Jehu Reigns over Israel

9 Now Elisha the prophet summoned one of ^(A)the sons of the prophets and said to him, “^[a](B)Get ready and ^(C)take this flask of oil in your hand, and go to ^(D)Ramoth-gilead. ² When you arrive there, then look there for ^(E)Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in and ^(F)have him get up from among his brothers, and bring him to an inner room. ³ Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head, and say, ‘This is what the Lord says: “^(G)I have anointed you king over Israel.”’ Then open the door and flee, and do not wait.”

⁴ So ^(H)the young man, the servant of the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead. ⁵ When he arrived, behold, the commanders of the army were sitting, and he said, “I have a word for you, commander.” And Jehu said, “^[b]For which one of us?” And he said, “For you, commander.” ⁶ He then got up and went into the house, and the prophet’s servant poured the oil on his head and said to him, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘^(I)I have anointed you king over the people of the Lord, over Israel. ⁷ And you shall strike the house of Ahab your master, ^(J)so that I may avenge ^(K)the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord, ^(L)at the hand of Jezebel. ⁸ For the entire house of Ahab shall perish, and ^(M)I will eliminate from Ahab ^(N)every male person ^(O)both ^[c]slave and free in Israel. ^9 (P)I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and ^(Q)like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah. ^10 (R)The dogs will eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel, and no one will bury her.’” Then he opened the door and fled.

¹¹ Now Jehu went out to the servants of his master, and one said to him, “^(S)Is everything well? Why did this ^(T)crazy fellow come to you?” And he said to them, “You know very well the man and his talk.” ¹² And they said, “It is a lie; tell us now.” And he said, “Such and such he said to me, saying, ‘This is what the Lord says: “I have anointed you king over Israel.”’” ¹³ Then ^(U)they hurried, and each man took his garment and put it under him on the bare steps, and ^(V)blew the trumpet, saying, “Jehu is king!”

Jehu Assassinates Jehoram (Joram)

¹⁴ So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. ^(W)Now Joram ^[d]with all Israel was ^[e]defending Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Aram, ¹⁵ but ^(X)King ^[f]Joram had returned to Jezreel to have himself healed of the wounds which the Arameans had ^[g]inflicted on him when he fought Hazael king of Aram. So Jehu said to the other men, “If this is your ^[h]intent, then let no ^[i]one escape from the city to go tell about it in Jezreel.” ¹⁶ Then Jehu rode in a chariot and went to Jezreel, since Joram was lying there recovering. ^(Y)And Ahaziah the king of Judah had come down to see Joram.

¹⁷ Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel and he saw the ^[j]company of Jehu as he came, and he said, “I see a ^[k]company.” And ^[l]Joram said, “Take a horseman and send him to meet them and have him ^[m]ask, ‘Is your intention peace?’” ¹⁸ So a horseman went to meet him and said, “This is what the king says: ‘Is your intention peace?’” But Jehu said, “^[n](Z)How is peace any business of yours? Turn and follow me.” And the watchman ^[o]reported, “The messenger came to them, but he did not return.” ¹⁹ Then he sent a second horseman, and he came to them and said, “This is what the king says: ‘Is your intention peace?’” And Jehu ^[p]answered, “^[q]How is peace any business of yours? Turn and follow me.” ²⁰ And the watchman ^[r]reported, “He came up to them, but he did not return; and ^(AA)the ^[s]driving is like the driving of ^(AB)Jehu the son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously.”

²¹ Then ^[t]Joram said, “^[u]Get ready.” And they ^[v]made his chariot ready. ^(AC)Then ^[w]Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu and found him on the ^[x](AD)property of Naboth the Jezreelite. ²² When ^[y]Joram saw Jehu, he said, “Is your intention peace, Jehu?” And he ^[z]answered, “What ‘peace,’ ^(AE)so long as your mother Jezebel’s acts of prostitution and witchcraft are so many?” ²³ So ^[aa]Joram ^[ab]turned back and fled, and he said to Ahaziah, “^(AF)There is treachery, Ahaziah!” ²⁴ Then ^(AG)Jehu ^[ac]drew his bow with his full strength and ^[ad]shot ^[ae]Joram between his arms; and the arrow went ^[af]through his heart, and he sank in his chariot. ²⁵ And Jehu said to Bidkar his officer, “Pick him up and ^(AH)throw him on the ^[ag]property of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite; for remember, when ^[ah]you and I were riding together after his father Ahab, that the ^(AI)Lord brought this ^(AJ)pronouncement against him: ²⁶ ‘^(AK)I have certainly seen yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons,’ declares the Lord, ‘and ^(AL)I will repay you on this ^[ai]property,’ declares the Lord. Now then, pick him up and throw him on the ^[aj]property, in accordance with the word of the Lord.”

Jehu Assassinates Ahaziah

^27 (AM)When Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by way of the garden house. But Jehu pursued him and said, “^[ak]Shoot him too, in the chariot.” So they shot him at the ascent of Gur, which is at ^(AN)Ibleam. But he fled to Megiddo and died there. ^28 (AO)Then his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his grave with his fathers in the city of David.

