2 Kings 17

2 Kings 17:1 In the twelfth year of Judah’s King Ahaz, Hoshea, son of Elah, became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned nine years.

2 Kings 17:2 He did what was evil in Yahveh’s sight, but not like the kings of Israel who preceded him.

2 Kings 17:3 King Shalmaneser of Assyria attacked him, and Hoshea became his vassal and paid him tribute.

2 Kings 17:4 But the king of Assyria caught Hoshea in a conspiracy: He had sent envoys to So king of Egypt and had not paid tribute to the king of Assyria as in previous years. Therefore, the king of Assyria arrested him and put him in prison.

2 Kings 17:5 The king of Assyria invaded the whole land, marched up to Samaria, and besieged it for three years.

2 Kings 17:6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria captured Samaria. He deported the Israelites to Assyria and settled them in Halah, along the Habor (Gozan’s river), and in the cities of the Medes.

2 Kings 17:7 This disaster happened because the people of Israel failed Yahveh, their God, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt from the power of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and because they worshiped other gods.

2 Kings 17:8 They lived according to the customs of the nations that Yahveh had dispossessed before the Israelites and according to what the kings of Israel did.

2 Kings 17:9 The Israelites secretly did things against Yahveh their God that were not right. They built high places in all their towns, from watchtower to fortified city.

2 Kings 17:10 They set up for themselves sacred pillars and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every green tree.

2 Kings 17:11 They burned incense there on all the high places just like the nations that Yahveh had driven out before they had done. They did evil things, angering Yahveh.

2 Kings 17:12 They slaved for idols, although Yahveh had told them, “You must not do this.”

2 Kings 17:13 Still, Yahveh warned Israel and Judah through every prophet and every seer, saying, “Turn from your evil ways and keep my commands and statutes according to the whole law I commanded your ancestors and sent to you through my slaves the prophets.”

2 Kings 17:14 But they would not listen. Instead, they became obstinate like their ancestors who did not believe Yahveh their God.

2 Kings 17:15 They rejected his statutes, his covenant he had made with their ancestors, and the warnings he had given them. They followed worthless idols and became worthless themselves, following the surrounding nations Yahveh had commanded them not to imitate.

2 Kings 17:16 They abandoned all the commands of Yahveh, their God. They made cast images for themselves, two calves, and an Asherah pole. They bowed in worship to all the stars in the sky and slaved for Baal.

2 Kings 17:17 They sacrificed their sons and daughters in the fire, practiced divination and interpreted omens. They devoted themselves to doing what was evil in Yahveh’s sight and angered him.

2 Kings 17:18 Therefore, Yahveh was very angry with Israel, and he removed them from his presence. Only the tribe of Judah remained.

2 Kings 17:19 Even Judah did not keep the commands of Yahveh, their God, but lived according to the customs Israel had practiced.

2 Kings 17:20 So Yahveh rejected all the descendants of Israel, punished them, and handed them over to plunderers until he had banished them from his presence.

2 Kings 17:21 When Yahveh tore Israel from the house of David, Israel made Jeroboam son of Nebat king. Then, Jeroboam led Israel away from following Yahveh and caused them to commit immense sin.

2 Kings 17:22 The Israelites persisted in all the sins that Jeroboam committed and did not turn away from them.

2 Kings 17:23 Finally, Yahveh removed Israel from his presence just as he had declared through all his slaves the prophets. So, Israel has been exiled to Assyria from their homeland to this very day.

2 Kings 17:24 Then the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath, and Sepharvaim, and settled them in place of the Israelites in the cities of Samaria. The settlers took possession of Samaria and lived in its cities.

2 Kings 17:25 When they first lived there, they did not fear Yahveh. So, Yahveh sent lions among them, which killed some of them.

2 Kings 17:26 The settlers said to the king of Assyria, “The nations that you have deported and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the requirements of the god of the land. Therefore, he has sent lions among them that are killing them because the people don’t know the requirements of the god of the land.”

2 Kings 17:27 Then the king of Assyria issued a command: “Send back one of the priests you deported. Have him go and live there so he can teach them the requirements of the god of the land.”

2 Kings 17:28 So one of the priests they had deported came and lived in Bethel, and he began to teach them how they should fear Yahveh.

2 Kings 17:29 But the people of each nation were still making their gods in the cities where they lived and putting them in the shrines of the high places that the people of Samaria had made.

