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Azariah, King of Judah(A)
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah, king of Judah, became king. 2 He was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jekoliah from Jerusalem. 3 He did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. 4 But the high places were not removed. The people continued sacrificing and making offerings on the high places.
5 The Lord afflicted the king, and he was leprous until the day of his death. He lived in a separate house. Jotham the king’s son was in charge of the house, judging the people of the land.
6 Now the rest of the deeds of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? 7 So Azariah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the City of David. Jotham his son reigned in his place.
Zechariah, King of Israel
8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah, Zechariah the son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in Samaria for six months. 9 He did evil in the sight of the Lord, as his fathers had done. He did not turn aside from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin.
10 Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, struck him at Ibleam, and killed him. Then Shallum reigned in his place. 11 Now the rest of the deeds of Zechariah are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel. 12 This was the word of the Lord which He spoke to Jehu, “Your sons will sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation.” And it was so.
Shallum, King of Israel
13 Shallum son of Jabesh became king in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah king of Judah. He reigned for a month in Samaria. 14 Then Menahem son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, entered Samaria, and struck Shallum son of Jabesh in Samaria and killed him. Then Menahem reigned in his place.
15 Now the rest of the deeds of Shallum and the conspiracy he made are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel.
16 Then Menahem struck Tiphsah and all who were in it, and the territories around Tirzah. Because they did not open up the city to him, he attacked it. Then he split open all its pregnant woman.
Menahem, King of Israel
17 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem son of Gadi became king over Israel for ten years in Samaria. 18 He did evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not turn aside all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin.
19 Pul the king of Assyria came against the land, and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents[a] of silver, that he might help him strengthen his control of the kingdom. 20 Menahem exacted the money from Israel, from all the very wealthy men, fifty shekels[b] of silver each, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria left and did not stay there in the land.
21 The rest of the deeds of Menahem, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel? 22 And Menahem slept with his fathers, and Pekahiah his son reigned in his place.
Pekahiah, King of Israel
23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menahem became king over Israel in Samaria for two years. 24 He did evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not turn aside from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. 25 But Pekah son of Remaliah, his officer, conspired against him and struck him in Samaria, in the palace of the king’s house, with Argob, Arieh, and fifty men of the Gileadites with him. He killed him and reigned in his place.
26 Now the rest of the deeds of Pekahiah and all that he did are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel.
Pekah, King of Israel
27 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah son of Remaliah became king over Israel in Samaria for twenty years. 28 He did evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not turn aside from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin.
29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel Beth Maakah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, Galilee, and all the land of Naphtali, and then exiled them to Assyria. 30 Then Hoshea son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah son of Remaliah and struck and killed him. Then he reigned in his place in the twentieth year of Jotham son of Uzziah.
31 The rest of the deeds of Pekah and all that he did are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel.
Jotham, King of Judah(B)
32 In the second year of Pekah son of Remaliah, king of Israel, Jotham son of Uzziah, king of Judah, became king. 33 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerusha daughter of Zadok. 34 He did what was right in the sight of the Lord. He did according to all that his father Uzziah had done. 35 Only he did not remove the high places. The people continued sacrificing and making offerings on the high places. He built the upper gate of the house of the Lord.
36 Now the rest of the deeds of Jotham, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? 37 In those days the Lord began to send Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah against Judah. 38 Jotham slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the City of David his father. Then Ahaz his son reigned in his place.
Ahaz, King of Judah(C)
16 In the seventeenth year of Pekah son of Remaliah, Ahaz son of Jotham, king of Judah, became king. 2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. He did not do what was right in the sight of the Lord his God like David his father. 3 He walked in the way of the kings of Israel and even made his son pass through the fire according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord dispossessed before the children of Israel. 4 He sacrificed and made offerings on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree.
5 Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up to Jerusalem to battle, and they besieged Ahaz but could not subdue him. 6 At that time Rezin king of Aram recovered Elath for Aram and expelled the Judeans from Elath. The Edomites came to Elath and live there to this day.
7 So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria, saying, “I am your servant and your son. Come up and save me from the hand of the king of Aram and from the hand of the king of Israel, who are rising up against me.” 8 Then Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasures of the king’s house, and sent a present to the king of Assyria. 9 So the king of Assyria listened to him. The king of Assyria went up to Damascus, captured it, exiled the people to Kir, and killed Rezin.
10 Then King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria and saw an altar that was in Damascus. King Ahaz sent to Uriah the priest a pattern of the altar and model of it, according to the manner of its construction. 11 Uriah the priest built an altar according to all that King Ahaz had sent from Damascus. Thus Uriah the priest worked until King Ahaz came from Damascus. 12 When the king came back from Damascus and saw the altar, the king approached the altar and made offerings on it. 13 He offered his burnt offering and his grain offering, poured out his libations, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings upon the altar. 14 And the bronze altar that was before the Lord he moved from the front of the house, from between the altar and the house of the Lord. He put it on the north side of the new altar.
