Matthew Cross References - ISV

¹ An Introduction to Jesus the MessiahThis is a record of the life of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.
² The Ancestry of Jesus
Abraham fathered Isaac, Isaac fathered Jacob, and Jacob fathered Judah and his brothers. ³ Judah fathered Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez fathered Hezron, Hezron fathered Aram, ⁴ Aram fathered Amminadab, Amminadab fathered Nahshon, and Nahshon fathered Salmon. ⁵ Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse, ⁶ and Jesse fathered King David.
David fathered Solomon by the wife of Uriah, ⁷ Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah, Abijah fathered Asaph, ⁸ Asaph fathered Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat fathered Joram, Joram fathered Uzziah, ⁹ Uzziah fathered Jotham, Jotham fathered Ahaz, Ahaz fathered Hezekiah, ¹⁰ Hezekiah fathered Manasseh, Manasseh fathered Amos, and Amos fathered Josiah. ¹¹ Josiah fathered Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
¹² After the deportation to Babylon, Jechoniah fathered Salathiel, Salathiel fathered Zerubbabel, ¹³ Zerubbabel fathered Abiud, Abiud fathered Eliakim, Eliakim fathered Azor, ¹⁴ Azor fathered Zadok, Zadok fathered Achim, Achim fathered Eliud, ¹⁵ Eliud fathered Eleazar, Eleazar fathered Matthan, and Matthan fathered Jacob. ¹⁶ Jacob fathered Joseph, the husband of Mary, who was the mother of Jesus, who is called the Messiah.
¹⁷ So all the generations from Abraham to David totaled fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon totaled fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Messiah there were fourteen generations.
¹⁸ The Birth of Jesus
Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah happened in this way. When his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, before they lived together she was discovered to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to disgrace her, decided to divorce her secretly.
²⁰ After he had thought about it, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” he said, “don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he is the one who will save his people from their sins.”
²² Now all this happened to fulfill what was declared by the Lord through the prophet when he said, ²³ “See, a virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name him Immanuel,”
which means, “God with us.” ²⁴ When Joseph got up from his sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary as his wife. ²⁵ He did not have marital relations with her until she had given birth to a son; and he named him Jesus.

⁴ Humans in the GardenThese are the records of the universe at its creation. On the day that the LORD God made the earth and skies,

¹ From Adam to NoahThis is the historical record of Adam’s generations. When God created mankind, he made them in his own likeness.

³ I’ll bless those who bless you, but I’ll curse the one who curses you, and through you all the people of the earth will be blessed.”

¹⁸ Furthermore, through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed my command.”

³ Remain in this land, and I’ll be with and bless you by giving all these lands to you and to your descendants in fulfillment of my solemn promise that I made to your father Abraham. ⁴ I’ll cause you to have as many descendants as the stars of the heavens, and I’ll certainly give all these lands to your descendants. Later on, through your descendants all the nations of the earth will bless one another. ⁵ I’m going to do this because Abraham did what I told him to do. He kept my instructions, commands, statutes, and laws.”

¹³ And there was the LORD, standing above it and telling Jacob, “I am the LORD God of your grandfather Abraham. I’m Isaac’s God, too. I’m giving you and your descendants the ground on which you’re sleeping. ¹⁴ Your descendants are going to become like the dust of the earth and spread out to the west, east, north, and south. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants.

¹² When your life is complete and you go to join your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who will come forth from your body, and I will fortify his kingdom. ¹³ He will build a Temple dedicated to my Name, and I will make the throne of his kingdom last forever. ¹⁴ I will be a father to him, and he will be to me a son who, when he commits iniquity, I will discipline with the rod wielded by armies and with wounds inflicted by human beings. ¹⁵ But I’ll never remove my gracious love from him as I did from Saul, whom I removed from your presence. ¹⁶ Your dynasty and your kingdom will remain forever in my presence—your throne will be secure forever.”’”

³⁶ His dynasty will last forever and his throne will be like the sun before me.

¹¹ The LORD made an oath to David from which he will not retreat: “One of your sons I will set in place on your throne.

⁶ For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name is called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. ⁷ Of the growth of his government and peace there will be no end. He will rule over his kingdom, sitting on the throne of David, to establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD of the Heavenly Armies will accomplish this.

¹ The Reign of the Davidic King “A shoot will come out from the stump of Jesse, and a branch will bear fruit from his roots.

⁸ “From detention and judgment he was taken away— and who can even think about his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living, he was stricken for the transgression of my people.

⁵ “The time is coming,” declares the LORD, “when I’ll raise up a righteous branch for David. He will be a king who rules wisely, and he will administer justice and righteousness in the land.

¹⁵ In those days and at that time I’ll cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he will uphold justice and righteousness in the land. ¹⁶ At that time Judah will be delivered and Jerusalem will dwell in safety. And this is the name people will call it, “The LORD is Our Righteousness.”’ ¹⁷ For this is what the LORD says: ‘David will never be without a man sitting on the throne of the house of Israel,

²⁶ then I might reject the descendants of Jacob and my servant David by not taking some of his descendants as rulers over the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Indeed, I’ll restore their fortunes, and I’ll have compassion on them.’”

¹¹ Israel to be Restored“At that time I will restore David’s fallen tent, restoring its torn places. I will restore its ruins, rebuilding it as it was long ago,

⁸ At that time, the LORD will defend those who live in Jerusalem, and the one who is feeble among them at that time will be like David. The entire house of David will be like God—indeed, like the angel of the LORD in their midst!

¹⁸ The Birth of Jesus
Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah happened in this way. When his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, before they lived together she was discovered to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit.

¹ The Visit of the Wise MenAfter Jesus had been born in Bethlehem of Judea during the reign of King Herod, wise men arrived in Jerusalem from the east ² and asked, “Where is the one who was born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.”

¹⁶ When Jesus had been baptized, he immediately came up out of the water. Suddenly, the heavens opened up for him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him.

²⁷ Jesus Heals Two Blind MenAs Jesus was traveling on from there, two blind men followed him, shouting, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”

²² Suddenly, a Canaanite woman from that territory came near and began to shout, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed!”

⁴² “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”
They told him, “David’s.”
⁴³ He asked them, “Then how can David by the Spirit call him ‘Lord’ when he says, ⁴⁴ ‘The Lord told my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I put your enemies under your feet.”’?
⁴⁵ If David calls him ‘Lord’, how can he be his son?”

³¹ Listen! You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David.

⁶⁹ He has raised up a mighty Savior for us from the family of his servant David, ⁷⁰ just as he promised long ago through the mouth of his holy prophets

²³ The Ancestry of Jesus
Jesus himself was about 30 years old when he began his ministry. He was (as legally calculated) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli, ²⁴ the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, the son of Melchi, the son of Jannai, the son of Joseph, ²⁵ the son of Mattathias, the son of Amos, the son of Nahum, the son of Esli, the son of Naggai, ²⁶ the son of Maath, the son of Mattathias, the son of Semein, the son of Josech, the son of Joda, ²⁷ the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri, ²⁸ the son of Melchi, the son of Addi, the son of Cosam, the son of Elmadam, the son of Er, ²⁹ the son of Joshua, the son of Eliezer, the son of Jorim, the son of Matthat, the son of Levi, ³⁰ the son of Simeon, the son of Judah, the son of Joseph, the son of Jonam, the son of Eliakim, ³¹ the son of Melea, the son of Menna, the son of Mattatha, the son of Nathan, the son of David, ³² the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon, ³³ the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, ³⁴ the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor, ³⁵ the son of Serug, the son of Reu, the son of Peleg, the son of Eber, the son of Shelah, ³⁶ the son of Cainan, the son of Arphaxad, the son of Shem, the son of Noah, the son of Lamech, ³⁷ the son of Methuselah, the son of Enoch, the son of Jared, the son of Mahalaleel, the son of Cainan, ³⁸ the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, the son of God.

⁴² Doesn’t the Scripture say that the Messiah is from David’s family and from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?”

³⁰ Therefore, since he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him with an oath to put one of his descendants on his throne,

²² Then God removed Saul and made David their king, about whom he testified, ‘I have found that David, the son of Jesse, is a man after my own heart, who will carry out all my wishes.’ ²³ It was from this man’s descendants that God, as he promised, brought to Israel a Savior, who is Jesus.

³ regarding his Son. He was a descendant of David with respect to his humanity

¹³ The Promise Comes through FaithFor the promise that he would inherit the world did not come to Abraham or to his descendants through the Law, but through the righteousness produced by faith.

⁵ To the Israelis belong the patriarchs, and from them, the Messiah descended, who is God over all, the one who is forever blessed. Amen.

¹⁶ Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his descendant. It doesn’t say “descendants,” referring to many, but “your descendant,” referring to one person, who is the Messiah.

¹⁶ “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give this testimony to you for the churches. I am the root and descendent of David, the bright morning star.”

² Sarah conceived and gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age, at the very time that God had told him.
³ Abraham named his son who was born to him Isaac—the very one whom Sarah bore for him! ⁴ On the eighth day after his son Isaac had been born, Abraham circumcised him, just as God had commanded him. ⁵ Abraham was 100 years old when his son Isaac was born to him.

²⁶ After that, his brother came out with his hand clutching Esau’s heel, so they named him Jacob. Isaac was 60 years old when they were born.

³² Leah conceived, bore a son, and named him Reuben, because she was saying, “The LORD had looked on my torture, so now my husband will love me.”
³³ Later, she conceived again, bore a son, and declared, “Because the LORD heard that I’m neglected, he gave me this one, too.” So she named him Simeon.
³⁴ Later, she conceived again and said, “This time my husband will become attached to me, now that I’ve borne him three sons.” So he named him Levi.
³⁵ Then she conceived yet again, bore a son, and said, “This time I’ll praise the LORD.” So she named him Judah.
Then she stopped bearing children.

⁵ Bilhah conceived and bore a son for Jacob. ⁶ Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me! He has heard my voice and has given me a son.” Therefore, she named him Dan.
⁷ Rachel’s servant conceived again and bore a second son for Jacob, ⁸ so Rachel said, “I’ve been through a mighty struggle with my sister and won.” She named him Naphtali.
⁹ When Leah saw that she had stopped bearing children, she took her woman servant Zilpah and gave her to Jacob as a wife. ¹⁰ Leah’s servant Zilpah bore a son to Jacob, ¹¹ and Leah exclaimed, “How fortunate!” So she named him Gad.
¹² Later, Leah’s servant Zilpah bore a second son for Jacob. ¹³ She said, “How happy I am, because women will call me happy!” So she named him Asher.
¹⁴ Jacob and the MandrakesSome time later, during the wheat harvest season, Reuben went out and found some mandrakes in the field and brought them back for his mother Leah. Then Rachel told Leah, “Please give me your son’s mandrakes.”
¹⁵ In response, Leah asked her, “Wasn’t it enough that you’ve taken away my husband? Now you also want to take my son’s mandrakes!”
But Rachel replied, “Okay, let’s let Jacob sleep with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.”
¹⁶ When Jacob came in from the field that evening, Leah went to meet him and told him, “You’re having sex with me tonight. I traded my son’s mandrakes for you!” So he slept with her that night.
¹⁷ God heard what Leah had said, so she conceived and bore a fifth son for Jacob. ¹⁸ Then Leah said, “God has paid me for giving my servant to my husband as his wife.” So she named him Issachar.
¹⁹ Later, Leah conceived again and bore a sixth son for Jacob. ²⁰ Then Leah said, “God has given me a good gift. This time my husband will exalt me, because I’ve borne him six sons.” So she named him Zebulun.

¹⁶ Rachel Dies in ChildbirthLater, they set out from Beth-el. While still a long way from Ephrathah, Rachel started to have trouble giving birth. ¹⁷ While she was suffering due to her difficult labor, the midwife told her, “Don’t fear! You’re going to have another son.”
¹⁸ Just before she died, Rachel called her son’s name Ben-oni, but his father Jacob named him Benjamin. ¹⁹ So Rachel died and was buried on the way to Ephrathah, also known as Bethlehem.

⁸ List of Those who Went to Egypt
Here’s a list of the names of Israel’s sons, that is, of Jacob and his sons who moved to Egypt: Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn; ⁹ Reuben’s sons Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi; ¹⁰ Simeon’s sons Jemuel, Jamin, Ohad, Jachin, Zohar, and Shaul, who was the son of a Canaanite woman; ¹¹ Levi’s sons Gershon, Kohath, and Merari; ¹² and Judah’s sons Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah. (Technically, Er and Onan had died in the land of Canaan.) Perez’s sons were Hezron and Hamul. ¹³ Also included were Issachar’s sons Tola, Puvvah, Job, and Shimron; ¹⁴ along with Zebulun’s sons Sered, Elon, and Jahleel. ¹⁵ These were all sons from Leah, whom she bore for Jacob in Paddan-aram, along with his daughter Dinah. He had 33 sons and daughters.
¹⁶ Also included were Gad’s sons Ziphion, Haggi, Shuni, Ezbon, Eri, Arodi, and Areli; ¹⁷ Asher’s sons Imnah, Ishvah, Ishvi, Beriah, and their sister Serah. Beriah’s sons Heber and Malchiel were also included. ¹⁸ These were all sons from Zilpah, whom Laban had given to his daughter Leah. She bore these sixteen children for Jacob.
¹⁹ Jacob’s wife Rachel’s sons were Joseph and Benjamin.
²⁰ Joseph’s sons born in the land of Egypt were Manasseh and Ephraim, whom Asenath, daughter of Potiphera, the priest of On, bore for him. ²¹ Benjamin’s sons included Bela, Becher, Ashbel, Gera, Naaman, Ehi, Rosh, Muppim, Huppim, and Ard. ²² These were all the sons of Rachel, who were born for Jacob—fourteen in all.
²³ Also included were Dan’s son Hushim; ²⁴ Naphtali’s sons Jahzeel, Guni, Jezer, and Shillem. ²⁵ These were sons of Bilhah, whom Laban had given to his daughter Rachel. She bore these children for Jacob—seven in all.
²⁶ All of these people, who belonged to Jacob’s family, traveled to Egypt. All of Jacob’s direct descendants, not including his sons’ wives, numbered 66 persons in all. ²⁷ Joseph had two sons born to him in Egypt, and all of Jacob’s household who went to Egypt numbered 70.

