Athaliah Reigns in Judah

11 ^uNow when ^vAthaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal family. 2 But Jehosheba, the daughter of King Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took ^wJoash the son of Ahaziah and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were being put to death, and she put¹ him and his nurse in a bedroom. Thus they² hid him from Athaliah, so that he was not put to death. 3 And he remained with her six years, hidden in the house of the Lord, while Athaliah reigned over the land.

Joash Anointed King in Judah

4 ^xBut in the seventh year ^yJehoiada sent and brought the captains of ^zthe Carites and of the guards, and had them come to him in the house of the Lord. And he made a covenant with them and put them under oath in the house of the Lord, and he showed them the king’s son. 5 And he commanded them, “This is the thing that you shall do: one third of you, ^athose who come off duty on the Sabbath and guard the king’s house 6 (^banother third being at the gate Sur and a third at the gate behind the guards) shall guard the palace.³ 7 And the two divisions of you, which come on duty in force on the Sabbath and guard the house of the Lord on behalf of the king, 8 shall surround the king, each with his weapons in his hand. And whoever approaches the ranks is to be put to death. Be with the king ^cwhen he goes out and when he comes in.”

9 The captains did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded, and they each brought his men who were to go off duty on the Sabbath, with those who were to come on duty on the Sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest. 10 And the priest gave to the captains the spears and ^dshields that had been King David’s, which were in the house of the Lord. 11 And the guards stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, from the south side of the house to the north side of the house, around the altar and the house on behalf of the king. 12 Then he brought out the king’s son and put ^ethe crown on him and gave him ^fthe testimony. And they proclaimed him king and anointed him, and they clapped their hands and said, ^g“Long live the king!”

13 When Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she went into the house of the Lord to the people. 14 And when she looked, there was the king standing ^hby the pillar, according to the custom, and the captains and the trumpeters beside the king, and all the people of the land rejoicing and ⁱblowing trumpets. And Athaliah ^jtore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!” 15 Then Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains who were set over the army, “Bring her out between the ranks, and put to death with the sword anyone who follows her.” For the priest said, “Let her not be put to death in the house of the Lord.” 16 So they laid hands on her; and she went through the horses’ entrance to the king’s house, and there she was put to death.

17 And Jehoiada ^kmade a covenant between the Lord and the king and people, that they should be the Lord’s people, and also ^lbetween the king and the people. 18 Then all the people of the land went to ^mthe house of Baal and tore it down; ⁿhis altars and his images they broke in pieces, and they killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest posted watchmen over the house of the Lord. 19 And he took the captains, ^othe Carites, the guards, and all the people of the land, and they brought the king down from the house of the Lord, marching through ^pthe gate of the guards to the king’s house. And he took his seat on the throne of the kings. 20 So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet after Athaliah had been put to death with the sword at the king’s house.

Jehoash Reigns in Judah

21 ^qJehoash⁵ was seven years old when he began to reign.

12 In the seventh year of Jehu, Jehoash¹ began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. 2 And Jehoash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord all his days, because Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 3 Nevertheless, ^rthe high places were not taken away; the people continued to sacrifice and make offerings on the high places.

Jehoash Repairs the Temple

4 Jehoash said to the priests, “All the money of the holy things ^sthat is brought into the house of the Lord, the money for which each man is assessed—the money from the assessment of persons—and ^tthe money that a man’s heart prompts him to bring into the house of the Lord, 5 let the priests take, each from his donor, and let them repair the house wherever any need of repairs is discovered.” 6 But by the twenty-third year of King Jehoash, the priests had made no repairs on the house. 7 Therefore King Jehoash summoned Jehoiada the priest and the other priests and said to them, “Why are you not repairing the house? Now therefore take no more money from your donors, but hand it over for the repair of the house.” 8 So the priests agreed that they should take no more money from the people, and that they should not repair the house.

