2 Kings 11-14
New King James Version
Athaliah Reigns in Judah(A)
11 When (B)Athaliah (C)the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was (D)dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal heirs. 2 But [a]Jehosheba, the daughter of King Joram, sister of (E)Ahaziah, took [b]Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him away from among the king’s sons who were being murdered; and they hid him and his nurse in the bedroom, from Athaliah, so that he was not killed. 3 So he was hidden with her in the house of the Lord for six years, while Athaliah reigned over the land.
Joash Crowned King of Judah(F)
4 In (G)the seventh year Jehoiada sent and brought the captains of hundreds—of the bodyguards and the [c]escorts—and brought them into the house of the Lord to him. And he made a covenant with them and took an oath from them in the house of the Lord, and showed them the king’s son. 5 Then he commanded them, saying, “This is what you shall do: One-third of you who [d]come on duty (H)on the Sabbath shall be keeping watch over the king’s house, 6 one-third shall be at the gate of Sur, and one-third at the gate behind the escorts. You shall keep the watch of the house, lest it be broken down. 7 The two [e]contingents of you who go off duty on the Sabbath shall keep the watch of the house of the Lord for the king. 8 But you shall surround the king on all sides, every man with his weapons in his hand; and whoever comes within range, let him be put to death. You are to be with the king as he goes out and as he comes in.”
9 (I)So the captains of the hundreds did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded. Each of them took his men who were to be on duty on the Sabbath, with those who were going off duty on the Sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest. 10 And the priest gave the captains of hundreds the spears and shields which had belonged to King David, (J)that were in the temple of the Lord. 11 Then the escorts stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, all around the king, from the right [f]side of the temple to the left side of the temple, by the altar and the house. 12 And he brought out the king’s son, put the crown on him, and gave him the (K)Testimony;[g] they made him king and anointed him, and they clapped their hands and said, (L)“Long live the king!”
Death of Athaliah(M)
13 (N)Now when Athaliah heard the noise of the escorts and the people, she came to the people in the temple of the Lord. 14 When she looked, there was the king standing by (O)a pillar according to custom; and the leaders and the trumpeters were by the king. All the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets. So Athaliah tore her clothes and cried out, “Treason! Treason!”
15 And Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of the hundreds, the officers of the army, and said to them, “Take her outside [h]under guard, and slay with the sword whoever follows her.” For the priest had said, “Do not let her be killed in the house of the Lord.” 16 So they seized her; and she went by way of the horses’ entrance into the king’s house, and there she was killed.
17 (P)Then Jehoiada (Q)made a covenant between the Lord, the king, and the people, that they should be the Lord’s people, and also (R)between the king and the people. 18 And all the people of the land went to the (S)temple of Baal, and tore it down. They thoroughly (T)broke in pieces its altars and [i]images, and (U)killed Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And (V)the priest appointed [j]officers over the house of the Lord. 19 Then he took the captains of hundreds, the bodyguards, the escorts, and all the people of the land; and they brought the king down from the house of the Lord, and went by way of the gate of the escorts to the king’s house. Then he sat on the throne of the kings. 20 So all the people of the land rejoiced; and the city was quiet, for they had slain Athaliah with the sword in the king’s house. 21 Jehoash was (W)seven years old when he became king.
Jehoash Repairs the Temple(X)
12 In the seventh year of Jehu, (Y)Jehoash[k] became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. 2 Jehoash did what was right in the sight of the Lord all the days in which (Z)Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 3 But (AA)the [l]high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.
4 And Jehoash said to the priests, (AB)“All the money of the dedicated gifts that are brought into the house of the Lord—each man’s (AC)census[m] money, each man’s (AD)assessment money—and all the money that [n]a man (AE)purposes in his heart to bring into the house of the Lord, 5 let the priests take it themselves, each from his constituency; and let them repair the [o]damages of the temple, wherever any dilapidation is found.”
6 Now it was so, by the twenty-third year of King Jehoash, (AF)that the priests had not repaired the damages of the temple. 7 (AG)So King Jehoash called Jehoiada the priest and the other priests, and said to them, “Why have you not repaired the damages of the temple? Now therefore, do not take more money from your constituency, but deliver it for repairing the damages of the temple.” 8 And the priests agreed that they would neither receive more money from the people, nor repair the damages of the temple.
9 Then Jehoiada the priest took (AH)a chest, bored a hole in its lid, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one comes into the house of the Lord; and the priests who [p]kept the door put (AI)there all the money brought into the house of the Lord. 10 So it was, whenever they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king’s (AJ)scribe[q] and the high priest came up and [r]put it in bags, and counted the money that was found in the house of the Lord. 11 Then they gave the money, which had been apportioned, into the hands of those who did the work, who had the oversight of the house of the Lord; and they [s]paid it out to the carpenters and builders who worked on the house of the Lord, 12 and to masons and stonecutters, and for buying timber and hewn stone, to (AK)repair the damage of the house of the Lord, and for all that was paid out to repair the temple. 13 However (AL)there were not made for the house of the Lord basins of silver, trimmers, sprinkling-bowls, trumpets, any articles of gold or articles of silver, from the money brought into the house of the Lord. 14 But they gave that to the workmen, and they repaired the house of the Lord with it. 15 Moreover (AM)they did not require an account from the men into whose hand they delivered the money to be paid to workmen, for they dealt faithfully. 16 (AN)The money from the trespass offerings and the money from the sin offerings was not brought into the house of the Lord. (AO)It belonged to the priests.
Hazael Threatens Jerusalem
17 (AP)Hazael king of Syria went up and fought against Gath, and took it; then (AQ)Hazael set his face to [t]go up to Jerusalem. 18 And Jehoash king of Judah (AR)took all the sacred things that his fathers, Jehoshaphat and Jehoram and Ahaziah, kings of Judah, had dedicated, and his own sacred things, and all the gold found in the treasuries of the house of the Lord and in the king’s house, and sent them to Hazael king of Syria. Then he went away from Jerusalem.
Death of Joash(AS)
19 Now the rest of the acts of [u]Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
20 And (AT)his servants arose and formed a conspiracy, and killed Joash in the house of [v]the Millo, which goes down to Silla. 21 For [w]Jozachar the son of Shimeath and Jehozabad the son of [x]Shomer, his servants, struck him. So he died, and they buried him with his fathers in the City of David. Then (AU)Amaziah his son reigned in his place.
Jehoahaz Reigns in Israel
13 In the twenty-third year of (AV)Joash[y] the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, (AW)Jehoahaz the son of Jehu became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years. 2 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, and followed the (AX)sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. He did not [z]depart from them.
3 Then (AY)the anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel, and He delivered them into the hand of (AZ)Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of (BA)Ben-Hadad the son of Hazael, all their days. 4 So Jehoahaz (BB)pleaded with the Lord, and the Lord listened to him; for (BC)He saw the oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed them. 5 (BD)Then the Lord gave Israel a deliverer, so that they escaped from under the hand of the Syrians; and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents as before. 6 Nevertheless they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, who had made Israel sin, but walked in them; (BE)and the [aa]wooden image also remained in Samaria. 7 For He left of the army of Jehoahaz only fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers; for the king of Syria had destroyed them (BF)and made them (BG)like the dust at threshing.
8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 9 So Jehoahaz [ab]rested with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. Then [ac]Joash his son reigned in his place.
Jehoash Reigns in Israel
10 In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, [ad]Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned sixteen years. 11 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, but walked in them.
12 (BH)Now the rest of the acts of Joash, (BI)all that he did, and (BJ)his might with which he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 13 So Joash (BK)rested[ae] with his fathers. Then Jeroboam sat on his throne. And Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
Death of Elisha
14 Elisha had become sick with the illness of which he would die. Then Joash the king of Israel came down to him, and wept over his face, and said, “O my father, my father, (BL)the chariots of Israel and their horsemen!”
15 And Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and some arrows.” So he took himself a bow and some arrows. 16 Then he said to the king of Israel, “Put your hand on the bow.” So he put his hand on it, and Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands. 17 And he said, “Open the east window”; and he opened it. Then Elisha said, “Shoot”; and he shot. And he said, “The arrow of the Lord’s deliverance and the arrow of deliverance from Syria; for you must strike the Syrians at (BM)Aphek till you have destroyed them.” 18 Then he said, “Take the arrows”; so he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground”; so he struck three times, and stopped. 19 And the man of God was angry with him, and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed it! (BN)But now you will strike Syria only three times.”
20 Then Elisha [af]died, and they buried him. And the (BO)raiding bands from Moab invaded the land in the spring of the year. 21 So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.
Israel Recaptures Cities from Syria
22 And (BP)Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 But the Lord was (BQ)gracious to them, had compassion on them, and (BR)regarded them, (BS)because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not yet destroy them or cast them from His presence.
24 Now Hazael king of Syria died. Then Ben-Hadad his son reigned in his place. 25 And [ag]Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz recaptured from the hand of Ben-Hadad, the son of Hazael, the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. (BT)Three times Joash defeated him and recaptured the cities of Israel.
Amaziah Reigns in Judah(BU)
14 In (BV)the second year of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, (BW)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, became king. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. 3 And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, yet not like his father David; he did everything (BX)as his father Joash had done. 4 (BY)However the [ah]high places were not taken away, and the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.
5 Now it happened, as soon as the kingdom was established in his hand, that he executed his servants (BZ)who had murdered his father the king. 6 But the children of the murderers he did not execute, according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, in which the Lord commanded, saying, (CA)“Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall children be put to death for their fathers; but a person shall be put to death for his own sin.”
7 (CB)He killed ten thousand Edomites in (CC)the Valley of Salt, and took [ai]Sela by war, (CD)and called its name Joktheel to this day.
8 (CE)Then Amaziah sent messengers to [aj]Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us face one another in battle.” 9 And Jehoash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, (CF)“The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the (CG)cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife’; and a wild beast that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thistle. 10 You have indeed defeated Edom, and (CH)your heart has [ak]lifted you up. Glory in that, and stay at home; for why should you meddle with trouble so that you fall—you and Judah with you?”
11 But Amaziah would not heed. Therefore Jehoash king of Israel went out; so he and Amaziah king of Judah faced one another at (CI)Beth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 12 And Judah was defeated by Israel, and every man fled 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 he went to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from (CJ)the Gate of Ephraim to (CK)the Corner Gate—[al]four hundred cubits. 14 And he took all (CL)the gold and silver, all the articles that were found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria.
