|
|
 Chapter 1
1:1 And Solomon the son of David was
established over his kingdom, and the Lord his God was with him, and increased
him exceedingly. 2 And Solomon spoke
to all Israel, to the captains of thousands, and to the captains of hundreds,
and to the judges, and to all the rulers over Israel, even the heads of the
families; 3 and Solomon and all the
congregation went to the high place that was in Gabaon, where was God’s
tabernacle of witness, which Moses the servant of the Lord made in the
wilderness. 4 But David had brought
up the ark of God out of the city of Cariathiarim; for David had prepared a
place for it, for he had pitched a tabernacle for it in Jerusalem.
5 And the brazen altar which Beseleel the
son of Urias, the son of Or, had made, was there before the tabernacle of the
Lord: and Solomon and the congregation enquired at it. 6
And Solomon brought victims thither to the brazen
altar that was before the Lord in the tabernacle, and offered upon it a thousand
whole-burnt-offerings.
7 In that night God appeared to Solomon,
and said to him, Ask what I shall give thee. 8
And Solomon said to God, Thou hast dealt very mercifully with my
father David, and hast made me king in his stead. 9
And now, O Lord God, let, I pray thee, thy name be established
upon David my father; for thou hast made me king over a people numerous as the
dust of the earth. 10 Now give me
wisdom and understanding, that I may go out and come in before this people: for
who shall judge this thy great people?
11 And God said to Solomon, Because this
was in thy heart, and thou hast not asked great wealth, nor glory, nor the life
of thine enemies, and thou hast not asked long life; but hast asked for thyself
wisdom and understanding, that thou mightest judge my people, over whom I have
made thee king: 12 I give thee this
wisdom and understanding; and I will give thee wealth, and riches, and glory, so
that there shall not have been any like thee among the kings before thee,
neither shall there be such after thee.
13 And Solomon came from the high place
that was in Gabaon to Jerusalem, from before the tabernacle of witness,
and reigned over Israel.
14 And Solomon collected chariots and
horsemen: and he had fourteen hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen:
and he set them in the cities of chariots, and the people were with the
king in Jerusalem. 15 And the king
made silver and gold in Jerusalem to be as stones, and cedars in Judea as
sycamores in the plain for multitude. 16
And Solomon imported horses from Egypt, and the charge of the
king’s merchants for going was as follows, and they traded,
17 and went and brought out of Egypt a
chariot for six hundred pieces of silver, and a horse for a hundred and
fifty pieces of silver: and so they brought for all the kings of the
Chettites, and for the kings of Syria by their means.
Chapter 2
2:1 And Solomon said that he would build
a house to the name of the Lord, and a house for his kingdom.
2 And Solomon gathered seventy thousand men
that bore burdens, and eighty thousand hewers of stone in the mountain, and
there were three thousand six hundred superintendents over them.
3 And Solomon sent to Chiram king of
Tyre, saying, Whereas thou didst deal favourably with David my father,
and didst send him cedars to build for himself a house to dwell in,
4 behold, I also his son am building a
house to the name of the Lord my God, to consecrate it to him, to burn incense
before him, and to offer shewbread continually, and to offer up
whole-burnt-offerings continually morning and evening, and on the sabbaths, and
at the new moons, and at the feasts of the Lord our God: this is a
perpetual statute for Israel. 5
And the house which I am building is to be great: for the
Lord our God is great beyond all gods. 6
And who will be able to build him a house? for the heaven and
heaven of heavens do not bear his glory: and who am I, that I should build him a
house, save only to burn incense before him? 7
And now send me a man wise and skilled to work in gold, and in
silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in purple, and in scarlet, and in blue,
and one that knows how to grave together with the craftsmen who are with me in
Juda and in Jerusalem, which materials my father David prepared.
8 And send me from Libanus cedar wood, and
wood of juniper, and pine; for I know that thy servants are skilled in cutting
timber in Libanus: and, behold, thy servants shall go with my servants,
9 to prepare timber for me in abundance:
for the house which I am building must be great and glorious.
10 And, behold, I have given freely to thy
servants that work and cut the wood, corn for food, even twenty thousand
measures of wheat, and twenty thousand measures of barley, and twenty thousand
measures of wine, and twenty thousand measures of oil.
11 And Chiram king of Tyre answered in
writing, and sent to Solomon, saying, Because the Lord loved his people, he made
thee king over them. 12 And Chiram
said, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, who made heaven and earth, who
has given to king David a wise son, and one endowed with knowledge and
understanding, who shall build a house for the Lord, and a house for his
kingdom. 13 And now I have sent thee
a wise and understanding man who belonged to Chiram my father
14 (his mother was of the daughters
of Dan, and his father was a Tyrian), skilled to work in gold, and in
silver, and in brass, and in iron, and in stones and wood; and to weave with
purple, and blue, and fine linen, and scarlet; and to engrave, and to understand
every device, whatsoever thou shalt give him to do with thy craftsmen,
and the craftsmen of my lord David thy father. 15
And now, the wheat, and the barley, and the oil, and the wine
which my lord mentioned, let him send to his servants. 16
And we will cut timber out of Libanus according to all thy
need, and we will bring it on rafts to the sea of Joppa, and thou shalt bring it
to Jerusalem.
17 And Solomon gathered all the
foreigners that were in the land of Israel, after the numbering with which David
his father numbered them; and there were found a hundred and fifty-three
thousand six hundred. 18 And he made
of them seventy thousand burden-bearers, and eighty thousand hewers of stone,
and three thousand six hundred taskmasters over the people.
Chapter 3
3:1 And Solomon began to build the house
of the Lord in Jerusalem in the mount of Amoria, where the Lord appeared to his
father David, in the place which David had prepared in the threshing-floor of
Orna the Jebusite. 2 And he began to
build in the second month, in the fourth year of his reign.
3 And thus Solomon began to build the
house of God: the length in cubits—even the first measurement from end to end,
was sixty cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits. 4
And the portico in front of the house, its length in front of the
breadth of the house was twenty cubits, and its height a hundred and
twenty cubits: and he gilded it within with pure gold. 5
And he lined the great house with cedar wood, and gilded
it with pure gold, and carved upon it palm-trees and chains.
6 And he garnished the house with precious
stones for beauty; and he gilded it with gold of the gold from Pharuim.
7 And he gilded the house, and its inner
walls, and the door-posts, and the roofs, and the doors with gold; and he carved
cherubs on the walls.
8 And he built the holy of holies, its
length was according to the front of the other house, the breadth of the
house was twenty cubits, and the length twenty cubits: and he gilded
it with pure gold for cherubs, to the amount of six hundred talents.
9 And the weight of the nails,
even the weight of each was fifty shekels of gold: and he gilded the upper
chamber with gold.
10 And he made two cherubs in the most
holy house, wood-work, and he gilded them with gold. 11
And the wings of the cherubs were twenty cubits in length:
and one wing of five cubits touched the wall of the house: and the other wing of
five cubits touched the wing of the other cherub. 12 13
And the wings of these cherubs expanded were of the length
of twenty cubits: and they stood upon their feet, and their faces were toward
the house. 14 And he made the vail
of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine linen, and wove cherubs in it.
15 Also he made in front of the house
two pillars, in height thirty-five cubits, and their chapters of five cubits.
16 And he made chains, as in
the oracle, and put them on the heads of the pillars; and he made a
hundred pomegranates, and put them on the chains. 17
And he set up the pillars in front of the temple, one on
the right hand and the other on the left: and he called the name of the one on
the right hand ‘Stability,’ and the name of the one on the left ‘Strength.’
Chapter 4
4:1 And he made a brazen altar, the
length of it twenty cubits, and the breadth twenty cubits, and the height ten
cubits. 2 And he made the molten
sea, in diameter ten cubits, entirely round, and the height of it five cubits,
and the circumference thirty cubits. 3
And beneath it the likeness of calves, they compass it round
about: ten cubits compass the laver round about, they cast the calves two rows
in their casting, 4 wherein they
made them twelve calves, —three looking northwards, and three westwards, and
three southwards, and three eastwards: and the sea was upon them above, and
their hinder parts were inward. 5
And its thickness was a hand-breadth, and its brim as the brim of a cup, graven
with flowers of lilies, holding three thousand measures: and he finished it.
6 And he made ten lavers, and set five
on the right hand, and five on the left, to wash in them the instruments of the
whole-burnt-offerings, and to rinse the vessels in them; and the sea
was for the priests to wash in.
7 And he made the ten golden
candlesticks according to their pattern, and he put them in the temple, five on
the right hand, and five on the left.
8 And he made ten tables, and put them
in the temple, five on the right hand, and five on the left: and he made a
hundred golden bowls. 9 Also he made
the priests’ court, and the great court, and doors to the court, and their
panels were overlaid with brass. 10
And he set the sea at the corner of the house on the right, as it
were fronting the east.
11 And Chiram made the fleshhooks, and
the fire-pans, and the grate of the altar, and all its instruments: and Chiram
finished doing all the work which he wrought for king Solomon in the house of
God: 12 two pillars, and upon them
an embossed work for the chapiters on the heads of the two pillars, and two nets
to cover the heads of the chapiters which are on the heads of the pillars;
13 and four hundred golden bells for
the two nets, and two rows of pomegranates in each net, to cover the two
embossed rims of the chapiters which are upon the pillars.
14 And he made the ten bases, and he made
the lavers upon the bases; 15 and
the one sea, and the twelve calves under it; 16
and the foot-baths, and the buckets, and the caldrons, and the
flesh-hooks, and all their furniture (which Chiram made, and brought to king
Solomon in the house of the Lord) of pure brass. 17
In the country round about Jordan the king cast them, in the clay
ground in the house of Socchoth, and between that and Saredatha.