15 Then King Ahaz commanded Uriah the priest, “Upon the great altar offer the morning burnt offering, the evening grain offering, the king’s burnt offering, and his grain offering with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, their grain offering, and their libations. Sprinkle on it all the blood of the burnt offering and all the blood of the sacrifice, and the bronze altar will be for me to inquire by.” 16 So Uriah the priest did everything that King Ahaz commanded.
17 King Ahaz cut off the bases of the stands and removed the basin from them. He took down the sea from off the bronze oxen that were under it and put it on stone pavement. 18 The structure for the Sabbath that they had built in the house and the king’s outer entrance he removed from the house of the Lord for the king of Assyria.
19 Now the rest of the deeds of Ahaz that he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? 20 Ahaz slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the City of David. Then Hezekiah his son reigned in his place.
13 Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists invoked the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We command you to come out in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches.” 14 There were seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva doing this. 15 The evil spirit answered, “I know Jesus, and I know Paul, but who are you?” 16 Then the man in whom the evil spirit was jumped on them, overpowered them, and prevailed against them, so that they fled from that house naked and wounded.
17 This became known to all Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus. And fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. 18 Many who believed came confessing and telling their deeds. 19 Many who practiced magic brought their books together and burned them before everyone. They calculated their value, which equaled fifty thousand drachmas.[a] 20 So the word of the Lord powerfully grew and spread.
The Riot in Ephesus
21 After these things happened, Paul determined in his spirit to pass through Macedonia and Achaia and go to Jerusalem, saying, “After I have been there, I must also see Rome.” 22 He sent two who ministered to him, Timothy and Erastus, into Macedonia, but he delayed in Asia for a time.
23 About that time great trouble arose about the Way. 24 For a silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines for Artemis, brought much business to the craftsmen. 25 He gathered them together with the workmen of similar trades and said, “Men, you know that by this trade we have our wealth. 26 And you see and hear, not only at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia, that this Paul has persuaded and turned away many people, saying that these things made by hands are not gods. 27 Now not only is our trade in danger of coming into disrepute, but also the temple of the great goddess Artemis, whom all Asia and the world worship, may be discredited and her magnificence destroyed.”
28 When they heard this, they were full of anger and cried out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” 29 The city was filled with confusion. And in unison they seized Gaius and Aristarchus, Paul’s traveling companions from Macedonia, and rushed into the theater. 30 When Paul intended to go in among the crowd, the disciples would not let him. 31 Even some of the rulers of Asia, who were his friends, sent to him begging him not to venture into the theater.
32 The assembly was confused. Therefore some cried out one thing and some another, and most of them did not know why they had come together. 33 The Jews pushed Alexander to the front as the crowd prompted him. Alexander motioned with his hand, wishing to make his defense to the mob. 34 But when they learned that he was a Jew, for about two hours they all with one voice cried out, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”
35 The city clerk quieted the crowd and said, “Men of Ephesus, what man is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of the image which fell from heaven? 36 Seeing then that these things are undeniable, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rash. 37 For you have brought these men here who are neither temple robbers nor blasphemers of your goddess. 38 So if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls. Let them press charges against one another. 39 If you seek anything further, it shall be settled in the legal assembly. 40 For we are in danger of being charged with rioting today, since there is no reason we may give to account for this uproar.” 41 When he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.
Psalm 147
1 Praise the Lord!
For it is good to sing praises unto our God;
for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.
2 The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
He gathers together the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the broken in heart,
and binds up their wounds.
4 He counts the number of the stars;
He calls them all by their names.
5 Great is our Lord and great in power;
His understanding is without measure.
6 The Lord lifts up the meek;
He casts the wicked down to the ground.
7 Sing unto the Lord with thanksgiving;
sing praise upon the harp unto our God:
8 who covers the heaven with clouds,
who provides rain for the earth,
who makes grass to grow upon the mountains.
9 He gives food to the animals
and to the young ravens that chirp.
10 He delights not in the strength of the horse,
nor does He take pleasure in the legs of a man,
11 but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him,
in those who hope in His mercy.
12 Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem;
praise your God, O Zion.
13 For He has strengthened the bars of your gates;
He has blessed your children within you.
14 He makes peace in your borders,
and fills you with the finest of the wheat.
15 He sends forth His commandment on the earth;
His word goes out swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool;
He scatters the frost like ashes;
17 He casts forth His ice like morsels;
who can stand before His cold?
18 He sends out His word and melts them;
He causes His wind to blow and the waters flow.
19 He shows His word to Jacob,
and His statutes and His judgments to Israel.
20 He has not dealt so with any other nation;
they have not known His judgments.
Praise the Lord!
4 The words of a man’s mouth are as deep waters,
and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook.
5 It is not good to favor the wicked,
or to turn aside the righteous in judgment.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.