18 Now in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Hezekiah the son of Ahaz 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 Abi the daughter of Zechariah. ³ He did that which was right in Yahweh’s eyes, according to all that David his father had done. ⁴ He removed the high places, and broke the pillars, and cut down the Asherah. He also broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, because in those days the children of Israel burned incense to it; and he called it Nehushtan. ⁵ He trusted in Yahweh, the God of Israel; so that after him was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among them that were before him. ⁶ For he joined with Yahweh. He didn’t depart from following him, but kept his commandments, which Yahweh commanded Moses. ⁷ Yahweh was with him. Wherever he went, he prospered. He rebelled against the king of Assyria, and didn’t serve him. ⁸ He struck the Philistines to Gaza and its borders, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city.

⁹ In the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it. ¹⁰ At the end of three years they took it. In the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. ¹¹ The king of Assyria carried Israel away to Assyria, and put them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes, ¹² because they didn’t obey Yahweh their God’s voice, but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded, and would not hear it or do it.

¹³ Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and took them. ¹⁴ Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying, “I have offended you. Return from me. That which you put on me, I will bear.” The king of Assyria appointed to Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents^[a] of gold. ¹⁵ Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in Yahweh’s house, and in the treasures of the king’s house. ¹⁶ At that time, Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of Yahweh’s temple, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.

¹⁷ The king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rabsaris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. They went up and came to Jerusalem. When they had come up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the fuller’s field. ¹⁸ When they had called to the king, Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder came out to them. ¹⁹ Rabshakeh said to them, “Say now to Hezekiah, ‘The great king, the king of Assyria, says, “What confidence is this in which you trust? ²⁰ You say (but they are but vain words), ‘There is counsel and strength for war.’ Now on whom do you trust, that you have rebelled against me? ²¹ Now, behold, you trust in the staff of this bruised reed, even in Egypt. If a man leans on it, it will go into his hand, and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all who trust on him. ²² But if you tell me, ‘We trust in Yahweh our God;’ isn’t that he whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, ‘You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem?’ ²³ Now therefore, please give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to set riders on them. ²⁴ How then can you turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put your trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? ²⁵ Have I now come up without Yahweh against this place to destroy it? Yahweh said to me, ‘Go up against this land, and destroy it.’”’”

²⁶ Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, Shebnah, and Joah, said to Rabshakeh, “Please speak to your servants in the Syrian language, for we understand it. Don’t speak with us in the Jews’ language, in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.”

²⁷ But Rabshakeh said to them, “Has my master sent me to your master and to you, to speak these words? Hasn’t he sent me to the men who sit on the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own urine with you?” ²⁸ Then Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews’ language, and spoke, saying, “Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. ²⁹ The king says, ‘Don’t let Hezekiah deceive you; for he will not be able to deliver you out of his hand. ³⁰ Don’t let Hezekiah make you trust in Yahweh, saying, “Yahweh will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ³¹ Don’t listen to Hezekiah.’ For the king of Assyria says, ‘Make your peace with me, and come out to me; and everyone of you eat from his own vine, and everyone from his own fig tree, and everyone drink water from his own cistern; ³² until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive trees and of honey, that you may live, and not die. Don’t listen to Hezekiah, when he persuades you, saying, “Yahweh will deliver us.” ³³ Has any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? ³⁴ Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? ³⁵ Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that Yahweh should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?’”

³⁶ But the people stayed quiet, and answered him not a word; for the king’s commandment was, “Don’t answer him.” ³⁷ Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, came with Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and told him Rabshakeh’s words.

¹ Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, to Philemon, our beloved fellow worker, ² to the beloved Apphia, to Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the assembly in your house: ³ Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴ I thank my God always, making mention of you in my prayers, ⁵ hearing of your love and of the faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus, and toward all the saints, ⁶ that the fellowship of your faith may become effective in the knowledge of every good thing which is in us in Christ Jesus. ⁷ For we have much joy and comfort in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you, brother.

⁸ Therefore though I have all boldness in Christ to command you that which is appropriate, ⁹ yet for love’s sake I rather beg, being such a one as Paul, the aged, but also a prisoner of Jesus Christ. ¹⁰ I beg you for my child, whom I have become the father of in my chains, Onesimus,^{[a] 11} who once was useless to you, but now is useful to you and to me. ¹² I am sending him back. Therefore receive him, that is, my own heart, ¹³ whom I desired to keep with me, that on your behalf he might serve me in my chains for the Good News. ¹⁴ But I was willing to do nothing without your consent, that your goodness would not be as of necessity, but of free will. ¹⁵ For perhaps he was therefore separated from you for a while, that you would have him forever, ¹⁶ no longer as a slave, but more than a slave, a beloved brother, especially to me, but how much rather to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.

¹⁷ If then you count me a partner, receive him as you would receive me. ¹⁸ But if he has wronged you at all or owes you anything, put that to my account. ¹⁹ I, Paul, write this with my own hand: I will repay it (not to mention to you that you owe to me even your own self besides). ²⁰ Yes, brother, let me have joy from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in the Lord.

²¹ Having confidence in your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even beyond what I say.

²² Also, prepare a guest room for me, for I hope that through your prayers I will be restored to you.

²³ Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you, ²⁴ as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.

²⁵ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

11 “When Israel was a child, then I loved him,

By Solomon.

²⁰ This ends the prayers by David, the son of Jesse.