The Holy Bible

Part 21 out of 30

money no more according to your order, but restore it for the repairing
of the temple.

12:8. And the priests were forbidden to take any more money of the
people, and to make the repairs of the house.

12:9. And Joiada, the high priest, took a chest, and bored a hole in
the top, and set it by the altar at the right hand of them that came
into the house of the Lord; and the priests that kept the doors, put
therein all the money that was brought to the temple of the Lord.

12:10. And when they saw that there was very much money in the chest,
the king's scribe, and the high priest, came up, and poured it out, and
counted the money that was found in the house of the Lord.

12:11. And they gave it out by number and measure into the hands of
them that were over the builders of the house of the Lord: and they
laid it out to the carpenters, and the masons, that wrought in the
house of the Lord,

12:12. And made the repairs: and to them that cut stones, and to buy
timber, and stones to be hewed, that the repairs of the house of the
Lord might be completely finished, and wheresoever there was need of
expenses to uphold the house.

12:13. But there were not made of the same money for the temple of the
Lord, bowls, or fleshhooks, or censers, or trumpets, or any vessel of
gold and silver, of the money that was brought into the temple of the
Lord:

12:14. For it was given to them that did the work, that the temple of
the Lord might be repaired.

12:15. And they reckoned not with the men that received the money to
distribute it to the workmen, but they bestowed it faithfully.

12:16. But the money for trespass, and the money for sins, they brought
not into the temple of the Lord, because it was for the priests.

12:17. Then Hazael, king of Syria, went up, and fought against Geth,
and took it, and set his face to go up to Jerusalem.

12:18. Wherefore Joas, king of Juda, took all the sanctified things,
which Josaphat, and Joram, and Ochozias, his fathers, the kings of
Juda, had dedicated to holy uses, and which he himself had offered: and
all the silver that could be found in the treasures of the temple of
the Lord, and in the king's palace: and sent it to Hazael, king of
Syria, and he went off from Jerusalem.

12:19. And the rest of the acts of Joas, and all that he did, are they
not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Juda?

12:20. And his servants arose, and conspired among themselves, and slew
Joas, in the house of Mello, in the descent of Sella.

12:21. For Josachar the son of Semaath, and Jozabad the son of Somer
his servant, struck him, and he died: and they buried him with his
fathers in the city of David; and Amasias, his son, reigned in his
stead.

The city of David. . .He was buried in the same city with his fathers,
but not in the sepulchres of the kings. 2 Par. 14.

4 Kings Chapter 13

The reign of Joachaz and of Joas kings of Israel. The last acts and
death of Eliseus the prophet: a dead man is raised to life by the touch
of his bones.

13:1. In the three and twentieth year of Joas son of Ochozias, king of
Juda, Joachaz, the son of Jehu, reigned over Israel, in Samaria,
seventeen years.

13:2. And he did evil before the Lord, and followed the sins of
Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin; and he departed not
from them.

13:3. And the wrath of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he
delivered them into the hand of Hazael, the king of Syria, and into the
hand of Benadad, the son of Hazael, all days.

13:4. But Joachaz besought the face of the Lord, and the Lord heard
him: for he saw the distress of Israel, because the king of Syria had
oppressed them:

13:5. And the Lord gave Israel a saviour, and they were delivered out
of the hand of the king of Syria: and the children of Israel dwelt in
their pavilions as yesterday and the day before.

13:6. But yet they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam,
who made Israel to sin, but walked in them: and there still remained a
grove also in Samaria.

A grove. . .Dedicated to the worship of idols.

13:7. And Joachaz had no more left of the people than fifty horsemen,
and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen: for the king of Syria had
slain them, and had brought them low as dust by threshing in the
barnfloor.

13:8. But the rest of the acts of Joachaz, and all that he did, and his
valour, are they not written in the book of the words of the days of
the kings of Israel?

13:9. And Joachaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in
Samaria: and Joas, his son, reigned in his stead.

13:10. In the seven and thirtieth year of Joas, king of Juda, Joas the
son of Joachaz reigned over Israel, in Samaria, sixteen years.

13:11. And he did that which is evil in the sight of the Lord: he
departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, who made
Israel to sin; but he walked in them.

13:12. But the rest of the acts of Joas, and all that he did, and his
valour wherewith he fought against Amasias, king of Juda, are they not
written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?

13:13. And Joas slept with his fathers; and Jeroboam sat upon his
throne. But Joas was buried in Samaria, with the kings of Israel.

13:14. Now Eliseus was sick of the illness whereof he died: and Joas,
king of Israel, went down to him, and wept before him, and said: O my
father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the guider thereof.

13:15. And Eliseus said to him: Bring a bow and arrows. And when he had
brought him a bow and arrows,

13:16. He said to the king of Israel: Put thy hand upon the bow. And
when he had put his hand, Eliseus put his hands over the king's hands,

13:17. And said: Open the window to the east. And when he had opened
it, Eliseus said: Shoot an arrow. And he shot. And Eliseus said: The
arrow of the Lord's deliverance, and the arrow of the deliverance from
Syria: and thou shalt strike the Syrians in Aphec, till thou consume
them.

13:18. And he said: Take the arrows. And when he had taken them, he
said to him: Strike with an arrow upon the ground. And he struck three
times, and stood still.

13:19. And the man of God was angry with him, and said: If thou hadst
smitten five or six or seven times, thou hadst smitten Syria even to
utter destruction: but now three times shalt thou smite it.

If thou hadst smitten, etc. . .By this it appears that God had revealed
to the prophet that the king should overcome the Syrians as many times
as he should then strike on the ground; but as he had not at the same
time revealed to him how often the king would strike, the prophet was
concerned to see that he struck but thrice.

13:20. And Eliseus died, and they buried him. And the rovers from Moab
came into the land the same year.

13:21. And some that were burying a man, saw the rovers, and cast the
body into the sepulchre of Eliseus. And when it had touched the bones
of Eliseus, the man came to life and stood upon his feet.

13:22. Now Hazael, king of Syria, afflicted Israel all the days of
Joachaz.

13:23. And the Lord had mercy on them, and returned to them, because of
his covenant, which he had made with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob: and
he would not destroy them, nor utterly cast them away, unto this
present time.

13:24. And Hazael, king of Syria, died; and Benadad, his son, reigned
in his stead.

13:25. Now Joas the son of Joachaz, took the cities out of the hand of
Benadad, the son of Hazael, which he had taken out of the hand of
Joachaz, his father, by war; three times did Joas beat him, and he
restored the cities to Israel.

4 Kings Chapter 14

Amasias reigneth in Juda: he overcometh the Edomites: but is overcome
by Joas king of Israel. Jereboam the second reigneth in Israel.

14:1. In the second year of Joas son of Joachaz, king of Israel,
reigned Amasias son of Joas, king of Juda.

14:2. He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign; and nine
and twenty years he reigned in Jerusalem; the name of his mother was
Joadan, of Jerusalem.

14:3. And he did that which was right before the Lord, but yet not like
David his father. He did according to all things that Joas his father,
did:

14:4. But this only, that he took not away the high places; for yet the
people sacrificed, and burnt incense in the high places:

14:5. And when he had possession of the kingdom, he put his servants to
death that had slain the king, his father.

14:6. But the children of the murderers he did not put to death,
according to that which is written in the book of the law of Moses,
wherein the Lord commanded, saying: The fathers shall not be put to
death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for
the fathers: but every man shall die for his own sin.

14:7. He slew of Edom in the valley of the Saltpits, ten thousand men,
and took the rock by war, and called the name thereof Jectehel, unto
this day.

14:8. Then Amasias sent messengers to Joas, son of Joachaz, son of
Jehu, king of Israel, saying: Come, let us see one another.

Let us see one another. . .This was a challenge to fight.

14:9. And Joas, king of Israel, sent again to Amasias, king of Juda,
saying: A thistle of Libanus sent to a cedar tree, which is in Libanus,
saying: Give thy daughter to my son to wife. And the beasts of the
forest, that are in Libanus, passed, and trod down the thistle.

14:10. Thou hast beaten and prevailed over Edom, and thy heart hath
lifted thee up; be content with this glory, and sit at home; why
provokest thou evil, that thou shouldst fall, and Juda with thee?

14:11. But Amasias did not rest satisfied. So Joas, king of Israel,
went up; and he and Amasias, king of Juda, saw one another in
Bethsames, a town in Juda.

14:12. And Juda was put to the worse before Israel, and they fled every
man to their dwellings.

14:13. But Joas, king of Israel, took Amasias, king of Juda, the son of
Joas, the son of Ochozias, in Bethsames, and brought him into
Jerusalem; and he broke down the wall of Jerusalem, from the gate of
Ephraim to the gate of the corner, four hundred cubits.

14:14. And he took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that
were found in the house of the Lord, and in the king's treasures, and
hostages, and returned to Samaria.

14:15. But the rest of the acts of Joas, which he did, and his valour,
wherewith he fought against Amasias, king of Juda, are they not written
in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?