⁸ On the Future of Judah“Your brothers will praise you, Judah. Your hand will be at the throat of your enemies, and your father’s children will bow down to you. ⁹ Judah is a lion cub. My son, you have gone up from the prey. Crouching like a lion, he lies down, Like a lioness, who would dare rouse him? ¹⁰ The scepter will never depart from Judah, nor a ruler’s staff from between his feet, until the One comes, who owns them both, and to him will belong the allegiance of nations. ¹¹ Binding his donkey to the vine and his mare’s foal to its thick tendrils, he will wash his garments in wine and his robe in the juice of grapes. ¹² His eyes are darker than wine and his teeth whiter than milk.”

² Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, ³ Issacar, Zebulun, Benjamin, ⁴ Dan, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher. ⁵ All those who descended from Jacob totaled 75 persons. Now Joseph was already in Egypt.

² and Joshua told all of the people, “This is what the LORD God of Israel has to say: ‘Long ago your ancestors lived beyond the Euphrates River, including Terah, father of both Abraham and Nahor, where they served other gods. ³ Then I took your ancestor Abraham from the other side of the Euphrates River and led him through the entire land of Canaan. I multiplied his descendants, and gave him his son Isaac. ⁴ I gave Jacob and Esau to Isaac. And I gave Mount Seir to Esau as his possession, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.

²⁸ Genealogy of Abraham’s Family
Abraham’s descendants were Isaac and Ishmael.

³⁴ Abraham fathered Isaac. Isaac’s descendants were Esau and Israel.

¹ Genealogies of Israel and Judah
Here’s a list of Israel’s sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, ² Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
³ Judah’s three sons Er, Onan, and Shelah were born to him through Bath-shua, a Canaanite. Er, Judah’s firstborn, became wicked in the LORD’s sight, so he put him to death. ⁴ Judah’s daughter-in-law Tamar also bore him Perez and Zerah, so Judah had five sons in all.
⁵ Perez’s sons were Hezron and Hamul.
⁶ Zerah had five sons in all: Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara.
⁷ Carmi’s son was Achar, who became Israel’s troublemaker by transgressing the LORD’s commandment regarding things that were to be destroyed.
⁸ Ethan’s son was Azariah.

¹ Genealogy of Reuben
Here is a record of the descendants of Reuben, Israel’s firstborn. (He was the firstborn, but because he defiled his father’s marriage bed, his birthright was transferred to the descendants of Israel’s son Joseph. As a result, Reuben is not enrolled in the genealogy according to the birthright. ² Even though Judah became prominent among his relatives—that is, the Commander-in-chief will be his descendant—nevertheless the right of the firstborn went to Joseph.)

⁸ The LORD Encourages Israel“But as for you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I’ve chosen, the offspring of my friend Abraham—

² Look to Abraham your father, and to Sarah who gave you birth. For when he was only one person I called him, but I made him fruitful and made him many.

² “I’ve loved you,” says the LORD. “But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’
“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the LORD, “yet I loved Jacob, ³ rejected Esau, turned his mountains into a wasteland, and gave his inheritance to desert jackals.

³³ the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah, ³⁴ the son of Jacob, the son of Isaac, the son of Abraham, the son of Terah, the son of Nahor,

⁸ Later, God gave Abraham the covenant of circumcision. Later, he fathered Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day. Then Isaac fathered Jacob, and Jacob fathered the twelve patriarchs.

⁷ and not all of Abraham’s descendants are his true descendants. On the contrary, “It is through Isaac that descendants will be named for you.” ⁸ That is, it is not merely the children born through natural descent who were regarded as God’s children, but it is the children born through the promise who were regarded as descendants. ⁹ For this is the language of the promise: “At this time I will return, and Sarah will have a son.” ¹⁰ Not only that, but Rebecca became pregnant by our ancestor Isaac. ¹¹ Yet before their children had been born or had done anything good or bad (so that God’s plan of election might continue to operate ¹² according to his calling and not by actions), Rebecca was told, “The older child will serve the younger one.” ¹³ So it is written, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”

¹⁴ Furthermore, it is obvious that our Lord was a descendant of Judah, and Moses said nothing about priests coming from that tribe.

¹¹ By faith Sarah, even though she was old and barren, received the strength to conceive, because she was convinced that the one who had made the promise was faithful.

¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered Isaac—he who had received the promises was about to offer his unique son in sacrifice, ¹⁸ about whom it had been said, “It is through Isaac that descendants will be named for you.”

⁵ 12,000 from the tribe of Judah were sealed, 12,000 from the tribe of Reuben, 12,000 from the tribe of Gad,

⁶ Judah found a wife for his oldest son Er. Her name was Tamar.

¹¹ After this, Judah told his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Go live as a widow in your father’s house until my son Shelah grows up.” But he was really thinking, “…otherwise, Shelah might die like his brothers.” So Tamar left and lived in her father’s house.

²⁴ Tamar’s Pregnancy Rebukes JudahThree months later, it was reported to Judah, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has turned to prostitution! And look! She’s pregnant because of it!”
“Bring her out,” Judah responded. “Let’s burn her to death!”
²⁵ While they were bringing her out, she sent this message to her father-in-law: “I am pregnant by the man to whom these things belong. Furthermore,” she added, “tell me to whom this signet ring, cord, and staff belongs.”
²⁶ When Judah recognized them, he admitted, “She is more upright than I, because I never did give her my son Shelah.” And he never had sex with her again.
²⁷ Later, when it was time for Tamar to give birth, she was carrying twins in her womb!

²⁹ As it was, he withdrew his hand, and then his brother was born. Amazed, the midwife cried out loud, “What’s this? A breach birth?” So that boy was named Perez. ³⁰ Afterwards, his brother came out, and around his hand was the scarlet. So they named him Zerah.

¹² and Judah’s sons Er, Onan, Shelah, Perez, and Zerah. (Technically, Er and Onan had died in the land of Canaan.) Perez’s sons were Hezron and Hamul.

²⁰ The descendants of Judah, listed according to their families, included: From Shelah, the family of the descendants of Shelah; from Perez, the family of the descendants of Perez; and from Zerah, the family of the descendants of Zerah. ²¹ The descendants of Perez included: From Hezron, the family of the descendants of Hezron; and from Hamul, the family of the descendants of Hamul.

¹⁸ The Ancestry of DavidThis is the genealogy of Perez: Perez fathered Hezron, ¹⁹ Hezron fathered Ram, and Ram fathered Amminadab. ²⁰ Amminadab fathered Nahshon, and Nahshon fathered Salmon. ²¹ Salmon fathered Boaz, and Boaz fathered Obed. ²² Then Obed fathered Jesse, who fathered David.

¹ Genealogies of Israel and Judah
Here’s a list of Israel’s sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, ² Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Naphtali, Gad, and Asher.
³ Judah’s three sons Er, Onan, and Shelah were born to him through Bath-shua, a Canaanite. Er, Judah’s firstborn, became wicked in the LORD’s sight, so he put him to death. ⁴ Judah’s daughter-in-law Tamar also bore him Perez and Zerah, so Judah had five sons in all.
⁵ Perez’s sons were Hezron and Hamul.
⁶ Zerah had five sons in all: Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara.
⁷ Carmi’s son was Achar, who became Israel’s troublemaker by transgressing the LORD’s commandment regarding things that were to be destroyed.
⁸ Ethan’s son was Azariah.
⁹ Hezron’s sons born to him were Jerahmeel, Ram, and Chelubai. ¹⁰ Ram fathered Amminadab, and Amminadab fathered Nahshon, who was leader of the descendants of Judah.
¹¹ Nahshon fathered Salma, Salma fathered Boaz, ¹² Boaz fathered Obed, and Obed fathered Jesse. ¹³ Jesse fathered Eliab his firstborn, Abinadab his second born, Shimea his third born, ¹⁴ Nethanel his fourth born, Raddai his fifth born, ¹⁵ Ozem his sixth born, David his seventh born;

¹ Genealogy of JudahJudah’s descendants were Perez, Hezron, Carmi, Hur, and Shobal.

⁶ From the descendants of Zerah there was Jeuel, along with 690 of their relatives.

³³ the son of Amminadab, the son of Admin, the son of Arni, the son of Hezron, the son of Perez, the son of Judah,

⁷ From Judah: Amminadab’s son Nahshon.

³ Eastern Encampment Order“The encampment of Judah is to settle east toward the sunrise under their standard. The leader of Judah is to be Amminadab’s son Nahshon.

¹² Day One: Nahshon’s OfferingOn the first day Amminadab’s son Nahshon, from the tribe of Judah, presented

¹⁷ Their sacrifice for a peace offering consisted of two bulls, five rams, five male goats, and five one year old lambs. These were the offerings presented by Amminadab’s son Nahshon.

¹⁴ The standard of the camp of Judah was the first to travel, accompanied by its army with Amminadab’s son Nahshon in charge.

¹⁹ Hezron fathered Ram, and Ram fathered Amminadab. ²⁰ Amminadab fathered Nahshon, and Nahshon fathered Salmon.

¹⁰ Ram fathered Amminadab, and Amminadab fathered Nahshon, who was leader of the descendants of Judah.
¹¹ Nahshon fathered Salma, Salma fathered Boaz, ¹² Boaz fathered Obed, and Obed fathered Jesse.

³² the son of Jesse, the son of Obed, the son of Boaz, the son of Salmon, the son of Nahshon,

¹ Rahab Receives Two ScoutsAfter this, Nun’s son Joshua sent two men from the Acacia groves as undercover scouts. He told them, “Go and look over the land. Pay special attention to Jericho.” So they went out, came to the house of a prostitute named Rahab, and lodged there.
² Then the king of Jericho was told, “Look! Israeli men arrived tonight to scout out the land.”
³ So the king of Jericho sent for Rahab and ordered her, “Bring out the men who came to visit you and lodged in your house, because they’ve come to scout out the entire land.”
⁴ Now the woman had taken the two men and hid them. So she replied, “The men really did come to me, but I didn’t know from where they came. ⁵ At dusk, when it was time to close the city gates, the men left. I don’t know where the men went. Go after them quickly, and you might overtake them.”
⁶ But she had taken them up to the roof and had hidden them among stalks of flax that she had laid out in order on the roof. ⁷ So the men pursued them along the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan River. As soon as the search party had left, they shut the city gate after them.
⁸ Rahab Seeks ProtectionBefore the scouts had lain down, she went up to them on the roof ⁹ “I’m really convinced that the LORD has given you the land,” she said, “because we’re overwhelmed with fear of you. All the other inhabitants of the land are demoralized at your presence, ¹⁰ because we heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Reed Sea right in front of you as you were coming out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan River—to Sihon and Og—whom you completely destroyed. ¹¹ When we heard these reports, we all became terrified and discouraged because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath. ¹² Now therefore, since I’ve treated you so kindly, please swear in the name of the LORD that you’ll also be kind to my father’s household by giving me this sure sign: ¹³ Spare my father, my mother, and my brothers and sisters, along with everyone who belongs with them so we won’t be killed.”
¹⁴ A Promise of ProtectionSo the men told her, “Our life for yours—even to death—if you don’t betray this mission of ours. Then when the LORD gives us this land, we’ll treat you graciously and faithfully.”
¹⁵ So she let them down by a rope through the window, since her house was built into the town wall where she lived. ¹⁶ She told them, “Go out to the hill country, so the search party won’t find you, and hide for three days. After that, you may go on your own way.”
¹⁷ The men replied, “We’ll be free from our commitment to you to which you’ve obligated us ¹⁸ when we invade the land, if you don’t tie this rope made with red cords in the window through which you let us down, and if you don’t gather your father, your mother, your brothers, and all of the rest of your father’s household into your house. ¹⁹ Everyone who leaves through the doors of your house into the street will be responsible for his own death, but we’ll be responsible for anyone who remains with you in the house if even so much as a hand is laid on him. ²⁰ But if you report this incident, we’ll be free from the oath to which you’ve made us swear.”
²¹ “Since you put it that way,” she replied, “I agree.” After she sent them on their way and they had left, she tied the red cord in the window.
²² The Scouts Report to JoshuaThe scouts left for the hill country and remained there for three days until the search party returned. The search party searched the entire road, but was unable to find them.

²² Joshua told the two men who had scouted the land, “Go into the prostitute’s home and bring her out of it, along with everyone who is with her, just as you promised her.” ²³ So the young men who had been scouts went in and brought Rahab out, along with her father, her mother, her brothers, and everyone else who was with her. They brought her entire family out and set them outside the camp of Israel. ²⁴ Then the army set fire to the city and to everything in it, except that they reserved the silver, gold, and vessels of bronze and iron for the treasury of the LORD. ²⁵ But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, along with her family and everyone who was with her. Her family has lived in Israel ever since, because she hid the scouts whom Joshua sent to observe Jericho.

⁴ Each of her sons married Moabite women: one named Orpah and the other named Ruth. After they lived there about ten years,

¹⁶ But Ruth answered, “Stop urging me to abandon you and to turn back from following you. Because wherever you go, I’ll go. Wherever you live, I’ll live. Your people will be my people, and your God, my God. ¹⁷ Where you die, I’ll die and be buried. May the LORD do this to me—and more—if anything except death comes between you and me.”

