Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)

1 The guild prophets said to Elisha, “As you can see, the place where we are living in order to be with you is too small for us.

2 Please allow us to go to the Yarden; each of us will collect a log there, and we’ll build a place there for us to live.” He answered, “Go ahead.”

3 But one of them said, “Please, won’t you come with your servants?” He answered, “All right, I will”;

4 so he went with them. When they arrived at the Yarden, they cut down trees;

5 but as one was felling a tree trunk, the head of his axe fell in the water. “Oh, no!” he cried. “My master, it was a borrowed one!”

6 The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” He showed him the place. Then Elisha cut a stick, threw it in there, and the iron axe-head floated to the surface.

7 “Lift it out,” he said. So he put out his hand and took it.

8 Now the king of Aram went to war against Isra’el; and in consulting his servants he said, “I’ll set up my ambush camp in such-and-such a place.”

9 The man of God sent this message to the king of Isra’el: “Be careful not to go past such-and-such a place, because Aram will attack there.”

10 So the king of Isra’el sent men to the place the man of God had told him and warned him about, and he took special precautions there. This happened more than once or twice,

11 and it greatly upset the king of Aram. He called his servants and said to them, “Tell me which of you is betraying us to the king of Isra’el?”

12 One of his servants replied, “It’s not that, my lord, king. Rather, Elisha, the prophet who is in Isra’el, tells the king of Isra’el the words you speak privately in your own bedroom!”

13 He said, “Go and see where he is, so that I can send and bring him here.” They told him, “He’s in Dotan.”

14 So he sent horses, chariots and a large army there; they came by night and surrounded the city.

15 The servant of the man of God got up early in the morning; on going outside, he saw an army with horses and chariots surrounding the city. His servant said to him, “Oh, my master, this is terrible! What are we going to do?”

16 He answered, “Don’t be afraid — those who are with us outnumber those who are with them!”

17 Elisha prayed, “Adonai, I ask you to open his eyes, so that he can see.” ThenAdonaiopened the young man’s eyes, and he saw: there before him, all around Elisha, the mountain was covered with horses and fiery chariots.

18 When they came down to him, Elisha prayed toAdonai, “Please strike these people blind”; and he struck them blind, as Elisha had asked.

19 Next, Elisha told them, “You’ve lost your way, and this isn’t even the right city. Follow me, and I’ll take you to the man you’re looking for.” Then he led them to Shomron.

20 On their arrival in Shomron, Elisha said, “Adonai, open the eyes of these men, so that they can see.”Adonaiopened their eyes, and they saw: there they were, in the middle of Shomron.

21 When the king of Isra’el saw them, he asked Elisha, “My father, should I attack them? Should I attack them?”

22 He answered, “Don’t attack them! You wouldn’t even attack prisoners you had captured with your own sword and bow, would you? So give them food to eat and water to drink, and let them return to their master.”

23 So he provided well for them; and after they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away; and they returned to their master. After that, no more raiding parties entered the land of Isra’el from Aram.

24 But some time afterwards, Ben-Hadad king of Aram gathered all his army, went up and laid siege to Shomron.

25 At the time, there was a severe famine in Shomron; and they maintained their siege until a donkey’s head sold for eighty pieces of silver and half a pint of doves’ dung for five pieces of silver.

26 As the king of Isra’el was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, “Help, my lord, king!”

27 He said, “IfAdonaiisn’t helping you, how do you expect me to help you? There isn’t any grain, and there isn’t any wine.”

28 Then the king asked her, “What’s troubling you?” She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give me your son, so that we can eat him today; and we’ll eat my son tomorrow.’

29 So we boiled my son and ate him. The next day I said to her, ‘Give your son, so that we can eat him,’ but she has hidden her son.”

30 When the king heard what the woman said, he tore his clothes. At the time, he was passing by on the wall; and when the people looked, they saw him there with sackcloth against his skin.

31 Then he said, “May God do terrible things to me, and worse ones too, if the head of Elisha the son of Shafat remains on his body by day’s end.”

32 Elisha was sitting in his house, and the leaders were sitting there with him. The king sent a messenger ahead, but before he arrived, Elisha said to the leaders, “Do you see how this son of a murderer has sent someone to remove my head? Look, when the messenger comes, close the door and keep it shut against him. You can hear his master’s footsteps following right behind him!”

33 While he was still speaking, the messenger arrived with this message from the king: “Here, this evil is fromAdonai. Why should I wait forAdonaiany longer?”

1 Elisha answered, “Listen to the word ofAdonai. Here is whatAdonaisays: ‘Tomorrow, by this time, six quarts of fine flour will sell for only ashekel, and half a bushel of barley for ashekel[in the market] at the gate to Shomron.”

2 The servant on whose arm the king was leaning answered the man of God: “Why, this couldn’t happen even ifAdonaimade windows in heaven!” Elisha answered, “All right, you yourself will see it with your own eyes; but you won’t eat any of it!”

3 Now there were four men withtzara‘atat the entrance to the city gate, and they said to each other, “Why should we sit here till we die?

4 If we say, ‘We’ll enter the city, then the city has been struck by the famine, so we’ll die there. And if we sit still here, we’ll also die. So let’s go and surrender to the army of Aram; if they spare our lives, we will live; and if they kill us, we’ll only die.”

5 They got up during the twilight to go to the camp of Aram. But when they reached the outskirts of the camp of Aram, they saw no one!

