,

From the Greek Septuagint text as was used by First Century Christians.
Covering the period starting with the death of IsraEl's King AhaziAh (about 944-B.C.E.)
to the destruction of JeruSalem by Babylon (somewhere between 607-B.C.E. and 586-B.C.E.)

Chapter 1

¹ –

² AhaziAh fell through the latticework on the roof of [his palace] in Samaria and was badly injured. So he called messengers and told them, 'Go and ask BaAl, the Fly God of Ekron, if I'm going to live through this.' So, they went to ask him.

³ Then a messenger of Jehovah spoke to EliJah (the Tishbite) and said, 'Get up and meet the messengers of AhaziAh, the king of Samaria, and ask them, Is it because there's no God in IsraEl that you're so anxiously going to see BaAl, the Fly God of Ekron… you know that isn't true! ⁴ So, [tell them to return to AhaziAh], because Jehovah says, You're never going to get out of that bed you're in… you're going to die!'

So EliJah went and told them, ⁵ and the messengers returned to [the king]. Then he asked them, 'Why did you come back?'

⁶ And they said, 'Well, a man came to meet us, and he told us to return to the king who sent us and tell him that Jehovah says: Are you so anxiously going to see BaAl, the Fly God of Ekron because there's no God in IsraEl? There's no need to do that, because you won't be getting out of the bed you're lying in; for, you're going to die.'

⁷ So, after they reported what EliJah said, the king asked, 'What did the man look like who came to meet you and said those things?'

⁸ And they said, 'He had a lot of hair, and he wore a large leather belt around his waist.'

And [the king] said, 'Ah, it's EliJah the Tishbite!'

⁹ So, he sent a contingent of fifty men to get EliJah, and when they found him, he was sitting at the very top of a mountain. Then the lieutenant in charge of the fifty men said to him, 'O man of God; The king has called for you, so come down from there!'

¹⁰ But EliJah replied to the leader of the group, 'If I am a man of God, I can bring fire down from the sky to consume you and your fifty men.'

Then fire came from the sky and destroyed him and all fifty of his men.

¹¹ So, the king sent another contingent of fifty men. And when they got [to EliJah], the lieutenant over the group said, 'O man of God; The king says that you should come down from there… right now!'

¹² But EliJah answered, 'If I am a man of God, fire will come down from the sky and consume you and your fifty men.'

And then fire came from the sky and destroyed him and his fifty men.

¹³ So, the king sent a third contingent of fifty men, but when they got to him, the lieutenant over the fifty bent down on his knees before EliJah and begged him, saying, 'O man of God; Please value my life and the lives of your servants, these fifty men who are standing before you. ¹⁴ For, {Look!} fire came down from the sky and destroyed the two previous groups of fifty men and their leaders. But please value the lives of your servants who are standing here before you!'

¹⁵ Then the messenger of Jehovah spoke to EliJah and said, 'Get down and go with him, and don't be afraid of them.'

So, EliJah climbed down and went with them to the king. ¹⁶ Then he told the king, 'This is what Jehovah has said: Why did you send messengers to get a reply from BaAl, the Fly God of Ekron? That won't be necessary, because you won't be getting out of the bed that you're in; for, you're going to die!'

¹⁷ And then he died, just as Jehovah said through EliJah.

¹⁸ Well, all the rest of the many things that AhaziAh said and did {Look!} have been written about in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl.

Chapter 2

¹ Then there came the time when Jehovah was to take EliJah into the sky in a great shaking; so EliJah and EliSha left GilGal together. ² And EliJah said to EliSha, 'Wait here, because Jehovah is sending me on to BethEl.'

And EliSha asked, 'As Jehovah lives and as you live; should I just I abandon you?' So, they traveled on to BethEl together.

³ Then the Sons of the Prophets came to EliSha in BethEl and said to him, 'Do you know that Jehovah is going to take your master and lift him over your head today?'

And he replied, 'Yes, I know… but don't talk about it!'

^{4, 5,} –

⁶ Then EliJah told him, 'Now, wait here, because Jehovah is sending me to the Jordan River.'

And EliSha [again] said, 'As Jehovah lives and as you live; am I to abandon you?' So, they both traveled on.

⁷ Meanwhile, fifty of the Sons of the Prophets were standing opposite them, some distance away, as both men walked up to the Jordan. ⁸ Then EliJah took off his sheepskin cape, folded it, struck the water with it; and [the river] parted before them. So they crossed it on dry land, ⁹ and as they were crossing, EliJah said to EliSha, 'Tell me what I can do for you before I'm taken from you.'

And EliSha said, 'Please bestow a double portion of your [power from God's] Breath upon me.'

¹⁰ And EliJah told him, 'That's a difficult request. But if you see me being taken up from you, you'll receive it. However, if you don't, it just won't happen.'

¹¹ Then, as they were crossing the river, walking along and talking, {Look!} a chariot of fire and horses of fire rode up between them and took EliJah intothe sky with great shaking.

¹² Well, as EliSha was watching this, he yelled out, 'O father, O father… the chariot of IsraEl and his horseman!'

And before he passed from sight, [EliSha] grabbed [EliJah's] robe and it ripped into two pieces. ¹³ Then he held up EliJah's sheepskin cape that had fallen on top of him, and he turned and crossed to the other bank.