18 So Solomon made all these vessels in
great abundance, for the quantity of brass failed not. 19
And Solomon made all the vessels of the house of the Lord,
and the golden altar, and the tables, and upon them were to be the loaves
of shewbread; 20 also the
candlesticks, and the lamps to give light according to the pattern, and in front
of the oracle, of pure gold. 21 And
their snuffers, and their lamps were made, and he made the bowls,
and the censers, and the fire-pans, of pure gold. 22
And there was the inner door of the house
opening into the holy of holies, and he made the inner doors of the
temple of gold. So all the work which Solomon wrought for the house of the Lord
was finished.
Chapter 5
5:1 And Solomon brought in the holy
things of his father David, the silver, and the gold, and the other
vessels, and put them in the treasury of the house of the Lord.
2 Then Solomon assembled all the elders
of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, even the leaders of the
families of the children of Israel, to Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the
covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, —this is Sion.
3 And all Israel were assembled unto
the king in the feast, this is the seventh month. 4
And all the elders of Israel came; and all the Levites
took up the ark, 5 and the
tabernacle of witness, and all the holy vessels that were in the tabernacle; and
the priests and the Levites brought it up. 6
And king Solomon, and all the elders of Israel, and the religious
of them, and they of them that were gathered before the ark, were
sacrificing calves and sheep, which could not be numbered or reckoned for
multitude. 7 And the priests brought
in the ark of the covenant of the Lord into its place, into the oracle of the
house, even into the holy of holies, under the wings of the cherubs.
8 And the cherubs stretched out
their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubs covered the ark, and its
staves above. 9 And the staves
projected, and the heads of the staves were seen from the holy place in front of
the oracle, they were not seen without: and there they were to this day.
10 There was nothing in the ark except the
two tables which Moses placed there in Choreb, which God gave in covenant
with the children of Israel, when they went out of the land of Egypt.
11 And it came to pass, when the priests
when out of the holy place, (for all the priests that were found were
sanctified, they were not then arranged according to their daily course,)
12 that all the singing Levites
assigned to the sons of Asaph, to Æman, to Idithun, and to his sons, and to
his brethren, of them that were clothed in linen garments, with cymbals and
lutes and harps, were standing before the altar, and with them a hundred
and twenty priests, blowing trumpets. 13
And there was one voice in the trumpeting and in the
psalm-singing, and in the loud utterance with one voice to give thanks and
praise the Lord; and when they raised their voice together with trumpets and
cymbals, and instruments of music, and said, Give thanks to the Lord, for it
is good, for his mercy endures for ever:—then the house was filled
with the cloud of the glory of the Lord. 14
And the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud:
for the glory of the Lord filled the house of God.
Chapter 6
6:1 Then said Solomon, The Lord said
that he would dwell in thick darkness. 2
But I have built a house to thy name, holy to thee, and prepared
for thee to dwell in for ever.
3 And the king turned his face, and
blessed all the congregation of Israel: and all the congregation of Israel stood
by. 4 And he said, Blessed be
the Lord God of Israel: he has even fulfilled with his hands as he spoke with
his mouth to my father David, saying, 5
From the day when I brought up my people out of the land of
Egypt, I chose no city of all the tribes of Israel, to build a house that my
name should be there; neither did I choose a man to be a leader over my people
Israel. 6 But I chose Jerusalem that
my name should be there; and I chose David to be over my people Israel.
7 And it came into the heart of David my
father, to build a house for the name of the Lord God of Israel.
8 But the Lord said to my father David,
Whereas it came into thy heart to build a house for my name, thou didst well
that it came into thy heart. 9
Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; for thy son who shall come forth
out of thy loins, he shall build the house for my name. 10
And the Lord has confirmed this word, which he spoke; and
I am raised up in the room of my father David, and I sit upon the throne of
Israel as the Lord said, and I have built the house for the name of the Lord God
of Israel: 11 and I have set there
the ark in which is the covenant of the Lord, which he made with Israel.
12 And he stood before the altar of the
Lord in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread out his
hands. 13 For Solomon had
made a brazen scaffold, and set it in the midst of the court of the sanctuary;
the length of it was five cubits, and the breadth of it five cubits, and
the height of it three cubits: and he stood upon it, and fell upon his knees
before the whole congregation of Israel, and spread abroad his hands to heaven,
14 and said,
Lord God of Israel, there is no God like thee in heaven, or on
the earth; keeping covenant and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee
with their whole heart. 15
Even as thou hast kept them with thy servant David my father, as thou
hast spoken to him in words:—thou hast both spoken with thy mouth, and hast
fulfilled it with thy hands, as it is this day. 16
and now, Lord God of Israel, keep with thy servant David
my father the things which thou spokest to him, saying, There shall not fail
thee a man before me sitting on the throne of Israel, if only thy sons will take
heed to their way to walk in my law, as thou didst walk before me.
17 And now, Lord God of Israel, let, I pray
thee, thy word be confirmed, which thou hast spoken to thy servant David.
18 For will God indeed dwell with men
upon the earth? if the heaven and the heaven of heavens will not suffice thee,
what then is this house which I have built? 19
Yet thou shalt have respect to the prayer of thy servant, and to
my petition, O Lord God, so as to hearken to the petition and the prayer which
thy servant prays before thee this day: 20
so that thine eyes should be open over this house by day and by
night, towards this place, whereon thou saidst thy name should be called, so as
to hear the prayer which thy servant prays towards this house.
21 And thou shalt hear the supplication of
thy servant, and of thy people Israel, whatsoever prayers they shall make
towards this place: and thou shalt hearken in thy dwelling-place out of heaven,
yea thou shalt hear, and be merciful. 22
If a man sin against his neighbour, and he bring an oath upon him
so as to make him swear, and he come and swear before the altar in this house;
23 then shalt thou hearken out of
heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, to recompense the transgressor, and to
return his ways upon his head: and to justify the righteous, to recompense him
according to his righteousness.
24 And if thy people Israel should be
put to the worse before the enemy, if they should sin against thee, and then
turn and confess to thy name, and pray and make supplication before thee in this
house; 25 then shalt thou hearken
out of heaven and shalt be merciful to the sins of thy people Israel, and thou
shalt restore them to the land which thou gavest to them and to their fathers.
26 When heaven is restrained, and there
is no rain, because they shall have sinned against thee, and when they
shall pray towards this place, and praise thy name, and shall turn from their
sins, because thou shalt afflict them; 27
then shalt thou hearken from heaven, and thou shalt be merciful
to the sins of thy servants, and of thy people Israel; for thou shalt shew them
the good way in which they shall walk; and thou shalt send rain upon thy land,
which thou gavest to thy people for an inheritance.
28 If there should be famine upon the
land, if there should be death, a pestilent wind an blight; if there should be
locust and caterpiller, and if the enemy should harass them before their cities:
in whatever plague and whatever distress they may be;
29 Then whatever prayer and whatever
supplication shall be made by any man and all thy people Israel, if a man should
know his own plague and his own sickness, and should spread forth his hands
toward this house; 30 then shalt
thou hear from heaven, out of thy prepared dwelling-place, and shalt be
merciful, and shalt recompense to the man according to his ways, as thou shalt
know his heart to be; for thou alone knowest the heart of the children of
men: 31 that they may reverence all
thy ways all the days which they live upon the face of the land, which thou
gavest to our fathers.
32 And every stranger who is not himself
of thy people Israel, and who shall have come from a distant land because of thy
great name, and thy mighty hand, and thy high arm; when they shall come and
worship toward this place; — 33 then
shalt thou hearken out of heaven, out of thy prepared dwelling-place, and shalt
do according to all that the stranger shall call upon thee for; that all the
nations of the earth may know thy name, and that they may fear thee, as thy
people Israel do, and that they may know that thy name is called upon
this house which I have built.
34 And if thy people shall go forth to
war against their enemies by the way by which thou shalt send them, and shall
pray to thee toward this city which thou hast chosen, and toward the
house which I have built to thy name; 35
then shalt thou hear out of heaven their prayer and their
supplication, and maintain their cause.
36 Whereas if they shall sin against
thee, (for there is no man who will not sin,) and thou shalt smite them, and
deliver them up before their enemies, and they that take them captive shall
carry them away into a land of enemies, to a land far off or near;
37 and if they shall repent in their
land whither they were carried captive, and shall also turn and make
supplication to thee in their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have
transgressed, we have wrought unrighteously; 38
and if they shall turn to thee with all their heart and
all their soul in the land of them that carried them captives, whither they
carried them captives, and shall pray toward their land which thou gavest to
their fathers, and the city which thou didst choose, and the house which I built
to thy name:— 39 then shalt thou
hear out of heaven, out of thy prepared dwelling-place, their prayer and their
supplication, and thou shalt execute justice, and shalt be merciful to thy
people that sin against thee.
40 And now, Lord, let, I pray thee,
thine eyes be opened, and thine ears be attentive to the petition made in
this place. 41 And now, O Lord God,
arise into thy resting-place, thou, and the ark of thy strength: let thy
priests, O Lord God, clothe themselves with salvation, and thy sons rejoice in
prosperity. 42 O Lord God, turn not
away the face of thine anointed: remember the mercies of thy servant David.
Chapter 7
7:1 And when Solomon had finished
praying, then the fire came down from heaven, and devoured the
whole-burnt-offerings and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the
house. 2 And the priests could not
enter into the house of the Lord at that time, for the glory of the Lord filled
the house. 3 And all the children of
Israel saw the fire descending, and the glory of the Lord was upon the house:
and they fell upon their face to the ground on the pavement, and worshipped, and
praised the Lord; for it is good to do so, because his mercy
endures for ever.
4 And the king and all the people
were offering sacrifices before the Lord. 5
And king Solomon offered a sacrifice of calves twenty and two
thousand, of sheep a hundred and twenty thousand: so the king and all the people
dedicated the house of God. 6 And
the priests were standing at their watches, and the Levites with instruments of
music of the Lord, belonging to king David, to give thanks before the Lord, for
his mercy endures for ever, with the hymns of David, by their ministry:
and the priests were blowing the trumpets before them, and all Israel standing.
