Second Book of Kings

PART ONE.

THE SCHISM. THE TWO KINGDOMS UNTIL THE RUIN OF SAMARIA.

I. — THE LAST DAYS OF ELIJI.

Chapter 1

— Ahaziah of Israel and Elijah. —

1 Moab revolted against Israel after the death of Ahab.

2 Ahaziah fell out of the latticed window of his upper room in Samaria and became ill. He sent messengers and said to them, «Go and consult Beel-Zebub, the god of Ekron, to know "If I recover from this illness."»
3 But the angel of Yahweh said to Elijah the Tishbite, «Get up, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to consult Beel-Zebub, the god of Ekron?’
4 Therefore this is what the Lord says: «From the bed on which you have gone up you will not come down; you will certainly die.» And Elijah went away.

5 The messengers returned to’Ochozias, and he said to them, «Why are you coming back?»
6 They answered him, «A man came up to meet us and said, »Go back to the king who sent you and tell him, “This is what the Lord says: Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to consult Beel-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore, from the bed you are lying on, you will not get down, but you will certainly die.”’”
7 Ochozias He said to them, "What was the appearance of the man who came up to meet you and spoke these words to you?"«
8 They answered him, « It was A hairy man, with a leather belt around his waist. And Ochozias He said, "It is Elijah the Thesbite."«

9 Immediately he sent to him a commander of fifty with his fifty men. This chef climbed up next to’Elie, And behold, he was sitting on the top of the mountain, and he said to him, «Man of God, the king has said: Come down!»
10 Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, «If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and YOU consume, you and your fifty men? »"And fire came down from heaven and THE He and his fifty were consumed men.
11 Ochozias sent yet another leader of fifty with his fifty men. This chef, taking the floor, said to Elie "Man of God," the king said, "Hurry, come down!"«
12 Elijah answered and said to them, «If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and YOU consume, you and your fifty men! »"And the fire of God came down from heaven, and THE He and his fifty were consumed men.
13 Again Ochozias sent a third leader of fifty with his fifty men. The third leader of fifty went up, and, having arrived, he knelt before Elijah and begged him, saying, «Man of God, I beseech you, let my life and the lives of these fifty men, your servants, be precious in your eyes!
14 Behold, fire came down from heaven and consumed the first two leaders of fifty and their fifty men ; "But now, let my life be precious in your eyes!"»

15 The angel of the Lord said to Elijah, «Go down with him, and do not be afraid of him.» Elie he got up and went down with him to the king.
16 He said to him, «This is what the Lord says: Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Beel-Zebub, the god of Ekron—is there no God in Israel whose word can be inquired of?—therefore you will not get down from the bed you are lying on, but will certainly die.»

17 Ochozias died, according to the word of Yahweh which Elijah had spoken; and Joram became king in his place, in the second year of Joram, son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah; for he had no son.

18 The rest of the acts of Ahaziah, what he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?

Chapter 2

— Elijah taken up to heaven. —

1 When Yahweh took Elijah up to heaven in a whirlwind, Elijah was leaving Gilgal with Elisha.
2 Elijah said to Elisha, «Please stay here, for the Lord has sent me to Bethel.» Elisha replied, «As the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you!» So they went down to Bethel.
3 The sons of the prophets who were at Bethel went out to Elisha and said to him, «Do you know that the Lord will take your master from you today?» He replied, «Yes, I know; be at peace.»
4 Elijah said to him, «Elisha, please stay here, for the Lord has sent me to Jericho.» He replied, «As the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you!» So they arrived at Jericho.
5 The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho approached Elisha and said to him, «Do you know that the Lord will take your master from you today?» He replied, «Yes, I know; be at peace.»

6 Elijah said to him, «Stay here, I beg you, for Yahweh has sent me to the Jordan.» He replied, «As Yahweh lives and as you live, I will not leave you!» So they both went away.
7 Fifty men from among the sons of the prophets went after them and stood at a distance, on the opposite side, and the two of them stopped at the edge of the Jordan.
8 Then Elijah took his cloak, rolled it up, and struck the waters, and they divided to one side and to the other, and the two of them crossed over on dry ground.

9 When they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, «Ask what you want that I will do it for you before I am taken from you.» Elisha replied, «May a double portion of your spirit come upon me?»
10 Elie He said, "You are asking a difficult thing. If you see me while I am taken from you, it will happen to you; otherwise, it will not happen."«

11 They continued walking and talking together, and suddenly a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated them from one another, and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind.
12 Elisha watched and cried out, «My father! My father! The chariot of Israel and its horsemen!» But he saw him no more. Then he took hold of his clothes and tore them in two pieces,
13 and he picked up Elijah's mantle which had fallen off him. Then, returning to the Jordan, he stood on the bank;
14 And taking Elijah’s mantle that had fallen off him, he in He struck the waters and said, «Where is Yahweh, the God of Elijah? Where is he?» When he had struck the waters, they parted to one side and to the other, and Elisha crossed over.

II.— ELISEUS AND THE DESCENDANTS OF ACHAB.

— The beginnings of Elisha. —

15 The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho, on the other side, saw him and said, "The spirit of Elijah rests on Elisha;" and they went out to meet him and bowed down to the ground before him.
16 They said to him, «Look, there are fifty valiant men among your servants. Let them go and look for your master. Perhaps the Spirit of the Lord has carried him away and thrown him down on one of the mountains or into one of the valleys.» He replied, «Do not THE Don't send it.»
17 But they pressed him so hard that he was ashamed, and he their said, "Send them." They sent fifty men, who searched Elie for three days, without finding it.
18 When they returned to’Elisée, — for he was staying in Jericho — he said to them, «Did I not tell you: Do not go?»

19 The people of the city said to Elisha, «The city is well situated, as my lord sees, but the waters are bad and the land is barren.»
20 He said, «Bring me a new bowl and put some salt in it.» And they brought it to him.
21 He went to the spring of water and threw salt into it, saying, «This is what the Lord says: I have healed these waters; from now on neither death nor barrenness will come from them.»
22 And the waters were purified to this day, according to the word that Elisha had spoken.

23 From there he went up to Bethel; and as he was going up the road, some little boys came out of the town and mocked him; they said to him, «Go up, bald man! Go up, bald man!»
24 He turned around to look at them, and he cursed them in the name of Yahweh. And two bears came out of the forest and tore forty-two of these children to pieces.
25 From there he went up to Mount Carmel, and from there he returned to Samaria.

Chapter 3

— Joram of Israel; Expedition against the Moabites. —

1 Joram, son of Ahab, became king of Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah; and he reigned twelve years.
2 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, but not like his father and mother; for he removed the Baal pillar that his father had made.
3 But he clung to the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin, and he did not turn away from them.

4 Mesha, king of Moab, owned flocks, and he paid to the king of Israel a tribute from one hundred thousand lambs and of one hundred thousand rams with their fleeces.
5 When Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
6 So King Joram went out that day from Samaria and surveyed all Israel.
7 He set out and sent word to Jehoshaphat, king of Judah: «The king of Moab has rebelled against me; will you come with me to attack Moab?» Jehoshaphat replied: «I will go up; it will be of me as of you, of my people as of your people, of my horses as of your horses.»
8 And he said, «By which way shall we go up?» Joram answered, «By the way of the wilderness of Edom.»

9 The king of Israel, the king of Judah, and the king of Edom set out. After a seven-day march, there was no water for the army or for the animals that followed it.
10 Then the king of Israel said, «Alas! The Lord has called these three kings to deliver them into the hands of Moab!»
11 But Jehoshaphat said, «Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire of the Lord?» One of the servants of the king of Israel answered and said,« There is Here was Elisha, son of Shaphat, pouring water on Elijah's hands.»
12 And Jehoshaphat said, «The word of the Lord is with him.» Jehoshaphat king of Israel, king of Judah, and the king of Edom went down to him.

13 Elisha said to the king of Israel, «What do you want with me? Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother.» And the king of Israel said to him, «No, for the Lord has called these three kings to deliver them into the hand of Moab.»
14 Elisha said, «As surely as the Lord Almighty lives, before whom I stand, if I did not respect Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not pay attention to you or even look at you.
15 Now bring me a harpist.» And while the harpist was playing, the hand of the Lord was upon Elisée ;
16 and he said, «Thus says Yahweh: Make in this valley pits and pits.
17 For thus says the Lord: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water, and you, your flocks, and your animals will drink. sum.
18 But this is a small thing in the sight of Yahweh: he will deliver Moab into your hands.
19 You will attack all the fortified cities and all the chosen cities, you will cut down all the fruit trees, you will stop up all the springs of water, and you will devastate, by covering them "Of stones, all the best fields."»
20 In fact, in the morning, at the time where the offering was made, behold, water came by way of Edom, and the land was filled with water.

21 However, When all the Moabites learned that the kings were coming up to attack them, all the men were summoned capable to put on the baldric, and even beyond, and they positioned themselves on the border.
22 They rose early in the morning, and when the sun shone on the waters, the Moabites saw before them the waters red like blood.
23 They said, «This is bloodshed! The kings are destroyed, they have struck one another; and now the Moabites are to be plundered!»
24 And they advanced toward the camp of Israel. But the Israelites rose up and attacked Moab, who fled before them. Entering the country, they struck Moab;
25 They destroyed the cities; each one throwing his stone into all the best fields, they in They filled it; they blocked all the water sources, they cut down all the fruit trees, to the point that only the stones of Qir-Charoseth remained; the slingers had surrounded and beaten it.
26 When the king of Moab saw that he was losing the battle, he took with him seven hundred men, swords drawn. hand, to make their way to the king of Edom; but they could not succeed.
27 Then he took his firstborn son, who was to reign in his place, and offered him as a burnt offering on the wall. And great indignation seized Israel, and they withdrew from the king of Moab and returned to their country.

Chapter 4

— The widow's oil. —

1 A woman from among women The sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, saying, “Your servant, my husband, is dead, and you know that your servant feared the Lord; but the creditor has come and taken my two children to be his slaves.”
2 Elisha said to her, «What can I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?» She replied, «Your servant has nothing at all in the house except a jar of oil.»
3 He said, «Go outside and ask all your neighbors for empty vessels; do not borrow Not too little.
4 When you get home, shut the door behind you and your children; pour of your oil in all these vessels, and those that are full, you will set aside.»
5 Then she left him. She shut the door behind herself and her children; they were approaching her the vases, and she poured.
6 When the jars were full, she said to her son, «Bring me another jar.» But he replied, «There is no more jar.» And the oil stopped flowing.
7 She went and told the man of God, and he said, «Go, sell the oil and pay your debt; and you and your sons can live on what remains.»

— The Shunammite woman and her son. —

8 One day Elisha was passing through Shunem. There was a wealthy woman there, who urged him to’accept to eat; and every time he passed by, he would go to her house to eat.
9 She said to her husband, «Look, I know that he is a holy man of God, who often comes to our house like this.
10 Let us make him a small upper room against the wall, and put in it a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that he may retire there when he comes to us.»
11 Elisée, having returned one other day in Sunam, retired to the upper room and slept there.
12 He said to Giezhi, his servant, «Call this Shunammite woman.» Giezhi called her, and she came before him.
13 And Elisée said to Giézi «Tell him: »You have shown us all this concern; what can be done for you? Should we speak to the king or the commander of the army on your behalf?’” She replied to Giézi "I live among my people."«
14 And Elisée He said, "What can be done for her?" Giezi replied, "But she has no son, and her husband is old."«
15 And Elisée He said, "Call her."« Giézi She called him, and she stood at the door.
16 And Elisée He said to her, "At this time next year, you will be blessed with a son." And she said, "No, my lord, man of God, do not deceive your servant."«
17 And the woman conceived and gave birth to a son at the same time the following year, like Elisha THE he had told him.