6 ForAdonaihad caused the army of Aram to hear the sound of chariots and horses; it sounded like a huge army; and they said to each other, “The king of Isra’el must have hired the kings of the Hitti and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us.”

7 So they jumped up and fled in the twilight, leaving their tents, horses, donkeys and the whole camp just as it was, and ran for their lives.

8 When these men withtzara‘atreached the outskirts of the camp, they entered one of the tents, ate and drank; then took some silver, gold and clothing; and went and hid it. Next they returned and entered another tent, took stuff from there, and went and hid it.

9 But finally they said to each other, “What we are doing is wrong. At a time of good news like this, we shouldn’t keep it to ourselves. If we wait even till morning, we will earn only punishment; so come on, let’s go and tell the king’s household.”

10 So they came and shouted to the gatekeepers of the city and told them the news: “We went to the camp of Aram, and no one was there, no human voice — just the horses and donkeys tied up, and the tents left in place.”

11 The gatekeepers called and told it to the king’s household inside.

12 Then the king got up in the night; he said to his servants, “I’ll tell you what Aram has done to us. They know that we’re hungry, so they’ve gone outside the camp and hidden in the countryside, saying, ‘When they come out of the city, we’ll take them alive and then get inside the city.’”

13 One of his servants answered, “I suggest letting some men take five of the remaining horses that are left in the city — they’re like everything else in Isra’el that remains, like everything else in Isra’el, practically finished — and we’ll send and see.”

14 So they took two chariots with horses, and the king sent after the army of Aram, saying, “Go, and see.”

15 They went after them all the way to the Yarden, and found the entire distance strewn with clothing and other articles Aram had thrown away in their haste. The messengers returned and told the king.

16 Then the people went out and ransacked the camp of Aram — with the result that six quarts of fine flour was sold for only ashekeland half a bushel of barley for ashekel, in keeping with whatAdonaihad said.

17 The king put the servant on whose arm he had leaned in charge of the gate, and the people trampled him down in the gateway, so that he died, as the man of God had said he would, who spoke when the king came to him.

18 For the man of God had said to the king, “Tomorrow by this time six quarts of barley will sell for only ashekeland half a bushel of fine flour for ashekel[in the market] at the gate of Shomron”;

19 the servant had answered the man of God, “Why, this couldn’t happen even ifAdonaimade windows in heaven!” and Elisha had said, “All right, you yourself will see it with your own eyes; but you won’t eat any of it!”

20 That is exactly what happened to him, because the people trampled him down in the gateway, so that he died.

1 Now Elisha had said to the woman whose son he had restored to life, “Move away, you and your household, and stay wherever you can; becauseAdonaihas called for a famine; and it will be on the land for seven years.”

2 The woman acted at once and did as the man of God had said — she went with her household and stayed in the land of the P’lishtim for seven years.

3 At the end of seven years the woman returned from the land of the P’lishtim and sought an audience with the king to claim her house and land.

4 The king was talking with Geichazi the servant of the man of God. “Tell me,” he said, “all the great things Elisha has done.”

5 Just as he was telling the king how he had restored a dead person to life, at that very moment the woman whose son he had restored to life came to the king with her claim for her house and land. Geichazi said, “My lord, king, this is the woman; and this is her son, the one Elisha restored to life.”

6 On being asked by the king, the woman verified it. At this, the king appointed a special officer and charged him, “Restore everything that belongs to her, including the income her fields have produced from the day she left them until now.”

7 Elisha went to Dammesek. Ben-Hadad the king of Aram was ill; and he was told, “The man of God has come here.”

8 The king said to Haza’el, “Take with you a gift, go meet the man of God and consultAdonaithrough him; ask if I will recover from this illness.”

9 Haza’el went to meet him, taking with him a gift that included everything good Dammesek had, forty camel-loads. He came, stood before him and said, “Your son Ben-Hadad king of Aram has sent me to you; he asks, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’”

10 Elisha answered, “Go and say to him, ‘You will surely recover’ — even thoughAdonaihas shown me that he will surely die.”

11 Then the man of God fixed his gaze on him for so long that Haza’el became embarrassed; finally Elisha began to cry.

12 Haza’el asked, “Why is my lord crying?” He answered, “Because I know the disasters you will bring on the people of Isra’el — you will set their fortresses on fire, you will kill their young men with the sword, you will dash their little ones to pieces and rip their pregnant women apart.”

13 Haza’el said, “But what is your servant? Nothing but a dog! How could he do anything of such magnitude?” Elisha answered, “Adonaihas shown me that you will be king over Aram.”

14 Then he left Elisha and returned to his master, who asked him, “What did Elisha say to you?” “He told me you would surely recover.”

15 The next day he took a blanket, dipped it in water and spread it on his face, so that he died; and Haza’el took his place as king.

16 It was when Yoram the son of Ach’av king of Isra’el was in the fifth year of his reign that Y’horam the son of Y’hoshafat began his rule over Y’hudah.

17 He was thirty-two years old when he began to rule, and he ruled eight years in Yerushalayim.

18 He lived after the example of the kings of Isra’el, as did the house of Ach’av; because he had married Ach’av’s daughter; he did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective.

19 However,Adonaiwas unwilling to destroy Y’hudah, because of his servant David; inasmuch as he had promised to give him and his children a lamp that would burn forever.