7 And Solomon consecrated the middle
of the court that was in the house of the Lord: for he offered there the
whole-burnt-offerings and the fat of the peace-offerings, for the brazen altar
which Solomon had made was not sufficient to receive the whole-burnt-offerings,
and the meat-offerings, and the fat.
8 And Solomon kept the feast at that
time seven days, and all Israel with him, a very great assembly, from the
entering in of Æmath, and as far as the river of Egypt. 9
And on the eighth day he kept a solemn assembly: for he
kept a feast of seven days as the dedication of the altar.
10 And on the twenty-third day of the
seventh month he dismissed the people to their tents, rejoicing, and with a glad
heart because of the good deeds which the Lord had done to David, and to
Solomon, and to Israel his people.
11 So Solomon finished the house of the
Lord, and the king’s house: and in whatever Solomon wished in his heart to do in
the house of the Lord and in his own house, he prospered.
12 And the Lord appeared to Solomon by
night, and said to him, I have heard thy prayer, and I have chosen this place to
myself for a house of sacrifice. 13
If I should restrain the heaven and there should be no rain, and if I should
command the locust to devour the trees, and if I should send pestilence upon my
people; 14 then if my people, on
whom my name is called, should repent, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from
their evil ways, I also will hear from heaven, and I will be merciful to their
sins, and I will heal their land. 15
And now my eyes shall be open, and my ears attentive to the
prayer of this place. 16 And now I
have chosen and sanctified this house, that my name should be there for ever:
and my eyes and my heart shall be there always.
17 And if thou wilt walk before me as
David thy father did, and wilt do according to all that I have commanded
thee, and wilt keep my ordinances and my judgments; 18
then will I establish the throne of thy kingdom, as I
covenanted with David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man ruling
in Israel.
19 But if ye should turn away, and
forsake my ordinances and my commandments, which I have set before you, and go
and serve other gods, and worship them; 20
then will I remove you from the land which I gave them; and this
house which I have consecrated to my name I will remove out of my sight, and I
will make it a proverb and a by-word among all nations. 21
And as for this lofty house, every one that passes
by it shall be amazed, and shall say, Wherefore has the Lord done thus to
this land, and to this house? 22 And
men shall say, Because they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who
brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they attached themselves to other
gods, and worshipped them, and served them: and therefore he has brought upon
them all this evil.
Chapter 8
8:1 And it came to pass after twenty
years, in which Solomon built the house of the Lord, and his own house,
2 that Solomon rebuilt the cities which
Chiram had given to Solomon, and caused the children of Israel to dwell in them.
3 And Solomon came to Baesoba, and
fortified it. 4 And he built
Thoedmor in the wilderness, and all the strong cities which he built in Emath.
5 And he built Baethoron the upper,
and Baethoron the lower, strong cities, —they had walls, gates, and bars;
6 and Balaath, and all the strong cities
which Solomon had, and all his chariot cities, and cities of horsemen, and all
things that Solomon desired according to his desire of building, in Jerusalem,
and in Libanus, and in all his kingdom.
7 As for all the people that was
left of the Chettites, and the Amorites, and the Pherezites, and the Evites, and
the Jebusites, who are not of Israel, 8
but were of the children of them whom the children Israel
destroyed not, that were left after them in the land, even them did Solomon make
tributaries to this day. 9 But
Solomon did not make any of the children of Israel servants in his kingdom; for,
behold, they were warriors and rulers, and mighty men, and
captains of chariots and horsemen. 10
And these are the chiefs of the officers of king Solomon, two
hundred and fifty overseeing the work among the people.
11 And Solomon brought up the daughter
of Pharao from the city of David to the house which he had built for her: for he
said, My wife shall not dwell in the city of David, the king of Israel, for
the place is holy into which the ark of the Lord has entered.
12 Then Solomon offered up to the Lord
whole-burnt-offerings on the altar which he had built to the Lord before the
temple, 13 according to the daily
rate, to offer up sacrifices according to the commandments of Moses, on
the sabbaths, and at the new moons, and at the feasts, three times in the year,
at the feast of unleavened bread, and at the feast of weeks, and at the feast of
tabernacles. 14 And he established,
according to the order of his father David, the courses of the priests, and
that according to their public ministrations: and the Levites were
appointed over their charges, to praise and minister before the priests
according to the daily order: and the porters were appointed according to their
courses to the different gates: for thus were the commandments of David
the man of God. 15 They transgressed
not the commandments of the king concerning the priests and the Levites with
regard to everything else, and with regard to the treasures.
16 Now all the work had been prepared from
the day when the foundation was laid, until Solomon finished the house of the
Lord.
17 Then Solomon went to Gasion Gaber,
and to Ælath near the sea in the land of Idumea. 18
And Chiram sent by the hand of his servants ships, and servants
skilled in naval affairs; and they went with the servants of Solomon to Sophira,
and brought thence four hundred and fifty talents of gold, and they came to king
Solomon.
Chapter 9
9:1 And the queen of Saba heard of
the name of Solomon, and she came to Jerusalem with a very large force, to prove
Solomon with hard questions, and she had camels bearing spices in
abundance, and gold, and precious stones: and she came to Solomon, and told him
all that was in her mind. 2 And
Solomon told her all her words; and there passed not a word from Solomon which
he told her not.
3 And the queen of Saba saw the wisdom
of Solomon, and the house which he had built, 4
and the meat of the tables, and the sitting of his servants, and
the standing of his ministers, and their raiment; and his cupbearers, and their
apparel; and the whole-burnt-offerings which he offered up in the house of the
Lord; then she was in ecstasy. 5 And
she said to the king, It was a true report which I heard in my land
concerning thy words, and concerning thy wisdom. 6
Yet I believed not the reports until I came, and my eyes saw:
and, behold, the half of the abundance of thy wisdom was not told me: thou hast
exceeded the report which I heard. 7
Blessed are thy men, blessed are these thy
servants, who stand before thee continually, and hear thy wisdom.
8 Blessed be the Lord thy God, who took
pleasure in thee, to set thee upon his throne for a king, to the Lord thy God:
forasmuch as the Lord thy God loved Israel to establish them for ever, therefore
he has set thee over them for a king to execute judgment and justice.
9 And she gave the king a hundred and
twenty talents of gold, and spices in very great abundance, and precious stones:
and there were not any where else such spices as those which the queen of
Saba gave king Solomon.
10 And the servants of Solomon and the
servants of Chiram brought gold to Solomon out of Suphir, and pine timber, and
precious stones. 11 And the king
made of the pine timber steps to the house of the Lord, and to the king’s house,
and harps and lutes for the singers: and such were not seen before in the land
of Juda. 12 And king Solomon gave to
the queen of Saba all that she requested, besides all that she brought to king
Solomon: and she returned to her own land.
13 And the weight of the gold that was
brought to Solomon in one year was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold,
14 besides what the men who were
regularly appointed and the merchants brought, and all the kings of Arabia and
princes of the land: all brought gold and silver to king Solomon.
15 And king Solomon made two hundred
shields of beaten gold: there were six hundred shekels of pure gold to
one shield. 16 And three hundred
buckles of beaten gold: the weight of three hundred gold shekels went to
one buckler: and the king placed them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
17 And the king made a great throne of
ivory, and he gilded it with pure gold. 18
And there were six steps to the throne, riveted with gold,
and elbows on either side of the seat of the throne, and two lions standing by
the elbows: 19 and twelve lions
standing there on the six steps on each side. There was not the like in any
other kingdom.
20 And all king Solomon’s vessels were
of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were covered
with gold: silver was not thought anything of in the days of Solomon.
21 For a ship went for the king to Tharsis
with the servants of Chiram: once every three years came vessels from Tharsis to
the king, laden with gold, and silver, and ivory, and apes.
22 And Solomon exceeded all other
kings both in riches and wisdom. 23
And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his
wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 24
And they brought every one his gifts, silver vessels and golden
vessels, and raiment, myrrh and spices, horses and mules, a rate every year.
25 And Solomon had four thousand mares
for chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen; and he put them in the chariot
cities, and with the king in Jerusalem. 26
And he rules over all the kings from the river even to the land
of the Philistines, and to the borders of Egypt. 27
And the king made gold and silver in Jerusalem as stones, and
cedars as the sycamore trees in the plain for abundance.
28 And Solomon imported horses from Egypt, and from every
other country.
29 And the rest of the acts of Solomon,
the first and the last, behold, these are written in the words of Nathan the
prophet, and in the words of Achia the Selonite, and in the visions of Joel the
seer concerning Jeroboam the son of Nabat. 30
And Solomon reigned over all Israel forty years.
31 And Solomon fell asleep, and they buried
him in the city of David his father: and Roboam his son reigned in his stead.
Chapter 10
10:1 And Roboam came to Sychem: for all
Israel came to Sychem to make him king.
2 And it came to pass when Jeroboam the
son of Nabat heard it, (now he was in Egypt, forasmuch as he had fled
thither from the face of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt,)that
Jeroboam returned out of Egypt. 3
And they sent and called him: and Jeroboam and all the congregation came to
Roboam, saying, 4 Thy father made
our yoke grievous: now then abate somewhat of thy father’s grievous rule,
and of his heavy yoke which he put upon us, and we will serve thee.
5 And he said to them, Go away for three
days, and then come to me. So the people departed.
6 And king Roboam assembled the elders
that stood before his father Solomon in his life-time, saying, How do ye counsel
me to return an answer to this people? 7
And they spoke to him, saying, If thou wouldest this day befriend
this people, and be kind to them, and speak to them good words, then will they
be thy servants for ever. 8 But he
forsook the advice of the old men, who took counsel with him, and he took
counsel with the young men who had been brought up with him, who stood before
him. 9 And he said to them, What do
ye advise that I should answer this people, who spoke to me, saying, Ease
somewhat of the yoke which thy father laid upon us? 10
And the young men that had been brought up with him spoke
to him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak to the people that spoke to thee, saying,
Thy father made our yoke heavy, and do thou lighten somewhat of it from
us; thus shalt thou say, My little finger shall be thicker than my
father’s loins. 11 And whereas my
father chastised you with a heavy yoke, I will also add to your yoke: my father
chastised you with whips, and I will chastise you with scorpions.