18 The child grew up. One day when he had gone find his father among the harvesters,
19 He said to his father, «My head! My head!» The father said to his servant, «Take him to his mother.»
20 The servant carried him away and brought him to his mother, the child He remained on his mother's lap until noon, then he died.
21 She went up, laid him on the bed of the man of God, and closed the door on him and went out.
22 She called to her husband and said, «Please send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys, so I can run to the man of God and come back from here.” right away.
23 He said, «Why go to him today? It is neither the new moon nor the Sabbath.» She replied, «Don’t worry.»
24 And having saddled the donkey, she said to her servant, «Lead me on and go; do not stop me on the way unless I tell you.»
25 She left and went to the man of God on Mount Carmel.

The man of God, having seen her from afar, said to Giezi, his servant: "Here is the Shunammite woman.
26 So run to meet her and say to her, »Are you well? Is your husband well? Is your child well?« She answered, »Well!”
27 As soon as she arrived at the man of God's place on the mountain, she grasped his feet. Giezi approached to push her away, but the man of God said, "Leave her alone, for her soul is in bitterness, and the Lord has hidden it from me and has not told me."«

28 Then she said, «Did I ask my lord for a son? Did I not say, »Do not deceive me’?”
29 And Elisha said to Giez, «Gird up your loins, take my staff in your hand and go. If you meet anyone, do not greet him, and if anyone greets you, do not answer him. You shall lay my staff on the face of the child.»
30 The child’s mother said, «As the Lord lives and as you live, I will not leave you.» And Elisha got up and followed her.
31 Giezi had gone ahead of them and had placed the staff on the child's face; but there was neither a voice nor any sign of attention. He went back to meet them.’Elisée and reported to him the thing saying, "The child did not wake up."«
32 When Elisha arrived at the house, behold, the child was dead, lying on his bed.

33 Elisée He went in and, having closed the door behind them both, he prayed to Yahweh.
34 And he went up and lay on the child; he put his mouth on his mouth, his eyes on his eyes, his hands on his hands, and stretched himself out on him; and the flesh of the child grew warm.
35 Elisée He went away, and he paced back and forth in the house; then he went back upstairs on the bed and spread over the’child ; And the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.
36 Elisée He called Giezi and said, "Call the Shunammite woman."« Giézi Having called her, she came towards Elisée Who him He said, "Take your son."«
37 She came and fell at his feet and prostrated herself on the ground; and, taking her son, she went out.

— Death in the pot. —

38 Elisha returned to Gilgal, and the famine was in the land. As the sons of the prophets were sitting before him, he said to his servant, «Put on the large pot and cook some stew for the sons of the prophets.»
39 One of them went out into the fields to gather herbs; he found a species wild vines and he picked wild gourds, filling his garment. On his return, he cut them into pieces in the pot where preparations were underway the soup, without their knowledge.
40 We poured soup has these men so that they in They ate; but as soon as they had eaten some of the soup, they cried out, saying, "Death is in the pot, man of God!" And they could not eat.
41 Elisée He said, "Bring me some flour." He threw some into the pot and said, "Pour it out to the people, and let them eat." And there was nothing bad left in the pot.

— The twenty barley loaves. —

42 A man came from Baal-Salisah, bringing to the man of God some bread made from the firstfruits, know twenty barley loaves, and fresh wheat in his sack. Elisée He said, "Give it to the people, and let them eat."«
43 His servant replied, «How can I put this before a hundred people?» But Elisée He said, «Give it to the people so they may eat. For this is what the Lord says: »They will eat, and there will be some left over.’”
44 He therefore put the loaves of bread before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of Yahweh.

Chapter 5

— The healing of Naaman the Syrian. —

1 Naaman, commander of the king's army Syria, was a powerful and respected man in the sight of his master, for it was through him that Yahweh had granted salvation to the Syrians; but this strong and valiant man was a leper.
2 Now the Syrians, having gone out in bands, had taken captive a little girl from the land of Israel, who was in the service of Naaman's wife.
3 She said to her mistress, «Oh! If my lord was "He would go to the prophet in Samaria, and the prophet would cure him of his leprosy."»
4 Naaman came and reported this matter to her master, saying, "The young woman from the land of Israel spoke in such and such a way."«
5 And the king of Syria He said, «Go, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel.» He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand centuries gold and ten changes of clothing.
6 He brought to the king of Israel the letter which said: «Now therefore, when this letter reaches you, behold that you will know that I send you Naaman, my servant, so that you may cure him of his leprosy.»
7 After reading the letter, the king of Israel tore his clothes and said, «Am I a god, able to kill and to make alive, that he should send me to cure a man of his leprosy? Know then and see that he is seeking a quarrel with me.»

8 When Elisha, the man of God, heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent word to the king: «Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, and he will know that there is a prophet in Israel.»
9 Naaman came with his horses and chariot, and he stood at the door of Elisha's house.
10 Elisha sent a messenger to him to him They say: «Go, and wash yourself seven times in the Jordan; your flesh will be restored, and you will be clean.»
11 Naaman became angry and went away, saying, «I thought he would surely come out to me and present himself…” himself, he will call on the name of Yahweh, his God, he will wave his hand over the sore and deliver the leper.
12 Are not the Abana and Pharphar rivers of Damascus better than all the waters of Israel? could I "Not to wash myself there and become pure?" And turning away, he stormed off in anger.
13 His servants came to him to speak to him, and they said, «My father, if the prophet had asked you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more Do you have to obey him?, "When he told you, 'Wash, and you will be clean'?"»
14 He went down and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; and his flesh became like the flesh of a little child, and he was cleansed.

15 Naaman He returned to the man of God, with all his entourage. When he arrived, he stood before him and said, «Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel. So now accept a gift from your servant.»
16 Elisée replied, "As surely as Yahweh lives, before whom I stand, I will not accept it!"« Naaman He pressed him to accept, but he refused.
17 And Naaman said, «Otherwise, allow your servant to be given two mules’ loads of earth; for your servant will no longer offer burnt offerings or sacrifices to any other god except to Yahweh.
18 However, May the Lord forgive your servant this: When my master enters the house of Remmon to worship there, and leans on my hand, I also bow down in the house of Remmon; may the Lord forgive your servant if I bow down in the house of Remmon!»
19 Elisée He said to him, "Go in peace." And Naaman left Elisée.

He was at a certain distance,
20 When Gizi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said to himself, «Look, my master has spared Naaman the Syrian by not accepting from his hand what he brought. As surely as the Lord lives, I will run after him and get something from him.»
21 And Giezi began to pursue Naaman. When Naaman saw him running after him, he got down from his chariot. to go when he met him, and he said:« All Is he alright?»
22 Giézi replied: "« All "All right! My master sends me to tell you: Two young men from the hill country of Ephraim, descendants of the prophets, have just arrived at my house; please give them a talent of silver and two changes of clothing."»
23 Naaman said, «Agree to take two talents.» He urged him to accept And, having packed two talents of silver into two bags along with two changes of clothing, he entrusted them to two of his servants to carry before Giézi.
24. Having reached the hill, Giézi He took them from their hands and placed them in the house, then he sent the men away, and they left.
25 And he went and presented himself to his master. Elisha said to him, «Where are you coming?, "Giezi?" He replied, "Your servant has gone neither to one side nor the other."»
26 But Elisée He said to him, «Has not my spirit gone with you, When this man left his chariot to come to meet you? Is this the time to accept money, and to accept clothing, and olive trees, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and male and female servants?
27 »Naaman’s leprosy will cling to you and your descendants forever.” And Giezi went out from Elisha’s presence leprous. white like snow.

Chapter 6

— The axe that floats. —

1 The sons of the prophets said to Elisha, «Look, the place where we are sitting before you is too small for us.
2 Let us go to the Jordan; we shall each take a beam, and we shall make a place for ourselves there where we can to inhabit it.» Elisée replied: "Go ahead."«
3 And one two said: "Agree to come with your servants." He replied: "I will go";
4 and he went with them. When they arrived at the Jordan, they cut wood.
5 As one of them was cutting down a beam, the iron fell into the water; he cried out and said, «Alas! My lord!… and it was borrowed!»
6 The man of God said, «Where did he fall?» And he showed him the place. Then Elisée He cut a piece of wood, threw it in that spot, and the iron floated to the surface.
7 And he said, «Take it.» He reached out his hand and took it.

— Syrian gangs in Israel. —

8 The king of Syria was at war with Israel. After consulting with his servants, he said, «My camp will be in such and such a place.»
9 But the man of God sent word to the king of Israel: «Beware of passing through this place, for the Syrians are coming down there.»
10 And the king of Israel sent men to the place which the man of God had told him about and pointed out to him, and he was on guard there, not once nor twice.
11 The heart of the king of Syria He was troubled by this maneuver; he called his servants and said to them, "Will you not tell me which of us is for the king of Israel?"«
12 One of his servants replied, «No one, my lord the king; but Elisha the prophet, who is in Israel, reports to the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.»
13 The king said, «Go and see where he is, and I will send for him.» came report back to him: "Here is that he is to Dothan.»
14 So he sent horses, chariots, and a large army, which arrived one night and surrounded the city.
15 The servant of the man of God got up early in the morning and went out; and behold, an army with horses and chariots surrounded the city. And the servant said to Elisée "Ah! My lord, what shall we do?"«
16 He replied, «Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.»
17 Elisha prayed and said, «Yahweh, open his eyes so that he may see.» And the Lord opened the eyes of the servant, and he saw, and behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

18 The Syrians descended towards the’man of God. Elisha prayed to Yahweh and said, «Please strike this nation with blindness!» And Yahweh struck them with blindness, according to the word of Elisha.
19 Elisha said to them, «This is not the way, and this is not the city; follow me and I will lead you to the man you are looking for.» And he led them to Samaria.
20 When they had entered Samaria, Elisha said, «Lord, open the eyes of these men so that they may see!» And the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw, and behold that they were in the middle of Samaria.
21 When the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, « THE shall I strike, THE Shall I strike, my father?»
22 And Elisée replied: "You don't THE You will not strike. Those whom you have taken captive with your sword and your bow, strike down—THE ; But place bread and water before them, so that they may eat and drink, and then go away. Next to their master.»
23 The King of Israel He served them a large meal, and they ate and drank; Then He sent them away, and they went back to their master. And the Syrian bands did not return to the territory of Israel.

— Siege of Samaria by the Syrians. —

24 After this Benhadad king of Syria, Having gathered his entire army, he marched up and besieged Samaria.
25 There was a great famine in Samaria; and behold, it was besieged so severely that a donkey's head was worth eighty shekels of silver, and a quarter of a cab of pigeon dung five shekels of silver.
26 As the king was passing over the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, «Save-Me, "O king, my lord!"»
27 He said, «If the Lord does not save you, how can I save you? With the product of "The area or the press?"»
28 And the king said to her, «What is the matter with you?» She said, «This woman said to me, ‘Give me your son, we will eat him today, and tomorrow we will eat mine.
29 So we cooked my son and ate him. The next day I said to her, »Give me your son so we can eat him.” But she hid her son.»
30 When the king heard the words of this woman, he tore his clothes as he passed over the wall; and the people saw, and behold, he had sackcloth over his body underneath.

31 The king He said, "May God deal with me, be it ever so severely, if the head of Elisha, son of Shaphat, remains on him today."«
32 Now while Elisha was sitting in his house and the elders were sitting with him, the king sent someone from his side. But before the messenger arrived at’Elisée, He said to the elders, "Do you know that this son of an assassin sends someone "To take my head off? Be careful: when the messenger comes, shut the door and push him in with the door. But can't the sound of his master's footsteps be heard behind him?"»
33 While he was still speaking to them, the messenger came down to him and said, «This is an evil from the Lord; what hope is there for me from the Lord?»

Chapter 7

1 Elisha said, «Hear the word of the Lord: This is what the Lord says: Tomorrow at this time, we will have "One measure of fine flour for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria."»
2 The officer on whose arm the king was leaning answered the man of God and said, «Even if Yahweh were to make windows in the heavens, could this happen?» Elisée He said, «You will see it with your own eyes, but you will not eat it.»

