2 Kings 10:18-28

Evangelical Heritage Version

Jehu Slaughters the Prophets of Baal

¹⁸ Then Jehu assembled all the people and said to them, “Ahab served Baal a little. Jehu will serve him a great deal. ¹⁹ But now, gather all the prophets of Baal, all his servants, and all his priests! Let no one be missing because I am going to make a great sacrifice to Baal. No one who misses it will live.”

But Jehu was acting deceptively in order to exterminate the servants of Baal.

²⁰ Then Jehu said, “Consecrate a festival for Baal,” and they proclaimed it.

²¹ Then Jehu sent word through all Israel, and all the servants of Baal came. Not a man was left who did not come. They came into the temple^[a] of Baal so that the temple of Baal was filled from end to end. ²² Then he said to the person in charge of the wardrobe, “Bring out garments for all the servants of Baal.” So he brought out robes for them.

²³ Then Jehu and Jehonadab son of Recab went into the temple of Baal. Jehu said to the servants of Baal, “Make a careful search, and see to it that there are no servants of the Lord with you, but only servants of Baal.”

²⁴ Then they went in to make sacrifices and whole burnt offerings. But Jehu had stationed eighty men outside and said, “If any man escapes from these men whom I am putting into your hands, it will be your life for his life.”

²⁵ When he was finished offering the whole burnt offering, Jehu said to the guards and to the officers, “Go strike them down! Don’t let anyone out!” So they struck them down with their swords, and the guards and the officers threw the bodies out. They then went into the inner sanctuary of the temple of Baal. ²⁶ They brought the sacred memorial stones out from the temple of Baal and burned them. ²⁷ They tore down the memorial stone for Baal and tore down the temple of Baal. They have used it for a latrine to this day. ²⁸ In this way Jehu exterminated Baal worship from Israel.