²² So Naomi returned to Bethlehem from the country of Moab, along with her daughter-in-law Ruth the Moabite woman. And they arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of the barley harvest.

²¹ Salmon fathered Boaz, and Boaz fathered Obed.

³¹ By faith Rahab the prostitute did not die with those who were disobedient, because she had welcomed the spies with a greeting of peace.

²⁵ Likewise, Rahab the prostitute was justified through actions when she welcomed the messengers and sent them away on a different road, wasn’t she?

²² Then Obed fathered Jesse, who fathered David.

¹ David Anointed to Succeed SaulThe LORD told Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I’ve rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I’m sending you to Jesse from Bethlehem because I’ve chosen for myself one of his sons as king.”

¹¹ Then Samuel told Jesse, “Are these all the young men?” He said, “There yet remains the youngest one, and right now he’s tending the sheep.” Samuel told Jesse, “Send someone to get him, for we won’t do anything else until he arrives here.” ¹² So he sent and brought him. He had a dark, healthy complexion, with beautiful eyes, and he was handsome. The LORD said, “Get up and anoint him, for this is the one.”
¹³ God’s Spirit Comes on David and Departs from SaulThen Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed David in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the LORD came on David from that day forward. Then Samuel got up and went to Ramah.

¹² David Comes to the CampDavid was the son of that Ephrathite man named Jesse from Bethlehem in Judah. He had eight sons; at the time when Saul was king he was old, having lived to an advanced age.

⁵⁸ Saul told him, “Whose son are you, young man?”
David said, “The son of your servant Jesse of Bethlehem.”

³⁰ Saul’s Anger toward JonathanSaul flew into a rage and told Jonathan, “You son of a perverse and rebellious woman! Don’t I know that you have chosen Jesse’s son to your shame and to the shame of your mother who bore you? ³¹ As long as Jesse’s son lives on the earth, neither you nor your kingdom will be established! Now send someone and bring David to me. He’s a dead man!”

⁸ But all of you have conspired against me, and no one tells me about my son’s covenant with Jesse’s son. None of you feels sorry for me and tells me that my son has stirred up my servant against me to lie in wait, as he’s doing this day.”

³ David sent word to inquire about her, and someone told him, “This is Eliam’s daughter Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah the Hittite, isn’t it?”

²⁶ When Uriah’s wife heard about the death of her husband Uriah, she went into mourning for the head of her household. ²⁷ When her mourning period was completed, David sent for her, brought her to his palace, and she became his wife. Later on, she bore him a son.
Meanwhile, what David had done grieved the LORD,

²⁴ The Birth of SolomonThen David consoled his wife Bathsheba. He went in and had sex with her, and she bore a son whom he named Solomon. The LORD loved him, ²⁵ and sent a message written by Nathan the prophet to call his name Jedidiah, for the Lord’s sake.

¹ David’s OracleThis was David’s last composition: The oracle of David, son of Jesse, an oracle by the valiant one who was exalted— anointed by the God of Jacob, the contented psalm writer of Israel.

³⁹ and Uriah the Hittite—for a total of 37.

¹¹ Nathan and Bathsheba Confer about Adonijah“Haven’t you heard?” Nathan asked Solomon’s mother Bathsheba. “Haggith’s son Adonijah has become king and David, our true king, isn’t aware of it. ¹² If you listen to me, you’ll save your life and the life of your son Solomon. ¹³ Go right now to King David and ask him, ‘Your majesty, you promised your servant that “Your son Solomon will certainly become king after me and will sit on my throne,” didn’t you? So why has Adonijah become king?’ ¹⁴ Then, while you are still talking to the king, I’ll come in after you and verify your statement.”
¹⁵ So Bathsheba went to the king in his private room. Now the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was attending to him. ¹⁶ Bathsheba knelt and bowed down to the king, and the king asked her, “What do you wish?”
¹⁷ “Your majesty,” she replied, “you promised your servant in the name of the LORD your God, ‘Your son Solomon will certainly become king after me and will sit on my throne.’

²⁸ David Affirms Solomon as King“Call Bathsheba for me,” King David replied. So she came in and stood in front of the king. ²⁹ “As the LORD lives,” the king said with an oath, “who has redeemed me from all sorts of troubles, ³⁰ I certainly did tell you in the name of the LORD God of Israel, ‘Your son Solomon will be king after me and will sit on my throne in my place.’ I’m certainly going to make this happen today!”
³¹ “King David,” Bathsheba said as she bowed low in front of the king with her face to the ground, “your majesty, may you live forever.”

⁵ because David had practiced what the LORD considered to be right. He never avoided anything that the LORD had commanded him during his entire lifetime, except for the case of Uriah the Hittite.

¹⁵ Ozem his sixth born, David his seventh born;

⁵ These four children were born to David by Bath-shua daughter of Ammiel while he was living in Jerusalem: Shimea, Shobab, Nathan, and Solomon,

⁴¹ Uriah the Hittite, Ahlai’s son Zabad,

⁴ Here’s a list of the children whom he fathered while in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon,

⁵ “Now out of all of my sons (since the LORD has given me many of them), he has selected my son Solomon to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the LORD, ruling over Israel.

²⁰ This ends the prayers of Jesse’s son David.

³ For what the Law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the flesh, God did. By sending his own Son in the form of humanity, he condemned sin by being incarnate,

⁴³ Then Solomon died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried in the city of his father David. His son Rehoboam reigned in his place.

³¹ but eventually Rehoboam died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried with his ancestors in the City of David. His mother’s name had been Naamah the Ammonite, and his son Abijah became king to replace him.

⁸ Eventually, Abijah died, as did his ancestors, and he was buried in the City of David. His son Asa succeeded him as king.
⁹ Asa Reigns over Judah
Asa began to reign as Judah’s king during the twentieth year of the reign of Jeroboam as king over Israel. ¹⁰ He reigned 41 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom. ¹¹ Asa practiced what the LORD considered to be right, just like his ancestor David. ¹² He also removed the male cult prostitutes from the land and destroyed all the idols that his ancestors had made. ¹³ He removed his mother Maacah from her position as Queen Mother because she had made a detestable image dedicated to Asherah. Asa cut down his mother’s idol, crushed it, and burned it at the Kidron Brook. ¹⁴ Nevertheless, the high places were not removed, even though Asa’s heart was blameless toward the LORD all of his life. ¹⁵ Asa brought into the LORD’s Temple the things that his father had dedicated, as well as his own dedicated gifts such as silver, gold, and temple service implements.
¹⁶ Alliances with Aram against Israel
A state of continual military unrest existed between Asa and King Baasha of Israel throughout their lifetimes. ¹⁷ King Baasha of Israel invaded Judah and interdicted Ramah by building fortifications around it so no one could enter or leave to join King Asa of Judah. ¹⁸ But Asa removed all the silver and gold from the treasuries of the Lord’s Temple and from his royal palace, placed them into the care of some servants, and then sent them to Tabrimmon’s son King Ben-hadad of Aram, the grandson of Hezion, who lived in Damascus.
¹⁹ “Let’s make a treaty between you and me,” he said, “just like the one between my father and your father. Notice that I’ve sent you silver and gold to break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel, so he’ll retreat from his attack on me.”
²⁰ So King Ben-hadad did just what King Asa had asked: he sent his commanding officers to attack the cities of Israel, conquering Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah, all of Chinneroth, and the territory of Naphtali. ²¹ When Baasha learned of this, he stopped fortifying Ramah and remained in Tirzah, ²² so King Asa published a proclamation throughout Judah (no one was left out) and they carried away the stones and timber with which Baasha had been fortifying Judah. King Asa used them to fortify Geba in Benjamin and Mizpah.
²³ The rest of Asa’s accomplishments, his strength, everything that he undertook, and the cities that he fortified are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? However, as he approached old age, he became diseased in his feet.

¹⁰ Solomon’s descendants included Rehoboam, his son Abijah, his son Asa, his son Jehoshaphat, ¹¹ his son Joram, his son Ahaziah, his son Joash, ¹² his son Amaziah, his son Azariah, his son Jotham, ¹³ his son Ahaz, his son Hezekiah, his son Manasseh, ¹⁴ his son Amon, and his son Josiah.

³¹ Then Solomon died, as had his ancestors, and his son Rehoboam reigned in his place.

¹ Shishak Invades Judah
At the height of his power, after he had consolidated his rule, Rehoboam abandoned the LORD’s Law, along with all of Israel with him.

⁷ Useless troublemakers soon gathered around him, who turned out to be too strong for Rehoboam, because he was young, timid, and unable to withstand them.

¹ Then Abijah died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried in the City of David. Abijah’s son Asa reigned in his place, and during his lifetime the land enjoyed rest for ten years.
² Asa Chooses to do What is Right
Asa practiced what the LORD his God considered to be right ³ by removing the foreign altars and high places, tearing down the sacred pillars, cutting down the Asherim, and ⁴ commanding Judah to seek the LORD God of their ancestors and to keep the Law and the commandments. ⁵ He also removed the high places and incense altars from all of the cities of Judah. As a result, the kingdom enjoyed rest under Asa’s leadership.
⁶ Asa built fortified cities throughout Judah while the land lay undisturbed, because the LORD had given him peace so that no one went to war against him during those years. ⁷ He had told Judah, “Let’s build up these cities, surrounding them with walls, towers, gates, and bars. The land still belongs to us, because we have kept on seeking the LORD our God. We have sought him out, and he has given us rest all around us.” So the people built and prospered. ⁸ Asa kept a standing army of 300,000 soldiers from Judah equipped with large shields and spears, as well as 280,000 soldiers from Benjamin, also bearing shields and wielding bows. All of them were valiant soldiers.
⁹ Ethiopia Invades and is RepulsedSometime later, Zerah the Ethiopian went to war against him at Mareshah with an army of one million troops and 300 chariots. ¹⁰ Asa went out to engage him in battle, and they drew up their battle lines at Mareshah in the Zephathah Valley. ¹¹ Asa cried out to the LORD his God, telling him, “LORD, there is no one except for you to help between the powerful and the weak. So help us, LORD God, because we’re depending on you and have come against this vast group in your name. LORD, you are our God. Let no mere mortal man defeat you!”
¹² So the Lord defeated the Ethiopians right in front of Asa and Judah, and the Ethiopians ran away. ¹³ Asa and his army pursued the Ethiopians as far as Gerar. So many Ethiopians died that their army could not recover, because it had been shattered in the LORD’s presence and in the presence of his army. The Israelis carried off a lot of plunder, too, ¹⁴ They attacked all the cities that surrounded Gerar, because fear of the LORD had overwhelmed them. The Israelis spoiled all the cities, because there was a lot to plunder in them. ¹⁵ They also attacked the tents of those who owned livestock and carried off lots of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.

²⁴ Then Asa died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried with his ancestors in the City of David, his ancestor. His son Jehoshaphat reigned in his place.