12 And Jeroboam and all the people came
to Roboam on the third day, as the king had spoken, saying, Return to me on the
third day. 13 And the king answered
harshly; and king Roboam forsook the counsel of the old men,
14 and spoke to them according to the
counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add
to it: my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with
scorpions.
15 And the king hearkened not to the
people, for there was a change of their minds from God, saying, The Lord
has confirmed his word, which he spoke by the hand of Achia the Selonite
concerning Jeroboam the son of Nabat, and concerning all Israel;
16 for the king did not hearken to them.
And the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David, or
inheritance in the son of Jessae? to thy tents, O Israel: now see to thine own
house, David. So all Israel went to their tents. 17
But the men of Israel, even those who dwelt in the cities of Juda,
remained and made Roboam king over them.
18 And king Roboam sent to them Adoniram
that was over the tribute; and the children of Israel stoned him with stones,
and he died. And king Roboam hasted to mount his chariot, to flee to
Jerusalem. 19 So Israel rebelled
against the house of David until this day.
Chapter 11
11:1 And Roboam came to Jerusalem; and
he assembled Juda and Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand young men fit for
war, and he waged war with Israel to recover the kingdom to Roboam.
2 And the Word of the Lord came to Samaias
the man of God, saying, 3 Speak to
Roboam the son of Solomon, and to all Juda and Benjamin, saying,
4 Thus saith the Lord, Ye shall not go up,
and ye shall not war against your brethren: return every one to his home; for
this thing is of me. And they hearkened to the word of the Lord, and returned
from going against Jeroboam.
5 And Roboam dwelt in Jerusalem, and he
built walled cities in Judea. 6 And
he built Bethleem, and Ætan and Thecoe, 7
and Baethsura, and Sochoth, and Odollam, 8
and Geth, and Marisa, and Ziph, 9
and Adorai, and Lachis, and Azeca,
10 and Saraa, and Ælom, and Chebron, which belong to Juda
and Benjamin, walled cities. 11 And
he fortified them with walls, and placed in them captains, and stores of
provisions, oil and wine, 12 shields
and spears in every several city, and he fortified them very strongly, and he
had on his side Juda and Benjamin.
13 And the priests and the Levites who
were in all Israel were gathered to him out of all the coasts.
14 For the Levites left the tents of their
possession, and went to Juda to Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons had
ejected them so that they should not minister to the Lord.
15 And he made for himself priests of the
high places, and for the idols, and for the vanities, and for the calves which
Jeroboam made. 16 And he cast out
from the tribes of Israel those who set their heart to seek the Lord God of
Israel: and they came to Jerusalem, to sacrifice to the Lord God of their
fathers. 17 And they strengthened
the kingdom of Juda; and Juda strengthened Roboam the son of
Solomon for three years, for he walked three years in the ways of David and
Solomon.
18 And Roboam took to himself for a
wife, Moolath daughter of Jerimuth the son of David, and Abigaia daughter of
Heliab the son of Jessae. 19 And she
bore him sons; Jeus, and Samoria, and Zaam. 20
And afterwards he took to himself Maacha the daughter of
Abessalom; and she bore him Abia, and Jetthi, and Zeza, and Salemoth.
21 And Roboam loved Maacha the daughter of
Abessalom more than all his wives and all his concubines: for he had eighteen
wives and sixty concubines; and he begot twenty-eight sons, and sixty daughters.
22 And he made Abia the son of
Maacha chief, even a leader among his brethren, for he intended to make
him king. 23 And he was exalted
beyond all his other sons in all the coasts of Juda and Benjamin, and in
the strong cities; and he gave them provisions in great abundance: and he
desired many wives.
Chapter 12
12:1 And it came to pass when the
kingdom of Roboam was established, and when he had grown strong, that he
forsook the commandments of the Lord, and all Israel with him.
2 And it came to pass in the fifth year
of the reign of Roboam, Susakim king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem, because
they had sinned against the Lord, 3
with twelve hundred chariots, and sixty thousand horses: and there was no number
of the multitude that came with him from Egypt; Libyans, Trogodytes, and
Ethiopians. 4 And they obtained
possession of the strong cities, which were in Juda, and came to Jerusalem.
5 And Samaias the prophet came to Roboam,
and to the princes of Juda that were gathered to Jerusalem for fear of Susakim,
and said to them, Thus said the Lord, Ye have left me, and I will leave you in
the hand of Susakim. 6 And the
elders of Israel and the king were ashamed, and said, The Lord is
righteous. 7 And when the Lord saw
that they repented, then came the word of the Lord to Samaias, saying, They have
repented; I will not destroy them, but I will set them in safety for a little
while, and my wrath shall not be poured out on Jerusalem.
8 Nevertheless they shall be servants, and know my
service, and the service of the kings of the earth.
9 So Susakim king of Egypt went up
against Jerusalem, and took the treasures that were in the house of the Lord,
and the treasures that were in the king’s house: he took all; and he took the
golden shields which Solomon had made. 10
And king Roboam made brazen shields instead of them. And Susakim
set over him captains of footmen, as keepers of the gate of the king.
11 And it came to pass, when the king went
into the house of the Lord, the guards and the footmen went in, and they that
returned to meet the footmen. 12 And
when he repented, the anger of the Lord turned from him, and did not destroy him
utterly; for there were good things in Juda.
13 So king Roboam strengthened
himself in Jerusalem, and reigned: and Roboam was forty and one years old
when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, in the city
which the Lord chose out of all the tribes of the children of Israel to call his
name there: and his mother’s name was Noomma the Ammanitess.
14 And he did evil, for he directed not his
heart to seek the Lord.
15 And the acts of Roboam, the first and
the last, behold, are they not written in the book of Samaia the prophet, and
Addo the seer, with his achievements. 16
And Roboam made war with Jeroboam all his days. And Roboam
died with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David: and Abia his son
reigned in his stead.
Chapter 13
13:1 In the eighteenth year of the reign
of Jeroboam Abia began to reign over Juda. 2
He reigned three years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was
Maacha, daughter of Uriel of Gabaon.
And there was war between Abia and Jeroboam.
3 And Abia set the battle in array with an
army, with mighty men of war, even four hundred thousand mighty men: and
Jeroboam set the battle in array against him with eight hundred thousand,
they were mighty warriors of the host.
4 And Abia rose up from the mount
Somoron, which is in mount Ephraim, and said, Hear ye, Jeroboam, and all Israel:
5 Is it not for you to know
that the Lord God of Israel has given a king over Israel for ever to David, and
to his sons, by a covenant of salt? 6
But Jeroboam the son of Nabat, the servant of Solomon
the son of David, is risen up, and has revolted from his master:
7 and there are gathered to him pestilent
men, transgressors, and he has risen up against Roboam the son of
Solomon, while Roboam was young and fearful in heart, and he withstood him not.
8 And now ye profess to resist the
kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David; and ye are a great
multitude, and with you are golden calves, which Jeroboam made you for gods.
9 Did ye not cast out the priests of
the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and make to yourselves priests of
the people of any other land? whoever came to consecrate himself with a
calf of the heard and seven rams, he forthwith became a priest to that which is
no god. 10 But we have not forsaken
the Lord our God, and his priests, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, minister
to the Lord; and in their daily courses 11
they sacrifice to the Lord whole-burnt-offering, morning and
evening, and compound incense, and set the shewbread on the pure table;
and there is the golden candlestick, and the lamps for burning, to light
in the evening: for we keep the charge of the Lord God of our fathers; but ye
have forsaken him. 12 And, behold,
the Lord and his priests are with us at our head, and the signal trumpets to
sound an alarm over us. Children of Israel, fight not against the Lord God of
our fathers; for ye shall not prosper.
13 Now Jeroboam had caused an ambush to
come round upon him from behind: and he himself was before Juda, and the
ambush behind. 14 And Juda looked
back, and, behold, the battle was against them before and behind: and
they cried to the Lord, and the priests sounded with the trumpets.
15 And the men of Juda shouted: and it came
to pass, when the men of Juda shouted, that the Lord smote Jeroboam and Israel
before Abia and Juda. 16 And the
children of Israel fled from before Juda; and the Lord delivered them into their
hands. 17 And Abia and his people
smote them with a great slaughter: and there fell slain of Israel five hundred
thousand mighty men. 18 So the
children of Israel were brought low in that day, and the children of Juda
prevailed, because they trusted on the Lord God of their fathers.
19 And Abia pursued after Jeroboam, and he
took from him the cities, Baethel and her towns, and Jesyna and her towns, and
Ephron and her towns. 20 And
Jeroboam did not recover strength again all the days of Abia: and the Lord smote
him, and he died.
21 But Abia strengthened himself, and
took to himself fourteen wives, and he begot twenty-two sons, and sixteen
daughters.
22 And the rest of the acts of Abia, and
his deeds, and his sayings, are written in the book of the prophet Addo.
Chapter 14
14:1 And Abia died with his fathers, and
they buried him in the city of David; and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In
the days of Asa the land of Juda had rest ten years.
2 And he did that which was good and
right in the sight of the Lord his God. 3
And he removed the altars of the strange gods, and the
high places, and broke the pillars in pieces, and cut down the groves:
4 and he told Juda to seek earnestly the
Lord God of their fathers, and to perform the law and commandments.
5 And he removed from all the cities of
Juda the altars and the idols, and established in quietness
6 fortified cities in the land of Juda; for
the land was quiet, and he had no war in these years; for the Lord gave him
rest. 7 And he said to Juda, Let us
fortify these cities, and make walls, and towers, and gates, and bars: we shall
prevail over the land, for as we have sought out the Lord our God, he has sought
out us, and has given us rest round about, and prospered us.