20 During his time Edom revolted against Y’hudah and set up its own king.

21 In response, Yoram crossed to Tza‘ir with all his chariots. At night he and his chariot commanders set out and attacked Edom who had surrounded him; then the people fled to their tents.

22 Nevertheless, since that day Edom has remained free of Y’hudah’s domination. Livnah revolted at the same time.

23 Other activities of Yoram and all his accomplishments are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y’hudah.

24 Yoram slept with his ancestors and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David, and Achazyah his son took his place as king.

25 It was in the twelfth year of Yoram the son of Ach’av king of Isra’el that Achazyah the son of Y’horam king of Y’hudah began his reign.

26 Achazyah was twenty-two years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for one year in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was ‘Atalyahu the daughter of ‘Omri king of Isra’el.

27 He lived after the example of the house of Ach’av; he did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective, as had the house of Ach’av; for he was a son-in-law in the house of Ach’av.

28 With Yoram the son of Ach’av he went to war against Haza’el king of Aram at Ramot-Gil‘ad, and the Aramim wounded Yoram.

29 King Yoram returned to Yizre‘el to be healed of the wounds which the Aramim had inflicted on him at Ramah while fighting Haza’el king of Aram. Achazyah the son of Y’horam, king of Y’hudah, went down to visit Yoram the son of Ach’av in Yizre‘el, because he was not feeling well.

1 Elisha the prophet summoned one of the guild prophets and said to him, “Prepare for traveling, take this flask of oil in your hand and go to Ramot-Gil‘ad.

2 When you get there, look for Yehu the son of Y’hoshafat, the son of Nimshi. Enter, have him step away from his companions, and take him to an inside room.

3 Then take the flask of oil, pour it on his head, and say, ‘This is whatAdonaisays: “I have anointed you king over Isra’el.”’ After that, open the door; and get away from there as fast as you can.”

4 So the young prophet left for Ramot-Gil‘ad.

5 When he arrived, he found the senior army officers sitting there. He said, “I have a message for you, commander.” Yehu asked, “For which one of us?” “For you, commander,” he said.

6 Yehu got up and went into the house. Then the prophet poured the oil on his head and said to him, “This is whatAdonaithe God of Isra’el says: ‘I have anointed you king over the people ofAdonai, over Isra’el.

7 You will attack the house of Ach’av your master, so that I can avenge the blood of my servants the prophets and of all the servants ofAdonai, blood shed by Izevel.

8 The entire house of Ach’av will perish; I will cut off from Ach’av every male, whether a slave or free in Isra’el.

9 I will make the house of Ach’av like the house of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat and like the house of Ba‘sha the son of Achiyah.

10 Moreover, the dogs will eat Izevel in the dumping-ground of Yizre‘el, and there will be no one to bury her.’” Then he opened the door and fled.

11 Yehu returned to the servants of his lord, and one of them said to him, “Is everything all right? Why did thismeshuggacome to you?” He answered them, “You know the kind and how they babble.”

12 They said, “You’re being evasive. Come on, tell us the truth.” Then he said, “This is exactly what he said to me and how he said it: ‘Here is whatAdonaisays: “I have anointed you king over Isra’el.”’”

13 At this, they hurried each one to take his cloak and put it under Yehu at the top of the stairs. Then they blew theshofarand proclaimed, “Yehu is king!”

14 Yehu the son of Y’hoshafat, the son of Nimshi, formed a conspiracy against Yoram. (At the time, Yoram was guarding Ramot-Gil‘ad, he and all Isra’el, because of Haza’el king of Aram;

15 but Yoram himself had returned to Yizre‘el to recover from the wounds Aram had inflicted on him when fighting Haza’el king of Aram.) “If you agree,” said Yehu, “then don’t allow anyone to leave town and take the news to Yizre‘el.”

16 So Yehu, riding in a chariot, went to Yizre‘el, for Yoram was laid up there. Achazyah king of Y’hudah had come down to visit Yoram.

17 The lookout standing on the watchtower in Yizre‘el saw Yehu’s troops approaching and said, “I see some troops coming.” Yoram said, “Have a horseman go to meet him and ask, “Are you coming in peace?”

18 So a man on horseback went to meet him and said, “The king asks if you are coming in peace.” Yehu answered, “Peace? What business is that of yours? Turn around, and get behind me!” The watchman reported, “The messenger reached them, but he isn’t coming back.”

19 So he sent out a second man on horseback, who, on coming to him, said, “The king asks if you are coming in peace.” Yehu answered, “Peace? What business is that of yours? Turn around, and get behind me!”

20 The watchman reported, “He reached them, but he isn’t coming back. Also, it looks like the driving of Yehu Nimshi’s [grand]son — he’s driving like a maniac!”

21 “Harness my chariot!” ordered Yoram. They got it ready. Then Yoram king of Isra’el and Achazyah king of Y’hudah, each in his chariot, went out to meet Yehu. They met him in the field of Navot the Yizre‘eli.

22 When Yoram saw Yehu he said, “Are you coming in peace, Yehu?” He answered, “Peace? With your mother Izevel continuing all her cult prostitution and witchcraft? What a question!”

23 Yoram wheeled around and fled, shouting, “Treachery, Achazyah!”

24 Yehu drew his bow with all his strength and struck Yoram between the shoulder-blades; the arrow went through his heart, and he collapsed in his chariot.