15 (CM)Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did—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 [am]rested with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. Then Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.
17 (CN)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. 18 Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 19 And (CO)they formed a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to (CP)Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish and killed him there. 20 Then they brought him on horses, and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the City of David.
21 And all the people of Judah took (CQ)Azariah,[an] who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. 22 He built (CR)Elath[ao] and restored it to Judah, after [ap]the king rested with his fathers.
Jeroboam II Reigns in Israel
23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, became king in Samaria, and reigned forty-one years. 24 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord; he did not depart from all the (CS)sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. 25 He (CT)restored the [aq]territory of Israel (CU)from the entrance of Hamath to (CV)the[ar] Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which He had spoken through His servant (CW)Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from (CX)Gath Hepher. 26 For the Lord (CY)saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter; and whether bond or free, (CZ)there was no helper for Israel. 27 (DA)And the Lord did not say that He would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven; but He saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.
28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did—his might, how he made war, and how he recaptured for Israel, from (DB)Damascus and Hamath, (DC)what had belonged to Judah—are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 29 So Jeroboam [as]rested with his fathers, the kings of Israel. Then (DD)Zechariah his son reigned in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 11:2 Jehoshabeath, 2 Chr. 22:11
- 2 Kings 11:2 Or Jehoash
- 2 Kings 11:4 guards
- 2 Kings 11:5 Lit. enter in
- 2 Kings 11:7 companies
- 2 Kings 11:11 Lit. shoulder
- 2 Kings 11:12 Law, Ex. 25:16, 21; Deut. 31:9
- 2 Kings 11:15 Lit. between ranks
- 2 Kings 11:18 Idols
- 2 Kings 11:18 Lit. offices
- 2 Kings 12:1 Joash, 2 Kin. 11:2ff.
- 2 Kings 12:3 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Kings 12:4 Lit. the money coming over
- 2 Kings 12:4 any man’s heart prompts him to bring
- 2 Kings 12:5 Lit. breaches
- 2 Kings 12:9 guarded at the door
- 2 Kings 12:10 secretary
- 2 Kings 12:10 tied it up
- 2 Kings 12:11 Lit. weighed
- 2 Kings 12:17 Advance upon
- 2 Kings 12:19 Jehoash, vv. 1–18
- 2 Kings 12:20 Lit. The Landfill
- 2 Kings 12:21 Zabad, 2 Chr. 24:26
- 2 Kings 12:21 Shimrith, 2 Chr. 24:26
- 2 Kings 13:1 Jehoash, 2 Kin. 12:1–18
- 2 Kings 13:2 Lit. turn
- 2 Kings 13:6 Heb. Asherah, a Canaanite goddess
- 2 Kings 13:9 Died and joined his ancestors
- 2 Kings 13:9 Or Jehoash
- 2 Kings 13:10 Joash, v. 9
- 2 Kings 13:13 Died and joined his ancestors
- 2 Kings 13:20 Having prophesied at least 55 years
- 2 Kings 13:25 Joash, vv. 12–14, 25
- 2 Kings 14:4 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Kings 14:7 Lit. The Rock; the city of Petra
- 2 Kings 14:8 Joash, 2 Kin. 13:9, 12–14, 25; 2 Chr. 25:17ff.
- 2 Kings 14:10 Made you proud
- 2 Kings 14:13 About 600 feet
- 2 Kings 14:16 Died and joined his ancestors
- 2 Kings 14:21 Uzziah, 2 Chr. 26:1ff.; Is. 6:1; etc.
- 2 Kings 14:22 Heb. Eloth
- 2 Kings 14:22 Amaziah died and joined his ancestors.
- 2 Kings 14:25 border
- 2 Kings 14:25 The Dead Sea
- 2 Kings 14:29 Died and joined his ancestors
2 Chronicles 24-25
New King James Version
Joash Repairs the Temple(A)
24 Joash (B)was seven years old when he became king, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Zibiah of Beersheba. 2 Joash (C)did what was right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jehoiada the priest. 3 And Jehoiada took two wives for him, and he had sons and daughters.
4 Now it happened after this that Joash set his heart on repairing the house of the Lord. 5 Then he gathered the priests and the Levites, and said to them, “Go out to the cities of Judah, and (D)gather from all Israel money to repair the house of your God from year to year, and see that you do it quickly.”
However the Levites did not do it quickly. 6 (E)So the king called Jehoiada the chief priest, and said to him, “Why have you not required the Levites to bring in from Judah and from Jerusalem the collection, according to the commandment of (F)Moses the servant of the Lord and of the assembly of Israel, for the (G)tabernacle of witness?” 7 For (H)the sons of Athaliah, that wicked woman, had broken into the house of God, and had also presented all the (I)dedicated things of the house of the Lord to the Baals.
8 Then at the king’s command (J)they made a chest, and set it outside at the gate of the house of the Lord. 9 And they made a proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem to bring to the Lord (K)the collection that Moses the servant of God had imposed on Israel in the wilderness. 10 Then all the leaders and all the people rejoiced, brought their contributions, and put them into the chest until all had given. 11 So it was, at that time, when the chest was brought to the king’s official by the hand of the Levites, and (L)when they saw that there was much money, that the king’s scribe and the high priest’s officer came and emptied the chest, and took it and returned it to its place. Thus they did day by day, and gathered money in abundance.
12 The king and Jehoiada gave it to those who did the work of the service of the house of the Lord; and they hired masons and carpenters to (M)repair the house of the Lord, and also those who worked in iron and bronze to restore the house of the Lord. 13 So the workmen labored, and the work was completed by them; they restored the house of God to its original condition and reinforced it. 14 When they had finished, they brought the rest of the money before the king and Jehoiada; (N)they made from it articles for the house of the Lord, articles for serving and offering, spoons and vessels of gold and silver. And they offered burnt offerings in the house of the Lord continually all the days of Jehoiada.
Apostasy of Joash
15 But Jehoiada grew old and was full of days, and he died; he was one hundred and thirty years old when he died. 16 And they buried him in the City of David among the kings, because he had done good in Israel, both toward God and His house.
17 Now after the death of Jehoiada the leaders of Judah came and bowed down to the king. And the king listened to them. 18 Therefore they left the house of the Lord God of their fathers, and served (O)wooden images and idols; and (P)wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem because of their trespass. 19 Yet He (Q)sent prophets to them, to bring them back to the Lord; and they testified against them, but they would not listen.
20 Then the Spirit of God [a]came upon (R)Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, who stood above the people, and said to them, “Thus says God: (S)‘Why do you transgress the commandments of the Lord, so that you cannot prosper? (T)Because you have forsaken the Lord, He also has forsaken you.’ ” 21 So they conspired against him, and at the command of the king they (U)stoned him with stones in the court of the house of the Lord. 22 Thus Joash the king did not remember the kindness which Jehoiada his [b]father had done to him, but killed his son; and as he died, he said, “The Lord look on it, and (V)repay!”
Death of Joash(W)
23 So it happened in the spring of the year that (X)the army of Syria came up against him; and they came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the leaders of the people from among the people, and sent all their [c]spoil to the king of Damascus. 24 For the army of the Syrians (Y)came with a small company of men; but the Lord (Z)delivered a very great army into their hand, because they had forsaken the Lord God of their fathers. So they (AA)executed judgment against Joash. 25 And when they had withdrawn from him (for they left him severely wounded), (AB)his own servants conspired against him because of the blood of the [d]sons of Jehoiada the priest, and killed him on his bed. So he died. And they buried him in the City of David, but they did not bury him in the tombs of the kings.
26 These are the ones who conspired against him: [e]Zabad the son of Shimeath the Ammonitess, and Jehozabad the son of [f]Shimrith the Moabitess. 27 Now concerning his sons, and (AC)the many oracles about him, and the repairing of the house of God, indeed they are written in the [g]annals of the book of the kings. (AD)Then Amaziah his son reigned in his place.
Amaziah Reigns in Judah(AE)
25 Amaziah (AF)was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. 2 And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, (AG)but not with a loyal heart.
3 (AH)Now it happened, as soon as the kingdom was established for him, that he executed his servants who had murdered his father the king. 4 However he did not execute their children, but did as it is written in the Law in the Book of Moses, where the Lord commanded, saying, (AI)“The fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall the children be put to death for their fathers; but a person shall die for his own sin.”
The War Against Edom(AJ)
5 Moreover Amaziah gathered Judah together and set over them captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, according to their fathers’ houses, throughout all Judah and Benjamin; and he numbered them (AK)from twenty years old and above, and found them to be three hundred thousand choice men, able to go to war, who could handle spear and shield. 6 He also hired one hundred thousand mighty men of valor from Israel for one hundred talents of silver. 7 But a (AL)man of God came to him, saying, “O king, do not let the army of Israel go with you, for the Lord is not with Israel—not with any of the children of Ephraim. 8 But if you go, be gone! Be strong in battle! Even so, God shall make you fall before the enemy; for God has (AM)power to help and to overthrow.”
9 Then Amaziah said to the man of God, “But what shall we do about the hundred talents which I have given to the troops of Israel?”
And the man of God answered, (AN)“The Lord is able to give you much more than this.” 10 So Amaziah discharged the troops that had come to him from Ephraim, to go back home. Therefore their anger was greatly aroused against Judah, and they returned home in great anger.
11 Then Amaziah strengthened himself, and leading his people, he went to (AO)the Valley of Salt and killed ten thousand of the people of Seir. 12 Also the children of Judah took captive ten thousand alive, brought them to the top of the rock, and cast them down from the top of the rock, so that they all were dashed in pieces.
13 But as for the soldiers of the army which Amaziah had discharged, so that they would not go with him to battle, they raided the cities of Judah from Samaria to Beth Horon, killed three thousand in them, and took much [h]spoil.
14 Now it was so, after Amaziah came from the slaughter of the Edomites, that (AP)he brought the gods of the people of Seir, set them up to be (AQ)his gods, and bowed down before them and burned incense to them. 15 Therefore the anger of the Lord was aroused against Amaziah, and He sent him a prophet who said to him, “Why have you sought (AR)the gods of the people, which (AS)could not rescue their own people from your hand?”
16 So it was, as he talked with him, that the king said to him, “Have we made you the king’s counselor? Cease! Why should you be killed?”
Then the prophet ceased, and said, “I know that God has (AT)determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not heeded my advice.”