3 Now there were four lepers at the entrance of the gate, who said to one another, «Why should we stay here until we die?
4 If we choose to enter the city, famine will strike the city, and we will die there; if we stay here, we will also die. Come, then, let us throw ourselves into the camp of the Syrians; if they spare our lives, we will live, and if they kill us, we will die.»
5 They got up at dusk to go to the camp of the Syrians, and they arrived at the entrance of the camp of the Syrians, and behold, there was no one there.
6 The Lord had caused the Syrians to hear the sound of chariots and horses, the sound of a great army, and they said to one another, «Look, the king of Israel has hired the Hittite kings and the Egyptian kings to come against us.».
7 And rising up, they had fled at dusk, abandoning their tents, their horses and their donkeys, the camp as it was, and they had fled to save their lives.
8 When the lepers arrived at the entrance to the camp, they went into a tent, and after eating and drinking, they carried off silver, gold, and clothing, which they went and hid. They returned, went into another tent, and carried off objects that they went and hid in the same way.
9 Then they said to one another, «We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news; if we remain silent and wait until morning, we will face punishment. Come, then, let us go and tell the king’s household.»
10 They departed and, having called the guards at the city gate, they reported to them: «We entered the camp of the Syrians, and behold, there was no one there, nor any human voice; only horses tied up, donkeys tied up, and the tents just as they were.»
11 The gate guards shouted and carried the news into the king's house.

12 The king got up during the night and said to his servants, «I want to tell you what the Syrians are doing to us. Knowing that we are hungry, they have left their camp to hide in the fields, and they have said to themselves, »When they come out of the city, we will seize them alive and enter the city.’”
13 One of his servants spoke up and said, «Take five of the surviving horses that are still left in the city, "—behold, they are like all the multitude of Israel who remained there, behold, they are like all the multitude of Israel who are dying—and we will send to see."»
14 Two chariots with horses were taken, and the king sent men following in the footsteps of the Syrian army, saying, "Go and see."«
15 They went after them as far as the Jordan, and behold, the whole road was covered with garments and belongings that the Syrians had thrown away in their haste. When they returned, the messengers reported All to the king.

16 Right away The people went out and plundered the Syrian camp, and they got a measure of fine flour for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of Yahweh.
17 The king had entrusted the guard of the gate to the officer on whose hand he relied; but this officer He was trampled underfoot by the people, and he died, according to the word that the man of God had spoken when the king came down to him.
18 Indeed, when the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, «Two measures of barley will be sold for a shekel, and one measure of fine flour for a shekel, tomorrow at this time at the gate of Samaria,»
19 The officer had answered the man of God and said, «If Yahweh were to make windows in the heavens, could this happen?» And Elisée had said, "You will see it with your own eyes, but you will not eat it."«
20 And this is what happened to him: the people trampled him underfoot at the gate, and he died.

Chapter 8

— Elisha returns the Shunammite woman's possessions. —

1 Elisha spoke to the woman whose child he had brought back to life, saying, «Get up, go away, you and your family, and stay wherever you can; for the Lord has called for a famine, and it will indeed come upon the land for seven years.»
2 The woman got up and did according to the word of the man of God: she and her family went away and stayed seven years in the land of the Philistines.

3 At the end of the seven years, the woman returned from the land of the Philistines and went to plead with the king about her house and her field.
4 The king spoke with Giezhi, the servant of the man of God, saying, «Please tell me all the great things that Elisha has done.»
5 While the servant told the king how his master had given life back to a dead man, now the woman whose Elisée He had brought the son back to life and began to plead with the king about his house and his field. And Giezi said, «O king, my lord, here is the woman and here is her son whom Elisha has brought back to life.»
6 The king questioned the woman, who told him the story; and the king appointed a eunuch for her, saying, «Restore everything that belongs to her, with all the produce of the field, from the day she left the country until now.»

— Elisha predicted to Hazael the throne of Syria. —

7 Elisha went to Damascus; Ben-Hadad, king of Syria, He was ill, and they informed him, saying, "The man of God has arrived here."«
8 The king said to Hazael, «Take a present with you and go to meet the man of God; inquire through him of the Lord, saying, »Shall I survive this illness?’”
9 Hazael went to meet’Elisée. He had brought with him a gift, the best of all that Damascus had to offer: a load of forty camels. When he arrived, he presented himself before Elisée saying, "Your son Benhadad, king of Syria, "You send me to you to ask: Will I survive this illness?"»
10 Elisha answered him, «Go, tell him, »Surely you will survive.’ But the Lord has shown me that he will surely die.”
11 The man of God fixed his gaze on Hazael and stared at him until he blushed; and the man of God wept.
12 Hazael said, «Why is my lord weeping?» And Elisée He replied, «Because I know the evil you will do to the children of Israel: you will burn their fortified cities, you will kill their young men with the sword, you will crush their little children, and you will cleave the belly their pregnant women.»
13 Hazael said, «But what is SO "Your servant, a dog, to do such great things?" Elisha replied, "The Lord has shown me that you will be king of Syria. »
14 Hazael, Having left Elisha, he returned to his master, who said to him, "What did Elisha say to you?" He replied, "He told me: Surely you will survive."«
15 The next day, Hazael He took a blanket and, having soaked it in water, he spread it over his face of the king, who died. And Hazael reigned in his place.

— Joram of Judah. —

16 In the fifth year of Joram son of Ahab, king of Israel, Jehoshaphat being Again king of Judah, Joram the son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, reigned.
17 He was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.
18 He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Ahab had done, for he had a daughter of Ahab as his wife, and he did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh.
19 But the Lord would not destroy Judah, for the sake of his servant David, according the promise that he had made her always give him a lamp among his sons.

20 In his time Edom freed itself from the domination of Judah and gave itself a king.
21 Joram crossed over to Seira with all the chariots; having risen by night, he defeated the Edomites who surrounded him and the commanders of the chariots, and the people fled to their tents.
22 Edom broke free from Judah's rule, to this day. Lobnah broke free Also at the same time.

23 The rest of the acts of Joram, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of Judah?
24 Joram rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the city of David; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his place.

— Ahaziah of Judah. —

25 In the twelfth year of Joram son of Ahab, king of Israel, Ahaziah son of Joram, king of Judah, began to reign.
26 Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Athaliah, daughter of Amri, king of Israel.
27 He walked in the way of the house of Ahab, and he did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, like the house of Ahab, for he was a son-in-law of the house of Ahab.
28 He went with Joram, son of Ahab, to fight against Hazael, king of Syria, at Ramoth-en-Gelaad. The Syrians wounded Joram;
29 King Joram returned to Jezrehel to recover from the wounds the Syrians had inflicted on him at Ramoth, when he fought against Hazael, king of Syria. Ahaziah, son of Joram, king of Judah, went down to see Joram, son of Ahab, at Jezrehel, because he was sick.

Chapter 9

— Jehu crowned king of Israel. —

1 Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, «Gird up your loins, take this flask of oil in your hand and go to Ramoth-in-Gilead.
2 When you arrive there, look for Jehu, son of Jehoshaphat, son of Nimshi; and when you have approached him, you will make him rise from among his brothers, and you will lead him into a secluded room.
3 You shall take the flask of oil, pour it on his head, and say, »Thus says the Lord: I anoint you king over Israel.” Then you shall open the door and flee without delay.”

4 The young man, a servant of the prophet, set out for Ramoth-in-Gilead.
5 When he arrived, behold, the commanders of the army were sitting. He said, «Commander, I have a word to say to you.» And Jehu said, «To which of us all?» He answered, «To you, commander.»
6 Jehu got up and went into the house; and the young man poured the oil on his head, saying to him, «Thus says Yahweh, God of Israel: I anoint you king of the people of Yahweh, of Israel.
7 You will strike the house of Ahab, your master, and I will avenge on Jezebel the blood of my servants the prophets and the blood of all the servants of Yahweh.
8 The whole house of Ahab will perish; I will exterminate All male belonging to Ahab, both the slave and the free in Israel,
9 and I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha son of Ahijah.
10 The dogs will eat Jezebel in the field of Jezreel, and there will be no one to L'’"To bury." And the young man, opening the door, he ran away.

11 Then Jehu went out to join his master's servants. They said to him, "« All "Is he all right? Why did this madman come to you?" He replied, "You know the man and his language."»
12 They replied, «A lie! Tell us!» And he said, «He spoke to me in such and such a way, saying: »Thus says Yahweh: I anoint you king of Israel.’”
13 Immediately, each one took his cloak and put it under Jehu, At the top of the stairs, they sounded the trumpet and declared, "Jehu is king!"«

— The murder of Joram of Israel, Ahaziah of Judah, and Jezebel. —

14 Jehu, son of Jehoshaphat, son of Nimshi, formed a conspiracy against Joram. — Joram and all Israel were then defending Ramoth-in-Gilead against Hazael, king of Syria;
15 But King Joram had returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds the Syrians had inflicted on him when he fought against Hazael, king of Syria.— Jehu said, «If that is your wish, let no one leave the city to go and tell Jezreel.»
16 And Jehu, having mounted his chariot, set out for Jezrehel, for Joram was lying there, and Ahaziah, king of Judah, had gone down to visit Joram.

17 The watchman who stood on the tower at Jezreel saw Jehu's troop coming and said, "I see a troop." And Joram said, "Take a horseman and send him to meet them and ask, 'Is it peace?'"«
18 The rider went to meet Jehu and said, «Thus says the king: Is it peace?» And Jehu answered, «What do you care about peace? Go behind me.» The watchman gave his opinion, saying, «The messenger went to them, and he is not returning.»
19 Joram sent a second horseman, who came to them and said, «This is what the king says: Is it peace?» And Jehu replied, «What do you care about peace? Go behind me.»
20 The sentry gave notice, saying: « The messenger He went to them, and he did not return. And his way of driving is like the way of Jehu son of Nimshi, for he drives foolishly.»
21 Then Joram said, «Harness»; and they harnessed his chariot. Joram, king of Israel, and Ahaziah, king of Judah, each went out in his chariot; they went out to meet Jehu, and they met him in the field of Naboth the Jezreelite.
22 When Joram saw Jehu, he said to him, «Is it peace, "Jehu?" Jehu replied, "What peace is there, as long as the prostitution of Jezebel, your mother, and her many sorceries continue?"»
23 Joram turned his horse around and fled, and he said to Ahaziah, "Treason, Ahaziah!"«
24 But Jehu took hold of his bow in his hand, and struck Joram between the shoulders: the arrow came out through his heart, and Joram fell down in his chariot.
25 And Jehu said to his officer Badacer, «Take him and throw him into the field of Naboth the Jezreelite. For remember, when you and I rode together behind Ahab his father, the Lord pronounced this sentence against him:
26 «As surely as I saw yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons, declares the Lord, I will repay you the same in this very field, declares the Lord. Take it and throw it into the field, according to the word of the Lord.»

27 Ahoziah king of Judah, seer that, He fled by way of the garden house. Jehu pursued him and said, "Strike him too, on the chariot!"« And they beat him at the ascent of Gaver, near Jeblaam. He fled to Mageddo, and there he died.
28 His servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and they buried him in his tomb with his fathers, in the city of David.
29 Ahaziah became king of Judah in the eleventh year of Joram, son of Ahab.

30 Jehu entered Jezreel. Jezebel, having heard of it, put on rouge, adorned her head, and looked out of the window.
31 As Jehu was going through the door, she said, «Is it peace, Zamri, murderer of his master?»
32 He looked up toward the window and said, «Who is with me? Who?» And two or three eunuchs looked toward him,
33 He said, «Throw her down!» So they threw her down, and some of her blood splashed on the wall and on the horses, and Jehu the crowd at their feet.
34 Then he went in, and after eating and drinking, he said, «Go and see to that cursed woman and bury her, for she is a king’s daughter.»
35 They went to bury her, but they found nothing of her except her skull, her feet, and her palms. his hands.
36 They returned to announce it to Jehu, who said: «This is the word of Yahweh, which he spoke by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying: In the field of Jezreel, the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel;
37 and the body of Jezebel will be like dung on the surface of the field, in the field of Jezreel, so that no one will see it. will be able to Don't say: "It's Jezebel."»

