¹⁵Jehu started out again, and on his way he was met by Jonadab son of Rechab. Jehu greeted him and said, “You and I think alike. Will you support me?”

“I will,” Jonadab answered.

“Give me your hand, then,” Jehu replied. They clasped hands, and Jehu helped him up into the chariot, ¹⁶saying, “Come with me and see for yourself how devoted I am to the Lord.” And they rode on together to Samaria. ¹⁷When they arrived there, Jehu killed all of Ahab’s relatives, not sparing even one. This is what the Lord had told Elijah would happen.

The Worshippers of Baal Are Killed

¹⁸Jehu called the people of Samaria together and said, “King Ahab served the god Baal a little, but I will serve him much more. ¹⁹Call together all the prophets of Baal, all his worshippers, and all his priests. No one is excused; I am going to offer a great sacrifice to Baal, and whoever is not present will be put to death.” (This was a trick on the part of Jehu by which he meant to kill all the worshippers of Baal.) ²⁰Then Jehu ordered, “Proclaim a day of worship in honour of Baal!” The proclamation was made, ²¹and Jehu sent word throughout all the land of Israel. All who worshipped Baal came; not one of them failed to come. They all went into the temple of Baal, filling it from one end to the other. ²²Then Jehu ordered the priest in charge of the sacred robes to bring the robes out and give them to the worshippers. ²³After that, Jehu himself went into the temple with Jonadab son of Rechab and said to the people there, “Make sure that only worshippers of Baal are present and that no worshipper of the Lord has come in.” ²⁴Then he and Jonadab went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings to Baal. He had stationed 80 men outside the temple and had instructed them: “You are to kill all these people; anyone who lets one of them escape will pay for it with his life!”

²⁵As soon as Jehu had presented the offerings, he said to the guards and officers, “Go in and kill them all; don’t let anyone escape!” They went in with drawn swords, killed them all, and dragged the bodies outside. Then they went on into the inner sanctuary of the temple, ²⁶brought out the sacred pillar that was there, and burnt it. ²⁷So they destroyed the sacred pillar and the temple, and turned the temple into a latrine—which it still is today.

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