2 Kings 14–15

King Amaziah of Judah

14In the second year of the reign of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz as king of Israel, Amaziah son of Joash became king of Judah ²at the age of 25, and he ruled in Jerusalem for 29 years. His mother was Jehoaddin, from Jerusalem. ³He did what was pleasing to the Lord, but he was not like his ancestor King David; instead, he did what his father Joash had done. ⁴He did not tear down the pagan places of worship, and the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.

⁵As soon as Amaziah was firmly in power, he executed the officials who had killed his father, the king. ^6*However, he did not kill their children but followed what the Lord had commanded in the Law of Moses: “Parents are not to be put to death for crimes committed by their children, and children are not to be put to death for crimes committed by their parents; a person is to be put to death only for a crime he himself has committed.”

⁷Amaziah killed 10,000 Edomite soldiers in Salt Valley; he captured the city of Sela in battle and called it Joktheel, the name it still has.

⁸Then Amaziah sent messengers to King Jehoash of Israel, challenging him to fight.^{b 9}But King Jehoash sent back the following reply: “Once a thorn bush on the Lebanon Mountains sent a message to a cedar: ‘Give your daughter in marriage to my son.’ A wild animal passed by and trampled the bush down. ¹⁰Now Amaziah, you have defeated the Edomites, and you are filled with pride. Be satisfied with your fame and stay at home. Why stir up trouble that will only bring disaster on you and your people?”

¹¹But Amaziah refused to listen, so King Jehoash marched out with his men and fought against him at Beth Shemesh in Judah. ¹²Amaziah’s army was defeated, and all his soldiers fled to their homes. ¹³Jehoash took Amaziah prisoner, advanced on Jerusalem, and tore down the city wall from Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate, a distance of nearly 200 metres. ¹⁴He took all the silver and gold he could find, all the temple equipment and all the palace treasures, and carried them back to Samaria. He also took hostages with him.

¹⁵Everything else that Jehoash did, including his bravery in the war against King Amaziah of Judah, is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. ¹⁶Jehoash died and was buried in the royal tombs in Samaria, and his son Jeroboam II succeeded him as king.

The Death of King Amaziah of Judah

¹⁷King Amaziah of Judah lived fifteen years after the death of King Jehoash of Israel. ¹⁸Everything else that Amaziah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah.

¹⁹There was a plot in Jerusalem to assassinate Amaziah, so he fled to the city of Lachish, but his enemies followed him there and killed him. ²⁰His body was carried back to Jerusalem on a horse and was buried in the royal tombs in David’s City. ²¹The people of Judah then crowned his sixteen-year-old son Uzziah as king. ²²Uzziah reconquered and rebuilt Elath after his father’s death.

King Jeroboam II of Israel

²³In the fifteenth year of the reign of Amaziah son of Joash as king of Judah, Jeroboam son of Jehoash became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for 41 years. ²⁴He sinned against the Lord, following the wicked example of his predecessor King Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into sin. ^25*He reconquered all the territory that had belonged to Israel, from Hamath Pass in the north to the Dead Sea in the south. This was what the Lord, the God of Israel, had promised through his servant the prophet Jonah son of Amittai, from Gath Hepher.

²⁶The Lord saw the terrible^c suffering of the Israelites; there was no one at all to help them. ²⁷But it was not the Lord’s purpose to destroy Israel completely and for ever, so he rescued them through King Jeroboam II.

²⁸Everything else that Jeroboam II did, his brave battles, and how he restored Damascus and Hamath to Israel,^d are all recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. ²⁹Jeroboam died and was buried in the royal tombs, and his son Zechariah succeeded him as king.

King Uzziah of Judah

15In the 27th year of the reign of King Jeroboam II of Israel, Uzziah son of Amaziah became king of Judah ²at the age of sixteen, and he ruled in Jerusalem for 52 years. His mother was Jecoliah from Jerusalem. ³Following the example of his father, he did what was pleasing to the Lord. ⁴But the pagan places of worship were not destroyed, and the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there. ⁵The Lord struck Uzziah with a dreaded skin disease that stayed with him the rest of his life. He lived in a house on his own, relieved of all duties, while his son Jotham governed the country.

