JUDAH’S KING AHAZ

16 In the seventeenth year of Pekah son of Remaliah,x Ahazy son of Jotham became king of Judah. 2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. He did not do what was right in the sight of the Lord his God like his ancestor Davidz 3 but walked in the ways of the kings of Israel.aa He even sacrificed his son in the fire,E imitating the detestable practices of the nations the Lord had dispossessed before the Israelites.ab 4 He sacrificed and burned incenseac on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree.ad

5 Thenae Aram’s King Rezin and Israel’s King Pekah son of Remaliah came to wage war against Jerusalem. They besieged Ahaz but were not able to conquer him.af 6 At that time Aram’s King Rezin recovered Elath for Aram and expelled the Judahites from Elath.a Then the Arameans came to Elath, and they still live there today.b

7 So Ahaz sent messengersc to King Tiglath-pileserd of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. March up and save me from the grasp of the king of Aram and of the king of Israel, who are rising up against me.” 8 Ahaz also took the silver and gold found in the Lord’s temple and in the treasuries of the king’s palace and sent them to the king of Assyria as a bribe.e 9 So the king of Assyria listened to himf and marched up to Damascus and captured it.g He deported its people to Kirh but put Rezin to death.