14:16. And Joas slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria, with
the kings of Israel: and Jeroboam, his son, reigned in his stead.

14:17. And Amasias, the son of Joas, king of Juda, lived after the
death of Joas, son of Joachaz, king of Israel, fifteen years.

14:18. And the rest of the acts of Amasias, are they not written in the
book of the words of the days of the kings of Juda?

14:19. Now they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem: and he fled
to Lachis. And they sent after him to Lachis, and killed him there.

14:20. And they brought him away upon horses, and he was buried in
Jerusalem with his fathers, in the city of David.

14:21. And all the people of Juda took Azarias, who was sixteen years
old, and made him king instead of his father, Amasias.

14:22. He built Elath, and restored it to Juda, after that the king
slept with his fathers.

14:23. In the fifteenth year of Amasias, son of Joas, king of Juda,
reigned Jeroboam, the son of Joas, king of Israel, in Samaria, one and
forty years:

14:24. And he did that which is evil before the Lord. He departed not
from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, who made Israel to
sin.

14:25. He restored the borders of Israel from the entrance of Emath,
unto the sea of the wilderness, according to the word of the Lord, the
God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant, Jonas, the son of Amathi,
the prophet, who was of Geth, which is in Opher.

Opher. . .The tribe of Zabulon.

14:26. For the Lord saw the affliction of Israel, that it was
exceedingly bitter, and that they were consumed even to them that were
shut up in prison, and the lowest persons, and that there was no one to
help Israel.

14:27. And the Lord did not say that he would blot out the name of
Israel from under heaven; but he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam,
the son of Joas.

14:28. But the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did, and
his valour, wherewith he fought, and how he restored Damascus and Emath
to Juda, in Israel, are they not written in the book of the words of
the days of the kings of Israel?

14:29. And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, the kings of Israel; and
Zacharias, his son, reigned in his stead.

4 Kings Chapter 15

The reign of Azarias, and Joatham in Juda: and of Zacharias, Sellum,
Manahem, Phaceia, and Phacee in Israel.

15:1. In the seven and twentieth year of Jeroboam, king of Israel,
reigned Azarias, son of Amasias, king of Juda.

Azarias. . .Otherwise called Ozias.

15:2. He was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
two and fifty years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Jechelia,
of Jerusalem.

15:3. And he did that which was pleasing before the Lord, according to
all that his father, Amasias, had done.

15:4. But the high places he did not destroy, for the people
sacrificed, and burnt incense in the high places.

15:5. And the Lord struck the king, so that he was a leper unto the day
of his death, and he dwelt in a free house apart: but Joatham, the
king's son, governed the palace, and judged the people of the land.

A leper. . .In punishment of his usurping the priestly function. 2 Par.
26.

15:6. And the rest of the acts of Azarias, and all that he did, are
they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of
Juda?

15:7. And Azarias slept with his fathers: and they buried him with his
ancestors in the city of David, and Joatham, his son, reigned in his
stead.

15:8. In the eight and thirtieth year of Azarias, king of Juda, reigned
Zacharias, son of Jeroboam, over Israel, in Samaria, six months:

15:9. And he did that which is evil before the Lord, as his fathers had
done: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, who
made Israel to sin.

15:10. And Sellum, the son of Jabes, conspired against him: and struck
him publicly, and killed him, and reigned in his place.

15:11. Now the rest of the acts of Zacharias, are they not written in
the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?

15:12. This was the word of the Lord, which he spoke to Jehu, saying:
Thy children, to the fourth generation, shall sit upon the throne of
Israel. And so it came to pass.

15:13. Sellum, the son of Jabes, began to reign in the nine and
thirtieth year of Azarias, king of Juda: and reigned one month in
Samaria.

15:14. And Manahem, the son of Gadi, went up from Thersa, and he came
into Samaria, and struck Sellum, the son of Jabes, in Samaria, and slew
him, and reigned in his stead.

15:15. And the rest of the acts of Sellum, and his conspiracy which he
made, are they not written in the book of the words of the days of the
kings of Israel?

15:16. Then Manahem destroyed Thapsa and all that were in it, and the
borders thereof from Thersa, because they would not open to him: and he
slew all the women thereof that were with child, and ripped them up.

15:17. In the nine and thirtieth year of Azarias, king of Juda, reigned
Manahem, son of Gadi, over Israel, ten years, in Samaria.

15:18. And he did that which was evil before the Lord: he departed not
from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin,
all his days.

15:19. And Phul, king of the Assyrians, came into the land, and Manahem
gave Phul a thousand talents of silver to aid him and to establish him
in the kingdom.

15:20. And Manahem laid a tax upon Israel, on all that were mighty and
rich, to give the king of the Assyrians, each man fifty sicles of
silver: so the king of the Assyrians turned back, and did not stay in
the land.

15:21. And the rest of the acts of Manahem, and all that he did, are
they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of
Israel?

15:22. And Manahem slept with his fathers: and Phaceia, his son,
reigned in his stead.

15:23. In the fiftieth year of Azarias, king of Juda, reigned Phaceia,
the son of Manahem, over Israel, in Samaria, two years.

15:24. And he did that which was evil before the Lord: he departed not
from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin.

15:25. And Phacee the son of Romelia, his captain, conspired against
him, and smote him in Samaria, in the tower of the king's house, near
Argob, and near Arie, and with him fifty men of the sons of the
Galaadites, and he slew him, and reigned in his stead.

15:26. And the rest of the acts of Phaceia, and all that he did, are
they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of
Israel?

15:27. In the two and fiftieth year of Azarias, king of Juda, reigned
Phacee, the son of Romelia, over Israel, in Samaria, twenty years.

15:28. And he did that which was evil before the Lord: he departed not
from the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin.

15:29. In the days of Phacee, king of Israel, came Theglathphalasar,
king of Assyria, and took Aion, and Abel Domum Maacha, and Janoe, and
Cedes, and Asor, and Galaad, and Galilee, and all the land of
Nephthali: and carried them captives into Assyria.

15:30. Now Osee, son of Ela, conspired, and formed a plot against
Phacee, the son of Romelia, and struck him, and slew him: and reigned
in his stead in the twentieth year of Joatham, the son of Ozias.

In the twentieth year of Joatham. . .That is, in the twentieth year,
from the beginning of Joatham's reign. The sacred writer chooses rather
to follow here this date than to speak of the years of Achaz, who had
not yet been mentioned.

15:31. But the rest of the acts of Phacee, and all that he did, are
they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of
Israel?

15:32. In the second year of Phacee, the son of Romelia king of Israel,
reigned Joatham, son of Ozias, king of Juda.

15:33. He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Jerusa,
the daughter of Sadoc.

15:34. And he did that which was right before the Lord: according to
all that his father Ozias had done, so did he.

15:35. But the high places he took not away: the people still
sacrificed, and burnt incense in the high places: he built the highest
gate of the house of the Lord.

15:36. But the rest of the acts of Joatham, and all that he did, are
they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of
Juda?

15:37. In those days the Lord began to send into Juda, Rasin king of
Syria, and Phacee the son of Romelia.

15:38. And Joatham slept with his fathers, and was buried with them in
the city of David, his father; and Achaz, his son, reigned in his
stead.

4 Kings Chapter 16

The wicked reign of Achaz: the kings of Syria and Israel war against
him: he hireth the king of the Assyrians to assist him: he causeth an
altar to be made after the pattern of that of Damascus.

16:1. In the seventeenth year of Phacee, the son of Romelia reigned
Achaz, the son of Joatham, king of Juda.

16:2. Achaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
sixteen years in Jerusalem: he did not that which was pleasing in the
sight of the Lord, his God, as David, his father.

16:3. But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel: moreover, he
consecrated also his son, making him pass through the fire, according
to the idols of the nations which the Lord destroyed before the
children of Israel.

16:4. He sacrificed also, and burnt incense in the high places, and on
the hills, and under every green tree.

16:5. Then Rasin, king of Syria, and Phacee, son of Romelia, king of
Israel, came up to Jerusalem to fight: and they besieged Achaz, but
were not able to overcome him.

16:6. At that time Rasin, king of Syria, restored Aila to Syria, and
drove the men of Juda out of Aila: and the Edomites came into Aila, and
dwelt there unto this day.

16:7. And Achaz sent messengers to Theglathphalasar, king of the
Assyrians, saying: I am thy servant, and thy son: come up, and save me
out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king
of Israel, who are risen up together against me.

16:8. And when he had gathered together the silver and gold that could
be found in the house of the Lord, and in the king's treasures, he sent
it for a present to the king of the Assyrians.

16:9. And he agreed to his desire: for the king of the Assyrians went
up against Damascus, and laid it waste: and he carried away the
inhabitants thereof to Cyrene; but Rasin he slew.

16:10. And king Achaz went to Damascus to meet Theglathphalasar, king
of the Assyrians, and when he had seen the altar of Damascus, king
Achaz sent to Urias, the priest, a pattern of it, and its likeness,
according to all the work thereof.