²⁹ Now in ^(AP)the eleventh year of Joram, the son of Ahab, Ahaziah became king over Judah.

³⁰ When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard about it, and ^(AQ)she put makeup on her eyes and adorned her head, and looked down through the window. ³¹ As Jehu entered the gate, she said, “^(AR)Is your intention peace, Zimri, his master’s murderer?” ³² Then he raised his face toward the window and said, “Who is with me, who?” And two or three officials looked down at him.

Jezebel Is Killed

³³ Then he said, “Throw her down.” So they threw her down, and some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, and he trampled her underfoot. ³⁴ When he came in, he ate and drank; and he said, “See now to ^(AS)this cursed woman and bury her, for ^(AT)she is a king’s daughter.” ³⁵ So they went to bury her, but they found nothing of her except the skull, the feet, and the palms of her hands. ³⁶ Therefore they returned and informed him. And he said, “This is the word of the Lord, which He spoke by His servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ‘^(AU)On the ^[al]property of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel; ³⁷ and ^(AV)the corpse of Jezebel will be like dung on the face of the field in the ^[am]property of Jezreel, so they cannot say, “This is Jezebel.”’”

Judgment upon Ahab’s House

10 Now Ahab had seventy sons in ^(AW)Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria, to the officials of Jezreel, the elders, and to the guardians of the children of Ahab, saying, ² “And now, ^(AX)when this letter comes to you, since your master’s sons are with you, ^[an]as well as the chariots and horses, and a fortified city and the weapons, ³ select the best and most capable of your master’s sons and seat him on his father’s throne, and fight for your master’s house.” ⁴ But they feared greatly and said, “Behold, ^(AY)the two kings did not stand firm before him; how then can we stand?” ⁵ And the one who was in charge of the household, and the one who was in charge of the city, and the elders, and the guardians of the children, sent word to Jehu, saying, “^(AZ)We are your servants, and everything that you tell us we will do. We will not appoint any man king; do what is good in your sight.” ⁶ Then he wrote them a letter a second time, saying, “If you are on my side, and will listen to my voice, take the heads of the men, your master’s sons, and come to me at Jezreel about this time tomorrow.” Now the king’s sons, seventy men, were with the great people of the city, who were raising them. ⁷ When the letter came to them, they took the king’s sons and ^(BA)slaughtered them, seventy men, and put their heads in baskets, and sent them to him at Jezreel. ⁸ When the messenger came and informed him, saying, “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons,” he said, “Put them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until morning.” ⁹ Now in the morning he went out and stood and said to all the people, “You are ^[ao]innocent; behold, ^(BB)I conspired against my master and killed him, but ^(BC)who ^[ap]killed all these? ¹⁰ Know then that ^(BD)nothing of the word of the Lord, which the Lord spoke concerning the house of Ahab, shall ^[aq]fall to the earth, for the Lord has done ^(BE)what He spoke ^[ar]through His servant Elijah.” ¹¹ So Jehu ^[as]killed all who remained of the house of Ahab in ^(BF)Jezreel, and all his great men, his acquaintances, and his priests, until he left him without a survivor.

¹² Then he set out and ^[at]went to Samaria. On the way while he was at ^[au]Beth-eked of the shepherds, ^13 (BG)Jehu ^[av]encountered the relatives of Ahaziah king of Judah, and he said, “Who are you?” And they ^[aw]answered, “We are the relatives of Ahaziah; and we have come down to greet the sons of the king and the sons of the queen mother.” ¹⁴ Then he said, “Take them alive.” So they took them alive, and slaughtered them at the pit of Beth-eked, forty-two men; and he left none of them.

¹⁵ Now when he had gone from there, he ^[ax]encountered ^(BH)Jehonadab the son of ^(BI)Rechab coming to meet him; and he ^[ay]greeted him and said to him, “Is your heart right, just as my heart is with your heart?” And Jehonadab ^[az]answered, “It is.” Jehu said, “If it is, ^(BJ)give me your hand.” And he gave him his hand, and he pulled him up to him into the chariot. ¹⁶ Then he said, “Come with me and ^(BK)see my zeal for the Lord.” So ^[ba]he had him ride in his chariot. ¹⁷ When he came to Samaria, ^(BL)he ^[bb]killed all who remained to Ahab in Samaria, until he had eliminated ^[bc]them, ^(BM)in accordance with the word of the Lord which He spoke to Elijah.