¹⁴ Well, then he took the sheepskin of EliJah that had fallen upon him and struck the water with it… but it didn't part. And he cried out, 'Where is the God of EliJah now?' Then he struck the water again, and it ripped apart on both sides. So, EliSha crossed the river.

¹⁵ And when the Sons of the Prophets who had come from JeriCho saw him standing across from them, they said, 'The Breath of EliJah now rests upon EliSha,' and they came to meet with him, and bowed to the ground before him.

¹⁶ Then they said to him, '{Look!} We have fifty men [who are filled with God's] power. Allow us to send them to search for your master; for the Breath of Jehovah may have tossed him into the Jordan, or onto one of the mountains or hills!'

And EliSha said, 'No, don't send them.'

¹⁷ But they kept insisting until he was embarrassed, so he said, 'Okay, then send them!'

Well, they sent fifty men who searched for him for three days, but they couldn't find him. ¹⁸ And when they returned to where he was staying in JeriCho, EliSha said, 'Didn't I tell you not to go?'

¹⁹ After that, the men of the city came to EliSha and said, '{Look!} As you can see, O master; this city is in a good location. However, the water is bad and nothing wants to grow here.'

²⁰ And EliSha said, 'Okay, then bring me a new water jar filled with salt.'

So they went and brought it to him. ²¹ And EliSha went to the place where they got their water and threw the salt in, and said, 'This is what Jehovah has said: I have made the water good, so now it will cause no more death or destruction.' ²² And the water there has remained good to this day, just as EliSha said.

²³ After that, he left [JeriCho] and traveled back toward BethEl. But on the way, some young boys who were following him from the city started making fun of him by shouting. 'Go into the sky, bald man… go into the sky!'

²⁴ And when he saw this, he turned around and cursed them in the name of Jehovah. Then {Look!} two bears came out of the woods and tore all forty of the children to pieces.

²⁵ Well, he traveled from there to Mount CarMel, and then on to Samaria.

Chapter 3

¹ JehoRam (the son of Ahab) had started reigning in IsraEl in the eighteenth year of JehoShaphat, the king of Judah, and he reigned for twelve years. ² He also acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah, but not as badly as his father or mother. ³ For, he removed the columns of BaAl that his father had erected, but he still hung onto and practiced the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat), who led IsraEl into sin.

⁴ Now, King Mesha of Moab was a shepherd, and he had once sent a hundred-thousand lambs and a hundred-thousand wooly rams to the king of IsraEl, as a good-will gesture. ⁵ Then after Ahab died, the king of Moab ended his alliance with the king of IsraEl. ⁶ So, King JehoRam went from Samaria to do a census [of the army] of IsraEl, ⁷ and he also sent a message to JehoShaphat, the king of Judah, saying, 'The king of Moab has annulled his alliance with me. Will you join me in a war against Moab?'

And he replied, 'I will, for you and I are very much alike, and your people and my people [are related]; so my horses are your horses! ⁸ Which road do you want me to take?

And JehoRam replied, '[Join me] on the road to the desert of Edom.'

⁹ So the king of IsraEl, the king of Judah, and the king of Edom [got together] and went on a circular march that lasted seven days, and they finally ran out of water… they didn't have enough for their animals or their troops. ¹⁰ Then the king of IsraEl said, 'Oh, did Jehovah call three kings and send them here just to hand them over to Moab?'

¹¹ And JehoShaphat asked, 'Didn't you bring along a Prophet of Jehovah? We should be asking him!'

And one of the servants of the king of IsraEl said, 'We can go to EliSha (the son of ShaPhat), who used to wash the hands of EliJah.'

¹² And JehoShaphat asked, 'Are the words of Jehovah in him?'

Well, the king of IsraEl, the king of Judah (JehoShaphat), and the king of Edom went to see him. ¹³ And EliSha asked the king of IsraEl, 'Why have you come here… why don't you go to the prophets of your father and mother?'

But the king of IsraEl asked him, 'Has Jehovah called us three kings just to hand us over to Moab?'

¹⁴ And EliSha said, 'As Jehovah the God of armies (before whom I stand) lives; were it not for the fact that JehoShaphat (the king of Judah) is welcome here, I would never have bothered to see you. ¹⁵ But now, bring me my harp.'

Well, as he strummed his harp, the hand of Jehovah came over him ¹⁶ and he said, 'This is what Jehovah has said:
Dig cistern after cistern in the wadi,
¹⁷ And though the wind blows it won't rain.
But the wadi will be filled with water
, For your men, your animals, and you.
¹⁸ And because this is not a light matter,
In the eyes of Jehovah,
I'll give Moab into your hands.
¹⁹ Then you must destroy all their fortified cities,
And cut down all their good trees.
Then stop up their wells and their springs,
And cover their land up with rocks.'

²⁰ Well, the next morning, just after they had offered sacrifices, {Look!} there was water running down the road to Edom, and it covered the land.

²¹ Now, when the Moabites heard that the three kings were coming to war against them, people started yelling all over the land and strapping on their [swords]; then they all gathered for war along their borders. ²² And when they got up early the next morning and the sun arose over the water; as they gazed across the water, it appeared to be fiery red… like blood! ²³ And they said, 'That's blood from a battle! Why, the kings have fought among themselves, and now they're the spoils of Moab!'