16:11. And Urias, the priest, built an altar according to all that king
Achaz had commanded from Damascus so did Urias, the priest, until king
Achaz came from Damascus.

16:12. And when the king was come from Damascus, he saw the altar and
worshipped it: and went up and offered holocausts, and his own
sacrifice;

16:13. And he offered libations, and poured the blood of the peace
offerings, which he had offered, upon the altar.

16:14. But the altar of brass that was before the Lord, he removed from
the face of the temple, and from the place of the altar, and from the
place of the temple of the Lord: and he set it at the side of the altar
towards the north.

16:15. And king Achaz commanded Urias, the priest, saying: Upon the
great altar offer the morning holocaust, and the evening sacrifice, and
the king's holocaust, and his sacrifice, and the holocaust of the whole
people of the land, and their sacrifices, and their libations: and all
the blood of the holocaust, and all the blood of the victim, thou shalt
pour out upon it: but the altar of brass shall be ready at my pleasure.

16:16. So Urias, the priest, did according to all that king Achaz had
commanded him.

16:17. And king Achaz took away the graven bases, and the laver that
was upon them: and he took down the sea from the brazen oxen that held
it up, and put it upon a pavement of stone.

16:18. The Musach also for the sabbath, which he had built in the
temple, and the king's entry from without, he turned into the temple of
the Lord, because of the king of the Assyrians.

Musach. . .The covert, or pavilion, or tribune, for the king.

16:19. Now the rest of the acts of Achaz which he did, are they not
written in the book of the words of the of the days of the kings of
Juda?

16:20. And Achaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with them in
the city of David, and Ezechias, his son, reigned in his stead.

4 Kings Chapter 17

The reign of Osee. The Israelites for their sins are carried into
captivity: other inhabitants are sent to Samaria, who make a mixture of
religion.

17:1. In the twelfth year of Achaz king of Juda, Osee the son of Ela
reigned in Samaria, over Israel, nine years.

In the twelfth year of Achaz king of Juda. . .He began to reign before:
but was not in quiet possession of the kingdom to the twelfth year of
Achaz.

17:2. And he did evil before the Lord: but not as the kings of Israel
that had been before him.

17:3. Against him came up Salmanasar, king of the Assyrians; and Osee
became his servant, and paid him tribute.

17:4. And when the king of the Assyrians found that Osee, endeavouring
to rebel, had sent messengers to Sua, the king of Egypt, that he might
not pay tribute to the king of the Assyrians, as he had done every
year, he besieged him, bound him, and cast him into prison.

17:5. And he went through all the land: and going up to Samaria, he
besieged it three years.

17:6. And in the ninth year of Osee, the king of the Assyrians took
Samaria, and carried Israel away to Assyria: and he placed them in
Hala, and Habor, by the river of Gozan, in the cities of the Medes.

17:7. For so it was that the children of Israel had sinned against the
Lord, their God, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, from under
the hand of Pharao, king of Egypt; and they worshipped strange gods.

17:8. And they walked according to the way of the nations which the
Lord had destroyed in the sight of the children of Israel, and of the
kings of Israel: because they had done in like manner.

17:9. And the children of Israel offended the Lord, their God, with
things that were not right: and built them high places in all their
cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.

17:10. And they made them statues and groves on every high hill, and
under every shady tree:

17:11. And they burnt incense there upon altars, after the manner of
the nations which the Lord had removed from their face: and they did
wicked things, provoking the Lord.

17:12. And they worshipped abominations, concerning which the Lord had
commanded them that they should not do this thing.

17:13. And the Lord testified to them in Israel, and in Juda, by the
hand of all the prophets and seers, saying: Return from your wicked
ways, and keep my precepts, and ceremonies, according to all the law
which I commanded your fathers: and as I have sent to you in the hand
of my servants the prophets.

17:14. And they hearkened not, but hardened their necks like to the
neck of their fathers, who would not obey the Lord, their God.

17:15. And they rejected his ordinances, and the covenant that he made
with their fathers, and the testimonies which he testified against
them: and they followed vanities, and acted vainly: and they followed
the nations that were round about them, concerning which the Lord had
commanded them that they should not do as they did.

17:16. And they forsook all the precepts of the Lord, their God: and
made to themselves two molten calves, and groves, and adored all the
host of heaven: and they served Baal,

17:17. And consecrated their sons, and their daughters, through fire:
and they gave themselves to divinations, and soothsayings: and they
delivered themselves up to do evil before the Lord, to provoke him.

17:18. And the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them from
his sight, and there remained only the tribe of Juda.

17:19. But neither did Juda itself keep the commandments of the Lord,
their God: but they walked in the errors of Israel, which they had
wrought.

17:20. And the Lord cast off all the seed of Israel, and afflicted
them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, till he cast them
away from his face:

17:21. Even from that time, when Israel was rent from the house of
David, and made Jeroboam, son of Nabat, their king: for Jeroboam
separated Israel from the Lord, and made them commit a great sin.

17:22. And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam,
which he had done: and they departed not from them,

17:23. Till the Lord removed Israel from his face, as he had spoken in
the hand of all his servants, the prophets: and Israel was carried away
out of their land to Assyria, unto this day.

17:24. And the king of the Assyrians brought people from Babylon, and
from Cutha, and from Avah, and from Emath, and from Sepharvaim: and
placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel:
and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof.

17:25. And when they began to dwell there, they feared not the Lord:
and the Lord sent lions among them, which killed them.

17:26. And it was told the king of the Assyrians, and it was said: The
nations which thou hast removed, and made to dwell in the cities of
Samaria, know not the ordinances of the God of the land: and the Lord
hath sent lions among them: and behold they kill them, because they
know not the manner of the God of the land.

17:27. And the king of the Assyrians commanded, saying: Carry thither
one of the priests whom you brought from thence captive, and let him
go, and dwell with them: and let him teach them the ordinances of the
God of the land.

17:28. So one of the priests, who had been carried away captive from
Samaria, came and dwelt in Bethel, and taught them how they should
worship the Lord.

17:29. And every nation made gods of their own and put them in the
temples of the high places, which the Samaritans had made, every nation
in their cities where they dwelt.

17:30. For the men of Babylon made Sochothbenoth: and the Cuthites made
Nergel: and the men of Emath made Asima.

17:31. And the Hevites made Nebahaz, and Tharthac. And they that were
of Sepharvaim burnt their children in fire, to Adramelech and
Anamelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.

17:32. And nevertheless they worshipped the Lord. And they made to
themselves, of the lowest of the people, priests of the high places,
and they placed them in the temples of the high places.

17:33. And when they worshipped the Lord, they served also their own
gods, according to the custom of the nations out of which they were
brought to Samaria:

17:34. Unto this day they follow the old manner: they fear not the
Lord, neither do they keep his ceremonies, and judgments, and law, and
the commandment, which the Lord commanded the children of Jacob, whom
he surnamed Israel:

17:35. With whom he made a covenant, and charged them, saying: You
shall not fear strange gods, nor shall you adore them, nor worship
them, nor sacrifice to them.

17:36. But the Lord, your God, who brought you out of the land of
Egypt, with great power, and a stretched out arm, him shall you fear,
and him shall you adore, and to him shall you sacrifice.

17:37. And the ceremonies, and judgments, and law, and the commandment,
which he wrote for you, you shall observe to do them always: and you
shall not fear strange gods.

17:38. And the covenant that he made with you, you shall not forget:
neither shall ye worship strange Gods,

17:39. But fear the Lord, your God, and he shall deliver you out of the
hand of all your enemies.

17:40. But they did not hearken to them, but did according to their old
custom.

17:41. So these nations feared the Lord, but nevertheless served also
their idols: their children also, and grandchildren, as their fathers
did, so do they unto this day.

4 Kings Chapter 18

The reign of Ezechias: he abolisheth idolatry and prospereth.
Sennacherib cometh up against him: Rabsaces soliciteth the people to
revolt; and blasphemeth the Lord.

18:1. In the third year of Osee, the son of Ela, king of Israel,
reigned Ezechias, the son of Achaz, king of Juda.

18:2. He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign: and he
reigned nine and twenty years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was
Abi, the daughter of Zacharias.

18:3. And he did that which was good before the Lord, according to all
that David, his father, had done

18:4. He destroyed the high places, and broke the statues in pieces,
and cut down the groves, and broke the brazen serpent, which Moses had
made: for till that time the children of Israel burnt incense to it:
and he called its name Nohestan.

And he called its name Noheston. . .That is, their brass; or a little
brass. So he called it in contempt, because they had made an idol of
it.

18:5. He trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel: so that after him
there was none like him among all the kings of Juda, nor any of them
that were before him:

18:6. And he stuck to the Lord, and departed not from his steps, but
kept his commandments, which the Lord commanded Moses.

18:7. Wherefore the Lord also was with him, and in all things, to which
he went forth, he behaved himself wisely. And he rebelled against the
king of the Assyrians, and served him not.

