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2 Kings 16
In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah Ahaz the son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign. 2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: and he did not do that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh his Elohim, like David his father. 3 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yes, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations, whom Yahweh cast out from before the children of Israel. 4 And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree.
5 Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Ramaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him. 6 At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drove the Jews from Elath; and the Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there, to this day.
7 So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, I am your servant and your son: come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, who rise up against me. 8 And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of Yahweh, and in the treasures of the king’s house, and sent it for a. present to the king of Assyria. 9 And the king of Assyria listened to him; and the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and killed Rezin.
10 And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus: and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship of it. 11 And Urijah the priest built an altar: according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so did Urijah the priest make it against the coming of king Ahaz from Damascus. 12 And when the king had come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king drew near to the altar, and offered on it. 13 And he burnt his burnt-offering and his meal-offering, and poured his drink-offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace-offerings, on the altar. 14 And the bronze altar, which was before Yahweh, he brought from the forefront of the house, from between his altar and the house of Yahweh, and put it on the north side of his altar. 15 And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, upon the great altar burn the morning burnt-offering, and the evening meal-offering, and the king’s burnt-offering, and his meal-offering of all the people of the land, and their meal-offering, and their drink-offerings; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt-offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice: but the bronze altar shall be for me to inquire by. 16 In this manner did Urijah the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded.
17 And king Ahaz cut off the panels of the bases, and removed the laver from off the bronze oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stone. 18 And the covered way for the sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king’s entry outside he turned to the house of Yahweh, because of the king of Assyria. 19 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 20 And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David: and Hezekiah his son reigned in his place.
2 Kings 17
In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah Hoshea the son of Elah began to reign in Samaria over Israel, and reigned nine years. 2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, yet not as the kings of Israel that were before him. 3 Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and brought him tribute. 4 And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea; for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and offered no tribute to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year: therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison. 5 Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years. 6 In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away to Assyria, and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
7 And it was so, because the children of Israel had sinned against Yahweh their Elohim, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other elohim, 8 and walked in the statutes of the nations, whom Yahweh cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they made. 9 And the children of Israel did secretly things that were not right against Yahweh their Elohim: and they built for themselves high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city; 10 and they set up pillars for themselves and Asherim upon every high hill, and under every green tree; 11 and there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the nations whom Yahweh carried away before them; and they worked wicked things to provoke Yahweh to anger; 12 and they served idols, of which Yahweh had said to them, You shall not do this thing. 13 Yet Yahweh testified to Israel, and to Judah, by every prophet, and every seer, saying, Turn from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets. 14 Nevertheless, they would not hear, but hardened their neck, like the neck of their fathers, who believed not in Yahweh their Elohim. 15 And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified to them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the nations that were around them, concerning whom Yahweh had charged them that they should not do like them. 16 And they forsook all the commandments of Yahweh their Elohim, and made molten images for themselves, even two calves, and made an Asherah and worshiped all the host of heaven, and served Baal. 17 And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, to provoke him to anger. 18 Therefore Yahweh was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.
19 Also Judah kept not the commandments of Yahweh their Elohim, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they made. 20 And Yahweh rejected all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of plunderers, until he had cast them out of his sight. 21 For he rent Israel from the house of David; and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king: and Jeroboam drove Israel from following Yahweh, and made them sin a great sin. 22 And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them; 23 until Yahweh removed Israel out of his sight, as he spoke by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away out of their own land to Assyria to this day.
24 And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Avva, and from Hamath and Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel; and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities of it. 25 And so it was, at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not Yahweh: therefore Yahweh sent lions among them, which killed some of them. 26 Therefore they spoke to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which you have carried away, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the law of the elohim of the land: therefore he has sent lions among them, and, behold, they kill them, because they do not know the law of the elohim of the land.
27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry there one of the priests whom you brought from there; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the law of the elohim of the land. 28 So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Beth-el and taught them how they should fear Yahweh. 29 However every nation made elohim of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities in which they dwelt. 30 And the men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima, 31 and the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak. and the Sepharvites burnt their children in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the elohim of Sepharvaim. 32 So they feared Yahweh, and made to themselves from among themselves priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places. 33 They feared Yahweh, and served their own elohim, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.