²⁴ So they advanced toward the camp of IsraEl, and then IsraEl came and attacked the Moabites… and they ran from before them. Then they entered the land and destroyed Moab, ²⁵ demolishing all the cities.

Thereafter, each man picked up rocks and threw them over the good land, covering the ground with rocks, and they stopped up all the springs and wells. They also cut down all the good trees and broke the walls of the cities into rocks. Then they surrounded the cities and pelted them with the rocks.

²⁶ Well, when the king of Moab realized that all was lost, he took seven hundred of his best men and tried to cut through the [lines of] the king of Edom, but he was unsuccessful. ²⁷ Then he [went back] and took his firstborn son (the one who was to be his successor) and sacrificed him as a whole burnt offering on his [city] wall. And since he had offered his repentance to IsraEl in a great way, they left his land and returned home.

Chapter 4

¹ Then a wife of one of the Sons of the Prophets called for EliSha and said, 'My husband (your servant) has died. Now, you know that your servant was [a man] who feared Jehovah. But the moneylender just came to take my two sons away to be his slaves.'

² And EliSha asked, 'Tell me; What can I do for you? Is there anything that you own with which [you can pay for their release]?

And she replied, 'I don't have a single thing in my house, other than some olive oil that's used for anointing.'

³ And he said, 'Go around to your neighbors and see how many empty jars you can get from them. ⁴ Then go back home and lock yourself and your sons inside, and fill each of the jars with [the olive oil], one at a time.'

⁵ So, she went home and did what he told her. She gathered her sons and locked the doors, and then she started filling the jars. ⁶ And as she filled them, she would say to her sons, 'Now bring me another jar!' However, they finally told her, 'There are no more jars'… and at that point, the flow of olive oil ended.

⁷ Then she went and reported what had happened to EliSha, the man of God; and EliSha said, 'Now go and sell the olive oil, and that will pay your interest. Then you and your sons can use whatever you don't sell.'

⁸ Well, one day, as EliSha was passing Soman, a wealthy woman who lived there insisted that he come in for a meal. And thereafter, whenever he was passing by, he would stop there to eat. ⁹ Then the woman said to her husband, '{Look!} I know that this is a holy man of God who is always stopping here. ¹⁰ So, why don't we make him a small room upstairs? We can put a bed, a table, a chair, and a lampstand there, and whenever he comes to visit, he can spend the night here.'

¹¹ Well, one day (when he was in the area), he stopped by, went to his upstairs room, and then he went to bed. ¹² Later, he told his servant GeHazi, 'Call the Somanite woman and ask to speak to her. Tell her, {Look!} You have shocked us with [the good thing you've done for us]. So, what can we do for you? Can we put in a good word for you with the king or his generals?'

¹³ And she replied, 'No, I live among friends and I have a happy life.'

¹⁴ Then he asked GeHazi, 'So, what do you think we can do for her?'

And GeHazi replied, 'Well, she has no son, and her husband is very old.'

¹⁵ So EliSha said, 'Call her!' And he called her, and she came and stood by the door. ¹⁶ Then he said to her, 'At this time next year, at about the same hour, you'll be holding a living son.'

But she said, 'Oh no, my lord; you shouldn't disappoint your female servant like this!'

¹⁷ However, the woman did get pregnant and give birth to a living son on the same day and hour the following year, just as EliSha had told her.

¹⁸ Well, the boy grew, and then one day he went to his father (out where they were doing the harvesting) ¹⁹ and he said: 'Oh, my head! My head hurts!'

Well, the father told his servant, 'Carry him to his mother.'

²⁰ So he carried him to his mother, and she put him to sleep on her knees. But about noon, he died. ²¹ So, she carried him upstairs and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and then she locked the door and went to call her husband. ²² She told him, 'Send one of the servants with me, and a burro, because I'm going to run and find the man of God and bring him back.'

²³ And he asked, 'Why do you have to go to him today? It's not a New Moon or a Sabbath.'

And she just said, 'Peace!' ²⁴ Then she saddled her burro and told her servant, 'You lead… Go! Don't wait for me to mount the burro… as I said; Go! Search throughout Mount CarMel and find the man of God!'

²⁵ Then she went and reached the man of God on the mountain. And when EliSha saw her coming, he said to GeHazi (his servant), 'Isn't that the Somanite woman? ²⁶ Run to meet her and say, 'May you, your husband, and the boy have peace!'

And she said, 'Peace!' ²⁷ Then she went up to EliSha on the mountain, and grabbed hold of his feet… but GeHazi approached to push her away. However, EliSha said, 'Leave her alone, because there's a lot of pain in her life. I don't know what it is, because Jehovah has concealed it from me.'

²⁸ Then she said, 'I didn't ask for a son from my lord, and I told you not to mislead me…'

²⁹ Then EliSha said to GeHazi, 'Wrap your loins and take my walking stick and go! If you see any man along the way, don't stop to bless him… or if a man should bless you, don't answer him. Go and place my walking stick against the face of the boy.'

³⁰ Then the boy's mother said to EliSha, 'As Jehovah lives and as your body is living; are we going to leave you behind?' So, EliSha got up and went after her, ³¹ but GeHazi went on ahead.

Well, [when he got there] he placed the walking stick against the boy's face, but there was no sound and he couldn't hear anything. So he went back to EliSha and said, 'The boy didn't get up!'