8 And Asa had a force of armed men bearing
shields and spears in the land of Juda, even three hundred thousand, and
in the land of Benjamin two hundred and eighty thousand targeteers and archers:
all these were mighty warriors.
9 And Zare the Ethiopian went out
against them, with a force of a million, and three hundred chariots; and came to
Maresa. 10 And Asa went out to meet
him, and set the battle in array in the valley north of Maresa.
11 And Asa cried to the Lord his God, and
said, O Lord, it is not impossible with thee to save by many or by few:
strengthen us, O Lord our God; for we trust in thee, and in thy name have we
come against this great multitude. O Lord our God, let not man prevail against
thee. 12 And the Lord smote the
Ethiopians before Juda; and the Ethiopians fled. 13
And Asa and his people pursued them to Gedor; and the Ethiopians
fell, so that they could not recover themselves; for they were crushed before
the Lord, and before his host; and they took many spoils.
14 And they destroyed their towns roundabout Gedor; for a
terror of the Lord was upon them: and they spoiled all their cities, for they
had much spoil. 15 Also they
destroyed the tents of cattle, and the Alimazons, and took many sheep and
camels, and returned to Jerusalem.
Chapter 15
15:1 And Azarias the son of Oded—upon
him came the Spirit of the Lord, 2
and he went out to meet Asa, and all Juda and Benjamin, and said, Hear me, Asa,
and all Juda and Benjamin. The Lord is with you, while ye are with him;
and if ye seek him out, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will
forsake you. 3 And Israel has
been a long time without the true God, and without a priest to expound
the truth, and without the law. 4
But he shall turn them to the Lord God of Israel, and he will be
found of them. 5 And in that time
there is no peace to one going out, or to one coming in, for the terror of the
Lord is upon all that inhabit the lands. 6
And nation shall fight against nation, and city against city; for
God has confounded them with every kind of affliction.
7 But be ye strong, and let not your hands
be weakened: for there is a reward for your work.
8 And when Asa heard these words,
and the prophesy of Adad the prophet, then he strengthened himself, and cast out
the abominations from all the land of Juda and Benjamin, and from the cities
which Jeroboam possessed, in mount Ephraim, and he renewed the altar of the
Lord, which was before the temple of the Lord. 9
And he assembled Juda and Benjamin, and the strangers that dwelt
with him, of Ephraim, and of Manasse, and of Symeon: for many of Israel were
joined to him, when they saw that the Lord his God was with him.
10 And they assembled at Jerusalem in the
third month, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa. 11
And he sacrificed to the Lord in that day of the spoils
which they brought, seven hundred calves and seven thousand sheep.
12 And he entered into a covenant that
they should seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and with all
their soul. 13 And that whoever
should not seek the Lord God of Israel, should die, whether young or old,
whether man or woman. 14 And they
swore to the Lord with a loud voice, and with trumpets, and with cornets.
15 And all Juda rejoiced concerning the
oath: for they swore with all their heart, and they sought him with all their
desires; and he was found of them: and the Lord gave them rest round about.
16 And he removed Maacha his mother from
being priestess to Astarte; and he cut down the idol, and burnt it in the brook
of Kedron. 17 Nevertheless they
removed not the high places: they still existed in Israel: nevertheless the
heart of Asa was perfect all his days. 18
And he brought in the holy things of David his father, and the
holy things of the house of God, silver, and gold, and vessels.
19 And there was no war waged with
him until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.
Chapter 16
16:1 And in the thirty-eighth year of
the reign of Asa, the king of Israel went up against Juda, and built Rama, so as
not to allow egress or ingress to Asa king of Juda.
2 And Asa took silver and gold out of
the treasures of the house of the Lord, and of the king’s house, and sent
them to the son of Ader king of Syria, which dwelt in Damascus, saying,
3 Make a covenant between me and
thee, and between my father and thy father: behold, I have sent thee gold and
silver: come, and turn away from me Baasa king of Israel, and let him depart
from me.
4 And the son of Ader hearkened to king
Asa, and sent the captains of his host against the cities of Israel; and smote
Æon, and Dan, and Abelmain, and all the country round Nephthali.
5 And it came to pass when Baasa heard
it he left off building Rama, and put a stop to his work:
6 then king Asa took all Juda, and took the
stones of Rama, and its timber, with which Baasa had built; and he
built with them Gabae and Maspha.
7 And at that time came Anani the
prophet to Asa king of Juda, and said to him, Because thou didst trust on the
king of Syria, and didst not trust on the Lord thy God, therefore the army of
Syria is escaped out of thy hand. 8
Were not the Ethiopians and Libyans a great force, in courage, in horsemen, in
great numbers? and did not He deliver them into thy hands, because thou
trustedst in the Lord? 9 For the
eyes of the Lord look upon all the earth, to strengthen every heart that is
perfect toward him. In this thou hast done foolishly; henceforth there shall be
war with thee. 10 And Asa was angry
with the prophet, and put him in prison, for he was angry at this: and Asa vexed
some of the people at that time.
11 And, behold, the acts of Asa, the
first and the last, are written in the book of the kings of Juda and
Israel.
12 And Asa was diseased in his
feet in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, until he was very ill: but in his
disease he sought not to the Lord, but to the physicians.
13 And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the
fortieth year of his reign. 14 And
they buried him in the sepulchre which he had dug for himself in the city of
David, and they laid him on a bed, and filled it with spices and all
kinds of perfumes of the apothecaries; and they made for him a very great
funeral.
Chapter 17
17:1 And Josaphat his son reigned in his
stead, Josaphat strengthened himself against Israel. 2
And he put garrisons in all the strong cities of Juda, and
appointed captains in all the cities of Juda, and in the cities of Ephraim,
which Asa his father had taken. 3
And the Lord was with Josaphat, for he walked in the first ways of his father,
and did not seek to idols; 4 but he
sought to the Lord God of his father, and walked in the commandments of his
father, and not according to the works of Israel. 5
And the Lord prospered the kingdom in his hand; and all Juda gave
gifts to Josaphat; and he had great wealth and glory. 6
And his heart was exalted in the way of the Lord; and he
removed the high places and the groves from the land of Juda.
7 And in the third year of his reign, he
sent his chief men, and his mighty men, Abdias and Zacharias, and Nathanael, and
Michaias, to teach in the cities of Juda. 8
And with them were the Levites, Samaias, and Nathanias,
and Zabdias, and Asiel, and Semiramoth, and Jonathan, and Adonias, and Tobias,
and Tobadonias, Levites, and with them Elisama and Joram, the priests.
9 And they taught in Juda, and there was
with them the book of the law of the Lord, and they passed through the cities of
Juda, and taught the people.
10 And a terror of the Lord was upon all
the kingdoms of the land round about Juda, and they made no war against Josaphat.
11 And some of the
Philistines brought to Josaphat gifts, and silver, and presents; and the
Arabians brought him seven thousand seven hundred rams. 12
And Josaphat increased in greatness exceedingly, and built
in Judea places of abode, and strong cities. 13
And he had many works in Judea: and the mighty men of war, the
men of strength, were in Jerusalem.
14 And this is their number
according to the houses of their fathers; even the captains of thousands in Juda
were, Ednas the chief, and with him mighty men of strength three hundred
thousand. 15 And after him, Joanan
the captain, and with him two hundred eighty thousand. 16
And after him Amasias the son of Zari, who was
zealous for the Lord; and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of strength.
17 And out of Benjamin there was
a mighty man of strength, even Eliada, and with him two hundred thousand archers
and targeteers. 18 And after him
Jozabad, and with him a hundred and eighty thousand mighty men of war.
19 These were the king’s servants besides
those whom the king put in the strong cities in all Judea.
Chapter 18
18:1 And Josaphat had yet great wealth
and glory, and he connected himself by marriage with the house of Achaab.
2 And he went down after a term of years to
Achaab to Samaria: and Achaab slew for him sheep and calves, in abundance, and
for the people with him, and he much desired him to go up with him to Ramoth of
the country of Galaad. 3 And Achaab
king of Israel said to Josaphat king of Juda, Wilt thou go with me to Ramoth of
the country of Galaad? And he said to him, As I am, so also art
thou, as thy people, so also is my people with thee for the war.
4 And Josaphat said to the king of
Israel, Seek, I pray thee, the Lord to-day. 5
And the king of Israel gathered the prophets, four hundred men,
and said to them, Shall I go to Ramoth Galaad to battle, or shall I forbear? And
they said, Go up, and God shall deliver it into the hands of the king.
6 And Josaphat said, Is there not
here a prophet of the Lord besides, that we may enquire of him?
7 And the king of Israel said to Josaphat,
There is yet one man by whom to enquire of the Lord; but I hate him, for he does
not prophesy concerning me for good, for all his days are for evil: this
is Michaias the son of Jembla. And Josaphat said, Let not the king say
so.
8 And the king called an eunuch, and
said, Fetch quickly Michaias the son of Jembla. 9
And the king of Israel and Josaphat king of Juda were
sitting each on his throne, and clothed in their robes, sitting in the open
space at the entrance of the gate of Samaria: and all the prophets were
prophesying before them. 10 And
Sedekias son of Chanaan made for himself iron horns, and said, Thus saith the
Lord, With these thou shalt thrust Syria until it be consumed.
11 And all the prophets prophesied so,
saying, Go up to Ramoth Galaad, and thou shalt prosper; and the Lord shall
deliver it into the hands of the king.
12 And the messenger that went to call
Michaias spoke to him, saying, Behold, the prophets have spoken favourably
concerning the king with one mouth; let now, I pray thee, thy words be as the
words of one of them, and do thou speak good things.
13 And Michaias said, As the Lord lives, whatever
God shall say to me, that will I speak.