18:8. He smote the Philistines as far as Gaza, and all their borders,
from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city.

18:9. In the fourth year of king Ezechias, which was the seventh year
of Osee, the son of Ela, king of Israel, Salmanasar, king of the
Assyrians, came up to Samaria, and besieged it,

18:10. And took it. For after three years, in the sixth year of
Ezechias, that is, in the ninth year of Osee, king of Israel, Samaria
was taken:

18:11. And the king of the Assyrians carried away Israel into Assyria,
and placed them in Hala, and in Habor, by the rivers of Gozan, in the
cities of the Medes.

18:12. Because they hearkened not to the voice of the Lord, their God,
but transgressed his covenant: all that Moses, the servant of the Lord,
commanded, they would not hear, nor do.

18:13. In the fourteenth year of king Ezechias, Sennacherib, king of
the Assyrians, came up against the fenced cities of Juda, and took
them.

18:14. Then Ezechias, king of Juda, sent messengers to the king of the
Assyrians, to Lachis, saying: I have offended, depart from me: and all
that thou shalt put upon me, I will bear. And the king of the Assyrians
put a tax upon Ezechias, king of Juda, of three hundred talents of
silver, and thirty talents of gold.

18:15. And Ezechias gave all the silver that was found in the house of
the Lord, and in the king's treasures.

18:16. At that time Ezechias broke the doors of the temple of the Lord,
and the plates of gold which he had fastened on them, and gave them to
the king of the Assyrians.

18:17. And the king of the Assyrians sent Tharthan, and Rabsaris, and
Rabsaces, from Lachis, to king Ezechias, with a strong army, to
Jerusalem: and they went up and came to Jerusalem, and they stood by
the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the way of the fuller's
field.

18:18. And they called for the king: and there went out to them
Eliacim, the son of Helcias, who was over the house, and Sobna, the
scribe, and Joahe, the son of Asaph, the recorder.

18:19. And Rabsaces said to them: Speak to Ezechias: Thus saith the
great king, the king of the Assyrians: What is this confidence, wherein
thou trustest?

18:20. Perhaps thou hast taken counsel, to prepare thyself for battle.
On whom dost thou trust, that thou darest to rebel?

18:21. Dost thou trust in Egypt a staff of a broken reed, upon which if
a man lean, it will break and go into his hand, and pierce it? so is
Pharao, king of Egypt, to all that trust in him.

18:22. But if you say to me: We trust in the Lord, our God: is it not
he, whose high places and altars Ezechias hath taken away: and hath
commanded Juda and Jerusalem: You shall worship before this altar in
Jerusalem?

18:23. Now therefore come over to my master, the king of the Assyrians,
and I will give you two thousand horses, and see whether you be able to
have riders for them.

18:24. And how can you stand against one lord of the least of my
master's servants? Dost thou trust in Egypt for chariots and for
horsemen?

18:25. Is it without the will of the Lord that I am come up to this
place to destroy it? The Lord said to me: Go up to this land, and
destroy it.

18:26. Then Eliacim, the son of Helcias, and Sobna, and Joahe, said to
Rabsaces: We pray thee, speak to us, thy servants, in Syriac: for we
understand that tongue: and speak not to us in the Jews' language, in
the hearing of the people that are upon the wall.

18:27. And Rabsaces answered them, saying: Hath my master sent me to
thy master, and to thee, to speak these words, and not rather to the
men that sit upon the wall, that they may eat their own dung, and drink
their urine with you?

18:28. Then Rabsaces stood, and cried out with a loud voice in the
Jews' language, and said: Hear the word of the great king, the king of
the Assyrians.

18:29. Thus saith the king: Let not Ezechias deceive you: for he shall
not be able to deliver you out of my hand.

18:30. Neither let him make you trust in the Lord, saying: The Lord
will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hand
of the king of the Assyrians.

18:31. Do not hearken to Ezechias. For thus saith the king of the
Assyrians: Do with me that which is for your advantage, and come out to
me: and every man of you shall eat of his own vineyard, and of his own
fig tree: and you shall drink water of your own cisterns,

18:32. Till I come, and take you away, to a land, like to your own
land, a fruitful land, and plentiful in wine, a land of bread and
vineyards, a land of olives, and oil, and honey, and you shall live,
and not die. Hearken not to Ezechias, who deceiveth you, saying: The
Lord will deliver us.

18:33. Have any of the gods of the nations delivered their land from
the hand of the king of Assyria?

18:34. Where is the god of Emath, and of Arphad? where is the god of
Sepharvaim, of Ana, and of Ava? have they delivered Samaria out of my
hand?

18:35. Who are they among all the gods of the nations that have
delivered their country out of my hand, that the Lord may deliver
Jerusalem out of my hand?

18:36. But the people held their peace, and answered him not a word:
for they had received commandment from the king that they should not
answer him.

18:37. And Eliacim, the son of Helcias, who was over the house, and
Sobna, the scribe, and Joahe, the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to
Ezechias, with their garments rent, and told him the words of Rabsaces.

4 Kings Chapter 19

Ezechias is assured of God's help by Isaias the prophet. The king of
the Assyrians still threateneth and blasphemeth. Ezechias prayeth, and
God promiseth to protect Jerusalem. An angel destroyeth the army of the
Assyrians, their king returneth to Nineve, and is slain by his two
sons.

19:1. And when king Ezechias heard these words, he rent his garments,
and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the
Lord.

19:2. And he sent Eliacim, who was over the house, and Sobna, the
scribe, and the ancients of the priests, covered with sackcloths, to
Isaias, the prophet, the son of Amos.

19:3. And they said to him: Thus saith Ezechias: This day is a day of
tribulation, and of rebuke, and of blasphemy: the children are come to
the birth, and the woman in travail hath not strength.

19:4. It may be the Lord, thy God, will hear all the words of Rabsaces,
whom the king of the Assyrians, his master, hath sent to reproach the
living God, and to reprove with words, which the Lord, thy God, hath
heard: and do thou offer prayer for the remnants that are found.

19:5. So the servants of king Ezechias came to Isaias.

19:6. And Isaias said to them: Thus shall you say to your master: Thus
saith the Lord: Be not afraid for the words which thou hast heard, with
which the servants of the king of the Assyrians have blasphemed me.

19:7. Behold I will send a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a
message, and shall return into his own country, and I will make him
fall by the sword in his own country.

19:8. And Rabsaces returned, and found the king of the Assyrians
besieging Lobna: for he had heard that he was departed from Lachis.

19:9. And when he heard of Tharaca, king of Ethiopia: Behold, he is
come out to fight with thee: and was going against him, he sent
messengers to Ezechias, saying:

19:10. Thus shall you say to Ezechias, king of Juda: Let not thy God
deceive thee, in whom thou trustest: and do not say: Jerusalem shall
not be delivered into the hands of the king of the Assyrians.

19:11. Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of the Assyrians have
done to all countries, how they have laid them waste: and canst thou
alone be delivered?

19:12. Have the gods of the nations delivered any of them, whom my
fathers have destroyed, to wit, Gozan, and Haran, and Reseph, and the
children of Eden, that were in Thelassar?

19:13. Where is the king of Emath, and the king of Arphad, and the king
of the city of Sepharvaim, and of Ana, and of Ava?

19:14. And when Ezechias had received the letter of the hand of the
messengers, and had read it, he went up to the house of the Lord, and
spread it before the Lord,

19:15. And he prayed in his sight, saying: O Lord God of Israel, who
sittest upon the cherubims, thou alone art the God of all the kings of
the earth: thou madest heaven and earth:

19:16. Incline thy ear, and hear: open, O Lord, thy eyes and see: and
hear all the words of Sennacherib, who hath sent to upbraid unto us the
living God.

19:17. Of a truth, O Lord, the kings of the Assyrians have destroyed
nations, and the lands of them all.

19:18. And they have cast their gods into the fire: for they were not
gods, but the work of men's hands, of wood and stone, and they
destroyed them.

19:19. Now therefore, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, that all
the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord, the only
God.

19:20. And Isaias, the son of Amos, sent to Ezechias, saying: Thus
saith the Lord, the God of Israel: I have heard the prayer thou hast
made to me concerning Sennacherib, king of the Assyrians.

19:21. This is the word that the Lord hath spoken of him: The virgin,
the daughter of Sion, hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn:
the daughter of Jerusalem hath wagged her head behind thy back.

19:22. Whom hast thou reproached, and whom hast thou blasphemed?
against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thy eyes on
high? against the holy one of Israel.

19:23. By the hand of thy servants thou hast reproached the Lord, and
hast said: With the multitude of my chariots I have gone up to the
height of the mountains, to the top of Libanus, and have cut down its
tall cedars, and its choice fir trees. And I have entered into the
furthest parts thereof, and the forest of its Carmel.

Carmel. . .A pleasant fruitful hill in the forest. These expressions are
figurative, signifying under the names of mountains and forests, the
kings and provinces whom the Assyrians had triumphed over.

19:24. I have cut down, and I have drunk strange waters, and have dried
up with the soles of my feet all the shut up waters.