III. — ELISEUS AND THE DYNASTY OF JEHU.

Chapter 10

— Extermination of the two royal families. —

1 There were seventy sons of Ahab in Samaria. Jehu wrote a letter and sent it to the elders and governors of Jezreel in Samaria. children of Ahab; he y he said:
2 «As soon as this letter reaches you—since you have with you your master’s sons, with you the chariots and horses, a fortified city and the weapons—
3 »See which of your master’s sons is best and most suitable; put him on his father’s throne and fight for your master’s house.”
4 They were terrified and said, «Look, the two kings have not could "To resist him; how could we resist?"»
5 And the prefect of the palace, the commander of the city, the elders, and the governors sent word to Jehu: «We are your servants and we will do all that you tell us; we will not appoint anyone king; do what seems good to you.»
6 Jehu wrote them a second letter; he said, «If you are on my side and will listen to my voice, take the heads of the men, sons of your master, and come to me tomorrow at this time in Jezreel.» Now the seventy sons of the king were with the nobles of the city, who were raising them.

7 When the letter reached them, they took the king's sons and slaughtered these seventy men; then, having placed their heads in baskets, they THE sent to Jehu, in Jezrehel.
8 The messenger came and informed him, saying, «They have brought the heads of the king’s sons.» And he said, «Put them in two piles at the entrance of the gate until morning.»
9 In the morning he went out and, presenting himself to all the people, said: «You are righteous: behold, I conspired against my master and killed him; but who struck down all these?
10 Know then that it does not fall Nothing to the ground of the word of Yahweh, speech that Yahweh pronounced concerning the house of Ahab; Yahweh fulfilled what he declared through his servant Elijah.»
11 And Jehu struck down all who remained of the house of Ahab in Jezrehel, all his nobles, his close associates, and his priests, until not one of them remained.

12 Then he got up and set out for Samaria. Arrived to a shepherds' meeting house, on the road,
13 Jehu found the brothers of Ahaziah, king of Judah, and said, «Who are you?» They answered, «We are the brothers of Ahaziah, and we have come down to greet the sons of the king and the sons of the queen.»
14 Jehu He said, «Seize them alive.» And having seized them alive, they slaughtered them at the cistern of the house of meeting., number of forty-two, without Jehu letting only one escape.

15 Leaving that place, he met Jonadab, son of Rechab, who was coming He stood before him. He greeted him and said, "Is your heart as sincere as mine is toward yours?" Jonadab replied, "It is."« And Jehu said: «"If he is, give me your hand." He him gave her hand, and Jehu He had him get into the chariot beside him.,
16 saying, «Come with me, and you will see my zeal for Yahweh.» So he took him in his chariot.
17 Arriving in Samaria, Jehu struck all those who remained in Samaria of the family of Ahab, and he destroyed him, according to the word that Yahweh had spoken to Elijah.

— Extermination of the cult of Baal. —

18 Then Jehu gathered all the people together and said to them, «Ahab served Baal a little; Jehu will serve him much.
19 Now then, summon to me all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests—not one of them missing—for I have a great sacrifice to give to Baal; whoever fails will not live.» Now Jehu was acting cunningly to destroy the servants of Baal.
20 Jehu said, «Proclaim a solemn assembly in honor of Baal»; and they proclaimed it.
21 Jehu sent messengers throughout Israel, and all the servants of Baal came, not one of them was left without coming; they entered the house of Baal, and the house of Baal was filled from one end to the other.
22 Jehu said to the one in charge of the wardrobe, «Bring out clothes for all the servants of Baal.» And this man took out some clothes for them.
23 Then Jehu, having come to the house of Baal with Jonadab son of Rechab, said to the servants of Baal, «Search and look so that there is no one here with us none servants of Yahweh, but only servants of Baal.»

24 When they had come in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings, Jehu posted eighty men outside, their saying, "If any of the men I place in your hands escape, life Whoever lets it slip will pay. for her own.»
25 As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, Jehu said to the runners and officers, «Go in and strike them down; not one of them should get out!» So they struck them down with the edge of the sword. The runners and officers THE threw there, and, entering the sanctuary of the house of Baal,
26 They took out the pillars of the house of Baal and burned them;
27 They smashed the Baal pillar to pieces; they overturned Also the house of Baal, and they made it a cesspool, which has survived to this day.

— The reign of Jehu. —

28 Jehu exterminated Baal middle of Israel.
29 But Jehu did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin, nor from the golden calves that were at Bethel and that were at Dan.
30 Yahweh said to Jehu, «Because you have done well what was right in my eyes, and have done to the house of Ahab all that was in my heart, your "Sons to the fourth generation will sit on the throne of Israel."»
31 But Jehu did not take heed to walk with all his heart in the law of Yahweh, the God of Israel; he did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam who had caused Israel to sin.

32 In those days, Yahweh began to cut off of the territory of Israel, and Hazael defeated the Israelites along the entire border of Israel;
33 from the Jordan, toward the rising sun, he beat all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, the Reubenites, the Manassites, from Aroer, which is on the Arnon River, until Gilead and Bashan.

34 The rest of the acts of Jehu, all that he did and all his exploits, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?
35 And Jehu rested with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. Jehoahaz, his son, reigned in his place.
36 The time that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty-eight years.

Chapter 11

— Athaliah, Queen of Judah. —

1 Athaliah, mother of Ahaziah, seeing that her son was dead, arose and destroyed the entire royal line.
2 But Josaba, daughter of King Joram And Ahaziah's sister took Joash, Ahaziah's son, and rescued him from among the king's sons who were being slaughtered; She THE mit with his nurse in the bedroom. He was stolen Thus in Athaliah's presence, and he was not put to death.
3 He remained hidden for six years with Joshua in the house of Yahweh; and Athaliah reigned over the land.

4 In the seventh year, Jehoiada sent for the centurions of the Carians and the runners, and brought them to him in the house of the Lord. He made a covenant with them and, after they had sworn an oath in the house of the Lord, he showed them the king's son.
5 Then he gave them his instructions, saying, «This is what you are to do: A third of you who enter in service THE day of Sabbath, to stand guard at the king's house,
6 — one-third at the Sur Gate, and one-third at the Runners' Gate — you will stand guard at the house of Yahweh to prohibit entry.
7 And your two other divisions, all those who go out of duty on the Sabbath day to stand guard at the house of Yahweh before the king,
8 You shall surround the king on all sides, each with weapons in hand; if anyone enters the ranks, let him be put to death; and you shall be near the king when he goes out and when he comes in.»

9 The centurions did according to all that Jehoiada the priest had commanded. Each took his men, and those who entered in service on the Sabbath day and those who went out service On the Sabbath day, they went to the priest Jehoiada.
10 The priest handed over to the centurions the spears and shields which had belonged to King David, and who were in the house of Yahweh.
11 The runners, each with weapons in hand, stood from the right side of the house to the left side of the house, near the altar and near the house, so as to surround the king.
12 And the priest They brought forward the king's son, and placed the diadem and the testimony on him. They made him king and anointed him, and clapping their hands, they said, "Long live the king!"«

13 When Athalie heard the sound of the runners And from the people, she came to the people, to the house of Yahweh.
14 She looked, and behold, the king was standing on the platform, according to custom; near the king were the commanders and the trumpeters, and all the people of the land were in joyAnd trumpets were sounded. Athaliah tore her clothes and cried, "Conspiracy! Conspiracy!"
15 Then Jehoiada the priest gave an order to the centurions who were in command of the army, saying, «Bring her out of the house between the ranks, and kill with the sword anyone who follows her.» For the priest had said, «She must not be put to death in the house of the Lord.»
16 They made room for her on both sides, and she went by way of the entrance of the horses, towards the king's house, and there she was killed.

17 Jehoiada made a covenant between Yahweh, the king, and the people, by which they were to be Yahweh's people; he also made the alliance between the king and the people.
18 Then all the people of the land went into the house of Baal and demolished it; they completely smashed its altars and images, and they killed Mathan, the priest of Baal, before the altars. After they had placed guards in the house of the Lord,
19 the priest Joïada They took the centurions, the Carians, the runners, and all the people of the land, and they brought the king down from the house of Yahweh, and they entered the king's house through the runners' gate; and Joas sat on the throne of kings.
20 All the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was at peace; and Athaliah was put to death with the sword in the king's house.

Chapter 12

1 Joash was seven years old when he became king.

— Joash of Judah. —

2 In the seventh year of Jehu, Joash became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Shebiah of Beersheba.
3 Joash did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh all the time that Jehoiada the priest gave him instructions.
4 Only the high places did not disappear; the people continued to offer sacrifices and incense on the high places.

5 Joash said to the priests, «All the money from the sanctuary that is brought into the house of Yahweh, know, the money from the personal tax, the money for the buyout people according to the estimate of each one, and all the money that each one is eager to bring to the house of Yahweh;
6 that the priests take it, each people of his knowledge, and that they repair the breaches in the house, wherever they can find them.»
7 Now it came to pass that in the twenty-third year of King Joash, the priests had not repaired the breaches in the house.
8 King Joash summoned the priest Jehoiada and the others priests, and said to them, «Why don’t you repair the breaches in the house? Now you will no longer take money from your acquaintances, but you will give it up to repair the breaches in the house.»
9 The priests agreed to no longer take money from the people and they no longer had to repair the breaches in the house.

10 Then Jehoiada the priest took a chest and, having made a hole in its lid, placed it beside the altar on the right of the passage through which one entered the house of Yahweh; the priests who guarded the gate put into it all the money that was brought into the house of Yahweh.
11 When they saw that there was a lot of money in the chest, the king’s secretary would go up with the high priest, and they would bind and count the money that was in the house of Yahweh.
12 They handed the weighed money into the hands of those who were execute the work, which was overseen by the house of Yahweh; and these they gave it to the carpenters and other workers who worked on the house of Yahweh;
13 to the masons and stonecutters; they also gave it for the purchase of timber and dressed stone necessary to the repair of the breaches in the house of Yahweh, and for all that was spent to strengthen the house.
14 However, no silver basins, knives, bowls, trumpets, gold utensils, or silver utensils were made for the house of the Lord with the silver that was brought into the house of the Lord:
15 It was given to those who were carrying out the work, so that they might use it to repair the house of Yahweh.
16 No accounting was required of the men into whose hands the money was handed to those who carried out the work, because they conducted themselves with integrity.
17 The money for the guilt offerings and the sin offerings was not brought into the house of Yahweh; it belonged to the priests.

18 Then Hazael, king of Syria, He went up and fought against Geth, which he captured. He resolved to go up against Jerusalem.
19 Joash, king of Judah, took all the consecrated things, those that Jehoshaphat, Joram, and Ahaziah, his ancestors, kings of Judah, had consecrated, those that he himself had consecrated, and all the gold that was found in the treasuries of the house of the Lord and of the king's house, and sent them all to Hazael, king of Syria, who moved away from Jerusalem.

20 The rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
21 His servants rebelled and, having formed a conspiracy, they struck down Joash in the house of Melo, at the descent of Sella.
22 These were Jehoshara, son of Shemaath, and Jehosabad, son of Somer, his servants, Who They struck him down, and he died. He was buried with his ancestors in the city of David, and Amaziah his son reigned in his place.