14 And he came to the king, and the king
said to him, Michaias, shall I go up to Ramoth Galaad to battle, or shall I
forbear? And he said, Go up, and thou shalt prosper, and they shall be given
into your hands. 15 And the king
said to him, How often shall I solemnly charge thee that thou speak to me
nothing but truth in the name of the Lord? 16
And he said, I saw Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep
without a shepherd: and the Lord said, These have no commander; let each return
to his home in peace.
17 And the king of Israel said to
Josaphat, Said I not to thee, that he would not prophesy concerning me good, but
evil? 18 But he said, Not so. Hear
ye the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host
of heaven stood by on his right hand and on his left. 19
And the Lord said, Who will deceive Achaab king of Israel,
that he may go up, and fall in Ramoth Galaad? And one spoke this way, and
another spoke that way. 20 And there
came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said, I will deceive him.
And the Lord said, Whereby? 21 And
he said, I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his
prophets. And the Lord said, Thou shalt deceive him, and shalt
prevail: go forth, and do so. 22 And
now, behold, the Lord has put a false spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets,
and the Lord has spoken evil against thee.
23 Then Sedekias the son of Chanaan drew
near, and smote Michaias on the cheek, and said to him, By what way passed the
Spirit of the Lord from me to speak to thee? 24
And Michaias said, Behold, thou shalt see in that day, when thou
shalt go from chamber to chamber to hide thyself.
25 And the king of Israel said, Take
Michaias, and carry him back to Emer the governor of the city, and to Joas the
captain, the king’s son; 26 and ye
shall say, Thus said the king, Put this fellow into the prison house, and let
him eat the bread of affliction, and drink the water of affliction, until
I return in peace. 27 And Michaias
said, If thou do at all return in peace, the Lord has not spoken by me. And he
said, Hear, all ye people.
28 So the king of Israel, and Josaphat
king of Juda, went up to Ramoth Galaad. 29
And the king of Israel said to Josaphat, Disguise me, and I will
enter into the battle: and do thou put on my raiment. so the king of Israel
disguised himself, and entered into the battle. 30
Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of the chariots
that were with him, saying, Fight neither against small nor great, but only
against the king of Israel. 31 And
it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw Josaphat, that they said,
It is the king of Israel: and they compassed him about to fight against him: and
Josaphat cried out, and the Lord delivered him; and God turned them away from
him. 32 And it came to pass, when
the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they
turned away from him. 33 And a man
drew a bow with a good aim, and smote the king of Israel between the lungs and
the breast-plate: and he said to the charioteer, Turn thine hand, drive me out
of the battle, for I am wounded. 34
And the battle turned in that day; and the king of Israel remained on the
chariot against Syria until evening, and died at sunset.
Chapter 19
19:1 And Josaphat king of Juda returned
to his house at Jerusalem. 2 And
there went out to meet him Jeu the prophet the son of Anani, and said to him,
King Josaphat, doest thou help a sinner, or act friendly towards one hated of
the Lord? Therefore has wrath come upon thee from the Lord.
3 Nevertheless some good things have
been found in thee, forasmuch as thou didst remove the groves from the land of
Juda, and didst direct thine heart to seek after the Lord.
4 And Josaphat dwelt in Jerusalem: and
he again went out among the people from Bersabee to the mount of Ephraim, and
turned them back to the Lord God of their fathers. 5
And he appointed judges in all the strong cities of Juda,
city by city. 6 And he said to the
judges, Take good heed what ye do: for ye judge not for man, but for the Lord,
and with you are matters of judgment. 7
And now let the fear of the Lord be upon you, and be wary, and do
your duty: for there is no unrighteousness with the Lord our God, neither
is it for him to respect persons, nor take bribes.
8 Moreover Josaphat appointed in
Jerusalem some of the priests, and Levites, and heads of houses of Israel, for
the judgment of the Lord, and to judge the dwellers in Jerusalem.
9 And he charged them, saying, Thus shall
ye do in the fear of the Lord, in truth and with a perfect heart.
10 Whatsoever man of your brethren that
dwell in their cities shall bring the cause that comes before you,
between blood and blood, and between precept and commandment, and
ordinances and judgments, ye shall even decide for them; so they shall not sin
against the Lord, and there shall not be wrath upon you, and upon your brethren:
thus ye shall do, and ye shall not sin. 11
And, behold, Amarias the priest is head over you in every matter
of the Lord; and Zabdias the son of Ismael is head over the house of Juda in
every matter of the king; and the scribes and Levites are before you: be strong
and active, and the Lord shall be with the good.
Chapter 20
20:1 And after this came the children of
Moab, and the children of Ammon, and with them some of the Minaeans,
against Josaphat to battle. 2 And
they came and told Josaphat, saying, There is come against thee a great
multitude from Syria, from beyond the sea; and, behold, they are in Asasan
Thamar, this is Engadi. 3 And
Josaphat was alarmed, and set his face to seek the Lord earnestly, and he
proclaimed a fast in all Juda. 4 And
Juda gathered themselves together to seek after the Lord: even from all the
cities of Juda they came to seek the Lord.
5 And Josaphat stood up in the assembly
of Juda in Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord, in front of the new court.
6 And he said, O Lord God of my
fathers, art not thou God in heaven above, and art not thou Lord of all the
kingdoms of the nations? and is there not in thy hand the might of
dominion, and there is no one who can resist thee? 7
Art not thou the Lord that didst destroy the inhabitants
of this land before the face of thy people Israel, and didst give it to thy
beloved seed of Abraham for ever? 8
And they dwelt in it, and built in it a sanctuary to thy name, saying,
9 If there should come upon us evils,
sword, judgment, pestilence, famine, we will stand before this house, and before
thee, (for thy name is upon this house,)and we will cry to thee because
of the affliction, and thou shalt hear, and deliver. 10
And now, behold, the children of Ammon, and Moab, and
mount Seir, with regard to whom thou didst not permit Israel to pass through
their border, when they had come out of the land of Egypt, (for they turned away
from them, and did not destroy them;)— 11
yet now, behold, they make attempts against us, to come forth to
cast us out from our inheritance which thou gavest us. 12
O Lord our God, wilt thou not judge them? for we have no
strength to resist this great multitude that is come against us; and we know not
what we shall do to them: but our eyes are toward thee.
13 And all Juda was standing before the
Lord, and their children, and their wives. 14
And Oziel the son of Zacharias, of the children of Banaias,
of the sons of Eleiel, the sons of Matthanias the Levite, of the sons of Asaph,
—upon him came the Spirit of the Lord in the assembly: 15
and he said, Hear ye, all Juda, and the dwellers in
Jerusalem, and king Josaphat: Thus saith the Lord to you, even you, Fear not,
neither be alarmed, before all this great multitude; for the battle is not
years, but God’s. 16 To-morrow go ye
down against them: behold, they come up by the ascent of Assis, and ye shall
find them at the extremity of the river of the wilderness of Jeriel.
17 It is not for you to fight: understand
these things, and see the deliverance of the Lord with you, Juda and Jerusalem:
fear not, neither be afraid to go forth to-morrow to meet them; and the Lord
shall be with you. 18 And Josaphat
bowed with his face to the ground with all Juda and the dwellers in
Jerusalem, and they fell before the Lord to worship the Lord.
19 And the Levites of the children of Caath,
and they of the sons of Core, rose up to praise the Lord God of Israel
with a loud voice on high.
20 And they rose early in the morning
and went out to the wilderness of Thecoe: and as they went out, Josaphat stood
and cried, and said, Hear me, Juda, and the dwellers in Jerusalem; put your
trust in the Lord God, and your trust shall be honored; trust in his prophet,
and ye shall prosper. 21 And he took
counsel with the people, and set appointed men to sing psalms and praises, to
give thanks, and sing the holy songs of praise in going forth before the host:
and they said, Give thanks to the Lord, for his mercy endures for ever.
22 And when they began the praise and
thanksgiving, the Lord caused the children of Ammon to fight against Moab, and
the inhabitants of mount Seir that came out against Juda; and they were
routed. 23 Then the children of
Ammon and Moab rose up against the dwellers in mount Seir, to destroy and
consume them; and when they had made an end of destroying the inhabitants
of Seir, they rose up against one another so that they were utterly destroyed.
24 And Juda came to the watch-tower of
the wilderness, and looked, and saw the multitude, and, behold, they were
all fallen dead upon the earth, not one escaped. 25
And Josaphat and his people went out to spoil them, and they
found much cattle, and furniture, and spoils, and precious things: and they
spoiled them, and they were three days gathering the spoil, for it was abundant.
26 And it came to pass on the fourth
day they were gathered to the Valley of Blessing; for there they blessed the
Lord: therefore they called the name of the place the Valley of Blessing, until
this day.
27 And all the men of Juda returned to
Jerusalem, and Josaphat led them with great joy; for the Lord gave them joy over
their enemies. 28 And they entered
into Jerusalem with lutes and harps and trumpets, going into the house of
the lord. 29 And there was a terror
of the Lord upon all the kingdoms of the land, when they heard that the Lord
fought against the enemies of Israel. 30
And the kingdom of Josaphat was at peace; and his God gave him
rest round about.
31 And Josaphat reigned over Juda, being
thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five
years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Azuba, daughter of Sali.
32 And he walked in the ways of his father
Asa, and turned not aside from doing that which was right in the sight of the
Lord. 33 nevertheless the high
places yet remained; and as yet the people did not direct their heart to the
Lord God of their fathers.
34 And the rest of the acts of Josaphat,
the first and the last, behold, they are written in the history of Jeu the
son of Anani, who wrote the book of the kings of Israel.
35 And afterwards Josaphat king of Juda
entered into an alliance with Ochozias king of Israel, (now this was an
unrighteous man,) 36 by acting
with and going to him, to build ships to go to Tharsis: and he built ships
in Gasion Gaber. 37 And Eliezer thee
son of Dodia of Marisa prophesied against Josaphat, saying, Forasmuch as
thou hast allied thyself with Ochozias, the Lord has broken thy work, and thy
vessels have been wrecked. And they could not go to Tharsis.