19:25. Hast thou not heard what I have done from the beginning? from
the days of old I have formed it, and now I have brought it to effect:
that fenced cities of fighting men should be turned to heaps of ruins:

I have formed it, etc. . .All thy exploits, in which thou takest pride,
are no more than what I have decreed; and are not to be ascribed to thy
wisdom or strength, but to my will and ordinance: who have given to
thee to take and destroy so many fenced cities, and to carry terror
wherever thou comest.--Ibid. Heaps of ruin. . .Literally ruin of the
hills.

19:26. And the inhabitants of them were weak of hand, they trembled and
were confounded, they became like the grass of the field, and the green
herb on the tops of houses, which withered before it came to maturity.

19:27. Thy dwelling, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy way
I knew before, and thy rage against me.

19:28. Thou hast been mad against me, and thy pride hath come up to my
ears: therefore I will put a ring in thy nose, and a bit between thy
lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.

19:29. And to thee, O Ezechias, this shall be a sign: Eat this year
what thou shalt find: and in the second year, such things as spring of
themselves: but in the third year sow and reap: plant vineyards, and
eat the fruit of them.

19:30. And whatsoever shall be left of the house of Juda, shall take
root downward, and bear fruit upward.

19:31. For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and that which
shall be saved out of mount Sion: the zeal of the Lord of hosts shall
do this.

19:32. Wherefore thus saith the Lord concerning the king of the
Assyrians: He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow into
it, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a trench about it.

19:33. By the way that he came he shall return: and into this city he
shall not come, saith the Lord.

19:34. And I will protect this city, and will save it for my own sake,
and for David, my servant's sake.

19:35. And it came to pass that night, that an angel of the Lord came,
and slew in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and eighty-five
thousand. And when he arose early in the morning, he saw all the bodies
of the dead.

19:36. And Sennacherib, king of the Assyrians, departing, went away,
and he returned and abode in Ninive.

19:37. And as he was worshipping in the temple of Nesroch, his god,
Adramelech and Sarasar, his sons, slew him with the sword, and they
fled into the land of the Armenians, and Asarhaddon, his son, reigned
in his stead.

4 Kings Chapter 20

Ezechias being sick, is told by Isaias that he shall die; but praying
to God, he obtaineth longer life, and in confirmation thereof receiveth
a sign by the sun's returning back. He sheweth all his treasures to the
ambassadors of the king of Babylon: Isaias reproving him for it,
foretelleth the Babylonish captivity.

20:1. In those days Ezechias was sick unto death: and Isaias, the son
of Amos, the prophet, came and said to him: Thus saith the Lord God:
Give charge concerning thy house, for thou shalt die, and not llve.

20:2. And he turned his face to the wall, and prayed to the Lord,
saying:

20:3. I beseech thee, O Lord, remember how I have walked before thee in
truth, and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is pleasing
before thee. And Ezechias wept with much weeping.

20:4. And before Isaias was gone out of the middle of the court, the
word of the Lord came to him, saying:

20:5. Go back, and tell Ezechias, the captain of my people: Thus saith
the Lord, the God of David, thy father: I have heard thy prayer, and I
have seen thy tears: and behold I have healed thee: on the third day
thou shalt go up to the temple of the Lord.

20:6. And I will add to thy days fifteen years: and I will deliver thee
and this city out of the hand of the king of the Assyrians, and I will
protect this city for my own sake, and for David, my servant's sake.

20:7. And Isaias said: Bring me a lump of figs. And when they had
brought it, and laid it upon his boil, he was healed.

20:8. And Ezechias had said to Isaias: What shall be the sign that the
Lord will heal me, and that I will go up to the temple of the Lord the
third day?

20:9. And Isaias said to him: This shall be the sign from the Lord,
that the Lord will do the word which he hath spoken: Wilt thou that the
shadow go forward ten lines, or that it go back so many degrees?

20:10. And Ezechias said: It is an easy matter for the shadow to go
forward ten lines: and I do not desire that this be done, but let it
return back ten degrees.

20:11. And Isaias, the prophet, called upon the Lord, and he brought
the shadow ten degrees backwards by the lines, by which it had already
gone down on the dial of Achaz.

20:12. At that time Berodach Baladan, the son of Baladan, king of the
Babylonians, sent letters and presents to Ezechias: for he had heard
that Ezechias had been sick.

20:13. And Ezechias rejoiced at their coming, and he shewed them the
house of his aromatical spices, and the gold, and the silver, and
divers precious odours, and ointments, and the house of his vessels,
and all that he had in his treasures. There was nothing in his house,
nor in all his dominions, that Ezechias shewed them not.

20:14. And Isaias, the prophet, came to king Ezechias, and said to him:
What said these men? or from whence came they to thee? And Ezechias
said to him: From a far country, they came to me out of Babylon.

20:15. And he said: What did they see in thy house? Ezechias said:
They saw all the things that are in my house: There is nothing among my
treasures that I have not shewed them.

20:16. And Isaias said to Ezechias: Hear the word of the Lord.

20:17. Behold the days shall come, that all that is in thy house, and
that thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried
into Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith the Lord.

20:18. And of thy sons also that shall issue from thee, whom thou shalt
beget, they shall take away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of
the king of Babylon.

20:19. Ezechias said to Isaias: The word of the Lord, which thou hast
spoken, is good: let peace and truth be in my days.

20:20. And the rest of the acts of Ezechias, and all his might, and how
he made a pool, and a conduit, and brought waters into the city, are
they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of
Juda?

20:21. And Ezechias slept with his fathers, and Manasses, his son
reigned in his stead.

4 Kings Chapter 21

The wickedness of Manasses: God's threats by his prophets. His wicked
son Amon succeedeth him, and is slain by his servants.

21:1. Manasses was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned five and fifty years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was
Haphsiba.

21:2. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the idols
of the nations, which the Lord destroyed from before the face of the
children of Israel.

21:3. And he turned, and built up the high places, which Ezechias, his
father, had destroyed: and he set up altars to Baal, and made groves,
as Achab, the king of Israel, had done: and he adored all the host of
heaven, and served them.

21:4. And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord
said: In Jerusalem I will put my name.

21:5. And he built altars for all the host of heaven, in the two courts
of the temple of the Lord.

21:6. And he made his son pass through fire: and he used divinations,
and observed omens, and appointed pythons, and multiplied soothsayers,
to do evil before the Lord, and to provoke him.

Pythons. . .That is, diviners by spirits.

21:7. He set also an idol of the grove, which he had made, in the
temple of the Lord: concerning which the Lord said to David, and to
Solomon his son: In this temple, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen
out of all the tribes of Israel, I will put my name for ever.

21:8. And I will no more make the feet of Israel to be moved out of the
land, which I gave to their fathers: only if they will observe to do
all that I have commanded them, according to the law which my servant
Moses commanded them.

21:9. But they hearkened not: but were seduced by Manasses, to do evil
more than the nations which the Lord destroyed before the children of
Israel.

21:10. And the Lord spoke in the hand of his servants, the prophets,
saying:

21:11. Because Manasses, king of Juda, hath done these most wicked
abominations, beyond all that the Amorrhites did before him, and hath
made Juda also to sin with his filthy doings:

21:12. Therefore thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel: Behold, I will
bring on evils upon Jerusalem and Juda: that whosoever shall hear of
them, both his ears shall tingle.

21:13. And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the
weight of the house of Achab: and I will efface Jerusalem, as writings
tables are wont to be effaced, and I will erase and turn it, and draw
the pencil often over the face thereof.

21:14. And I will leave the remnants of my inheritance, and will
deliver them into the hands of their enemies: and they shall become a
prey, and a spoil to all their enemies.

21:15. Because they have done evil before me, and have continued to
provoke me, from the day that their fathers came out of Egypt, even
unto this day.

21:16. Moreover, Manasses shed also very much innocent blood, till he
filled Jerusalem up to the mouth: besides his sins, wherewith he made
Juda to sin, to do evil before the Lord.

21:17. Now the rest of the acts of Manasses, and all that he did, and
his sin, which he sinned, are they not written in the book of the words
of the days of the kings of Juda?

21:18. And Manasses slept with his fathers, and was buried in the
garden of his own house, in the garden of Oza: and Amon, his son,
reigned in his stead.

21:19. Two and twenty years old was Amon when he began to reign, and he
reigned two years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Messalemeth,
the daughter of Harus, of Jeteba.

21:20. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, as Manasses, his
father, had done.

21:21. And he walked in all the way in which his father had walked: and
he served the abominations which his father had served, and he adored
them.

21:22. And forsook the Lord, the God of his fathers, and walked not in
the way of the Lord.

21:23. And his servants plotted against him, and slew the king in his
own house.

21:24. But the people of the land slew all them that had conspired
against king Amon: and made Josias, his son, their king in his stead.

21:25. But the rest of the acts of Amon, which he did, are they not
written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Juda?

