The Risen Christ, Faith’s Reality^(A)

15 Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel ^(B)which I preached to you, which also you received and ^(C)in which you stand, ^2 (D)by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless ^(E)you believed in vain.

³ For ^(F)I delivered to you first of all that ^(G)which I also received: that Christ died for our sins ^(H)according to the Scriptures, ⁴ and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day ^(I)according to the Scriptures, ^5 (J)and that He was seen by ^[a]Cephas, then ^(K)by the twelve. ⁶ After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have ^[b]fallen asleep. ⁷ After that He was seen by James, then ^(L)by all the apostles. ^8 (M)Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time.

⁹ For I am ^(N)the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because ^(O)I persecuted the church of God. ¹⁰ But ^(P)by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, ^(Q)yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. ¹¹ Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

The Risen Christ, Our Hope^(R)

¹² Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? ¹³ But if there is no resurrection of the dead, ^(S)then Christ is not risen. ¹⁴ And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. ¹⁵ Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because ^(T)we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up—if in fact the dead do not rise. ¹⁶ For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. ¹⁷ And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; ^(U)you are still in your sins! ¹⁸ Then also those who have ^[c]fallen ^(V)asleep in Christ have perished. ^19 (W)If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.

The Last Enemy Destroyed

²⁰ But now ^(X)Christ is risen from the dead, and has become ^(Y)the firstfruits of those who have ^[d]fallen asleep. ²¹ For ^(Z)since by man came death, ^(AA)by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. ²² For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall ^(AB)be made alive. ²³ But ^(AC)each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming. ²⁴ Then comes the end, when He delivers ^(AD)the kingdom to God the Father, when He puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. ²⁵ For He must reign ^(AE)till He has put all enemies under His feet. ^26 (AF)The last enemy that will be destroyed is death. ²⁷ For ^(AG)“He has put all things under His feet.” But when He says “all things are put under Him,” it is evident that He who put all things under Him is excepted. ^28 (AH)Now when all things are made subject to Him, then ^(AI)the Son Himself will also be subject to Him who put all things under Him, that God may be all in all.

Effects of Denying the Resurrection

²⁹ Otherwise, what will they do who are baptized for the dead, if the dead do not rise at all? Why then are they baptized for the dead? ³⁰ And ^(AJ)why do we stand in ^[e]jeopardy every hour? ³¹ I affirm, by ^(AK)the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, ^(AL)I die daily. ³² If, in the manner of men, ^(AM)I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantage is it to me? If the dead do not rise, ^(AN)“Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!”

³³ Do not be deceived: ^(AO)“Evil company corrupts good habits.” ^34 (AP)Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; ^(AQ)for some do not have the knowledge of God. ^(AR)I speak this to your shame.

Ahab’s Seventy Sons Killed

10 Now Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. And Jehu wrote and sent letters to Samaria, to the rulers of ^[a]Jezreel, to the elders, and to ^[b]those who reared Ahab’s sons, saying:

⁴ But they were exceedingly afraid, and said, “Look, ^(A)two kings could not ^[d]stand up to him; how then can we stand?” ⁵ And he who was in charge of the house, and he who was in charge of the city, the elders also, and those who reared the sons, sent to Jehu, saying, “We are your servants, we will do all you tell us; but we will not make anyone king. Do what is good in your sight.” ⁶ Then he wrote a second letter to them, saying:

Now the king’s sons, seventy persons, were with the great men of the city, who were rearing them. ⁷ So it was, when the letter came to them, that they took the king’s sons and ^(B)slaughtered seventy persons, put their heads in baskets and sent them to him at Jezreel.

⁸ Then a messenger came and told him, saying, “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons.”

And he said, “Lay them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until morning.”

⁹ So it was, in the morning, that he went out and stood, and said to all the people, “You are righteous. Indeed ^(C)I conspired against my master and killed him; but who killed all these? ¹⁰ Know now that nothing shall ^(D)fall to the earth of the word of the Lord which the Lord spoke concerning the house of Ahab; for the Lord has done what He spoke ^(E)by His servant Elijah.” ¹¹ So Jehu killed all who remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men and his close acquaintances and his priests, until he left him none remaining.