25 “Pick him up,” said Yehu to Bidkar his servant, “and throw him into the field of Navot the Yizre‘eli; for remember how, when you and I were riding together after Ach’av his father,Adonaipronounced this sentence against him:

26 ‘Adonaisays: “Yesterday I saw the blood of Navot and the blood of his sons.”Adonaialso says: “I will pay you back in this field.”’ Therefore, pick him up; and throw him into the field, in keeping with whatAdonaisaid.”

27 But when Achazyah the king of Y’hudah saw this, he fled on the road past Beit-HaGan. Yehu pursued him and ordered, “Strike him too in his chariot!” [So they struck him] at the Gur ascent, near Yivle‘am. He fled to Megiddo, but there he died.

28 His servants carried him in a chariot to Yerushalayim and buried him in his tomb with his ancestors in the City of David.

29 It was in the eleventh year of Yoram the son of Ach’av that Achazyah had begun his rule over Y’hudah.

30 When Yehu reached Yizre‘el, and Izevel heard of it, she put on eye make-up, fixed her hair and looked out the window.

31 As Yehu came through the city gate, she asked, “Are you here in peace, you Zimri, you murderer of your master?”

32 Looking up at the window he said, “Who is on my side? Who?” Two or three officers looked out toward him.

33 He said, “Throw her down!” So they threw her down. Some of her blood splashed onto the wall and the horses, and she was trampled underfoot.

34 He went in, ate and drank, and then said, “Deal with this accursed woman — bury her, because she’s a king’s daughter.”

35 They went to bury her but found no more of her than her skull, feet and hands.

36 So they came back and told him. He said, “This is whatAdonaisaid through his servant Eliyahu from Tishbe: ‘In the field of Yizre‘el the dogs will eat the flesh of Izevel;

37 Izevel’s corpse in the field of Yizre‘el will be like dung on the ground, unrecognizable as Izevel.’”

1 There were seventy descendants of Ach’av in Shomron. Yehu wrote letters and sent them to Shomron to the rulers of Yizre‘el, to the leaders, and to the guardians of Ach’av’s sons. The letters said,

2 “You have with you your master’s sons, also chariots and horses, as well as fortified cities and armor. So, as soon as this letter reaches you,

3 choose the best and most suitable of your master’s sons, set him on his father’s throne and fight for your master’s dynasty.”

4 They were panic-stricken and said, “If the other two kings couldn’t withstand him, how will we?”

5 So the administrator of the palace, the governor of the city, the leaders and the children’s guardians sent this message to Yehu: “We are your servants. We will do everything you ask us to; we won’t appoint anyone king. Do as you see fit.”

6 He wrote a second letter to them, which said, “If you are on my side, and if you are ready to obey my orders, then bring the heads of your master’s sons to me in Yizre‘el by this time tomorrow.” Now the seventy sons of the king were with the prominent men who had raised them.

7 When the letter reached them, they seized the king’s sons and killed them, all seventy of them, put their heads in baskets and sent them to Yehu in Yizre‘el.

8 A messenger came and told him, “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons.” He said, “Leave them in two piles at the entrance of the city gate until morning.”

9 When morning came, he went out, stood before the people and said, “You are not responsible [for the deaths of these men]. Yes, I conspired against my master and killed him. But who killed all these?

10 Understand, then, that no part ofAdonai’s word whichAdonaispoke concerning the dynasty of Ach’av falls to the ground; becauseAdonaihas done what he said through his servant Eliyahu.”

11 So Yehu killed everyone who remained from the house of Ach’av in Yizre‘el, all his leading men, his close friends and hiscohanim, until not one of them was left alive.

12 Then he set out and went to Shomron.

On the way he reached a shearing shed for shepherds,

13 where he encountered relatives of Achazyah king of Y’hudah. “Who are you?” he asked. “We’re relatives of Achazyah,” they answered, “and we’re going down to pay our respects to the families of the king and of the queen mother.”

14 “Take them alive,” said Yehu. They took them alive, forty-two men, slaughtered them and threw them into the shearing shed’s pit; he spared not one of them.

15 On leaving there, he happened upon Y’honadav the son of Rekhav coming toward him. He greeted him and said to him, “Are you wholeheartedly with me, as I am with you?” “Yes,” answered Y’honadav. “If so, give me your hand.” He gave him his hand, and Yehu took him up into the chariot.

16 He said, “Come with me, and see how zealous I am forAdonai.” So they had him ride in his chariot.

17 On arriving in Shomron he put to death everyone that Ach’av still had in Shomron, until he had destroyed him, in keeping with the word ofAdonaiwhich he had spoken to Eliyahu.

18 Next, Yehu assembled all the people and said to them, “Ach’av served Ba‘al in limited measure, but Yehu will serve him with full zeal.

19 Therefore summon all the prophets of Ba‘al to me, all his worshippers and all his priests. None of them is to be missing, because I am going to offer a great sacrifice to Ba‘al; whoever is missing will not remain alive.” But Yehu was setting a trap, in order to destroy the worshippers of Ba‘al.

20 Yehu said, “Proclaim a solemn assembly for Ba‘al,” and they did so.

21 Yehu sent throughout all Isra’el, and all the worshippers of Ba‘al came, so that there was not one man left that didn’t come. They entered the temple of Ba‘al, and the temple of Ba‘al was filled from one end to the other.

