2 Chronicles 25–26

¹A son of twenty and five years hath Amaziah reigned, and twenty and nine years he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother is Jehoaddan of Jerusalem, ²and he doth that which is right in the eyes of Jehovah—only, not with a perfect heart. ³And it cometh to pass, when the kingdom hath been strong upon him, that he slayeth his servants, those smiting the king his father, ⁴and their sons he hath not put to death, but did as is written in the law, in the book of Moses, whom Jehovah commanded, saying, ‘Fathers do not die for sons, and sons die not for fathers, but each for his own sin they die.’ ⁵And Amaziah gathereth Judah, and appointeth them, according to the house of the fathers, for heads of the thousands, and for heads of the hundreds, for all Judah and Benjamin; and he inspecteth them from a son of twenty years and upward, and findeth them three hundred thousand chosen ones, going forth to the host, holding spear and target. ⁶And he hireth out of Israel a hundred thousand mighty ones of valour, with a hundred talents of silver; ⁷and a man of God hath come in unto him, saying, ‘O king, the host of Israel doth not go with thee; for Jehovah is not with Israel—all the sons of Ephraim; ⁸but if thou art going—do it, be strong for battle, God doth cause thee to stumble before an enemy, for there is power in God to help, and to cause to stumble.’ ⁹And Amaziah saith to the man of God, ‘And what—to do for the hundred talents that I have given to the troop of Israel?’ And the man of God saith, ‘Jehovah hath more to give to thee than this.’ ¹⁰And Amaziah separateth them—for the troop that hath come in unto him from Ephraim to go to their own place, and their anger doth burn mightily against Judah, and they turn back to their place in the heat of anger. ¹¹And Amaziah hath strengthened himself, and leadeth his people, and goeth to the Valley of Salt, and smiteth the sons of Seir—ten thousand. ¹²And ten thousand alive have the sons of Judah taken captive, and they bring them to the top of the rock, and cast them from the top of the rock, and all of them have been broken. ¹³And the sons of the troop that Amaziah hath sent back from going with him to battle—they rush against cities of Judah, from Samaria even unto Beth-Horon, and smite of them three thousand, and seize much prey.

¹⁴And it cometh to pass, after the coming in of Amaziah from smiting the Edomites, that he bringeth in the gods of the sons of Seir, and establisheth them to him for gods, and before them doth bow himself, and to them he maketh perfume. ¹⁵And the anger of Jehovah burneth against Amaziah, and He sendeth unto him a prophet, and he saith unto him, ‘Why hast thou sought the gods of the people that have not delivered their people out of thy hand?’ ¹⁶And it cometh to pass, in his speaking unto him, that he saith to him, ‘For a counsellor to the king have we appointed thee? cease for thee; why do they smite thee?’ And the prophet ceaseth, and saith, ‘I have known that God hath counselled to destroy thee, because thou hast done this, and hast not hearkened to my counsel.’

¹⁷And Amaziah king of Judah taketh counsel, and sendeth unto Joash son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, ¹⁸‘Come, we look one another in the face.’ And Joash king of Israel sendeth unto Amaziah king of Judah, saying, ‘The thorn that is in Lebanon hath sent unto the cedar that is in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son for a wife; and pass by doth a beast of the field that is in Lebanon, and treadeth down the thorn. ¹⁹Thou hast said, Lo, I have smitten Edom; and thy heart hath lifted thee up to boast; now, abide in thy house, why dost thou stir thyself up in evil, that thou hast fallen, thou, and Judah with thee?’ ²⁰And Amaziah hath not hearkened, for from God it is in order to give them into hand, because they have sought the gods of Edom; ²¹and go up doth Joash king of Israel, and they look one another in the face, he and Amaziah king of Judah, in Beth-Shemesh, that is Judah’s, ²²and Judah is smitten before Israel, and they flee—each to his tents. ²³And Amaziah king of Judah, son of Joash, son of Jehoahaz, hath Joash king of Israel caught in Beth-Shemesh, and bringeth him in to Jerusalem, and breaketh down in the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the gate of the corner, four hundred cubits, ²⁴and taketh all the gold, and the silver, and all the vessels that are found in the house of God with Obed-Edom, and the treasures of the house of the king, and the sons of the pledges, and turneth back to Samaria. ²⁵And Amaziah son of Joash, king of Judah, liveth after the death of Joash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, fifteen years; ²⁶and the rest of the matters of Amaziah, the first and the last, lo, are they not written on the books of the kings of Judah and Israel? ²⁷And from the time that Amaziah hath turned aside from after Jehovah—they make a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fleeth to Lachish, and they send after him to Lachish, and put him to death there, ²⁸and lift him up on the horses, and bury him with his fathers in the city of Judah.