34 To this day they do after the former manner: they do not fear Yahweh, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law or after the commandment which Yahweh commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel; 35 with whom Yahweh had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, You shall not fear other elohim, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them: 36 but Yahweh, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and with an outstretched arm, him shall you fear, and to him shall you bow yourselves, and to him shall you sacrifice: 37 and the statutes and the ordinances, and the law and the commandment, which he wrote for you, you shall observe to do for evermore; and you shall not fear other elohim: 38 and the covenant that I have made with you, you shall not forget; neither shall you fear other elohim: 39 but Yahweh your Elohim shall you fear; and he will deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies. 40 However they did not listen, but they did after their former manner. 41 So these nations feared Yahweh, and served their carved images; their children likewise, and their children’s children, as did their fathers, so do they to this day.
2 Kings 18
Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. 2 Twenty-five years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem: and his mother’s name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah. 3 And he did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh, according to all that David his father had done. 4 He removed the high places, and broke the pillars, and cut down the Asherah: and he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made; for to those days the children of Israel burnt incense to it; and he called it Nehushtan. 5 He trusted in Yahweh, the Elohim of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among them that were before him. 6 For he held fast to Yahweh; he departed not from following him, but kept his commandments, which Yahweh commanded Moses. 7 And Yahweh was with him; wherever he went forth he prospered: and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not. 8 He defeated the Philistines to Gaza and the borders of it, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city.
9 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it. 10 And at the end of three years they took it: in the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. 11 And the king of Assyria carried Israel away to Assyria, and put them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes, 12 because they did not obey the voice of Yahweh their Elohim, but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded, and would not hear it, nor do it.
13 Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and took them. 14 And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying, I have offended; return from me: that which you put on me I will bear. And the king of Assyria appointed to Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. 15 And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of Yahweh, and in the treasures of the king’s house. 16 At that time Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the temple of Yahweh, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria. 17 And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rab-saris and Rabshakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great army to Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they had come up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the fuller’s field. 18 And when they had called to the king, there came out to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder.
19 And Rabshakeh said to them, Say now to Hezekiah, In this manner says the great king, the king of Assyria, What confidence is this in which you trust? 20 You say, (but they are but vain words,) There is counsel and strength for the war. Now on whom did you trust, that you have rebelled against me? 21 Now, behold, you trust upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt; on which if a man leans, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust on him. 22 But if you say to me, We trust in Yahweh our Elohim; is not that he, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away, and has said to Judah and to Jerusalem, You shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem? 23 Now therefore, I pray you, give pledges to my master the king of Assyria, and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to set riders upon them. 24 How then can you turn away the face of one captain of the least of my master’s servants, and put your trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen? 25 Have I now come up without Yahweh against this place to destroy it? Yahweh said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it.
26 Then said Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebnah, and Joah, to Rabshakeh, Speak, I pray you, to your servants in the Syrian language; for we understand it: and speak not with us in the Jews’ language, in the ears of the people that are on the wall. 27 But Rabshakeh said to them, Has my master sent me to your master, and to you, to speak these words? Has he not sent me to the men that sit on the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own urine with you? 28 Then Rabshakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews’ language, and spoke, saying, Hear the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. 29 In this manner says the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you; for he will not be able to deliver you out of his hand: 30 neither let Hezekiah make you trust in Yahweh, saying, Yahweh will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. 31 Do not listen to Hezekiah: for thus says the king of Assyria, Make your peace with me, and come out to me; and eat every one of his vine, and every one of his fig-tree, and every one drink the waters of his own cistern; 32 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive-trees and of honey, that you may live, and not die: and do not listen to Hezekiah, when he persuades you, saying, Yahweh will deliver us. 33 Has any of the elohim of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? 34 Where are the elohim of Hamath, and of Arpad? Where are the elohim of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? 35 Who are they among all the elohim of the countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that Yahweh should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?
36 But the people held their peace, and answered him not a word; for the king’s commandment was, saying, Answer him not. 37 Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rabshakeh.