Israel Defeats Judah(AU)
17 Now (AV)Amaziah king of Judah asked advice and sent to [i]Joash the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us face one another in battle.”
18 And Joash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, “The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife’; and a wild beast that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thistle. 19 Indeed you say that you have defeated the Edomites, and your heart is lifted up to (AW)boast. Stay at home now; why should you meddle with trouble, that you should fall—you and Judah with you?”
20 But Amaziah would not heed, for (AX)it came from God, that He might give them into the hand of their enemies, because they (AY)sought the gods of Edom. 21 So Joash king of Israel went out; and he and Amaziah king of Judah faced one another at (AZ)Beth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 22 And Judah was defeated by Israel, and every man fled to his tent. 23 Then Joash the king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of (BA)Jehoahaz, at Beth Shemesh; and he brought him to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Gate of Ephraim to the Corner Gate—four hundred cubits. 24 And he took all the gold and silver, all the articles that were found in the house of God with (BB)Obed-Edom, the treasures of the king’s house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria.
Death of Amaziah(BC)
25 (BD)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. 26 Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, from first to last, indeed are they not written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel? 27 After the time that Amaziah turned away from following the Lord, they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish and killed him there. 28 Then they brought him on horses and buried him with his fathers in [j]the City of Judah.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 24:20 Lit. clothed
- 2 Chronicles 24:22 Foster father
- 2 Chronicles 24:23 plunder
- 2 Chronicles 24:25 LXX, Vg. son and vv. 20–22
- 2 Chronicles 24:26 Jozachar, 2 Kin. 12:21
- 2 Chronicles 24:26 Shomer, 2 Kin. 12:21
- 2 Chronicles 24:27 Or commentary, Heb. midrash
- 2 Chronicles 25:13 plunder
- 2 Chronicles 25:17 Jehoash, 2 Kin. 14:8ff.
- 2 Chronicles 25:28 The City of David
Psalm 80
New King James Version
Prayer for Israel’s Restoration
To the Chief Musician. (A)Set to [a]“The Lilies.” A [b]Testimony of Asaph. A Psalm.
80 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
(B)You who lead Joseph (C)like a flock;
You who dwell between the cherubim, (D)shine forth!
2 Before (E)Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh,
Stir up Your strength,
And come and save us!
4 O Lord God of hosts,
(H)How long will You be angry
Against the prayer of Your people?
5 (I)You have fed them with the bread of tears,
And given them tears to drink in great measure.
6 You have made us a strife to our neighbors,
And our enemies laugh among themselves.
7 Restore us, O God of hosts;
Cause Your face to shine,
And we shall be saved!
8 You have brought (J)a vine out of Egypt;
(K)You have cast out the [c]nations, and planted it.
9 You prepared room for it,
And caused it to take deep root,
And it filled the land.
10 The hills were covered with its shadow,
And the [d]mighty cedars with its (L)boughs.
11 She sent out her boughs to [e]the Sea,
And her branches to [f]the River.
12 Why have You (M)broken down her [g]hedges,
So that all who pass by the way pluck her fruit?
13 The boar out of the woods uproots it,
And the wild beast of the field devours it.
14 Return, we beseech You, O God of hosts;
(N)Look down from heaven and see,
And visit this vine
15 And the vineyard which Your right hand has planted,
And the branch that You made strong (O)for Yourself.
16 It is burned with fire, it is cut down;
(P)They perish at the rebuke of Your countenance.
17 (Q)Let Your hand be upon the man of Your right hand,
Upon the son of man whom You made strong for Yourself.
18 Then we will not turn back from You;
Revive us, and we will call upon Your name.
19 Restore us, O Lord God of hosts;
Cause Your face to shine,
And we shall be saved!
Footnotes
- Psalm 80:1 Heb. Shoshannim
- Psalm 80:1 Heb. Eduth
- Psalm 80:8 Gentiles
- Psalm 80:10 Lit. cedars of God
- Psalm 80:11 The Mediterranean
- Psalm 80:11 The Euphrates
- Psalm 80:12 walls or fences
Psalm 86-87
New King James Version
Prayer for Mercy, with Meditation on the Excellencies of the Lord
A Prayer of David.
86 Bow down Your ear, O Lord, hear me;
For I am poor and needy.
2 Preserve my [a]life, for I am holy;
You are my God;
Save Your servant who trusts in You!
3 Be merciful to me, O Lord,
For I cry to You all day long.
4 [b]Rejoice the soul of Your servant,
(A)For to You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
5 For (B)You, Lord, are good, and ready to forgive,
And abundant in mercy to all those who call upon You.
6 Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer;
And attend to the voice of my supplications.
7 In the day of my trouble I will call upon You,
For You will answer me.
8 (C)Among the gods there is none like You, O Lord;
Nor are there any works like Your works.
9 All nations whom You have made
Shall come and worship before You, O Lord,
And shall glorify Your name.
10 For You are great, and (D)do wondrous things;
(E)You alone are God.
11 (F)Teach me Your way, O Lord;
I will walk in Your truth;
[c]Unite my heart to fear Your name.
12 I will praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart,
And I will glorify Your name forevermore.
13 For great is Your mercy toward me,
And You have delivered my soul from the depths of [d]Sheol.
14 O God, the proud have risen against me,
And a mob of violent men have sought my life,
And have not set You before them.
15 But (G)You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious,
Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.
16 Oh, turn to me, and have mercy on me!
Give Your strength to Your servant,
And save the son of Your maidservant.
17 Show me a sign for good,
That those who hate me may see it and be ashamed,
Because You, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.
The Glories of the City of God
A Psalm of the sons of Korah. A Song.
87 His foundation is in the holy mountains.
2 (H)The Lord loves the gates of Zion
More than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 (I)Glorious things are spoken of you,
O city of God! Selah
4 “I will make mention of [e]Rahab and Babylon to those who know Me;
Behold, O Philistia and Tyre, with Ethiopia:
‘This one was born there.’ ”
5 And of Zion it will be said,
“This one and that one were born in her;
And the Most High Himself shall establish her.”
6 The Lord will record,
When He (J)registers the peoples:
“This one was born there.” Selah
7 Both the singers and the players on instruments say,
“All my springs are in you.”
Footnotes
- Psalm 86:2 Lit. soul
- Psalm 86:4 Make glad
- Psalm 86:11 Give me singleness of heart
- Psalm 86:13 The abode of the dead
- Psalm 87:4 Egypt
Psalm 104
New King James Version
Praise to the Sovereign Lord for His Creation and Providence(A)
104 Bless (B)the Lord, O my soul!
O Lord my God, You are very great:
You are clothed with honor and majesty,
2 Who cover Yourself with light as with a garment,
Who stretch out the heavens like a curtain.
3 (C)He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters,
Who makes the clouds His chariot,
Who walks on the wings of the wind,
4 Who makes His angels spirits,
His [a]ministers a flame of fire.
5 You who [b]laid the foundations of the earth,
So that it should not be moved forever,
6 You (D)covered it with the deep as with a garment;
The waters stood above the mountains.
7 At Your rebuke they fled;
At the voice of Your thunder they hastened away.
8 [c]They went up over the mountains;
They went down into the valleys,
To the place which You founded for them.
9 You have (E)set a boundary that they may not pass over,
(F)That they may not return to cover the earth.
10 He sends the springs into the valleys;
They flow among the hills.
11 They give drink to every beast of the field;
The wild donkeys quench their thirst.
12 By them the birds of the heavens have their home;
They sing among the branches.
13 (G)He waters the hills from His upper chambers;
The earth is satisfied with (H)the fruit of Your works.
14 (I)He causes the grass to grow for the cattle,
And vegetation for the service of man,
That he may bring forth (J)food from the earth,
15 And (K)wine that makes glad the heart of man,
Oil to make his face shine,
And bread which strengthens man’s heart.
16 The trees of the Lord are full of sap,
The cedars of Lebanon which He planted,
17 Where the birds make their nests;
The stork has her home in the fir trees.
18 The high hills are for the wild goats;
The cliffs are a refuge for the (L)rock[d] badgers.
19 (M)He appointed the moon for seasons;
The (N)sun knows its going down.
20 (O)You make darkness, and it is night,
In which all the beasts of the forest creep about.
21 (P)The young lions roar after their prey,
And seek their food from God.
22 When the sun rises, they gather together
And lie down in their dens.
23 Man goes out to (Q)his work
And to his labor until the evening.
24 (R)O Lord, how manifold are Your works!
In wisdom You have made them all.
The earth is full of Your (S)possessions—
25 This great and wide sea,
In which are innumerable teeming things,
Living things both small and great.
26 There the ships sail about;
There is that (T)Leviathan[e]
Which You have [f]made to play there.
27 (U)These all wait for You,
That You may give them their food in due season.
28 What You give them they gather in;
You open Your hand, they are filled with good.
29 You hide Your face, they are troubled;
(V)You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust.
30 (W)You send forth Your Spirit, they are created;
And You renew the face of the earth.
31 May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
May the Lord (X)rejoice in His works.
32 He looks on the earth, and it (Y)trembles;
(Z)He touches the hills, and they smoke.
33 (AA)I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
34 May my (AB)meditation be sweet to Him;
I will be glad in the Lord.
35 May (AC)sinners be consumed from the earth,
And the wicked be no more.
Bless the Lord, O my soul!
[g]Praise the Lord!
Footnotes
- Psalm 104:4 servants
- Psalm 104:5 Lit. founded the earth upon her bases
- Psalm 104:8 Or The mountains rose up; The valleys sank down
- Psalm 104:18 rock hyraxes
- Psalm 104:26 A large sea creature of unknown identity
- Psalm 104:26 Lit. formed
- Psalm 104:35 Heb. Hallelujah
Joel 1-3
New King James Version
The Locust Plague in Judah
1 The word of the Lord that came to (A)Joel the son of Pethuel.
The Land Laid Waste(B)
2 Hear this, you elders,
And give ear, all you inhabitants of the land!
(C)Has anything like this happened in your days,
Or even in the days of your fathers?
3 (D)Tell your children about it,
Let your children tell their children,
And their children another generation.
4 (E)What the chewing [a]locust left, the (F)swarming locust has eaten;
What the swarming locust left, the crawling locust has eaten;
And what the crawling locust left, the consuming locust has eaten.
5 Awake, you (G)drunkards, and weep;
And wail, all you drinkers of wine,
Because of the new wine,
(H)For it has been cut off from your mouth.