² During that third year, King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to visit the king of Israel. ³ The king of Israel asked his servants, “Were you aware that Ramoth-gilead belongs to us, but we aren’t doing anything to remove it from the control of the king of Aram?”
⁴ Then he asked Jehoshaphat, “Will you join me in battle against Ramoth-gilead?”
“I’m with you,” Jehoshaphat answered the king of Israel. “My army will join yours, and my cavalry will be your cavalry.” ⁵ But Jehoshaphat also asked the king of Israel, “Please ask for a message from the LORD, first.”
⁶ So the king of Israel called in about 400 prophets and asked them, “Should we go attack Ramoth-gilead, or should I call off the attack?”
“Go attack them,” they all said, “because the Lord will drop them right into the king’s hand!”
⁷ But Jehoshaphat asked, “Isn’t there a prophet of the LORD left here that we could talk to?”
⁸ “There is still one man left by whom we could ask the LORD what to do,” the king of Israel replied to Jehoshaphat, “but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me. Instead, he prophesies evil. He is Imla’s son Micaiah.”
But Jehoshaphat rebuked Ahab, “Kings should never talk like that.”
⁹ Nevertheless, the king of Israel called one of his officers and ordered him, “Bring me Imla’s son Micaiah quickly.”
¹⁰ Now the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah were each sitting on their respective thrones, arrayed in their robes, on the threshing floor at the entrance to the city gate of Samaria, and all of the prophets were prophesying in front of them. ¹¹ Chenaanah’s son Zedekiah made iron horns for himself and told them, “This is what the LORD says, ‘With these horns you are to gore the Arameans until they are eliminated!’”
¹² All the other prophets were saying similar things, like “Go up to Ramoth-gilead and you will be successful, because the LORD will hand it over to the king!”
¹³ Micaiah Predicts Failure
Meanwhile, the messenger who had gone off to summon Micaiah advised him, “Look, everything that the other prophets were saying was unanimously favorable to the king. So please, cooperate with them and speak favorably.”
¹⁴ “As the LORD lives,” Micaiah replied, “I’ll say what my God tells me to say.”
¹⁵ When Micaiah approached the king, the king asked him, “Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should I not?”
“Go to war,” Micaiah replied, “and you will be successful, because the LORD will hand it over to the king!”
¹⁶ When he heard this, the king asked him, “How many times do I have to make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth? Now do it in the name of the LORD!”
¹⁷ So Micaiah replied: “I saw all of Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep without a shepherd. And the LORD told me, ‘These have no master, so let them each return to his own home in peace.’”
¹⁸ Then the king of Israel told Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you that he wouldn’t prophesy anything good about me, but only evil?”
¹⁹ But Micaiah responded, “Therefore, listen to what the LORD has to say. I saw the LORD, sitting on his throne, and the entire Heavenly Army was standing around him on his right hand and on his left hand.
²⁰ “The LORD asked, ‘Who will tempt King Ahab of Israel to attack Ramoth-gilead, so that he will die there?’ And one was saying one thing and one was saying another.
²¹ “But then a spirit approached, stood in front of the LORD, and said, ‘I will entice him.’
²² “And the LORD asked him, ‘How?’
“‘I will go,’ he announced, ‘and I will be a deceiving spirit in the mouth of all of his prophets!’
“So the LORD said, ‘You’re just the one to deceive him. You will be successful. Go and do it.’
²³ “Now therefore, listen! The LORD has placed a lying spirit in the mouth of all of these prophets of yours, because the LORD has determined to bring disaster upon you.”
²⁴ Right then, Chenaanah’s son Zedekiah approached Micaiah and struck him on the cheek. Then he asked him, “How did the Spirit of the LORD move from me to speak to you?”
²⁵ Micaiah replied, “You’ll see how when the day comes that you run away to hide yourself in a closet!”
²⁶ Then the king of Israel ordered, “Take Micaiah and place him in the custody of Amon, the city governor. Hand him over to Joash, the king’s son. ²⁷ Give him this order: ‘Place him in prison on survival rations of bread and water only until I come back safely.’”
²⁸ “If you return alive,” Micaiah responded, “then the LORD has not spoken by me.” Then he added, “Listen, all you people!”
²⁹ Ahab Dies at Ramoth-gilead
So the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah both attacked Ramoth-gilead. ³⁰ The king of Israel suggested to Jehoshaphat, “I’ll go into battle in disguise, but you keep your royal uniform on.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and they both went into the battle.
³¹ Meanwhile, the king of Aram had issued these orders to 32 of his chariot commanders: “Don’t attack unimportant soldiers or ranking officers. Go after only the king of Israel.”
³² So when the chariot commanders observed Jehoshaphat, they said by mistake, “It’s the king of Israel!” and they turned aside to attack him. But Jehoshaphat cried out. ³³ When the chariot commanders saw that their target was not the king of Israel, they stopped pursuing him.
³⁴ Meanwhile, somebody drew his bow aimlessly and struck the king of Israel between the scales where his armor breastplates joined, so he instructed his chariot driver, “Turn around and take me out of the battle, because I’ve been severely wounded.” ³⁵ The battle continued on for the rest of the day while the king of Israel was propped up in front of the Arameans until the sun set, at which time he died. The blood from Ahab’s wound ran down into the bottom of the chariot.
³⁶ As the day drew to a close, this order was circulated throughout the army telling the soldiers, “Everybody go back to his city and to his own land.” ³⁷ So the king died and was brought back to Samaria, and they buried the king in Samaria. ³⁸ They washed the chariot by the reservoir of Samaria, and the dogs licked up his blood near where the prostitutes went to bathe, in keeping with the message that the LORD had spoken.
³⁹ Now as to the rest of Ahab’s accomplishments, everything that he undertook, the ivory palace he built, and the cities that he built, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel, are they not? ⁴⁰ That’s how Ahab died, just as his ancestors had, and his son Ahaziah became king in his place.
⁴¹ Jehoshaphat Reigns over JudahAsa’s son Jehoshaphat became king over Judah during the fourth year of the reign of King Ahab of Israel. ⁴² Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he became king. He reigned 25 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah. She was the daughter of Shilhi. ⁴³ He lived like his father Asa and never abandoned that life. He did what the LORD considered to be right. Nevertheless, the high places were not demolished, and the people continued to sacrifice and burn incense on the high places. ⁴⁴ Jehoshaphat also made a peace treaty with the king of Israel.
⁴⁵ Now the rest of Jehoshaphat’s accomplishments, the power that he demonstrated, and how he waged war are written in the book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? ⁴⁶ He also eliminated the male cult prostitutes who still remained from the time of his father Asa.
⁴⁷ There was no king reigning in Edom; there was only a stand-in king. ⁴⁸ Jehoshaphat had ocean-going vessels from Tarshish sail to Ophir for gold, but they never made it because they were shipwrecked at Ezion-geber. ⁴⁹ Ahab’s son Ahaziah had offered to go. “Let my servants go with your servants in the ships!” he said. But Jehoshaphat was not willing. ⁵⁰ Later, Jehoshaphat died, as did his ancestors, and he was buried alongside his ancestors in the City of David. Jehoram his son became king in his place.

¹ Jehoram Becomes KingAhab’s son Jehoram ascended to the throne of Israel at Samaria during the eighteenth year of the reign of Judah’s king Jehoshaphat. He reigned for twelve years,

¹⁶ Jehoram Comes to the Throne of JudahSometime during the fifth year of the reign of Ahab’s son Joram, king of Israel (while Jehoshaphat was still ruling as king of Judah), Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram ascended to the throne of Judah.

²¹ Azariah’s Reign over JudahAll the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and installed him as king to take the place of his father Amaziah.

¹ Azariah Becomes King of JudahAmaziah’s son Azariah began reigning during the twenty-seventh year of the reign of Jeroboam, king of Israel. ² He was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 52 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah; she was from Jerusalem. ³ He did what the LORD considered to be right, just as his father Amaziah had done in everything, ⁴ except that the high places were never removed, and the people kept on sacrificing and burning incense on the high places.
⁵ The LORD struck the king so that he was afflicted with leprosy until the day he died. He lived in a separate house while his son Jotham managed the household and ruled the people who lived in the land. ⁶ Now the rest of Azariah’s activities, including everything he did, are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not?

¹¹ his son Joram, his son Ahaziah, his son Joash,

¹ Jehoshaphat Succeeds AsaAsa’s son Jehoshaphat succeeded him as king, and he consolidated his authority over Israel ² by placing troops in all of the fortified citadels through Judah and by establishing garrisons throughout the land of Judah and in the cities that his father Asa had captured.
³ The LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the example set during his ancestor David’s preliminary years by not pursuing the Baals. ⁴ Instead, Jehoshaphat sought the God of his ancestors and obeyed his commands, unlike Israel. ⁵ Therefore the LORD secured Jehoshaphat’s kingdom under his control, with all of Judah paying him tribute, and Jehoshaphat became very wealthy and greatly respected. ⁶ He remained committed to following the LORD, and he removed the high places and Asherah poles from Judah.
⁷ Jehoshaphat Institutes Teaching ProgramsDuring the third year of his reign, Jehoshaphat sent his officials Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah to teach throughout the cities of Judah. ⁸ They were accompanied by the descendants of Levi, including Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tobadonijah. These descendants of Levi were accompanied by the priests Elishama and Jehoram. ⁹ They taught throughout Judah from a copy of the Book of the Law of the LORD that they took with them as they passed through all the cities of Judah, teaching among all the people.
¹⁰ Jehoshaphat’s Military and Economic StabilityBecause they were afraid of the LORD, none of the kingdoms of the lands that surrounded Judah dared go to war against Jehoshaphat. ¹¹ Some of the Philistines brought gifts and silver as tribute to Jehoshaphat, and Arabians brought him flocks of 7,700 rams and 7,700 male goats. ¹² As a result, Jehoshaphat grew more and more powerful, and built up fortresses and storage centers throughout Judah. ¹³ He placed a large amount of supplies into storage throughout the cities of Judah and stationed soldiers—all of them valiant men—in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ Here’s how they were mustered, listed according to their ancestral houses and listed by commanders of thousands: Adnah commanded 300,000 elite forces. ¹⁵ Near him was Johanan, commander of 280,000 ¹⁶ and next to him was Zichri’s son Amasiah, who had volunteered to serve the LORD. He commanded 200,000 elite forces. ¹⁷ There was also Eliada from Benjamin, himself a valiant soldier. He was accompanied by 200,000 expert archers bearing shields. ¹⁸ Near him was Jehozabad, who was accompanied by 180,000 soldiers equipped for warfare. ¹⁹ These men served the king, and there were others whom the king garrisoned inside fortified cities throughout all of Judah.

¹ Jehoram Succeeds Jehoshaphat
Jehoshaphat died, as had his ancestors, and was buried in the City of David alongside his ancestors. His son Jehoram became king in his place.

¹ Uzziah Succeeds Amaziah
All the people of Judah made Uzziah king in place of his father Amaziah. Uzziah was sixteen years old at the time. ² He rebuilt Eloth and restored it to Judah after King Amaziah had been laid to rest with his ancestors. ³ Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned for 52 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah. She was from Jerusalem. ⁴ He practiced what the LORD considered to be right, following the example set by his father Amaziah’s accomplishments. ⁵ Uzziah kept on seeking God during the lifetime of Zechariah, who taught him how to fear God, and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosperous.
⁶ Uzziah’s Initial SuccessesOne time Uzziah went out and battled the Philistines. He tore down the walls of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod, and built cities in the Ashdod area among the Philistines. ⁷ God helped Uzziah defeat the Philistines, the Arabians who lived in Gur-baal, and the Meunites. ⁸ The Ammonites paid tribute to Uzziah, and his reputation extended as far as the border with Egypt as he became stronger and stronger. ⁹ Uzziah also built towers in Jerusalem, at the Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate, and at the Angle and fortified them. ¹⁰ He also built watchtowers in the wilderness and had many cisterns hewed out, since he also possessed large herds, both in the Shephelah and in the midland plains. He had many farmers and vinedressers throughout the hills and fertile lands because he loved farming.
¹¹ Uzziah kept a standing army, equipped for battle, garrisoned in divisions according to an organizational structure devised by his royal secretary Jeiel and his officer Maaseiah, who reported to Hananiah, one of the king’s commanders. ¹² The number of senior leaders of the ancestral houses of his elite forces numbered 2,600. ¹³ Uzziah commanded an army of 307,500 who could fight formidably on behalf of the king against any enemy. ¹⁴ In addition, Uzziah equipped the entire army with shields, spears, helmets, body armor, bows, and stones for use in slings. ¹⁵ He also had various siege engines built by skilled designers and placed them on the towers and on the corner ramparts that could fire arrows and very large stones. His reputation spread far and wide, and he was marvelously assisted until he grew very strong.
¹⁶ Uzziah’s Arrogance and Apostasy
But after he had become strong, in his arrogance he acted corruptly and became unfaithful to the LORD his God, and he dared to enter the LORD’s Temple to burn incense on the incense altar. ¹⁷ Azariah the priest ran after him, along with 80 of the LORD’s valiant priests, ¹⁸ and they opposed King Uzziah. “Uzziah, it’s not for you to burn incense to the LORD,” they told him, “but for the priests to do, Aaron’s descendants who are consecrated to burn incense. Leave the sanctuary now, because you have been unfaithful and won’t receive any honor from the LORD God.”
¹⁹ Uzziah flew into a rage while he held in his hand a censer to burn incense. As he got angry at the priests, leprosy broke out all over his forehead right in front of the priests beside the incense altar in the LORD’s Temple. ²⁰ So Azariah the chief priest and all the priests stared at Uzziah, who was infected with leprosy in his forehead! They all rushed at him and hurried him out of the Temple. Uzziah was in a hurry to get out anyway, because the LORD had struck him.
²¹ King Uzziah remained a leper until the day he died. Because he was a leper, he lived in a separate residence and remained disqualified to enter the LORD’s Temple. His son Jotham served in the royal palace, judging the people of the land. ²² Now the rest of Uzziah’s accomplishments, from first to last, have been recorded by Amoz’s son Isaiah the prophet. ²³ Uzziah died, as had his ancestors, and they buried him alongside his ancestors in a grave in a field that belonged to the kings, because they said, “He was a leper.” Uzziah’s son Jotham became king to replace him.

⁷ Later, Azariah died, as had his ancestors, and they buried him with his ancestors in the City of David. His son Jotham then reigned in his place.

³² Jotham’s Reign over JudahUzziah’s son Jotham became king over Judah during the second year of the reign of Remaliah’s son Pekah, king of Israel.

¹ Hezekiah Becomes King of Judah
Now it happened that during the third year of the reign of Elah’s son Hoshea, king of Israel, that Ahaz’ son Hezekiah became king. ² He was 25 years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for 29 years. His mother was Zechariah’s daughter Abi. ³ He did what the LORD considered to be right, according to everything that his ancestor David had done.
⁴ Hezekiah’s Reforms
He removed the high places, demolished the sacred pillars, and tore down the Asherah poles. He also demolished the bronze serpent that Moses had crafted, because the Israelis had been burning incense to it right up until that time. Hezekiah called it a piece of brass. ⁵ He trusted the LORD God of Israel, and after him there were none like him among all the kings of Judah, ⁶ because he depended on the LORD, not abandoning pursuit of him, and keeping the LORD’s commands that he had commanded Moses. ⁷ So the LORD was with him, and Hezekiah prospered wherever he went, even when he rebelled against the king of Assyria, refusing to serve him. ⁸ He attacked the Philistines, invading Gaza and its borders from watchtower to fortified garrison.
⁹ Shalmaneser Attacks SamariaIn the fourth year of King Hezekiah’s reign (that is, during the seventh year of Elah’s son Hoshea’s reign as king of Israel), King Shalmaneser from Assyria invaded Samaria and besieged it. ¹⁰ Three years later, they captured Samaria during the sixth year of Hezekiah’s reign, which was the ninth year of Hoshea’s reign as king of Israel. ¹¹ After this, the king of Assyria carried Israel off into exile in Assyria, settling them in Halah, on the Habor River in Gozan, and in cities controlled by the Medes, ¹² because they would not obey the voice of the LORD their God. Instead, they transgressed his covenant, including everything that Moses, the servant of the LORD, had commanded, by neither listening nor putting what he had commanded into practice.
¹³ During the fourteenth year of the reign of King Hezekiah, King Sennacherib of Assyria approached all of the walled cities of Judah and seized them. ¹⁴ So Hezekiah sent this message to the king of Assyria at Lachish: “I have offended you. Withdraw from me, and I’ll accept whatever tribute you impose.” So the king of Assyria required Hezekiah to pay him 300 talents of silver and 30 talents of gold. ¹⁵ Hezekiah gave him all the silver that could be removed from the LORD’s Temple and from the treasuries in the king’s palace. ¹⁶ At that time, Hezekiah removed the doors to the LORD’s Temple and the doorposts that he had overlaid with gold, and gave the gold to the king of Assyria.
¹⁷ Assyria’s King Taunts Hezekiah
Sometime later, the king of Assyria sent Tartan, Rab-saris, and Rab-shakeh from Lachish to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem, accompanied with a large army. ¹⁸ When they called for the king, Hilkiah’s son Eliakim, who managed the household, Shebnah the scribe, and Asaph’s son Joah the recorder went out to them. ¹⁹ Rab-shakeh told them, “Tell Hezekiah right now, ‘This is what the great king, the king of Assyria says: ‘“Why are you so confident? ²⁰ You’re saying—but they’re only empty words—‘I have enough advice and resources to conduct warfare!’‘“Now who are you relying on, that you have rebelled against me?