22 To the man in charge of the wardrobe he said, “Bring out robes for all the worshippers of Ba‘al”; and he brought them clothes.

23 Yehu and Y’honadav the son of Rekhav entered the house of Ba‘al and said to the worshippers of Ba‘al, “Search to see that none of the servants ofAdonaiis here with you, only worshippers of Ba‘al.”

24 Then they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings.

But Yehu had chosen eighty men to remain outside. He said, “If any of the men I am about to put in your hands escapes, it will be your life for his.”

25 As soon as he had finished offering the burnt offering, Yehu said to the guards and officers, “Go in, and kill them; don’t let one of them get out.” So they killed them with the sword; then, after the guards and officers had thrown their bodies outside, they went into the temple of Ba‘al’s inner shrine,

26 brought out the pillars in the temple of Ba‘al and burned them.

27 Finally, they broke down Ba‘al’s standing-stone and demolished the temple of Ba‘al, converting it into a latrine, which it still is today.

28 Thus Yehu rid Isra’el of Ba‘al.

29 However, Yehu did not turn away from the sins of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, with which he had led Isra’el into sin, the gold calves that were in Beit-El and Dan.

30 Adonaisaid to Yehu, “Because you did well in accomplishing what is right from my perspective, and have done to the house of Ach’av everything that was in my heart, your descendants down to the fourth generation will sit on the throne of Isra’el.”

31 But Yehu made no effort to live wholeheartedly according to theTorahofAdonaithe God of Isra’el and did not turn away from the sins of Yarov‘am, with which he had led Isra’el into sin.

32 It was during that period thatAdonaibegan to dismember Isra’el. Haza’el attacked them throughout the territory of Isra’el

33 east of the Yarden — all the land of Gil‘ad, the Gadi, Re’uveni and M’nashi, from ‘Aro‘er by the Arnon River, including Gil‘ad and Bashan.

34 Other activities of Yehu, all his accomplishments and all his power are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

35 Yehu slept with his ancestors, and they buried him in Shomron. Then Y’ho’achaz his son became king in his place.

36 Yehu ruled over Isra’el in Shomron for twenty-eight years.

1 When ‘Atalyah the mother of Achazyah saw that her son was dead, she set about destroying the entire royal family.

2 But Y’hosheva the daughter of King Yoram, sister of Achazyah, took Yo’ash the son of Achazyah and stole him away from among the princes who were being slaughtered. She took him and his nurse, sequestered them in a bedroom, and hid them from ‘Atalyah, so that he was not killed.

3 He remained hidden with his nurse in the house ofAdonaifor six years; during this time ‘Atalyah ruled the land.

4 In the seventh year Y’hoyada summoned the captains of hundred-man platoons, of both the Kari and the guard. He brought them into the house ofAdonai, made an agreement with them and had them swear to it in the house ofAdonai. Then he showed them the king’s son

5 and gave them this instruction: “Here is what you are to do: of you who come on duty onShabbat, a third [normally] guards the royal palace,

6 a third is at the Sur Gate and a third is at the gate behind the guards. [The first third] is to continue guarding the palace and serve as a barrier,

7 while the other two groups of you who come on duty onShabbatwill guard the house ofAdonai, where the king is.

8 You are to surround the king, each man with his weapons in his hand. Anyone who penetrates the ranks is to be killed. Stay with the king whenever he leaves or enters.”

9 The captains over hundreds did exactly as Y’hoyada thecohenordered. Each took his men, those coming on duty onShabbatand those going off duty onShabbat, and came to Y’hoyada thecohen.

10 Thecohenissued to the captains of hundreds the spears and shields that had been King David’s and were kept in the house ofAdonai.

11 The guards then took positions, each man with his weapons in his hand, from the right side of the house to the left side of the house, alongside the altar, alongside [the exterior of] the house and around the king.

12 Then he brought out the king’s son, crowned him, gave him [a copy of] the testimony and thus made him king; they anointed him, clapped their hands and shouted, “Long live the king!”

13 When ‘Atalyah heard the shouting of the guard and the people, she entered the house ofAdonaiwhere the people were,

14 looked and saw the king standing there on the platform, in keeping with the rule, with the leaders and trumpeters next to the king. All the people of the land were celebrating and blowing the trumpets. At this ‘Atalyah tore her clothes and cried, “Treason! Treason!”

15 Y’hoyada thecohenordered the captains of hundreds, the army officers, “Escort her out past the ranks [of guards]; but anyone who follows her, kill with the sword.” For thecohenhad said, “She must not be put to death in the house ofAdonai.”

16 So they took her by force and led her through the horses’ entry to the royal palace, and there she was put to death.

17 Y’hoyada made a covenant betweenAdonai, the king and the people, that they would beAdonai’s people, and [a covenant] between the king and the people.

18 Then all the people of the land went to the house of Ba‘al and broke it down; they completely smashed its altars and images and killed Mattan the priest of Ba‘al in front of the altars.

Next, thecohenappointed officers over the house ofAdonai.

19 He took the captains of hundreds, the Kari, the guards and all the people of the land; and they brought the king down from the house ofAdonai, going by way of the gate of the guards to the royal palace. There he sat on the throne of the kings.

20 All the people of the land celebrated, and at last the city was quiet. That is how they killed ‘Atalyah with the sword at the royal palace.