Chapter 13

— Joahaz of Israel. —

1 In the twenty-third year of Joash son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz son of Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria; he reigned seventeen years.
2 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh; he imitated the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin, and he did not turn away from them.
3 The anger of the Lord burned against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael, king of Syria, and into the hands of Benhadad, son of Hazael, all the time.
4 Jehoahaz implored the Lord, and the Lord listened to him, for he saw the distress of Israel, oppressed by the king of Syria.
5 And Yahweh gave a deliverer to Israel; rescued from the power of the Syrians, the children of Israel lived in their tents as before.
6 But they did not turn away from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, which had caused Israel to sin; they walked in them, and even the Asherah remained standing in Samaria.
7 Car Yahweh did not leave Joachaz d‘'other people armed, that fifty horsemen, ten chariots and ten thousand foot soldiers; for the king of Syria had caused them to perish and had made them like dust trampled underfoot.

8 The rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, all that he did, and his exploits, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?
9 Jehoahaz rested with his ancestors and was buried in Samaria; and Joash his son reigned in his place.

— Joash of Israel; death of Elisha. —

10 In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, Joash son of Jehoahaz reigned over Israel in Samaria; he reigned sixteen years.
11 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh; he did not turn away from any of the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin; he walked in them.
12 The rest of the acts of Joash, all that he did, his exploits, And Isn't it written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel how he fought with Amaziah?
13 Joash rested with his fathers, and Jeroboam sat on his throne; and Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

14 Elisha was suffering from the illness from which he died. Joash, king of Israel, went down to him and wept over him, saying, «My father! My father! Chariot of Israel and its horsemen!»
15 Elisha said to him, «Take a bow and arrows.» So he took a bow and arrows.
16 And Elisée said to the king of Israel, «Put your hand on the bow.» When he had put his hand on the bow, Elisha placed his hands on the king's hands,
17 and said, «Open the window facing east»; and he opened it. Elisha said, «Spear an arrow ;";" and he launched an arrow. Elisée He said, «This is an arrow of deliverance from the Lord, an arrow of deliverance against the Syrians! You will defeat the Syrians at Aphek until they are utterly destroyed.»
18 Elisée said Again "Take the arrows." And he took them. Elisée He said to the king of Israel, «Strike the ground.» He struck the ground three times, and stopped.
19 The man of God became angry with him and said, « It was necessary hit the ground "Five or six times; then you would have defeated the Syrians to the point of extermination; but now you will defeat the Syrians three times."»

20 Elisha died and was buried. The Moabite raiders were invading the land When returned the year new.
21 As they were burying a man, suddenly one of the bands of soldiers appeared, and they threw the man into Elisha’s tomb. The man touched Elisha’s bones, and he came to life and stood up on his feet.

22 Hazael, king of Syria, had oppressed Israel throughout the lifetime of Jehoahaz.
23 But Yahweh had mercy on them and was compassionate towards them; he turned to them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; he did not want to destroy them, nor has he rejected them from his presence to this day.
24 Hazael, king of Syria, He died, and Benhadad, his son, reigned in his place.
25 Joash, son of Jehoahaz, recaptured from Ben-Hadad, son of Hazael, the cities that Hazael had taken away in the war to Jehoahaz, his father. Joash defeated him three times, and he recovered the cities of Israel.

IV. — END OF THE KINGDOM OF ISRAEL.

Chapter 14

— Amasias of Judah. —

1 In the second year of Joash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, Amaziah son of Joash, king of Judah, began to reign.
2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jehoadan, of Jerusalem.
3 He did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh, but not like his father David; he did everything like his father Joash.
4 Only the high places did not disappear; the people continued to offer sacrifices and incense on the high places.
5 When the kingdom was firmly established in his hand, he struck down his servants, who had killed the king, his father.
6 But he did not put the sons of the murderers to death, according to what is written in the book of the law of Moses, where the Lord gives this commandment: «Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; but each shall die for their own sin.»

7 He defeated ten thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt, and he stormed Sela, and renamed it Jectehel, that she kept to this day.

8 Then Amaziah sent messengers to Joash, son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, «Come, let us meet face to face.»
9 And Joash, king of Israel, sent word to Amaziah, king of Judah: «The thorn that is in Lebanon He sent word to the cedar tree in Lebanon: “Give your daughter as a wife to my son!” And the wild beasts in Lebanon they passed by and trampled the thorn underfoot.
10 You have truly defeated the Edomites, and your heart has been lifted up. Glory yourself, and stay at home. Why bring yourself into trouble, so that you and Judah will fall with you?»
11 But Amasias did not L'’He did not listen. And Joash, king of Israel, went up, and they saw themselves face to face, he and Amaziah, king of Judah, at Bethsames, which is in Judah.
12 Judah was defeated before Israel, and everyone fled to their tents.
13 Joash, king of Israel, took Amaziah, king of Judah, son of Joash, son of Ahaziah, from Bethsames. He came to Jerusalem and made a breach of four hundred cubits in the wall of Jerusalem, from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate.
14 He took all the gold and silver and all the utensils that were found in the house of Yahweh and in the treasuries of the house of the king; he took also hostages, and returned to Samaria.

15 The rest of the acts of Joash, what he did, and how he fought with Amaziah, king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?
16 Joash rested with his ancestors and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. Jeroboam, his son, reigned in his place.

17 Amaziah, son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Joash, son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel.
18 Are not the rest of the acts of Amaziah written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
19 A conspiracy was hatched against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish; but they sent after him men to Lachis, and there he was put to death.
20 They carried him on horses, and he was buried in Jerusalem with his fathers, in the city of David.

21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah.
22 Azarias rebuilt Elath and brought it back to Judah, after the king had rested with his ancestors.

— Jeroboam II of Israel. —

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, reigned in Samaria; his reign was forty-one years old.
24 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh; he did not turn away from any of the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin.
25 He restored the boundaries of Israel from the entrance of Emath to the Sea of Arabah, according to the word of Yahweh, the God of Israel, which he had spoken by the mouth of his servant Jonah the prophet, the son of Amathi, who was from Geth-Shepher.
26 For Yahweh saw the very bitter affliction of Israel, where there was no married man, no free man, no one to come to the aid of Israel.
27 And Yahweh had not Again resolved to blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, but he delivered them by the hand of Jeroboam, son of Joash.

28 The rest of the acts of Jeroboam, all that he did, his exploits, how he fought, and how he brought back Damascus and Emath to Israel which had belonged In Judah, is this not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?
29 Jeroboam rested with his fathers, with the kings of Israel; and Zechariah, his son, reigned in his place.

Chapter 15

— Azarias (Uzziah) of Judah. —

1 In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah began to reign.
2 He was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jechelia, of Jerusalem.
3 He did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh, according to all that Amaziah his father had done.
4 Only the high places did not disappear; the people continued to offer sacrifices and incense on the high places.
5 The Lord struck the king, and he became a leper until the day of his death, living in a secluded house. Jotham, the king's son, was at the head of the house, judging the people of the country.

6 The rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
7 Azariah rested with his ancestors, and they buried him with his ancestors in the city of David; and Jotham his son reigned in his place.

— Zechariah of Israel. —

8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in Samaria; his reign was six months.
9 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, as his fathers had done; he did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin.
10 Sellum, son of Jabez, conspired against him and, having struck him down before the people, he put him to death, and reigned in his place.

11 The rest of the acts of Zechariah are written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

12 This was the word of Yahweh, which he had spoken to Jehu: «Your sons to the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.» And it was so.

— Sellum of Israel. —

13 Shallum, son of Jabesh, became king in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah, king of Judah, and he reigned for one month in Samaria.
14 Manahem, son of Gadi, went up from Terah and came to Samaria, and struck down Shellum, son of Jabesh, in Samaria, and killed him; and he reigned in his place.

15 The rest of the acts of Shellum, and the conspiracy which he plotted, behold, this is written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel.

16 Then Manahem, having left from Thersa, struck Thapsa and all who were there, along with its territory; he struck it because it had not opened its doorsand he ripped open the bellies of all women speakers.

— Manahem of Israel; the tribute paid to the king of Assyria. —

17 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Manahem son of Gadi became king over Israel; he reigned ten years in Samaria.
18 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh; he did not turn away, as long as he lived, from the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin.
19 Phul, king of Assyria, came to the land, and Manahem gave Phul a thousand talents of silver to help him and to secure the kingdom in his hand.
20 Manahem levied this money on Israel, on all those who had great riches, in order to give it to the king of Assyria; he demanded each fifty shekels of silver. The king of Assyria returned and did not stop there in the country.

21 The rest of the acts of Manahem, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?
22 Manahem rested with his fathers; and Phaceiah his son reigned in his place.

— Phaceia of Israel. —

23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Phaceiah son of Manahem reigned over Israel in Samaria; his reign was two years.
24 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh; he did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin.
25 Phacaeus, son of Romelias, his officer, conspired against him; he struck him down in Samaria in the tower of the king's house, along with Argob and Arie; he had with him fifty men from among the sons of the Gileadites. He put Phaceiah to death, and reigned in his place.

26 The rest of the acts of Phaceiah, and all that he did, behold, it is written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel.

— Phacaea of Israel; The Assyrians seize part of the country. —

27 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Phacah son of Romaliah reigned over Israel in Samaria; his reign was twenty years.
28 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh; he did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin.
29 In the days of Phacaeus king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and took Aijon, Abel Beth-machaah, Janoah, Kedesh, Ashor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and he carried off captive the residents in Assyria.
30 Hosea, son of Elah, having formed a conspiracy against Phacaeus, son of Romelias, struck him down and killed him; Then He reigned in his place in the twentieth year of Jotham, son of Uzziah.

31 The rest of the acts of Phacaeus, and all that he did, are written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.

— Jotham of Judah; Invasion of the Syrians and Israelites. —

32 In the second year of Phacaeus son of Romélias, king of Israel, Jotham son of Uzziah, king of Judah, began to reign.
33 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jerusa, daughter of Zadok.
34 He did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh; he acted entirely as his father Uzziah had acted.
35 Only the high places did not disappear; the people continued to offer sacrifices and incense on the high places. Joatham built the upper gate of the house of Yahweh.

36 The rest of the acts of Jotham, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah?

37 At that time, the Lord began to send Rezin, king of Judah, Syria, and Phacaeus, son of Romélias.

38 Jotham rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the city of David his father. Ahaz his son reigned in his place.

Chapter 16

— Ahaz of Judah. —

1 In the seventeenth year of Phacaeus son of Romélias, Ahaz son of Jotham reigned, 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 eyes of the Lord his God, as had done David, his father.
3 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and even made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations that Yahweh had driven out before the children of Israel.
4 He offered sacrifices and incense at the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree.

5 Then Rasin, king of Syria, Phacaeus, son of Romelias, king of Israel, and Phacaeus went up to attack Jerusalem. They besieged Ahaz, but they could not THE to conquer.
6 At the same time, Rasin, king of Syria, Elath brought back to the power of Syrians; he expelled the Jews from Elath, and the Syrians came to Elath, where they have lived to this day.
7 Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria, to him say: «I am your servant and your son; come up and deliver me from the hand of the king of Syria and from the hand of the king of Israel, who have risen up against me.»
8 And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king's house, and he L'’sent as a gift to the king of Assyria.
9 The king of Assyria listened to him, and the king of Assyria went up against Damascus and, having taken it, he carried off the inhabitants in captivity at Qir, and he killed Rasin.