Chapter 26

¹And all the people of Judah take Uzziah (and he is a son of sixteen years), and cause him to reign instead of his father Amaziah. ²He hath built Eloth, and restoreth it to Judah after the king’s lying with his fathers. ³A son of sixteen years is Uzziah in his reigning, and fifty and two years he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother is Jecholiah of Jerusalem. ⁴And he doth that which is right in the eyes of Jehovah, according to all that Amaziah his father did, ⁵and he is as one seeking God in the days of Zechariah who hath understanding in visions of God: and in the days of his seeking Jehovah, God hath caused him to prosper. ⁶And he goeth forth, and fighteth with the Philistines, and breaketh down the wall of Gath, and the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod, and buildeth cities about Ashdod, and among the Philistines. ⁷And God helpeth him against the Philistines, and against the Arabians who are dwelling in Gur-Baal and the Mehunim. ⁸And the Ammonites give a present to Uzziah, and his name goeth unto the entering in of Egypt, for he strengthened himself greatly. ⁹And Uzziah buildeth towers in Jerusalem, by the gate of the corner, and by the gate of the valley, and by the angle, and strengtheneth them; ¹⁰and he buildeth towers in the wilderness, and diggeth many wells, for he had much cattle, both in the low country and in the plain, husbandmen and vine-dressers in the mountains, and in Carmel; for he was a lover of the ground. ¹¹And Uzziah hath a force, making war, going forth to the host, by troops, in the number of their reckoning by the hand of Jeiel the scribe and Masseiah the officer, by the hand of Hananiah one of the heads of the king. ¹²The whole number of heads of the fathers of the mighty ones of valour is two thousand and six hundred; ¹³and by their hand is the force of the host, three hundred thousand, and seven thousand, and five hundred warriors, with mighty power to give help to the king against the enemy. ¹⁴And Uzziah prepareth for them, for all the host, shields, and spears, and helmets, and coats of mail, and bows, even to stones of the slings. ¹⁵And he maketh in Jerusalem inventions—a device of an inventor—to be on the towers, and on the corners, to shoot with arrows and with great stones, and his name goeth out unto a distance, for he hath been wonderfully helped till that he hath been strong.

¹⁶And at his being strong his heart hath been high unto destruction, and he trespasseth against Jehovah his God, and goeth in unto the temple of Jehovah to make perfume upon the altar of perfume. ¹⁷And Azariah the priest goeth in after him, and with him priests of Jehovah eighty, sons of valour, ¹⁸and they stand up against Uzziah the king, and say to him, ‘Not for thee, O Uzziah, to make perfume to Jehovah, but for priests, sons of Aaron, who are sanctified to make perfume; go forth from the sanctuary, for thou hast trespassed, and it is not to thee for honour from Jehovah God.’ ¹⁹And Uzziah is wroth, and in his hand is a censer to make perfume, and in his being wroth with the priests—the leprosy hath risen in his forehead, before the priests, in the house of Jehovah, from beside the altar of perfume. ²⁰And Azariah the head priest looketh unto him, and all the priests, and lo, he is leprous in his forehead, and they hasten him thence, and also he himself hath hastened to go out, for Jehovah hath plagued him. ²¹And Uzziah the king is a leper unto the day of his death, and inhabiteth a separate house—a leper, for he hath been cut off from the house of Jehovah, and Jotham his son is over the house of the king, judging the people of the land. ²²And the rest of the matters of Uzziah, the first and the last, hath Isaiah son of Amoz the prophet written; ²³and Uzziah lieth with his fathers, and they bury him with his fathers, in the field of the burying-place that the kings have, for they said, ‘He is a leper;’ and reign doth Jotham his son in his stead.

Chapter 27