³² Then EliSha went into the house and {Look!} found the dead boy lying on his bed. ³³ So, he went inside, locked the door behind him, and he prayed to Jehovah. ³⁴ Then he got down on top of the boy, mouth-to-mouth, eye-to-eye, and hand-to-hand, and he just lay there warming the boy's flesh.

³⁵ Well, then he got up and walked all around the house, and he went back upstairs and leaned against the boy seven times… and then the boy opened his eyes. ³⁶ So EliSha yelled out to GeHazi, 'Call the Somanite woman!'

Well, he called her and she went upstairs; and EliSha said, 'Here's your son back!'

³⁷ So she went in, fell upon EliSha's feet, and bowed to the ground before him. Then she took her son [back downstairs].

³⁸ Well after that, EliSha traveled to GilGal, because there was a famine in the land. There the Sons of the Prophets sat down before him, and EliSha told his servant, 'Go to the large cooking pot and boil up some stew for the Sons of the Prophets.'

³⁹ So, he went out into the field to collect some vegetables; and there he found a vine growing that had some wild gourds; so he picked enough to fill his coat, and he threw them into the stew pot (but they didn't know anything about it); ⁴⁰ then he poured out the stew for the men to eat. Well, when they started eating it, they started yelling, 'O man of God, there's poison in this.' And they weren't able to eat it.

⁴¹ However, EliSha said, 'Just take some flour and put it in the pot.' And then he told GeHazi to pour some for them to eat. Well, there wasn't anything wrong with the food in the pot after that.

⁴² Then a man from BethSariSa came along carrying the first fruits of his harvest for the man of God… twenty barley loaves, and [several] clusters of dried figs. And he said, 'Give this to these people and let them eat it.'

⁴³ And [EliSha] said to his servant, 'Why should I feed those things to just a hundred men? Give it to the [rest] of the people [of the city] and let them eat it, for Jehovah has said, They will eat it and have leftovers!'

⁴⁴ And after everyone ate, there were leftovers, just as Jehovah had said.

Chapter 5

¹ There was a man named NaAman who was the commander-in-chief of the army of Syria. He was highly valued by his lord and everyone admired him. Why, Jehovah had even used him to save Syria; for, he was a very strong and mighty man. However, he had contracted leprosy.

² Well, the Syrians had gone into IsraEl lightly armed, and they captured a young girl there, who was given to NaAman's wife as a servant. ³ And she suggested to her lady, 'My master should go to see the Prophet of God who is in Samaria, for he would cure him of his leprosy.'

⁴ Well, [NaAman's wife] went to him while he was [with the king] and told him what she'd heard the girl from the land of IsraEl say. ⁵ And the king of Syria said to NaAman, 'Then go there, and I'll send along a letter for the king of IsraEl.'

So he went [to Samaria] and brought along seven hundred pounds of silver, six thousand gold coins, ten suits of clothes, ⁶ and the letter to the king of IsraEl. The letter said, 'When you receive this letter, {Look!} I will have sent my servant NaAman to you. Cure him of his leprosy.'

⁷ Well, when the king of IsraEl read the letter, he ripped his clothes and said, 'Am I God who can bring death to one and life to another, so that he would send me a man to be cured of his leprosy? How do I know that this isn't just an excuse to attack me?'

⁸ Well, when EliSha heard about the king of IsraEl ripping his clothes, he sent [a message] to the king that said, 'Why did you tear your clothes? Allow NaAman to come to me, so he will know that there's a Prophet in IsraEl!'

⁹ And thereafter, NaAman came to him in a horse-drawn chariot, and he stood there in front of the door of EliSha's house. ¹⁰ Then EliSha sent a messenger outside to him who said, 'Go and bathe yourself in the Jordan River seven times, and your flesh will be cleansed.'

¹¹ Well, NaAman was outraged! He said, 'Why, they told me that he would come out and stand before me, then call on the Name of his God, and put his hand on the leprosy and cure it! ¹² Aren't the Abana and Phaphar Rivers of Damascus superior to the Jordan and all the waters of IsraEl? If I want to be cleansed, I can go bathe in them!' So he left in a huff.

¹³ But his servant spoke to him and gave him some great advice. He said, 'Shouldn't you do what the Prophet said? All he told you to do was to bathe and be cleansed!'

¹⁴ So then, NaAman went down to the Jordan and dipped himself in the water seven times, just as EliSha said… and he was cleansed! In fact, his skin became like that of a young boy. ¹⁵ So, he returned to EliSha with his entire contingent of guards, and stood before him and said, '{Look!} Now I know for sure that there's no other God in all the earth… just in IsraEl! Now, take these blessings from your servant!'

¹⁶ But EliSha said, 'As [Jehovah, the God] that I stand before lives; how could I accept such a thing?'

Well, he kept insisting, but EliSha kept resisting. ¹⁷ Then NaAman said, 'Well if not, then at least let your servant give you this team of mules, and you can give me some of your red earth in return; then I'll quit insisting. However, your servant won't present whole burnt offerings or sacrifices to any gods other than to Jehovah alone, because of what this God has done. ¹⁸ But, may Jehovah deal kindly with your servant when I have to enter the temple of RemMan with my master. Because when he goes there, he has to hold onto my hand when he kneels before RemMan, so I must bend down also… may Jehovah deal kindly with your servant in this matter.'

¹⁹ And EliSha told NaAman, 'Go in peace.'