6 For (I)a nation has come up against My land,
Strong, and without number;
(J)His teeth are the teeth of a lion,
And he has the fangs of a [b]fierce lion.
7 He has (K)laid waste My vine,
And [c]ruined My fig tree;
He has stripped it bare and thrown it away;
Its branches are made white.
8 (L)Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth
For (M)the husband of her youth.
9 (N)The grain offering and the drink offering
Have been cut off from the house of the Lord;
The priests (O)mourn, who minister to the Lord.
10 The field is wasted,
(P)The land mourns;
For the grain is ruined,
(Q)The new wine is dried up,
The oil fails.
11 (R)Be ashamed, you farmers,
Wail, you vinedressers,
For the wheat and the barley;
Because the harvest of the field has perished.
12 (S)The vine has dried up,
And the fig tree has withered;
The pomegranate tree,
The palm tree also,
And the apple tree—
All the trees of the field are withered;
Surely (T)joy has withered away from the sons of men.
Mourning for the Land
13 (U)Gird yourselves and lament, you priests;
Wail, you who minister before the altar;
Come, lie all night in sackcloth,
You who minister to my God;
For the grain offering and the drink offering
Are withheld from the house of your God.
14 (V)Consecrate a fast,
Call (W)a sacred assembly;
Gather the elders
And (X)all the inhabitants of the land
Into the house of the Lord your God,
And cry out to the Lord.
15 (Y)Alas for the day!
For (Z)the day of the Lord is at hand;
It shall come as destruction from the Almighty.
16 Is not the food (AA)cut off before our eyes,
(AB)Joy and gladness from the house of our God?
17 The seed shrivels under the clods,
Storehouses are in shambles;
Barns are broken down,
For the grain has withered.
18 How (AC)the animals groan!
The herds of cattle are restless,
Because they have no pasture;
Even the flocks of sheep [d]suffer punishment.
19 O Lord, (AD)to You I cry out;
For (AE)fire has devoured the [e]open pastures,
And a flame has burned all the trees of the field.
20 The beasts of the field also (AF)cry out to You,
For (AG)the water brooks are dried up,
And fire has devoured the [f]open pastures.
The Day of the Lord
2 Blow (AH)the [g]trumpet in Zion,
And (AI)sound an alarm in My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble;
For (AJ)the day of the Lord is coming,
For it is at hand:
2 (AK)A day of darkness and gloominess,
A day of clouds and thick darkness,
Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains.
(AL)A people come, great and strong,
(AM)The like of whom has never been;
Nor will there ever be any such after them,
Even for many successive generations.
3 A fire devours before them,
And behind them a flame burns;
The land is like (AN)the Garden of Eden before them,
(AO)And behind them a desolate wilderness;
Surely nothing shall escape them.
4 (AP)Their appearance is like the appearance of horses;
And like [h]swift steeds, so they run.
5 (AQ)With a noise like chariots
Over mountaintops they leap,
Like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble,
Like a strong people set in battle array.
6 Before them the people writhe in pain;
(AR)All faces [i]are drained of color.
7 They run like mighty men,
They climb the wall like men of war;
Every one marches in formation,
And they do not break (AS)ranks.
8 They do not push one another;
Every one marches in his own [j]column.
Though they lunge between the weapons,
They are not [k]cut down.
9 They run to and fro in the city,
They run on the wall;
They climb into the houses,
They (AT)enter at the windows (AU)like a thief.
10 (AV)The earth quakes before them,
The heavens tremble;
(AW)The sun and moon grow dark,
And the stars diminish their brightness.
11 (AX)The Lord gives voice before His army,
For His camp is very great;
(AY)For strong is the One who executes His word.
For the (AZ)day of the Lord is great and very terrible;
(BA)Who can endure it?
A Call to Repentance
12 “Now, therefore,” says the Lord,
(BB)“Turn to Me with all your heart,
With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”
13 So (BC)rend your heart, and not (BD)your garments;
Return to the Lord your God,
For He is (BE)gracious and merciful,
Slow to anger, and of great kindness;
And He relents from doing harm.
14 (BF)Who knows if He will turn and relent,
And leave (BG)a blessing behind Him—
(BH)A grain offering and a drink offering
For the Lord your God?
15 (BI)Blow the [l]trumpet in Zion,
(BJ)Consecrate a fast,
Call a sacred assembly;
16 Gather the people,
(BK)Sanctify the congregation,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the children and nursing babes;
(BL)Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber,
And the bride from her dressing room.
17 Let the priests, who minister to the Lord,
Weep (BM)between the porch and the altar;
Let them say, (BN)“Spare Your people, O Lord,
And do not give Your heritage to reproach,
That the nations should [m]rule over them.
(BO)Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’ ”
The Land Refreshed(BP)
18 Then the Lord will (BQ)be zealous for His land,
And pity His people.
19 The Lord will answer and say to His people,
“Behold, I will send you (BR)grain and new wine and oil,
And you will be satisfied by them;
I will no longer make you a reproach among the nations.
20 “But (BS)I will remove far from you (BT)the northern army,
And will drive him away into a barren and desolate land,
With his face toward the eastern sea
And his back (BU)toward the western sea;
His stench will come up,
And his foul odor will rise,
Because he has done [n]monstrous things.”
21 Fear not, O land;
Be glad and rejoice,
For the Lord has done [o]marvelous things!
22 Do not be afraid, you beasts of the field;
For (BV)the open pastures are springing up,
And the tree bears its fruit;
The fig tree and the vine yield their strength.
23 Be glad then, you children of Zion,
And (BW)rejoice in the Lord your God;
For He has given you the [p]former rain faithfully,
And He (BX)will cause the rain to come down for you—
The former rain,
And the latter rain in the first month.
24 The threshing floors shall be full of wheat,
And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.
25 “So I will restore to you the years (BY)that the swarming [q]locust has eaten,
The crawling locust,
The consuming locust,
And the chewing locust,
My great army which I sent among you.
26 You shall (BZ)eat in plenty and be satisfied,
And praise the name of the Lord your God,
Who has dealt wondrously with you;
And My people shall never be put to (CA)shame.
27 Then you shall know that I am (CB)in the midst of Israel:
(CC)I am the Lord your God
And there is no other.
My people shall never be put to shame.
God’s Spirit Poured Out
28 “And(CD) it shall come to pass afterward
That (CE)I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;
(CF)Your sons and your (CG)daughters shall prophesy,
Your old men shall dream dreams,
Your young men shall see visions.
29 And also on My (CH)menservants and on My maidservants
I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
30 “And (CI)I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth:
Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.
31 (CJ)The sun shall be turned into darkness,
And the moon into blood,
(CK)Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.
32 And it shall come to pass
That (CL)whoever calls on the name of the Lord
Shall be [r]saved.
For (CM)in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be [s]deliverance,
As the Lord has said,
Among (CN)the remnant whom the Lord calls.
God Judges the Nations
3 “For behold, (CO)in those days and at that time,
When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem,
2 (CP)I will also gather all nations,
And bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;
And I (CQ)will enter into judgment with them there
On account of My people, My heritage Israel,
Whom they have scattered among the nations;
They have also divided up My land.
3 They have (CR)cast lots for My people,
Have given a boy as payment for a harlot,
And sold a girl for wine, that they may drink.
4 “Indeed, what have you to do with Me,
(CS)O Tyre and Sidon, and all the coasts of Philistia?
Will you [t]retaliate against Me?
But if you [u]retaliate against Me,
Swiftly and speedily I will return your [v]retaliation upon your own head;
5 Because you have taken My silver and My gold,
And have carried into your temples My [w]prized possessions.
6 Also the people of Judah and the people of Jerusalem
You have sold to the Greeks,
That you may remove them far from their borders.
7 “Behold, (CT)I will raise them
Out of the place to which you have sold them,
And will return your [x]retaliation upon your own head.
8 I will sell your sons and your daughters
Into the hand of the people of Judah,
And they will sell them to the (CU)Sabeans,[y]
To a people (CV)far off;
For the Lord has spoken.”
9 (CW)Proclaim this among the nations:
“Prepare for war!
Wake up the mighty men,
Let all the men of war draw near,
Let them come up.
10 (CX)Beat your plowshares into swords
And your [z]pruning hooks into spears;
(CY)Let the weak say, ‘I am strong.’ ”
11 Assemble and come, all you nations,
And gather together all around.
Cause (CZ)Your mighty ones to go down there, O Lord.
12 “Let the nations be wakened, and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;
For there I will sit to (DA)judge all the surrounding nations.
13 (DB)Put in the sickle, for (DC)the harvest is ripe.
Come, go down;
For the (DD)winepress is full,
The vats overflow—
For their wickedness is great.”
14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!
For (DE)the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.
15 The sun and moon will grow dark,
And the stars will diminish their brightness.
16 The Lord also will roar from Zion,
And utter His voice from Jerusalem;
The heavens and earth will shake;
(DF)But the Lord will be a shelter for His people,
And the strength of the children of Israel.
17 “So you shall know that I am the Lord your God,
Dwelling in Zion My (DG)holy mountain.
Then Jerusalem shall be holy,
And no aliens shall ever pass through her again.”
God Blesses His People
18 And it will come to pass in that day
That the mountains shall drip with new wine,
The hills shall flow with milk,
And all the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water;
A (DH)fountain shall flow from the house of the Lord
And water the Valley of [aa]Acacias.
19 “Egypt shall be a desolation,
And Edom a desolate wilderness,
Because of violence against the people of Judah,
For they have shed innocent blood in their land.
20 But Judah shall abide forever,
And Jerusalem from generation to generation.
21 For I will (DI)acquit them of the guilt of bloodshed, whom I had not acquitted;
For the Lord dwells in Zion.”
