Reading for May  2 Kings 13:14 — Nehemiah 5:19 

May 1
2 Kings 13:14 — 15:38

2 Kings
 

14 As regards Elisha, he had taken sick with the sickness with which he was to die. So Jehoash the king of Israel came down to him and began to weep over his face and say: “My father, my father, the war chariot of Israel and his horsemen!” 15 And Elisha proceeded to say to him: “Take a bow and arrows.” So he took to himself a bow and arrows. 16 And he went on to say to the king of Israel: “Put your hand to the bow.” Accordingly he put his hand to it, after which Elisha laid his hands upon the hands of the king. 17 Then he said: “Open the window to the east.” So he opened it. Finally Elisha said: “Shoot!” So he shot. He now said: “Jehovah’s arrow of salvation, even the arrow of salvation against Syria! And you will certainly strike down Syria at Aphek to the finishing point.”

18 And he went on to say: “Take the arrows.” At that he took [them]. Then he said to the king of Israel: “Strike on the earth.” So he struck three times and stopped. 19 And the man of the [true] God grew indignant at him; hence he said: “It was meant to strike five or six times! In that case you would certainly be striking down Syria to the finishing point, but now it is three times that you will strike down Syria.”

20 After that Elisha died and they buried him. And there were marauding bands of the Moabites that regularly came into the land at the coming in of the year. 21 And it came about that as they were burying a man, why, here they saw the marauding band. At once they threw the man into Elisha’s burial place and went off. When the man touched the bones of Elisha, he immediately came to life and stood upon his feet.

22 As for Hazael the king of Syria, he oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 However, Jehovah showed them favor and had mercy upon them and turned to them for the sake of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; and he did not want to bring them to ruin, and he did not cast them away from before his face until now. 24 Finally Hazael the king of Syria died, and Ben-hadad his son began to reign in place of him. 25 And Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz proceeded to take back again from the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities that he had taken from the hand of Jehoahaz his father in war. Three times Jehoash struck him down, and he got to recover the cities of Israel.

14 In the second year of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz the king of Israel, Amaziah the son of Jehoash the king of Judah became king. 2 Twenty-five years old he happened to be when he began to reign, and for twenty-nine years he reigned in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. 3 And he continued to do what was upright in Jehovah’s eyes, only not like David his forefather. According to all that Jehoash his father had done, he did. 4 It was only the high places that did not disappear. The people were still sacrificing and making sacrificial smoke on the high places. 5 And it came about that as soon as the kingdom had become firm in his hand, he began to strike down his servants that had struck down the king his father. 6 And the sons of the strikers he did not put to death, according to what is written in the book of Moses’ law that Jehovah gave in command, saying: “Fathers should not be put to death for sons, and sons themselves should not be put to death for fathers; but for his own sin should each one be put to death.” 7 He himself struck down the Edomites in the Valley of Salt, ten thousand men, and got to seize Sela in the war, and its name came to be called Joktheel down to this day.

8 Then it was that Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz the son of Jehu the king of Israel, saying: “Do come. Let us look each other in the face.” 9 At that Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah the king of Judah, saying: “The thorny weed itself that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, ‘Do give your daughter to my son as a wife.’ However, a wild beast of the field that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thorny weed down. 10 You have unmistakably struck down Edom, and your heart has lifted you up. Enjoy your honor and dwell in your own house. Why, then, should you engage in strife under unfavorable conditions and have to fall, you and Judah with you?” 11 And Amaziah did not listen.

So Jehoash the king of Israel came up, and they proceeded to look each other in the face, he and Amaziah the king of Judah, at Beth-shemesh, which belongs to Judah. 12 And Judah came to be defeated before Israel, so that they took to flight, each one to his tent. 13 And it was Amaziah the king of Judah the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah that Jehoash the king of Israel captured at Beth-shemesh, after which they came to Jerusalem and he made a breach in the wall of Jerusalem at the Gate of Ephraim clear to the Corner Gate, four hundred cubits. 14 And he took all the gold and silver and all the articles to be found at the house of Jehovah and in the treasures of the house of the king and the hostages and then returned to Samaria.

15 As for the rest of the affairs of Jehoash, what he did and his mightiness and how he fought against Amaziah the king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Israel? 16 Finally Jehoash lay down with his forefathers and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and Jeroboam his son began to reign in place of him.

17 And Amaziah the son of Jehoash the king of Judah continued to live after the death of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz the king of Israel for fifteen years. 18 As for the rest of the affairs of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Judah? 19 At length they leagued against him in a conspiracy at Jerusalem, and he went fleeing to Lachish; but they sent in pursuit of him to Lachish and put him to death there. 20 So they carried him upon horses and he was buried in Jerusalem with his forefathers in the City of David. 21 Then all the people of Judah took Azariah, he at the time being sixteen years old, and they made him king in place of his father Amaziah. 22 He himself built Elath and got to restore it to Judah after the king lay down with his forefathers.