So, he left and headed toward the land of HavRatha. ²⁰ But GeHazi (EliSha's servant) said, '{Look!} NaAman was saved, yet my master wouldn't accept any of the things that he brought. As Jehovah lives, I'm going to run after him and accept anything that he's willing to give!'

²¹ So, GeHazi ran after NaAman, and when NaAman saw him running behind, he stopped his chariot and waited for him. Then, [when GeHazi caught up], he said, 'Peace! ²² My master has sent me and he told me to say, {Look!} Two young men just came to me from the hills of Ephraim… from the Sons of the Prophets. So, please let me have seventy-pounds of silver and two suits of clothes to give to them.'

²³ And NaAman said, 'Take a hundred-and-forty pounds of silver!'

So, he took the silver in two pouches, and two suits of clothes, and handed them to his servants. Then they carried the things on ahead of him. ²⁴ And when they got to a shady spot, he took it all and carried it home, and he sent them on.

²⁵ Well, when he went to see his master, EliSha said to him, 'Where did you come from GeHazi?'

And GeHazi replied, 'Oh, your servant was just traveling here and there.'

²⁶ And EliSha said to him, 'Wasn't my heart traveling with you when the man stopped his chariot to wait for you? And now you've taken the silver and the clothing to buy gardens, olive groves, vineyards, sheep, oxen, and male and female servants; but the leprosy of NaAman will stick to you and your seed through the ages.'

And as he was leaving, his face became as white as snow with leprosy.

Chapter 6

¹ Later, the Sons of the Prophets went to EliSha and said, ² 'Look, this place near you (where we're living) is getting too small for us. ² So, we're going to the Jordan, and each man is going to carry a board, so we can build ourselves a place there.'

And EliSha said, 'Then go!'

³ But one of them said, 'We want you to come with us.' And he agreed to go.

⁴ So, he traveled with them, and when they got to the Jordan, they started cutting trees. ⁵ Then, {Look!} when one of them was setting a rafter in place, an iron tool fell off of it and into the river. And he yelled, 'O Lord!' But it was gone.

⁶ Well, the man of God came to him and asked, 'Where did it fall?' And he showed him the place.

Then EliSha picked up a piece of wood and threw it into the spot, and the iron tool floated to the surface. ⁷ And he said, 'Now, pick it up yourself.' So he reached out and grabbed the tool.

⁸ Well at the time, the king of Syria was at war with IsraEl. So he consulted with his servants and selected a certain concealed place to set up his camp. ⁹ Then EliSha sent [a message] to the king of IsraEl, saying, 'Be careful not to get to close to (such and such) a place, because the Syrians are hiding there.'

¹⁰ Then the king of IsraEl went to the place that EliSha had warned him about, and he was spotted watching the place, not once, but twice! ¹¹ And when word of this reached the king of Syria, he was very upset. So he called his servants and said to them, 'Is anyone going to tell me who betrayed me to the king of IsraEl?'

¹² Well, all his servants said, 'No one, our lord, O king; for it is EliSha the Prophet of IsraEl who tells the king of IsraEl the things that you say in your closet and in your bedroom.'

¹³ And he said, 'Then go find him and capture him!'

Well, they soon reported back to the king, saying, '{Look!} He's in Dothan.'

¹⁴ So, he sent horses and a chariot there at night, along with many soldiers who surrounded the city. ¹⁵ And when the servant who had been assigned to EliSha got up early in the morning and went outside, {Look!} he saw the army surrounding the city with all their horses and chariots. So he went back inside and asked, 'O master, what should we do?'

¹⁶ But EliSha said, 'Don't be afraid, for there are many more with us than there are with them.' ¹⁷ Then EliSha prayed and said, 'O Jehovah, open wide the eyes of this servant.'

So, Jehovah opened his eyes wide, and he saw {Look!} that the mountain was filled with horses and chariots of fire that were surrounding EliSha.

¹⁸ Well, when they came to get him, EliSha prayed to Jehovah, saying, 'Now, strike this nation so they can't see!' And suddenly they were all struck [mentally] blind, just as EliSha had asked. ¹⁹ Then EliSha shouted at them, 'This is the wrong city… you took the wrong road! Follow me and I'll lead you to the man you're looking for.'

So he led them to Samaria, ²⁰ and when they got there, EliSha prayed, 'O Jehovah, now open their eyes and let them see!' And Jehovah opened the eyes [of their minds] wide, and they realized that {Look!} they were in the midst of Samaria.

²¹ Well, when the king of IsraEl saw them, he asked EliSha, 'Shall I cut them down, O father?'

²² And he said, 'No, for unless you've captured and beaten them with your swords and bows, you shouldn't cut them down. Rather, set some food and water before them, so they can eat and drink, then just let them return to their lord.'

²³ As the result, he placed a great feast before them, then they ate and drank, and he sent them back to their lord.

Well, the Syrians kept sending their armies into the land of IsraEl. ²⁴ Then one day, BenHader (the king of Syria) gathered all his troops and laid siege to Samaria, ²⁵ and this created a great famine in the city. {Look!} At the time, a burro's head was worth fifty silver coins, and a pint of dove droppings was worth five silver coins.

²⁶ Then one day, when the king of IsraEl was walking along the city wall, a woman yelled to him, 'Save us, O lord our king!'