21:26. And they buried him in his sepulchre, in the garden of Oza: and
his son, Josias, reigned in his stead.

4 Kings Chapter 22

Josias repaireth the temple. The book of the law is found, upon which
they consult the Lord, and are told that great evils shall fall upon
them, but not in the time of Josias.

22:1. Josias was eight years old when he began to reign: he reigned one
and thirty years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Idida, the
daughter of Hadaia, of Besecath.

22:2. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and
walked in all the ways of David, his father: he turned not aside to the
right hand, or to the left.

22:3. And in the eighteenth year of king Josias, the king sent Saphan,
the son of Assia, the son of Messulam, the scribe of the temple of the
Lord, saying to him:

22:4. Go to Helcias, the high priest, that the money may be put
together which is brought into the temple of the Lord, which the
doorkeepers of the temple have gathered of the people.

22:5. And let it be given to the workmen by the overseers of the house
of the Lord: and let them distribute it to those that work in the
temple of the Lord, to repair the temple:

22:6. That is, to carpenters and masons, and to such as mend breaches:
and that timber may be bought, and stones out of the quarries, to
repair the temple of the Lord.

22:7. But let there be no reckoning made with them of the money which
they receive, but let them have it in their power, and in their trust.

22:8. And Helcias, the high priest, said to Saphan, the scribe: I have
found the book of the law in the house of the Lord: and Helcias gave
the book to Saphan, and he read it.

The book of the law. . .That is, Deuteronomy.

22:9. And Saphan, the scribe, came to the king, and brought him word
again concerning that which he had commanded, and said: Thy servants
have gathered together the money that was found in the house of the
Lord: and they have given it to be distributed to the workmen, by the
overseers of the works of the temple of the Lord.

22:10. And Saphan, the scribe, told the king, saying: Helcias, the
priest, hath delivered to me a book. And when Saphan had read it before
the king,

22:11. And the king had heard the words of the law of the Lord, he rent
his garments.

22:12. And he commanded Helcias, the priest, and Ahicam, the son of
Saphan, and Achobor, the son of Micha, and Saphan, the scribe, and
Asaia, the king's servant, saying:

22:13. Go and consult the Lord for me, and for the people, and for all
Juda, concerning the words of this book which is found: for the great
wrath of the Lord is kindled against us, because our fathers have not
hearkened to the words of this book, to do all that is written for us.

22:14. So Helcias, the priest, and Ahicam, and Achobor, and Sapham, and
Asaia, went to Holda, the prophetess, the wife of Sellum, the son of
Thecua, the son of Araas, keeper of the wardrobe, who dwelt in
Jerusalem, in the Second: and they spoke to her.

The Second. . .A street, or part of the city, so called; in Hebrew,
Massem.

22:15. And she said to them: Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel:
Tell the man that sent you to me:

22:16. Thus saith the Lord: Behold, I will bring evils upon this place,
and upon the inhabitants thereof, all the words of the law which the
king of Juda hath read:

22:17. Because they have forsaken me, and have sacrificed to strange
gods, provoking me by all the works of their hands: therefore my
indignation shall be kindled against this place, and shall not be
quenched.

22:18. But to the king of Juda, who sent you to consult the Lord, thus
shall you say: Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel: for as much as
thou hast heard the words of the book,

22:19. And thy heart hath been moved to fear, and thou hast humbled
thyself before the Lord, hearing the words against this place, and the
inhabitants thereof, to wit, that they should become a wonder and a
curse: and thou hast rent thy garments, and wept before me; I also have
heard thee; saith the Lord.

22:20. Therefore I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be
gathered to thy sepulchre in peace; that thy eyes may not see all the
evils which I will bring upon this place.

4 Kings Chapter 23

Josias readeth the law before all the people. They promise to observe
it. He abolisheth all idolatry, celebrateth the phase: is slain in
battle by the king of Egypt. The short reign of Joachaz, in whose place
Joakim is made king.

23:1. And they brought the king word again what she had said. And he
sent: and all the ancients of Juda and Jerusalem were assembled to him.

23:2. And the king went up to the temple of the Lord, and all the men
of Juda, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, the priests,
and the prophets, and all the people, both little and great: and in the
hearing of them all he read all the words of the book of the covenant,
which was found in the house of the Lord.

23:3. And the king stood upon the step: and he made a covenant with the
Lord, to walk after the Lord, and to keep his commandments, and his
testimonies, and his ceremonies, with all their heart, and with all
their soul, and to perform the words of this covenant, which were
written in that book: and the people agreed to the covenant.

The king stood upon the step. . .That is, his tribune, or tribunal, a
more eminent place, from whence he might be seen and heard by the
people.

23:4. And the king commanded Helcias, the high priest, and the priests
of the second order, and the doorkeepers, to cast out of the temple of
the Lord all the vessels that had been made for Baal, and for the
grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burnt them without
Jerusalem, in the valley of Cedron, and he carried the ashes of them to
Bethel.

23:5. And he destroyed the soothsayers, whom the kings of Juda had
appointed to sacrifice in the high places in the cities of Juda, and
round about Jerusalem: them also that burnt incense to Baal, and to the
sun, and to the moon, and to the twelve signs, and to all the host of
heaven.

23:6. And he caused the grove to be carried out from the house of the
Lord, without Jerusalem, to the valley of Cedron, and he burnt it
there, and reduced it to dust, and cast the dust upon the graves of the
common people.

23:7. He destroyed also the pavilions of the effeminate, which were in
the house of the Lord, for which the women wove as it were little
dwellings for the grove.

23:8. And he gathered together all the priests out of the cities of
Juda: and he defiled the high places, where the priests offered
sacrifice, from Gabaa to Bersabee: and he broke down the altars of the
gates that were in the entering in of the gate of Josue, governor of
the city, which was on the left hand of the gate of the city.

23:9. However, the priests of the high places came not up to the altar
of the Lord, in Jerusalem: but only eat of the unleavened bread among
their brethren.

23:10. And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of
Ennom: that no man should consecrate there his son, or his daughter,
through fire, to Moloch.

23:11. And he took away the horses which the kings of Juda had given to
the sun, at the entering in of the temple of the Lord, near the chamber
of Nathanmelech the eunuch, who was in Pharurim: and he burnt the
chariots of the sun with fire.

23:12. And the altars that were upon the top of the upper chamber of
Achaz, which the kings of Juda had made, and the altars which Manasses
had made in the two courts of the temple of the Lord, the king broke
down: and he ran from thence, and cast the ashes of them into the
torrent Cedron.

23:13. The high places also that were at Jerusalem, on the right side
of the Mount of Offence, which Solomon, king of Israel, had built to
Astaroth, the idol of the Sidonians, and to Chamos, the scandal of
Moab, and to Melchom, the abomination of the children of Ammon, the
king defiled.

23:14. And he broke in pieces the statues, and cut down the groves: and
he filled their places with the bones of dead men.

23:15. Moreover, the altar also that was at Bethel, and the high place,
which Jeroboam, the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin, had made:
both the altar, and the high place, he broke down and burnt, and
reduced to powder, and burnt the grove.

23:16. And as Josias turned himself, he saw there the sepulchres that
were in the mount: and he sent and took the bones out of the
sepulchres, and burnt them upon the altar, and defiled it according to
the word of the Lord, which the man of God spoke, who had foretold
these things.

23:17. And he said: What is that monument which I see? And the men of
that city answered: It is the sepulchre of the man of God, who came
from Juda, and foretold these things which thou hast done upon the
altar of Bethel.

23:18. And he said: Let him alone, let no man move his bones. So his
bones were left untouched with the bones of the prophet, that came out
of Samaria.

23:19. Moreover all the temples of the high places which were in the
cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the
Lord, Josias took away: and he did to them according to all the acts
that he had done in Bethel.

23:20. And he slew all the priests of the high places, that were there,
upon the altars; and he burnt men's bones upon them: and returned to
Jerusalem.

23:21. And he commanded all the people, saying: Keep the Phase to the
Lord your God, according as it is written in the book of this covenant.

23:22. Now there was no such a Phase kept from the days of the judges,
who judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, and of
the kings of Juda,

23:23. As was this Phase, that was kept to the Lord in Jerusalem, in
the eighteenth year of king Josias.

23:24. Moreover the diviners by spirits, and soothsayers, and the
figures of idols, and the uncleannesses, and the abominations, that had
been in the land of Juda and Jerusalem, Josias took away: that he might
perform the words of the law, that were written in the book, which
Helcias the priest had found in the temple of the Lord.

23:25. There was no king before him like unto him, that returned to the
Lord with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his
strength, according to all the law of Moses: neither after him did
there arise any like unto him.

23:26. But yet the Lord turned not away from the wrath of his great
indignation, wherewith his anger was kindled against Juda: because of
the provocations, wherewith Manasses had provoked him.

23:27. And the Lord said: I will remove Juda also from before my face,
as I have removed Israel: and I will cast off this city Jerusalem,
which I chose, and the house, of which I said: My name shall be there.