Footnotes
- Joel 1:4 Exact identity of these locusts unknown
- Joel 1:6 Or lioness
- Joel 1:7 Or splintered
- Joel 1:18 LXX, Vg. are made desolate
- Joel 1:19 Lit. pastures of the wilderness
- Joel 1:20 Lit. pastures of the wilderness
- Joel 2:1 ram’s horn
- Joel 2:4 Or horsemen
- Joel 2:6 LXX, Tg., Vg. gather blackness
- Joel 2:8 Lit. highway
- Joel 2:8 Halted by losses
- Joel 2:15 ram’s horn
- Joel 2:17 Or speak a proverb against them
- Joel 2:20 Lit. great
- Joel 2:21 Lit. great
- Joel 2:23 Or teacher of righteousness
- Joel 2:25 Exact identity of these locusts unknown
- Joel 2:32 Or delivered
- Joel 2:32 Or salvation
- Joel 3:4 Or render Me repayment
- Joel 3:4 Or repay Me
- Joel 3:4 Or repayment
- Joel 3:5 Lit. precious good things
- Joel 3:7 Or repayment
- Joel 3:8 Lit. Shebaites, Is. 60:6; Ezek. 27:22
- Joel 3:10 pruning knives
- Joel 3:18 Heb. Shittim
Amos 1-9
New King James Version
Judgments on Israel’s Neighbors
1 The words of Amos, who was among the (A)sheepbreeders of (B)Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of (C)Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of (D)Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, two years before the (E)earthquake.
2 And he said:
“The Lord (F)roars from Zion,
And utters His voice from Jerusalem;
The pastures of the shepherds mourn,
And the top of (G)Carmel withers.”
Judgment on the Nations
3 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (H)Damascus, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they have (I)threshed Gilead with implements of iron.
4 (J)But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael,
Which shall devour the palaces of (K)Ben-Hadad.
5 I will also break the gate (L)bar of Damascus,
And cut off the inhabitant from the Valley of Aven,
And the one who [a]holds the scepter from [b]Beth Eden.
The people of Syria shall go captive to Kir,”
Says the Lord.
6 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (M)Gaza, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they took captive the whole captivity
To deliver them up to Edom.
7 (N)But I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza,
Which shall devour its palaces.
8 I will cut off the inhabitant (O)from Ashdod,
And the one who holds the scepter from Ashkelon;
I will (P)turn My hand against Ekron,
And (Q)the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,”
Says the Lord God.
9 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (R)Tyre, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they delivered up the whole captivity to Edom,
And did not remember the covenant of brotherhood.
10 But I will send a fire upon the wall of Tyre,
Which shall devour its palaces.”
11 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (S)Edom, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because he pursued his (T)brother with the sword,
And cast off all pity;
His anger tore perpetually,
And he kept his wrath forever.
12 But (U)I will send a fire upon Teman,
Which shall devour the palaces of Bozrah.”
13 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (V)the people of Ammon, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because they ripped open the women with child in Gilead,
That they might enlarge their territory.
14 But I will kindle a fire in the wall of (W)Rabbah,
And it shall devour its palaces,
(X)Amid shouting in the day of battle,
And a tempest in the day of the whirlwind.
15 (Y)Their king shall go into captivity,
He and his princes together,”
Says the Lord.
Judgment on Israel
2 Thus says the Lord:
(Z)“For three transgressions of Moab, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because he (AA)burned the bones of the king of Edom to lime.
2 But I will send a fire upon Moab,
And it shall devour the palaces of (AB)Kerioth;
Moab shall die with tumult,
With shouting and trumpet sound.
3 And I will cut off (AC)the judge from its midst,
And slay all its princes with him,”
Says the Lord.
Judgment on Judah
4 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (AD)Judah, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
(AE)Because they have despised the law of the Lord,
And have not kept His commandments.
(AF)Their lies lead them astray,
Lies (AG)which their fathers followed.
5 (AH)But I will send a fire upon Judah,
And it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem.”
Judgment on Israel
6 Thus says the Lord:
“For three transgressions of (AI)Israel, and for four,
I will not turn away its punishment,
Because (AJ)they sell the righteous for silver,
And the (AK)poor for a pair of sandals.
7 They [c]pant after the dust of the earth which is on the head of the poor,
And (AL)pervert the way of the humble.
(AM)A man and his father go in to the same girl,
(AN)To defile My holy name.
8 They lie down (AO)by every altar on clothes (AP)taken in pledge,
And drink the wine of [d]the condemned in the house of their god.
9 “Yet it was I who destroyed the (AQ)Amorite before them,
Whose height was like the (AR)height of the cedars,
And he was as strong as the oaks;
Yet I (AS)destroyed his fruit above
And his roots beneath.
10 Also it was (AT)I who brought you up from the land of Egypt,
And (AU)led you forty years through the wilderness,
To possess the land of the Amorite.
11 I raised up some of your sons as (AV)prophets,
And some of your young men as (AW)Nazirites.
Is it not so, O you children of Israel?”
Says the Lord.
12 “But you gave the Nazirites wine to drink,
And commanded the prophets (AX)saying,
‘Do not prophesy!’
13 “Behold,(AY) I am [e]weighed down by you,
As a cart full of sheaves [f]is weighed down.
14 (AZ)Therefore [g]flight shall perish from the swift,
The strong shall not strengthen his power,
(BA)Nor shall the mighty [h]deliver himself;
15 He shall not stand who handles the bow,
The swift of foot shall not [i]escape,
Nor shall he who rides a horse deliver himself.
16 The most [j]courageous men of might
Shall flee naked in that day,”
Says the Lord.
Authority of the Prophet’s Message
3 Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up from the land of Egypt, saying:
2 “You(BB) only have I known of all the families of the earth;
(BC)Therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.”
3 Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?
4 Will a lion roar in the forest, when he has no prey?
Will a young lion [k]cry out of his den, if he has caught nothing?
5 Will a bird fall into a snare on the earth, where there is no [l]trap for it?
Will a snare spring up from the earth, if it has caught nothing at all?
6 If a [m]trumpet is blown in a city, will not the people be afraid?
(BD)If there is calamity in a city, will not the Lord have done it?
7 Surely the Lord God does nothing,
Unless (BE)He reveals His secret to His servants the prophets.
8 A lion has roared!
Who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken!
(BF)Who can but prophesy?
Punishment of Israel’s Sins
9 “Proclaim in the palaces at [n]Ashdod,
And in the palaces in the land of Egypt, and say:
‘Assemble on the mountains of Samaria;
See great tumults in her midst,
And the [o]oppressed within her.
10 For they (BG)do not know to do right,’
Says the Lord,
‘Who store up violence and [p]robbery in their palaces.’ ”
11 Therefore thus says the Lord God:
“An adversary shall be all around the land;
He shall sap your strength from you,
And your palaces shall be plundered.”
12 Thus says the Lord:
“As a shepherd [q]takes from the mouth of a lion
Two legs or a piece of an ear,
So shall the children of Israel be taken out
Who dwell in Samaria—
In the corner of a bed and [r]on the edge of a couch!
13 Hear and testify against the house of Jacob,”
Says the Lord God, the God of hosts,
14 “That in the day I punish Israel for their transgressions,
I will also visit destruction on the altars of (BH)Bethel;
And the horns of the altar shall be cut off
And fall to the ground.
15 I will [s]destroy (BI)the winter house along with (BJ)the summer house;
The (BK)houses of ivory shall perish,
And the great houses shall have an end,”
Says the Lord.
God’s Punishments Have Not Reformed Israel
4 Hear this word, you (BL)cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria,
Who oppress the (BM)poor,
Who crush the needy,
Who say to [t]your husbands, “Bring wine, let us (BN)drink!”
2 (BO)The Lord God has sworn by His holiness:
“Behold, the days shall come upon you
When He will take you away (BP)with fishhooks,
And your posterity with fishhooks.
3 (BQ)You will go out through broken walls,
Each one straight ahead of her,
And you will [u]be cast into Harmon,”
Says the Lord.
4 “Come(BR) to Bethel and transgress,
At (BS)Gilgal multiply transgression;
(BT)Bring your sacrifices every morning,
(BU)Your tithes every three [v]days.
5 (BV)Offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving with leaven,
Proclaim and announce (BW)the freewill offerings;
For this you love,
You children of Israel!”
Says the Lord God.
Israel Did Not Accept Correction
6 “Also I gave you [w]cleanness of teeth in all your cities,
And lack of bread in all your places;
(BX)Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
7 “I also withheld rain from you,
When there were still three months to the harvest.
I made it rain on one city,
I withheld rain from another city.
One part was rained upon,
And where it did not rain the part withered.
8 So two or three cities wandered to another city to drink water,
But they were not satisfied;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
9 “I(BY) blasted you with blight and mildew.
When your gardens increased,
Your vineyards,
Your fig trees,
And your olive trees,
(BZ)The locust devoured them;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
10 “I sent among you a plague (CA)after the manner of Egypt;
Your young men I killed with a sword,
Along with your captive horses;
I made the stench of your camps come up into your nostrils;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
11 “I overthrew some of you,
As God overthrew (CB)Sodom and Gomorrah,
And you were like a firebrand plucked from the burning;
Yet you have not returned to Me,”
Says the Lord.
12 “Therefore thus will I do to you, O Israel;
Because I will do this to you,
(CC)Prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”
13 For behold,
He who forms mountains,
And creates the [x]wind,
(CD)Who declares to man what [y]his thought is,
And makes the morning darkness,
(CE)Who treads the high places of the earth—
(CF)The Lord God of hosts is His name.
A Lament for Israel
5 Hear this word which I (CG)take up against you, a lamentation, O house of Israel:
2 The virgin of Israel has fallen;
She will rise no more.
She lies forsaken on her land;
There is no one to raise her up.
3 For thus says the Lord God:
“The city that goes out by a thousand
Shall have a hundred left,
And that which goes out by a hundred
Shall have ten left to the house of Israel.”
A Call to Repentance
4 For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel:
(CH)“Seek Me (CI)and live;
5 But do not seek (CJ)Bethel,
Nor enter Gilgal,
Nor pass over to (CK)Beersheba;
For Gilgal shall surely go into captivity,
And (CL)Bethel shall come to nothing.
6 (CM)Seek the Lord and live,
Lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph,
And devour it,
With no one to quench it in Bethel—
7 You who (CN)turn justice to wormwood,
And lay righteousness to rest in the earth!”
8 He made the (CO)Pleiades and Orion;
He turns the shadow of death into morning
(CP)And makes the day dark as night;
He (CQ)calls for the waters of the sea
And pours them out on the face of the earth;
(CR)The Lord is His name.
9 He [z]rains ruin upon the strong,
So that fury comes upon the fortress.
10 (CS)They hate the one who rebukes in the gate,
And they (CT)abhor the one who speaks uprightly.
11 (CU)Therefore, because you [aa]tread down the poor
And take grain [ab]taxes from him,
Though (CV)you have built houses of hewn stone,
Yet you shall not dwell in them;
You have planted [ac]pleasant vineyards,
But you shall not drink wine from them.
