Amaziah Reigns in Judah(A)

14 In (B)the second year of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, (C)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, became king. 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. And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, yet not like his father David; he did everything (D)as his father Joash had done. (E)However the [a]high places were not taken away, and the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.

Now it happened, as soon as the kingdom was established in his hand, that he executed his servants (F)who had murdered his father the king. 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, (G)“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.”

(H)He killed ten thousand Edomites in (I)the Valley of Salt, and took [b]Sela by war, (J)and called its name Joktheel to this day.

(K)Then Amaziah sent messengers to [c]Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us face one another in battle. And Jehoash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, (L)“The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the (M)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 (N)your heart has [d]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 (O)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 (P)the Gate of Ephraim to (Q)the Corner Gate—[e]four hundred cubits. 14 And he took all (R)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 (S)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 [f]rested with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. Then Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.

17 (T)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 (U)they formed a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to (V)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 (W)Azariah,[g] who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. 22 He built (X)Elath[h] and restored it to Judah, after [i]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 (Y)sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. 25 He (Z)restored the [j]territory of Israel (AA)from the entrance of Hamath to (AB)the[k] Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which He had spoken through His servant (AC)Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from (AD)Gath Hepher. 26 For the Lord (AE)saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter; and whether bond or free, (AF)there was no helper for Israel. 27 (AG)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 (AH)Damascus and Hamath, (AI)what had belonged to Judah—are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 29 So Jeroboam [l]rested with his fathers, the kings of Israel. Then (AJ)Zechariah his son reigned in his place.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 14:4 Places for pagan worship
  2. 2 Kings 14:7 Lit. The Rock; the city of Petra
  3. 2 Kings 14:8 Joash, 2 Kin. 13:9, 12–14, 25; 2 Chr. 25:17ff.
  4. 2 Kings 14:10 Made you proud
  5. 2 Kings 14:13 About 600 feet
  6. 2 Kings 14:16 Died and joined his ancestors
  7. 2 Kings 14:21 Uzziah, 2 Chr. 26:1ff.; Is. 6:1; etc.
  8. 2 Kings 14:22 Heb. Eloth
  9. 2 Kings 14:22 Amaziah died and joined his ancestors.
  10. 2 Kings 14:25 border
  11. 2 Kings 14:25 The Dead Sea
  12. 2 Kings 14:29 Died and joined his ancestors

Amaziah Reigns in Judah; Jeroboam II in Israel

14 In the second year of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz king of Israel, Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah began to reign. He was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and the name of his mother was Jehoaddin from Jerusalem. He did right in the eyes of Yahweh, only not as David his ancestor;[a] as all which Jehoash his father had done, he did. Only the high places were not removed; the people were still sacrificing and offering incense on the high places.

It happened that when the kingdom was firmly in his hand, he killed his servants who had killed his father the king. But the sons of the killers he did not kill, as it is written in the scroll of the law of Moses which Yahweh had commanded, saying, “Fathers should not be killed because of children, and children should not be killed because of fathers; but a man should die because of his own sin.” He also killed ten thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt, and he seized Sela in the battle, and he called its name Jokteel, until this day.

Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz the son of Jehu king of Israel, saying, “Come let us meet face-to-face.”[b] So Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah, saying, “The thornbush which is in Lebanon sent to the cedar which is in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife,’ but an animal of the field which is in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thornbush. 10 You have indeed defeated Edom and your heart is lifted up; enjoy the honor and stay home. Why should you provoke trouble so that you fall and Judah with you?”

11 But Amaziah would not listen, so Jehoash king of Israel went up and they met face-to-face, he and Amaziah king of Judah, at Beth-Shemesh which belongs to Judah. 12 Judah was defeated before Israel and they fled, each to this tent. 13 Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-Shemesh. Then they came to Jerusalem, and he broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Gate of Ephraim up to the Corner Gate, four hundred cubits! 14 He also took all of the gold and silver and all the vessels found in the temple of Yahweh and in the treasury rooms of the palace of the king, as well as the hostages;[c] then he returned to Samaria.

15 Now the remainder of the acts of Jehoash which he did, and his powerful deeds, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? 16 Then Jehoash slept with his ancestors[d] and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.

Azariah Succeeds Amaziah in Jerusalem; Zechariah Succeeds Jeroboam II in Samaria

17 Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz king of Israel. 18 The remainder of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah? 19 They conspired against him in Jerusalem, so he fled to Lachish. But they sent men after him to Lachish, and they killed him there. 20 Then they carried him on the horses, and he was buried with his ancestors[e] in the city of David. 21 All of the people of Judah took sixteen-year-old Azariah and made him king in place of this father Amaziah. 22 He rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah after the king slept with his ancestors.[f]

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Jehoash king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Jehoash king of Israel began to reign in Samaria, reigning forty-one years. 24 But he did evil in the eyes of Yahweh; he did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat which he caused Israel to sin. 25 He restored the boundary of Israel from Lebo-Hamath up to the sea of the Arabah, according to the word of Yahweh which he spoke by the hand of his servant Jonah the son of Amittai the prophet, who was from Gath-Hepher. 26 For Yahweh saw that the misery of Israel was very bitter, whether bond or free, but there was no helper for Israel. 27 Yahweh did not decree to blot out the name of Israel from under the heavens, so he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Jehoash.

28 Now the remainder of the acts of Jeroboam, all that he did, his powerful deeds, how he fought, and how he restored Damascus and Hamath of Judah to Israel, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel? 29 So Jeroboam slept with his ancestors[g] the kings of Israel, and his son Zechariah became king in his place.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 14:3 Or “father”
  2. 2 Kings 14:8 Literally “faces”
  3. 2 Kings 14:14 Literally “sons of the pledges”
  4. 2 Kings 14:16 Or “fathers”
  5. 2 Kings 14:20 Or “fathers”
  6. 2 Kings 14:22 Or “fathers”
  7. 2 Kings 14:29 Or “fathers”