Ahaziah’s Forty-two Brothers Killed

¹² And he arose and departed and went to Samaria. On the way, at ^[e]Beth Eked of the Shepherds, ^13 (F)Jehu met with the brothers of Ahaziah king of Judah, and said, “Who are you?”

So they answered, “We are the brothers of Ahaziah; we have come down to greet the sons of the king and the sons of the queen mother.”

¹⁴ And he said, “Take them alive!” So they took them alive, and ^(G)killed them at the well of ^[f]Beth Eked, forty-two men; and he left none of them.

The Rest of Ahab’s Family Killed

¹⁵ Now when he departed from there, he ^[g]met ^(H)Jehonadab the son of ^(I)Rechab, coming to meet him; and he greeted him and said to him, “Is your heart right, as my heart is toward your heart?”

And Jehonadab answered, “It is.”

Jehu said, “If it is, ^(J)give me your hand.” So he gave him his hand, and he took him up to him into the chariot. ¹⁶ Then he said, “Come with me, and see my ^(K)zeal for the Lord.” So they had him ride in his chariot. ¹⁷ And when he came to Samaria, ^(L)he killed all who remained to Ahab in Samaria, till he had destroyed them, according to the word of the Lord ^(M)which He spoke to Elijah.

Worshipers of Baal Killed

¹⁸ Then Jehu gathered all the people together, and said to them, ^(N)“Ahab served Baal a little, Jehu will serve him much. ¹⁹ Now therefore, call to me all the ^(O)prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests. Let no one be missing, for I have a great sacrifice for Baal. Whoever is missing shall not live.” But Jehu acted deceptively, with the intent of destroying the worshipers of Baal. ²⁰ And Jehu said, ^[h]“Proclaim a solemn assembly for Baal.” So they proclaimed it. ²¹ Then Jehu sent throughout all Israel; and all the worshipers of Baal came, so that there was not a man left who did not come. So they came into the ^[i]temple of Baal, and the ^(P)temple of Baal was full from one end to the other. ²² And he said to the one in charge of the wardrobe, “Bring out vestments for all the worshipers of Baal.” So he brought out vestments for them. ²³ Then Jehu and Jehonadab the son of Rechab went into the temple of Baal, and said to the worshipers of Baal, “Search and see that no servants of the Lord are here with you, but only the worshipers of Baal.” ²⁴ So they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jehu had appointed for himself eighty men on the outside, and had said, “If any of the men whom I have brought into your hands escapes, whoever lets him escape, it shall be ^(Q)his life for the life of the other.”

²⁵ Now it happened, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt offering, that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains, “Go in and kill them; let no one come out!” And they killed them with the edge of the sword; then the guards and the officers threw them out, and went into the ^[j]inner room of the temple of Baal. ²⁶ And they brought the ^(R)sacred pillars out of the temple of Baal and burned them. ²⁷ Then they broke down the sacred pillar of Baal, and tore down the ^[k]temple of Baal and ^(S)made it a refuse dump to this day. ²⁸ Thus Jehu destroyed Baal from Israel.

²⁹ However Jehu did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin, that is, from ^(T)the golden calves that were at Bethel and Dan. ³⁰ And the Lord ^(U)said to Jehu, “Because you have done well in doing what is right in My sight, and have done to the house of Ahab all that was in My heart, ^(V)your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.” ³¹ But Jehu ^[l]took no heed to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart; for he did not depart from ^(W)the sins of Jeroboam, who had made Israel sin.

Death of Jehu

³² In those days the Lord began to cut off parts of Israel; and ^(X)Hazael conquered them in all the territory of Israel ³³ from the Jordan eastward: all the land of Gilead—Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh—from ^(Y)Aroer, which is by the River Arnon, including ^(Z)Gilead and Bashan.

³⁴ Now the rest of the acts of Jehu, all that he did, and all his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? ³⁵ So Jehu ^[m]rested with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. Then ^(AA)Jehoahaz his son reigned in his place. ³⁶ And the period that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty-eight years.

Judgment on Israel and Judah

1 The word of the Lord that came to ^(A)Micah of Moresheth in the days of ^(B)Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.

The Coming Judgment on Israel

Mourning for Israel and Judah