12 For I (CW)know your manifold transgressions
And your mighty sins:
(CX)Afflicting the just and taking bribes;
(CY)Diverting the poor from justice at the gate.
13 Therefore (CZ)the prudent keep silent at that time,
For it is an evil time.
14 Seek good and not evil,
That you may live;
So the Lord God of hosts will be with you,
(DA)As you have spoken.
15 (DB)Hate evil, love good;
Establish justice in the gate.
(DC)It may be that the Lord God of hosts
Will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.
The Day of the Lord
16 Therefore the Lord God of hosts, the Lord, says this:
“There shall be wailing in all streets,
And they shall say in all the highways,
‘Alas! Alas!’
They shall call the farmer to mourning,
(DD)And skillful lamenters to wailing.
17 In all vineyards there shall be wailing,
For (DE)I will pass through you,”
Says the Lord.
18 (DF)Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord!
For what good is (DG)the day of the Lord to you?
It will be darkness, and not light.
19 It will be (DH)as though a man fled from a lion,
And a bear met him!
Or as though he went into the house,
Leaned his hand on the wall,
And a serpent bit him!
20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light?
Is it not very dark, with no brightness in it?
21 “I(DI) hate, I despise your feast days,
And (DJ)I do not savor your sacred assemblies.
22 (DK)Though you offer Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings,
I will not accept them,
Nor will I regard your fattened peace offerings.
23 Take away from Me the noise of your songs,
For I will not hear the melody of your stringed instruments.
24 (DL)But let justice run down like water,
And righteousness like a mighty stream.
25 “Did(DM) you offer Me sacrifices and offerings
In the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?
26 You also carried [ad]Sikkuth[ae] (DN)your king
And Chiun, your idols,
The star of your gods,
Which you made for yourselves.
27 Therefore I will send you into captivity (DO)beyond Damascus,”
Says the Lord, (DP)whose name is the God of hosts.
Warnings to Zion and Samaria
6 Woe (DQ)to you who are at (DR)ease in Zion,
And (DS)trust in Mount Samaria,
Notable persons in the (DT)chief nation,
To whom the house of Israel comes!
2 (DU)Go over to (DV)Calneh and see;
And from there go to (DW)Hamath the great;
Then go down to Gath of the Philistines.
(DX)Are you better than these kingdoms?
Or is their territory greater than your territory?
3 Woe to you who (DY)put far off the day of (DZ)doom,
(EA)Who cause (EB)the seat of violence to come near;
4 Who lie on beds of ivory,
Stretch out on your couches,
Eat lambs from the flock
And calves from the midst of the stall;
5 (EC)Who sing idly to the sound of stringed instruments,
And invent for yourselves (ED)musical instruments (EE)like David;
6 Who (EF)drink wine from bowls,
And anoint yourselves with the best ointments,
(EG)But are not grieved for the affliction of Joseph.
7 Therefore they shall now go (EH)captive as the first of the captives,
And those who recline at banquets shall be removed.
8 (EI)The Lord God has sworn by Himself,
The Lord God of hosts says:
“I abhor (EJ)the pride of Jacob,
And hate his palaces;
Therefore I will deliver up the city
And all that is in it.”
9 Then it shall come to pass, that if ten men remain in one house, they shall die. 10 And when [af]a relative of the dead, with one who will burn the bodies, picks up the [ag]bodies to take them out of the house, he will say to one inside the house, “Are there any more with you?”
Then someone will say, “None.”
And he will say, (EK)“Hold your tongue! (EL)For we dare not mention the name of the Lord.”
11 For behold, (EM)the Lord gives a command:
(EN)He will break the great house into bits,
And the little house into pieces.
12 Do horses run on rocks?
Does one plow there with oxen?
Yet (EO)you have turned justice into gall,
And the fruit of righteousness into wormwood,
13 You who rejoice over [ah]Lo Debar,
Who say, “Have we not taken [ai]Karnaim for ourselves
By our own strength?”
14 “But, behold, (EP)I will raise up a nation against you,
O house of Israel,”
Says the Lord God of hosts;
“And they will afflict you from the (EQ)entrance of Hamath
To the Valley of the Arabah.”
Vision of the Locusts
7 Thus the Lord God showed me: Behold, He formed locust swarms at the [aj]beginning of the late crop; indeed it was the late crop after the king’s mowings. 2 And so it was, when they had finished eating the grass of the land, that I said:
“O Lord God, forgive, I pray!
(ER)Oh,[ak] that Jacob may stand,
For he is small!”
3 So (ES)the Lord relented concerning this.
“It shall not be,” said the Lord.
Vision of the Fire
4 Thus the Lord God showed me: Behold, the Lord God called [al]for conflict by fire, and it consumed the great deep and devoured the [am]territory. 5 Then I said:
“O Lord God, cease, I pray!
(ET)Oh, that Jacob may stand,
For he is small!”
6 So the Lord relented concerning this.
“This also shall not be,” said the Lord God.
Vision of the Plumb Line
7 Thus He showed me: Behold, the Lord stood on a wall made with a plumb line, with a plumb line in His hand. 8 And the Lord said to me, “Amos, what do you see?”
And I said, “A plumb line.”
Then the Lord said:
“Behold, (EU)I am setting a plumb line
In the midst of My people Israel;
(EV)I will not pass by them anymore.
9 (EW)The [an]high places of Isaac shall be desolate,
And the [ao]sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste.
(EX)I will rise with the sword against the house of Jeroboam.”
Amaziah’s Complaint
10 Then Amaziah the (EY)priest of (EZ)Bethel sent to (FA)Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, “Amos has conspired against you in the midst of the house of Israel. The land is not able to [ap]bear all his words. 11 For thus Amos has said:
‘Jeroboam shall die by the sword,
And Israel shall surely be led away (FB)captive
From their own land.’ ”
12 Then Amaziah said to Amos:
“Go, you seer!
Flee to the land of Judah.
There eat bread,
And there prophesy.
13 But (FC)never again prophesy at Bethel,
(FD)For it is the king’s [aq]sanctuary,
And it is the royal [ar]residence.”
14 Then Amos answered, and said to Amaziah:
“I was no prophet,
Nor was I (FE)a son of a prophet,
But I was a (FF)sheepbreeder
And a tender of sycamore fruit.
15 Then the Lord took me [as]as I followed the flock,
And the Lord said to me,
‘Go, (FG)prophesy to My people Israel.’
16 Now therefore, hear the word of the Lord:
You say, ‘Do not prophesy against Israel,
And (FH)do not [at]spout against the house of Isaac.’
17 “Therefore(FI) thus says the Lord:
(FJ)‘Your wife shall be a harlot in the city;
Your sons and daughters shall fall by the sword;
Your land shall be divided by survey line;
You shall die in a (FK)defiled land;
And Israel shall surely be led away captive
From his own land.’ ”
Vision of the Summer Fruit
8 Thus the Lord God showed me: Behold, a basket of summer fruit. 2 And He said, “Amos, what do you see?”
So I said, “A basket of summer fruit.”
Then the Lord said to me:
(FL)“The end has come upon My people Israel;
(FM)I will not pass by them anymore.
3 And (FN)the songs of the temple
Shall be wailing in that day,”
Says the Lord God—
“Many dead bodies everywhere,
(FO)They shall be thrown out in silence.”
4 Hear this, you who [au]swallow up the needy,
And make the poor of the land fail,
5 Saying:
“When will the New Moon be past,
That we may sell grain?
And (FP)the Sabbath,
That we may [av]trade wheat?
(FQ)Making the ephah small and the shekel large,
Falsifying the scales by (FR)deceit,
6 That we may buy the poor for (FS)silver,
And the needy for a pair of sandals—
Even sell the bad wheat?”
7 The Lord has sworn by (FT)the pride of Jacob:
“Surely (FU)I will never forget any of their works.
8 (FV)Shall the land not tremble for this,
And everyone mourn who dwells in it?
All of it shall swell like [aw]the River,
Heave and subside
(FW)Like the River of Egypt.
9 “And it shall come to pass in that day,” says the Lord God,
(FX)“That I will make the sun go down at noon,
And I will darken the earth in [ax]broad daylight;
10 I will turn your feasts into (FY)mourning,
(FZ)And all your songs into lamentation;
(GA)I will bring sackcloth on every waist,
And baldness on every head;
I will make it like mourning for an only son,
And its end like a bitter day.
11 “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God,
“That I will send a famine on the land,
Not a famine of bread,
Nor a thirst for water,
But (GB)of hearing the words of the Lord.
12 They shall wander from sea to sea,
And from north to east;
They shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the Lord,
But shall (GC)not find it.
13 “In that day the fair virgins
And strong young men
Shall faint from thirst.
14 Those who (GD)swear by (GE)the [ay]sin of Samaria,
Who say,
‘As your god lives, O Dan!’
And, ‘As the way of (GF)Beersheba lives!’
They shall fall and never rise again.”
The Destruction of Israel
9 I saw the Lord standing by the altar, and He said:
“Strike the [az]doorposts, that the thresholds may shake,
And (GG)break them on the heads of them all.
I will slay the last of them with the sword.
(GH)He who flees from them shall not get away,
And he who escapes from them shall not be delivered.
2 “Though(GI) they dig into [ba]hell,
From there My hand shall take them;
(GJ)Though they climb up to heaven,
From there I will bring them down;
3 And though they (GK)hide themselves on top of Carmel,
From there I will search and take them;
Though they hide from My sight at the bottom of the sea,
From there I will command the serpent, and it shall bite them;
4 Though they go into captivity before their enemies,
From there (GL)I will command the sword,
And it shall slay them.
(GM)I will set My eyes on them for harm and not for good.”
5 The Lord God of hosts,
He who touches the earth and it (GN)melts,
(GO)And all who dwell there mourn;
All of it shall swell like [bb]the River,
And subside like the River of Egypt.
6 He who builds His (GP)layers[bc] in the sky,
And has founded His strata in the earth;
Who (GQ)calls for the waters of the sea,
And pours them out on the face of the earth—
(GR)The Lord is His name.
7 “Are you not like the [bd]people of Ethiopia to Me,
O children of Israel?” says the Lord.
“Did I not bring up Israel from the land of Egypt,
The (GS)Philistines from (GT)Caphtor,[be]
And the Syrians from (GU)Kir?
8 “Behold, (GV)the eyes of the Lord God are on the sinful kingdom,
And I (GW)will destroy it from the face of the earth;
Yet I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob,”
Says the Lord.
