2 Chronicles 28:1-32:33 Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. But he did not do the right in the sight of Jehovah, like David his father.

MKJV⁽ⁱ⁾ ¹ Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. But he did not do the right in the sight of Jehovah, like David his father. ² For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and also made molded images for Baals. ³ And he burned incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and burned his sons in the fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom Jehovah had cast out before the sons of Israel. ⁴ And He sacrificed and burned incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree. ⁵ And Jehovah his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria. And they struck him and carried away a great captivity, and brought them to Damascus. And he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who struck him with a great slaughter. ⁶ And Pekah the son of Remaliah killed a hundred and twenty thousand in Judah in one day, all mighty men, because they had forsaken Jehovah, the God of their fathers. ⁷ And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king's son, and Azrikam the governor of the house, and Elkanah who was next to the king. ⁸ And the sons of Israel carried away captive two hundred thousand of their brothers, women, and daughters, and also took away much plunder from them and brought the plunder to Samaria. ⁹ But a prophet of Jehovah was there, whose name was Oded. And he went out before the army that came to Samaria and said to them, Behold, because the Lord God of your fathers was angry with Judah, He has delivered them into your hands, and you have killed them in a rage which reaches up to Heaven. ¹⁰ And now you intend to keep under the sons of Judah and Jerusalem for bondmen and bondwomen to you. Are there not with you, even with you, sins against Jehovah your God? ¹¹ And now hear me, and deliver again the captives which you have taken captive of your brothers. For the fierce wrath of Jehovah is on you. ¹² And certain of the heads of the sons of Ephraim, Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth, and Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai, stood up against them who came from the war. ¹³ And they said to them, You shall not bring the captives here. For we have offended Jehovah, and you intend to add to our sins and to our trespass. For our trespass is great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel. ¹⁴ And the armed men left the captives and the plunder before the rulers and all the congregation. ¹⁵ And the men who were called by name rose up and took the captives and clothed all that were naked among them with the plunder, and dressed them, and shod them, and made them eat and drink, and anointed them, and led the feeble ones on asses, and brought them to Jericho, the city of palm trees, to their brothers. And they returned to Samaria. ¹⁶ At that time King Ahaz sent to the kings of Assyria to help him. ¹⁷ For again the Edomites had come and had beaten Judah and had carried away captives. ¹⁸ The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the low country and of the south of Judah, and had taken Beth-shemesh and Aijalon, and Gederoth, and Shocho with its villages, and Timnah with its villages, and Gimzo and its villages. And they lived there. ¹⁹ For Jehovah brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of Israel. For he loosed immorality in Judah, and sinned grievously against Jehovah. ²⁰ And Tilgath-pilneser king of Assyria came to him and troubled him, but did not strengthen him. ²¹ For Ahaz took away a portion of the house of Jehovah, and of the house of the king, and of the rulers, and gave it to the king of Assyria. But it was no help to him. ²² And in the time of his distress he trespassed even more against Jehovah, this King Ahaz. ²³ For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus who struck him. And he said, Because the gods of the kings of Syria helped them, I will sacrifice to them so that they may help me. But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel. ²⁴ And Ahaz gathered the vessels of the house of God and cut in pieces the vessels of the house of God, and shut up the doors of the house of Jehovah. And he made himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem. ²⁵ And in each separate city of Judah he made high places to burn incense to other gods, and provoked to anger Jehovah, the God of his fathers. ²⁶ And the rest of his acts and of all his ways, first and last, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel. ²⁷ And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, in Jerusalem. But they did not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel. And his son Hezekiah reigned in his place. ²⁹ ¹ Hezekiah began to reign being twenty-five years old, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Abijah the daughter of Zechariah. ² And he did the right in the sight of Jehovah, according to all that David his father had done. ³ In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of Jehovah and repaired them. ⁴ And he brought in the priests and the Levites, and gathered them into the east street. ⁵ And he said to them, Hear me, Levites, now sanctify yourselves and sanctify the house of Jehovah, the God of your fathers, and carry out the filthiness out of the holy place. ⁶ For our fathers have sinned and did the evil in the eyes of Jehovah our God, and have forsaken Him, and have turned away their faces from the house of Jehovah, and have turned their backs. ⁷ Also they have shut up the doors of the porch, and put out the lamps, and have not burned incense nor offered burnt offerings in the sanctuary to the God of Israel. ⁸ Therefore the wrath of Jehovah was on Judah and Jerusalem, and He has delivered them to trouble, to ruin, and to hissing as you see with your eyes. ⁹ For lo, our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity for this. ¹⁰ And it is in my heart to make a covenant with Jehovah, the God of Israel, that His fierce wrath may turn away from us. ¹¹ My sons, do not be negligent now. For Jehovah has chosen you to stand before Him, to serve Him, and that you should minister to Him and burn incense. ¹² And the Levites arose, Mahath the son of Amasai, and Joel the son of Azariah, of the sons of the Kohathites. And of the sons of Merari arose Kish the son of Abdi, and Azariah the son of Jehalelel. And of the Gershonites: Joah the son of Zimmah, and Eden the son of Joah. ¹³ And of the sons of Elizaphan: Shimri and Jeiel. And of the sons of Asaph: Zechariah and Mattaniah. ¹⁴ And of the sons of Heman: Jehiel and Shimei. And of the sons of Jeduthun: Shemaiah and Uzziel. ¹⁵ And they gathered their brothers and sanctified themselves, and came, according to the command of the king, by the words of Jehovah, to clean the house of Jehovah. ¹⁶ And the priests went into the inner part of the house of Jehovah to clean it. And they brought out all the uncleanness that they found in the temple of Jehovah into the court of the house of Jehovah. And the Levites took it out to the torrent Kidron. ¹⁷ And they began to sanctify on the first of the first month. And on the eighth day of the month they came to the porch of Jehovah. And they made the house of Jehovah pure in eight days, and in the sixteenth day of the first month they made an end. ¹⁸ And they went in to Hezekiah the king and said, We have cleaned all the house of Jehovah, and the altar of burnt offering, with all its vessels, and the showbread table, and all its vessels. ¹⁹ And we have prepared and sanctified all the vessels which King Ahaz in his reign cast away in his sin. And behold, they are before the altar of Jehovah. ²⁰ And Hezekiah the king rose early and gathered the rulers of the city, and went up to the house of Jehovah. ²¹ And they brought seven bulls and seven rams and seven lambs and seven he-goats, for a sin offering for the kingdom, and for the sanctuary, and for Judah. And he commanded the priests, the sons of Aaron, to offer them on the altar of Jehovah. ²² And they killed the bulls, and the priests received the blood and sprinkled it on the altar. And they killed the rams, and sprinkled the blood on the altar. They also killed the lambs, and they sprinkled the blood on the altar. ²³ And they brought out the he-goats for the sin offering before the king and the congregation. And they laid their hands on them. ²⁴ And the priest killed them, and they made atonement with their blood on the altar, to make atonement for all Israel. For the king commanded the burnt offering and the sin offering to be made for all Israel. ²⁵ And he set the Levites in the house of Jehovah with cymbals, with harps, and with lyres, according to the command of David, and of Gad the king's seer and Nathan the prophet. For the commandment was by the hand of Jehovah by His prophets. ²⁶ And the Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets. ²⁷ And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering on the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of Jehovah began with the trumpets and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel. ²⁸ And all the congregation worshiped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded. All this went on until the burnt offering was finished. ²⁹ And when they had made an end of offering, the king and all who were present with him bowed themselves and worshiped. ³⁰ And Hezekiah the king and the rulers commanded the Levites to sing praise to Jehovah with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshiped. ³¹ And Hezekiah answered and said, And you have consecrated yourselves to Jehovah. Come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of Jehovah. And the congregation brought in sacrifices and thank offerings. And as many as were of a free heart brought burnt offerings. ³² And the number of the burnt offerings which the congregation brought was seventy oxen, a hundred rams, two hundred lambs. All these were for a burnt offering to Jehovah. ³³ And the things consecrated were