10 King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria. Having seen the altar that was in Damascus, King Ahaz sent to the priest Uriah the model of the altar and its form according to all his work.
11 The priest Urias built the altar; the priest Urias THE fit entirely according the model that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus, before the king returned from Damascus.
12 When the king arrived from Damascus, he saw the altar. The king approached the altar and went up onto it;
13 He burned his burnt offering and his grain offering, poured out his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings on the altar.
14 He moved away from in front of the house, from between the new altar and the house of Yahweh, the bronze altar that was before Yahweh, and he placed it beside the new altar, towards the north.
15 King Ahaz also gave this order to Uriah the priest: «Burn on the great altar the morning burnt offering and the evening grain offering, the king’s burnt offering and his grain offering, the burnt offering of all the people of the land and their grain offering, pour it pour out their libation and pour into it all the blood of the burnt offerings and all the blood of the sacrifices. Regarding "The bronze altar, it will be my responsibility to provide for it."»
16 The priest Uriah did everything that King Ahaz had commanded.
17 In addition, King Ahaz broke the frames and bases, and removed the basins who were above; he went down the sea of brass from above the bronze oxen that supported it, and he placed it on a stone pavement;
18 He changed, in the house of Yahweh, in consideration for the king of Assyria, the Sabbath portico, which had been built in the house, and the outer entrance of the king.

19 The rest of the acts of Ahaz, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
20 Ahaz rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the City of David. Hezekiah his son succeeded him as king.

Chapter 17

— Hosea of Israel; capture of Samaria. —

1 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah, Hoshea son of Elah reigned over Israel in Samaria; his reign was nine years.
2 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, but not like the kings of Israel who were before him.
3 Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, came up against him, and Hoshea was subjugated and paid him tribute.
4 But the king of Assyria discovered a conspiracy by Hoshea, who had sent messengers to Sua, king of Egypt, and who was no longer paying tribute to the king of Assyria year by year; the king of Assyria did SO seize and throw chained into a prison.
5 And the king of Assyria went through all the land and came up against Samaria; he besieged it for three years.
6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria and carried Israel captive to Assyria. He assigned Halah as their dwelling place, the banks of the Habor, the river of Gosan, and the cities of the Medes.

— Reflections on the ruin of the kingdom of Israel. —

7 This happened because the children of Israel had sinned against Yahweh their God, who had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and because they had feared other gods.
8 They followed the customs of the nations that Yahweh had driven out before the children of Israel, and those that the kings of Israel had established.
9 The children of Israel covered of a false appearance things that were not right in the eyes of Yahweh, their God. They built themselves high places in all their cities, from watchtowers to fortified cities.
10 They set up pillars and Asherahs on every high hill and under every green tree.
11 And there they burned incense on all the high places, like the nations that Yahweh had taken captive before them, and they did wicked things, provoking Thus Yahweh.
12 They served the idols, about which the Lord had said to them, «You shall not do this.»
13 The Lord testified against Israel and Judah through all his prophets and seers, saying, «Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and decrees, following all the law I commanded your ancestors and sent to you through my servants the prophets.»
14 But they did not listen, and they stiffened their necks, like their fathers, who did not believe in Yahweh, their God.
15 They rejected his ordinances and his covenant that he had made with their fathers, and the testimonies that he had given against them. They went after things from nothing, and indulged in vanity, following the nations that surrounded them and that Yahweh had commanded them not to imitate.
16 They abandoned all the commandments of Yahweh their God, they made for themselves two molten calves, and they made for themselves Asherahs; they bowed down before all the host of heaven and they served Baal.
17 They made their sons and daughters pass through the fire, they practiced divination and enchantments, and they applied themselves to doing what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, so as to provoke him to anger.
18 And the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them from his presence. — Only the tribe of Judah remained,
19 Although Judah itself had not kept the commandments of Yahweh, their God, and had followed the rites established by Israel.
20 Yahweh rejected all the descendants of Israel; he afflicted them, he gave them into the hands of plunderers, until he drove them out of his presence.
21 For Israel had separated itself from the house of David, and they had made Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, king; and Jeroboam had turned Israel away from Yahweh and had caused them to commit a great sin.
22 And the children of Israel walked in all the sins that Jeroboam had committed; they did not turn away from them,
23 until the Lord had driven Israel out of his presence, as he had said through all his servants the prophets. And Israel was taken captive from their land to Assyria, where he stayed to this day.

— Origin of the Samaritans. —

24 The king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, from Cutha, from Avah, from Emath and from Sepharvaim, and THE settled in the cities of Samaria in place of the children of Israel; they took possession of Samaria and they lived in its cities.
25 When they began to live there, they did not fear Yahweh, and Yahweh sent lions against them, and they killed them.
26 We did SO This report to the king of Assyria reads: «The nations you have deported and settled in the cities of Samaria do not know how to serve the god of the land; and he has sent lions against them, and behold, they are killing them because they do not know how to serve the god of the land.»
27 The king of Assyria gave this order: «Send one of the priests whom you brought captive from there; let him go and settle there, and let him teach them how to serve the god of the land.»
28 One of the priests who had been taken captive from Samaria came and settled in Bethel, and taught them how they should honor Yahweh.
29 But each nation made its own gods and placed them in the houses on the high places built by the Samaritans, each nation in the city where it lived.
30 The people of Babylon made Sochoth-Benoth, the people of Cuthah made Nergel, the people of Emath made Asima,
31 Those from Avah made Nebahaz and Tarthach, and those from Shapharvaim gave their children to the fire in honor of Adramelech and Anamelech, gods of Shapharvaim.
32 They honored Also Yahweh, and they made themselves priests of the high places taken among all the people, and these priests were doing for them sacrifices in the houses of the high places.
33 So they honored Yahweh, and at the same time they served their gods according to the custom of the nations from which they had been deported.

34 They follow the former customs to this day; they do not fear Yahweh, and they do not conform to their regulations and ordinances, nor to the law and the commandments given by Yahweh to the children of Jacob, whom he called by the name of Israel.
35 Yahweh had made a covenant with them and had given them this command: «You shall not fear other gods, you shall not bow down to them, you shall not serve them or offer them sacrifices.
36 But the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and with his outstretched arm, is the one you shall fear, before him you shall bow down, to him you shall offer sacrifices.
37 You shall observe the precepts, the ordinances, the law, and the commandments which he has written for you, THE always putting them into practice, and you will not fear any other gods.
38 You shall not forget the covenant that I have made with you, and you shall not fear other gods.
39 But you shall fear the Lord your God, and he will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.»
40 And they did not obey, but they followed their former customs.
41 So these nations feared Yahweh, and at the same time served their images, and their children and their children's children do to this day what their fathers did.

PART TWO.

THE KINGDOM OF JUDAH.
FROM THE CAPTURE OF SAMARIA UNTIL THE CAPTIVITY OF BABYLON.

I. — ZECHIAH, MANASSEH, AMON.

Chapter 18

— The beginnings of Hezekiah. —

1 In the third year of Hoshea son of Elah, king of Israel, Hezekiah son of Ahaz, king of Judah, began to reign.
2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Abi, daughter of Zechariah.
3 He did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh, according to all that David his father had done.
4 He removed the high places, broke the pillars, cut down the Asherah poles, and smashed the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for the children of Israel had been burning incense before it until then: it was called Nohestan.
5 He put his trust in Yahweh, the God of Israel, and he had no equal among all the kings of Judah who came after him or who preceded him.
6 He was devoted to Yahweh, and he did not turn away from him, but kept his commandments which Yahweh had commanded Moses.
7 And Yahweh was with Hezekiah, and he succeeded in all his endeavors.

They revolted against the king of Assyria, and were no longer subject to him.
8 He defeated the Philistines as far as Gaza and ravaged its territory, from the guardians' tower to the fortified cities.

9 In the fourth year of King Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah, king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria and besieged it.
10 It was taken after three years; it was in the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth of Hoshea king of Israel, that Samaria was taken.
11 The king of Assyria took Israel captive to Assyria; he settled them in Halah, on the banks of the Habor, the river of Gosan, and in the cities of the Medes,
12 because they had not listened to the voice of Yahweh their God, and had transgressed his covenant, because they had neither listened nor done all that Moses, the servant of Yahweh, had commanded.

— Sennacherib's invasion. —

13 In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.
14 Hezekiah, king of Judah, sent word to the king of Assyria at Lachish: «I have done wrong; depart from me; whatever you impose on me, I will bear.» And the king of Assyria imposed on Hezekiah, king of Judah, three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold.
15 Hezekiah gave all the money that was found in the house of Yahweh and in the treasuries of the king's house.
16 At that time Hezekiah, king of Judah, broke down the gates of the temple of the Lord and the pillars that Hezekiah, king of Judah, had himself coated gold, and he gave gold to the king of Assyria.

17 The king of Assyria sent from Lachish to King Hezekiah his commander-in-chief, his chief of the eunuchs, and his chief cupbearer with a large force; they went up and arrived at Jerusalem. When they had gone up and arrived, they stopped at the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Fuller's Field,
18 and summoned the king. Eliacim, son of Helkiah, head of the house of the king, went to them, with Sobna the secretary, and Joah, son of Asaph, the recorder.

19 The chief cupbearer said to them, «Tell Hezekiah: This is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: What is this confidence you are relying on?
20 You said — empty words! — I’I have advice and strength for the war. And now, in whom do you confide that you rebel against me?
21 Now you are relying on the support of this broken reed—Egypt—which pierces and breaks the hand of anyone who leans on it: such is Pharaoh, king of Egypt, to all who trust in him.
22 Perhaps you will say to me: We trust in Yahweh, our God!… But is it not he whose high places and altars Hezekiah removed, saying to Judah and Jerusalem: You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?
23 Now, make a deal with my master, the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses, if you can provide riders to ride them!…
24 How could you repel even one of the least of my master's servants? Also Do you put your trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen?.
25 Now, is it without the will Yahweh said to me, «Go up against this place and destroy it.»

26 Eliacim son of Helkiah, Shebna, and Joah said to the chief cupbearer, «Speak to your servants in Aramaic, for we understand it; but do not speak to us in the Hebrew language in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.»
27 The chief cupbearer answered them, «Did my master send me to speak these words to you and your master? Didn’t he send me to these men sitting on the wall, to eat their excrement and drink their urine with you?»

28 Then the chief cupbearer stepped forward and called out in a loud voice in the Jewish language, saying, «Listen to the word of the great king, the king of Assyria!”
29 Thus says the king: Let Hezekiah not deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you from his hand.
30 Let Hezekiah not persuade you to trust in Yahweh, saying, "Yahweh will surely deliver us, and this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.".
31 Do not listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: Do peace with me and meet me; and let each of you eat of his vineyard and each of his fig tree, and let each one drink the water from his well,
32 until I come and take you to a land like your own, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and honey, so that you may live and not die. Therefore do not listen to Hezekiah, for he is deceiving you when he says, “The Lord will deliver us.”.
33 Have the gods of the nations each delivered their country from the hand of the king of Assyria?
34 Where are the gods of Emath and Arphad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, Anah, and Ava? Have they delivered Samaria from my hand?
35 Which of the gods of the lands have delivered their lands from my hand, so that the Lord may deliver Jerusalem from my hand?»

36 The people remained silent and did not answer him a word, for the king had given this order: «You shall not answer him.»
37 And Eliacim, son of Helkiah, head of the house of the king, Sobna the secretary, and Joah, son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and reported to him the words of the chief cupbearer.

Chapter 19

1 When King Hezekiah had heard this report, He tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went to the house of Yahweh.
2 He sent Eliacim, the head of his house, Shebna, the secretary, and the elders of the priests, covered in sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, son of Amos.
3 They said to him, «Thus says Hezekiah: This day is a day of distress, rebuke, and reproach; for the children are about to come out of the womb, and there is no strength to give birth.
4 Perhaps the Lord your God will hear all the words of the chief cupbearer, whom the king of Assyria, his master, has sent to insult the living God, and THE Will he punish them because of the words that the Lord your God has heard? Therefore, offer up a prayer for the remnant that is still left.»

5 The servants of King Hezekiah went to Isaiah;
6 and Isaiah said to them, «This is what you are to say to your master. Thus says the Lord: «Do not be afraid of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have insulted me.
7 »Behold, I am putting a spirit in him so that when he hears a rumor, he will return to his own country, and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own country.”