1 Y’ho’ash was seven years old when he began his reign.

2 It was in the seventh year of Yehu that Y’ho’ash began to rule, and he ruled forty years in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was Tzivyah, from Be’er-Sheva.

3 Y’ho’ash did what was right fromAdonai’s perspective throughout the lifetime of Y’hoyada thecohen, who instructed him.

4 Nevertheless the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and presented offerings on the high places.

5 Y’ho’ash said to thecohanim, “All the funds for sacred purposes which are brought to the house ofAdonai— the half-shekeltax, the taxes on persons in a man’s household, and all the offerings anyone voluntarily brings to the house ofAdonai—

6 thecohanimare to receive from whoever personally makes contributions to them; and they are to use these funds to repair the damaged parts of the house, wherever damage is found.

7 But twenty-three years into the reign of King Y’ho’ash, thecohanimhad still not repaired the damaged places in the house.

8 So King Y’ho’ash summoned Y’hoyada thecohenand the othercohanimand said to them, “Why aren’t you repairing the damaged places in the house? Therefore, you are no longer to take money from those who contribute it personally to you; you must hand it over to be used for repairing the damage in the house.”

9 Thecohanimagreed not to receive money from the people, and they would no longer be responsible for repairing the damage to the house.

10 Then Y’hoyada thecohentook a chest, drilled a hole in its lid and set it by the altar, on the right, as one enters the house ofAdonai; and thecohanimin charge of the entry put in it all the money brought into the house ofAdonai.

11 When they saw that there was a large amount of money in the chest, the king’s secretary and thecohen hagadolwould come up, count the money found in the house ofAdonaiand put it in bags.

12 Then they would give the weighed-out money to those supervising the work in the house ofAdonai, who would use it to pay the carpenters and construction-workers doing the work in the house ofAdonai,

13 on masons, stone-workers, timber, worked stone and everything else needed for repairing the damaged places in the house ofAdonai.

14 But none of the money brought into the house ofAdonaiwas used to make silver cups, snuffers, bowls, trumpets or other articles of gold or silver for the house ofAdonai;

15 because they gave the money to those doing the work, thus restricting its use to repairing the damage in the house ofAdonai.

16 Moreover, they did not require an accounting from the supervisors given the money to pay the workers, because they dealt honestly.

17 Money from guilt offerings and sin offerings, however, was not brought into the house ofAdonai; it went to thecohanim.

18 Haza’el king of Aram went up and fought against Gat; and after capturing it, Haza’el made his decision to attack Yerushalayim.

19 Y’ho’ash king of Y’hudah took all the consecrated articles that Y’hoshafat, Y’horam and Achazyah, his ancestors, kings of Y’hudah, had dedicated, as well as his own consecrated articles and all the gold found in the treasuries of the house ofAdonaiand of the royal palace, and sent them to Haza’el king of Aram, who then withdrew from Yerushalayim.

20 Other activities of Yo’ash and all his accomplishments are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y’hudah.

21 Then his servants got together, formed a conspiracy and murdered Yo’ash at Beit-Millo on the way down to Sila.

22 His servants Yozakhar the son of Shim‘at and Y’hozavad the son of Shomer struck him, so that he died. They buried him with his ancestors in the City of David, and Amatzyah his son took his place as king.

1 It was in the twenty-third year of Yo’ash the son of Achazyah, king of Y’hudah, that Y’ho’achaz the son of Yehu began his reign over Isra’el in Shomron; he ruled for seventeen years.

2 He did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective; he followed the sins of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, who made Isra’el sin; and he never ceased committing those sins.

3 Adonai’s anger burned against Isra’el, and he kept handing them over to Haza’el king of Aram and Ben-Hadad the son of Haza’el.

4 But Y’ho’achaz pleaded toAdonai, andAdonailistened to him, because he saw the oppression the king of Aram was inflicting on Isra’el.

5 SoAdonaigave Isra’el a savior who freed them from the grip of Aram, so that the people of Isra’el could live in their tents, as they had before.

6 Despite that, instead of turning from the sins of the house of Yarov‘am, who made Isra’el sin, they continued to live in this sinful way. Moreover, theasherahcontinued to stand in Shomron.

7 The king of Aram destroyed Y’ho’achaz’s army, making them like chaff when grain is threshed, except for fifty horsemen, ten chariots and 10,000 foot soldiers.

8 Other activities of Y’ho’achaz, all his accomplishments and his power are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

9 Y’ho’achaz slept with his ancestors, and they buried him in Shomron. Then Yo’ash his son took his place as king.

10 It was in the thirty-seventh year of Yo’ash king of Y’hudah that Yo’ash the son of Y’ho’achaz began his rule over Isra’el in Shomron; he ruled for sixteen years.

11 He did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective and did not turn from all the sins of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, who made Isra’el sin; on the contrary, he lived in this sinful way.

12 Other activities of Yo’ash, all his accomplishments and his power in fighting Amatzyah king of Y’hudah are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

13 Yo’ash slept with his ancestors, and Yarov‘am occupied his throne. Yo’ash was buried in Shomron with the kings of Isra’el.

14 Elisha was now ill with the disease from which he would eventually die. Yo’ash the king of Isra’el came down to visit him and wept over him; he said, “My father! My father! The chariots and horsemen of Isra’el!”