2 Kings 17:30 The men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, the men of Cuth made Nergal, the men of Hamath made Ashima,

2 Kings 17:31 the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burned their children in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim.

2 Kings 17:32 They feared Yahveh, but they also made from their ranks priests for the high places, who were working for them at the shrines of the high places.

2 Kings 17:33 They feared Yahveh, but they also slaved for their gods according to the practice of the nations from which they had been deported.

2 Kings 17:34 They are still observing the former practices to this day. None of them fear Yahveh or observe the statutes and ordinances, the law, and commandments that Yahveh had commanded the descendants of Jacob, whom he had given the name Israel.

2 Kings 17:35 Yahveh made a covenant with Jacob’s descendants and commanded them, “Do not fear other gods; do not bow in worship to them; do not slave for them; do not sacrifice to them.

2 Kings 17:36 Instead, fear Yahveh, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm. You are to bow down to him, and you are to sacrifice to him.

2 Kings 17:37 You are to be careful always to observe the statutes, the ordinances, the law, and the commandments he wrote for you; do not fear other gods.

2 Kings 17:38 Do not forget the covenant that I have made with you. Do not fear other gods,

2 Kings 17:39 but fear Yahveh your God, and he will rescue you from all your enemies.”

2 Kings 17:40 However, these nations would not listen but continued observing their former practices.

2 Kings 17:41 They feared Yahveh but also slaved for their idols. Still today, their children and grandchildren continue doing as their fathers did.

links:

enough
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Thursday, October 19, 2023
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Thursday, October 21, 2021
three Solomons
what we are doing – Devotions

The 2 KINGS shelf in Jeff’s library

2 Kings 16

2 Kings 16:1 In the seventeenth year of Pekah, son of Remaliah, Ahaz, son of Jotham, became king of Judah.

2 Kings 16:2 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. He did not do what was right in the sight of Yahveh, his God, like his ancestor David

2 Kings 16:3 but walked in the ways of the kings of Israel. He even sacrificed his son in the fire, imitating the detestable practices of the nations Yahveh had dispossessed before the Israelites.

2 Kings 16:4 He sacrificed and burned incense on the high places, on the hills, and under every green tree.

2 Kings 16:5 Then Aram’s King Rezin and Israel’s King Pekah, son of Remaliah, came to wage war against Jerusalem. They besieged Ahaz but could not conquer him.

2 Kings 16:6 At that time, Aram’s King Rezin recovered Elath for Aram and expelled the Judahites from Elath. Then, the Arameans came to Elath, and they still live there today.

2 Kings 16:7 So Ahaz sent agents to King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria, saying, “I am your slave and your son. March up and save me from the grasp of the king of Aram and of the king of Israel, who are rising against me.”

2 Kings 16:8 Ahaz also took the silver and gold found in Yahveh’s temple and the treasuries of the king’s palace and sent them to the king of Assyria as a bribe.

2 Kings 16:9 So the king of Assyria listened to him and marched up to Damascus and captured it. He deported its people to Kir but put Rezin to death.

2 Kings 16:10 King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria. When he saw the altar in Damascus, King Ahaz sent the priest Uriah a model of the altar and complete plans for its construction.

2 Kings 16:11 Uriah built the altar according to all the instructions King Ahaz sent from Damascus. Therefore, by the time King Ahaz came back from Damascus, the priest Uriah had completed it.

2 Kings 16:12 When the king returned from Damascus, he saw the altar. Then he approached it and ascended it.

2 Kings 16:13 He offered his burnt offering and his grain offering, poured out his drink offering, and splattered the blood of his fellowship offerings on the altar.

2 Kings 16:14 He took the bronze altar that was before Yahveh in front of the temple between his altar and Yahveh’s temple and put it on the north side of his altar.

2 Kings 16:15 Then King Ahaz commanded the priest, Uriah, “Offer on the great altar the morning burnt offering, the evening grain offering, and the king’s burnt offering and his grain offering. Also, offer the burnt offering of all the people of the land, their grain offering, and their drink offerings. Splatter on the altar all the blood of the burnt offering and all the blood of sacrifice. The bronze altar will be for me to seek guidance.”

2 Kings 16:16 The priest Uriah did everything King Ahaz commanded.

2 Kings 16:17 Then King Ahaz cut off the frames of the water carts and removed the bronze basin from each of them. He took the basin from the bronze oxen that were under it and put it on a stone pavement.