¹¹ his son Joram, his son Ahaziah, his son Joash, ¹² his son Amaziah, his son Azariah, his son Jotham, ¹³ his son Ahaz, his son Hezekiah, his son Manasseh,

²¹ King Uzziah remained a leper until the day he died. Because he was a leper, he lived in a separate residence and remained disqualified to enter the LORD’s Temple. His son Jotham served in the royal palace, judging the people of the land.

¹ Jotham Succeds Uzziah
Jotham was 25 years old when he began his reign, and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother was Zadok’s daughter Jerusha. ² He practiced what the LORD considered to be right, just as his father Uzziah had done, even though he did not enter the Temple. Nevertheless, the people continued acting corruptly.
³ Jotham constructed the Upper Gate of the LORD’s Temple and did extensive work on the wall of Ophel. ⁴ He also built cities in the hill country of Judah, along with fortresses and guard towers in the forests. ⁵ He launched a military excursion against the king of the Ammonites and defeated him. As a result, that year the Ammonites paid 100 talents of silver in tribute, as well as 10,000 kors of wheat and 10,000 kors of barley. The Ammonites continued to pay this same amount in tribute over the following two years. ⁶ Jotham grew in power because he had determined to live his life in the presence of the LORD his God. ⁷ The rest of the accomplishments of Jotham’s reign, including all of his military exploits and campaigns, are recorded in the book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. ⁸ He started his reign at the age of 25 years and he reigned for sixteen years in Jerusalem. ⁹ Then Jotham died, as had his fathers, and he was buried in the City of David. His son Ahaz became king in his place.

¹ Ahaz Succeds Jotham
Ahaz was 20 years old when he began to reign, and he reigned 16 years in Jerusalem, but he did not practice what the LORD considered to be right, as his ancestor David had done. ² Instead, he lived like the kings of Israel did. He cast metal images of Baal, ³ burned incense in the Ben-hinnom Valley, and burned his sons as an offering, following the detestable activities of the nations whom the LORD had expelled in front of the people of Israel. ⁴ He sacrificed and burned incense on high places, on the top of hills, and under every green tree.
⁵ Aram and Israel Defeat Judah
As a result, the LORD his God handed Ahaz over to the king of Aram, who defeated him and took a large number of captives away to Damascus. Ahaz was also delivered over to the control of the King of Israel, who defeated him with many heavy casualties. ⁶ Remaliah’s son Pekah killed 120,000 soldiers in a single day, all of them elite forces, because they had forsaken the LORD God of their ancestors. ⁷ Zichri, a valiant soldier from Ephraim, killed the king’s son Maaseiah, Azrikam, the palace manager, and Elkanah, who was second in rank to the king. ⁸ The Israelis carried away 200,000 women, sons, and daughters from among their own relatives. They also took a great deal of plunder, and brought it all to Samaria.
⁹ Oded the Prophet Rebukes IsraelBut a prophet of the LORD was there named Oded. He went out to greet the army as it arrived in Samaria. He warned them, “Look! Because the LORD God of your ancestors was angry at Judah, he delivered them into your control, but you have killed them with a vehemence that has reached all the way to heaven! ¹⁰ Now you’re intending to make the men and women of Judah and Jerusalem to be your slaves. Surely you have your own sins against the LORD your God for which you’re accountable, don’t you? ¹¹ So listen to me! Return the captives whom you’ve captured from your brothers, because the anger of the LORD is burning hot against you!”
¹² Some of the leaders of the descendants of Ephraim, including Johanan’s son Azariah, Meshillemoth’s son Berechiah, Shallum’s son Jehizkiah, and Hadlai’s son Amasa, stood up to the army as they were coming back from the battle ¹³ and told them, “Don’t bring those captives here! You’ll bring even more guilt on us from the LORD, in addition to our own existing sin and guilt! He’s already mad enough against Israel because of our guilt!”
¹⁴ So the army abandoned the captives and the war booty in front of the officers and the entire assembled retinue. ¹⁵ After this, some men who were chosen by name took charge of the captives, clothed those who were naked with clothes appropriated from the war booty, gave them clothes and sandals, fed them, gave them something to drink, anointed them with oil, provided those who weren’t able to walk with donkeys to ride on, and took them back to their relatives at Jericho, the city of palm trees. Then they returned to Samaria.
¹⁶ Assyria Plunders the Temple
Right about then, King Ahaz sent for help from the kings of Assyria ¹⁷ because the Edomites had invaded, attacked Judah, and carried off some captives. ¹⁸ The Philistines also invaded some of the cities in the Shephelah and in the Negev of Judah. They captured Beth-shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Soco, and their surrounding villages, Timnah and its villages, and Gimzo and its villages. Then the Philistines settled there, ¹⁹ because the LORD was humiliating Judah because of King Ahaz of Israel, since Ahaz had brought about a lack of restraint within Judah and had remained unfaithful to the LORD. ²⁰ King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria attacked Ahaz and, instead of helping him, attacked him. ²¹ Even though Ahaz took some of the assets belonging to the LORD’s Temple from the royal palace, and from the palaces belonging to the princes, and gave them to the king of Assyria, none of his gifts did any good.
²² The Apostasy and Death of Ahaz
In the midst of his troubles, King Ahaz became more and more unfaithful to the LORD. ²³ He sacrificed to the gods of Damascus that had defeated him, reasoning, “The gods of the kings of Aram helped them, so I’ll sacrifice to them so they will help me!” But those gods brought about his downfall, and the downfall of all of Israel, too. ²⁴ Ahaz also collected the utensils of God’s Temple, cut them all into pieces, and closed the doors of the LORD’s Temple. Then he made altars to himself on every corner in Jerusalem ²⁵ and established high places in every city of Judah where incense was burned to other gods, thus provoking the LORD God of his ancestors to anger. ²⁶ The rest of his accomplishments, and records of everything he did from first to last are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel. ²⁷ So Ahaz died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried in the city of Jerusalem, but they didn’t bury him among the tombs of the kings of Israel. Ahaz’s son Hezekiah reigned in his place.

¹ Hezekiah Succeeds Ahaz
Hezekiah began his reign at the age of 25. He reigned for 29 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Abijah, Zechariah’s daughter. ² He practiced what the LORD considered to be right, following all of the examples set by his ancestor David.
³ Hezekiah’s Temple Restoration Project
In the first month of the first year of his reign he repaired and reopened the doors of the LORD’s Temple. ⁴ Then he brought in the priests and descendants of Levi, gathered them into the square in the eastern part of the Temple, ⁵ and told them, “Pay attention to me, you descendants of Levi! Consecrate yourselves and the Temple of the LORD God of your ancestors by taking out from the Holy Place whatever is unclean. ⁶ Our ancestors have been unfaithful. They practiced what the LORD considers to be evil, abandoned him, turned their faces away from the place where the LORD resides, and turned their backs to him. ⁷ They shut the doors to the vestibule of the Temple, extinguished its lamps, and have not burned incense or offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel in the Holy Place. ⁸ That’s why the LORD was angry with Judah and Jerusalem and made them an object of terror, horror, and derision, as you’ve seen with your own eyes. ⁹ Now look! Our ancestors have been killed with swords and our sons, daughters, and wives are being held captive because of all of this. ¹⁰ I’m intending to make a covenant with the LORD God of Israel so his burning anger may turn away from us. ¹¹ Please don’t be careless, you descendants of Aaron, because the LORD has chosen you to minister in his presence, to serve him, to be his ministers, and to burn incense.”
¹² Here are the names of the descendants of Levi who made themselves available to God: Amasai’s son Mahath and Azariah’s son Joel from the descendants of Kohath; Abdi’s son Kish and Jehallelel’s son Azariah from the descendants of Merari; Zimmah’s son Joah and Joah’s son Eden from the descendants of Gershon; ¹³ Elizaphan’s sons Shimri and Jeiel; Asaph’s sons Zechariah and Mattaniah; ¹⁴ Heman’s sons Jehiel and Shimei; and Jeduthun’s sons Shemaiah and Uzziel. ¹⁵ They also brought together their brothers, consecrated themselves, and proceeded to cleanse the LORD’s Temple, just as the king had ordered in accordance with what the LORD had told him. ¹⁶ The priests entered the inner courts of the LORD’s Temple to cleanse it, and they brought out everything unclean that they found there to the outer court of the LORD’s Temple. Then the descendants of Levi carried everything from there out to the Kidron Valley. ¹⁷ They began their consecration duties on the first day of the first month and finished at the LORD’s outer vestibule on the eighth day of the month. Another eight days was used to consecrate the LORD’s Temple, so they completed the work on the sixteenth day of the first month.
¹⁸ After this, they went to King Hezekiah and told him, “We have cleansed all of the LORD’s Temple, including the altar for burnt offerings, all of its utensils, the table of showbread, and all of its utensils. ¹⁹ In addition, we have prepared and rededicated all of the utensils that King Ahaz threw away during his unfaithful reign, and now they’re back in service at the LORD’s altar.”
²⁰ Temple Worship is RestoredEarly the next morning, King Hezekiah got up and assembled the city officials and went up to the LORD’s Temple, ²¹ where they brought seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats for a sin offering on behalf of the kingdom, the Holy Place, and Judah. He ordered that the priests, as descendants of Aaron, place the offerings on the LORD’s altar. ²² So they slaughtered the bulls and the priests sprinkled the blood on the altar. They also slaughtered the rams and sprinkled the blood on the altar, and they also slaughtered the lambs and sprinkled the blood on the altar. ²³ They brought the male goats for the sin offering to the king within the assembled gathering, laid their hands on them, ²⁴ and then the priests slaughtered them and purged the altar with their blood as a sin offering to atone for all Israel, because the king ordered that the burnt offering and the sin offering be made for all Israel.
²⁵ Hezekiah stationed descendants of Levi in the LORD’s Temple to play cymbals and stringed instruments, just as David, Gad the seer, and Nathan the prophet had directed, because the command to do so was from the LORD through those prophets. ²⁶ The descendants of Levi played instruments that had been crafted by David and the priests sounded trumpets.
²⁷ Hezekiah gave a command to offer burnt offerings on the altar, and when the burnt offerings began, a song to the LORD also began with trumpets sounding and with the instruments that King David of Israel had crafted. ²⁸ Everybody in the assembly worshipped, the singers sang, and the trumpets sounded. They continued doing this until the burnt offering sacrifice was completed. ²⁹ When the sacrifices had been offered, the king and everyone else who was present with him bowed down and worshipped. ³⁰ King Hezekiah and his officials ordered the descendants of Levi to sing praises to the LORD based on psalms that had been written by David and Asaph the seer. So they all joyfully sang praises, bowed low, and worshipped.
³¹ After this, Hezekiah announced, “Now that you’ve consecrated yourselves to the LORD, come near and bring your sacrifices and thanksgiving offerings to the LORD’s Temple. So the assembly brought sacrifices and thanksgiving offerings, and everyone who was willing to do so brought burnt offerings. ³² The number of burnt offerings brought by the assembly was 70 bulls, 100 rams, and 200 lambs. All of these were burnt offerings to the LORD.

¹ The Message to AhazDuring the reign of Jotham’s son Ahaz, Uzziah’s grandson, king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and Remaliah’s son Pekah, king of Israel, approached Jerusalem and waged war against it, but they could not mount an attack against it. ² When it was reported to the house of David, “Aram has joined forces with Ephraim!” the heart of the people of Ahaz trembled like forest trees in a windstorm.
³ So the LORD told Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and your son Shear-jashub, at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool that proceeds along the highway to Launderer’s Field. ⁴ Tell him, ‘Be careful, be calm, don’t be afraid, and don’t lose heart because of these two smoldering stumps of torches, that is, because of the fierce anger of Rezin, from Aram, and Remaliah’s son. ⁵ Aram, Ephraim, and Remaliah’s son have plotted this evil against you: ⁶ “Let’s go attack Judah, let’s terrorize it, and let’s conquer it for ourselves. Then we’ll install Tabeel’s son as king!”’
⁷ ‘But this is what the Lord GOD has to say: “‘It won’t take place. It won’t ever happen. ⁸ Because Aram’s head is Damascus, and Rezin is its king, within sixty-five years Ephraim will be shattered as a people. ⁹ Furthermore, Ephraim’s head is Samaria, and Remaliah’s son is its king. If all of you don’t keep on believing,
you’ll never remain loyal.’”
¹⁰ God with UsLater on, the LORD spoke to Ahaz again: ¹¹ “Ask a sign from the LORD your God. Make it as deep as Sheol or as high as heaven above.”
¹² But Ahaz replied, “I won’t ask! I won’t put the LORD to the test.”
¹³ In reply, the LORD announced, “Please listen, you household of David. Is it such a minor thing for you to try the patience of men? Must you also try the patience of my God?