six hundred oxen and three thousand sheep. ³⁴ But the priests were too few, so that they could not skin all the burnt offerings. And their brothers the Levites helped them until the work was ended, and until the priests had sanctified themselves. For the Levites were more upright of heart to make themselves pure than the priests. ³⁵ And also the burnt offerings were in abundance, with the fat of the peace offerings and the drink offerings for every burnt offering. And the service of the house of Jehovah was set in order. ³⁶ And Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people, that God had prepared the people. For the thing happened suddenly. ³⁰ ¹ And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of Jehovah at Jerusalem, to keep the Passover to Jehovah, the God of Israel. ² And the king and his leaders, and all the congregation in Jerusalem, took counsel to keep the Passover in the second month. ³ For they could not keep it at that time, because the priests had not made themselves pure enough, nor had the people gathered to Jerusalem. ⁴ And the thing pleased the king and all the congregation. ⁵ And they established a decree to send a notice throughout all Israel, from Beer-sheba even to Dan, that they should come to keep the Passover to Jehovah, the God of Israel at Jerusalem. For not many of them had done as it was written. ⁶ And the runners went with the letters from the king and his rulers to Israel and Judah, and according to the command of the king, saying, O sons of Israel, turn again to Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, and He will return to the remnant of you who have escaped out of the hands of the king of Assyria. ⁷ And do not be like your fathers and like your brothers who sinned against Jehovah, the God of their fathers, and He made them for a horror, as you see. ⁸ And do not be stiffnecked like your fathers. Yield yourselves to Jehovah and enter into His temple which He has sanctified forever. And serve Jehovah your God, so that the fierceness of His wrath may turn away from you. ⁹ For if you turn again to Jehovah, your brothers and your sons will have mercies before those who lead them captive, so that they shall come again into this land. For Jehovah your God is gracious and merciful, and will not turn His face away from you if you return to Him. ¹⁰ And the runners passed from city to city in the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, even to Zebulun. But they laughed them to scorn, and mocked them. ¹¹ However, men from Asher and Manasseh and Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. ¹² Also in Judah the hand of God was to give them one heart to do the command of the king and of the rulers, by the Word of Jehovah. ¹³ And many people gathered at Jerusalem to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the second month, a very great congregation. ¹⁴ And they arose and took away the altars in Jerusalem, and all the altars for incense they took away, and threw them into the torrent Kidron. ¹⁵ And they killed the Passover on the fourteenth of the second month. And the priests and the Levites were ashamed and made themselves pure, and brought in the burnt offerings into the house of Jehovah. ¹⁶ And they stood in their place in their manner, according to the Law of Moses the man of God. The priests sprinkled the blood from the hand of the Levites. ¹⁷ For many in the congregation were not sanctified. And the Levites were over the killing of the passovers for every one who was not clean, to sanctify them to Jehovah. ¹⁸ For many of the people, many from Ephraim and Manasseh, Issachar and Zebulun, had not been cleansed, but ate the Passover otherwise than it was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, May the good LORD pardon everyone ¹⁹ who prepares his heart to seek God, Jehovah, the God of his fathers, though not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary. ²⁰ And Jehovah listened to Hezekiah and healed the people. ²¹ And the sons of Israel found at Jerusalem kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with great gladness. And the Levites and the priests praised Jehovah day by day with loud instruments to Jehovah. ²² And Hezekiah spoke comfortably to all the Levites who taught the good knowledge of Jehovah. And they ate the appointed things seven days, offering peace offerings and making confession to Jehovah, the God of their fathers. ²³ And the whole gathering agreed to keep another seven days. And they kept another seven days with gladness. ²⁴ For Hezekiah king of Judah gave to the congregation a thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep. And the rulers gave to the congregation a thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep. And a great number of priests sanctified themselves. ²⁵ And all the congregation of Judah, with the priests and the Levites, and all the congregation that came out of Israel, and the strangers that came out of the land of Israel, and who lived in Judah, rejoiced. ²⁶ And there was great joy in Jerusalem. For