to them, Thus has the Lord God of Israel said, Tell the man who sent you to me, 24 Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I bring evil upon this place, even all the words that are written in the book that was read before the king of Juda: 25 because they have forsaken me, and burnt incense to strange gods, that they might provoke me by all the works of their hands; and my wrath is kindled against this place, and it shall not be quenched. 26 And concerning the king of Juda, who sent you to seek the Lord, —thus shall ye say to him, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, As for the words which thou has heard, 27 forasmuch as thy heart was ashamed, and thou was humbled before me when thou heardest my words against this place, and against the inhabitants of it, and thou wast humbled before me, and didst rend thy garments, and didst weep before me; I also have heard, saith the Lord. 28 Behold, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace, and thine eyes shall not look upon all the evils which I am bringing upon this place, and upon the inhabitants of it. And they brought back word to the king. 29 And the king sent and gathered the elders of Juda and Jerusalem. 30 And the king went up to the house of the Lord, he and all Juda, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests, and the Levites, and all the people great and small: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant that were found in the house of the Lord. 31 And the king stood at a pillar, and made a covenant before the Lord, to walk before the Lord, to keep his commandments and testimonies, and his ordinances, with all his heart and with all his soul, so as to perform the words of the covenant that were written in this book. 32 And he caused all that were found in Jerusalem and Benjamin to stand; and the inhabitants of Jerusalem made a covenant in the house of the Lord God of their fathers. 33 And Josias removed all the abominations out of the whole land which belonged to the children of Israel, and caused all that were found in Jerusalem and in Israel, to serve the Lord their God all his days: he departed not from following the Lord God of his fathers.

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1 And Josias kept a passover to the Lord his God; and sacrificed the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month. 2 And he appointed the priests at their charges, and encouraged them for the services of the house of the Lord. 3 And he told the Levites that were able to act in all Israel, that they should consecrate themselves to the Lord: and they put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel built: and the king said, Ye must not carry anything on your shoulders: now then minister to the Lord your God, and to his people Israel. 4 And prepare yourselves according to the houses of your families, and according to your daily courses, according to the writing of David king of Israel, and the order by the hand of his son Solomon. 5 And stand ye in the house according to the divisions of the houses of your families for your brethren the sons of the people; so also let there be for the Levites a division of the house of their family. 6 And kill ye the passover, and prepare it for your brethren, to do according to the word of the Lord, by the hand of Moses. 7 And Josias gave as an offering to the children of the people, sheep, and lambs, and kids of the young of the goats, all for the passover, even for all that were found, in number amounting to thirty thousand, and three thousand calves, these were of the substance of the king. 8 And his princes gave an offering to the people, and to the priests, and to the Levites: and Chelcias and Zacharias and Jeiel the chief men gave to the priests of the house of God, they even gave for the passover sheep, and lambs, and kids, two thousand six hundred, and three hundred calves. 9 And Chonenias, and Banaeas, and Samaeas, and Nathanael his brother, and Asabias, and Jeiel, and Jozabad, heads of the Levites, gave an offering to the Levites for the passover, of five thousand sheep and five hundred calves. 10 And the service was duly ordered, and the priests stood in their place, and the Levites in their divisions, according to the command of the king. 11 And they slew the passover, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hand, and the Levites flayed the victims . 12 And they prepared the whole-burnt-offering to give to them, according to the division by the houses of families, even to the sons of the people, to offer to the Lord, as it is written in the book of Moses. 13 And thus they did till the morning. And they roasted the passover with fire according to the ordinance; and boiled the holy pieces in copper vessels and caldrons, and the feast went on well, and they quickly served all the children of the people. 14 And after they had prepared for themselves and for the priests, for the priests were engaged in offering the whole-burnt-offerings and the fat until night, then the Levites prepared for themselves, and for their brethren the sons of Aaron. 15 And the sons of Asaph the psalm-singers were at their post according to the commands of David, and Asaph, and Aeman, and Idithom, the prophets of the king: also, the chiefs and the porters of the several gates; —it was not for them to stir from the service of the holy things, for their brethren the Levites prepared for them. 16 So all the service of the Lord was duly ordered and prepared in that day, for keeping the passover, and offering the whole-burnt-sacrifices on the altar of the Lord, according to the command of king Josias. 17 And the children of Israel that were present kept the passover at that time, and the feast of unleavened bread seven days. 18 And there was no passover like it in Israel from the days of Samuel the prophet, or any king of Israel: they kept not such a passover as Josias, and the priests, and the Levites, and all Juda and Israel that were present, and the dwellers in Jerusalem, kept to the Lord. 19 In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josias this passover was kept, after all these things that Josias did in the house. And king Josias burnt those who had in them a divining spirit, and the wizards, and the images, and the idols, and the sodomites which were in the land of Juda and in Jerusalem, that he might confirm the words of the law that were written in the book which Chelcias the priest found in the house of the Lord. There was no king like him before him, who turned to the Lord with all his heart, and all his soul, and all his strength, according to all the law of Moses, and after him there rose up none like him. Nevertheless the Lord turned not from the anger of his fierce wrath, wherewith the Lord was greatly angry against Juda, for all the provocations wherewith Manasses provoked him: and the Lord said, I will even remove Juda also from my presence, as I have removed Israel, and I have rejected the city which I chose, even Jerusalem, and thehouse of which I said, My name shall be there. 20 And Pharao Nechao king of Egypt went up against the king of the Assyrians to the river Euphrates, and king Josias went to meet him. 21 And he sent messengers to him, saying, What have I to do with thee, O king of Juda? I am not come to-day to war against thee; and God has told me to hasten: beware of the God that is with me, lest he destroy thee. 22 However, Josias turned not his face from him, but strengthened himself to fight against him, and hearkened not to the words of Nechao by the mouth of God, and he came to fight in the plain of Mageddo. 23 And the archers shot at king Josias; and the king said to his servants, Take me away, for I am severely wounded. 24 And his servants lifted him out of the chariot, and put him in the second chariot which he had, and brought him to Jerusalem; and he died, and was buried with his fathers: and all Juda and Jerusalem lamented over Josias. 25 And Jeremias mourned over Josias, and all the chief men and chief women uttered a lamentation over Josias until this day: and they made it an ordinance for Israel, and, behold, it is written in the lamentations. 26 And the rest of the acts of Josias, and his hope, are written in the law of the Lord. 27 And his acts, the first and the last, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah.