9 Then Jehoiada the priest took ^ua chest and bored a hole in the lid of it and set it beside the altar on the right side as one entered the house of the Lord. And the priests who guarded the threshold put in it all the money that was brought into the house of the Lord. 10 And whenever they saw that there was much money in the chest, the king’s secretary and the high priest came up and they bagged and counted ^vthe money that was found in the house of the Lord. 11 Then they would give the money that was weighed out into the hands of the workmen who had the oversight of the house of the Lord. And they paid it out to the carpenters and the builders who worked on the house of the Lord, 12 and ^wto the masons and the stonecutters, as well as to buy timber and quarried stone for making repairs on the house of the Lord, and for any outlay for the repairs of the house. 13 ^xBut there were not made for the house of the Lord ^ybasins of silver, snuffers, bowls, trumpets, or any vessels of gold, or of silver, from the money that was brought into the house of the Lord, 14 for that was given to the workmen who were repairing the house of the Lord with it. 15 And ^zthey did not ask for an accounting from the men into whose hand they delivered the money to pay out to the workmen, for they dealt honestly. 16 The money from ^athe guilt offerings and the money from the ^bsin offerings was not brought into the house of the Lord; ^cit belonged to the priests.

17 At that time ^dHazael king of Syria went up and fought against Gath and took it. But when Hazael set his face ^eto go up against Jerusalem, 18 Jehoash king of Judah ^ftook all the sacred gifts that Jehoshaphat and Jehoram and Ahaziah his fathers, the kings of Judah, had dedicated, ^gand his own sacred gifts, and all the gold that was found in the treasuries of the house of the Lord and of the king’s house, and sent these to Hazael king of Syria. Then Hazael went away from Jerusalem.

The Death of Joash

19 Now the rest of the acts of Joash and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 20 ^hHis servants arose and made a conspiracy ⁱand struck down Joash in the house of ^jMillo, on the way that goes down to Silla. 21 It was ^kJozacar the son of Shimeath and Jehozabad the son of ^kShomer, his servants, who struck him down, so that he died. And they buried him with his fathers in the city of David, ^land Amaziah his son reigned in his place.

Jehoahaz Reigns in Israel

13 In the twenty-third year of Joash the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned seventeen years. 2 He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, ^mwhich he made Israel to sin; he did not depart from them. 3 ⁿAnd the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he gave them continually into the hand of ^oHazael king of Syria and into the hand of ^pBen-hadad the son of Hazael. 4 Then Jehoahaz ^qsought the favor of the Lord, and the Lord listened to him, ^rfor he saw the oppression of Israel, how the king of Syria oppressed them. 5 (Therefore the Lord gave Israel ^sa savior, so that they escaped from the hand of the Syrians, and the people of Israel lived in ^ttheir homes as formerly. 6 Nevertheless, they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, ^mwhich he made Israel to sin, but walked¹ in them; and ^uthe Asherah also remained in Samaria.) 7 For there was not left to Jehoahaz an army of more than fifty horsemen and ten chariots and ten thousand footmen, for the king of Syria had destroyed them and made them like the dust ^vat threshing. 8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 9 So Jehoahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria, and Joash his son reigned in his place.

Jehoash Reigns in Israel

10 In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, Jehoash² the son of Jehoahaz began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned sixteen years. 11 He also did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, ^mwhich he made Israel to sin, but he walked in them. 12 ^wNow the rest of the acts of Joash ^xand all that he did, ^yand the might with which he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 13 So Joash slept with his fathers, and Jeroboam sat on his throne. And Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

The Death of Elisha

14 Now when Elisha had fallen sick with the illness of which he was to die, Joash king of Israel went down to him and wept before him, crying, ^z“My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” 15 And Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows.” So he took a bow and arrows. 16 Then he said to the king of Israel, “Draw the bow,” and he drew it. And Elisha laid his hands on the king’s hands. 17 And he said, “Open the window eastward,” and he opened it. Then Elisha said, “Shoot,” and he shot. And he said, “The Lord’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Syria! For you shall fight the Syrians in ^aAphek until you have made an end of them.” 18 And he said, “Take the arrows,” and he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground with them.” And he struck three times and stopped. 19 Then ^bthe man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck down Syria until you had made an end of it, but now you will strike down Syria only ^cthree times.”

20 So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of ^dMoabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. 21 And as a man was being buried, behold, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha, and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.

22 ^eNow Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 ^fBut the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them, ^gand he turned toward them, ^hbecause of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, nor has he cast them from his presence until now.