Chapter 21
21:1 And Josaphat slept with his
fathers, and was buried in the city of David: and Joran his son reigned in his
stead. 2 And he had brothers, the
six sons of Josaphat, Azarias, and Jeiel, and Zacharias, and Azarias, and
Michael, and Zaphatias: all these were the sons of Josaphat king of Juda.
3 And their father gave them many
gifts, silver, and gold, and arms, together with fortified cities in Juda: but
he gave the kingdom to Joram, for he was the first-born.
4 And Joram entered upon his kingdom, and
strengthened himself, and slew all his brothers with the sword, and some
of the princes of Israel.
5 When he was thirty and two years old,
Joram succeeded to his kingdom, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.
6 And he walked in the way of the kings of
Israel, as did the house of Achaab; for a daughter of Achaab was his wife: and
he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord: 7
nevertheless the Lord would not utterly destroy the house
of David, because of the covenant which he made with David, and as he said to
him that he would give a light to him and his sons for ever.
8 In those days Edom revolted from Juda,
and they made a king over themselves. 9
And Joram went with the princes, and all the cavalry with him:
and it came to pass that he arose by night, and smote Edom that compassed him
about, and the captains of the chariots, and the people fled to their tents.
10 And Edom revolted from Juda until
this day. Then Lomna at that time revolted from under his hand, because
he forsook the Lord God of his fathers. 11
For he built high places in the cities of Juda, and caused the
dwellers in Jerusalem to go a-whoring, and led Juda astray.
12 And there came to him a message
in writing from Eliu the prophet, saying, Thus saith the Lord God of thy father
David, Because thou hast not walked in the way of thy father Josaphat, nor in
the ways of Asa king of Juda, 13 but
hast walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and hast caused Juda and the
dwellers in Jerusalem to go a-whoring, as the house of Achaab caused Israel
to go a-whoring, and thou hast slain thy brethren, the sons of thy father, who
were better than thyself; 14 behold,
the Lord shall smite thee with a great plague among thy people, and thy sons,
and thy wives, and all thy store: 15
and thou shalt be afflicted with a grievous disease, with
a disease of the bowels, until thy bowels shall fall out day by day with the
sickness.
16 So the Lord stirred up the
Philistines against Joram, and the Arabians, and those who bordered on the
Æthiopians: 17 and they went up
against Juda, and prevailed against them, and took away all the store which they
found in the house of the king, and his sons, and his daughters; and there was
no son left to him but Ochozias the youngest of his sons.
18 And after all these things the Lord smote him in the
bowels with an incurable disease. 19
And it continued from day to day: and when the time of the days
came to two years, his bowels fell out with the disease, and he died by a
grievous distemper: and his people performed no funeral, like the funeral of his
fathers. 20 He was thirty and two
years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And
he departed without honour, and was buried in the city of David, but not in the
tombs of the kings.
Chapter 22
22:1 And the inhabitants of Jerusalem
made Ochozias his youngest son king in his stead: for the band of robbers that
came against them, even the Arabians and the Alimazonians, had slain all the
elder ones. So Ochozias son of Joram king of Juda reigned.
2 Ochozias began to reign when he was
twenty years old, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name
was Gotholia, the daughter of Ambri. 3
And he walked in the way of the house of Achaab; for his mother
was his counsellor to do evil. 4 And
he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord as the house of Achaab
had done: for they were his counselors after the death of his father to his
destruction. 5 And he walked in
their counsels, and he went with Joram son of Achaab king of Israel to war
against Azael king of Syria to Ramoth Galaad: and the archers smote Joram.
6 And Joram returned to Jezrael to
be healed of the wounds wherewith the Syrians smote him in Ramoth, when he
fought against Azael king of Syria.
And Ochozias son of Joram, king of Juda, went down to see
Joram the son of Achaab at Jezrael because he was sick. 7
And destruction from God came upon Ochozias in his
coming to Joram; for when he had come, Joram went out with him against Jeu the
son of Namessei, the anointed of the Lord against the house of Achaab.
8 And it came to pass, when Jeu was
taking vengeance on the house of Achaab, that he found the princes of Juda and
the brethren of Ochozias ministering to Ochozias, and he slew them.
9 And he gave orders to seek Ochozias: and
they took him while he was healing his wounds in Samaria, and they brought him
to Jeu, and he slew him; and they buried him, for they said, He is the son of
Josaphat, who sought the Lord with all his heart.
So there was none in the house of Ochozias to secure their
power in the kingdom. 10 And
Gotholia the mother of Ochozias saw that her son was dead, and she arose and
destroyed all the seed royal in the house of Juda. 11
But Josabeeth, the daughter of the king, took Joas the son
of Ochozias and rescued him secretly out of the midst of the sons of the king
that were put to death, and she placed him and his nurse in a bedchamber. So
Josabeeth daughter of king Joram, sister of Ochozias, wife of Jodae the priest,
hid him, and she even hid him from Gotholia, and she did not slay him.
12 And he was with him hid in the
house of God six years; and Gotholia reigned over the land.
Chapter 23
23:1 And in the eighth year Jodae
strengthened himself, and took the captains of hundreds, Azarias the son
of Joram, and Ismael the son of Joanan, and Azarias the son of Obed, and
Maasaeas the son of Adia, and Elisaphan the son of Zacharias, with him unto the
house of the Lord. 2 And they went
round about Juda, and gathered the Levites out of all the cities of Juda, and
heads of the families of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.
3 and all the congregation of Juda made a
covenant with the king in the house of God. And he shewed them the king’s son,
and said to them, Lo, let the king’s son reign, as the Lord said concerning the
house of David. 4 Now this is
the thing which ye shall do. Let a third part of you, even of the priests
and of the Levites, enter in on the sabbath, even into the gates of the
entrances; 5 and let a third part be
in the house of the king; and another third at the middle gate: and all the
people in the courts of the Lord’s house. 6
And let not any one enter into the house of the Lord,
except the priests and the Levites, and the servants of the Levites; they shall
enter in, because they are holy: and let all the people keep the watch of the
Lord. 7 And the Levites shall
compass the king round about, every man’s weapon in his hand; and whoever
else goes into the house shall die: but they shall be with the king when he
goes out, and when he comes in.
8 And the Levites and all Juda did
according to all that the priest Jodae commanded them, and they took each his
men from the beginning of the sabbath to the end of the sabbath, for Jodae the
priest did not dismiss the courses. 9
And Jodae gave to the men the swords, and the shields, and the
arms, which had belonged to King David, in the house of God.
10 And he set the whole people, every man
with his arms, from the right side of the house to the left side of the altar
and the house, over against the king round about. 11
And he brought out the king’s son, and put on him the
crown and the testimony, and Jodae the priest and his sons proclaimed him king,
and anointed him, and said, Long live the king!
12 And Gotholia heard the sound of the
people running, and acknowledging and praising the king: and she went in to the
king into the house of the Lord. 13
And she looked, and, behold, the king stood in his place, and the princes
and trumpets were at the entrance, and the princes were round the king: and all
the people of the land rejoiced, and sounded the trumpets, and there were the
singers singing with instruments, and singing hymns of praise. and Gotholia rent
her robe, and cried, ye surely are plotting against me.
14 And Jodae the priest went forth, and
Jodae the priest charged the captains of hundreds, even the captains of the
host, and said to them, Thrust her forth outside the house, and follow her, and
let her be slain with the sword. For the priest said, Let her not be slain in
the house of the Lord. 15 So they
let her go out; and she went through the horsemen’s gate of the house of
the king, and they slew her there.
16 And Jodae made a covenant between
himself, and the people, and the king, that the people should be the Lord’s.
17 And all the people of the land
went into the house of Baal, and tore down it and its altars, and they ground
his images to powder, and they slew Matthan the priest of Baal before his
altars. 18 And Jodae the priest
committed the works of the house of the Lord into the and of the priests and
Levites, and he re-established the courses of the priests and Levites which
David appointed over the house of the Lord, and he appointed them to
offer whole-burnt-offerings to the Lord, as it is written in the law of Moses,
with gladness, and with songs by the hand of David. 19
And the porters stood at the gates of the house of the
Lord, that no one unclean in any respect should enter in.
20 And he took the heads of families, and the mighty men,
and the chiefs of the people, and all the people of the land, and they conducted
the king into the house of the Lord; and he went through the inner gate into the
king’s house, and they seated the king on the throne of the kingdom.
21 And all the people of the land rejoiced;
and the city was quiet: and they slew Gotholia.
Chapter 24
24:1 Joas was seven years old when he
began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name
was Sabia of Bersabee. 2 And Joas
did that which right in the sight of the Lord all the days of Jodae the priest.
3 And Jodae took to himself two
wives, and they bore sons and daughters.
4 And it came to pass afterward that it
came into the heart of Joas to repair the house of the Lord.
5 And he gathered the priests and the
Levites, and said to them, Go out into the cities of Juda, and collect money of
all Israel to repair the house of the Lord from year to year, and make haste to
speak of it. But the Levites hasted not.
6 And king Joas called Jodae the chief,
and said to him, Why hast thou not looked after the Levites, so that they should
bring from Juda and Jerusalem that which was prescribed by Moses the man of God,
when he assembled Israel at the tabernacle of witness? 7
For Gotholia was a transgressor, and her sons tore down
the house of God; for they offered the holy things of the house of the Lord to
Baalim.
8 And the king said, Let a box be made,
and let it be put at the gate of the house of the Lord without.
9 And let men proclaim in Juda an in
Jerusalem, that the people should bring to the Lord, as Moses the servant
of God spoke concerning Israel in the wilderness. 10
And all the princes and all the people gave, and brought
in, and cast into the box until it was filled. 11
And it came to pass, when they brought in the box to the officers
of the king by the hand of the Levites, and when they saw that the money was
more than sufficient, then came the king’s scribe, and the officer of the high
priest, and emptied the box, and restored it to its place. Thus they did day by
day, and collected much money. 12
And the king and Jodae the priest gave it to the workmen employed in the service
of the house of the Lord, and they hired masons and carpenters to repair the
house of the Lord, also smiths and braziers to repair the house of the Lord.
