2 Chronicles 28:16-27

Complete Jewish Bible

¹⁶ It was at that time that King Achaz sent to the kings of Ashur to help him. ¹⁷ For again the people from Edom had come, attacking Y’hudah and carrying off captives. ¹⁸ The P’lishtim too had invaded the cities in the Sh’felah and in the Negev of Y’hudah; they had captured Beit-Shemesh, Ayalon, G’derot, Sokho with its villages, Timnah with its villages and Gimzo with its villages; and they settled there. ¹⁹ For Adonai brought Y’hudah low because of Achaz king of Isra’el, since he had caused disturbances in Y’hudah and acted very treacherously against Adonai.

²⁰ Tilgat-Piln’eser king of Ashur attacked and besieged Achaz instead of strengthening him — ²¹ even though Achaz had stripped the house of Adonai and the palaces of the king and princes and had given the plunder to the king of Ashur, it didn’t help him at all.

²² During his time of distress this same King Achaz added to his treachery against Adonai ²³ by sacrificing to the gods of Dammesek, who had attacked him, reasoning, “The gods of the kings of Aram helped them, so I will sacrifice to them, and then they’ll help me.” But they became the ruin of him and of all Isra’el. ²⁴ Achaz collected the equipment from the house of God, broke to pieces the equipment from the house of God and sealed the doors of the house of Adonai; then he made himself altars in every corner of Yerushalayim. ²⁵ In every city of Y’hudah he made high places for offering to other gods, thus provoking Adonai the God of his ancestors.

²⁶ Other activities of Achaz and his ways [of doing things], from beginning to end, are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y’hudah and Isra’el. ²⁷ Achaz slept with his ancestors, and they buried him in the city, in Yerushalayim; because they did not bring him to the tombs of the kings of Isra’el. Then Hizkiyahu his son took his place as king.