The Holy Bible

Part 24 out of 30

Israel, in Juda and Benjamin:

11:4. Thus saith the Lord: You shall not go up, nor fight against your
brethren: let every man return to his own house, for by my will this
thing has been done. And when they heard the word of the Lord, they
returned, and did not go against Jeroboam,

11:5. And Roboam dwelt in Jerusalem, and built walled cities in Juda.

11:6. And he built Bethlehem, and Etam, and Thecue,

11:7. And Bethsur, and Socho, and Odollam,

11:8. And Geth, and Maresa, and Ziph,

11:9. And Aduram, and Lachis, and Azecha,

11:10. Saraa also, and Aialon, and Hebron, which are in Juda and
Benjamin, well fenced cities.

11:11. And when he had enclosed them with walls, he put in them
governors and storehouses of provisions, that is, of oil and of wine.

11:12. Moreover in every city he made an armoury of shields and spears,
and he fortified them with great diligence, and he reigned over Juda,
and Benjamin,

11:13. And the priests and Levites, that were in all Israel, came to
him out of all their seats,

11:14. Leaving their suburbs, and their possessions, and passing over
to Juda, and Jerusalem, because Jeroboam and his sons had cast them
off, from executing the priestly office to the Lord.

11:15. And he made to himself priests for the high places, and for the
devils, and for the calves which he had made.

11:16. Moreover out of all the tribes of Israel, whosoever gave their
heart to seek the Lord the God of Israel, came into Jerusalem to
sacrifice their victims before the Lord the God of their fathers.

11:17. And they strengthened the kingdom of Juda, and established
Roboam the son of Solomon for three years: for they walked in the ways
of David and of Solomon, only three years.

11:18. And Roboam took to wife Mahalath, the daughter of Jerimoth the
son of David: and Abihail the daughter of Eliab the son of Isai.

11:19. And they bore him sons Jehus, and Somorias, and Zoom.

11:20. And after her he married Maacha the daughter of Absalom, who
bore him Abia, and Ethai, and Ziza, and Salomith.

11:21. And Roboam loved Maacha the daughter of Absalom above all his
wives and concubines: for he had married eighteen wives, and threescore
concubines: and he begot eight and twenty sons, and threescore
daughters.

11:22. But he put at the head of them Abia the son of Maacha to be the
chief ruler over all his brethren: for he meant to make him king,

11:23. Because he was wiser and mightier than all his sons, and in all
the countries of Juda, and of Benjamin, and in all the walled cities:
and he gave them provisions in abundance, and he sought many wives.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 12

Roboam for his sins is delivered up into the hands of the king of
Egypt: who carrieth away all the treasures of the temple.

12:1. And when the kingdom of Roboam was strengthened and fortified, he
forsook the law of the Lord, and all Israel with him.

12:2. And in the fifth year of the reign of Roboam, Sesac king of Egypt
came up against Jerusalem (because they had sinned against the Lord)

12:3. With twelve hundred chariots and threescore thousand horsemen:
and the people were without number that came with him out of Egypt, to
wit, Libyans, and Troglodites, and Ethiopians.

12:4. And he took the strongest cities in Juda, and came to Jerusalem.

12:5. And Semeias the prophet came to Roboam, and to the princes of
Juda, that were gathered together in Jerusalem, fleeing from Sesac, and
he said to them: Thus saith the Lord: You have left me, and I have left
you in the hand of Sesac.

12:6. And the princes of Israel, and the king, being in a
consternation, said: The Lord is just.

12:7. And when the Lord saw that they were humbled, the word of the
Lord came to Semeias, saying: Because they are humbled, I will not
destroy them, and I will give them a little help, and my wrath shall
not fall upon Jerusalem by the hand of Sesac.

12:8. But yet they shall serve him, that they may know the difference
between my service, and the service of a kingdom of the earth.

12:9. So Sesac king of Egypt departed from Jerusalem, taking away the
treasures of the king's house, and he took all with him, and the golden
shields that Solomon had made,

12:10. Instead of which the king made brazen ones, and delivered them
to the captains of the shieldbearers, who guarded the entrance of the
palace.

12:11. And when the king entered into the house of the Lord, the
shieldbearers came and took them, and brought them back again to their
armoury.

12:12. But yet because they were humbled, the wrath of the Lord turned
away from them, and they were not utterly destroyed: for even in Juda
there were found good works.

12:13. King Roboam therefore was strengthened in Jerusalem, and
reigned: he was one and forty years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the Lord chose out
of all the tribes of Israel, to establish his name there: and the name
of his mother was Naama an Ammonitess.

12:14. But he did evil, and did not prepare his heart to seek the Lord.

12:15. Now the acts of Roboam first and last are written in the books
of Semeias the prophet, and of Addo the seer, and diligently recorded:
and there was war between Roboam and Jeroboam all their days.

12:16. And Roboam slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of
David. And Abia his son reigned in his stead.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 13

Abia's reign: his victory over Jeroboam.

13:1. In the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam, Abia reigned over Juda.

13:2. Three years he reigned in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was
Michaia, the daughter of Uriel of Gabaa: and there was war between Abia
and Jeroboam.

Michaia. . .Alias Maacha. Her father had also two names, viz., Absalom,
or Abessalom, and Uriel.

13:3. And when Abia had begun battle, and had with him four hundred
thousand most valiant and chosen men, Jeroboam put his army in array
against him, eight hundred thousand men, who were also chosen and most
valiant for war.

13:4. And Abia stood upon mount Semeron, which was in Ephraim, and
said: Hear me, O Jeroboam, and all Israel:

13:5. Do you not know that the Lord God of Israel gave to David the
kingdom over Israel for ever, to him and to his sons by a covenant of
salt?

A covenant of salt. . .That is, a firm and perpetual covenant. See Num.
18.19.

13:6. And Jeroboam the son of Nabat, the servant of Solomon the son of
David, rose up: and rebelled against his lord.

13:7. And there were gathered to him vain men, and children of Belial:
and they prevailed against Roboam the son of Solomon: for Roboam was
unexperienced, and of a fearful heart, and could not resist them.

13:8. And now you say that you are able to withstand the kingdom of the
Lord, which he possesseth by the sons of David, and you have a great
multitude of people, and golden calves, which Jeroboam hath made you
for gods.

13:9. And you have cast out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron,
and the Levites: and you have made you priests, like all the nations of
the earth: whosoever cometh and consecrateth his hand with a bullock of
the herd, and with seven rams, is made a priest of those who are no
gods.

13:10. But the Lord is our God, whom we forsake not, and the priests
who minister to the Lord are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites are in
their order.

13:11. And they offer holocausts to the Lord, every day, morning and
evening, and incense made according to the ordinance of the law, and
the loaves are set forth on a most clean table, and there is with us
the golden candlestick, and the lamps thereof, to be lighted always in
the evening: for we keep the precepts of the Lord our God, whom you
have forsaken.

13:12. Therefore God is the leader in our army, and his priests who
sound with trumpets, and resound against you: O children of Israel,
fight not against the Lord the God of your fathers, for it is not good
for you.

13:13. While he spoke these things, Jeroboam caused an ambushment to
come about behind him. And while he stood facing the enemies, he
encompassed Juda, who perceived it not, with his army.

13:14. And when Juda looked back, they saw the battle coming upon them
both before and behind, and they cried to the Lord: and the priests
began to sound with the trumpets.

13:15. And all the men of Juda shouted: and behold when they shouted,
God terrified Jeroboam, and all Israel that stood against Abia and
Juda.

13:16. And the children of Israel fled before Juda, and the Lord
delivered them into their hand.

13:17. And Abia and his people slew them with a great slaughter, and
there fell wounded of Israel five hundred thousand valiant men.

13:18. And the children of Israel were brought down, at that time, and
the children of Juda were exceedingly strengthened, because they had
trusted in the Lord the God of their fathers.

13:19. And Abia pursued after Jeroboam, and took cities from him,
Bethel and her daughters, and Jesana with her daughters, Ephron also
and her daughters.

13:20. And Jeroboam was not able to resist any more, in the days of
Abia: and the Lord struck him, and he died.

13:21. But Abia, being strengthened in his kingdom, took fourteen
wives: and begot two and twenty sons, and sixteen daughters.

13:22. And the rest of the acts of Abia, and of his ways and works, are
written diligently in the book of Addo the prophet.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 14

The reign of Asa: his victory over the Ethiopians.

14:1. And Abia slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city
of David: an Asa his son reigned in his stead: in his days the land was
quiet ten years.

14:2. And Asa did that which was good and pleasing in the sight of his
God, and he destroyed the altars of foreign worship, and the high
places.

14:3. And broke the statues, and cut down the groves.

14:4. And he commanded Juda to seek the Lord the God of their fathers,
and to do the law, and all the commandments.

14:5. And he took away out of all the cities of Juda the altars, and
temples, and reigned in peace.

14:6. He built also strong cities in Juda, for he was quiet, and there
had no wars risen in his time, the Lord giving peace.

14:7. And he said to Juda: Let us build these cities, and compass them
with walls, and fortify them with towers, and gates, and bars, while
all is quiet from wars, because we have sought the Lord the God of our
fathers, and he hath given us peace round about. So they built, and
there was no hinderance in building.

14:8. And Asa had in his army of men that bore shields and spears of
Juda three hundred thousand, and of Benjamin that bore shields and drew
bows, two hundred and eighty thousand, all these were most valiant men.

14:9. And Zara the Ethiopian came out against them with his army of ten
hundred thousand men, and with three hundred chariots: and he came as
far as Maresa.

14:10. And Asa went out to meet him, and set his army in array for
battle in the vale of Sephata, which is near Maresa:

14:11. And he called upon the Lord God, and said: Lord, there is no
difference with thee, whether thou help with few, or with many: help
us, O Lord our God: for with confidence in thee, and in thy name we are
come against this multitude. O Lord thou art our God, let not man
prevail against thee.

14:12. And the Lord terrified the Ethiopians before Asa and Juda: and
the Ethiopians fled.

14:13. And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them to
Gerara: and the Ethiopians fell even to utter destruction, for the Lord
slew them, and his army fought against them, and they were destroyed.
And they took abundance of spoils,

14:14. And they took all the cities round about Gerara: for a great
fear was come upon all men: and they pillaged the cities, and carried
off much booty.

14:15. And they destroyed the sheepcotes, and took an infinite number
of cattle, and of camels: and returned to Jerusalem.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 15

The prophecy of Azarias. Asa's covenant with God. He deposeth his
mother.

15:1. And the spirit of God came upon Azarias the son of Oded,

15:2. And he went out to meet Asa, and said to him: Hear ye me, Asa,
and all Juda and Benjamin: The Lord is with you, because you have been
with him. If you seek him, you shall find: but if you forsake him, he
will forsake you.

15:3. And many days shall pass in Israel, without the true God, and
without a priest a teacher, and without the law.

15:4. And when in their distress they shall return to the Lord the God
of Israel, and shall seek him, they shall find him.

15:5. At that time there shall be no peace to him that goeth out and
cometh in, but terrors on every side among all the inhabitants of the
earth.

15:6. For nation shall fight against nation, and city against city, for
the Lord will trouble them with all distress.

15:7. Do you therefore take courage, and let not your hands be
weakened: for there shall be a reward for your work.

15:8. And when Asa had heard the words, and the prophecy of Azarias the
son of Oded the prophet, he took courage, and took away the idols out
of all the land of Juda, and out of Benjamin, and out of the cities of
mount Ephraim, which he had taken, and he dedicated the altar of the
Lord, which was before the porch of the Lord.

15:9. And he gathered together all Juda and Benjamin, and the strangers
with them of Ephraim, and Manasses, and Simeon: for many were come over
to him out of Israel, seeing that the Lord his God was with him.

15:10. And when they were come to Jerusalem in the third month, in the
fifteenth year of the reign of Asa,

15:11. They sacrificed to the Lord in that day of the spoils, and of
the prey, that they had brought, seven hundred oxen, and seven thousand
rams.

15:12. And he went in to confirm as usual the covenant, that they
should seek the Lord the God of their fathers with all their heart, and
with all their soul.

15:13. And if any one, said he, seek not the Lord the God of Israel,
let him die, whether little or great, man or woman.

15:14. And they swore to the Lord with a loud voice with joyful
shouting, and with sound of trumpet, and sound of cornets,

15:15. All that were in Juda with a curse: for with all their heart
they swore, and with all their will they sought him, and they found
him, and the Lord gave them rest round about.

15:16. Moreover Maacha the mother of king Asa he deposed from the royal
authority, because she had made in a grove an idol of Priapus: and he
entirely destroyed it, and breaking it into pieces, burnt it at the
torrent Cedron.

15:17. But high places were left in Israel: nevertheless the heart of
Asa was perfect all his days.

15:18. And the things which his father had vowed, and he himself had
vowed, he brought into the house of the Lord, gold and silver, and
vessels of divers uses.

15:19. And there was no war unto the five and thirtieth year of the
kingdom of Asa.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 16

Asa is reproved for seeking help from the Syrians: his last acts and
death.

16:1. And in the six and thirtieth year of his kingdom, Baasa the king
of Israel came up against Juda, and built a wall about Rama, that no
one might safely go out or come in of the kingdom of Asa.

Six and thirtieth year of his kingdom. . .That is, of the kingdom of
Juda, taking the date of it from the beginning of the reign of Reboam.

16:2. Then Asa brought out silver and gold out of the treasures of the
house of the Lord, and of the king's treasures, and sent to Benadad
king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying:

16:3. There is a league between me and thee, as there was between my
father and thy father, wherefore I have sent thee silver and gold, that
thou mayst break thy league with Baasa king of Israel, and make him
depart from me.

16:4. And when Benadad heard this, he sent the captains of his armies
against the cities of Israel: and they took Ahion, and Dan, and
Abelmaim, and all the walled cities of Nephtali.

16:5. And when Baasa heard of it, he left off the building of Rama, and
interrupted his work.

16:6. Then king Asa took all Juda, and they carried away from Rama the
stones, and the timber that Baasa had prepared for the building: and he
built with them Gabaa, and Maspha.

16:7. At that time Hanani the prophet came to Asa king of Juda, and
said to him: Because thou hast had confidence in the king of Syria, and
not in the Lord thy God, therefore hath the army of the king of Syria
escaped out of thy hand.

16:8. Were not the Ethiopians, and the Libyans much more numerous in
chariots, and horsemen, and an exceeding great multitude: yet because
thou trustedst in the Lord, he delivered them into thy hand?

16:9. For the eyes of the Lord behold all the earth, and give strength
to those who with a perfect heart trust in him. Wherefore thou hast
done foolishly, and for this cause from this time wars shall arise
against thee.

16:10. And Asa was angry with the seer, and commanded him to be put in
prison: for he was greatly enraged because of this thing: and he put to
death many of the people at that time.

16:11. But the works of Asa the first and last are written in the book
of the kings of Juda and Israel.

16:12. And Asa fell sick in the nine and thirtieth year of his reign,
of a most violent pain in his feet, and yet in his illness he did not
seek the Lord, but rather trusted in the skill of physicians.

16:13. And he slept with his fathers: and he died in the one and
fortieth year of his reign.

16:14. And they buried him in his own sepulchre, which he had made for
himself in the city of David: and they laid him on his bed full of
spices and odoriferous ointments, which were made by the art of the
perfumers, and they burnt them over him with very great pomp.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 17

Josaphat's reign: his care for the instruction of his people: his
numerous forces.

17:1. And Josaphat his son reigned in his stead, and grew strong
against Israel.

17:2. And he placed numbers of soldiers in all the fortified cities of
Juda. And he put garrisons in the land of Juda, and in the cities of
Ephraim, which Asa his father had taken.

17:3. And the Lord was with Josaphat, because he walked in the first
ways of David his father: and trusted not in Baalim,

17:4. But in the God of his father, and walked in his commandments, and
not according to the sins of Israel.

17:5. And the Lord established the kingdom in his hand, and all Juda
brought presents to Josaphat: and he acquired immense riches, and much
glory.

17:6. And when his heart had taken courage for the ways of the Lord, he
took away also the high places and the groves out of Juda.

17:7. And in the third year of his reign, he sent of his princes
Benhail, and Abdias, and Zacharias, and Nathanael, and Micheas, to
teach in the cites of Juda:

17:8. And with them the Levites, Semeias, and Nathanias, and Zabadias,
and Asael, and Semiramoth, and Jonathan, and Adonias, and Tobias, and
Thobadonias Levites, and with them Elisama, and Joram priests.

17:9. And they taught the people in Juda, having with them the book of
the law of the Lord: and they went about all the cities of Juda, and
instructed the people.

17:10. And the fear of the Lord came upon all the kingdoms of the lands
that were round about Juda, and they durst not make war against
Josaphat.

17:11. The Philistines also brought presents to Josaphat, and tribute
in silver, and the Arabians brought him cattle, seven thousand seven
hundred rams, and as many he goats.

17:12. And Josaphat grew, and became exceeding great: and he built in
Juda houses like towers, and walled cities.

17:13. And he prepared many works in the cities of Juda: and he had
warriors, and valiant men in Jerusalem.

17:14. Of whom this is the number of the houses and families of every
one: in Juda captains of the army, Ednas the chief, and with him three
hundred thousand most valiant men.

17:15. After him Johanan the captain, and with him two hundred and
eighty thousand.

17:16. And after him was Amasias the son of Zechri, consecrated to the
Lord, and with him were two hundred thousand valiant men.

17:17. After him was Eliada valiant in battle, and with him two hundred
thousand armed with bow and shield.

17:18. After him also was Jozabad, and with him a hundred and eighty
thousand ready for war.

17:19. All these were at the hand of the king, beside others, whom he
had put in the walled cities, in all Juda.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 18

Josaphat accompanies Achab in his expedition against Ramoth; where
Achab is slain, as Micheas had foretold.

18:1. Now Josaphat was rich and very glorious, and was joined by
affinity to Achab.

18:2. And he went down to him after some years to Samaria: and Achab at
his coming killed sheep and oxen in abundance for him and the people
that came with him: and he persuaded him to go up to Ramoth Galaad.

18:3. And Achab king of Israel said to Josaphat king of Juda: Come with
me to Ramoth Galaad. And he answered him: Thou art as I am, and my
people as thy people, and we will be with thee in the war.

18:4. And Josaphat said to the king of Israel: Inquire, I beseech thee,
at present the word of the Lord.

18:5. So the king of Israel gathered together of the prophets four
hundred men, and he said to them: Shall we go to Ramoth Galaad to
fight, or shall we forbear? But they said: Go up, and God will deliver
into the king's hand.

18:6. And Josaphat said: Is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that
we may inquire also of him?

18:7. And the king of Israel said to Josaphat: There is one man, of
whom we may ask the will of the Lord: but I hate him, for he never
prophesieth good to me, but always evil: and it is Micheas the son of
Jemla. And Josaphat said: Speak not thus, O king.

18:8. And the king of Israel called one of the eunuchs, and said to
him: Call quickly Micheas the son of Jemla.

18:9. Now the king of Israel, and Josaphat king of Juda, both sat on
their thrones, clothed in royal robes, and they sat in the open court
by the gate of Samaria, and all the prophets prophesied before them.

18:10. And Sedecias the son of Chanaana made him horns of iron, and
said: Thus saith the Lord: With these shalt thou push Syria, till thou
destroy it.

18:11. And all the prophets prophesied in like manner, and said: Go up
to Ramoth Galaad, and thou shalt prosper, and the Lord will deliver
them into the king's hand.

18:12. And the messenger that went to call Micheas, said to him: Behold
the words of all the prophets with one mouth declare good to the king:
I beseech thee therefore let not thy word disagree with them, and speak
thou also good success.

18:13. And Micheas answered him: As the Lord liveth, whatsoever my God
shall say to me, that will I speak.

18:14. So he came to the king: and the king said to him: Micheas, shall
we go to Ramoth Galaad to fight, or forbear? And he answered him: Go
up, for all shall succeed prosperously, and the enemies shall be
delivered into your hands.

18:15. And the king said: I adjure thee again and again to say nothing
but the truth to me, in the name of the Lord.

18:16. Then he said: I saw all Israel scattered in the mountains, like
sheep without a shepherd: and the Lord said: These have no masters:
let every man return to his own house in peace.

18:17. And the king of Israel said to Josaphat: Did I not tell thee
that this man would not prophesy me any good, but evil?

18:18. Then he said: Hear ye therefore the word of the Lord: I saw the
Lord sitting on his throne, and all the army of heaven standing by him
on the right hand and on the left,

18:19. And the Lord said: Who shall deceive Achab king of Israel, that
he may go up and fall in Ramoth Galaad? And when one spoke in this
manner, and another otherwise:

Who shall deceive, etc. . .See the annotations, 3 Kings 22.

18:20. There came forth a spirit, and stood before the Lord, and said:
I will deceive him. And the Lord said to him: By what means wilt thou
deceive him?

18:21. And he answered: I will go out, and be a lying spirit in the
mouth of all his prophets. And the Lord said: Thou shalt deceive, and
shalt prevail: go out, and do so.

18:22. Now therefore behold the Lord hath put a spirit of lying in the
mouth of all thy prophets, and the Lord hath spoken evil against thee.

18:23. And Sedecias the son of Chanaana came, and struck Micheas on the
cheek and said: Which way went the spirit of the Lord from me, to speak
to thee?

18:24. And Micheas said: Thou thyself shalt see in that day, when thou
shalt go in from chamber to chamber, to hide thyself.

18:25. And the king of Israel commanded, saying: Take Micheas, and
carry him to Amon the governor of the city, and to Joas the son of
Amelech,

18:26. And say: Thus saith the king: Put this fellow in prison, and
give him bread and water in a small quantity till I return in peace.

18:27. And Micheas said: If thou return in peace, the Lord hath not
spoken by me. And he said: Hear, all ye people.

18:28. So the king of Israel and Josaphat king of Juda went up to
Ramoth Galaad.

18:29. And the king of Israel said to Josaphat: I will change my dress,
and so I will go to the battle, but put thou on thy own garments. And
the king of Israel having changed his dress, went to the battle.

18:30. Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of his cavalry,
saying: Fight ye not with small, or great, but with the king of Israel
only.

18:31. So when the captains of the cavalry saw Josaphat, they said:
This is the king of Israel. And they surrounded him to attack him: but
he cried to the Lord, and he helped him, and turned them away from him.

18:32. For when the captains of the cavalry saw, that he was not the
king of Israel, they left him.

18:33. And it happened that one of the people shot an arrow at a
venture, and struck the king of Israel between the neck and the
shoulders, and he said to his chariot man: Turn thy hand, and carry me
out of the battle, for I am wounded.

18:34. And the fight was ended that day: but the king of Israel stood
in his chariot against the Syrians until the evening, and died at the
sunset.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 19

Josaphat's charge to the judges and to the Levites.

19:1. And Josaphat king of Juda returned to his house in peace to
Jerusalem.

19:2. And Jehu the son of Hanani the seer met him, and said to him:
Thou helpest the ungodly, and thou art joined in friendship with them
that hate the Lord, and therefore thou didst deserve indeed the wrath
of the Lord:

19:3. But good works are found in thee, because thou hast taken away
the groves out of the land of Juda, and hast prepared thy heart to seek
the Lord the God of thy fathers.

19:4. And Josaphat dwelt at Jerusalem: and he went out again to the
people from Bersabee to mount Ephraim, and brought them back to the
Lord the God of their fathers.

19:5. And he set judges of the land in all the fenced cities of Juda,
in every place.

19:6. And charging the judges, he said: Take heed what you do: for you
exercise not the judgment of man, but of the Lord: and whatsoever you
judge, it shall redound to you.

19:7. Let the fear of the Lord be with you, and do all things with
diligence: for there is no iniquity with the Lord our God, nor respect
of persons, nor desire of gifts.

19:8. In Jerusalem also Josaphat appointed Levites, and priests and
chiefs of the families of Israel, to judge the judgment and the cause
of the Lord for the inhabitants thereof.

19:9. And he charged them, saying, Thus shall you do in the fear of the
Lord faithfully, and with a perfect heart.

19:10. Every cause that shall come to you of your brethren, that dwell
in their cities, between kindred and kindred, wheresoever there is
question concerning the law, the commandment, the ceremonies, the
justifications: shew it them, that they may not sin against the Lord,
and that wrath may not come upon you and your brethren: and so doing
you shall not sin.

19:11. And Amarias the priest your high priest shall be chief in the
things which regard God: and Zabadias the son of Ismahel, who is ruler
in the house of Juda, shall be over those matters which belong to the
king's office: and you have before you the Levites for masters, take
courage and do diligently, and the Lord will be with you in good
things.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 20

The Ammonites, Moabites, and Syrians combine against Josaphat: he
seeketh God's help by public prayer and fasting. A prophet foretelleth
that God will fight for his people: the enemies destroy one another.
Josaphat with his men gathereth the spoils. He reigneth in peace, but
his navy perisheth, for his society with wicked Ochozias.

20:1. After this the children of Moab, and the children of Ammon, and
with them of the Ammonites, were gathered together to fight against
Josaphat.

20:2. And there came messengers, and told Josaphat, saying: There
cometh a great multitude against thee from beyond the sea, and out of
Syria, and behold they are in Asasonthamar, which is Engaddi.

20:3. And Josaphat being seized with fear betook himself wholly to pray
to the Lord, and he proclaimed a fast for all Juda.

20:4. And Juda gathered themselves together to pray to the Lord: and
all came out of their cities to make supplication to him.

20:5. And Josaphat stood in the midst of the assembly of Juda, and
Jerusalem, in the house of the Lord before the new court,

20:6. And said: O Lord God of our fathers, thou art God in heaven, and
rulest over all the kingdoms and nations, in thy hand is strength and
power, and no one can resist thee.

20:7. Didst not thou our God kill all the inhabitants of this land
before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy
friend for ever?

20:8. And they dwelt in it, and built in it a sanctuary to thy name,
saying:

20:9. If evils fall upon us, the sword of judgment, or pestilence, or
famine, we will stand in thy presence before this house, in which thy
name is called upon: and we will cry to thee in our afflictions, and
thou wilt hear, and save us.

20:10. Now therefore behold the children of Ammon, and of Moab, and
mount Seir, through whose lands thou didst not allow Israel to pass,
when they came out of Egypt, but they turned aside from them, and slew
them not,

20:11. Do the contrary, and endeavour to cast us out of the possession
which thou hast delivered to us.

20:12. O our God, wilt thou not then judge them? as for us we have not
strength enough, to be able to resist this multitude, which cometh
violently upon us. But as we know not what to do, we can only turn our
eyes to thee.

20:13. And all Juda stood before the Lord with their little ones, and
their wives, and their children.

20:14. And Jahaziel the son of Zacharias, the son of Banaias, the son
of Jehiel, the son of Mathanias, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, was
there, upon whom the spirit of the Lord came in the midst of the
multitude,

20:15. And he said: Attend ye, all Juda, and you that dwell in
Jerusalem, and thou king Josaphat: Thus saith the Lord to you: Fear ye
not, and be not dismayed at this multitude: for the battle is not
yours, but God's.

20:16. To morrow you shall go down against them: for they will come up
by the ascent named Sis, and you shall find them at the head of the
torrent, which is over against the wilderness of Jeruel.

20:17. It shall not be you that shall fight, but only stand with
confidence, and you shall see the help of the Lord over you, O Juda,
and Jerusalem: fear ye not, nor be you dismayed: to morrow you shall go
out against them, and the Lord will be with you.

20:18. Then Josaphat, and Juda, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem
fell flat on the ground before the Lord, and adored him.

20:19. And the Levites of the sons of Caath, and of the sons of Core
praised the Lord the God of Israel with a loud voice, on high.

20:20. And they rose early in the morning, and went out through the
desert of Thecua: and as they were marching, Josaphat standing in the
midst of them, said: Hear me, ye men of Juda, and all the inhabitants
of Jerusalem: believe in the Lord your God, and you shall be secure:
believe his prophets, and all things shall succeed well.

20:21. And he gave counsel to the people, and appointed the singing men
of the Lord, to praise him by their companies, and to go before the
army, and with one voice to say: Give glory to the Lord, for his mercy
endureth for ever.

20:22. And when they began to sing praises, the Lord turned their
ambushments upon themselves, that is to say, of the children of Ammon,
and of Moab, and of mount Seir, who were come out to fight against
Juda, and they were slain.

20:23. For the children of Ammon, and of Moab, rose up against the
inhabitants of mount Seir, to kill and destroy them: and when they had
made an end of them, they turned also against one another, and
destroyed one another.

20:24. And when Juda came to the watch tower, that looketh toward the
desert, they saw afar off all the country, for a great space, full of
dead bodies, and that no one was left that could escape death.

20:25. Then Josaphat came, and all the people with him to take away the
spoils of the dead, and they found among the dead bodies, stuff of
various kinds, and garments, and most precious vessels: and they took
them for themselves, insomuch that they could not carry all, nor in
three days take away the spoils, the booty was so great.

20:26. And on the fourth day they were assembled in the valley of
Blessing: for there they blessed the Lord, and therefore they called
that place the valley of Blessing until this day.

20:27. And every man of Juda, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem
returned, and Josaphat at their head, into Jerusalem with great joy,
because the Lord had made them rejoice over their enemies.

20:28. And they came into Jerusalem with psalteries, and harps, and
trumpets into the house of the Lord.

20:29. And the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands
when they heard that the Lord had fought against the enemies of Israel.

20:30. And the kingdom of Josaphat was quiet, and God gave him peace
round about.

20:31. And Josaphat reigned over Juda, and he was five and thirty years
old, when he began to reign: and he reigned five and twenty years in
Jerusalem: and the name of his mother was Azuba the daughter of Selahi.

20:32. And he walked in the way of his father Asa and departed not from
it, doing the things that were pleasing before the Lord.

20:33. But yet he took not away the high places, and the people had not
yet turned their heart to the Lord the God of their fathers.

20:34. But the rest of the acts of Josaphat, first and last, are
written in the words of Jehu the son of Hanani, which he digested into
the books of the kings of Israel.

20:35. After these things Josaphat king of Juda made friendship with
Ochozias king of Israel, whose works were very wicked.

20:36. And he was partner with him in making ships, to go to Tharsis:
and they made the ships in Asiongaber.

20:37. And Eliezer the son of Dodau of Maresa prophesied to Josaphat,
saying: Because thou hast made a league with Ochozias, the Lord hath
destroyed thy works, and the ships are broken, and they could not go to
Tharsis.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 21

Joram's wicked reign: his punishment and death.

21:1. And Josaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with them in
the city of David: and Joram his son reigned in his stead.

21:2. And he had brethren the sons of Josaphat, Azarias, and Jahiel,
and Zacharias, and Azaria, and Michael, and Saphatias, all these were
the sons of Josaphat king of Juda.

21:3. And their father gave them great gifts of silver, and of gold,
and pensions, with strong cities in Juda: but the kingdom he gave to
Joram, because he was the eldest.

21:4. So Joram rose up over the kingdom of his father: and when he had
established himself, he slew all his brethren with the sword, and some
of the princes of Israel.

21:5. Joram was two and thirty years old when he began to reign: and he
reigned eight years in Jerusalem.

21:6. And he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, as the house of
Achab had done: for his wife was a daughter of Achab, and he did evil
in the sight of the Lord.

21:7. But the Lord would not destroy the house of David: because of the
covenant which he had made with him: and because he had promised to
give a lamp to him, and to his sons for ever.

21:8. In those days Edom revolted, from being subject to Juda, and made
themselves a king.

21:9. And Joram went over with his princes, and all his cavalry with
him, and rose in the night, and defeated the Edomites who had
surrounded him, and all the captains of his cavalry.

21:10. However Edom revolted, from being under the dominion of Juda
unto this day: at that time Lobna also revolted, from being under his
hand. For he had forsaken the Lord the God of his fathers.

21:11. Moreover he built also high places in the cities of Juda, and he
made the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication, and Juda to
transgress.

21:12. And there was a letter brought him from Eliseus the prophet, in
which it was written: Thus saith the Lord the God of David thy father:
Because thou hast not walked in the ways of Josaphat thy father nor in
the ways of Asa king of Juda,

21:13. But hast walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and hast
made Juda and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication,
imitating the fornication of the house of Achab, moreover also thou
hast killed thy brethren, the house of thy father, better men than
thyself,

21:14. Behold the Lord will strike thee with a great plague, with all
thy people, and thy children, and thy wives, and all thy substance.

21:15. And thou shalt be sick of a very grievous disease of thy bowels,
till thy vital parts come out by little and little every day.

21:16. And the Lord stirred up against Joram the spirit of the
Philistines, and of the Arabians, who border on the Ethiopians.

21:17. And they came up into the land of Juda, and wasted it, and they
carried away all the substance that was found in the king's house, his
sons also, and his wives: so that there was no son left him but
Joachaz, who was the youngest.

Joachaz. . .Alias Ochozias.

21:18. And besides all this the Lord struck him with an incurable
disease in his bowels.

21:19. And as day came after day, and time rolled on, two whole years
passed: then after being wasted with a long consumption, so as to void
his very bowels, his disease ended with his life. And he died of a most
wretched illness, and the people did not make a funeral for him
according to the manner of burning, as they had done for his ancestors.

21:20. He was two and thirty years old when he began his reign, and he
reigned eight years in Jerusalem. And he walked not rightly, and they
buried him in the city of David: but not in the sepulchres of the
kings.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 22

The reign and death of Ochozias. The tyranny of Athalia.

22:1. And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ochozias his youngest son
king in his place: for the rovers of the Arabians, who had broke in
upon the camp, had killed all that were his elder brothers. So Ochozias
the son of Joram king of Juda reigned.

22:2. Ochozias was forty-two years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned one year in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother was Athalia
the daughter of Amri.

Forty-two, etc. . .Divers Greek Bibles read thirty-two, agreeably to 4
Kings 8.17.

22:3. He also walked in the ways of the house of Achab: for his mother
pushed him on to do wickedly.

22:4. So he did evil in the sight of the Lord, as the house of Achab
did: for they were his counsellors after the death of his father, to
his destruction.

22:5. And he walked after their counsels. And he went with Joram the
son of Achab king of Israel, to fight against Hazael king of Syria, at
Ramoth Galaad: and the Syrians wounded Joram.

22:6. And he returned to be healed in Jezrahel: for he received many
wounds in the foresaid battle. And Ochozias the son of Joram king of
Juda, went down to visit Joram the son of Achab in Jezrahel where he
lay sick.

22:7. For it was the will of God against Ochozias that he should come
to Joram: and when he was come should go out also against Jehu the son
of Namsi, whom the Lord had anointed to destroy the house of Achab.

22:8. So when Jehu was rooting out the house of Achab, he found the
princes of Juda, and the sons of the brethren of Ochozias, who served
him, and he slew them.

22:9. And he sought for Ochozias himself, and took him lying hid in
Samaria: and when he was brought to him, he killed him, and they buried
him: because he was the son of Josaphat, who had sought the Lord with
all his heart. And there was no more hope that any one should reign of
the race of Ochozias.

22:10. For Athalia his mother, seeing that her son was dead, rose up,
and killed all the royal family of the house of Joram.

22:11. But Josabeth the king's daughter took Joas the son of Ochozias,
and stole him from among the king's sons that were slain. And she hid
him with his nurse in a bedchamber: now Josabeth that hid him, was
daughter of king Joram, wife of Joiada the high priest, and sister of
Ochozias, and therefore Athalia did not kill him.

22:12. And he was with them hid in the house of God six years, during
which Athalia reigned over the land.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 23

Joiada the high priest causeth Joas to be made king: Athalia to be
slain, and idolatry to be destroyed.

23:1. And in the seventh year Joiada being encouraged, took the
captains of hundreds, to wit, Azarias the son of Jeroham, and Ismahel
the son of Johanan, and Azarias the son of Obed, and Maasias the son of
Adaias, and Elisaphat the son of Zechri: and made a covenant with them.

23:2. And they went about Juda, and gathered together the Levites out
of all the cities of Juda, and the chiefs of the families of Israel,
and they came to Jerusalem.

23:3. And all the multitude made a covenant with the king in the house
of God: and Joiada said to them: Behold the king's son shall reign, as
the Lord hath said of the sons of David.

23:4. And this is the thing that you shall do:

23:5. A third part of you that come to the sabbath, of the priests, and
of the Levites, and of the porters shall be at the gates: and a third
part at the king's house: and a third at the gate that is called the
Foundation: but let all the rest of the people be in the courts of the
house of the Lord.

To the sabbath. . .That is, to perform in your weeks the functions of
your office, or the weekly watches.

23:6. And let no one come into the house of the Lord, but the priests,
and they that minister of the Levites: let them only come in, because
they are sanctified: and let all the rest of the people keep the
watches of the Lord.

23:7. And let the Levites be round about the king, every man with his
arms; and if any other come into the temple, let him be slain; and let
them be with the king, both coming in, and going out.

23:8. So the Levites, and all Juda did according to all that Joiada the
high priest had commanded: and they took every one his men that were
under him, and that came in by the course of the sabbath, with those
who had fulfilled the sabbath, and were to go out. For Joiada the high
priest permitted not the companies to depart, which were accustomed to
succeed one another every week.

23:9. And Joiada the priest gave to the captains the spears, and the
shields, and targets of king David, which he had dedicated in the house
of the Lord.

23:10. And he set all the people with swords in their hands from the
right side of the temple, to the left side of the temple, before the
altar, and the temple, round about the king.

23:11. And they brought out the king's son, and put the crown upon him,
and the testimony, and gave him the law to hold in his hand, and they
made him king: and Joiada the high priest and his sons anointed him:
and they prayed for him, and said: God save the king.

23:12. Now when Athalia heard the noise of the people running and
praising the king, she came in to the people, into the temple of the
Lord.

23:13. And when she saw the king standing upon the step in the
entrance, and the princes, and the companies about him, and all the
people of the land rejoicing, and sounding with trumpets, and playing
on instruments of divers kinds, and the voice of those that praised,
she rent her garments, and said: Treason, treason.

23:14. And Joiada the high priest going out to the captains, and the
chiefs of the army, said to them: Take her forth without the precinct
of the temple, and when she is without let her be killed with the
sword. For the priest commanded that she should not be killed in the
house of the Lord.

23:15. And they laid hold on her by the neck: and when she was come
within the horse gate of the palace, they killed her there.

23:16. And Joiada made a covenant between himself and all the people,
and the king, that they should be the people of the lord.

23:17. And all the people went into the house of Baal, and destroyed
it: and they broke down his altars and his idols: and they slew Mathan
the priest of Baal before the altars.

23:18. And Joiada appointed overseers in the house of the Lord, under
the hands of the priests, and the Levites, whom David had distributed
in the house of the Lord: to offer holocausts to the Lord, as it is
written in the law of Moses, with joy and singing, according to the
disposition of David.

23:19. He appointed also porters in the gates of the house of the Lord,
that none who was unclean in any thing should enter in.

23:20. And he took the captains of hundreds, and the most valiant men,
and the chiefs of the people, and all the people of the land, and they
brought down the king from the house of the Lord, and brought him
through the upper gate into the king's house, and set him on the royal
throne.

23:21. And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet:
but Athalia was slain with the sword.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 24

Joas reigneth well all the days of Joiada: afterwards falleth into
idolatry and causeth Zacharias to be slain. He is slain himself by his
servants.

24:1. Joas was seven years old when he began to reign: and he reigned
forty years in Jerusalem: the name of his mother was Sebia of Bersabee.

24:2. And he did that which is good before the Lord all the days of
Joiada the priest.

24:3. And Joiada took for him two wives, by whom he had sons and
daughters.

24:4. After this Joas had a mind to repair the house of the Lord.

24:5. And he assembled the priests, and the Levites, and said to them:
Go out to the cities of Juda, and gather of all Israel money to repair
the temple of your God, from year to year: and do this with speed: but
the Levites were negligent.

24:6. And the king called Joiada the chief, and said to him: Why hast
thou not taken care to oblige the Levites to bring in out of Juda and
Jerusalem the money that was appointed by Moses the servant of the Lord
for all the multitude of Israel to bring into the tabernacle of the
testimony?

24:7. For that wicked woman Athalia, and her children have destroyed
the house of God, and adorned the temple of Baal with all the things
that had been dedicated in the temple of the Lord.

24:8. And the king commanded, and they made a chest: and set it by the
gate of the house of the Lord on the outside.

24:9. And they made a proclamation in Juda and Jerusalem, that every
man should bring to the Lord the money which Moses the servant of God
appointed for all Israel, in the desert.

24:10. And all the princes, and all the people rejoiced: and going in
they contributed and cast so much into the chest of the Lord, that it
was filled.

24:11. And when it was time to bring the chest before the king by the
hands of the Levites, (for they saw there was much money,) the king's
scribe, and he whom the high priest had appointed went in: and they
poured out the money that was in the chest: and they carried back the
chest to its place: and thus they did from day to day, and there was
gathered an immense sum of money.

24:12. And the king and Joiada gave it to those who were over the works
of the house of the Lord: but they hired with it stonecutters, and
artificers of every kind of work to repair the house of the Lord: and
such as wrought in iron and brass, to uphold what began to be falling.

24:13. And the workmen were diligent, and the breach of the walls was
closed up by their hands, and they set up the house of the Lord in its
former state, and made it stand firm.

24:14. And when they had finished all the works, they brought the rest
of the money before the king and Joiada: and with it were made vessels
for the temple for the ministry, and for holocausts and bowls, and
other vessels of gold and silver: and holocausts were offered in the
house of the Lord continually all the days of Joiada.

24:15. But Joiada grew old and was full of days, and died when he was a
hundred and thirty years old.

24:16. And they buried him in the city of David among the kings,
because he had done good to Israel, and to his house.

24:17. And after the death of Joiada, the princes of Juda went in, and
worshipped the king: and he was soothed by their services and hearkened
to them.

24:18. And they forsook the temple of the Lord the God of their
fathers, and served groves and idols, and wrath came upon Juda and
Jerusalem for this sin.

24:19. And he sent prophets to them to bring them back to the Lord, and
they would not give ear when they testified against them.

24:20. The spirit of God then came upon Zacharias the son of Joiada the
priest, and he stood in the sight of the people, and said to them: Thus
saith the Lord God: Why transgress you the commandment of the Lord
which will not be for your good, and have forsaken the Lord, to make
him forsake you?

24:21. And they gathered themselves together against him, and stoned
him at the king's commandment in the court of the house of the Lord.

24:22. And king Joas did not remember the kindness that Joiada his
father had done to him, but killed his son. And when he died, he said:
The Lord see, and require it.

24:23. And when a year was come about, the army of Syria came up
against him: and they came to Juda and Jerusalem, and killed all the
princes of the people, and they sent all the spoils to the king of
Damascus.

24:24. And whereas there came a very small number of the Syrians, the
Lord delivered into their hands an infinite multitude, because they had
forsaken the Lord the God of their fathers: and on Joas they executed
shameful judgments.

24:25. And departing they left him in great diseases: and his servants
rose up against him, for revenge of the blood of the son of Joiada the
priest, and they slew him in his bed, and he died: and they buried him
in the city of David, but not in the sepulchres of the kings.

24:26. Now the men that conspired against him were Zabad the son of
Semmaath an Ammonitess, and Jozabad the son of Semarith a Moabitess.

24:27. And concerning his sons, and the sum of money which was gathered
under him, and the repairing the house of God, they are written more
diligently in the book of kings: and Amasias his son reigned in his
stead.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 25

Amasias' reign: he beginneth well, but endeth ill: he is overthrown by
Joas, and slain by his people.

25:1. Amasias 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 Joadan of Jerusalem.

25:2. And he did what was good in the sight of the Lord: but yet not
with a perfect heart.

25:3. And when he saw himself strengthened in his kingdom, he put to
death the servants that had slain the king his father.

25:4. But he slew not their children, as it is written in the book of
the law of Moses, where the Lord commanded, saying: The fathers shall
not be slain for the children, nor the children for their fathers, but
every man shall die for his own sin.

25:5. Amasias therefore gathered Juda together, and appointed them by
families, and captains of thousands and of hundreds in all Juda, and
Benjamin: and he numbered them from twenty years old and upwards, and
found three hundred thousand young men that could go out to battle, and
could hold the spear and shield.

25:6. He hired also of Israel a hundred thousand valiant men, for a
hundred talents of silver.

25:7. But a man of God came to him, and said: O king, let not the army
of Israel go out with thee, for the Lord is not with Israel, and all
the children of Ephraim:

25:8. And if thou think that battles consist in the strength of the
army, God will make thee to be overcome by the enemies: for it
belongeth to God both to help, and to put to flight.

25:9. And Amasias said to the man of God: What will then become of the
hundred talents which I have given to the soldiers of Israel? and the
man of God answered him: The Lord is rich enough to be able to give
thee much more than this.

25:10. Then Amasias separated the army, that came to him out of
Ephraim, to go home again: but they being much enraged against Juda,
returned to their own country.

25:11. And Amasias taking courage led forth his people, and went to the
vale of saltpits, and slew of the children of Seir ten thousand.

25:12. And other ten thousand men the sons of Juda took, and brought to
the steep of a certain rock, and cast them down headlong from the top,
and they all were broken to pieces.

25:13. But that army which Amasias had sent back, that they should not
go with him to battle, spread themselves among the cities of Juda, from
Samaria to Beth-horon, and having killed three thousand took away much
spoil.

25:14. But Amasias after he had slain the Edomites, set up the gods of
the children of Seir, which he had brought thence, to be his gods, and
adored them, and burnt incense to them.

25:15. Wherefore the Lord being angry against Amasias, sent a prophet
to him, to say to him: Why hast thou adored gods that have not
delivered their own people out of thy hand?

25:16. And when he spoke these things, he answered him: Art thou the
king's counsellor? be quiet, lest I kill thee. And the prophet
departing, said: I know that God is minded to kill thee, because thou
hast done this evil, and moreover hast not hearkened to my counsel.

25:17. Then Amasias king of Juda taking very bad counsel, sent to Joas
the son of Joachaz the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying: Come, let
us see one another.

25:18. But he sent back the messengers, saying: The thistle that is in
Libanus, sent to the cedar in Libanus, saying: Give thy daughter to my
son to wife: and behold the beasts that were in the wood of Libanus
passed by and trod down the thistle.

25:19. Thou hast said: I have overthrown Edom, and therefore thy heart
is lifted up with pride: stay at home, why dost thou provoke evil
against thee, that both thou shouldst fall and Juda with thee.

25:20. Amasias would not hearken to him, because it was the Lord's will
that he should be delivered into the hands of enemies, because of the
gods of Edom.

25:21. So Joas king of Israel went up, and they presented themselves to
be seen by one another: and Amasias king of Juda was in Bethsames of
Juda:

25:22. And Juda fell before Israel, and they fled to their dwellings.

25:23. And Joas king of Israel took Amasias king of Juda, the son of
Joas, the son of Joachaz, in Bethsames, and brought him to Jerusalem:
and broke down the walls thereof from the gate of Ephraim, to the gate
of the corner, four hundred cubits.

25:24. And he took all the gold, and silver, and all the vessels, that
he found in the house of God, and with Obededom, and in the treasures
of the king's house, moreover also the sons of the hostages, he brought
back to Samaria.

25:25. And Amasias the son of Joas king of Juda lived, after the death
of Joas the son of Joachaz king of Israel, fifteen years.

25:26. Now the rest of the acts of Amasias, the first and last, are
written in the book of the kings of Juda and Israel.

25:27. And after he revolted from the Lord, they made a conspiracy
against him in Jerusalem. And he fled into Lachis, and they sent, and
killed him there.

25:28. And they brought him back upon horses, and buried him with his
fathers in the city of David.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 26

Ozias reigneth prosperously, till he invadeth the priests' office, upon
which he is struck with a leprosy.

26:1. And all the people of Juda took his son Ozias, who was sixteen
years old, and made him king in the room of Amasias his father.

26:2. He built Ailath, and restored it to the dominion of Juda, after
that the king slept with his fathers.

26:3. Ozias 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.

26:4. And he did that which was right in the eyes of the Lord,
according to all that Amasias his father had done.

26:5. And he sought the Lord in the days of Zacharias that understood
and saw God: and as long as he sought the Lord, he directed him in all
things.

26:6. Moreover he went forth and fought against the Philistines, and
broke down the wall of Geth, and the wall of Jabnia, and the wall of
Azotus: and he built towns in Azotus, and among the Philistines.

26:7. And God helped him against the Philistines, and against the
Arabians, that dwelt in Gurbaal, and against the Ammonites.

26:8. And the Ammonites gave gifts to Ozias: and his name was spread
abroad even to the entrance of Egypt for his frequent victories.

26:9. And Ozias built towers in Jerusalem over the gate of the corner,
and over the gate of the valley, and the rest, in the same side of the
wall, and fortified them.

26:10. And he built towers in the wilderness, and dug many cisterns,
for he had much cattle both in the plains, and in the waste of the
desert: he had also vineyards and dressers of vines in the mountains,
and in Carmel: for he was a man that loved husbandry.

26:11. And the army of his fighting men, that went out to war, was
under the hand of Jehiel the scribe, and Maasias the doctor, and under
the hand of Henanias, who was one of the king's captains.

26:12. And the whole number of the chiefs by the families of valiant
men were two thousand six hundred.

26:13. And the whole army under them three hundred and seven thousand
five hundred: who were fit for war, and fought for the king against the
enemy.

26:14. And Ozias prepared for them, that is, for the whole army,
shields, and spears, and helmets, and coats of mail, and bows, and
slings to cast stones.

26:15. And he made in Jerusalem engines of diverse kinds, which he
placed in the towers, and in the corners of the walls, to shoot arrows,
and great stones: and his name went forth far abroad, for the Lord
helped him, and had strengthened him.

26:16. But when he was made strong, his heart was lifted up to his
destruction, and he neglected the Lord his God: and going into the
temple of the Lord, he had a mind to burn incense upon the altar of
incense.

26:17. And immediately Azarias the priest going in after him, and with
him fourscore priests of the Lord, most valiant men,

26:18. Withstood the king and said: It doth not belong to thee, Ozias,
to burn incense to the Lord, but to the priests, that is, to the sons
of Aaron, who are consecrated for this ministry: go out of the
sanctuary, do not despise: for this thing shall not be accounted to thy
glory by the Lord God.

26:19. And Ozias was angry, and holding in his hand the censer to burn
incense, threatened the priests. And presently there rose a leprosy in
his forehead before the priests, in the house of the Lord at the altar
of incense.

26:20. And Azarias the high priest, and all the rest of the priests
looked upon him, and saw the leprosy in his forehead, and they made
haste to thrust him out. Yea himself also being frightened, hasted to
go out, because he had quickly felt the stroke of the Lord.

26:21. And Ozias the king was a leper unto the day of his death, and he
dwelt in a house apart being full of the leprosy, for which he had been
cast out of the house of the Lord. And Joatham his son governed the
king's house, and judged the people of the land.

26:22. But the rest of the acts of Ozias first and last were written by
Isaias the son of Amos, the prophet.

26:23. And Ozias slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the
field of the royal sepulchres, because he was a leper: and Joatham his
son reigned in his stead.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 27

Joatham's good reign.

27:1. Joatham 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.

27:2. And he did that which was right before the Lord, according to all
that Ozias his father had done, only that he entered not into the
temple of the Lord, and the people still transgressed.

27:3. He built the high gate of the house of the Lord, and on the wall
of Ophel he built much.

27:4. Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Juda, and castles
and towers in the forests.

27:5. He fought against the king of the children of Ammon, and overcame
them, and the children of Ammon gave him at that time a hundred talents
of silver, and ten thousand measures of wheat, and as many measures of
barley: so much did the children of Ammon give him in the second and
third year.

27:6. And Joatham was strengthened, because he had his way directed
before the Lord his God.

27:7. Now the rest of the acts of Joatham, and all his wars, and his
works, are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Juda.

27:8. He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and he
reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.

27:9. And Joatham slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the
city of David: and Achaz his son reigned in his stead.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 28

The wicked and unhappy reign of Achaz.

28:1. Achaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned
sixteen years in Jerusalem: he did not that which was right in the
sight of the Lord as David his father had done,

28:2. But walked in the ways of the kings of Israel; moreover also he
cast statues for Baalim.

28:3. It was he that burnt incense in the valley of Benennom, and
consecrated his sons in the fire according to the manner of the
nations, which the Lord slew at the coming of the children of Israel.

28:4. He sacrificed also, and burnt incense in the high places, and on
the hills, and under every green tree.

28:5. And the Lord his God delivered him into the hands of the king of
Syria, who defeated him, and took a great booty out of his kingdom, and
carried it to Damascus: he was also delivered into the hands of the
king of Israel, who overthrew him with a great slaughter.

28:6. For Phacee the son of Romelia slew of Juda a hundred and twenty
thousand in one day, all valiant men, because they had forsaken the
Lord the God of their fathers.

28:7. At the same time Zechri a powerful man of Ephraim, slew Maasias
the king's son, and Ezricam the governor of his house, and Elcana who
was next to the king.

28:8. And the children of Israel carried away of their brethren two
hundred thousand women, boys, and girls, and an immense booty: and they
brought it to Samaria.

28:9. At that time there was a prophet of the Lord there, whose name
was Oded: and he went out to meet the army that came to Samaria, and
said to them: Behold the Lord the God of your fathers being angry with
Juda, hath delivered them into your hands, and you have butchered them
cruelly, so that your cruelty hath reached up to heaven.

28:10. Moreover you have a mind to keep under the children of Juda and
Jerusalem for your bondmen and bondwomen, which ought not to be done:
for you have sinned in this against the Lord your God.

28:11. But hear ye my counsel, and release the captives that you have
brought of your brethren, because a great indignation of the Lord
hangeth over you.

28:12. Then some of the chief men of the sons of Ephraim, Azarias the
son of Johanan, Barachias the son of Mosollamoth, Ezechias the son of
Sellum, and Amasa the son of Adali, stood up against them that came
from the war.

28:13. And they said to them: You shall not bring in the captives
hither, lest we sin against the Lord. Why will you add to our sins, and
heap up upon our former offences? for the sin is great, and the fierce
anger of the Lord hangeth over Israel.

28:14. So the soldiers left the spoils, and all that they had taken,
before the princes and all the multitude.

28:15. And the men, whom we mentioned above, rose up and took the
captives, and with the spoils clothed all them that were naked: and
when they had clothed and shod them, and refreshed them with meat and
drink, and anointed them because of their labour, and had taken care of
them, they set such of them as could not walk, and were feeble, upon
beasts, and brought them to Jericho the city of palm trees to their
brethren, and they returned to Samaria.

28:16. At that time king Achaz sent to the king of the Assyrians asking
help.

28:17. And the Edomites came and slew many of Juda, and took a great
booty.

28:18. The Philistines also spread themselves among the cities of the
plains, and to the south of Juda: and they took Bethsames, and Aialon,
and Gaderoth, and Socho, and Thamnan, and Gamzo, with their villages,
and they dwelt in them.

28:19. For the Lord had humbled Juda because of Achaz the king of Juda,
for he had stripped it of help, and had contemned the Lord.

For he had stripped it of help. . .That is, Achaz stripped the kingdom
of Juda of the divine assistance by his wickedness, and by his
introducing idolatry.

28:20. And he brought against him Thelgathphalnasar king of the
Assyrians, who also afflicted him, and plundered him without any
resistance.

28:21. And Achaz stripped the house of the Lord, and the house of the
kings, and of the princes, and gave gifts to the king of the Assyrians,
and yet it availed him nothing.

28:22. Moreover also in the time of his distress he increased contempt
against the Lord: king Achaz himself by himself,

28:23. Sacrificed victims to the gods of Damascus that struck him, and
he said: The gods of the kings of Syria help them, and I will appease
them with victims, and they will help me; whereas on the contrary they
were the ruin of him, and of all Israel.

28:24. Then Achaz having taken away all the vessels of the house of
God, and broken them, shut up the doors of the temple of God, and made
himself altars in all the corners of Jerusalem.

28:25. And in all the cities of Juda he built altars to burn
frankincense, and he provoked the Lord the God of his fathers to wrath.

28:26. But the rest of his acts, and all his works first and last are
written in the book of the kings of Juda and Israel.

28:27. And Achaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the
city of Jerusalem: for they received him not into the sepulchres of the
kings of Israel. And Ezechias his son reigned in his stead.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 29

Ezechias purifieth the temple, and restoreth religion.

29:1. Now Ezechias began to reign, when he was five and twenty years
old, and he reigned nine and twenty years in Jerusalem: the name of his
mother was Abia, the daughter of Zacharias.

29:2. And he did that which was pleasing in the sight of the Lord,
according to all that David his father had done.

29:3. In the first year and month of his reign he opened the doors of
the house of the Lord, and repaired them.

29:4. And he brought the priests and the Levites, and assembled them in
the east street.

29:5. And he said to them: Hear me, ye Levites, and be sanctified,
purify the house of the Lord the God of your fathers, and take away all
filth out of the sanctuary.

29:6. Our fathers have sinned and done evil in the sight of the Lord
God, forsaking him: they have turned away their faces from the
tabernacle of the Lord, and turned their backs.

29:7. They have shut up the doors that were in the porch, and put out
the lamps, and have not burnt incense, nor offered holocausts in the
sanctuary of the God of Israel.

29:8. Therefore the wrath of the Lord hath been stirred up against Juda
and Jerusalem, and he hath delivered them to trouble, and to
destruction, and to be hissed at, as you see with your eyes.

29:9. Behold, our fathers are fallen by the sword, our sons, and our
daughters, and wives are led away captives for this wickedness.

29:10. Now therefore I have a mind that we make a covenant with the
Lord the God of Israel, and he will turn away the wrath of his
indignation from us.

29:11. My sons, be not negligent: the Lord hath chosen you to stand
before him, and to minister to him, and to worship him, and to burn
incense to him.

29:12. Then the Levites arose, Mahath the son of Amasai, and Joel the
son of Azarias, of the sons of Caath: and of the sons of Merari, Cis
the son of Abdi, and Azarias the son of Jalaleel. And of the sons of
Gerson, Joah the son of Zemma, and Eden the son of Joah.

29:13. And of the sons of Elisaphan, Samri, and Jahiel. Also of the
sons of Asaph, Zacharias, and Mathanias.

29:14. And of the sons of Heman, Jahiel, and Semei: and of the sons of
Idithun, Semeias, and Oziel.

29:15. And they gathered together their brethren, and sanctified
themselves, and went in according to the commandment of the king, and
the precept of the Lord, to purify the house of God.

29:16. And the priests went into the temple of the Lord to sanctify it,
and brought out all the uncleanness that they found within to the
entrance of the house of the Lord, and the Levites took it away, and
carried it out abroad to the torrent Cedron.

29:17. And they began to cleanse on the first day of the first month,
and on the eighth day of the same month they came into the porch of the
temple of the Lord, and they purified the temple in eight days, and on
the sixteenth day of the same month they finished what they had begun.

29:18. And they went in to king Ezechias, and said to him: We have
sanctified all the house of the Lord, and the altar of holocaust, and
the vessels thereof, and the table of proposition with all its vessels,

29:19. And all the furniture of the temple, which king Achaz in his
reign had defiled, after his transgression; and behold they are all set
forth before the altar of the Lord.

29:20. And king Ezechias rising early, assembled all the rulers of the
city, and went up into the house of the Lord:

29:21. And they offered together seven bullocks, and seven rams, and
seven lambs, and seven he goats for sin, for the kingdom, for the
sanctuary, for Juda: and he spoke to the priests the sons of Aaron, to
offer them upon the altar of the Lord.

29:22. Therefore they killed the bullocks, and the priests took the
blood, and poured it upon the altar; they killed also the rams, and
their blood they poured also upon the altar, and they killed the lambs,
and poured the blood upon the altar.

29:23. And they brought the he goats for sin before the king, and the
whole multitude, and they laid their hand upon them:

29:24. And the priests immolated them, and sprinkled their blood before
the altar for an expiation of all Israel: for the king had commanded
that the holocaust and the sin offering should be made for all Israel.

29:25. And he set the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals,
and psalteries, and harps according to the regulation of David the
king, and of Gad the seer, and of Nathan the prophet: for it was the
commandment of the Lord by the hand of his prophets.

29:26. And the Levites stood, with the instruments of David, and the
priests with trumpets.

29:27. And Ezechias commanded that they should offer holocausts upon
the altar: and when the holocausts were offered, they began to sing
praises to the Lord, and to sound with trumpets, and divers instruments
which David the king of Israel had prepared.

29:28. And all the multitude adored, and the singers, and the
trumpeters, were in their office till the holocaust was finished.

29:29. And when the oblation was ended, the king, and all that were
with him bowed down and adored.

29:30. And Ezechias and the princes commanded the Levites to praise the
Lord with the words of David, and Asaph the seer: and they praised him
with great joy, and bowing the knee adored.

29:31. And Ezechias added, and said: You have filled your hands to the
Lord, come and offer victims, and praises in the house of the Lord. And
all the multitude offered victims, and praises, and holocausts with a
devout mind.

29:32. And the number of the holocausts which the multitude offered,
was seventy bullocks, a hundred rams, and two hundred lambs.

29:33. And they consecrated to the Lord six hundred oxen, and three
thousand sheep.

29:34. But the priests were few, and were not enough to flay the
holocausts: wherefore the Levites their brethren helped them, till the
work was ended, and priests were sanctified, for the Levites are
sanctified with an easier rite than the priests.

29:35. So there were many holocausts, and the fat of peace offerings,
and the libations of holocausts: and the service of the house of the
Lord was completed.

29:36. And Ezechias, and all the people rejoiced because the ministry
of the Lord was accomplished. For the resolution of doing this thing
was taken suddenly.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 30

Ezechias inviteth all Israel to celebrate the pasch; the solemnity is
kept fourteen days.

30:1. And Ezechias sent to all Israel and Juda: and he wrote letters to
Ephraim and Manasses, that they should come to the house of the Lord in
Jerusalem, and keep the phase to the Lord the God of Israel,

30:2. For the king, taking counsel, and the princes, and all the
assembly of Jerusalem, decreed to keep the phase the second month.

30:3. For they could not keep it in its time; because there were not
priests enough sanctified, and the people was not as yet gathered
together to Jerusalem.

The host of heaven. . .The sun, moon, and stars.

30:4. And the thing pleased the king, and all the people.

30:5. And they decreed to send messengers to all Israel from Bersabee
even to Dan, that they should come, and keep the phase to the Lord the
God of Israel in Jerusalem: for many had not kept it as it is
prescribed by the law.

30:6. And the posts went with letters by commandment of the king, and
his princes, to all Israel and Juda, proclaiming according to the
king's orders: Ye children of Israel, turn again to the Lord the God of
Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Israel: and he will return to the remnant
of you that have escaped the hand of the king of the Assyrians.

30:7. Be not like your fathers, and brethren, who departed from the
Lord the God of their fathers, and he hath given them up to
destruction, as you see.

30:8. Harden not your necks, as your fathers did: yield yourselves to
the Lord, and come to his sanctuary, which he hath sanctified forever:
serve the Lord the God of your fathers, and the wrath of his
indignation shall be turned away from you.

30:9. For if you turn again to the Lord, your brethren, and children
shall find mercy before their masters, that have led them away captive,
and they shall return into this land: for the Lord your God is
merciful, and will not turn away his face from you, if you return to
him.

30:10. So the posts went speedily from city to city, through the land
of Ephraim, and of Manasses, even to Zabulon, whilst they laughed at
them and mocked them.

30:11. Nevertheless some men of Aser, and of Manasses, and of Zabulon,
yielding to the counsel, came to Jerusalem.

30:12. But the hand of God was in Juda, to give them one heart to do
the word of the Lord, according to the commandment of the king, and of
the princes.

30:13. And much people were assembled to Jerusalem to celebrate the
solemnity of the unleavened bread in the second month:

30:14. And they arose and destroyed the altars that were in Jerusalem,
and took away all things in which incense was burnt to idols and cast
them into the torrent Cedron.

30:15. And they immolated the phase on the fourteenth day of the second
month. And the priests and the Levites being at length sanctified
offered holocausts in the house of the Lord.

30:16. And they stood in their order according to the disposition and
law of Moses the man of God: but the priests received the blood which
was to be poured out, from the hands of the Levites,

30:17. Because a great number was not sanctified: and therefore the
Levites immolated the phase for them that came not in time to be
sanctified to the Lord.

30:18. For a great part of the people from Ephraim, and Manasses, and
Issachar, and Zabulon, that had not been sanctified, ate the phase
otherwise than it is written: and Ezechias prayed for them, saying: The
Lord who is good will shew mercy,

30:19. To all them, who with their whole heart, seek the Lord the God
of their fathers: and will not impute it to them that they are not
sanctified.

30:20. And the Lord heard him, and was merciful to the people.

30:21. And the children of Israel, that were found at Jerusalem, kept
the feast of unleavened bread seven days with great joy, praising the
Lord every day. the Levites also, and the priests, with instruments
that agreed to their office.

30:22. And Ezechias spoke to the heart of all the Levites, that had
good understanding concerning the Lord: and they ate during the seven
days of the solemnity, immolating victims of peace offerings, and
praising the Lord the God of their fathers.

30:23. And it pleased the whole multitude to keep other seven days:
which they did with great joy.

30:24. For Ezechias the king of Juda had given to the multitude a
thousand bullocks, and seven thousand sheep: and the princes had given
the people a thousand bullocks, and ten thousand sheep: and a great
number of priests was sanctified.

30:25. And all the multitude of Juda with the priests and Levites, and
all the assembly, that came out of Israel; and the proselytes of the
land of Israel, and that dwelt in Juda were full of joy.

30:26. And there was a great solemnity in Jerusalem, such as had not
been in that city since the time of Solomon the son of David king of
Israel.

30:27. And the priests and the Levites rose up and blessed the people:
and their voice was heard: and their prayer came to the holy dwelling
place of heaven.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 31

Idolatry is abolished; and provisions made for the ministers.

31:1. And when these things had been duly celebrated, all Israel that
were found in the cities of Juda, went out, and they broke the idols,
and cut down the groves, demolished the high places, and destroyed the
altars, not only out of all Juda and Benjamin, but out of Ephraim also
and Manasses, till they had utterly destroyed them: then all the
children of Israel returned to their possessions and cities.

31:2. And Ezechias appointed companies of the priests, and the Levites,
by their courses, every man in his own office, to wit, both of the
priests, and of the Levites, for holocausts, and for peace offerings,
to minister, and to praise, and to sing in the gates of the camp of the
Lord.

31:3. And the king's part was, that of his proper substance the
holocaust should be offered always morning and evening, and on the
sabbaths, and the new moons and the other solemnities, as it is written
in the law of Moses.

31:4. He commanded also the people that dwelt in Jerusalem, to give to
the priests, and the Levites their portion, that they might attend to
the law of the Lord.

31:5. Which when it was noised abroad in the ears of the people, the
children of Israel offered in abundance the firstfruits of corn, wine,
and oil, and honey: and brought the tithe of all things which the
ground bringeth forth.

31:6. Moreover the children of Israel and Juda, that dwelt in the
cities of Juda, brought in the tithes of oxen, and sheep, and the
tithes of holy things, which they had vowed to the Lord their God: and
carrying them all, made many heaps.

31:7. In the third month they began to lay the foundations of the
heaps, and in the seventh month, they finished them.

31:8. And when Ezechias and his princes came in, they saw the heaps,
and they blessed the Lord and the people of Israel.

31:9. And Ezechias asked the priests and the Levites, why the heaps lay
so.

31:10. Azarias the chief priest of the race of Sadoc answered him,
saying: Since the firstfruits began to be offered in the house of the
Lord, we have eaten, and have been filled, and abundance is left,
because the Lord hath blessed his people: and of that which is left is
this great store which thou seest.

31:11. Then Ezechias commanded to prepare storehouses in the house of
the Lord. And when they had done so,

31:12. They brought in faithfully both the firstfruits, and the tithes,
and all they had vowed. And the overseer of them was Chonenias the
Levite, and Semei his brother was the second,

31:13. And after him Jehiel, and Azarias, and Nahath, and Asael, and
Jerimoth, and Jozabad, and Eliel, and Jesmachias, and Mahath, and
Banaias, overseers under the hand of Chonenias, and Semei his brother,
by the commandment of Ezechias the king, and Azarias the high priest of
the house of God, to whom all things appertained.

31:14. But Core the son of Jemna the Levite, the porter of the east
gate, was overseer of the things which were freely offered to the Lord,
and of the firstfruits and the things dedicated for the holy of holies.

31:15. And under his charge were Eden, and Benjamin, Jesue, and
Semeias, and Amarias, and Sechenias, in the cities of the priests, to
distribute faithfully portions to their brethren, both little and
great:

31:16. Besides the males from three years old and upward, to all that
went into the temple of the Lord, and whatsoever there was need of in
the ministry, and their offices according to their courses, day by day.

31:17. To the priests by their families, and to the Levites from the
twentieth year and upward, by their classes and companies.

31:18. And to all the multitude, both to their wives, and to their
children of both sexes, victuals were given faithfully out of the
things that had been sanctified.

31:19. Also of the sons of Aaron who were in the fields and in the
suburbs of each city, there were men appointed, to distribute portions
to all the males, among the priests and the Levites.

31:20. So Ezechias did all things which we have said in all Juda, and
wrought that which was good, and right, and truth, before the Lord his
God,

31:21. In all the service of the house of the Lord according to the law
and the ceremonies, desiring to seek his God with all his heart, and he
did it and prospered.

2 Paralipomenon Chapter 32

Sennacherib invadeth Juda: his army is destroyed by an angel. Ezechias
recovereth from his sickness: his other acts.

32:1. After these things, and this truth, Sennacherib king of the
Assyrians came and entered into Juda, and besieged the fenced cities,
desiring to take them.

32:2. And when Ezechias saw that Sennacherib was come, and that the whole

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