¹ Sennacherib AttacksIn the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, King Sennacherib of Assyria attacked all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them. ² Then the king of Assyria sent his field commander, along with a very large army, from Lachish to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. When the field commander stopped at the aqueduct at the Upper Pool on the road to Laundryman’s Field, ³ Hilkiah’s son Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the secretary, and Asaph’s son Joah, the recorder, went out to him.
⁴ The field commander told them: “Tell Hezekiah, king of Judah, ‘This is what the mighty king, the king of Assyria, has to say: What is this “guarantee” that makes you yourself rely on it? ⁵ Do you really think that guarantees alone can withstand strategy and military strength? On whom are you now depending, that you’re rebelling against me? ⁶ Take note: you’re relying on Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff, which pierces the palm of anyone who leans on it. This is what Pharaoh king of Egypt is like to everybody who depends on him! ⁷ But if you all say to me, “We are depending on the LORD our God”—isn’t he the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah removed, while he kept on telling Judah and Jerusalem, ‘You are to worship in front of this altar in Jerusalem’? ⁸ Come now, all of you, make a bet with my master, the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses, if you can furnish riders for them! ⁹ How, then, can you repulse even one officer from the least of my master’s officials, when you are depending for yourselves on Egypt for chariots and horsemen? ¹⁰ One other thing: have I really marched against this country to destroy it apart from the LORD’s direction? The LORD himself ordered me, ‘March against this country to destroy it.’”
¹¹ Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah replied to him, “Please speak with your servants—with us—in Aramaic, since we understand it. Don’t speak to us in Hebrew where the people sitting on the wall can hear.”
¹² But the field commander asked, “Was it only to all of you and to your master that my master sent me to speak these things? Wasn’t it also to the men sitting on the wall—who, like you, will have to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine?”
¹³ Then the commander stood up and shouted out loud in Hebrew: “Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria! ¹⁴ This is what the king of Assyria says: ‘Don’t let Hezekiah deceive you—for he cannot save you! ¹⁵ Don’t let Hezekiah persuade you to rely on the LORD when he says, “The LORD will really deliver us!” and “This city will never be handed over to the king of Assyria!” ¹⁶ Don’t listen to Hezekiah, because this is what the king of Assyria says: ‘Make your peace with me and come out to me. Then everyone will eat from his own vine and from his own fig tree, and everyone will drink water from his own cistern, ¹⁷ until I come and take you away to a land like your own land—to a land of grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.’ ¹⁸ Be careful not to let Hezekiah mislead you when he says, “The LORD will save us.” Has any god of any nation ever delivered his country from the king of Assyria? ¹⁹ Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sephar-vaim? Have they saved Samaria from me? ²⁰ Who among all the gods of these countries has delivered their land from me? How then can the LORD deliver Jerusalem from me?’”
²¹ But the people remained silent and didn’t respond to him with so much as a single word, because the king had commanded, “Don’t answer him.”
²² Then Hilkiah’s son Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, Shebna the secretary, and Asaph’s son Joah, the recorder, approached Hezekiah with their clothes torn, and let him know what the field commander had said.

² He cursed the altar in this message from the LORD: “Hey altar! Hey altar! This is what the LORD says: ‘Pay attention to this! A son is going to be born in David’s dynasty. His name will be Josiah. He will sacrifice the priests who burn incense on you in these high places. Human bones will be burned on you!’”

²¹ Hezekiah died, as did his ancestors, and his son Manasseh became king in his place.

²¹ because he completely adopted his father’s lifestyle, serving the same idols his father had served and worshipped. ²² As a result, he abandoned the LORD God of his ancestors and did not walk in the LORD’s way. ²³ Later on, Amon’s staff conspired against him and killed the king inside his own home. ²⁴ But afterward, the people of the land executed everyone who had conspired against King Amon, and the people of the land installed his son Josiah to be king in his place.
²⁵ Now the rest of Amon’s activities that he undertook are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? ²⁶ He was buried in his own grave in the Garden of Uzza, and his son Josiah became king in his place.

²¹ Josiah Reinstates the PassoverAfter this, the king commanded all of the people, “Celebrate the Passover to the LORD your God, just as it’s prescribed in this Book of the Covenant.” ²² From the days of the judges who ruled in Israel, no Passover had been celebrated like this, not even in all the reigns of the kings of Israel and the kings of Judah. ²³ In the eighteenth year of the reign of King Josiah, this Passover was observed in Jerusalem to honor the LORD. ²⁴ Furthermore, Josiah removed the mediums, the necromancers, the household gods, the idols, and every despicable thing that could be seen in the territory of Judah and in Jerusalem, so that he might confirm the words of the Law that had been written in the book that Hilkiah the priest had discovered in the LORD’s Temple. ²⁵ There had been no king like him before him, who turned to the LORD with all his heart, with all his soul, and with all his strength, in obeying everything in the Law of Moses. No king arose like Josiah after him.
²⁶ Even so, the LORD did not turn away from his fierce and great anger that burned against Judah because of everything with which Manasseh had provoked him. ²⁷ The LORD said, “I’m going to remove Judah from my sight as well, just as I’ve removed Israel. I will abandon Jerusalem, this city that I’ve chosen, as well as the Temple, about which I’ve spoken, ‘My Name shall remain there.’”
²⁸ Pharaoh Neco Kills JosiahNow the rest of Josiah’s actions, including everything that he did, are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? ²⁹ During his reign, Pharaoh Neco, king of Egypt, marched out toward the Euphrates River to meet the king of Assyria. King Josiah went out to engage him in battle, but Pharaoh Neco killed him at Megiddo as soon as he saw him. ³⁰ Josiah’s servants drove his corpse in a chariot from Megiddo to Jerusalem and buried him in a tomb made for him.
Jehoahaz is Anointed KingThe people of the land took Josiah’s son Jehoahaz, anointed him, and installed him as king in his father’s place.

³ It was truly by the command of the LORD against Judah that it came, in order to remove them from his sight, because of every sin that Manasseh had committed, ⁴ as well as for the innocent blood that he had shed. He had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the LORD would not forgive them.

¹³ his son Ahaz, his son Hezekiah, his son Manasseh, ¹⁴ his son Amon, and his son Josiah.
¹⁵ Josiah’s descendants included Johanan his firstborn, his second born Jehoiakim, his third born Zedekiah, and his fourth born Shallum.

³³ Hezekiah died, as had his fathers, and they buried him in the upper part of the tombs of the descendants of David. All of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem honored him at his death. But his son Manasseh reigned in his place.

² This message from the LORD came to him during the thirteenth year of the reign of Ammon’s son Josiah, the king of Judah, ³ and during the reign of Josiah’s son Jehoiakim, the king of Judah, and continued until the exile of Jerusalem in the fifth month, at the end of the eleventh year of the reign of Josiah’s son Zedekiah, the king of Judah.

³¹ Jehoahaz was 23 years old when he became king. He reigned three months in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Hamutal. She was the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah.

¹¹ Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, carried the survivors of the people who remained in the city, those who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the multitude into exile.

¹⁵ Josiah’s descendants included Johanan his firstborn, his second born Jehoiakim, his third born Zedekiah, and his fourth born Shallum.
¹⁶ Jehoiakim’s descendants included his son Jeconiah, and his son Zedekiah.
¹⁷ The descendants of Jeconiah, who was taken captive to Babylon, included his son Shealtiel,

¹ Jehoahaz Becomes King
After this, the people of the land installed Josiah’s son Jehoahaz in Jerusalem as king to take his father’s place. ² Jehoahaz was 23 years old when he became king, and he reigned for three months in Jerusalem, ³ after which the king of Egypt dethroned him and imposed a fine on the land of 100 talents of silver and one talent of gold. ⁴ King Neco of Egypt installed Jehoahaz’s brother Eliakim as king over Judah and Jerusalem, changed Eliakim’s name to Jehoiakim, and took his brother Joahaz back to Egypt.
⁵ Jehoiakim’s Reign; Nebuchadnezzar’s First Capture of JerusalemJehoiakim was 25 years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem, but he practiced what the LORD his God considered to be evil. ⁶ As a result, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon attacked him, bound him in bronze shackles, and took him to Babylon. ⁷ Nebuchadnezzar also took articles from the LORD’s Temple to Babylon and placed them in his temple in Babylon. ⁸ The rest of Jehoiakim’s accomplishments—along with the detestable things that he did that were recorded in his disfavor—are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah. His son Jehoiachin became king to replace him.

¹⁰ At the beginning of the next year, King Nebuchadnezzar sent for him and brought him to Babylon, along with valuable articles from the LORD’s Temple, and he installed Jehoiachin’s relative Zedekiah as king over Judah and Jerusalem.

²⁰ Nebuchadnezzar carried off to Babylon those who survived the executions, and they served him and his descendants until the kingdom of Persia came to power.

¹⁰ “Indeed, go over to the coasts of Cyprus and see, send to Kedar and pay very close attention. See if there has ever been such a thing as this! ¹¹ Has a nation ever changed gods when they aren’t even gods? But my people have exchanged their glory for that which does not profit. ¹² Heavens, be appalled at this, be shocked, be utterly devastated,” declares the LORD. ¹³ “Indeed, my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living water, and they have dug cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that cannot hold water.”
¹⁴ Consequences of Israel’s Unfaithfulness“Is Israel a slave, or was he born a servant? Why then has he become plunder? ¹⁵ Young lions roar at him, they cry out loudly. They have made his land into a wasteland, and his cities are destroyed so they are without inhabitants. ¹⁶ Also, people from Memphis and Tahpanhes have broken your skull. ¹⁷ You have done this to yourselves, have you not, by forsaking the LORD your God, when he is the one who led you on the way? ¹⁸ Now, what are you doing on the road to Egypt, to drink the waters of the Nile? And what are you doing on the road to Assyria, to drink the waters of the Euphrates? ¹⁹ Your wickedness will be punished, and you will be corrected due to your acts of apostasy. Know and see that it’s evil and bitter for you to forsake the LORD your God, but the fear of me is not in you,” declares the Lord GOD of the Heavenly Armies. ²⁰ “For long ago I broke your yoke and tore off your bonds, But you said, ‘I won’t serve you!’ Instead, on every high hill and under every green tree, you bend down to commit fornication. ²¹ I planted you myself as a choice vine, from the very best seed. How did you turn against me into a degenerate and foreign vine? ²² Though you wash yourself with lye and use much soap, the stain of your guilt is still before me,” declares the Lord GOD.
²³ Israel’s Passion for Sin“How can you say, ‘I’m not defiled. I haven’t gone after the Baals.’? Look at what you’ve done in the valley. Know what you have done. You are a swift young camel galloping aimlessly; ²⁴ a wild donkey accustomed to the desert, sniffing the wind in her passion. When she’s in heat, who can turn her away? None of the males who pursue her need to tire themselves out, for in her month they’ll find her.” ²⁵ “Don’t run until your feet are bare and your throat is dry. But you say, ‘It’s hopeless! Because I love foreign gods, I’ll go after them!’” ²⁶ “As a thief is disgraced when he’s caught, so the house of Israel is disgraced— they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, ²⁷ who say to a tree, ‘You are my father,’ and to a stone, ‘You gave birth to me.’ They have turned their back to me, but not their faces. In the time of their trouble, they’ll say, ‘Rise up! Deliver us!’” ²⁸ “But where are your gods that you made for yourselves? Let them rise up, if they can deliver you in the time of your trouble. You have as many gods as you have towns, Judah.

²⁰ that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon didn’t take when he took Jehoiakim’s son Jeconiah, king of Judah, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem from Jerusalem into exile to Babylon—

⁹ Nebuzaradan, the captain of the Babylonian guard, took into exile in Babylon the rest of the people who remained in the city, those who had deserted to Nebuchadnezzar, and the rest of the people who remained.

¹¹ He blinded Zedekiah and bound him in bronze shackles. Then the king of Babylon took him to Babylon and put him in prison until he died.
¹² The Destruction of the TempleIn the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month—it was the nineteenth year of the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon—Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard who served the king of Babylon, entered Jerusalem. ¹³ He burned the LORD’s Temple, the king’s house, and all the houses in Jerusalem. He also burned every public building with fire. ¹⁴ All the Chaldean troops who were with the captain of the guard tore down all the walls around Jerusalem. ¹⁵ Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried into exile some of the poorest of the people, the rest of the people left in the city, the deserters who had defected to the king of Babylon, and the rest of the craftsmen.

²⁸ These are the people Nebuchadnezzar took into exile: in the seventh year, 3,023 Judeans; ²⁹ in Nebuchadnezzar’s eighteenth year, 832 people from Jerusalem; ³⁰ in Nebuchadnezzar’s twenty-third year, Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took 745 people from Judah into exile. All the people taken into exile numbered 4,600.

² Within a week, the Lord handed King Jehoiakim of Judah over to him, along with valuable objects from the house of God. Nebuchadnezzar brought them to the temple of his god in the land of Shinar and stored them in its treasure house.

²⁷ Jehoiachin Leaves PrisonLater on, after King Jehoiachin of Judah had been in exile for 37 years, on the twenty-seventh day of the twelfth month, during the first year of his reign, King Evil-merodach of Babylon released King Jehoiachin of Judah from prison.