²⁷ And he replied, 'Where can I save you from… the threshing floor or the wine vat? Only Jehovah can save you!' ²⁸ Then the king asked her, 'What's wrong with you?'

And she replied, 'A woman came and told me, Give me your son so we can eat him today and tomorrow! ²⁹ Then I gave her my son, and we boiled him and ate him. Then the next day, I told her to give me her son to eat, but she hid him.'

³⁰ Well, when the king of IsraEl heard what the woman said, he ripped his clothes. Then he traveled around the wall and noticed that the people were wearing sackcloth underwear. ³¹ And he prayed, 'Curse me, O God, and add to it if I leave EliSha's head on his [shoulders] today.'

³² Well at the time, EliSha was at his home and all the elders were sitting around him. So, the king sent a man to EliSha; but before the messenger got there, he said to the elders, 'Do you know that the king has sent a murderer to cut off my head today? Now, when he gets here, lock the door and don't let him in, for the feet of his lord will be following close behind.'

³³ And while he was still speaking to them, {Look!} the messenger arrived and said, '{Look!} All this evil has come from Jehovah; so is there a reason to wait on Jehovah any longer?'

Chapter 7

¹ Then EliSha said, 'Listen to the word of Jehovah, for this is what He said: At this same time tomorrow, a scoop of fine flour will sell for a copper coin, and two scoops of barley will sell for a copper coin inside the gates of Samaria.'

² But the official proclaimer (to whom the king would give his hand and lean on) [sent a reply] to EliSha, saying, '{Look!} Will Jehovah make it pour from the sky? It will never happen!'

And EliSha said, 'Look! You will see it with your own eyes, but you won't eat any of it.'

³ Well, there were four men who had leprosy that were standing outside the city gate. And one said to the other, 'Why are we just waiting here to die? ⁴ If we go into the city, they have a famine there and we'll just starve to death. However, if we go into the camp of the Syrians, they could kill us… but they might also allow us to live.'

⁵ So, they got up during the night and snuck into the camp of the Syrians. But when they reached the camp, {Look!} no one was there. ⁶ This is because Jehovah had created the sounds of horses, chariots, and a huge army, so that all the people in the camp thought the king of IsraEl had hired the kings of the Hittites and Egyptians to come and attack them. ⁷ So, they all got up and just ran away in the darkness, abandoning their tents, their horses, and their burros, as they ran for their lives.

⁸ Then the lepers entered the camp, went inside one of the tents, and they ate and drank what was there, then they took some silver, gold, and clothing. So, they went into another tent and took what was there, and they hid everything. ⁹ And one said to the other, 'Let's do the right thing today, because this is good news! We could just say nothing and wait until morning as we take more things, but let's go now and announce what has happened to the house of the king!'

¹⁰ So they went up to the city gate and yelled, 'We went into the Syrian camp because {Look!} we couldn't hear anything, and no one is there! All we could find is their horses and burros still tied, and their tents. Everything has been left just as it was.'

¹¹ Then the gatekeepers ran and announced this to the house of the king. ¹² And the king got out of bed and said to his servants, 'Let me tell you what the Syrians are doing: They know that we're starving, so they left their camp and they're hiding in the fields. They think that we'll leave the city, then they can rush us and attack us, and they can just walk into the city.'

¹³ But one of his servants said, 'Well, let's go and take five of the horses that they've left behind, and then we'll send some of the sick and dying out there… and we can watch to see what happens.'

¹⁴ And after doing that, the king of IsraEl sent out two men on horses to look for the king of Syria, saying, 'Go search for him!'

¹⁵ Well, they traveled as far as the Jordan and {Look!} all they found was clothing and other things that the Syrians had dropped as they fled. Then the messengers returned and reported this to the king, ¹⁶ and the people went out and tore the camp of Syria to shreds. ¹⁷ –

¹⁸ So, just as EliSha had told the king; at the same time on the following day, two scoops of barley actually sold for a copper coin, and a scoop of fine flour sold for a copper coin inside the gates of Samaria. ¹⁹ And the official proclaimer who had said to EliSha, '{Look!} Will Jehovah make it pour from the sky? It will never happen,' and to whom EliSha said, '{Look!} You'll see it with your eyes, but you won't eat any of it'… ²⁰ well, that's what happened, for the king had put him in charge of opening the city gate, and the people trampled him to death as they rushed out.

Chapter 8

¹ Then EliSha went and spoke to the woman whose son he had brought back to life. He told her, 'Get up and take everyone in your house to wherever you wish to go, for Jehovah has called for a famine on the land… and it will last for seven years.'

² So, the woman got up and did as EliSha told her. She took everyone in her home and went to live in the land of the Philistines for seven years. ³ Then at the end of seven years, the woman left the land of the Philistines and returned to her city. And thereafter, she went to complain to the king about the [loss] of her house and fields.

⁴ Well at the time, the king was speaking to GeHazi (the servant of EliSha, the man of God), and he had just said, 'Describe to me all the great things that EliSha did.' ⁵ And as he was describing how EliSha had brought the woman's dead son back to life after he died, the woman arrived to complain to the king about the [loss] of her house and fields. And GeHazi said, 'O my lord the king; Here's the woman whose son EliSha brought back to life!'

⁶ So the king asked the woman, and she told him what had happened. Then the king told one of his eunuchs, 'Return everything to her, including all the crops that have grown in her fields from the time she left the land until now.'