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1 And the people of the land took Joachaz the son of Josias, and anointed him, and made him king over Jerusalem in the room of his father. 2 Joachaz was twenty-three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Amital, daughter of Jeremias of Lobna. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done. And Pharao Nechao bound him in Deblatha in the land of Aemath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem. 3 And the king brought him over to Egypt; and imposed a tribute on the land, a hundred talents of silver and a talent of gold. 4 And Pharao Nechao made Eliakim the son of Josias king over Juda in the room of his father Josias, and changed his name to Joakim. And Pharao Nechao took his brother Joachaz and brought him into Egypt, and he died there: but he had given the silver and gold to Pharao. At that time the land began to be taxed to give the money at the command of Pharao; and every one as he could borrowed the silver and the gold of the people of the land, to give to Pharao Nechao. 5 Joachim was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Zechora, daughter of Nerias of Rama. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers did. In his days came Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon into the land, and he served him three years, and then revolted from him. And the Lord sent against them the Chaldeans, and plundering parties of Syrians, and plundering parties of the Moabites, and of the children of Ammon, and of Samaria; but after this they departed, according to the word of the Lord by the hand of his servants the prophets. Nevertheless the wrath of the Lord was upon Juda, so that they should be removed from his presence, because of the sins of Manasses in all that he did, and for the innocent blood which Joakim shed, for he had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; yet the Lord would not utterly destroy them. 6 And Nabuchodonosor king of Babylon came up against him, and bound him with brazen fetters, and carried him away to Babylon. 7 And he carried away a part of the vessels of the house of the Lord to Babylon, and put them in his temple in Babylon. 8 And the rest of the acts of Joakim, and all that he did, behold, are not these things written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Juda? And Joakim slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in Ganozae: and Jechonias his son reigned in his stead. 9 Jechonias was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months and ten days in Jerusalem, and did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. 10 And at the turn of the year, king Nabuchodonosor sent, and brought him to Babylon, with the precious vessels of the house of the Lord, and made Sedekias his father’s brother king over Juda and Jerusalem. 11 Sedekias was twenty-one years old when he began to reign, and be reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. 12 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord his God: he was not ashamed before the prophet Jeremias, nor because of the word of the Lord; 13 in that he rebelled against king Nabuchodonosor, which he adjured him by God not to do : but he stiffened his neck, and hardened his heart, so as not to return to the Lord God of Israel. 14 And all the great men of Juda, and the priests, and the people of the land transgressed abundantly in the abominations of the heathen, and polluted the house of the Lord which was in Jerusalem. 15 And the Lord God of their fathers sent by the hand of his prophets; rising early and sending his messengers, for he spared his people, and his sanctuary. 16 Nevertheless they sneered at his messengers, and set at nought his words, and mocked his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord rose up against his people, till there was no remedy. 17 And he brought against them the king of the Chaldeans, and slew their young men with the sword in the house of his sanctuary, and did not spare Sedekias, and had no mercy upon their virgins, and they led away their old men: he delivered all things into their hands. 18 And all the vessels of the house of God, the great and the small, and the treasures of the house of the Lord, and all the treasures of the king and the great men; he brought all to Babylon. 19 And he burnt the house of the Lord, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem, and burnt its palaces with fire, and utterly destroyed every beautiful vessel. 20 And he carried away the remnant to Babylon; and they were servants to him and to his sons until the establishment of the kingdom of the Medes. 21 That the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremias might be fulfilled, until the land should enjoy its sabbaths in resting and sabbath keeping all the days of its desolation, till the accomplishment of seventy years. 22 In the first year of Cyrus king of the Persians, after the fulfillment of the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremias, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of the Persians, and told him to make proclamation in writing throughout all his kingdom, saying, 23 Thus says Cyrus king of the Persians to all the kingdoms of the earth, The Lord God of heaven has given me power , and he has commanded me to build a house to him in Jerusalem, in Judea. Who is there of you of all his people? His God shall be with him, and let him go up.