2 Kings 14:1–22

Amaziah Reigns in Judah

14In ^athe second year of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, ^bAmaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, became king. ²He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. ³And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, yet not like his father David; he did everything ^cas his father Joash had done. ^4dHowever the ¹high places were not taken away, and the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.

⁵Now it happened, as soon as the kingdom was established in his hand, that he executed his servants ^ewho had murdered his father the king. ⁶But the children of the murderers he did not execute, according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, in which the Lord commanded, saying, ^f“Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall children be put to death for their fathers; but a person shall be put to death for his own sin.”

^7gHe killed ten thousand Edomites in ^hthe Valley of Salt, and took ²Sela by war, ⁱand called its name Joktheel to this day.

^8jThen Amaziah sent messengers to ³Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us face one another in battle.” ⁹And Jehoash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, ^k“The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the ^lcedar that was in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife’; and a wild beast that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thistle. ¹⁰You have indeed defeated Edom, and ^myour heart has ⁴lifted you up. Glory in that, and stay at home; for why should you meddle with trouble so that you fall—you and Judah with you?”

¹¹But Amaziah would not heed. Therefore Jehoash king of Israel went out; so he and Amaziah king of Judah faced one another at ⁿBeth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah. ¹²And Judah was defeated by Israel, and every man fled to his tent. ¹³Then Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth Shemesh; and he went to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from ^othe Gate of Ephraim to ^pthe Corner Gate—⁵four hundred cubits. ¹⁴And he took all ^qthe gold and silver, all the articles that were found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria.

^15rNow the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did—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? ¹⁶So Jehoash ⁶rested with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. Then Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.

^17sAmaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. ¹⁸Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? ¹⁹And ^tthey formed a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to ^uLachish; but they sent after him to Lachish and killed him there. ²⁰Then they brought him on horses, and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the City of David.

²¹And all the people of Judah took ^vAzariah, ⁷who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. ²²He built ^wElath ⁸and restored it to Judah, after ⁹the king rested with his fathers.