Jehoahaz Reigns in Israel

13 In the twenty-third year of ^(A)Joash^[a] the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, ^(B)Jehoahaz the son of Jehu became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years. ² And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, and followed the ^(C)sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. He did not ^[b]depart from them.

³ Then ^(D)the anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel, and He delivered them into the hand of ^(E)Hazael king of Syria, and into the hand of ^(F)Ben-Hadad the son of Hazael, all their days. ⁴ So Jehoahaz ^(G)pleaded with the Lord, and the Lord listened to him; for ^(H)He saw the oppression of Israel, because the king of Syria oppressed them. ^5 (I)Then the Lord gave Israel a deliverer, so that they escaped from under the hand of the Syrians; and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents as before. ⁶ Nevertheless they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, who had made Israel sin, but walked in them; ^(J)and the ^[c]wooden image also remained in Samaria. ⁷ For He left of the army of Jehoahaz only fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers; for the king of Syria had destroyed them ^(K)and made them ^(L)like the dust at threshing.

⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? ⁹ So Jehoahaz ^[d]rested with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. Then ^[e]Joash his son reigned in his place.

Jehoash Reigns in Israel

¹⁰ In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, ^[f]Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz became king over Israel in Samaria, and reigned sixteen years. ¹¹ And he did evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin, but walked in them.

^12 (M)Now the rest of the acts of Joash, ^(N)all that he did, and ^(O)his might with which he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? ¹³ So Joash ^(P)rested^[g] with his fathers. Then Jeroboam sat on his throne. And Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

Death of Elisha

¹⁴ Elisha had become sick with the illness of which he would die. Then Joash the king of Israel came down to him, and wept over his face, and said, “O my father, my father, ^(Q)the chariots of Israel and their horsemen!”

¹⁵ And Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and some arrows.” So he took himself a bow and some arrows. ¹⁶ Then he said to the king of Israel, “Put your hand on the bow.” So he put his hand on it, and Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands. ¹⁷ And he said, “Open the east window”; and he opened it. Then Elisha said, “Shoot”; and he shot. And he said, “The arrow of the Lord’s deliverance and the arrow of deliverance from Syria; for you must strike the Syrians at ^(R)Aphek till you have destroyed them.” ¹⁸ Then he said, “Take the arrows”; so he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground”; so he struck three times, and stopped. ¹⁹ And the man of God was angry with him, and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck Syria till you had destroyed it! ^(S)But now you will strike Syria only three times.”

²⁰ Then Elisha ^[h]died, and they buried him. And the ^(T)raiding bands from Moab invaded the land in the spring of the year. ²¹ So it was, as they were burying a man, that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.

Israel Recaptures Cities from Syria

²² And ^(U)Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. ²³ But the Lord was ^(V)gracious to them, had compassion on them, and ^(W)regarded them, ^(X)because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not yet destroy them or cast them from His presence.

²⁴ Now Hazael king of Syria died. Then Ben-Hadad his son reigned in his place. ²⁵ And ^[i]Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz recaptured from the hand of Ben-Hadad, the son of Hazael, the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. ^(Y)Three times Joash defeated him and recaptured the cities of Israel.

Amaziah Reigns in Judah^(Z)

14 In ^(AA)the second year of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, ^(AB)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, became king. ² He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. ³ And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, yet not like his father David; he did everything ^(AC)as his father Joash had done. ^4 (AD)However the ^[j]high places were not taken away, and the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.

⁵ Now it happened, as soon as the kingdom was established in his hand, that he executed his servants ^(AE)who had murdered his father the king. ⁶ But the children of the murderers he did not execute, according to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, in which the Lord commanded, saying, ^(AF)“Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall children be put to death for their fathers; but a person shall be put to death for his own sin.”

^7 (AG)He killed ten thousand Edomites in ^(AH)the Valley of Salt, and took ^[k]Sela by war, ^(AI)and called its name Joktheel to this day.