8 The chief cupbearer returned and found the king of Assyria attacking Lobna; for he had learned that his master had left from Lachis.
9 The king of Assyria received news about Tharaca, king of Ethiopia; he was told, «Behold, he has set out to make you the war. And he again sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying:
10 «Say this to Hezekiah king of Judah: Do not let your God, in whom you trust, deceive you by saying, ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hands of the king of Assyria.
11 Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries, subjecting them to destruction!… And you, would you be delivered!…
12 Did their gods deliver them, those nations that my fathers destroyed: Goshan, Haran, Reseph, and the sons of Eden who were in Telasar?
13 Where are the king of Emath, the king of Arphad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Anah, and of Ava?»

14 Hezekiah received the letter from the messengers and read it; then Hezekiah went up to the house of Yahweh and spread it out before Yahweh.
15 And Hezekiah prayed before Yahweh, saying: «Yahweh, God of Israel, seated above the Cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth, you who made the heavens and the earth.
16 O Lord, incline your ear and listen; O Lord, open your eyes and see. Hear the words of Sennacherib, who sent the Grand Cupbearer to insult the living God.
17 It is true, Yahweh, that the kings of Assyria destroyed the nations and devastated their territories,
18 and they threw their gods into the fire; for they were not gods, but the works of human hands, wood and stone; and they destroyed them.
19 Now, O Lord our God, save us from the hand of Sennacherib, and let all the kingdoms of the earth know that you alone, Yahweh, are God.»

20 And Isaiah, son of Amos, sent word to Hezekiah: «Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: The prayer that you have addressed to me concerning Sennacherib, king of Assyria, I L'’I heard.
21 This is the word that Yahweh has spoken against him: She despises you, she mocks you, the virgin daughter of Zion; she shakes her head behind you, the daughter of Jerusalem.

22 Whom have you insulted and reviled? Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes? Against the Holy One of Israel!

23 By your messengers you have insulted the Lord, and you have said: With my many chariots I have ascended the tops of the mountains, the farthest reaches of Lebanon; I will cut down its tallest cedars, its finest cypresses; and I will reach its highest peak, its forest like a garden.

24 I dug and drank foreign waters; with the sole of my feet I will dry up all the rivers of Egypt.

25 Have you not heard that long ago I did these things, that I formed them from ancient times? Now I am bringing them to pass, so that you may reduce the fortified cities to heaps of ruins.

26 Their inhabitants are powerless, in terror and confusion; they are as the grass of the fields and the tender greenery, as rooftop grass, as nielled wheat that dries before it matures.

27 But I know when you sit down, when you go out, and when you come in, I know your fury against me.

28 Because you are furious with me, and your arrogance has reached my ears, I will put my ring in your nostril and my bit in your lips, and I will make you return by the way by which you came.

29 And this will be a sign for you: This year you will eat what grows of itself; in the second year you will eat what springs from that; but in the third year you will sow and reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
30 What has been saved from the house of Judah, what remains, will again take root underneath, and bear fruit above.
31 For out of Jerusalem a remnant will go forth, and out of Mount Zion survivors. This is what the zeal of the Lord of hosts will accomplish.

32 Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria: He will not enter this city, nor will he shoot an arrow at it, nor will he come before it with a shield, nor will he build a siege ramp against it.
33 He will return by the way by which he came, and he will not enter this city, — oracle of Yahweh.
34 I will defend this city to save it, for my own sake and for the sake of David my servant.

35 That night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 people in the Assyrian camp men ; And when we got up in the morning, behold, they were all corpses.
36 And Sennacherib, king of Assyria, having broken camp, departed and returned, and he remained in Nineveh.
37 While he was worshiping in the house of Nesroch his god, Adramelech and Sarasar, his sons, struck him down with the sword, and fled to the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon, his son, reigned in his place.

Chapter 20

— The Sickness and Healing of Hezekiah. —

1 At that time Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah, son of Amos, came to him and said, «This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.»
2 Hezekiah he turned his face against the wall, and prayed to Yahweh in these words:
3 «Remember, O Yahweh, that I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion, and have done what is good in your eyes.» And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

4 Isaiah had not yet gone out to the middle court when the word of the Lord came to him. addressed in these terms:
5 Go back and tell Hezekiah, the leader of my people: This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; behold, I will heal you; in three days you shall go up to the house of the Lord;
6 I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; I will defend this city for my own sake and for the sake of David my servant.»
7 Isaiah said, «Take a lump of figs.» So they took it and applied it to the boil, and Hezekiah healed.
8 Hezekiah had said to Isaiah: « HAS what sign will I know that Yahweh will heal me and that I will go up to the house of Yahweh in three days.»
9 Isaiah said, «This is the sign for you.” given by Yahweh, to whom you will know that Yahweh will fulfill the word that he has spoken: shall the shadow advance ten steps, or retreat ten steps?»
10 Hezekiah replied, «It is a small thing for a shadow to advance ten steps, but for it to retreat ten steps!»
11 Then Isaiah the prophet called on Yahweh, who made the shadow go back ten steps on the steps of Ahaz, on the steps where it had gone down.

— Embassy of Mérodach-Baladan. —

12 At that time, Merodach-Baladan, son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent a letter and gifts to Hezekiah, because he had heard that Hezekiah was sick.
13 Hezekiah rejoiced the arrival of the sent, and he showed them all his treasury house, the silver and gold, the spices and precious oil, all his armory and everything that was found in his treasuries; there was nothing that Hezekiah did not show them in his house and in all his domains.
14 But Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah and said to him, «What did these men say, and where did they come from?» Hezekiah replied, «They came from a distant country, from Babylon.»
15 And Isaiah He said, «What did they see in your house?» And Hezekiah replied, «They saw everything in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them.»
16 And Isaiah said to Hezekiah, «Hear the word of the Lord:
17 The days will come when everything in your house and everything your ancestors have stored up until this day will be carried off to Babylon; nothing will be left, says the Lord.
18 And some of your sons, who will come from you, whom you will have fathered, will be taken to become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.»
19 Hezekiah answered Isaiah, «The word of the Lord that you have spoken is good.» And he added, «Yes, for peace and stability will with me during my lifetime.»

20 The rest of the acts of Hezekiah, all his exploits, and how he made the pool and the aqueduct and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah?
21 Hezekiah rested with his ancestors, and Manasseh his son reigned in his place.

Chapter 21

— Manasseh. —

1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Haphisiba.
2 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, imitating the abominations of the nations that Yahweh had driven out before the children of Israel.
3 He rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah his father had destroyed; he erected altars to Baal, he made an Asherah, as Ahab king of Israel had done, and he bowed down before all the host of heaven and served them.
4 He built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said: « It is in Jerusalem that I will put my name on it.»
5 He built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of Yahweh.
6 He made his son pass through the fire; he practiced augury and divination; he appointed necromancers and sorcerers: thus doing more and more what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, so as to provoke him to anger.
7 He put the Asherah pole he had made in the house of which Yahweh had said to David and to Solomon his son, «In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name forever.
8 I will no longer cause the feet of Israel to wander from the land I gave to their ancestors, provided they are careful to observe all that I have commanded them and all the law that my servant Moses prescribed for them.»
9 But they did not obey; and Manasseh led them astray, so that they did more evil than all the nations that Yahweh had destroyed before the children of Israel.

10 Then Yahweh spoke through his servants the prophets, saying:
11 «Because Manasseh, king of Judah, committed these abominations, because’He did worse than anything the Amorites had done before him, and because’He also caused Judah to sin through his idols.,
12 This is what Yahweh, the God of Israel, says: “I am going to bring disasters on Jerusalem and Judah, so great that both ears will ring when anyone who hears about them.”.
13 I will stretch out over Jerusalem the measuring line of Samaria and the plumb line of the house of Ahab, and I will cleanse Jerusalem as a dish is cleansed and turned over after being cleansed.
14 I will abandon the rest of my inheritance, and I will deliver them into the hands of their enemies, and they will become the prey and plunder of all their enemies:
15 because they have done what is evil in my sight, and have provoked me to anger from the day their ancestors left Egypt until now.»

16 Manasseh also shed much innocent blood, so much as to fill Jerusalem from one end to the other, besides his sins by which he caused Judah to sin, the trainer to do what is evil in the eyes of Yahweh.

17 The rest of the acts of Manasseh, all that he did, and the sins that he committed, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah?
18 Manasseh rested with his ancestors and was buried in the garden of his house, in the garden of Uzza. Amon, his son, reigned in his place.

— Amon. —

19 Amon was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Messalemeth, daughter of Harus, the Jetebah.
20 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, as Manasseh his father had done;
21 He walked in all the ways in which his father had walked, he served the idols which his father had served, and he bowed down before them;
22 He abandoned Yahweh, the God of his fathers, and did not walk in the way of Yahweh.
23 The servants of Amon conspired against him and killed the king in his house.
24 But the people of the land struck down all those who had conspired against King Amon; and the people of the land made Josiah, his son, king in his place.

25 The rest of the acts of Amon, and what he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah?
26 They buried him in his tomb in the garden of Uzza; Josiah, his son, reigned in his place.

II. — FROM JOSIAS TO THE RUIN OF JERUSALEM.

Chapter 22

— Josiah, his piety. —

1 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned thirty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Idida, daughter of Hadai of Bezekath.
2 He did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh, and walked entirely in the way of David his father, and did not turn aside to the right or to the left.

— Discovery of the Book of the Law. —

3 In the eighteenth year of King Josiah, the king sent to the house of Yahweh Shaphan, the secretary, son of Asliah, son of Messulam, saying:
4 «Go up to Helkiah the high priest, and have ready the money that was brought into the house of Yahweh, and that the gatekeepers collected from the people.
5 We will put this money in the hands of those who do execute the work, who are appointed overseers in the house of Yahweh, and they will give it to those who are working on the work of the house of Yahweh, to repair the breaches in the house,
6 to the carpenters, laborers, and masons, and they will use it to buy the wood and cut stone to repair the house.
7 But they will not be required to account for the money entrusted to them, because they have acted with integrity.»

8 Then Helkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the secretary, «I have found the Book of the Law in the house of Yahweh.» And Helkiah gave the book to Shaphan, who read it.
9 Then Saphan the secretary returned to the king and reported to him, saying, «Your servants have emptied the money that was in the house and given it into the hands of those who are execute the work, who are appointed overseers in the house of Yahweh.»
10 Saphan, the secretary, also made this communication to the king: "The priest Helcias gave me a book." And Saphan read it before the king.

11 When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his clothes;
12 and he gave this order to Helkiah the priest, to Ahicam son of Shaphan, to Ahobor son of Micha, to Shaphan the secretary, and to Asaiah the king's servant:
13 «Go and inquire of the Lord for me, for the people, and for all Judah concerning the words of this book that has been found; for great is the anger of the Lord that is kindled against us, because our fathers did not obey the words of this book, by doing all that is commanded us.»

14 Then Helkiah the priest, Ahicham, Ahobor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Holdah the prophetess, the wife of Shellum son of Tekuah, son of Araas, keeper of the wardrobe; she lived in the Second Quarter of Jerusalem. When they had spoken to her,
15 She said to them, «This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Tell the man who sent you to me:
16 Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am going to bring disaster on this place and on its inhabitants, according to all the words of the book that the king of Judah read.
17 Because they have forsaken me and have offered incense to other gods, provoking me to anger with all the works of their hands, my anger has been kindled against this place, and it will not be quenched.
18 And you shall say to the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the Lord, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: As for the words that you have heard,
19 because your heart has repented and you have humbled yourself before the Lord when you heard what I have spoken against this place and against its inhabitants, know that they will be an object of horror and cursing, and because you tore your clothes and wept before me, I too have heard you, oracle of Yahweh.
20 Therefore, behold, I will gather you to your fathers; you shall be gathered in peace to your grave, and your eyes shall not see all the calamities that I will bring upon this place.»
They reported this answer to the king.