⁶Everything else that Uzziah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah. ^7*Uzziah died and was buried in the royal burial ground in David’s City, and his son Jotham succeeded him as king.

King Zechariah of Israel

⁸In the 38th year of the reign of King Uzziah of Judah, Zechariah son of Jeroboam II became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for six months. ⁹He, like his predecessors, sinned against the Lord. He followed the wicked example of King Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into sin. ¹⁰Shallum son of Jabesh conspired against King Zechariah, assassinated him at Ibleam,^e and succeeded him as king.

¹¹Everything else that Zechariah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel.

^12*So the promise was fulfilled which the Lord had made to King Jehu: “Your descendants, down to the fourth generation,^f will be kings of Israel.”

King Shallum of Israel

¹³In the 39th year of the reign of King Uzziah of Judah, Shallum son of Jabesh became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for one month.

¹⁴Menahem son of Gadi went from Tirzah to Samaria, assassinated Shallum, and succeeded him as king. ¹⁵Everything else that Shallum did, including an account of his conspiracy, is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. ¹⁶As Menahem was on his way from Tirzah, he completely destroyed the city of Tappuah,^g its inhabitants, and the surrounding territory, because the city did not surrender to him. He even ripped open the bellies of all the pregnant women.

King Menahem of Israel

¹⁷In the 39th year of the reign of King Uzziah of Judah, Menahem son of Gadi became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for ten years. ¹⁸He sinned against the Lord, for until the day of his death he followed the wicked example of King Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into sin till the day of his death. ¹⁹Tiglath Pileser, the emperor of Assyria, invaded Israel, and Menahem gave him 34,000 kilogrammes of silver to gain his support in strengthening Menahem’s power over the country. ²⁰Menahem got the money from the rich men of Israel by forcing each one to contribute 50 pieces of silver. So Tiglath Pileser went back to his own country.

²¹Everything else that Menahem did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. ²²He died and was buried, and his son Pekahiah succeeded him as king.

King Pekahiah of Israel

²³In the 50th year of the reign of King Uzziah of Judah, Pekahiah son of Menahem became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for two years. ²⁴He sinned against the Lord, following the wicked example of King Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into sin. ²⁵An officer of Pekahiah’s forces, Pekah son of Remaliah, plotted with 50 men from Gilead, assassinated Pekahiah in the palace’s inner fortress^h in Samaria, and succeeded him as king. ²⁶Everything else that Pekahiah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel.

King Pekah of Israel

²⁷In the 52nd year of the reign of King Uzziah of Judah, Pekah son of Remaliah became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for twenty years. ²⁸He sinned against the Lord, following the wicked example of King Jeroboam son of Nebat, who led Israel into sin.

²⁹It was while Pekah was king that Tiglath Pileser, the emperor of Assyria, captured the cities of Ijon, Abel Beth Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, and Hazor, and the territories of Gilead, Galilee, and Naphtali, and took the people to Assyria as prisoners.

³⁰In the twentieth year of the reign of Jotham son of Uzziah as king of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah plotted against King Pekah, assassinated him, and succeeded him as king. ³¹Everything else that Pekah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel.

King Jotham of Judah

³²In the second year of the reign of Pekah son of Remaliah as king of Israel, Jotham son of Uzziah became king of Judah ³³at the age of 25, and he ruled in Jerusalem for sixteen years. His mother was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok. ³⁴Following the example of his father Uzziah, Jotham did what was pleasing to the Lord. ³⁵But the pagan places of worship were not destroyed, and the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there. It was Jotham who built the North Gate of the Temple.

³⁶Everything else that Jotham did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Judah. ³⁷It was while he was king that the Lord first sent King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah of Israel to attack Judah. ³⁸Jotham died and was buried in the royal tombs in David’s City, and his son Ahaz succeeded him as king.