9 “For surely I will command,
And will [bf]sift the house of Israel among all nations,
As grain is sifted in a sieve;
(GX)Yet not the smallest [bg]grain shall fall to the ground.
10 All the sinners of My people shall die by the sword,
(GY)Who say, ‘The calamity shall not overtake nor confront us.’
Israel Will Be Restored
11 “On(GZ) that day I will raise up
The [bh]tabernacle of David, which has fallen down,
And [bi]repair its damages;
I will raise up its ruins,
And rebuild it as in the days of old;
12 (HA)That they may possess the remnant of (HB)Edom,[bj]
And all the Gentiles who are called by My name,”
Says the Lord who does this thing.
13 “Behold, (HC)the days are coming,” says the Lord,
“When the plowman shall overtake the reaper,
And the treader of grapes him who sows seed;
(HD)The mountains shall drip with sweet wine,
And all the hills shall flow with it.
14 (HE)I will bring back the captives of My people Israel;
(HF)They shall build the waste cities and inhabit them;
They shall plant vineyards and drink wine from them;
They shall also make gardens and eat fruit from them.
15 I will plant them in their land,
(HG)And no longer shall they be pulled up
From the land I have given them,”
Says the Lord your God.
Footnotes
- Amos 1:5 Rules
- Amos 1:5 Lit. House of Eden
- Amos 2:7 Or trample on
- Amos 2:8 Or those punished by fines
- Amos 2:13 Or tottering under
- Amos 2:13 Or totters
- Amos 2:14 Or the place of refuge
- Amos 2:14 Lit. save his soul or life
- Amos 2:15 Or save
- Amos 2:16 Lit. strong of his heart among the mighty
- Amos 3:4 Lit. give his voice
- Amos 3:5 Or bait or lure
- Amos 3:6 ram’s horn
- Amos 3:9 So with MT; LXX Assyria
- Amos 3:9 Or oppression
- Amos 3:10 Or devastation
- Amos 3:12 Or snatches
- Amos 3:12 Heb. uncertain, possibly on the cover
- Amos 3:15 Lit. strike
- Amos 4:1 Lit. their masters or lords
- Amos 4:3 Or cast them
- Amos 4:4 Or years, Deut. 14:28
- Amos 4:6 Hunger
- Amos 4:13 Or spirit
- Amos 4:13 Or His
- Amos 5:9 Or flashes forth destruction
- Amos 5:11 trample
- Amos 5:11 Or tribute
- Amos 5:11 desirable
- Amos 5:26 LXX, Vg. tabernacle of Moloch
- Amos 5:26 A pagan deity
- Amos 6:10 Lit. his loved one or uncle
- Amos 6:10 Lit. bones
- Amos 6:13 Lit. Nothing
- Amos 6:13 Lit. Horns, a symbol of strength
- Amos 7:1 Lit. beginning of the sprouting of
- Amos 7:2 Or How shall Jacob stand
- Amos 7:4 to contend
- Amos 7:4 Lit. portion
- Amos 7:9 Places of pagan worship
- Amos 7:9 Or holy places
- Amos 7:10 Or endure
- Amos 7:13 Or holy place
- Amos 7:13 Lit. house
- Amos 7:15 Lit. from behind
- Amos 7:16 Lit. drip
- Amos 8:4 Or trample on, Amos 2:7
- Amos 8:5 Lit. open
- Amos 8:8 The Nile; some Heb. mss., LXX, Tg., Syr., Vg. River (cf. 9:5); MT the light
- Amos 8:9 Lit. a day of light
- Amos 8:14 Or Ashima, a Syrian goddess
- Amos 9:1 Capitals of the pillars
- Amos 9:2 Or Sheol
- Amos 9:5 The Nile
- Amos 9:6 Or stairs
- Amos 9:7 Lit. sons of the Ethiopians
- Amos 9:7 Crete
- Amos 9:9 shake
- Amos 9:9 Lit. pebble
- Amos 9:11 Lit. booth; a figure of a deposed dynasty
- Amos 9:11 Lit. wall up its breaches
- Amos 9:12 LXX mankind
Jonah 1-4
New King James Version
Jonah’s Disobedience
1 Now the word of the Lord came to (A)Jonah the son of Amittai, saying, 2 “Arise, go to (B)Nineveh, that (C)great city, and cry out against it; for (D)their wickedness has come up before Me.” 3 But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to (E)Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to (F)Tarshish (G)from the presence of the Lord.
The Storm at Sea
4 But (H)the Lord [a]sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship was about to be broken up.
5 Then the mariners were afraid; and every man cried out to his god, and threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea, to lighten [b]the load. But Jonah had gone down (I)into the lowest parts of the ship, had lain down, and was fast asleep.
6 So the captain came to him, and said to him, “What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, (J)call on your God; (K)perhaps your God will consider us, so that we may not perish.”
7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us (L)cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this trouble has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah. 8 Then they said to him, (M)“Please tell us! For whose cause is this trouble upon us? What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?”
9 So he said to them, “I am a Hebrew; and I fear [c]the Lord, the God of heaven, (N)who made the sea and the dry land.”
Jonah Thrown into the Sea
10 Then the men were exceedingly afraid, and said to him, “Why have you done this?” For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them. 11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you that the sea may be calm for us?”—for the sea was growing more tempestuous.
12 And he said to them, (O)“Pick me up and [d]throw me into the sea; then the sea will become calm for you. For I know that this great tempest is because of me.”
13 Nevertheless the men rowed hard to return to land, (P)but they could not, for the sea continued to grow more tempestuous against them. 14 Therefore they cried out to the Lord and said, “We pray, O Lord, please do not let us perish for this man’s life, and (Q)do not charge us with innocent blood; for You, O Lord, (R)have done as it pleased You.” 15 So they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, (S)and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men (T)feared the Lord exceedingly, and offered a sacrifice to the Lord and took vows.
Jonah’s Prayer and Deliverance
17 Now the Lord had prepared a great fish to swallow Jonah. And (U)Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah’s Prayer and God’s Answer
2 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the fish’s belly. 2 And he said:
“Out of the belly of Sheol I cried,
And You heard my voice.
3 (X)For You cast me into the deep,
Into the heart of the seas,
And the floods surrounded me;
(Y)All Your billows and Your waves passed over me.
4 (Z)Then I said, ‘I have been cast out of Your sight;
Yet I will look again (AA)toward Your holy temple.’
5 The (AB)waters surrounded me, even to my soul;
The deep closed around me;
Weeds were wrapped around my head.
6 I went down to the [e]moorings of the mountains;
The earth with its bars closed behind me forever;
Yet You have brought up my (AC)life from the pit,
O Lord, my God.
7 “When my soul fainted within me,
I remembered the Lord;
(AD)And my prayer went up to You,
Into Your holy temple.
8 “Those who regard (AE)worthless idols
Forsake their own [f]Mercy.
9 But I will (AF)sacrifice to You
With the voice of thanksgiving;
I will pay what I have (AG)vowed.
(AH)Salvation is of the (AI)Lord.”
10 So the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
Jonah Preaches at Nineveh
3 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, 2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and preach to it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the Lord. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, [g]a three-day journey in extent. 4 And Jonah began to enter the city on the first day’s walk. Then (AJ)he cried out and said, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!”
The People of Nineveh Believe
5 So the (AK)people of Nineveh believed God, proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest to the least of them. 6 Then word came to the king of Nineveh; and he arose from his throne and laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth (AL)and sat in ashes. 7 (AM)And he caused it to be proclaimed and published throughout Nineveh by the decree of the king and his [h]nobles, saying,
Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything; do not let them eat, or drink water. 8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily to God; yes, (AN)let every one turn from his evil way and from (AO)the violence that is in his hands. 9 (AP)Who can tell if God will turn and relent, and turn away from His fierce anger, so that we may not perish?
10 (AQ)Then God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God relented from the disaster that He had said He would bring upon them, and He did not do it.
Jonah’s Anger and God’s Kindness
4 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he became angry. 2 So he prayed to the Lord, and said, “Ah, Lord, was not this what I said when I was still in my country? Therefore I (AR)fled previously to Tarshish; for I know that You are a (AS)gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm. 3 (AT)Therefore now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for (AU)it is better for me to die than to live!”
4 Then the Lord said, “Is it right for you to be angry?”
5 So Jonah went out of the city and sat on the east side of the city. There he made himself a shelter and sat under it in the shade, till he might see what would become of the city. 6 And the Lord God prepared a [i]plant and made it come up over Jonah, that it might be shade for his head to deliver him from his misery. So Jonah [j]was very grateful for the plant. 7 But as morning dawned the next day God prepared a worm, and it so damaged the plant that it withered. 8 And it happened, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat on Jonah’s head, so that he grew faint. Then he wished death for himself, and said, (AV)“It is better for me to die than to live.”
9 Then God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the plant?”
And he said, “It is right for me to be angry, even to death!”
10 But the Lord said, “You have had pity on the plant for which you have not labored, nor made it grow, which [k]came up in a night and perished in a night. 11 And should I not pity Nineveh, (AW)that great city, in which are more than one hundred and twenty thousand persons (AX)who cannot discern between their right hand and their left—and much livestock?”
Footnotes
- Jonah 1:4 Lit. hurled
- Jonah 1:5 Lit. from upon them
- Jonah 1:9 Heb. YHWH
- Jonah 1:12 Lit. hurl
- Jonah 2:6 foundations or bases
- Jonah 2:8 Or Lovingkindness
- Jonah 3:3 Exact meaning unknown
- Jonah 3:7 Lit. great ones
- Jonah 4:6 Heb. kikayon, exact identity unknown
- Jonah 4:6 Lit. rejoiced with great joy
- Jonah 4:10 Lit. was a son of a night
1 Timothy 6
New King James Version
Honor Masters
6 Let as many (A)bondservants as are under the yoke count their own masters worthy of all honor, so that the name of God and His doctrine may not be blasphemed. 2 And those who have believing masters, let them not despise them because they are brethren, but rather serve them because those who are benefited are believers and beloved. Teach and exhort these things.
Error and Greed
3 If anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to (B)wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, (C)and to the [a]doctrine which accords with godliness, 4 he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions, 5 [b]useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. [c]From (D)such withdraw yourself.