^8 (AJ)Then Amaziah sent messengers to ^[l]Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us face one another in battle.” ⁹ And Jehoash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, ^(AK)“The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the ^(AL)cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife’; and a wild beast that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thistle. ¹⁰ You have indeed defeated Edom, and ^(AM)your heart has ^[m]lifted you up. Glory in that, and stay at home; for why should you meddle with trouble so that you fall—you and Judah with you?”

¹¹ But Amaziah would not heed. Therefore Jehoash king of Israel went out; so he and Amaziah king of Judah faced one another at ^(AN)Beth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah. ¹² And Judah was defeated by Israel, and every man fled to his tent. ¹³ Then Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash, the son of Ahaziah, at Beth Shemesh; and he went to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from ^(AO)the Gate of Ephraim to ^(AP)the Corner Gate—^[n]four hundred cubits. ¹⁴ And he took all ^(AQ)the gold and silver, all the articles that were found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria.

^15 (AR)Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did—his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah—are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? ¹⁶ So Jehoash ^[o]rested with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. Then Jeroboam his son reigned in his place.

^17 (AS)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. ¹⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? ¹⁹ And ^(AT)they formed a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to ^(AU)Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish and killed him there. ²⁰ Then they brought him on horses, and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the City of David.

²¹ And all the people of Judah took ^(AV)Azariah,^[p] who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. ²² He built ^(AW)Elath^[q] and restored it to Judah, after ^[r]the king rested with his fathers.

Jeroboam II Reigns in Israel

²³ In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, became king in Samaria, and reigned forty-one years. ²⁴ And he did evil in the sight of the Lord; he did not depart from all the ^(AX)sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who had made Israel sin. ²⁵ He ^(AY)restored the ^[s]territory of Israel ^(AZ)from the entrance of Hamath to ^(BA)the^[t] Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which He had spoken through His servant ^(BB)Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was from ^(BC)Gath Hepher. ²⁶ For the Lord ^(BD)saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter; and whether bond or free, ^(BE)there was no helper for Israel. ^27 (BF)And the Lord did not say that He would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven; but He saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.

²⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did—his might, how he made war, and how he recaptured for Israel, from ^(BG)Damascus and Hamath, ^(BH)what had belonged to Judah—are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? ²⁹ So Jeroboam ^[u]rested with his fathers, the kings of Israel. Then ^(BI)Zechariah his son reigned in his place.

Amaziah Reigns in Judah^(A)

25 Amaziah ^(B)was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. ² And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, ^(C)but not with a loyal heart.

^3 (D)Now it happened, as soon as the kingdom was established for him, that he executed his servants who had murdered his father the king. ⁴ However he did not execute their children, but did as it is written in the Law in the Book of Moses, where the Lord commanded, saying, ^(E)“The fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor shall the children be put to death for their fathers; but a person shall die for his own sin.”

The War Against Edom^(F)

⁵ Moreover Amaziah gathered Judah together and set over them captains of thousands and captains of hundreds, according to their fathers’ houses, throughout all Judah and Benjamin; and he numbered them ^(G)from twenty years old and above, and found them to be three hundred thousand choice men, able to go to war, who could handle spear and shield. ⁶ He also hired one hundred thousand mighty men of valor from Israel for one hundred talents of silver. ⁷ But a ^(H)man of God came to him, saying, “O king, do not let the army of Israel go with you, for the Lord is not with Israel—not with any of the children of Ephraim. ⁸ But if you go, be gone! Be strong in battle! Even so, God shall make you fall before the enemy; for God has ^(I)power to help and to overthrow.”

⁹ Then Amaziah said to the man of God, “But what shall we do about the hundred talents which I have given to the troops of Israel?”

And the man of God answered, ^(J)“The Lord is able to give you much more than this.” ¹⁰ So Amaziah discharged the troops that had come to him from Ephraim, to go back home. Therefore their anger was greatly aroused against Judah, and they returned home in great anger.