from the days of Solomon the son of David the king of Israel there was nothing like this in Jerusalem. ²⁷ And the priests, the Levites, arose and blessed the people. And their voice was heard, and their prayer came to His holy dwelling-place, to Heaven. ³¹ ¹ And when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and broke the images in pieces, and cut down the Asherahs, and threw down the high places and the altars out of all Judah and Benjamin, also in Ephraim and Manasseh, even to the end. And all the sons of Israel returned, each to his possession, into their own cities. ² And Hezekiah set the courses of the priests and the Levites according to their divisions, each according to his service, the priests and Levites for burnt offerings and for peace offerings, to minister and to give thanks, and to praise in the gates of the tents of Jehovah. ³ And the king's portion from his goods was for burnt offerings, and for burnt offerings of the morning and the evening, and the burnt offerings of the sabbaths, and for the new moons, and for the set feasts, as it is written in the Law of Jehovah. ⁴ And he commanded the people who lived in Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests and the Levites so that they might be strong in the Law of Jehovah. ⁵ And as the command spread, the sons of Israel brought plentifully of the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase of the field. And the tithe of all things they brought in abundance. ⁶ And the sons of Israel and Judah who lived in the cities of Judah, they also brought in the tithe of oxen and sheep, and the tithe of holy things which were consecrated to Jehovah their God, and laid it up by heaps. ⁷ In the third month they began to lay the foundation of the heaps, and finished in the seventh month. ⁸ And Hezekiah and the rulers came and saw the heaps, and they blessed Jehovah and His people Israel. ⁹ And Hezekiah asked the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps. ¹⁰ And Azariah the chief priest of the house of Zadok answered him and said, Since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of Jehovah, we have had enough to eat and have plenty left. For Jehovah has blessed His people, and this great store is left. ¹¹ And Hezekiah commanded storehouses to be prepared in the house of Jehovah. And they prepared, ¹² and brought in the offerings and the tithes and the things dedicated to God faithfully. And over them was Cononiah the Levite ruler, and Shimei his brother the next. ¹³ And Jehiel, and Azaziah, and Nahath, and Asahel, and Jerimoth, and Jozabad, and Eliel, and Ismachiah, and Mahath, and Benaiah, were overseers under the hand of Cononiah and Shimei his brother, at the command of Hezekiah the king, and Azariah the ruler of the house of God. ¹⁴ And Kore the son of Imnah the Levite, the gatekeeper toward the east, was over the freewill offerings of God, to distribute the sacrifices of Jehovah and the most holy things. ¹⁵ And next to him Eden, and Miniamin, and Jeshua, and Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah, in the cities of the priests, in their set office, to give to their brothers by divisions, to the great as well as to the small, ¹⁶ besides registering the males from three years and upward, to everyone who enters into the house of Jehovah, giving his daily portion for their service in their charges according to their divisions, ¹⁷ both to the genealogy of the priests by the house of their fathers, and the Levites from twenty years old and upward, and their charges by their divisions, ¹⁸ and to the genealogy of all their little ones, their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, through all the congregation. For in their set office they set themselves apart in holiness. ¹⁹ And to the sons of Aaron, the priests, in the fields of the open lands of their cities, in each separate city were the men who were named by name, to give shares to all the males among the priests, and to all who were counted by genealogies among the Levites. ²⁰ And Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and did the good and the right and the true before Jehovah his God. ²¹ And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, and in the law, and in the commandments, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart, and prospered. ³² ¹ After these things done in faithfulness, Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, came and entered into Judah, and camped against the fortified cities, and commanded to break them open to himself. ² And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come, and that he had set his face to fight against Jerusalem, ³ he took counsel with his rulers and his mighty men to stop the waters of the fountains outside the city. And they helped him. ⁴ And there were gathered many people, who stopped all the fountains, and the torrent which ran through the midst of the land, saying, Why should the king of Assyria come and find much water? ⁵ And he made himself strong and built up all the wall that was broken, and