⁷ Thereafter, EliSha went to see BenHader (the king of Syria) in Damascus, who was very ill. And when they announced to him, 'The man of God is here,' ⁸ the king said to HazaEl, 'Bring along a gift and go meet with the man of God. Tell him to go before Jehovah quickly and ask if I will survive this illness.'

⁹ So, HazaEl went to meet with him, and he brought along gifts of many fine things from Damascus that were carried on forty camels. Then he went in and stood in the presence of EliSha, and said, 'Your son, BenHader (the king of Syria), has sent me to you to ask, Will I survive this illness?'

¹⁰ And EliSha said to him, 'Go and tell him that he will live… however, Jehovah has shown me that he will die.'

¹¹ Well, [HazaEl] brought the gifts in and set them before [EliSha], but he just let them sit there and rot, in order to shame him. And then the man of God started crying. ¹² So HazaEl asked, 'Why is my master crying?'

And [EliSha] replied, 'Because I can see the many bad things that you're going to do to the sons of IsraEl. For, you will burn all their forts, you will kill their best men with broadswords, you will destroy their little children, and you will cut open their pregnant women.'

¹³ And HazaEl asked, 'Do you think of your servant as a dead dog, that I would do such a thing?'

And EliSha said, 'Jehovah has shown me that you will reign over Syria.'

¹⁴ Then he left EliSha and returned to his master. And [the king] asked, 'What did EliSha tell you?'

And he replied, 'He told me that you will live.'

¹⁵ Well, the next day, he took a cloth and dipped it in water, then he put it over his face, and he died. So, HazaEl started reigning in place of him.

¹⁶ It was in the fifth year of the reign of JehoRam (the son of Ahab, the king of IsraEl) that JehoRam (the son of JehoShaphat, the king of Judah) started to reign over Judah. ¹⁷ He was thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned in JeruSalem for eight years. ¹⁸ However, he followed in the ways of the kings of IsraEl and the house of Ahab, because Ahab's daughter was his wife. So, he acted very wickedly before Jehovah. ¹⁹ But Jehovah didn't want [to harm] Judah because of His promise to His servant David (that He would allow him and his descendants to be the lamplight throughout their lives).

²⁰ Then the Edomites rebelled against Judah and set up their own king. ²¹ So, JehoRam took his chariots and went to ZaIr to attack Edom. However, they surrounded JehoRam and his generals, and his people all ran back to their tents. ²² As the result, Edom hasn't been ruled by Judah to this day. And then LibNah broke away from the rule [of Judah].

²³ The rest of the things that JehoRam said and did have been written about in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of Judah. ²⁴ And when JehoRam went to sleep with his ancestors, they buried him in the tomb of his ancestors in the city of David (his ancestor), and his son AhaziAh started ruling in place of him.

²⁵ It was in the twelfth year of JehoRam (the son of Ahab, the king of IsraEl) that AhaziAh (the son of JehoRam) started to rule. ²⁶ He was twenty-two years old when he began his reign, and he only reigned in JeruSalem for one year. His mother's name was AthaliAh, and she was the daughter Omri, the king of IsraEl, who was related to the house of Ahab. ²⁷ So, he also followed in the ways of the house of Ahab and acted wickedly before Jehovah.

²⁸ Now, he joined King JehoRam (the son of Ahab) in a war against HazaEl (the king of Syria) and the Philistines at RamOth Gilead, and the Syrians wounded JehoRam there. ²⁹ So he went to JezreEl to have his wounds (that he received in the war with HazaEl at RamOth) treated medically, and AhaziAh (the son of JehoRam, the king of Judah) went to see this son of Ahab in JezreEl, because he was very ill.

Chapter 9

¹ Then the Prophet EliSha called one of the Sons of the Prophets and said to him, 'Wrap your loins and take this flask of oil to RamOth Gilead. ² Then go to see Jehu, the son of JehoShaphat (the son of NaMesSi), and you must elevate him over his brothers. ³ Take him into the bin of a storage shed and pour this flask of oil over his head, and tell him that Jehovah said: I have anointed you to be the king over IsraEl. Then open the door and run… don't wait!'

⁴ So, the young Prophet went to RamOth Gilead, ⁵ and when he went in, {Look!} all the other army generals were there. And he said to Jehu, 'May I have a word with you, commander?'

And Jehu asked, 'Which of us do you wish to speak to?'

And he replied, 'To you, general.'

⁶ So, [Jehu] got up and they both went outside. Then [the Prophet] poured the oil over his head and said, 'This is what Jehovah the God of IsraEl has said: I have anointed you to be the king over the people of Jehovah… over IsraEl. ⁷ Now, you must wipe the house of your lord Ahab away from before My face and avenge the blood of My servants the Prophets and the blood of all the servants of [Jehovah who were killed] by JeZeBel. ⁸ Kill all of them in IsraEl who can urinate against a wall, including their slaves and freemen. ⁹ Then I'll give the house of Ahab to the house of JeroBoam (the son NaBat), as I gave [the kingship] to the house of BaAsha the son of AhiJah… including their slaves and freemen. ¹⁰ And then JeZeBel will be eaten by dogs in JezreEl, for no one will bury her.'

And thereafter, he opened the door and ran away.

¹¹ Then Jehu went to speak to the servants of his lord, and they said to him, 'Peace! Why have you come to us in such a rage?'

