Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

²⁹ So the king of Isra’el and Y’hoshafat the king of Y’hudah went up to Ramot-Gil‘ad. ³⁰ The king of Isra’el said to Y’hoshafat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle; but you, put on your robes.” So the king of Isra’el disguised himself and went into battle. ³¹ Now the king of Aram had ordered the thirty-two chariot commanders, “Don’t attack anyone of either high or low rank, only the king of Isra’el.” ³² So when the chariot commanders saw Y’hoshafat they said, “This must be the king of Isra’el,” and turned to attack him. But Y’hoshafat gave a yell, ³³ so that the chariot commanders saw that he wasn’t the king of Isra’el and stopped pursuing him. ³⁴ However, one soldier shot an arrow at random and struck the king of Isra’el between his lower armor and his breastplate. So the king said to his chariot-driver, “Turn the reins, and take me out of the fighting; I’m collapsing from my wounds.” ³⁵ But the fighting grew fiercer that day; and they propped the king upright in his chariot facing Aram until he died, in the evening, with the blood streaming from his wound onto the floor of the chariot. ³⁶ Around sundown, a cry spread through the ranks: “Every man to his own town! Every man to his own land!” ³⁷ So the king died and was brought to Shomron, and they buried the king in Shomron. ³⁸ They washed the chariot at the Pool of Shomron where the prostitutes bathed, and the dogs licked up his blood, in keeping with the word Adonai had spoken.

³⁹ Other activities of Ach’av’s reign, all his accomplishments, the ivory palace he built and all the cities he built are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el. ⁴⁰ So Ach’av slept with his ancestors, and Achazyah his son became king in his place.

^51 (50) So Y’hoshafat slept with his ancestors and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David his ancestor, and Y’horam his son became king in his place.

^52 (51) Achazyah the son of Ach’av began his reign over Isra’el in Shomron in the seventeenth year of Y’hoshafat king of Y’hudah, and he ruled two years over Isra’el. ^53 (52) He did what was evil from Adonai’s perspective, living in the manner of his father, his mother and Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, by which he led Isra’el into sin.

⁵ Examine yourselves to see whether you are living the life of trust. Test yourselves. Don’t you realize that Yeshua the Messiah is in you? — unless you fail to pass the test. ⁶ But I hope you will realize that we are not failures. ⁷ And we pray to God that you will do nothing wrong. We are not concerned with our appearing successful, but with your doing what is right, even if we appear to be failures. ⁸ For we cannot act against the truth, only for it. ⁹ So we rejoice whenever we are weak and you are strong; indeed, what we pray for is that you become perfect. ¹⁰ I write these things while away from you, so that when I am with you I will not have to use my authority to deal sharply with you, for the Lord gave it to me for building up and not for tearing down.