¹¹ Then Amaziah strengthened himself, and leading his people, he went to ^(K)the Valley of Salt and killed ten thousand of the people of Seir. ¹² Also the children of Judah took captive ten thousand alive, brought them to the top of the rock, and cast them down from the top of the rock, so that they all were dashed in pieces.

¹³ But as for the soldiers of the army which Amaziah had discharged, so that they would not go with him to battle, they raided the cities of Judah from Samaria to Beth Horon, killed three thousand in them, and took much ^[a]spoil.

¹⁴ Now it was so, after Amaziah came from the slaughter of the Edomites, that ^(L)he brought the gods of the people of Seir, set them up to be ^(M)his gods, and bowed down before them and burned incense to them. ¹⁵ Therefore the anger of the Lord was aroused against Amaziah, and He sent him a prophet who said to him, “Why have you sought ^(N)the gods of the people, which ^(O)could not rescue their own people from your hand?”

¹⁶ So it was, as he talked with him, that the king said to him, “Have we made you the king’s counselor? Cease! Why should you be killed?”

Then the prophet ceased, and said, “I know that God has ^(P)determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not heeded my advice.”

Israel Defeats Judah^(Q)

¹⁷ Now ^(R)Amaziah king of Judah asked advice and sent to ^[b]Joash the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us face one another in battle.”

¹⁸ And Joash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, “The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife’; and a wild beast that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thistle. ¹⁹ Indeed you say that you have defeated the Edomites, and your heart is lifted up to ^(S)boast. Stay at home now; why should you meddle with trouble, that you should fall—you and Judah with you?”

²⁰ But Amaziah would not heed, for ^(T)it came from God, that He might give them into the hand of their enemies, because they ^(U)sought the gods of Edom. ²¹ So Joash king of Israel went out; and he and Amaziah king of Judah faced one another at ^(V)Beth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah. ²² And Judah was defeated by Israel, and every man fled to his tent. ²³ Then Joash the king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of ^(W)Jehoahaz, at Beth Shemesh; and he brought him to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Gate of Ephraim to the Corner Gate—four hundred cubits. ²⁴ And he took all the gold and silver, all the articles that were found in the house of God with ^(X)Obed-Edom, the treasures of the king’s house, and hostages, and returned to Samaria.

Death of Amaziah^(Y)

^25 (Z)Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Joash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. ²⁶ Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, from first to last, indeed are they not written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel? ²⁷ After the time that Amaziah turned away from following the Lord, they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish and killed him there. ²⁸ Then they brought him on horses and buried him with his fathers in ^[c]the City of Judah.

Perilous Times and Perilous Men

3 But know this, that ^(A)in the last days ^[a]perilous times will come: ² For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, ³ unloving, ^[b]unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, ^4 (B)traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, ^5 (C)having a form of godliness but ^(D)denying its power. And ^(E)from such people turn away! ⁶ For ^(F)of this sort are those who creep into households and make captives of gullible women loaded down with sins, led away by various lusts, ⁷ always learning and never able ^(G)to come to the knowledge of the truth. ^8 (H)Now as Jannes and Jambres resisted Moses, so do these also resist the truth: ^(I)men of corrupt minds, ^(J)disapproved concerning the faith; ⁹ but they will progress no further, for their folly will be manifest to all, ^(K)as theirs also was.

The Man of God and the Word of God

^10 (L)But you have carefully followed my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, love, perseverance, ¹¹ persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me ^(M)at Antioch, ^(N)at Iconium, ^(O)at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And ^(P)out of them all the Lord delivered me. ¹² Yes, and ^(Q)all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. ^13 (R)But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. ¹⁴ But you must ^(S)continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, ¹⁵ and that from childhood you have known ^(T)the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

^16 (U)All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, ^(V)and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for ^[c]instruction in righteousness, ^17 (W)that the man of God may be complete, ^(X)thoroughly equipped for every good work.