2 Kings 16:18 To satisfy the king of Assyria, he removed from Yahveh’s temple the Sabbath canopy they had built in the palace, and he closed the outer entrance for the king.

2 Kings 16:19 The rest of the events of Ahaz’s reign, along with his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.

2 Kings 16:20 Ahaz rested with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David, and his son Hezekiah became king in his place.

links:

changing things – Devotions
renovations

The 2 KINGS shelf in Jeff’s library

2 Kings 15

2 Kings 15:1 In the twenty-seventh year of Israel’s King Jeroboam, Azariah, son of Amaziah, became king of Judah.

2 Kings 15:2 He was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecoliah; she was from Jerusalem.

2 Kings 15:3 Azariah did what was right in  Yahveh’s sight just as his father Amaziah had done.

2 Kings 15:4 Yet the high places were not taken away; the people continued sacrificing and burning incense on the high places.

2 Kings 15:5 Yahveh afflicted the king, and he had a serious skin disease until his death. He lived in quarantine, while Jotham, the king’s son, oversaw the household and governed the people of the land.

2 Kings 15:6 The rest of the events of Azariah’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.

2 Kings 15:7 Azariah lay down with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. His son Jotham became king in his place.

2 Kings 15:8 In the thirty-eighth year of Judah’s King Azariah, Zechariah, son of Jeroboam, reigned over Israel in Samaria for six months.

2 Kings 15:9 He did what was evil in Yahveh’s sight as his fathers had done. He did not turn away from the sins Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit.

2 Kings 15:10 Shallum, son of Jabesh, conspired against Zechariah. He struck him down publicly, killed him, and became king in his place.

2 Kings 15:11 The rest of Zechariah’s reign’s events are recorded in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 15:12 Yahveh’s word to Jehu was, “Four generations of your sons will sit on the throne of Israel,” and it was so.

2 Kings 15:13 In the thirty-ninth year of Judah’s King Uzziah, Shallum, son of Jabesh, became king; he reigned in Samaria for a whole month.

2 Kings 15:14 Then Menahem, son of Gadi, came up from Tirzah to Samaria and struck down Shallum, son of Jabesh. He killed him and became king in his place.

2 Kings 15:15 The rest of Shallum’s reign, including his conspiracy, is written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 15:16 At that time, starting from Tirzah, Menahem attacked Tiphsah, all who were in it, and its territory because they wouldn’t surrender. He ripped open all the pregnant women.

2 Kings 15:17 In the thirty-ninth year of Judah’s King Azariah, Menahem, son of Gadi, became king over Israel, and he reigned for ten years in Samaria.

2 Kings 15:18 He did what was evil in Yahveh’s sight. Throughout his reign, he did not turn away from the sins Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit.

2 Kings 15:19 King Pul of Assyria invaded the land, so Menahem gave Pul seventy-five thousand pounds of silver so that Pul would support him to make his grasp strong on the kingdom.

2 Kings 15:20 Then Menahem exacted twenty ounces of silver from each of the prominent men of Israel to give to the king of Assyria. So, the king of Assyria withdrew and did not stay there in the land.

2 Kings 15:21 The rest of the events of Menahem’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 15:22 Menahem lay down with his fathers, and his son Pekahiah became king in his place.

2 Kings 15:23 In the fiftieth year of Judah’s King Azariah, Pekahiah, son of Menahem, became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned for two years.

2 Kings 15:24 He did what was evil in Yahveh’s sight and did not turn away from the sins Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit.

2 Kings 15:25 Then his officer, Pekah, son of Remaliah, conspired against him and struck him down in Samaria at the citadel of the king’s palace—with Argob and Arieh. Pekah had fifty Gileadite men with him. He killed Pekahiah and became king in his place.

2 Kings 15:26 As for the rest of the events of Pekahiah’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, they are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 15:27 In the fifty-second year of Judah’s King Azariah, Pekah, son of Remaliah, became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned for twenty years.

2 Kings 15:28 He did what was evil in Yahveh’s sight. He did not turn away from the sins Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit.

2 Kings 15:29 In the days of King Pekah of Israel, King Tiglath-pileser of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-Beth-match, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee—all the land of Naphtali—and deported the people to Assyria.

2 Kings 15:30 Then Hoshea, son of Elah, organized a conspiracy against Pekah, son of Remaliah. He attacked him, killed him, and became king in his place in the twentieth year of Jotham, son of Uzziah.

2 Kings 15:31 As for the rest of the events of Pekah’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, they are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 15:32 In the second year of Israel’s King Pekah, son of Remaliah, Jotham, son of Uzziah, became king of Judah.

