2 Kings 14:1-22
New American Standard Bible
Amaziah Reigns over Judah
14 (A)In the second year of Joash son of Joahaz king of Israel, (B)Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah became king. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. 3 He did what was right in the sight of the Lord, yet not like his father David; he acted in accordance with everything that his father Joash had done. 4 Only (C)the high places were not eliminated; (D)the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. 5 Now it came about, as soon as the kingdom was firmly in his hand, that he [a](E)killed his servants who had [b]killed the king, his father. 6 But he did not put the sons of [c]the murderers to death, in [d]obedience to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, as the Lord commanded, saying, “(F)The fathers shall not be put to death for the sons, nor the sons be put to death for the fathers; but (G)each shall be put to death for his own sin.”
7 He [e]killed ten thousand of the Edomites in (H)the Valley of Salt, and took (I)Sela by war, and named it (J)Joktheel, as it is to this day.
8 (K)Then Amaziah sent messengers to [f]Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “(L)Come, let’s face each other in combat.” 9 But Jehoash king of Israel sent messengers to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, “(M)The thorn bush that was in Lebanon sent word to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son [g]in marriage.’ But a wild animal that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thorn bush. 10 (N)You have indeed [h]defeated Edom, and (O)your heart [i]is elated. Enjoy the glory and stay home; for why should you get involved in trouble so that you would fall, you and Judah with you?”
11 But Amaziah would not listen. So Jehoash king of Israel went up; and they faced each other, he and Amaziah king of Judah, at (P)Beth-shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 12 And Judah was defeated by Israel, and (Q)they fled, every man to his tent. 13 Then Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and came to Jerusalem and tore down the wall of Jerusalem from (R)the Gate of Ephraim to (S)the Corner Gate, [j]four hundred cubits. 14 And (T)he took all the gold and silver and all the utensils which were found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasuries of the king’s house, the hostages as well, and returned to Samaria.
Jeroboam II Succeeds Jehoash (Joash) in Israel
15 (U)Now as for the rest of the acts of Jehoash that he did, and his might and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 16 So Jehoash [k]lay down with his fathers and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel; and his son Jeroboam became king in his place.
Azariah (Uzziah) Succeeds Amaziah in Judah
17 (V)Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived for fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel. 18 Now as for the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 19 They formed a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to (W)Lachish; but they sent men to Lachish after him and they killed him there. 20 Then 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 [l]Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 22 (X)He built Elath and restored it to Judah after the king [m]lay down with his fathers.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- 2 Kings 14:5 Lit struck
- 2 Kings 14:5 Lit struck
- 2 Kings 14:6 Lit those who struck
- 2 Kings 14:6 Lit accordance with what
- 2 Kings 14:7 Lit struck
- 2 Kings 14:8 In Heb Jehoash is another spelling of Joash
- 2 Kings 14:9 Lit as a wife
- 2 Kings 14:10 Lit struck
- 2 Kings 14:10 Lit has lifted you up
- 2 Kings 14:13 About 600 ft. or 183 m
- 2 Kings 14:16 I.e., died
- 2 Kings 14:21 In 2 Chr 26:1, Uzziah
- 2 Kings 14:22 I.e., died
2 Kings 14:1-22
New Living Translation
Amaziah Rules in Judah
14 Amaziah son of Joash began to rule over Judah in the second year of the reign of King Jehoash[a] of Israel. 2 Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother was Jehoaddin from Jerusalem. 3 Amaziah did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight, but not like his ancestor David. Instead, he followed the example of his father, Joash. 4 Amaziah did not destroy the pagan shrines, and the people still offered sacrifices and burned incense there.
5 When Amaziah was well established as king, he executed the officials who had assassinated his father. 6 However, he did not kill the children of the assassins, for he obeyed the command of the Lord as written by Moses in the Book of the Law: “Parents must not be put to death for the sins of their children, nor children for the sins of their parents. Those deserving to die must be put to death for their own crimes.”[b]
7 Amaziah also killed 10,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt. He also conquered Sela and changed its name to Joktheel, as it is called to this day.
8 One day Amaziah sent messengers with this challenge to Israel’s king Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz and grandson of Jehu: “Come and meet me in battle!”[c]
9 But King Jehoash of Israel replied to King Amaziah of Judah with this story: “Out in the Lebanon mountains, a thistle sent a message to a mighty cedar tree: ‘Give your daughter in marriage to my son.’ But just then a wild animal of Lebanon came by and stepped on the thistle, crushing it!
10 “You have indeed defeated Edom, and you are proud of it. But be content with your victory and stay at home! Why stir up trouble that will only bring disaster on you and the people of Judah?”
11 But Amaziah refused to listen, so King Jehoash of Israel mobilized his army against King Amaziah of Judah. The two armies drew up their battle lines at Beth-shemesh in Judah. 12 Judah was routed by the army of Israel, and its army scattered and fled for home. 13 King Jehoash of Israel captured Judah’s king, Amaziah son of Joash and grandson of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh. Then he marched to Jerusalem, where he demolished 600 feet[d] of Jerusalem’s wall, from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate. 14 He carried off all the gold and silver and all the articles from the Temple of the Lord. He also seized the treasures from the royal palace, along with hostages, and then returned to Samaria.
15 The rest of the events in Jehoash’s reign and everything he did, including the extent of his power and his war with King Amaziah of Judah, are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel. 16 When Jehoash died, he was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. And his son Jeroboam II became the next king.
17 King Amaziah of Judah lived for fifteen years after the death of King Jehoash of Israel. 18 The rest of the events in Amaziah’s reign are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Judah.
19 There was a conspiracy against Amaziah’s life in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish. But his enemies sent assassins after him, and they killed him there. 20 They brought his body back to Jerusalem on a horse, and he was buried with his ancestors in the City of David.
21 All the people of Judah had crowned Amaziah’s sixteen-year-old son, Uzziah,[e] as king in place of his father, Amaziah. 22 After his father’s death, Uzziah rebuilt the town of Elath and restored it to Judah.
Read full chapterNew American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
