2 Kings 14
English Standard Version
Amaziah Reigns in Judah
14 (A)In the (B)second year of Joash the son of Joahaz, king of Israel, (C)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, began to reign. 2 He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. 3 And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, yet not like David his father. He did in all things as Joash his father had done. 4 (D)But the high places were not removed; (E)the people still sacrificed and made offerings on the high places. 5 And as soon as the royal power was (F)firmly in his hand, he struck down his servants (G)who had struck down the king his father. 6 But he did not put to death the children of the murderers, according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, where the Lord commanded, (H)“Fathers shall not be put to death because of their children, nor shall children be put to death because of their fathers. But each one shall die for his own sin.”
7 (I)He struck down ten thousand Edomites in (J)the Valley of Salt and took (K)Sela by storm, and called it (L)Joktheel, which is its name to this day.
8 (M)Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash[a] the son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, (N)let us look one another in the face.” 9 And Jehoash king of Israel sent word to Amaziah king of Judah, (O)“A thistle on Lebanon sent to a cedar on Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son for a wife,’ and a wild beast of Lebanon passed by and trampled down the thistle. 10 You have indeed (P)struck down Edom, (Q)and your heart has lifted you up. Be content with your glory, and stay at home, for why should you provoke trouble so that you fall, you and Judah with you?”
11 But Amaziah would not listen. So Jehoash king of Israel went up, and he and Amaziah king of Judah (R)faced one another in battle at (S)Beth-shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 12 And Judah was defeated by Israel, (T)and every man fled to his home. 13 And Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and came to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem for four hundred cubits,[b] from (U)the Ephraim Gate to (V)the Corner Gate. 14 And he seized (W)all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king's house, also hostages, and he returned to Samaria.
15 (X)Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash that he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 16 And Jehoash slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.
17 (Y)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. 18 Now the rest of the deeds of Amaziah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? 19 And they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to (Z)Lachish. But they sent after him to Lachish and put him to death there. 20 And they brought him on horses; and he was buried in Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David. 21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. 22 He built (AA)Elath and restored it to Judah, after the king slept 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, began to reign in Samaria, and he reigned forty-one years. 24 And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, (AB)which he made Israel to sin. 25 (AC)He restored the border of Israel (AD)from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of (AE)the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant (AF)Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was from (AG)Gath-hepher. 26 For the Lord (AH)saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter, (AI)for there was none left, bond or free, and there was none to help Israel. 27 (AJ)But the Lord had not said that he would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven, so 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, and his might, how he fought, and how he restored (AK)Damascus and (AL)Hamath to Judah in Israel, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? 29 And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, the kings of Israel, and Zechariah his son reigned in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 14:8 Jehoash is an alternate spelling of Joash (son of Jehoahaz) as in 13:9, 12–14; also verses 9, 11–16
- 2 Kings 14:13 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
2 Kings 14
Common English Bible
Amaziah rules Judah
14 Amaziah, the son of Judah’s King Jehoash,[a] became king in the second year of Israel’s King Joash, who was Jehoahaz’s son. 2 Amaziah was 25 years old when he became king, and he ruled for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin; she was from Jerusalem. 3 He did what was right in the Lord’s eyes, but not as well as his ancestor King David. He did everything his father Jehoash did. 4 However, the shrines weren’t removed. People kept sacrificing and burning incense at them. 5 Once he had secured control over his kingdom, he executed the officials who had assassinated his father the king. 6 However, he didn’t kill the children of the murderers, because of what is written in the Instruction scroll from Moses, where the Lord commanded, Parents shouldn’t be executed because of what their children have done; neither should children be executed because of what their parents have done. Each person should be executed for their own guilty acts.[b]
7 Next Amaziah struck down ten thousand Edomites in the Salt Valley and captured Sela in battle. He renamed it Jokthe-el, which is what it is still called today. 8 Then Amaziah sent messengers to Israel’s King Joash[c] son of Jehoahaz son of Israel’s King Jehu, saying, “Come on! Let’s go head-to-head.”
9 But Israel’s King Joash responded to Judah’s King Amaziah, “Once upon a time, a thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar, ‘Give your daughter to my son as a wife.’ But then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle. 10 You have definitely defeated Edom and have now become conceited. Enjoy the honor, but stay home. Why invite disaster when both you and Judah will fall?”
11 But Amaziah wouldn’t listen, so Israel’s King Joash moved against him, and he and Judah’s King Amaziah went head-to-head in battle at Beth-shemesh in Judah. 12 Judah was defeated by Israel, and everyone ran home. 13 At Beth-shemesh, Israel’s King Joash captured Judah’s King Amaziah, Jehoash’s son and Ahaziah’s grandson. Joash then marched to Jerusalem and broke down six hundred feet of the Jerusalem wall from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate. 14 Joash took all the gold and silver, and all the objects he could find in the Lord’s temple and the treasuries of the palace, along with some hostages and returned to Samaria. 15 The rest of Joash’s deeds and his powerful acts—how he fought against Judah’s King Amaziah—aren’t they written in the official records of Israel’s kings? 16 Joash lay down with his ancestors. He was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. His son Jeroboam succeeded him as king.
17 Judah’s King Amaziah, Jehoash’s son, lived fifteen years after the death of Israel’s King Joash, Jehoahaz’s son. 18 The rest of Amaziah’s deeds, aren’t they written in the official records of Judah’s kings? 19 Some people in Jerusalem plotted against him. When Amaziah fled to Lachish, they sent men after him to Lachish, and they murdered him there. 20 They carried him back on horses, and he was buried in Jerusalem with his ancestors in David’s City.
21 Then all the people of Judah took Azariah and made him king after his father Amaziah. He was 16 years old. 22 He rebuilt Elath, restoring it to Judah after King Amaziah had lain down with his ancestors.
Jeroboam II rules Israel
23 Jeroboam, the son of Israel’s King Joash, became king in Samaria in the fifteenth year of Judah’s King Amaziah, Jehoash’s son. He ruled for forty-one years. 24 He did what was evil in the Lord’s eyes. He didn’t deviate from all the sins that Jeroboam, Nebat’s son, had caused Israel to commit. 25 He reestablished Israel’s border from Lebo-hamath to the Dead Sea. This was in agreement with the word that the Lord, the God of Israel, spoke through his servant the prophet Jonah, Amittai’s son, who was from Gath-hepher. 26 The Lord saw how brutally Israel suffered, whether slave or free, with no one to help Israel. 27 But the Lord hadn’t said he would erase Israel’s name from under heaven, so he saved them through Jeroboam, Joash’s son. 28 The rest of Jeroboam’s deeds, all that he accomplished, and his powerful acts—how he fought and how he restored Damascus and Hamath to Judah in Israel[d]—aren’t they written in the official records of Israel’s kings? 29 Jeroboam lay down with his ancestors the kings of Israel. His son Zechariah succeeded him as king.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 14:1 Heb Joash (also in 14:3, 17, 23); the king’s name is variously spelled in either long Jehoash or short Joash form. The latter is the form used in 2 Chron.
- 2 Kings 14:6 Deut 24:16
- 2 Kings 14:8 Heb Jehoash (also in 14:9, 11, 13, 15, 16-17); the king’s name is variously spelled in either long Jehoash or short Joash form. The latter is the form used in 2 Chron.
- 2 Kings 14:28 Heb uncertain
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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