15 Elisha said to him, “Bring a bow and arrows”; and he brought him a bow and arrows.

16 He said to the king of Isra’el, “Put your hand on the bow”; and he put his hand on it. Then Elisha laid his hands on the king’s hands

17 and said, “Open the east window.” He opened it. Elisha said, “Shoot”; and he shot. He said, “Adonai’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory against Aram! You will defeat Aram completely at Afek!”

18 He said, “Take the arrows”; and he took them. He told the king of Isra’el, “Strike the ground.” He struck three times, then stopped.

19 The man of God became angry with him; he said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have defeated Aram completely. As it is, you will defeat Aram only three times.”

20 Elisha died, and they placed him in a burial cave. Now the raiding parties of Mo’av used to make yearly incursions into the land at the start of the year.

21 Once it happened that just as they were burying a man, they spotted a raiding party; so they threw the man’s body into Elisha’s burial cave; and the moment the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.

22 Haza’el king of Aram oppressed Isra’el throughout the lifetime of Y’ho’achaz;

23 butAdonaiwas gracious, took pity on them and looked on them with favor, because of his covenant with Avraham, Yitz’chak and Ya‘akov. He was not willing to destroy them, and to this day he has not banished them from his presence.

24 Haza’el king of Aram died, and Ben-Hadad his son took his place as king.

25 Then Y’ho’ash the son of Y’ho’achaz captured from Ben-Hadad the son of Haza’el the cities which he had captured in war from Y’ho’achaz his father. Three times Yo’ash defeated him, thus recovering the cities of Isra’el.

1 It was in the second year of Yo’ash son of Y’ho’achaz king of Isra’el that Amatzyah the son of Yo’ash king of Y’hudah began his reign.

2 He was twenty-five years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for twenty-nine years in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was Y’ho‘adan, from Yerushalayim.

3 He did what was right fromAdonai’s perspective, although not like David his ancestor; he lived the same way as his father Yo’ash.

4 However, the high places were not removed; the people still sacrificed and offered on the high places.

5 As soon as he had the kingdom firmly under his control, he put to death the servants of his who had murdered the king his father.

6 But he did not put the children of the murderers to death, because of what is written in the scroll of theTorahof Moshe, asAdonaiordered when he said, “Fathers are not to be executed for the children, nor are children to be executed for the fathers; every person will be executed for his own sin.”

7 He slaughtered 10,000 men of Edom in the Salt Valley and captured Sela in the war, renaming it Yokte’el, as it is today.

8 Then Amatzyah sent messengers to Y’ho’ash the son of Y’ho’achaz, son of Yehu, king of Isra’el, with this challenge: “Come on, let’s have it out face-to-face.”

9 Y’ho’ash the king of Isra’el sent this reply to Amatzyah king of Y’hudah: “Once, in the L’vanon, the thistle sent a message to the cedar: ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ But a wild animal passed by the thistle and squashed it.

10 True, you have defeated Edom, and now you’re ambitious. So enjoy the glory, but stay home! Why provoke calamity, to your own ruin, yours and Y’hudah’s too?”

11 But Amatzyah wouldn’t listen. So Y’ho’ash king of Isra’el went up; and he and Amatzyah king of Y’hudah had it out face-to-face at Beit-Shemesh, which belongs to Y’hudah.

12 Y’hudah was defeated by Isra’el, and every man fled to his tent.

13 Y’ho’ash king of Isra’el took Amatzyah king of Y’hudah, the son of Y’ho’ash the son of Achazyah, prisoner at Beit-Shemesh. Then he went to Yerushalayim and demolished the wall of Yerushalayim between the Gate of Efrayim and the Corner Gate, a section 600 feet long.

14 He took all the gold and silver, all the articles he could find in the house ofAdonaiand in the treasuries of the royal palace, and hostages; then he returned to Shomron.

15 Other activities of Y’ho’ash that he did, his power and how he fought Amatzyah king of Y’hudah are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

16 Y’ho’ash slept with his ancestors and was buried in Shomron with the kings of Isra’el. Then Yarov‘am took his place as king.

17 Amatzyah the son of Yo’ash king of Y’hudah lived another fifteen years after the death of Y’ho’ash son of Y’ho’achaz, king of Isra’el.

18 Other activities of Amatzyah are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y’hudah.

19 Because of a conspiracy formed against him in Yerushalayim, Amatzyah fled to Lakhish; but they followed him to Lakhish and killed him there.

20 They brought his body back on horses, and he was buried in Yerushalayim with his ancestors in the City of David.

21 Then all the people of Y’hudah took ‘Azaryah at the age of sixteen and made him king in place of his father Amatzyah.

22 ‘Azaryah recovered Eilat for Y’hudah and rebuilt it; after that the king [Amatzyahu] slept with his ancestors.

23 It was in the fifteenth year of Amatzyah the son of Yo’ash, king of Y’hudah, that Yarov‘am the son of Yo’ash, king of Isra’el, began to reign in Shomron; and he ruled for forty-one years.

24 He did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective; he did not turn from all the sins of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, who made Isra’el sin.

25 He recovered the territory of Isra’el between the entrance of Hamat and the sea of the ‘Aravah, in keeping with the word ofAdonaithe God of Isra’el, which he spoke through his servant Yonah the son of Amitai, the prophet from Gat-Hefer.

26 ForAdonaisaw how bitterly Isra’el had suffered, with no one left, either slave or free, and no one coming to Isra’el’s aid.