24 When Hazael king of Syria died, Ben-hadad his son became king in his place. 25 Then Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again from Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities ⁱthat he had taken from Jehoahaz his father in war. ^jThree times Joash defeated him and recovered the cities of Israel.

Amaziah Reigns in Judah

14 ^kIn the ^lsecond year of Joash the son of Joahaz, king of Israel, ^mAmaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, began to reign. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. 3 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, yet not like David his father. He did in all things as Joash his father had done. 4 ⁿBut the high places were not removed; ^othe people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. 5 And as soon as the royal power was ^pfirmly in his hand, he struck down his servants ^qwho had struck down the king his father. 6 But he did not put to death the children of the murderers, according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, where the Lord commanded, ^r“Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers. But each one shall die for his own sin.”

7 ^sHe struck down ten thousand Edomites in ^tthe Valley of Salt and took ^uSela by storm, and called it ^vJoktheel, which is its name to this day.

8 ^wThen Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash¹ the son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, ^xlet us look one another in the face.” 9 And Jehoash king of Israel sent word to Amaziah king of Judah, ^y“A thistle on Lebanon sent to a cedar on Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son for a wife,’ and a wild beast of Lebanon passed by and trampled down the thistle. 10 You have indeed ^zstruck down Edom, ^aand your heart has lifted you up. Be content with your glory, and stay at home, for why should you provoke trouble so that you fall, you and Judah with you?”

11 But Amaziah would not listen. So Jehoash king of Israel went up, and he and Amaziah king of Judah ^xfaced one another in battle at ^bBeth-shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 12 And Judah was defeated by Israel, ^cand every man fled to his home. 13 And Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and came to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem for four hundred cubits,² from ^dthe Ephraim Gate to ^ethe Corner Gate. 14 And he seized ^fall the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house, also hostages, and he returned to Samaria.

15 ^gNow the rest of the acts of Jehoash that he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 16 And Jehoash slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.

17 ^hAmaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. 18 Now the rest of the deeds of Amaziah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 19 And they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to ⁱLachish. But they sent after him to Lachish and put him to death there. 20 And they brought him on horses; and he was buried in Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David. 21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. 22 He built ^jElath and restored it to Judah, after the king slept with his fathers.

Jeroboam II Reigns in Israel

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to reign in Samaria, and he reigned forty-one years. 24 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, ^kwhich he made Israel to sin. 25 ^lHe restored the border of Israel ^mfrom Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of ⁿthe Arabah, according to the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant ^oJonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was from ^pGath-hepher. 26 For the Lord ^qsaw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter, ^rfor there was none left, bond or free, and there was none to help Israel. 27 ^sBut the Lord had not said that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, so he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.

28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam and all that he did, and his might, how he fought, and how he restored ^tDamascus and ^uHamath to Judah in Israel, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 29 And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, the kings of Israel, and Zechariah his son reigned in his place.

Azariah Reigns in Judah

15 ^vIn the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, ^wAzariah the son of Amaziah, king of Judah, began to reign. 2 He was ^xsixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. 3 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. 4 ^yNevertheless, the high places were not taken away. The people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. 5 ^zAnd the Lord touched the king, so that he was a leper¹ to the day of his death, ^aand he lived in a separate house.² And Jotham the king’s son was over the household, governing the people of the land. 6 Now the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 7 And Azariah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers ^bin the city of David, and Jotham his son reigned in his place.

Zechariah Reigns in Israel

8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in Samaria six months. 9 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, as his fathers had done. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, ^cwhich he made Israel to sin. 10 Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him and ^dstruck him down at Ibleam and put him to death and reigned in his place. 11 Now the rest of the deeds of Zechariah, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 12 (This was ^ethe promise of the Lord that he gave to Jehu, “Your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.” And so it came to pass.)

Shallum Reigns in Israel

13 Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the thirty-ninth year of ^fUzziah³ king of Judah, and he reigned one month in ^gSamaria. 14 Then Menahem the son of Gadi came up from ^hTirzah and came to Samaria, and he struck down Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria and put him to death and reigned in his place. 15 Now the rest of the deeds of Shallum, and the conspiracy that he made, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. 16 At that time Menahem sacked Tiphsah and all who were in it and its territory from Tirzah on, because they did not open it to him. Therefore he sacked it, ⁱand he ripped open all the women in it who were pregnant.