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Jehoash the king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Jehoash the king of Israel became king in Samaria for forty-one years. 24 And he continued to do what was bad in Jehovah’s eyes. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he caused Israel to sin. 25 He it was that restored the boundary of Israel from the entering in of Hamath clear to the sea of the Arabah, according to the word of Jehovah the God of Israel who spoke by means of his servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet that was from Gath-hepher. 26 For Jehovah had seen the very bitter affliction of Israel. There was neither any helpless one nor any worthless one, nor was there a helper for Israel. 27 And Jehovah had promised not to wipe out the name of Israel from under the heavens. Consequently he saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Jehoash.

28 As for the rest of the affairs of Jeroboam and all that he did and his mightiness, how he fought and how he restored Damascus and Hamath to Judah in Israel, are they not written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Israel? 29 Finally Jeroboam lay down with his forefathers, with the kings of Israel, and Zechariah his son began to reign in place of him.

15 In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam the king of Israel, Azariah the son of Amaziah the king of Judah became king. 2 Sixteen years old he happened to be when he began to reign, and for fifty-two years he reigned in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. 3 And he continued to do what was upright in Jehovah’s eyes, according to all that Amaziah his father had done. 4 It was only that the high places did not disappear. The people were still sacrificing and making sacrificial smoke on the high places. 5 Finally Jehovah plagued the king, and he continued to be a leper until the day of his death, and he kept dwelling in his house exempt from duties, while Jotham the king’s son was over the house, judging the people of the land. 6 As for the rest of the affairs of Azariah and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Judah? 7 At length Azariah lay down with his forefathers, and they buried him with his forefathers in the City of David; and Jotham his son began to reign in place of him.

8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah the king of Judah, Zechariah the son of Jeroboam became king over Israel in Samaria for six months. 9 And he went on doing what was bad in Jehovah’s eyes, just as his forefathers had done. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he caused Israel to sin. 10 Then Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him and struck him down at Ibleam and put him to death and began to reign in place of him. 11 As for the rest of the affairs of Zechariah, there they are written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Israel. 12 That was Jehovah’s word that he had spoken to Jehu, saying: “Sons themselves to the fourth generation will sit for you upon the throne of Israel.” And it came to be that way.

13 As for Shallum the son of Jabesh, he became king in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah the king of Judah, and he continued to reign for a full lunar month in Samaria. 14 Then Menahem the son of Gadi came up from Tirzah and came to Samaria and struck down Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria and put him to death; and he began to reign in place of him. 15 As for the rest of the affairs of Shallum and his conspiracy with which he conspired, there they are written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Israel. 16 It was then that Menahem proceeded to strike down Tiphsah and all that was in it and its territory out from Tirzah, because it did not open up, and he went striking it down. All its pregnant women he ripped up.

17 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah the king of Judah, Menahem the son of Gadi became king over Israel for ten years in Samaria. 18 And he continued to do what was bad in Jehovah’s eyes. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he caused Israel to sin, all his days. 19 Pul the king of Assyria came into the land. Consequently Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hands might prove to be with him to strengthen the kingdom in his own hand. 20 So Menahem brought forth the silver at the expense of Israel, at the expense of all the valiant, mighty men, to give to the king of Assyria fifty silver shekels for each man. At that the king of Assyria turned back, and he did not stay there in the land. 21 As for the rest of the affairs of Menahem and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Israel? 22 Finally Menahem lay down with his forefathers, and Pekahiah his son began to reign in place of him.

23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah the king of Judah, Pekahiah the son of Menahem became king over Israel in Samaria for two years. 24 And he continued to do what was bad in Jehovah’s eyes. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he caused Israel to sin. 25 Then Pekah the son of Remaliah his adjutant conspired against him and struck him down in Samaria in the dwelling tower of the king’s house with Argob and Arieh, and with him there were fifty men of the sons of Gilead. So he put him to death and began to reign in place of him. 26 As for the rest of the affairs of Pekahiah and all that he did, there they are written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Israel.

27 In the fifty-second year of Azariah the king of Judah, Pekah the son of Remaliah became king over Israel in Samaria for twenty years. 28 And he continued to do what was bad in Jehovah’s eyes. He did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, with which he caused Israel to sin. 29 In the days of Pekah the king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser the king of Assyria came in and proceeded to take Ijon and Abel-beth-maacah and Janoah and Kedesh and Hazor and Gilead and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and to carry them into exile in Assyria. 30 Finally Hoshea the son of Elah formed a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah and struck him and put him to death; and he began to reign in place of him in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah. 31 As for the rest of the affairs of Pekah and all that he did, there they are written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Israel.

32 In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel, Jotham the son of Uzziah the king of Judah became king. 33 Twenty-five years old he happened to be when he began to reign, and for sixteen years he reigned in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok. 34 And he continued to do what was right in Jehovah’s eyes. According to all that Uzziah his father had done, he did. 35 It was only that the high places did not disappear. The people were still sacrificing and making sacrificial smoke on the high places. He it was that built the upper gate of the house of Jehovah. 36 As for the rest of the affairs of Jotham, what he did, are they not written in the book of the affairs of the days of the kings of Judah? 37 In those days Jehovah started to send against Judah Rezin the king of Syria and Pekah the son of Remaliah. 38 Finally Jotham lay down with his forefathers and was buried with his forefathers in the City of David his forefather; and Ahaz his son began to reign in place of him.