¹⁷ The descendants of Jeconiah, who was taken captive to Babylon, included his son Shealtiel,

¹⁹ Pedaiah’s descendants included Zerubbabel and Shimei.
Zerubbabel’s descendants included Meshullam and Hananiah, along with Shelomith their sister ²⁰ and five others: Hashubah, Ohel, Berechiah, Hasadiah, and Jushab-hesed.
²¹ Hananiah’s descendants included Pelatiah and Jeshaiah, his son Rephaiah, his son Arnan, his son Obadiah, and his son Shecaniah.
²² Shecaniah’s son was Shemaiah, and the six sons of Shemaiah were Hattush, Igal, Bariah, Neariah, and Shaphat.
²³ The three sons of Neariah were Elioenai, Hizkiah, and Azrikam.
²⁴ The seven sons of Elioenai were Hodaviah, Eliashib, Pelaiah, Akkub, Johanan, Delaiah, and Anani.

² Then Jozadak’s son Jeshua and his brothers got up, along with Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel and his brothers. They built an altar of the God of Israel in order to offer burnt offerings, as prescribed by the Law of Moses, the man of God.

² So Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel and Jozadak’s son Jeshua restarted construction of the Temple of God in Jerusalem. And the prophets of God were there supporting them.

¹ Priests and Descendants of Levi
These are the priests and descendants of Levi who had returned with Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel and with Jeshua: Seraiah, Jeremiah, Ezra,

²⁴ An Oracle against Jehoiachin“As certainly as I’m alive and living,” declares the LORD, “even if Jehoiakim’s son King Jehoiachin of Judah were a signet ring on my right hand, I would pull you off

²⁸ “Is this man Jehoiachin a despised and shattered jar, a vessel no one wants? Why were he and his descendants hurled away, thrown into a land that they didn’t know?

¹ Call to Rebuild the TempleOn the first day of the sixth month of the second year of the reign of King Darius, this message from the LORD came by Haggai the prophet to Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, and to Jehozadak’s son Joshua, the high priest:

¹² The People ObeyThen Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, Jehozadak’s son Joshua the high priest, and all the rest of the people obeyed the LORD their God and the words of Haggai the prophet, because the LORD their God had sent him. And the people feared the LORD.

¹⁴ Then the LORD revitalized the spirit of Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, the spirit of Jehozadak’s son Joshua the high priest, and the spirit of all the rest of the people, so they came and began to work on the house of their God, the LORD of the Heavenly Armies.

² “Speak to Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, to Jehozadak’s son Joshua, the high priest, and to the rest of the people, asking,

²³ On that day,’ declares the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, ‘I will take you, my servant Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,’ declares the LORD, ‘and I will set you in place like a signet ring. For I have chosen you,’ declares the LORD of the Heavenly Armies.”

²⁷ the son of Joanan, the son of Rhesa, the son of Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, the son of Neri,

¹⁸ The Birth of Jesus
Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah happened in this way. When his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, before they lived together she was discovered to be pregnant by the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to disgrace her, decided to divorce her secretly.
²⁰ After he had thought about it, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” he said, “don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he is the one who will save his people from their sins.”
²² Now all this happened to fulfill what was declared by the Lord through the prophet when he said, ²³ “See, a virgin will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and they will name him Immanuel,”
which means, “God with us.” ²⁴ When Joseph got up from his sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary as his wife. ²⁵ He did not have marital relations with her until she had given birth to a son; and he named him Jesus.

¹³ The Escape to EgyptAfter they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt,” he said. “Stay there until I tell you, because Herod intends to search for the child and kill him.”

¹⁷ So when the people had gathered, Pilate asked them, “Which man do you want me to release for you—Barabbas, or Jesus who is called ‘the Messiah’?”

²² Pilate asked them, “Then what should I do with Jesus, who is called the Messiah?”
They all said, “Let him be crucified!”

³ This is the builder, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon, isn’t it? His sisters are here with us, aren’t they?” And they were offended by him.

²⁷ to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary.

³¹ Listen! You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³ He will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will never end.”
³⁴ Mary asked the angel, “How can this happen, since I have not had relations with a man?”
³⁵ The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come over you, and the power of the Most High will surround you. Therefore, the child will be holy and will be called the Son of God.

⁴ Joseph, too, went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the City of David (called Bethlehem), because he was a descendant of the household and family of David. ⁵ He went there to be registered with Mary, who had been promised to him in marriage and was pregnant.

⁷ and she gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him in strips of cloth and laid him in a feeding trough, because there was no place for them in the guest quarters.

¹⁰ Then the angel told them, “Stop being afraid! Listen! I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today your Savior, the Lord Messiah, was born in the City of David.

⁴⁸ When Jesus’ parents saw him, they were shocked. His mother asked him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been worried sick looking for you!”

²³ The Ancestry of Jesus
Jesus himself was about 30 years old when he began his ministry. He was (as legally calculated) the son of Joseph, the son of Heli,

²² All the people began to speak well of him and to wonder at the gracious words that flowed from his mouth. They said, “This is Joseph’s son, isn’t it?”

²⁵ The woman told him, “I know that the Anointed One is coming, who is being called ‘the Messiah’. When that person comes, he will explain everything.”

¹⁴ Then Nebuchadnezzar sent away into exile all of Jerusalem—all the captains, all the valiant soldiers, 10,000 captives, and all of the craftsmen and ironworkers. Nobody remained except the poorest people of the land.

¹¹ Josiah fathered Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
¹² After the deportation to Babylon, Jechoniah fathered Salathiel, Salathiel fathered Zerubbabel,

² John the Baptist Sends Messengers to Jesus
Now when John heard in prison about the activities of the Messiah, he sent a message by his disciples

⁴¹ The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and say to him, “We have found the Anointed One!” (which is translated “Messiah”).

¹⁵ “I’ll place hostility between you and the woman, between your offspring and her offspring. He’ll strike you on the head, and you’ll strike him on the heel.”

⁴ Who can produce a clean thing from an unclean thing? No one!

¹⁴ “What is mankind, that he can be blameless? Or does being born of a woman mean he’ll be in the right?

¹ An Introduction to Jesus the MessiahThis is a record of the life of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

²⁵ “This is what the Lord did for me when he looked favorably on me and took away my public disgrace.”

²⁷ to a virgin engaged to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel came to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you!” ²⁹ Startled by his statement, she tried to figure out what his greeting meant.
³⁰ Then the angel told her, “Stop being afraid, Mary, because you have found favor with God. ³¹ Listen! You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David. ³³ He will rule over the house of Jacob forever, and his kingdom will never end.”
³⁴ Mary asked the angel, “How can this happen, since I have not had relations with a man?”
³⁵ The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come over you, and the power of the Most High will surround you. Therefore, the child will be holy and will be called the Son of God. ³⁶ And listen! Elizabeth, your relative, has herself conceived a son in her old age, this woman who was rumored to be barren is in her sixth month. ³⁷ Nothing is impossible with respect to any of God’s promises.”
³⁸ Then Mary said, “Truly I am the Lord’s servant. Let everything you have said happen to me.” Then the angel left her.

⁴ But when the appropriate time had come, God sent his Son, born by a woman, born under the Law, ⁵ in order to redeem those who were under the Law, and thus to adopt them as his children.

²⁶ We need such a high priest—one who is holy, innocent, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.

⁵ The Messiah Offered One SacrificeFor this reason, the Scriptures say, when the Messiah was about to come into the world: “You did not want sacrifices and offerings, but you prepared a body for me.

⁹ Noah Obeys GodThese are the family records of Noah: Noah was a righteous man. Blameless during his times, Noah communed with God.

²⁴ Tamar’s Pregnancy Rebukes JudahThree months later, it was reported to Judah, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has turned to prostitution! And look! She’s pregnant because of it!”
“Bring her out,” Judah responded. “Let’s burn her to death!”

²⁰ “When a person has sexual relations with a woman servant who is engaged to another man, but she has not been completely redeemed nor has her freedom been granted to her, there is to be an inquiry, but they won’t be put to death, since she has not been freed.

¹⁰ Honoring the Seventh Commandment“If anyone commits adultery with another man’s wife, including when someone commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, both the adulterer and the adulteress are to die.

²¹ they are to bring her to the door of her father’s house. Then the men of the city are to stone her with boulders until she dies for doing a detestable thing in Israel—acting like a prostitute while in her father’s house. By doing this, you will remove this evil from among you.
²² “If a man is caught having sexual relations with a married woman, then both of them must die—the man who had sex with the woman and the woman herself—so that this evil will be removed from Israel.
²³ “If a man meets a young virgin lady engaged to be married in the city and has sexual relations with her, ²⁴ then the two must be brought to the city gate and there they must be stoned to death—the girl because she was in a city but did not cry out for help, and the man who abused a woman who was engaged to another man. By doing this you are to remove this evil from among you.

¹ Various Laws“If a man chooses to enter into marriage with a woman, but she finds herself displeasing to him because he has found something objectionable about her, he must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her out of his house. ² If she goes out from his house, becomes the wife of another man, ³ and this second husband dislikes her, he, also, must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her away from his house. Should the second husband die, ⁴ her first husband who married her and divorced her earlier must not remarry her, because she was defiled, since this is detestable to the LORD. Don’t defile the land that the LORD your God is about to give you as a possession.

⁴ A light shines in the darkness for the upright, for the one who is gracious, compassionate, and just. ⁵ It is good for the person who lends generously, conducting his affairs with fairness.

²⁰ because Herod was afraid of John. He knew that John was a righteous and holy man, and so he protected him. Whenever he listened to John, he did much of what he said. In fact, he liked listening to him.

⁴ They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to divorce her.”

²⁵ Now a man named Simeon was in Jerusalem. This man was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the one who would comfort Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

⁴ they told him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the very act of adultery. ⁵ Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women to death. What do you say?”

²² The men replied, “Cornelius, a centurion and an upright and God-fearing man who is respected by the whole Jewish nation, was instructed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his home to hear what you have to say.”

¹¹ “Later, the angel of God spoke to me in a dream, ‘Jacob.’
“‘Here I am,’ I replied

³ “I’m God, your father’s God. Don’t be afraid to move down to Egypt, because I’m going to turn you into a mighty nation there.

⁶ Then he told the two of them: “Pay attention to what I have to say! When there is a prophet among you, won’t I, the LORD, reveal myself to him in a vision? Won’t I speak with him in a dream?

³ One day the angel of the LORD presented himself to the woman. “Hello!” he greeted her. “Though you are infertile at this time and haven’t borne a child, you’re about to conceive and give birth to a son.

⁸ So Manoah prayed to the LORD, “Please, Lord, have the man of God whom you sent before come again so he can instruct us what to do on behalf of the child who is to be born.”
⁹ God listened to Manoah’s request, and the angel of God came again to the woman as she was sitting out in the pasture. But her husband Manoah wasn’t with her,

¹³ But Elijah told her, “You can stop being afraid. Go and do what you said, but first make me a muffin and bring it to me. Then make a meal for yourself and for your son,

¹³ Disquieting thoughts from dreams at night; when deep sleep falls on everyone. ¹⁴ A fear fell upon me, along with trembling that caused all my bones to shake in terror. ¹⁵ A spirit glided past me and made the hair on my skin to bristle. ¹⁶ It remained standing, but I couldn’t recognize its appearance. A form appeared before my eyes; At first there was silence, and then this voice:

¹⁵ in a dream or night vision, when a deep sleep falls on mankind while they sleep on their beds. ¹⁶ That’s when he opens the ear of mankind, authenticating his messages to them, ¹⁷ turning a person from his actions, keeping him from pride,

⁸ The LORD is good and just; therefore he will teach sinners concerning the way. ⁹ He will guide the humble to justice; he will teach the humble his way.

¹⁹ When my anxious inner thoughts become overwhelming, your comfort encourages me.

¹²⁵ Since I am your servant, give me understanding, so I will know your decrees.

⁸ In the morning let me hear of your gracious love, for in you I trust. Cause me to know the way I should take, because I have set my hope on you.

⁵ Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not depend on your own understanding. ⁶ In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.

⁵ The plans of the righteous are just, but the advice of the wicked is deceitful.

² When it was reported to the house of David, “Aram has joined forces with Ephraim!” the heart of the people of Ahaz trembled like forest trees in a windstorm.

¹³ In reply, the LORD announced, “Please listen, you household of David. Is it such a minor thing for you to try the patience of men? Must you also try the patience of my God?

³ You will keep perfectly peaceful the one whose mind remains focused on you, because he remains in you.

²¹ And whether you turn to the right or turn to the left, your ears will hear a message behind you: “This is the way, walk in it.”

⁷ Listen to me, you who know righteousness, you people who have my instruction in their hearts. Don’t fear the insults of mortals, and don’t be dismayed at their hateful words.

²² How long will you go this way and that, rebellious daughter? Indeed, the LORD will create a new thing on the earth; a woman will protect a man.

⁹ Ahikam’s son Gedaliah, the grandson of Shaphan, swore an oath to them and their men: “Don’t be afraid to serve the Chaldeans. Remain in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and things will go well for you.

²⁸ The Day of the LORD“Then it will come about at a later time that I will pour out my Spirit on every person. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your elderly people will dream dreams, and your young people will see visions.

¹⁹ The Return to NazarethBut after Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt.

²² But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there, after having been warned in a dream. So he left for the region of Galilee

⁵ Responding to the women, the angel said, “Stop being frightened! I know you’re looking for Jesus, who was crucified.

¹⁰ And the entire congregation of people was praying outside at the time when the incense was burned.
¹¹ An angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the incense altar. ¹² When Zechariah saw him, he was startled, and fear overwhelmed him. ¹³ But the angel told him, “Stop being afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to name him John.

¹⁹ The angel answered him, “I am Gabriel! I stand in the very presence of God. I have been sent to speak to you and to announce this good news to you.

²⁶ The Birth of Jesus is ForetoldNow in the sixth month of her pregnancy, the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth,

⁴ Joseph, too, went up from the city of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the City of David (called Bethlehem), because he was a descendant of the household and family of David.