2 Kings 15:33 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jerusha, daughter of Zadok.

2 Kings 15:34 He did what was right in Yahveh’s sight just as his father Uzziah had done.

2 Kings 15:35 Yet the high places were not taken away; the people continued sacrificing and burning incense on the high places. Jotham built the Upper Gate of Yahveh’s temple.

2 Kings 15:36 The rest of the events of Jotham’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Book of Judah’s Kings.

2 Kings 15:37 In those days, Yahveh began sending Aram’s King Rezin and Pekah, son of Remaliah, against Judah.

2 Kings 15:38 Jotham lay down with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of his ancestor David. His son Ahaz became king in his place.

links:

restoration without revival

The 2 KINGS shelf in Jeff’s library

2 Kings 14:

2 Kings 14:1 In the second year of Israel’s King Jehoash, son of Jehoahaz, Amaziah, son of Joash, became king of Judah.

2 Kings 14:2 He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan; she was from Jerusalem.

2 Kings 14:3 He did what was right in Yahveh’s sight, but not like his ancestor David. He did everything his father, Joash, had done.

2 Kings 14:4 Yet the high places were not taken away, and the people continued sacrificing and burning incense on the high places.

2 Kings 14:5 As soon as he had the kingdom in his grasp, Amaziah killed his slaves, who had killed his father, the king.

2 Kings 14:6 However, he did not put the children of the killers to death, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses where Yahveh commanded, “Fathers are not be put to death because of children, and children are not put to death because of fathers; instead, each one will be put to death for his sin.”

2 Kings 14:7 Amaziah killed ten thousand Edomites in Salt Valley. He took Sela in battle and called it Joktheel, which is still its name today.

2 Kings 14:8 Amaziah then sent agents to Jehoash, son of Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, king of Israel, and challenged him: “Come, let’s meet face to face.”

2 Kings 14:9 King Jehoash of Israel sent word to King Amaziah of Judah, saying, “The thistle in Lebanon once sent a message to the cedar in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as a wife.’ Then, a wild animal in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thistle.

2 Kings 14:10 You have indeed defeated Edom, and you have become overconfident. Enjoy your glory and stay at home. Why should you stir up such trouble that you fall– you and Judah with you?”

2 Kings 14:11 But Amaziah would not listen, so King Jehoash of Israel advanced. He and King Amaziah of Judah met face to face at Beth-shemesh, which belonged to Judah.

2 Kings 14:12 Judah was routed before Israel, and each man fled to his tent.

2 Kings 14:13 King Jehoash of Israel captured Judah’s King Amaziah, son of Joash, son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh. Then Jehoash went to Jerusalem and broke down two hundred yards of Jerusalem’s wall from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate.

2 Kings 14:14 He took all the gold and silver, all the articles found in Yahveh’s temple and the treasuries of the king’s palace, and some hostages. Then he returned to Samaria.

2 Kings 14:15 The rest of Jehoash’s reign, including his accomplishments, might, and how he waged war against King Amaziah of Judah, is written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 14:16 Jehoash lay down with his fathers, and he was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. His son Jeroboam became king in his place.

2 Kings 14:17 Judah’s King Amaziah, son of Joash, lived fifteen years after the death of Israel’s King Jehoash, son of Jehoahaz.

2 Kings 14:18 The rest of Amaziah’s reign is recorded in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.

2 Kings 14:19 A conspiracy was formed against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish. However, men were sent after him to Lachish, and they put him to death there.

2 Kings 14:20 They carried him back on horses, and he was buried in Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David.

2 Kings 14:21 Then all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in place of his father, Amaziah.

2 Kings 14:22 After Amaziah the king lied down with his fathers, Azariah rebuilt Elath and restored it to Judah.

2 Kings 14:23 In the fifteenth year of Judah’s King Amaziah, son of Joash, Jeroboam, son of Jehoash, became king of Israel in Samaria, and he reigned for forty-one years.

2 Kings 14:24 He did what was evil in Yahveh’s sight. He did not turn away from all the sins Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit.

2 Kings 14:25 He restored Israel’s border from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word Yahveh, the God of Israel, had spoken through his slave, the prophet Jonah son of Amittai from Gath-hepher.

2 Kings 14:26 Because Yahveh saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter for both slaves and free people. There was no one to help Israel.