Jehu Destroys Baal Worshipers

¹⁸ Then Jehu gathered all the people and said to them, “^(BN)Ahab served Baal a little; Jehu will serve him much. ¹⁹ Now, ^(BO)summon to me all the prophets of Baal, all his worshipers and all his priests; let no one go missing, because I have a great sacrifice for Baal; whoever is missing shall not live.” But Jehu did it in deception, in order to eliminate the worshipers of Baal. ²⁰ And Jehu said, “^(BP)Proclaim a holy assembly for Baal.” And ^(BQ)they proclaimed it. ²¹ Then Jehu sent word ^[bd]throughout Israel, and all the worshipers of Baal came, so that there was not a person left who did not come. And when they entered ^(BR)the house of Baal, the house of Baal was filled from one end to the other. ²² And he said to the one who was ^[be]in charge of the wardrobe, “Bring out garments for all the worshipers of Baal.” So he brought out the garments for them. ²³ Then Jehu entered the house of Baal with Jehonadab the son of Rechab; and he said to the worshipers of Baal, “Search carefully and see to it that there is here with you none of the servants of the Lord, but only the worshipers of Baal.” ²⁴ Then they entered to ^[bf]offer sacrifices and burnt offerings.

Now Jehu had stationed for himself eighty men outside, and he had said, “^(BS)The one who allows any of the men whom I bring into your hands to escape ^[bg]shall give up his life in exchange.”

²⁵ Then it came about, as soon as he had finished ^[bh]offering the burnt offering, that Jehu said to the ^[bi](BT)guard and to the royal officers, “^(BU)Go in, ^[bj]kill them; let none come out.” So they ^[bk]killed them with the edge of the sword; and the ^[bl]guard and the royal officers threw them out, and went to the ^[bm]sanctuary of the house of Baal. ²⁶ They brought out the ^(BV)memorial stones of the house of Baal and burned them. ²⁷ They also tore down the memorial stone of Baal and tore down the house of Baal, and ^(BW)made it a latrine as it is to this day.

²⁸ So Jehu eradicated Baal from Israel. ²⁹ However, ^(BX)as for the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, into which he misled Israel, from these Jehu did not desist, including the ^(BY)golden calves that were at Bethel and at Dan. ³⁰ Yet the Lord said to Jehu, “Because you have done well in performing what is right in My eyes, and have done to the house of Ahab in accordance with everything that was in My heart, ^(BZ)your sons to the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.” ³¹ But Jehu ^(CA)was not careful to walk in the Law of the Lord, the God of Israel, with all his heart; ^(CB)he did not desist from the sins of Jeroboam, into which he misled Israel.

³² In those days the ^(CC)Lord began to cut off pieces from Israel; and ^(CD)Hazael ^[bn]defeated them throughout the territory of Israel: ³³ from the Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, the Reubenites, and the Manassites; from ^(CE)Aroer, which is by the Valley of the Arnon, that is, ^(CF)Gilead and Bashan.

Jehoahaz Succeeds Jehu

³⁴ Now as for the rest of the acts of Jehu and everything that he did and all his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? ³⁵ And Jehu ^[bo]lay down with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. And his son Jehoahaz became king in his place. ³⁶ So the ^[bp]time which Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty-eight years.

Judging Others

7 “^(A)Do not ^[a]judge, so that you will not be judged. ² For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and ^[b](B)by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. ³ Why do you ^(C)look at the ^[c]speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? ^4 (D)Or how ^[d]can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the ^[e]speck out of your eye,’ and look, the log is in your own eye? ⁵ You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the ^[f]speck out of your brother’s eye!

⁶ “^(E)Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

Prayer and the Golden Rule

⁷ “^[g](F)Ask, and ^(G)it will be given to you; ^[h]seek, and you will find; ^[i]knock, and it will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. ⁹ Or what person is there among you ^[j]who, when his son asks for a loaf of bread, ^[k]will give him a stone? ¹⁰ Or ^[l]if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? ¹¹ So if you, despite being ^[m]evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, ^(H)how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!

¹² “In everything, ^(I)therefore, ^[n]treat people the same way you want ^[o]them to treat you, for ^(J)this is the Law and the Prophets.

The Narrow and Wide Gates

¹³ “^(K)Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. ¹⁴ For the gate is narrow and the way is constricted that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

A Tree and Its Fruit

¹⁵ “Beware of the ^(L)false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ^(M)ravenous wolves. ¹⁶ You will ^[p](N)know them by their fruits. ^[q]Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes, nor figs from thistles, are they? ¹⁷ So ^(O)every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. ¹⁸ A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. ^19 (P)Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. ²⁰ So then, you will ^[r]know them ^(Q)by their fruits.

²¹ “^(R)Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. ^22 (S)Many will say to Me on ^(T)that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many ^[s]miracles?’ ²³ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; ^(U)leave Me, you who practice lawlessness.’

The Two Foundations

²⁴ “Therefore, ^(V)everyone who hears these words of Mine, and ^[t]acts on them, will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ And the rain fell and the ^[u]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. ²⁶ And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not ^[v]act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. ²⁷ And the rain fell and the ^[w]floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and its collapse was great.”

^28 [x](W)When Jesus had finished these words, ^(X)the crowds were amazed at His teaching; ²⁹ for He was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

The Foolishness of Trusting in Riches.

For the music director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah.