2 Chronicles 25
25
King Amaziah of Judah
(2 Kings 14.1-6)
1Amaziah was 25 years old when he became king, and he ruled 29 years from Jerusalem, the hometown of his mother Jehoaddin.#25.1 Jehoaddin: The Hebrew text has “Jehoaddan,” another spelling of the name.
2Even though Amaziah obeyed the Lord by doing right, he refused to be completely faithful. 3For example, as soon as he had control of Judah, he arrested and killed the officers who had murdered his father. 4#Dt 24.16. But the children of those officers were not killed; the Lord had commanded in the Law of Moses that only the people who sinned were to be punished.#25.4 the Lord had commanded … punished: See Deuteronomy 24.16.
Edom Is Defeated
(2 Kings 14.7)
5Amaziah sent a message to the tribes of Judah and Benjamin and called together all the men who were 20 years old and older. Three hundred thousand men went to Jerusalem, all of them ready for battle and able to fight with spears and shields. Amaziah grouped these soldiers according to their clans and put them under the command of his army officers. 6Amaziah also paid about 3.4 tons of silver to hire 100,000 soldiers from Israel.
7One of God's prophets said, “Your Majesty, don't let these Israelite soldiers march into battle with you. The Lord has refused to help anyone from the northern kingdom of Israel, 8and so he will let your enemies defeat you, even if you fight hard. He is the one who brings both victory and defeat.”
9Amaziah replied, “What am I supposed to do about all the silver I paid those troops?”
“The Lord will give you back even more than you paid,” the prophet answered.
10Amaziah ordered the troops from Israel to go home, but when they left, they were furious with the people of Judah.
11After Amaziah got his courage back, he led his troops to Salt Valley, where he killed 10,000 Edomite soldiers in battle. 12He captured 10,000 more soldiers and dragged them to the top of a high cliff. Then he pushed them over the side, and they all were killed on the rocks below.
13Meanwhile, the Israelite troops that Amaziah had sent home, raided the towns in Judah between Samaria and Beth-Horon. They killed 3,000 people and carried off their possessions.
14After Amaziah had defeated the Edomite army, he returned to Jerusalem. He took with him the idols of the Edomite gods and set them up. Then he bowed down and offered them sacrifices. 15This made the Lord very angry, and he sent a prophet to ask Amaziah, “Why would you worship these foreign gods that couldn't even save their own people from your attack?”
16But before the prophet finished speaking, Amaziah interrupted and said, “You're not one of my advisors! Don't say another word, or I'll have you killed.”
The prophet stopped. But then he added, “First you sinned and now you've ignored my warning. It's clear that God has decided to punish you!”
Israel Defeats Judah
(2 Kings 14.8-14)
17King Amaziah of Judah talked with his officials, then sent a message to King Jehoash#25.17 King Jehoash: The Hebrew text has “King Joash son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu”; Jehoash is another spelling for the name Joash. of Israel: “Come out and face me in battle!”
18Jehoash sent back a reply that said:
Once upon a time, a small thornbush in Lebanon arranged the marriage between his son and the daughter of a large cedar tree. But a wild animal came along and trampled the small bush.
19Amaziah, you think you're so powerful because you defeated Edom. But stay at home and do your celebrating. If you cause any trouble, both you and your kingdom of Judah will be destroyed.
20God made Amaziah stubborn because he was planning to punish him for worshiping the Edomite gods. Amaziah refused to listen to Jehoash's warning, 21so Jehoash led his army to the town of Beth-Shemesh in Judah to attack Amaziah and his troops. 22During the battle, Judah's army was crushed. Every soldier from Judah ran back home, 23and Jehoash captured Amaziah.
Jehoash took Amaziah with him when he went to attack Jerusalem. Jehoash broke down the city wall from Ephraim Gate to Corner Gate, a section nearly 200 meters long. 24He carried away the gold, the silver, and all the valuable furnishings from God's temple where the descendants of Obed-Edom stood guard. He robbed the king's treasury, took hostages, then returned to Samaria.
Amaziah Is Killed
(2 Kings 14.15-20)
25Amaziah lived 15 years after Jehoash died. 26Everything else Amaziah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah and Israel.
27As soon as Amaziah started disobeying the Lord, some people in Jerusalem plotted against Amaziah. He was able to escape to the town of Lachish, but another group of people caught him and killed him there. 28His body was taken to Jerusalem on horseback and buried beside his ancestors.
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2 Chronicles 25: CEV
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
2 Chronicles 25
25
2 Chronicles 25
1¶ Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.
2And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, but not with a perfect heart.
3For when he was confirmed in the kingdom, he slew his slaves that had killed the king, his father.
4But he slew not their children, but did as it is written in the law in the book of Moses where the Lord commanded, saying, The fathers shall not die for the children, neither shall the children die for the fathers, but each one shall die for his own sin.
5Moreover, Amaziah gathered Judah together and made them captains over thousands and captains over hundreds, according to the houses of their fathers, throughout all Judah and Benjamin; and he numbered them from twenty years old and above and found them three hundred thousand choice men, able to go forth to war, that could handle spear and shield.
6He also hired one hundred thousand mighty men of valour out of Israel for one hundred talents of silver.
7But a man of God came unto him, saying, O king, do not let not the army of Israel go with thee, for the Lord is not with Israel nor with all the sons of Ephraim.
8But if thou wilt go, if thou wilt do it, and strengthen thyself for the battle, God shall make thee fall before the enemy; for in God is the strength, to help or to cast down.
9Then Amaziah said to the man of God, But what shall we do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God answered, The Lord is able to give thee much more than this.
10Then Amaziah separated the army of those that had come to him out of Ephraim, to go home again; therefore, their anger was greatly kindled against Judah, and they returned home in great anger.
11And Amaziah strengthened himself and led forth his people and went to the valley of salt and smote of the sons of Seir, ten thousand.
12And the sons of Judah took another ten thousand alive, whom they took unto the top of the rock and cast them down from the top of the rock, and they were all broken in pieces.
13But the soldiers of the army which Amaziah sent back, that they should not go with him to battle, fell upon the cities of Judah, from Samaria even unto Bethhoron, and smote three thousand of them and took much spoil.
14¶ Now after Amaziah came back from the slaughter of the Edomites, he brought the gods of the sons of Seir and set them up to be his gods and bowed down before them and burned incense unto them.
15Therefore, the anger of the Lord was kindled against Amaziah, and he sent him a prophet who said unto him, Why hast thou sought after the gods of a people who could not deliver their own people out of thy hand?
16And as the prophet was speaking these things unto him, he said unto him, Art thou appointed as the king’s counsel? Forbear; why should thou be smitten? Then the prophet forbare and said, I know that God has determined to destroy thee because thou hast done this and hast not hearkened unto my counsel.
17¶ Then Amaziah, king of Judah, took advice and sent to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us see one another face to face.
18And Joash, king of Israel, sent to Amaziah, king of Judah, saying, The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife. And behold, the wild beasts that were in Lebanon, passed by, and trode down the thistle.
19Thou sayest, Behold, I have smitten Edom; and with this thy heart lifts thee up to boast; abide now at home; why should thou meddle to thy hurt, that thou should fall, even thou, and Judah with thee?
20But Amaziah would not hear; for it came of God, that he might deliver them into the hand of their enemies, because they had sought after the gods of Edom.
21So Joash the king of Israel went up; and they saw one another face to face, both he and Amaziah king of Judah, at Bethshemesh, which is of Judah.
22But Judah fell before Israel, and they fled each man to his tent.
23And Joash, the king of Israel, took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, at Bethshemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
24And he took all the gold and the silver and all the vessels that were found in the house of God with Obededom and the treasures of the king’s house, the hostages also, and returned to Samaria.
25And Amaziah, the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived after the death of Joash son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, fifteen years.
26Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, first and last, are they not written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel?
27From the time that Amaziah turned away from following the Lord, they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to Lachish, but they sent to Lachish after him, and slew him there.
28And they brought him upon horses and buried him with his fathers in the city of Judah.
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The Jubilee Bible 2000 (JUB) by Ransom Press International