⁸ The Shepherds Visit JesusIn that region there were shepherds living in the fields, watching their flock during the night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ Then the angel told them, “Stop being afraid! Listen! I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today your Savior, the Lord Messiah, was born in the City of David. ¹² And this will be a sign for you: You will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a feeding trough.”
¹³ Suddenly, a multitude of the Heavenly Army appeared with the angel, praising God by saying, ¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest, and peace on earth to people who enjoy his favor!”

¹⁹ But God replied, “No, but your wife Sarah will give birth to your son, and you are to name him Isaac. I’ll confirm my covenant with him as an eternal covenant for his descendants.

²¹ Now as to Isaac, I’ll confirm my covenant with him, to whom Sarah will give birth as your son at this time next year.”

¹⁰ Then one of them said, “I will certainly return to you in about a year’s time. By then, your wife Sarah will have borne a son.”
Now Sarah was listening at the tent entrance behind him.

¹⁶ and he told her, “About this time next year you will be embracing a son.”
“No, sir! Please, as a godly man, don’t mislead your servant!” ¹⁷ But the woman did conceive and did bear a son at that very same time the next year, just as Elisha had told her.

⁷ Israel, hope in the LORD! For with the LORD there is gracious love, along with abundant redemption. ⁸ And he will redeem Israel from all its sins.

¹ Israel’s Praise to the LORD At that time, you will say: “I will praise you, LORD, for although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away, and you have comforted me. ² “Look! God—yes God—is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid. For the LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”

²¹ Explain and present a case! Yes, let them take counsel together. Who announced this long ago, who declared it from the distant past? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides me, a righteous God and Savior; and there is none besides me. ²² Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth. For I am God, and there is no other.

⁶ In his time Judah will be delivered and Israel will dwell in safety. This is the name by which he will be known: ‘The LORD Our Righteousness.’

¹⁶ At that time Judah will be delivered and Jerusalem will dwell in safety. And this is the name people will call it, “The LORD is Our Righteousness.”’

²⁵ I’ll sprinkle pure water on you all, and you’ll be cleansed from your impurity and from all of your idols.”
²⁶ “‘“I’m going to give you a new heart, and I’m going to give you a new spirit within all of your deepest parts. I’ll remove that rock-hard heart of yours and replace it with one that’s sensitive to me. ²⁷ I’ll place my spirit within you, empowering you to live according to my regulations and to keep my just decrees. ²⁸ You’ll live in the land that I gave to your ancestors, you’ll be my people, and I will be your God. ²⁹ In addition, I’ll deliver you from everything that makes you unclean. I’ll call out to the grain you plant, ordering it to produce abundant yields, and I will never bring famine in your direction.

²⁴ Seventy weeks have been decreed concerning your people and your holy city: to restrain transgression, to put an end to sin, to make atonement for lawlessness, to establish everlasting righteousness, to conclude vision and prophecy, and to anoint the Most Holy Place.

⁹ The Coming of Zion’s King“Rejoice greatly, daughter of Zion; cry out, daughter of Jerusalem! Look! Your king is coming to you. He is righteous, and he is able to save. He is humble, and is riding on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

¹³ But the angel told him, “Stop being afraid, Zechariah, because your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to name him John.

³¹ Listen! You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus.

³⁵ The angel answered her, “The Holy Spirit will come over you, and the power of the Most High will surround you. Therefore, the child will be holy and will be called the Son of God. ³⁶ And listen! Elizabeth, your relative, has herself conceived a son in her old age, this woman who was rumored to be barren is in her sixth month.

¹¹ Today your Savior, the Lord Messiah, was born in the City of David.

²¹ Jesus is CircumcisedAfter eight days had passed, the infant was circumcised and named Jesus, the name given him by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.

²⁹ The next day, John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

²⁶ When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning every one of you from your evil ways.”

¹² There is no salvation by anyone else, for there is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved.”

³¹ God has exalted to his right hand this very man as our Leader and Savior in order to extend repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel.

²³ It was from this man’s descendants that God, as he promised, brought to Israel a Savior, who is Jesus.

³⁸ “Therefore, brothers, you must understand that through him the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, ³⁹ and that everyone who believes in him is justified and freed from everything that kept you from being justified by the Law of Moses.

²⁵ Husbands, love your wives as the Messiah loved the church and gave himself for it, ²⁶ so that he might make it holy by cleansing it, washing it with water and the word, ²⁷ and might present the church to himself in all its glory, without a spot or wrinkle or anything of the kind, but holy and without fault.

²⁰ Through the Son, God also reconciled all things to himself, whether things on earth or things in heaven, thereby making peace through the blood of his cross.
²¹ You who were once alienated with a hostile attitude, doing evil, ²² he has now reconciled by the death of his physical body, so that he may present you holy, blameless, and without fault before him. ²³ However, you must remain firmly established and steadfast in the faith, without being moved from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

¹⁴ He gave himself for us to set us free from every wrong and to cleanse us so that we could be his special people who are enthusiastic about doing good deeds.

²⁵ Therefore, because he always lives to intercede for them, he is able to save completely those who come to God through him.

⁷ But if we keep living in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

¹ The Messiah is Our AdvocateMy little children, I’m writing these things to you so that you might not sin. Yet if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus, the Messiah, one who is righteous. ² It is he who is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for the whole world’s.

⁵ You know that the Messiah was revealed to take away sins, and there is not any sin in him.

⁵ and from Jesus the Messiah, the witness, the faithful one, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To the one who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood ⁶ and has made us a kingdom, priests for his God and Father, be glory and power forever and ever! Amen.

¹⁴ I told him, “Sir, you know.”
Then he told me, “These are the people who are coming out of the terrible suffering. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the lamb.

¹⁵ Then Solomon prayed: “Blessed is the LORD God of Israel, who made a commitment to my father David and then personally fulfilled what he had promised when he said:

²⁴ It is you, LORD God, who have kept your promise to my father, your servant David, that you made to him. Indeed, you made a commitment to my father David and then personally fulfilled what you had promised today.

¹ An Edict to Rebuild the Temple
During the first year of Cyrus, king of Persia, in fulfillment of the message from the LORD spoken through Jeremiah, the LORD prompted Cyrus, king of Persia, to make this proclamation throughout his entire kingdom, which was also released in written form:

¹⁵ He stayed there until Herod’s death in order to fulfill what was declared by the Lord through the prophet when he said, “Out of Egypt I called my Son.”

²³ and settled in a town called Nazareth in order to fulfill what was said by the prophets: “He will be called a Nazarene.”

¹⁷ Jesus Fulfills the Law and the Prophets“Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I didn’t come to destroy them, but to fulfill them,

¹⁷ This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet Isaiah when he said, “It was he who took our illnesses away and removed our diseases.”

¹⁷ This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

²¹ but since he doesn’t have any root in himself, he lasts for only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes along because of the word, he immediately falls away.

³⁵ This was to fulfill what was declared by the prophet when he said, “I will open my mouth to speak in parables. I will declare what has been hidden since the creation of the world.”

²² because these are the days of vengeance when all that is written will be fulfilled.

⁴⁴ Then he told them, “These are the words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms had to be fulfilled.”

³⁵ If he called those to whom a message from God came ‘gods’ (and the Scripture cannot be disregarded),

³⁸ so that what the prophet Isaiah spoke might be fulfilled when he said: “Lord, who has believed our message, and to whom has the Lord’s power been revealed?”
³⁹ This is why they could not believe: Isaiah also said, ⁴⁰ “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, so that they might not perceive with their eyes, and understand with their mind and turn, and I would heal them.”

²⁵ But this happened so that what has been written in their Law might be fulfilled: ‘They hated me for no reason.’

¹² While I was with them, I protected them by the authority that you gave me. I guarded them, and not one of them became lost except the one who was destined for destruction, so that the Scripture might be fulfilled.

⁹ This was to fulfill what he had said, “I did not lose a single one of those you gave me.”

³⁶ because these things happened so that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “None of his bones will be broken.”
³⁷ In addition, another passage of Scripture says, “They will look on the one whom they pierced.”

¹⁸ This is how God fulfilled what he had predicted through the voice of all the prophets—that his Messiah would suffer.

²⁷ For the people who live in Jerusalem and their leaders, not knowing who Jesus was, condemned him and so fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. ²⁸ Although they found no reason to sentence him to death, they asked Pilate to have him executed. ²⁹ When they had finished doing everything that was written about him, they took him down from the tree and placed him in a tomb.

¹⁷ for God has placed within them a desire to carry out his purpose by uniting to give their kingdom to the beast until God’s words are fulfilled.

⁷ The LORD of the heavenly armies is with us; our refuge is the God of Jacob. Interlude

¹¹ The LORD of the heavenly armies is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Interlude

¹⁴ “Therefore the LORD himself will give you a sign. Watch! The virgin is conceiving a child, and will give birth to a son, and his name will be called Immanuel.

⁸ He will sweep on into Judah, overflowing as he passes through, like flood waters reaching up to a person’s neck. His outstretched wings will flow as wide as your land, O Immanuel!” ⁹ “Band together, you peoples, but be shattered! Listen, all you distant countries! Strap on your armor, but be shattered. ¹⁰ Take counsel together, but it will all be for nothing; go ahead and talk, but it will all be for nothing, for God is with us.”

² “Look! God—yes God—is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid. For the LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.”

²⁰ teaching them to obey everything that I’ve commanded you. And remember, I am with you each and every day until the end of the age.”

¹⁴ The Word Becomes HumanThe Word became flesh and lived among us. We gazed on his glory, the kind of glory that belongs to the Father’s unique Son, who is full of grace and truth.

⁹ One night, the Lord told Paul in a vision, “Stop being afraid to speak out! Don’t remain silent!

³ regarding his Son. He was a descendant of David with respect to his humanity ⁴ and was declared by the resurrection from the dead to be the powerful Son of God according to the spirit of holiness—Jesus the Messiah, our Lord.

¹⁹ for through the Messiah, God was reconciling the world to himself by not counting their sins against them. He has committed his message of reconciliation to us.

¹⁶ By common confession, the secret of our godly worship is great: In flesh was he revealed to sight, kept righteous by the Spirit’s might, adored by angels singing. To nations was he manifest, believing souls found peace and rest, our Lord in heaven reigning!

¹⁷ However, the Lord stood by me and gave me strength so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the gentiles could hear it. I was rescued out of a lion’s mouth.

²² May the Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with all of you! Amen.

²² Noah did all of this, precisely as God had commanded.

⁵ Noah did everything that the LORD commanded.

² God said, “Please take your son, your unique son whom you love—Isaac—and go to the land of Moriah. Offer him as a burnt offering there on one of the mountains that I will point out to you.”
³ So Abraham got up early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his male servants with him, along with his son Isaac. He cut the wood for the burnt offering and set out to go to the place about which God had spoken to him.

¹⁶ Moses Obeys God’s InstructionsMoses did everything that the LORD had commanded him, so he did.

¹⁹ He spread the tent over the tent and put the covering of the tent on top of it, just as the LORD had commanded him.

²⁵ and set up the lamps in the LORD’s presence, just as the LORD had commanded him.

²⁷ and burned aromatic incense on it, just as the LORD had commanded Moses.

³² When they entered the Tent of Meeting and approached the altar, they washed, just as the LORD had commanded him.

¹¹ But Naaman flew into a rage and left, telling himself, “Look! I thought ‘He’s surely going to come out to me, stand still, call out in the name of the LORD his God, wave his hand over the infection, and cure the leprosy!’ ¹² Aren’t the Abana and Pharpar rivers in Damascus better than all of the water in Israel? Couldn’t I just bathe in them and become clean?” So he turned away and left, filled with anger.
¹³ But then his servants approached him and spoke with him. They said, “My father, had the prophet only asked of you something great, you would have done it, wouldn’t you? Yet he told you, ‘Bathe, and be clean…!’” ¹⁴ So he went down and plunged himself into the Jordan River seven times, just as the man of God had said, and his flesh rejuvenated like the flesh of a newborn child. And he was clean.

⁵ His mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
⁶ Now standing there were six stone water jars used for the Jewish rites of purification, each one holding from two to three measures. ⁷ Jesus told the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” So they filled them up to the brim. ⁸ Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the man in charge of the banquet.” So they did.

¹⁴ You are my friends, if you do what I command you.

⁷ By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, reverently prepared an ark to save his family, and by faith he condemned the world and inherited the righteousness that comes by faith.
⁸ By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.

²⁴ By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called a son of Pharaoh’s daughter, ²⁵ because he preferred being mistreated with God’s people to enjoying the pleasures of sin for a short time. ²⁶ He thought that being insulted for the sake of the Messiah was of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.
²⁷ By faith he left Egypt, without being afraid of the king’s anger, and he persevered because he saw the one who is invisible.
²⁸ By faith he established the Passover and the sprinkling of blood to keep the destroyer of the firstborn from touching the people.
²⁹ By faith they went through the Red Sea as if it were dry land. When the Egyptians tried to do this, they were drowned.
³⁰ By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.
³¹ By faith Rahab the prostitute did not die with those who were disobedient, because she had welcomed the spies with a greeting of peace.

²¹ Our ancestor Abraham was justified by his actions when he offered his son Isaac on the altar, wasn’t he? ²² You see that his faith worked together with what he did, and by his actions his faith was made complete. ²³ And so the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” And so he was called God’s friend. ²⁴ You observe that a person is justified through actions and not through faith alone. ²⁵ Likewise, Rahab the prostitute was justified through actions when she welcomed the messengers and sent them away on a different road, wasn’t she? ²⁶ For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without actions is also dead.

² “Consecrate to me every firstborn male. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the Israelis, both of humans and of animals, belongs to me.”

²⁹ “You are not to hold back the fullness of your harvest and the outflow of your wine presses. You are to give to me the firstborn of your sons.

²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he is the one who will save his people from their sins.”

²⁹ For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that the Son might be the firstborn among many brothers.