23:28. Now the rest of the acts of Josias, and all that he did, are
they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of
Juda?

23:29. In his days Pharao Nechao, king of Egypt, went up against the
king of Assyria to the river Euphrates: and king Josias went to meet
him: and was slain at Mageddo, when he had seen him.

23:30. And his servants carried him dead from Mageddo: and they brought
him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people
of the land took Joachaz, the son of Josias: and they anointed him, and
made him king in his father's stead.

23:31. Joachaz was three and twenty years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned three months in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was
Amital, the daughter of Jeremias, of Lobna.

23:32. And he did evil before the Lord, according to all that his
fathers had done.

23:33. And Pharao Nechao bound him at Rebla, which is in the land of
Emath, that he should not reign in Jerusalem: and he set a fine upon
the land, of a hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold.

23:34. And Pharao Nechao made Eliacim, the son of Josias, king in the
room of Josias his father: and turned his name to Joakim. And he took
Joachaz away and carried him into Egypt, and he died there.

23:35. And Joakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharao, after he had
taxed the land for every man, to contribute according to the
commandment of Pharao: and he exacted both the silver and the gold of
the people of the land, of every man according to his ability: to give
to Pharao Nechao.

23:36. Joakim was five and twenty years old when he began to reign: and
he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was
Zebida, the daughter of Phadaia, of Ruma.

23:37. And he did evil before the Lord according to all that his
fathers had done.

4 Kings Chapter 24

The reign of Joakim, Joachin, and Sedecias.

24:1. In his days Nabuchodonosor, king of Babylon came up, and Joakim
became his servant three years: then again he rebelled against him.

24:2. And the Lord sent against him the rovers of the Chaldees, and the
rovers of Syria, and the rovers of Moab, and the rovers of the children
of Ammon: and he sent them against Juda, to destroy it, according to
the word of the Lord, which he had spoken by his servants, the
prophets.

The Lord sent against him the rovers. . .Latrunculos. Bands or parties
of men, who pillaged and plundered wherever they came.

24:3. And this came by the word of the Lord against Juda, to remove
them from before him for all the sins of Manasses which he did;

24:4. And for the innocent blood that he shed, filling Jerusalem with
innocent blood: and therefore the Lord would not be appeased.

24:5. But the rest of the acts of Joakim, and all that he did, are they
not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Juda?
And Joakim slept with his fathers:

24:6. And Joachin, his son, reigned in his stead.

24:7. And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his own
country: for the king of Babylon had taken all that had belonged to the
king of Egypt, from the river of Egypt, unto the river Euphrates.

24:8. Joachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned three months in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Nohesta,
the daughter of Elnathan, of Jerusalem.

24:9. And he did evil before the Lord, according to all that his father
had done.

24:10. At that time the servants of Nabuchodonosor, king of Babylon,
came up against Jerusalem, and the city was surrounded with their
forts.

24:11. And Nabuchodonosor, king of Babylon, came to the city, with his
servants, to assault it.

24:12. And Joachin, king of Juda, went out to the king of Babylon, he,
and his mother, and his servants, and his nobles, and his eunuchs: and
the king of Babylon received him in the eighth year of his reign.

24:13. And he brought out from thence all the treasures of the house of
the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house: and he cut in pieces
all the vessels of gold which Solomon, king of Israel, had made in the
temple of the Lord, according to the word of the Lord.

24:14. And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all
the valiant men of the army, to the number of ten thousand, into
captivity: and every artificer and smith: and none were left, but the
poor sort of the people of the land.

24:15. And he carried away Joachin into Babylon, and the king's mother,
and the king's wives, and his eunuchs: and the judges of the land he
carried into captivity, from Jerusalem, into Babylon.

24:16. And all the strong men, seven thousand, and the artificers, and
the smiths, a thousand, all that were valiant men, and fit for war: and
the king of Babylon led them captives into Babylon.

24:17. And he appointed Matthanias, his uncle, in his stead: and called
his name Sedecias.

24:18. Sedecias was one and twenty years old when he began to reign,
and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was
Amital, the daughter of Jeremias, of Lobna.

24:19. And he did evil before the Lord, according to all that Joakim
had done.

24:20. For the Lord was angry against Jerusalem and against Juda, till
he cast them out from his face: and Sedecias revolted from the king of
Babylon.

4 Kings Chapter 25

Jerusalem is besieged and taken by Nabuchodonosor: Sedecias is taken:
the city and temple are destroyed. Godolias, who is left governor, is
slain. Joachin is exalted by Evilmerodach.

25:1. And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth
month, the tenth day of the month, that Nabuchodonosor, king of
Babylon, came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem: and they
surrounded it: and raised works round about it.

25:2. And the city was shut up and besieged till the eleventh year of
king Sedecias,

25:3. The ninth day of the month: and a famine prevailed in the city,
and there was no bread for the people of the land.

25:4. And a breach was made into the city: and all the men of war fled
in the night between the two walls by the king's garden (now the
Chaldees besieged the city round about), and Sedecias fled by the way
that leadeth to the plains of the wilderness.

25:5. And the army of the Chaldees pursued after the king, and overtook
him in the plains of Jericho: and all the warriors that were with him
were scattered, and left him:

25:6. So they took the king, and brought him to the king of Babylon, to
Reblatha, and he gave judgment upon him.

25:7. And he slew the sons of Sedecias before his face, and he put out
his eyes, and bound him with chains, and brought him to Babylon.

25:8. In the fifth month, the seventh day of the month, the same is the
nineteenth year of the king of Babylon, came Nabuzardan, commander of
the army, a servant of the king of Babylon, into Jerusalem.

25:9. And he burnt the house of the Lord, and the king's house, and the
houses of Jerusalem, and every great house he burnt with fire.

25:10. And all the army of the Chaldees, which was with the commander
of the troops, broke down the walls of Jerusalem round about.

25:11. And Nabuzardan, the commander of the army, carried away the rest
of the people, that remained in the city, and the fugitives, that had
gone over to the king of Babylon, and the remnant of the common people.

25:12. But of the poor of the land he left some dressers of vines and
husbandmen.

25:13. And the pillars of brass that were in the temple of the Lord,
and the bases, and the sea of brass, which was in the house of the
Lord, the Chaldees broke in pieces, and carried all the brass of them
to Babylon.

25:14. They took away also the pots of brass, and the mazers, and the
forks, and the cups, and the mortars, and all the vessels of brass,
with which they ministered.

25:15. Moreover also the censers, and the bowls, such as were of gold
in gold: and such as were of silver in silver, the general of the army
took away.

25:16. That is, two pillars, one sea, and the bases which Solomon had
made in the temple of the Lord: the brass of all these vessels was
without weight.

25:17. One pillar was eighteen cubits high: and the chapiter of brass,
which was upon it, was three cubits high: and the network, and the
pomegranates that were upon the chapiter of the pillar, were all of
brass: and the second pillar had the like adorning.

25:18. And the general of the army took Seraias, the chief priest, and
Sophonias, the second priest, and three doorkeepers:

25:19. And out of the city one eunuch, who was captain over the men of
war: and five men of them who had stood before the king, whom he found
in the city, and Sopher, the captain of the army, who exercised the
young soldiers of the people of the land: and threescore men of the
common people, who were found in the city:

25:20. These Nabuzardan, the general of the army, took away, and
carried them to the king of Babylon, to Reblatha.

25:21. And the king of Babylon smote them, and slew them at Reblatha,
in the land of Emath: so Juda was carried away out of their land.

25:22. But over the people that remained in the land of Juda, which
Nabuchodonosor, king of Babylon, had left, he gave the government to
Godolias, the son of Ahicam, the son of Saphan.

25:23. And when all the captains of the soldiers had heard this, they
and the men that were with them, to wit, that the king of Babylon had
made Godolias governor they came to Godolias to Maspha, Ismael, the son
of Nathanias, and Johanan, the son of Caree, and Saraia, the son of
Thanehumeth, the Netophathite, and Jezonias, the son of Maachathi, they
and their men.

25:24. And Godolias swore to them and to their men, saying: Be not
afraid to serve the Chaldees: stay in the land, and serve the king of
Babylon, and it shall be well with you.

25:25. But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ismael, the son
of Nathanias, the son of Elisama, of the seed royal came, and ten men
with him, and smote Godolias; so that he died: and also the Jews and
the Chaldees that were with him in Maspha.

25:26. And all the people, both little and great, and the captains of
the soldiers, rising up, went to Egypt, fearing the Chaldees.

25:27. And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the
captivity of Joachin, king of Juda, in the twelfth month, the seven and
twentieth day of the month: Evilmerodach, king of Babylon, in the year
that he began to reign, lifted up the head of Joachin, king of Juda,
out of prison.

25:28. And he spoke kindly to him: and he set his throne above the
throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon.

25:29. And he changed his garments which he had in prison, and he ate
bread always before him, all the days of his life.

25:30. And he appointed him a continual allowance, which was also given
him by the king, day by day, all the days of his life.