raised it up to the towers, and another wall outside, and repaired Millo in the city of David, and made darts and shields in abundance. ⁶ And he set commanders of war over the people and gathered them to himself in the street of the gate of the city. And he spoke to their heart, saying, ⁷ Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid nor dismayed because of the king of Assyria, or for all the multitude with him. For there are more with us than with him. ⁸ With him is an arm of flesh, but with us is Jehovah our God to help us and to fight our battles. And the people rested themselves on the words of Hezekiah king of Judah. ⁹ After this Sennacherib king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem; and he was against Lachish, and all his forces with him against Hezekiah king of Judah, and against all Judah in Jerusalem, saying, ¹⁰ Sennacherib king of Assyria says this, On what do you trust that you sit under siege in Jerusalem? ¹¹ Does not Hezekiah persuade you to give yourselves over to die by famine and by thirst, saying, Jehovah our God shall deliver us out of the hand of the king of Assyria? ¹² Has not the same Hezekiah taken away his high places and his altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying, You shall worship before one altar and burn incense on it? ¹³ Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the people of other lands? Were the gods of the nations of those lands in any way able to deliver their lands out of my hands? ¹⁴ Who among all the gods of those nations that my fathers completely destroyed is able to deliver his people out of my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you out of my hand? ¹⁵ And now do not let Hezekiah deceive you or persuade you in this way, nor yet believe him. For no god of any nation was able to deliver his people out of my hand, and out of the hand of my fathers. How much less shall your God deliver you out of my hand? ¹⁶ And his servants spoke still more against Jehovah God, and against His servant Hezekiah. ¹⁷ He also wrote letters to revile Jehovah, the God of Israel, and to speak against Him, saying, As the gods of the nations of other lands have not delivered their people out of my hand, so shall not the God of Hezekiah deliver His people out of my hand. ¹⁸ And they cried out with a loud voice in Jewish to the people of Jerusalem on the wall, in order to frighten them and to trouble them, so that they might take the city. ¹⁹ And they spoke against the God of Jerusalem, as against the gods of the peoples of the earth, the work of the hands of man. ²⁰ And for this reason Hezekiah the king, and the prophet Isaiah the son of Amoz, prayed and cried to Heaven. ²¹ And Jehovah sent an angel to cut off all the mighty men of power, and the leaders and commanders in the camp of the king of Assyria. And he returned with shame of face to his own land. And he came into the house of his god, and those from his own bowels killed him there with the sword. ²² And Jehovah saved Hezekiah and the people of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all others, and guided them on every side. ²³ And many brought gifts to Jehovah to Jerusalem, and presents to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that he was magnified in the sight of all nations from that time on. ²⁴ In those days Hezekiah was sick to death, and prayed to Jehovah. And He spoke to him, and He gave him a sign. ²⁵ But Hezekiah did not give again according to the good done to him, for his heart was lifted up. And there was wrath on him and on Judah and Jerusalem. ²⁶ And Hezekiah was humbled for the pride of his heart, he and the people of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of Jehovah did not come on them in the days of Hezekiah. ²⁷ And Hezekiah had exceedingly much riches and honor. And he made himself treasuries for silver, and for gold, and for precious stones, and for spices, and for shields, and for all kinds of pleasant jewels. ²⁸ And he made storehouses for the increase of grain and wine and oil, and stalls for all kinds of animals, and stalls for flocks. ²⁹ And he provided himself cities, and possessions of flocks and herds, in abundance. For God had given him very many things. ³⁰ And Hezekiah himself stopped the upper water courses of Gihon, and brought it straight down to the west side of the city of David. And Hezekiah was blessed in all his works. ³¹ But, in regard to the ambassadors of the rulers of Babylon who sent to him to ask about the wonder that was done in the land, God left him in order to try him, to know all that was in his heart. ³² And the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and his goodness, behold, they are written in the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, and in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel. ³³ And Hezekiah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the highest of the tombs of the sons of David. And all Judah and the people of Jerusalem honored him at his death. And his son Manasseh reigned in his place.