Moff 2 CHR Chapter 25

◄ 2 CHR 25 ► ║ ═ ©

25 Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem for twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. 2 He did what was right in the eyes of the Eternal, but not with an undivided mind. 3 When he had secured his kingdom, he killed the officers who had murdered the king his father, 4 but he did not kill their children; he followed the injunction of the Eternal as written in the lawbook of Moses, that fathers are not to die on account of their children, nor children on account of their fathers, but that everyone must die for his own sin. 5 Amaziah also mustered the men of Judah, placing them by families under generals and commanders; he took a census of all the men of Judah and of Benjamin, from twenty years and upwards, and found that they numbered three hundred thousand picked men, fit for active service, able to handle spears and shields.

6 He further hired from Israel, for forty-one thousand two hundred and fifty pounds, a hundred thousand gallant soldiers. 7 But a man of God came and said to him, “O king, do not take the force of Israelites, for the Eternal is not with Israel (that is, with any of the Ephraimites). 8 Go by yourself, strike your own blow, be brave in battle; God will not let you fall before the foe, for God has power to help and to hurl down.” 9 Amaziah said to the man of God, “But what shall we do about the forty-one thousand two hundred and fifty pounds which I have paid to the troops of Israel?” The man of God replied, “The Eternal is able to give you far more than that.” 10 Then Amaziah detached the troops which had joined him from Ephraim; he sent them home. This enraged them against Judah, and they returned home furious. 11 Amaziah took heart and led out his men to the wady of Salt, where he killed ten thousand of the men of Seir, 12 while the men of Judah carried off other ten thousand alive, and taking them to the top of the Rock flung them down, till they were all dashed to pieces. 13 Meantime the troops which Amaziah had sent home, refusing to take them into battle, fell upon the towns of Judah, from Samaria as far as to Bethhoron, killing three thousand men and capturing large booty.

14 It was after his return from the massacre of the Edomites, that Amaziah brought the gods of the men of Seir and set them up to be his gods, bowing in homage before them and burning incense to them. 15 At this the Eternal’s anger blazed against Amaziah; he sent him a prophet who asked him, “Why have you resorted to foreign gods, to gods who could not save their own people from you?” 16 As they talked, the king said, “Did we appoint you to be a counsellor of the king? Give over; why should you lose your life?” So the prophet stopped, saying, “Well, I know God’s counsel; he means to destroy you, because you have done this, and refused to listen to my warning.”

17 Then Amaziah king of Judah let himself be counselled to send a message to Joash son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, challenging him to an encounter. 18 Joash king of Israel sent this answer to Amaziah king of Judah: “The thistle at Lebanon sent word to the cedar at Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage’ --when a wild animal at Lebanon trampled down the thistle as it passed! 19 You have defeated Edom (you say to yourself), and you are proud of it. Stay at home; why provoke trouble, to the ruin of yourself, and of Judah with you?” 20 But Amaziah would not listen to him--which was God’s doing, in order to give Judah over to their foes, for having had recourse to the gods of Edom. 21 So Joash king of Israel sallied out; he and Amaziah king of Judah had an encounter at Beth-shemesh, which belongs to Judah; 22 Judah was overthrown by Israel, and every man scurried home. 23 At Beth-shemesh Joash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the grandson of Ahaziah; he took him down to Jerusalem, demolished the wall of Jerusalem for two hundred yards, from the gate of Ephraim to the Corner gate, 24 seized all the gold and silver and all the articles to be found in the temple of God, and all the treasures in the royal palace, carried off the household of Obed-edom and other hostages, and then returned to Samaria.

25 Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived for fifteen years after the death of Joash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. 26 As for the rest of the acts of Amaziah, from first to last, are they not described in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel? 27 No sooner did Amaziah cease to follow the Eternal, than a conspiracy was formed against him in Jerusalem; he fled to Lakhish, but the conspirators sent men after him and murdered him at Lakhish; 28 he was then brought back on horses and buried with his fathers, in the capital of Judah.

2 CHR C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24 C25 C26 C27 C28 C29 C30 C31 C32 C33 C34 C35 C36

Moff 2 CHR Chapter 25

Moff 2 CHR Chapter 25