THE FIRST BOOK OF PARALIPOMENON

These Books are called by the Greek interpreters, Paralipomenon, that
is, of things left out, or omitted; because they are a kind of a
supplement of such things as were passed over in the books of the
Kings. The Hebrews call them Dibre Haijamim, that is, The words of the
days, or The Chronicles.--Not that they are the books which are so
often quoted in the Kings, under the title of the words of the days of
the kings of Israel, and of the kings of Juda: for the books of
Paralipomenon were written after the books of Kings: but because in all
probability they have been abridged from those ancient words of the
days, by Esdras or some other sacred writer.

1 Paralipomenon Chapter 1

The genealogy of the patriarchs down to Abraham: The posterity of
Abraham and of Esau.

1:1. Adam, Seth, Enos,

1:2. Cainan, Malaleel, Jared,

1:3. Henoc, Mathusale, Lamech,

1:4. Noe, Sem, Cham, and Japheth.

1:5. The sons of Japheth: Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan,
Thubal, Mosoch, Thiras.

1:6. And the sons of Gomer: Ascenez, and Riphath, and Thogorma.

1:7. And the sons of Javan: Elisa and Tharsis, Cethim and Dodanim.

1:8. The sons of Cham: Chus, and Mesrai, and Phut, and Chanaan.

1:9. And the sons of Chus: Saba, and Hevila, Sabatha, and Regma, and
Sabathaca. And the sons of Regma: Saba, and Dadan.

1:10. Now Chus begot Nemrod: he began to be mighty upon earth.

1:11. But Mesraim begot Ludim, and Anamim, and Laabim, and Nephtuim,

1:12. Phetrusim also, and Casluim: from whom came the Philistines, and
Caphtorim.

1:13. And Chanaan begot Sidon his firstborn, and the Hethite,

1:14. And the Jebusite, and the Amorrhite, and the Gergesite,

1:15. And the Hevite, and the Aracite, and the Sinite,

1:16. And the Aradian, and the Samarite, and the Hamathite.

1:17. The sons of Sem: Elam and Asur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram,
and Hus, and Hul, and Gether, and Mosoch.

1:18. And Arphaxad begot Sale, and Sale begot Heber.

1:19. And to Heber were born two sons, the name of the one was Phaleg,
because in his days the earth was divided; and the name of his brother
was Jectan.

1:20. And Jectan begot Elmodad, and Saleph, and Asarmoth, and Jare,

1:21. And Adoram, and Usal, and Decla,

1:22. And Hebal, and Abimael, and Saba,

1:23. And Ophir, and Hevila, and Jobab. All these are the sons of
Jectan.

1:24. Sem, Arphaxad, Sale,

1:25. Heber, Phaleg, Ragau,

1:26. Serug, Nachor, Thare,

1:27. Abram, this is Abraham.

1:28. And the sons of Abraham, Isaac and Ismahel.

1:29. And these are the generations of them. The firstborn of Ismahel,
Nabajoth, then Cedar, and Adbeel, and Mabsam,

1:30. And Masma, and Duma, Massa, Hadad, and Thema,

1:31. Jetur, Naphis, Cedma: these are the sons of Ismahel.

1:32. And the sons of Cetura, Abraham's concubine, whom she bore:
Zamran, Jecsan, Madan, Madian, Jesboc, and Sue. And the sons of Jecsan,
Saba, and Dadan. And the sons of Dadan: Assurim, and Latussim, and
Laomin.

Concubine. . .She was his lawful wife, but of an inferior degree.

1:33. And the sons of Madian: Epha, and Epher, and Henoch, and Abida,
and Eldaa. All these are the sons of Cetura.

1:34. And Abraham begot Isaac: and his sons were Esau and Israel.

1:35. The sons of Esau: Eliphaz, Rahuel, Jehus, Ihelom, and Core.

1:36. The sons of Eliphaz: Theman, Omar, Sephi, Gathan, Cenez, and by
Thamna, Amalec.

1:37. The sons of Rahuel: Nahath, Zara, Samma, Meza.

1:38. The sons of Seir: Lotan, Sobal, Sebeon, Ana, Dison, Eser, Disan.

1:39. The sons of Lotan: Hori, Homam. And the sister of Lotan was
Thamna.

1:40. The sons of Sobal: Alian, and Manahath, and Ebal, Sephi, and
Onam. The sons of Sebeon: Aia, and Ana. The son of Ana: Dison.

1:41. The sons of Dison: Hamram, and Eseban, and Jethran, and Charan.

1:42. The sons of Eser: Balaan, and Zavan, and Jacan. The sons of
Disan: Hus and Aran.

1:43. Now these are the kings that reigned in the land of Edom, before
there was a king over the children of Israel: Bale the son of Beor: and
the name of his city was Denaba.

1:44. And Bale died, and Jobab the son of Zare of Bosra, reigned in his
stead.

1:45. And when Jobab also was dead, Husam of the land of the Themanites
reigned in his stead.

1:46. And Husam also died, and Adad the son of Badad reigned in his
stead, and he defeated the Madianites in the land of Moab: the name of
his city was Avith.

1:47. And when Adad also was dead, Semla of Masreca reigned in his
stead.

1:48. Semla also died, and Saul of Rohoboth, which is near the river,
reigned in his stead.

1:49. And when Saul was dead, Balanan the son of Achobor reigned in his
stead.

1:50. He also died, and Adad reigned in his stead: and the name of his
city was Phau, and his wife was called Meetabel the daughter of Matred,
the daughter of Mezaab.

1:51. And after the death of Adad, there began to be dukes in Edom
instead of kings: duke Thamna, duke Alva, duke Jetheth,

1:52. Duke Oolibama, duke Ela, duke Phinon,

1:53. Duke Cenez, duke Theman, duke Mabsar,

1:54. Duke Magdiel, duke Hiram. These are the dukes of Edom.

1 Paralipomenon Chapter 2

The twelve tribes of Israel. The genealogy of Juda down to David. Other
genealogies of the tribe of Juda.

2:1. And these are the sons of Israel: Ruben, Simeon, Levi, Juda,
Issachar, and Zabulon,

2:2. Dan, Joseph, Benjamin, Nephtali, Gad, and Aser.

2:3. The sons of Juda: Her, Onan and Sela. These three were born to him
of the Chanaanitess the daughter of Sue. And Her the firstborn of Juda,
was wicked in the sight of the Lord, and he slew him.

2:4. And Thamar his daughter in law bore him Phares and Zara. So all
the sons of Juda were five.

2:5. And the sons of Phares, were Hesron and Hamul.

2:6. And the sons also of Zare: Zamri, and Ethan, and Eman, and
Chalchal, and Dara, five in all.

2:7. And the sons of Charmi: Achar, who troubled Israel, and sinned by
the theft of the anathema.

Achar. . .Alias Achan. Jos. 7.--Ibid. The anathema. . .The thing
devoted or accursed, viz., the spoils of Jericho.

2:8. The sons of Ethan: Azarias,

2:9. And the sons of Hesron that were born to him: Jerameel, and Ram,
and Calubi.

2:10. And Ram begot Aminadab, and Aminadab begot Nahasson, prince of
the children of Juda.

Ram. . .He is commonly called Aram. But it is to be observed here, once
for all, that it was a common thing among the Hebrews for the same
persons to have different names: and that it is not impossible among so
many proper names, as here occur in the first nine chapters of this
book, that the transcribers of the ancient Hebrew copies may have made
some slips in the orthography.

2:11. And Nahasson begot Salma, the father of Booz.

2:12. And Booz begot Obed, and Obed begot Isai.

2:13. And Isai begot Eliab his firstborn, the second Abinadab, the
third Simmaa,

2:14. The fourth, Nathanael, the fifth Raddai,

2:15. The sixth Asom, the seventh David.

2:16. And their sisters were Sarvia, and Abigail. The sons of Sarvia:
Abisai, Joab, and Asael, three.

2:17. And Abigail bore Amasa, whose father was Jether the Ismahelite.

2:18. And Caleb the son of Hesron took a wife named Azuba, of whom he
had Jerioth: and her sons were Jaser, and Sobab, and Ardon.

Caleb. . .Alias Calubi, ver. 9.

2:19. And when Azuba was dead, Caleb took to wife Ephrata: who bore him
Hur.

2:20. And Hur begot Uri: and Uri begot Bezeleel.

2:21. And afterwards Hesron went in to the daughter of Machir the
father of Galaad, and took her to wife when he was threescore years
old: and she bore him Segub.

2:22. And Segub begot Jair, and he had three and twenty cities in the
land of Galaad.

2:23. And he took Gessur, and Aram the towns of Jair, and Canath, and
the villages thereof, threescore cities. All these, the sons of Machir
father of Galaad.

2:24. And when Hesron was dead, Caleb went in to Ephrata. Hesron also
had to wife Abia who bore him Ashur the father of Thecua.

2:25. And the sons of Jerameel the firstborn of Hesron, were Ram his
firstborn, and Buna, and Aram, and Asom, and Achia.

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