6 Now godliness with (E)contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into this world, [d]and it is (F)certain we can carry nothing out. 8 And having food and clothing, with these we shall be (G)content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
The Good Confession
11 But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness. 12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 13 I urge you in the sight of God who gives life to all things, and before Christ Jesus (H)who witnessed the good confession before Pontius Pilate, 14 that you keep this commandment without spot, blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ’s appearing, 15 which He will manifest in His own time, He who is the blessed and only [e]Potentate, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who alone has immortality, dwelling in (I)unapproachable light, (J)whom no man has seen or can see, to whom be honor and everlasting power. Amen.
Instructions to the Rich
17 Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain (K)riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things (L)to enjoy. 18 Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, 19 (M)storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.
Guard the Faith
20 O Timothy! (N)Guard what was committed to your trust, (O)avoiding the profane and [f]idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge— 21 by professing it some have strayed concerning the faith.
Grace be with you. Amen.
Footnotes
- 1 Timothy 6:3 teaching
- 1 Timothy 6:5 NU, M constant friction
- 1 Timothy 6:5 NU omits the rest of v. 5.
- 1 Timothy 6:7 NU omits and it is certain
- 1 Timothy 6:15 Sovereign
- 1 Timothy 6:20 empty chatter
2 Timothy 1-4
New King James Version
Greeting
1 Paul, an apostle of [a]Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the (A)promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,
2 To Timothy, a (B)beloved son:
Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.
Timothy’s Faith and Heritage
3 I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my (C)forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, 4 greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, 5 when I call to remembrance (D)the [b]genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and (E)your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. 6 Therefore I remind you (F)to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For (G)God has not given us a spirit of fear, (H)but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Not Ashamed of the Gospel
8 (I)Therefore do not be ashamed of (J)the testimony of our Lord, nor of me (K)His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, 9 who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, (L)not according to our works, but (M)according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus (N)before time began, 10 but (O)has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, 11 (P)to which I was appointed a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher [c]of the Gentiles. 12 For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, (Q)for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day.
Be Loyal to the Faith
13 (R)Hold fast (S)the pattern of (T)sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus. 14 That good thing which was committed to you, keep by the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.
15 This you know, that all those in Asia have turned away from me, among whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes. 16 The Lord grant mercy to the (U)household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain; 17 but when he arrived in Rome, he sought me out very zealously and found me. 18 The Lord (V)grant to him that he may find mercy from the Lord (W)in that Day—and you know very well how many ways he (X)ministered [d]to me at Ephesus.
Be Strong in Grace
2 You therefore, (Y)my son, (Z)be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also. 3 You therefore must (AA)endure[e] hardship (AB)as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. 4 (AC)No one engaged in warfare entangles himself with the affairs of this life, that he may please him who enlisted him as a soldier. 5 And also (AD)if anyone competes in athletics, he is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 The hardworking farmer must be first to partake of the crops. 7 Consider what I say, and [f]may the Lord (AE)give you understanding in all things.
8 Remember that Jesus Christ, (AF)of the seed of David, (AG)was raised from the dead (AH)according to my gospel, 9 (AI)for which I suffer trouble as an evildoer, (AJ)even to the point of chains; (AK)but the word of God is not chained. 10 Therefore (AL)I endure all things for the sake of the [g]elect, (AM)that they also may obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory.
11 This is a faithful saying:
For (AN)if we died with Him,
We shall also live with Him.
12 (AO)If we endure,
We shall also reign with Him.
(AP)If we deny Him,
He also will deny us.
13 If we are faithless,
He remains faithful;
He (AQ)cannot deny Himself.
Approved and Disapproved Workers
14 Remind them of these things, (AR)charging them before the Lord not to [h]strive about words to no profit, to the ruin of the hearers. 15 (AS)Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. 16 But shun profane and [i]idle babblings, for they will [j]increase to more ungodliness. 17 And their message will spread like cancer. (AT)Hymenaeus and Philetus are of this sort, 18 who have strayed concerning the truth, (AU)saying that the resurrection is already past; and they overthrow the faith of some. 19 Nevertheless (AV)the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord (AW)knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of [k]Christ depart from iniquity.”
20 But in a great house there are not only (AX)vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and clay, some for honor and some for dishonor. 21 Therefore if anyone cleanses himself from the latter, he will be a vessel for honor, [l]sanctified and useful for the Master, (AY)prepared for every good work. 22 (AZ)Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23 But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife. 24 And (BA)a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, (BB)able to teach, (BC)patient, 25 (BD)in humility correcting those who are in opposition, (BE)if God perhaps will grant them repentance, (BF)so that they may know the truth, 26 and that they may come to their senses and (BG)escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.
Perilous Times and Perilous Men
3 But know this, that (BH)in the last days [m]perilous times will come: 2 For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 unloving, [n]unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, 4 (BI)traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 (BJ)having a form of godliness but (BK)denying its power. And (BL)from such people turn away! 6 For (BM)of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, 7 always learning and never able (BN)to come to the knowledge of the truth. 8 (BO)Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: (BP)men of corrupt minds, (BQ)disapproved concerning the faith; 9 but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, (BR)as theirs also was.
The Man of God and the Word of God
10 (BS)But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, 11 persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me (BT)at Antioch, (BU)at Iconium, (BV)at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And (BW)out of them all the Lord delivered me. 12 Yes, and (BX)all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. 13 (BY)But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But you must (BZ)continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 15 and that from childhood you have known (CA)the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
16 (CB)All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, (CC)and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for [o]instruction in righteousness, 17 (CD)that the man of God may be complete, (CE)thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Preach the Word
4 I (CF)charge you [p]therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, (CG)who will judge the living and the dead [q]at His appearing and His kingdom: 2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. (CH)Convince, (CI)rebuke, (CJ)exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 3 (CK)For the time will come when they will not endure (CL)sound doctrine, (CM)but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and (CN)be turned aside to fables. 5 But you be watchful in all things, (CO)endure afflictions, do the work of (CP)an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
Paul’s Valedictory
6 For (CQ)I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of (CR)my departure is at hand. 7 (CS)I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Finally, there is laid up for me (CT)the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous (CU)Judge, will give to me (CV)on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.
The Abandoned Apostle
9 Be diligent to come to me quickly; 10 for (CW)Demas has forsaken me, (CX)having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonica—Crescens for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia. 11 Only Luke is with me. Get (CY)Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for ministry. 12 And (CZ)Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus. 13 Bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas when you come—and the books, especially the parchments.
14 (DA)Alexander the coppersmith did me much harm. May the Lord repay him according to his works. 15 You also must beware of him, for he has greatly resisted our words.
16 At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me. (DB)May it not be charged against them.
The Lord Is Faithful
17 (DC)But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, (DD)so that the message might be preached fully through me, and that all the Gentiles might hear. Also I was delivered (DE)out of the mouth of the lion. 18 (DF)And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. (DG)To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!
Come Before Winter
19 Greet (DH)Prisca and Aquila, and the household of (DI)Onesiphorus. 20 (DJ)Erastus stayed in Corinth, but (DK)Trophimus I have left in Miletus sick.
21 Do your utmost to come before winter.
Eubulus greets you, as well as Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brethren.
Farewell
22 The Lord [r]Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Grace be with you. Amen.
Footnotes
- 2 Timothy 1:1 NU, M Christ Jesus
- 2 Timothy 1:5 Lit. unhypocritical
- 2 Timothy 1:11 NU omits of the Gentiles
- 2 Timothy 1:18 to me from Vg., a few Gr. mss.
- 2 Timothy 2:3 NU You must share
- 2 Timothy 2:7 NU the Lord will give you
- 2 Timothy 2:10 chosen ones
- 2 Timothy 2:14 battle
- 2 Timothy 2:16 empty chatter
- 2 Timothy 2:16 lead
- 2 Timothy 2:19 NU, M the Lord
- 2 Timothy 2:21 set apart
- 2 Timothy 3:1 times of stress
- 2 Timothy 3:3 irreconcilable
- 2 Timothy 3:16 training, discipline
- 2 Timothy 4:1 NU omits therefore
- 2 Timothy 4:1 NU and by
- 2 Timothy 4:22 NU omits Jesus Christ
Titus 1-2
New King James Version
Greeting
1 Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and (A)the acknowledgment of the truth (B)which accords with godliness, 2 in hope of eternal life which God, who (C)cannot lie, promised before time began, 3 but has in due time manifested His word through preaching, which was committed to me according to the commandment of God our Savior;
4 To (D)Titus, a true son in our common faith:
Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and [a]the Lord Jesus Christ our Savior.
Qualified Elders
5 For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should (E)set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you— 6 if a man is blameless, the husband of one wife, (F)having faithful children not accused of [b]dissipation or insubordination. 7 For a [c]bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, (G)not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, 8 but hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled, 9 holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict.
The Elders’ Task
10 For there are many insubordinate, both idle (H)talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, 11 whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, (I)for the sake of dishonest gain. 12 (J)One of them, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” 13 This testimony is true. (K)Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, 14 not giving heed to Jewish fables and (L)commandments of men who turn from the truth. 15 (M)To the pure all things are pure, but to those who are defiled and unbelieving nothing is pure; but even their mind and conscience are defiled. 16 They profess to (N)know God, but (O)in works they deny Him, being [d]abominable, disobedient, (P)and disqualified for every good work.
Qualities of a Sound Church
2 But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: 2 that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; 3 the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things— 4 that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, 5 to be discreet, chaste, (Q)homemakers, good, (R)obedient to their own husbands, (S)that the word of God may not be blasphemed.
6 Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, 7 in all things showing yourself to be (T)a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, (U)incorruptibility,[e] 8 sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of [f]you.
9 Exhort (V)bondservants to be obedient to their own masters, to be well pleasing in all things, not answering back, 10 not [g]pilfering, but showing all good [h]fidelity, that they may adorn the doctrine of God our Savior in all things.
Trained by Saving Grace
11 For (W)the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 (X)looking for the blessed (Y)hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 (Z)who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed (AA)and purify for Himself (AB)His own special people, zealous for good works.
15 Speak these things, (AC)exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.
Footnotes
- Titus 1:4 NU Christ Jesus
- Titus 1:6 debauchery, lit. incorrigibility
- Titus 1:7 Lit. overseer
- Titus 1:16 detestable
- Titus 2:7 NU omits incorruptibility
- Titus 2:8 NU, M us
- Titus 2:10 thieving
- Titus 2:10 honesty
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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