2 Kings 13 – 14

Jehoahaz Son of Jehu, King of Israel

2 Kings 13

¹ In the twenty-third year of Joash son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz son of Jehu became king over Israel in Samaria for seventeen years. ² He did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He walked in the sins which Jeroboam son of Nebat caused Israel to commit. He did not turn from them. ³ The Lord’s anger burned against Israel, so he gave them into the hand of Hazael king of Aram and into the hand of Ben Hadad son of Hazael, all his days. ⁴ Jehoahaz, however, sought the Lord’s favor, and the Lord listened to him, because he saw the oppression that the king of Aram was inflicting on Israel. ⁵ So the Lord appointed a deliverer for Israel, and they escaped from the power of the Arameans. Then the people of Israel lived in their own homes ^[1] as they had before.

⁶ But they did not turn from the sins which the house of Jeroboam caused Israel to commit. They walked in them, and there was even an Asherah pole standing in Samaria. ⁷ Nothing was left of Jehoahaz’s army except fifty charioteers, ^[2] ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers, for the king of Aram had destroyed them. He made them like dust at threshing time.

⁸ As for the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz and everything he did and his mighty deeds, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Israel? ⁹ Jehoahaz rested with his fathers and they buried him in Samaria. Then his son Joash ^[3] became king in his place.

Joash (Jehoash) Son of Jehoahaz, King of Israel

¹⁰ In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, Jehoash son of Jehoahaz became king over Israel in Samaria for sixteen years. ¹¹ He did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn from all the sins which Jeroboam son of Nebat caused Israel to commit. He walked in them.

¹² As for the rest of Joash’s acts and all he did and his mighty deeds, how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Israel? ¹³ Joash rested with his fathers. Then Jeroboam sat on his throne. Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

Elisha’s Final Prophecy and Death

¹⁴ Now Elisha was suffering from the illness from which he would die, and Joash king of Israel went down to him. Then he wept over him and said, “My father! My father! Israel’s chariot and its charioteers!”

¹⁵ Elisha said to him, “Get a bow and arrow.” So he brought a bow and arrow to him.

¹⁶ Then he told the king of Israel, “Take the bow in your hands!” So he took the bow in his hands. Then Elisha put his hand on the king’s hand.

¹⁷ He said, “Open the window to the east.” So he opened it.

Then Elisha said, “Shoot!” So he shot.

Then he said, “The arrow of victory for the Lord! The arrow of victory over Aram! You will completely destroy Aram at Aphek!”

¹⁸ Then Elisha said, “Take your arrows.” So he took the arrows.

Then he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground!” So he struck it three times and then stopped.

¹⁹ Then the man of God was furious with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times! Then you would have completely destroyed Aram. But now, you will defeat Aram only three times.”

²⁰ Then Elisha died, and they buried him.

Now raiders from Moab were coming into the land during the spring. ²¹ While a man was being buried, the people suddenly saw the raiders, so they threw the man into the tomb of Elisha. When the man touched the bones of Elisha, he came to life, and he got up on his feet.

²² Hazael king of Aram had oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. ²³ But the Lord was gracious to them and showed compassion for them, and he turned his attention to them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. So until this time he has not been willing to destroy them, nor did he cast them from his presence.

²⁴ Then Hazael king of Aram died, and his son Ben Hadad became king in his place. ²⁵ Jehoash son of Jehoahaz took action and recovered from Ben Hadad son of Hazael the cities which Hazael had taken from his father Jehoahaz in war. Three times Joash ^[4] defeated him and recovered those Israelite cities.

Amaziah Son of Joash, King of Judah

2 Kings 14

¹ In the second year of Joash ^[5] son of Jehoahaz king of Israel, Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah became king. ² He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin ^[6] from Jerusalem. ³ He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, but not like his father David. He did everything his father Joash had done, ⁴ but the high places were still not removed. The people were still offering sacrifices and burning incense at the high places.

⁵ When the royal power was firmly in his hand, he killed his officials who had killed his father the king. ⁶ But he did not put the sons of the assassins to death, in obedience to what is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, in which the Lord commanded, “Fathers are not to be put to death on account of their sons, and sons are not to be put to death on account of their fathers, but each person will die for his own sin.” ^[7]

⁷ He struck down ten thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt. He seized Sela in the war and named it Jokthe’el, the name it has to this day.

⁸ Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let’s confront each other face-to-face.”

⁹ Then Jehoash king of Israel sent a message to Amaziah king of Judah:

¹¹ But Amaziah did not listen, so Jehoash king of Israel attacked. He and Amaziah king of Judah confronted each other face-to-face at Beth Shemesh, which belongs to Judah. ¹² Judah was defeated by Israel, and each man fled to his tent. ¹³ Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah son of Jehoash, son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, at Beth Shemesh. Then they went to Jerusalem. Jehoash broke down six hundred feet ^[8] of the wall of Jerusalem from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate. ¹⁴ Then he took all the gold and silver, all the articles found in the house of the Lord and in the treasuries of the king’s palace. He also took hostages and returned to Samaria.

¹⁵ As for the rest of Jehoash’s acts, the things he did and his mighty deeds, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Israel? ¹⁶ Jehoash rested with his fathers and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. Then his son Jeroboam became king in his place. ¹⁷ But Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah lived for fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel.

¹⁸ As for the rest of Amaziah’s acts, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Judah? ¹⁹ A conspiracy was raised against him in Jerusalem, so he fled to Lachish. But they sent men after him to Lachish and killed him there. ²⁰ Then they brought him back on horses and buried him in Jerusalem with his fathers in the City of David. ²¹ Then all the people of Judah took Azariah, ^[9] who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah. ²² It was he who built Elat and restored it to Judah after King Amaziah rested with his fathers.

Jeroboam II, Son of Jehoash, King of Israel

²³ In the fifteenth year of Amaziah son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam son of Joash, king of Israel, became king in Samaria for forty-one years. ²⁴ He did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn from all the sins which Jeroboam son of Nebat caused Israel to commit. ²⁵ It was he who restored the boundary of Israel from Lebo Hamath to the Dead Sea ^[10] according to the word which the Lord, the God of Israel, had spoken through his servant, the prophet Jonah son of Amittai, who was from Gath Hepher.

²⁶ The Lord saw the misery of Israel, which was extremely bitter for both bound and free. ^[11] There was no one to help Israel. ²⁷ Since the Lord had not said that he would wipe the name of Israel from under the heavens, he rescued them by the hand of Jeroboam son of Joash.

²⁸ As for the rest of Jeroboam’s acts and everything he did and his mighty deeds, the wars he fought, and how he recovered Damascus and Hamath (which had belonged to Judah) for Israel, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Israel? ²⁹ Jeroboam rested with his fathers, the kings of Israel. Then his son Zechariah became king in his place.