Chapter 23

— Josiah's reform. —

1 The king sent and gathered to him all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem.
2 And the king went up to the house of Yahweh, with all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the priests, the prophets, and all the people, from the least to the greatest, and he read before them all the words of the book of the covenant, which had been found in the house of Yahweh.
3 The king, standing on the platform, concluded the covenant before Yahweh, committing to follow Yahweh and to observe his precepts, his ordinances and his laws, of all her with all my heart and soul her soul, by fulfilling the words of this covenant, which are written in this book. And all the people agreed to this covenant.

4 The king ordered Helkiah the high priest, the priests of the second order, and those who guarded the gate, to cast out of the temple of Yahweh all the articles that had been made for Baal, for Astarte, and for all the host of heaven; and he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron, and had their dust carried to Bethel.
5 He drove out the idol priests appointed by the kings of Judah to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah and around Jerusalem, and those who offered incense to Baal, to the sun, the moon, and the twelve signs and to the entire army of heaven.
6 He rejected the Asherah from the house of Yahweh that he transported outside Jerusalem, towards the Kidron Valley; he burned it in the Kidron Valley and, having reduced it to dust, he threw this dust on the tombs of the children of the people.
7 He tore down the houses of the prostitutes who were in the house of Yahweh, and where women were weaving tents for Astarte.
8 He summoned all the priests from the towns of Judah and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Gibeah to Beersheba, and he demolished the high places at the gates, including the one at the entrance to the gate of Joshua, head of the city, And the one that was to the left of the city gate.
9 However, the priests of the high places did not go up to the altar of Yahweh in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread in the midst of their brothers.
10 The king defiled Topheth, in the valley of the sons of Ennom, so that no one would make their son or daughter pass through the fire in honor of Moloch.
11 He removed the horses that the kings of Judah had dedicated to the sun at the entrance of the house of Yahweh, near the chamber of the eunuch Nathan-Melech, which was in the outbuildings, and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire.
12 The king destroyed the altars that were on the roof of the upper room of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars that Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of Yahweh, and from there he ran to throw their dust in the valley of the Kidron.
13 The king defiled the high places that were opposite Jerusalem, on the right side of the Mount of Perdition, which Solomon king of Israel had built at Astarte, the abomination of the Sidonians, at Hamos, the abomination of the Ammonites;
14 He broke down the pillars and cut down the Asherahs, and filled the place where they stood with human bones.

15 Likewise the altar that was at Bethel, And the high place that Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had made, who had caused Israel to sin, he destroyed this altar and the high place; he burned the high place and reduced it to dust, and he burned the Asherah.

16 Josiah, having turned and seen the tombs that were there in the mountain, sent and took the bones from the tombs, and burned them on the altar and defiled it, according to the word of Yahweh spoken by the man of God who had announced these things.
17 Then he said, «What is this monument that I see?» The people of the city told him, «It is the tomb of the man of God who came from Judah and who told us about the things you did against the altar at Bethel.»
18 And he said, «Leave him alone; let no one disturb his bones!» So they left his bones undisturbed, along with the bones of the prophet who had come from Samaria.

19 Josiah also destroyed all the houses of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria And what had the kings of Israel done, by irritating Yahweh ; He treated them exactly as he had treated Bethel.
20 He sacrificed on the altars all the priests of the high places who were there, and he burned human bones there; then he returned to Jerusalem.

21 The king gave this order to all the people: «Celebrate the Passover to the Lord your God, as it is written in the book of the covenant.»
22 No Passover like this one had been celebrated since the days of the judges who judged Israel, and during all the days of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah.
23 It was in the eighteenth year of King Josiah that this Passover was celebrated in honor of Yahweh in Jerusalem.

24 Josiah also removed the necromancers and sorcerers, as well as the teraphim, the idols, and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, in order to fulfill the words of the Law, written in the book that the priest Helkiah had found in the house of Yahweh.

25 There was not, before Josiah, of a king who, like him, turned to Yahweh with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his strength, according to all the law of Moses; and after him, there was no one like him.
26 However, Yahweh did not turn from the fierceness of his great anger, because his anger was kindled against Judah, because of the provocations with which Manasseh had angered him.
27 And Yahweh said, «I will also remove Judah from my presence, as I removed Israel; and I will reject this city Jerusalem, which I had chosen, and this house of which I said, »My name shall be there.’”

— The end of Josiah's life; he is killed at Mageddo. —

28 The rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?

29 In his days, Pharaoh Necho, king of Egypt, went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates. King Josiah marched to meet him, and Pharaoh He killed him in Mageddo as soon as he saw him.
30 His servants carried him dead from Mageddo in a chariot and brought him to Jerusalem, where they buried him in his tomb. Then the people of the land took Jehoahaz son of Josiah, anointed him, and made him king in place of his father.

— Joachaz; he is taken prisoner to Egypt. —

31 Jehoahaz was twenty-three years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Amital, daughter of Jeremiah, from Lobna.
32 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, according to all that his fathers had done.
33 Pharaoh Necho bound him in Rebla in the land of Emath, so that he would no longer reign in Jerusalem, and he imposed on the land a tax of one hundred talents of silver and one talent of gold.
34 Pharaoh Necho appointed Eliakim, son of Josiah, as king in place of his father Josiah, and changed his name to that of Joakim. Jehoahaz, whom he had captured, went to Egypt and died there.
35 Jehoiakim gave Pharaoh the silver and gold, but he taxed the land to provide the sum demanded by Pharaoh: each according to what was decreed for him, he levied silver and gold on the people of the land, to THE to give to Pharaoh-Nechao.

— Joakim. —

36 Jehoiakim was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Zebida, daughter of Phaedaias of Ruma.
37 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, according to all that his fathers had done.

Chapter 24

1 In his time, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, went to war, and Jehoiakim was subject to him for three years; but he rebelled again against him.
2 Yahweh sent against Jehoiakim bands of Chaldeans, bands of Syrians, bands of Moabites and bands of Ammonites; he sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of Yahweh which he had spoken by the mouth of his servants the prophets.
3 It was only at the command of the Lord that this happened to Judah, to remove them from his presence, because of all the sins committed by Manasseh,
4 and because of the innocent blood that had been shed Manasseh, to the point of filling Jerusalem with innocent blood. That's why Yahweh did not want to forgive.

5 The rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah?
6 Joakim rested with his fathers, and Joachim his son reigned in his place.

7 The king of Egypt did not leave his country again; for the king of Babylon had taken everything that belonged to the king of Egypt, from the Wadi of Egypt to the river Euphrates.

— Joachim. —

8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he became king, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Nohestah, daughter of Elnathan, of Jerusalem.
9 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, according to all that his father had done.

10 At that time, the servants of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged.
11 Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came before the city while his servants were besieging it.
12 Then Jehoiachin, king of Judah, went out to the king of Babylon, with his mother, his servants, his officials and his eunuchs, and the king of Babylon took him prisoner in the eighth year of his reign.
13 He carried away from there all the treasures of the house of Yahweh and the treasures of the king's house, and he broke all the gold utensils that Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of Yahweh, as Yahweh had announced.
14 He carried off into captivity all Jerusalem, all the leaders and all the mighty men, — ten thousand captives, — with all the craftsmen and smiths; only the poor people of the land remained.
15 He transported Jehoiachin to Babylon, and he carried the king's mother captive from Jerusalem to Babylon, women of the king and his eunuchs, and the nobles of the land.
16 Moreover, all the warriors number of seven thousand, as well as the craftsmen and blacksmiths number of a thousand, all valiant men fit for war: the king of Babylon took them captive to Babylon.
17 And the king of Babylon appointed king in place of Joachin, Mathanias, his uncle, whose name he changed to Zedekiah.

— Zedekiah; ruin of Jerusalem. —

18 Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Amital, daughter of Jeremiah of Lobnah.
19 He did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, imitating all that Joakim had done.
20 This happened in Jerusalem and in Judah, because of the anger of Yahweh, until he casts them out of his presence.

And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

Chapter 25

1 In the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, in the tenth month, the tenth day In the month, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came with all his army against Jerusalem, and set up camp before it; they built approach walls all around.

2 The city was besieged until the eleventh year of Zedekiah.

3 On the ninth day of the month, when the famine was worse in the city, and there was no more bread for the people of the land,
4 A breach was made in the city, and all the fighting men fled at night by way of the gate between the two walls, near the king's garden, while the Chaldeans surrounded the city. The king took the road to Araba.
5 But the Chaldean army pursued the king and overtook him in the plains of Jericho, and all his army scattered from him.
6 Having seized the king, they brought him up to the king of Babylon at Rebla, and a sentence was pronounced against him.
7 They slaughtered Zedekiah's sons before his eyes. Then Nebuchadnezzar blinded Zedekiah and bound him with two bronze chains; and they took him to Babylon.

8 The fifth month, the seventh day of the month, — it was the nineteenth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, — Nebuzardan, captain of the guard, servant of the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem.
9 He burned the house of Yahweh, the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem; he gave over all the great houses to the fire.
10 The entire army of the Chaldeans that was with The captain of the guards demolished the walls forming the perimeter of Jerusalem.

11 Nebuzardan, captain of the guards, took captive the remnant of the people who had remained in the city, the deserters who had surrendered to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the multitude.
12 The captain of the guards left as vine growers and as farmers some the poor of the country.

13 The Chaldeans broke down the bronze pillars that were in the house of Yahweh, as well as the bases and the bronze sea that were in the house of Yahweh, and they carried the bronze away to Babylon.
14 They took the pots, the shovels, the knives, the cups, and all the bronze utensils used for serving.
15 The captain of the guards also took the censers and cups, both gold and silver.
16 As for the two pillars, the sea, and the bases that Solomon had made in the house of Yahweh, the bronze of all these utensils did not need to be weighed.
17 The height of one column was eighteen cubits; and there was on top of it a bronze capital, and the height of the capital was three cubits; and there was all around the capital a lattice and pomegranates, all of bronze; the same was true of the second column with the lattice.

18 The captain of the guards took Saraias the high priest, Zephaniah the second priest, and the three gatekeepers.
19 In the city, he took an officer who commanded the men of war, five men who were part of the king's privy council and who were found in the city, the secretary of the army commander in charge of enlisting the people of the country, and sixty men of the people of the country who were in the city.
20 Having taken them, Nebuzardan, captain of the guards, brought them to the king of Babylon at Rebla.
21 And the king of Babylon struck them down and put them to death at Rebla in the land of Emath.

Thus Judah was taken captive far from his country.

— Godolias, governor of Judah. —

22 As for the people who remained in the land of Judah whom Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, left there, he appointed Gedaliah, son of Ahicam, son of Shaphan, as their governor.
23 When all the commanders of the troops had learned, they and their men, whom the king of Babylon had appointed as governor, came to Godolias at Maspha, know, Ishmael, son of Nathaniah, Johanan, son of Karea, Saraiah, son of Thanehumeth of Netophah, and Jezoniah, son of the Maachathite, they and their men.
24 Godolias said to them and their men with an oath, «Do not fear the servants of the Chaldeans; remain in the land, serve the king of Babylon, and you will fare well.»
25 But in the seventh month, Ishmael, son of Nathaniah, son of Elishama, of the royal line, came with ten men, and they struck down Gedaliah, as well as the Jews and Chaldeans who were with him at Maspha.
26 SO All the people, from the least to the greatest, and the commanders of the troops, arose and went to Egypt, because they were afraid of the Chaldeans.

— Evil-Merodach's benevolence towards Joachim. —

27 In the thirty-seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, the twenty-seventh day In the month of Evil-Merodach, king of Babylon, in the year of his accession, raised up the head of Jehoiachin, king of Judah, and shot him of prison.
28 He spoke kindly to him, and he placed his throne above the throne of the kings who were with him in Babylon.
29 He made him change his clothes prison, And Joachin He always ate in her presence, all the time in his life.
30 As for its maintenance, its perpetual maintenance, the king provided for it every day, all the time of his life.