27 Adonaidid not threaten to blot out the name of Isra’el from under heaven, but saved them through Yarov‘am the son of Yo’ash.

28 Other activities of Yarov‘am, all his accomplishments, all his power, how he conducted war and how he recovered Dammesek and Hamat for Y’hudah in Isra’el are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

29 Yarov‘am slept with his ancestors the kings of Isra’el, and Z’kharyah took his place as king.

1 It was in the twenty-seventh year of Yarov‘am king of Isra’el that ‘Azaryah the son of Amatzyah, king of Y’hudah, began his reign.

2 He was sixteen years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for fifty-two years in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was Y’kholyahu, from Yerushalayim.

3 He did what was right fromAdonai’s perspective, following the example of everything his father Amatzyah had done.

4 However, the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and offered on the high places.

5 Adonaistruck the king, so that he hadtzara‘atuntil his dying day, so that he lived in a separate house, while Yotam the king’s son ran the king’s household and was regent over the people of the land.

6 Other activities of ‘Azaryah and all his accomplishments are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y’hudah.

7 So ‘Azaryah slept with his ancestors the kings of Isra’el, and they buried him with his ancestors in the City of David. Then Yotam his son took his place as king.

8 It was in the thirty-eighth year of ‘Azaryah king of Y’hudah that Z’kharyah the son of Yarov‘am began his reign over Isra’el in Shomron; he ruled for six months.

9 He did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective, just as his ancestors had done; he did not turn from all the sins of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, who made Isra’el sin.

10 Shalum the son of Yavesh formed a conspiracy against him. He struck him in the presence of the people and killed him; then he took his place as king.

11 Other activities of Z’kharyah are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

12 The word ofAdonaiwhich he had spoken to Yehu was, “Your descendants down to the fourth generation will sit on the throne of Isra’el”; and that is exactly what happened.

13 Shalum the son of Yavesh began his reign in the thirty-ninth year of ‘Uziyah king of Y’hudah; he ruled in Shomron for only a month.

14 Menachem the son of Gadi went up from Tirtzah, came to Shomron, struck Shalum the son of Yavesh in Shomron and killed him. Then he took his place as king.

15 Other activities of Shalum and the conspiracy he formed are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el

16 From Tirtzah Menachem attacked Tifsach, all the people in it and its territory, because they had not opened their gates to him. So he sacked the city and ripped apart all its pregnant women.

17 It was in the thirty-ninth year of ‘Azaryah king of Y’hudah that Menachem the son of Gadi began his reign over Isra’el; he ruled ten years in Shomron.

18 He did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective; throughout his life he did not turn from the sins of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, who made Isra’el sin.

19 Pul the king of Ashur invaded the land. Menachem gave Pul thirty-three tons of silver, so that he would confirm Menachem’s hold on the kingdom.

20 He did this by taxing the wealthy men in Isra’el; from each he required one-and-a-quarter pounds of silver to give to the king of Ashur. Then the king of Ashur turned around and left the land.

21 Other activities of Menachem and all his accomplishments are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

22 Menachem slept with his ancestors, and P’kachyah his son took his place as king.

23 It was in the fiftieth year of ‘Azaryah king of Y’hudah that P’kachyah the son of Menachem began his reign over Isra’el in Shomron; he ruled for two years.

24 He did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective; he did not turn from the sins of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, who made Isra’el sin.

25 Pekach the son of Remalyahu, one of his commanders, conspired against him. With Argov, Aryeh and fifty men from Gil‘ad, he assassinated him in the palace stronghold in Shomron. After killing him, he took his place as king.

26 Other activities of P’kachyah and all his accomplishments are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

27 It was in the fifty-second year of ‘Azaryah king of Y’hudah that Pekach the son of Remalyah began to reign over Isra’el in Shomron; his reign lasted twenty years.

28 He did what was evil fromAdonai’s perspective; he did not turn from the sins of Yarov‘am the son of N’vat, who made Isra’el sin.

29 During the time of Pekach king of Isra’el, Tiglat-Pil’eser king of Ashur came and conquered ‘Iyon, Avel-Beit-Ma‘akhah, Yanoach, Kedesh, Hatzor, Gil‘ad, and the Galil — all the land of Naftali — and took them captive to Ashur.

30 Hoshea the son of Elah conspired against Pekach the son of Remalyah, struck him, killed him and took his place as king in the twentieth year of Yotam the son of ‘Uziyah.

31 Other activities of Pekach and all his accomplishments are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Isra’el.

32 It was in the second year of Pekach the son of Remalyah, king of Isra’el, that Yotam the son of ‘Uziyah king of Y’hudah began his reign.

33 He was twenty-five years old when he began his reign, and he ruled for sixteen years in Yerushalayim. His mother’s name was Yerusha the daughter of Tzadok.

34 He did what was right fromAdonai’s perspective, following the example of everything his father ‘Uziyah had done.

35 However, the high places were not taken away; and the people still sacrificed and offered on the high places.

He built the Upper Gate of the house ofAdonai.

36 Other activities of Yotam and all his accomplishments are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y’hudah.

37 It was during this period thatAdonaibegan sending against Y’hudah Retzin the king of Aram and Pekach the son of Remalyah.

38 Yotam slept with his ancestors and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David his ancestor. Then Achaz his son took his place as king.