13 And the workmen wrought, and the
works prospered in their hands, and they established the house of the Lord on
its foundation, and strengthened it. 14
And when they had finished it, they brought to the king
and to Jodae the remainder of the money, and they made vessels for the house of
the Lord, vessels of service for whole-burnt-offerings, and gold and silver
censers: and they offered up whole-burnt-offerings in the house of the Lord
continually all the days of Jodae.
15 And Jodae grew old, being full of
days, and he died, being a hundred and thirty years old at his death.
16 And they buried him with the kings in
the city of David, because he had dealt well with Israel, and with God and his
house.
17 And it came to pass after the death
of Jodae, that the princes of Juda went in, and did obeisance to the
king. Then the king hearkened to them. 18
And they forsook the house of the Lord God of their fathers, and
served the Astartes and idols: and there was wrath upon Juda and Jerusalem in
that day. 19 yet he sent prophets to
them, to turn them to the Lord; but they hearkened not: and he testified to
them, but they obeyed not. 20 And
the Spirit of God came upon Azarias the son of Jodae the priest, and he stood up
above the people, and said, Thus saith the Lord, Why do ye transgress the
commandments of the Lord? so shall ye not prosper; for ye have forsaken the
Lord, and he will forsake you. 21
And they conspired against him, and stone him by command of king Joas in the
court of the Lord’s house. 22 So
Joas remembered not the kindness which his father Jodae had exercised towards
him, but slew his son. And as he died, he said, The Lord look upon it,
and judge.
23 And it came to pass after the end of
the year, that the host of Syria went up against him, and came against
Juda and Jerusalem: and they slew all the chiefs of the people among the people,
and all their spoils they sent to the king of Damascus. 24
For the army of Syria came with few men, yet God gave into
their hands a very large army, because they had forsaken the God of their
fathers; and he brought judgments on Joas.
25 And after they had departed from him,
when they had left him in sore diseases, then his servants conspired against him
because of the blood of the son of Jodae the priest, and slew him on his bed,
and he died, and they buried him in the city of David, but they buried him not
in the sepulchre of the kings. 26
And they that conspired against him were Zabed the son of Samaath the Ammanite,
and Jozabed the son of Samareth the Moabite. 27
And all his sons, and the five came to him: and the other
matters, behold, they are written in the book of the kings. And Amasias his
son reigned in his stead.
Chapter 25
25:1 Amasias began to reign when he was
twenty and five years old, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem; and
his mother’s name was Joadaen of Jerusalem. 2
And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord,
but not with a perfect heart. 3 And
it came to pass, when the kingdom was established in his hand, that he slew his
servants who had slain the king his father. 4
But he slew not their sons, according to the covenant of the law
of the Lord, as it is written, and as the Lord commanded, saying, The
fathers shall not die for the children, and the sons shall not die for the
fathers, but they shall die each for his own sin.
5 And Amasias assembled the house of
Juda, and appointed them according to the houses of their families for captains
of thousands and captains of hundreds in all Juda and Jerusalem: and he numbered
them from twenty years old and upwards, and found them three hundred thousand
able to go out to war, holding spear and shield. 6
Also he hired of Israel a hundred thousand mighty men for
a hundred talents of silver.
7 And there came a man of God to him,
saying, O king, let not the host of Israel go with thee; for the Lord is not
with Israel, even all the sons of Ephraim. 8
For if thou shalt undertake to strengthen thyself with
these, then the lord shall put thee to flight before the enemies: for it is of
the Lord both to strengthen and to put to flight. 9
And Amasias said to the man of God, But what shall I do for
the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God
said, The Lord can give thee much more than these.
10 And Amasias separated from the army
that came to him from Ephraim, that they might go away to their place; and they
were very angry with Juda, and they returned to their place with great wrath.
11 And Amasias strengthened
himself, and took his people, and went to the valley of salt, and smote
there the children of Seir ten thousand. 12
And the children of Juda took ten thousand prisoners, and they
carried them to the top of the precipice, and cast them headlong from the top of
the precipice, and they were all dashed to pieces. 13
And the men of the host whom Amasias sent back so that
they should not go with him to battle, went and attacked the cities of
Juda, from Samaria to Baethoron; and they smote three thousand among them, and
took much spoil.
14 And it came to pass, after Amasias
had returned from smiting Idumea, that he brought home the gods of the children
of Seir, and set them up for himself as gods, and bowed down before them, and he
sacrificed to them. 15 And the anger
of the Lord came upon Amasias, and he sent him a prophet, and he said to him,
Why hast thou sought the gods of the people, which have not rescued their own
people out of thine hand? 16 And it
came to pass when the prophet was speaking to him, that he said to him, have I
made thee king’s counsellor? take heed lest thou be scourged: and the prophet
forebore, and said, I know that God is disposed against thee to destroy
thee, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not hearkened to my counsel.
17 And Amasias king of Juda took
counsel, and sent to Joas, son of Joachaz, son of Jeu, king of Israel, saying,
Come, and let us look one another in the face. 18
And Joas king of Israel sent to Amasias king of Juda, saying, The
thistle that was in Libanus sent to the cedar that was in Libanus, saying, Give
thy daughter to my son to wife; but, behold, thy wild beasts of the field that
are in Libanus shall come: and the wild beasts did come, and trod down the
thistle. 19 Thou hast said, Behold,
I have smitten Idumea, and thy stout heart exalts thee: now stay at home; for
why dost thou implicate thyself in mischief, that thou shouldest fall, and Juda
with thee.
20 Nevertheless Amasias hearkened not,
for it was of the Lord to deliver him into the enemy’s hands, because he
sought after the gods of the Idumeans. 21
So Joas king of Israel went up; and they saw one another, he and
Amasias king of Juda, in Baethsamys, which is of Juda. 22
And Juda was put to flight before Israel, and they fled
every man to his tent. 23 And Joas
king of Israel took prisoner Amasias king of Juda, son of Joas, son of
Joachaz, in Baethsamys, and brought him to Jerusalem; and he pulled down part
of the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four
hundred cubits. 24 And he took
all the gold and the silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of
the Lord and with Abdedom, and the treasures of the king’s house, and the
hostages, and he returned to Samaria.
25 And Amasias the son of Joas
king of Juda lived after the death of Joas the son of Joachaz king of
Israel fifteen years. 26 And the
rest of the acts of Amasias, the first and the last, Lo! are they not written in
the book of the kings of Juda and Israel? 27
And at the time when Amasias departed from the Lord, then they
formed a conspiracy against him; and he fled from Jerusalem to Lachis: and they
sent after him to Lachis, and slew him there. 28
And they took him up on horses, and buried him with his fathers
in the city of David.
Chapter 26
26:1 Then all the people of the land
took Ozias, and he was sixteen years old, and they made him king in the room of
his father Amasias. 2 He built Ælath,
he recovered it to Juda, after the king slept with his fathers.
3 Ozias began to reign at the age of
sixteen years, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s
name was Jechelia of Jerusalem. 4
And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that
Amasias his father did. 5 And he
sought the Lord in the days of Zacharias, who understood the fear of the Lord;
and in his days he sought the Lord, and the Lord prospered him.
6 And he went out and fought against the
Philistines, and pulled down the walls of Geth, and the walls of Jabner, and the
walls of Azotus, and he built cities near Azotus, and among the
Philistines. 7 And the Lord
strengthened him against the Philistines, and against the Arabians that dwelt on
the rock, and against the Minaeans. 8
And the Minaeans gave gifts to Ozias; and his fame spread as far
as the entering in of Egypt, for he strengthened himself exceedingly.
9 And Ozias built towers in Jerusalem,
both at the gate of the corners, and at the valley gate, and at the corners and
he fortified them. 10 And he built
towers in the wilderness, and dug many wells, for he had many cattle in the low
country and in the plain; and vinedressers in the mountain country and in
Carmel: for he was a husbandman. 11
And Ozias had a host of warriors, and that went out orderly to war, and returned
orderly in number; and their number was made by the hand of Jeiel the
scribe, and Maasias the judge, by the hand of Ananias the king’s deputy.
12 The whole number of the chiefs of
families of the mighty men of war was two thousand six hundred;
13 and with them was a warrior force, three
hundred thousand and seven thousand and five hundred: these waged war mightily
to help the king against his enemies. 14
And Ozias prepared for them, even for all the host,
shields, and spears, and helmets, and breastplates, and bows, and slings for
stones. 15 And he made in Jerusalem
machines invented by a wise contriver, to be upon the towers and upon the
corners, to cast darts and great stones: and the fame of their
preparation was heard at a distance; for he was wonderfully helped, till he was
strong.
16 And when he was strong, his heart was
lifted up to his destruction; and he transgressed against the Lord his God, and
went into the temple of the Lord to turn incense on the altar of incense.
17 And there went in after him Azarias the
priest, and with him eighty priests of the Lord, mighty men.
18 And they withstood Ozias the king, and
said to him, It is not for thee, Ozias, to burn incense to the Lord, but
only for the priests the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to sacrifice: go
forth of the sanctuary, for thou hast departed from the Lord; and this shall not
be for glory to thee from the Lord god.
19 And Ozias was angry, and in his hand
was the censer to burn incense in the temple: and when he was angry with
the priests, then the leprosy rose up in his forehead before the priests in the
house of the Lord, over the altar of incense. 20
And Azarias the chief priest, and the other priests,
turned to look at him, and, behold, he was leprous in his
forehead; and they got him hastily out thence, for he also hasted to go out,
because the Lord had rebuked him. 21
And Ozias the king was a leper to the day of his death, and he
dwelt as a leper in a separate house; for he was cut off from the house
of the Lord: and Joathan his son was set over his kingdom, judging the
people of the land.
22 |