2 Kings 14:27 Yahveh had not said he would blot out the name of Israel under the sky, so he delivered them by the hand of Jeroboam, son of Jehoash.

2 Kings 14:28 The rest of the events of Jeroboam’s reign — along with all his accomplishments, the power he had to wage war, and how he recovered for Israel Damascus and Hamath, which had belonged to Judah — are written in the Book of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 14:29 Jeroboam lay down with his fathers, the kings of Israel. His son Zechariah became king in his place.

links:

big bite
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Friday, October 18, 2019
Maranatha Daily Devotional – Wednesday, October 18, 2023
restoration without revival
restored, not revived – Devotions
small victory – Devotions

The 2 KINGS shelf in Jeff’s library

2 Kings 13

2 Kings 13:1 In the twenty-third year of Judah’s King Joash, son of Ahaziah, Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned seventeen years.

2 Kings 13:2 He did what was evil in Yahveh’s sight and followed the sins that Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them.

2 Kings 13:3 So Yahveh’s anger burned against Israel, and he handed them over to King Hazael of Aram and his son Ben-hadad during their reigns.

2 Kings 13:4 Then Jehoahaz sought Yahveh’s favor, and Yahveh heard him, for he saw the oppression the king of Aram inflicted on Israel.

2 Kings 13:5 Therefore, Yahveh gave Israel a deliverer, and they escaped from the power of the Arameans. Then, the people of Israel returned to their former way of life,

2 Kings 13:6 but they didn’t turn away from the sins that the house of Jeroboam had caused Israel to commit. Jehoahaz continued them, and the Asherah pole also remained standing in Samaria.

2 Kings 13:7 Jehoahaz did not have an army left, except for fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers, because the king of Aram had destroyed them, making them like dust at threshing.

2 Kings 13:8 The rest of the events of Jehoahaz’s reign, along with all his accomplishments and his might, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 13:9 Jehoahaz rested with his fathers, and he was buried in Samaria. His son Jehoash became king in his place.

2 Kings 13:10 In the thirty-seventh year of Judah’s King Joash, Jehoash, son of Jehoahaz, became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned sixteen years.

2 Kings 13:11 He did what was evil in Yahveh’s sight. He did not turn away from all the sins that Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit, but he continued them.

2 Kings 13:12 The rest of the events of Jehoash’s reign, along with all his accomplishments and the power he had to wage war against Judah’s King Amaziah, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.

2 Kings 13:13 Jehoash rested with his fathers, and Jeroboam sat on his throne. Jehoash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

2 Kings 13:14 When Elisha became sick with the illness from which he died, King Jehoash of Israel went down and wept over him and said, “My father, my father, the chariots and horsemen of Israel!”

2 Kings 13:15 Elisha responded, “Get a bow and arrows.” So, he got a bow and arrows.

2 Kings 13:16 Then Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Grasp the bow.” So, the king grasped it, and Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands.

2 Kings 13:17 Elisha said, “Open the east window.” So, he opened it. Elisha said, “Shoot!” So, he shot. Then Elisha said, ” Yahveh’s arrow of victory, yes, the arrow of victory over Aram. You are to strike down the Arameans in Aphek until you have put an end to them.”

2 Kings 13:18 Then Elisha said, “Take the arrows!” So, he took them. Then Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground!” So, he struck the ground three times and stopped.

2 Kings 13:19 The man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times. Then you would have struck down Aram until you had put an end to them, but now you will strike down Aram only three times.”

2 Kings 13:20 Then Elisha died and was buried. Now, Moabite raiders used to come into the land in the spring of the year.

2 Kings 13:21 Once, as the Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a raiding party, so they threw the man into Elisha’s tomb. When he touched Elisha’s bones, the man revived and stood up!

2 Kings 13:22 King Hazael of Aram oppressed Israel throughout the reign of Jehoahaz,

2 Kings 13:23 but Yahveh was gracious to them, had compassion for them, and turned toward them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He was not willing to destroy them. Even now he has not banished them from his presence.

2 Kings 13:24 King Hazael of Aram died, and his son Ben-hadad became king in his place.

2 Kings 13:25 Then Jehoash, son of Jehoahaz, took back from Ben-hadad, son of Hazael, the cities that Hazael had taken in war from Jehoash’s father, Jehoahaz. Jehoash defeated Ben-hadad three times and recovered the cities of Israel.

links:

being patient and passionate
not enough victory
not loyal enough – Devotions

The 2 KINGS shelf in Jeff’s library