And he said to them, 'You know that man and the way he thinks.'

¹² And they said, 'It would be wrong if you don't tell us what has happened!'

And Jehu said to them, 'So-and-so spoke to me and told me that Jehovah said: I have anointed you to be the king over IsraEl.'

¹³ Well, when they heard that, they each took off their [official] robes and laid them on the steps beneath him. Then they got the trumpeters and had them blow the horns and proclaim, 'Jehu now reigns!'

¹⁴ Then Jehu (the son of JehoShaphat and grandson of NaMesSi) gathered his forces to go against King JehoRam. Meanwhile, the army of IsraEl was protecting JehoRam from HazaEl (the king of Syria). ¹⁵ Well, when King JehoRam returned to JezreEl for treatment of the wounds that he had received during his war with the Syrians, Jehu said [to his men], 'If you're with me, don't let anyone leave the city to carry a report to JezreEl.' ¹⁶ And Jehu got up and rode to JezreEl.

Meanwhile, JehoRam (the king of IsraEl) was being attended to in JezreEl, because he'd been shot by bowmen in RamAmin (in the land of RamOth) during his campaign against HazaEl, the king of Syria… for he was a very powerful, mighty man. And at the time, AhaziAh (the king of Judah) had gone there to visit JehoRam.

¹⁷ Well, when the watchman climbed to the top of the lookout tower in JezreEl and saw the cloud of dust of Jehu's chariot, he shouted, 'I see a cloud of dust!'

And JehoRam said, 'Send out a horseman to see if he's coming in peace!'

¹⁸ So they sent out a horseman to meet him, and he said, 'The king wants to know if you're coming in peace.'

And Jehu replied, 'What does he know about peace? Now, follow behind me!'

Well, when the watchman reported that the messenger wasn't coming back, ¹⁹ he sent out a second horseman who went up to Jehu and said, 'The king wants to know if you're coming in peace!'

And Jehu again said, 'What does he know about peace? Get behind me and follow!'

²⁰ Well, when the watchman reported that this messenger wasn't returning either, he sent out a third horseman to ask if he was coming in peace. And Jehu said to him, 'What does he know about peace? Get behind me and follow along!'

So, the watchman reported back, 'This messenger isn't returning either, and I can tell by the frenzied way he's riding that the [man who is coming] is General Jehu, the son of NaMesSi.'

²¹ Well, JehoRam said, 'Team up my chariots!' So they teamed up the chariots and they (JehoRam, the king of IsraEl, and AhaziAh, the king of Judah) rode out to meet him in their chariots. And when they got to Jehu, he just happened to be in the portion of the field [that used to belong to] NabOth the JezreElite. ²² Then the king shouted, 'Have you come in peace, Jehu?'

And Jehu replied, 'What do you know of peace? Isn't [our land] still under the spell of your mother JeZeBel?'

²³ Well at that, JehoRam wheeled his chariot to flee, and he shouted to AhaziAh, 'There's treachery here, AhaziAh!'

²⁴ Then Jehu took his bow and shot JehoRam in the middle of his chest, hitting him in the heart, and he fell to his knees. ²⁵ And Jehu said to BadEkar (his aid), 'Take his body and throw it into the field of NabOth the JezreElite. For we both remember, back when we rode for his father Ahab, how Jehovah told him, Look! Wasn't it just yesterday that I saw the blood of NabOth and his sons? ²⁶ And then Jehovah said, I will pay him back [for his sins] in this very field. So now, throw his body into this field, just as Jehovah said!'

²⁷ Well, when AhaziAh (the king of Judah) saw what was happening, he rode off along the road to BethHagan. But Jehu chased after him shouting, 'Him too!' And he shot him as his chariot was headed up to Mount Gai (at JeblaAm), but he kept on riding to MegidDo, where he finally died.

²⁸ Then his servants put his body in the chariot and carried it back to JeruSalem, where he was buried in his tomb in the city of David. ²⁹ So, in the eleventh year of the reign of JehoRam (the king of IsraEl), AhaziAh took over the reign of Judah.

³⁰ Then Jehu rode back to JezreEl. And when JeZeBel heard [he was coming], she made up her face and decorated her head, and then looked down from her window. ³¹ And when Jehu entered the city, she said, 'Have you, like Omri who also murdered his lord, come in peace?'

³² And when he looked up and saw her at her window he asked, 'Who are you? Come down here to me!'

Then two of her eunuchs bent over to look out the window, ³³ and Jehu shouted to them, 'Throw her over!'

So, they threw her out, and her blood splattered all over the wall and the horses, and then the horses trampled her body.

³⁴ Thereafter, Jehu entered [the palace] where he ate and drank, and then he said, 'Now, go find the body of this cursed woman and bury it, because she's the daughter of a king.'

³⁵ But when they went to bury her, all they could find was her skull, the soles of her feet, and the palms of her hands. ³⁶ And when they returned to tell him, he said, 'This is what Jehovah had said through EliJah the Tishbite… Dogs will eat the flesh of JeZeBel in JezreEl, ³⁷ and her rotting flesh will become manure on the ground in JezreEl, so no one can say, There lies JeZeBel.'

Chapter 10

¹ Now, Ahab had seventy sons who lived in Samaria. So, Jehu wrote a letter and sent it to the governors, elders, and the women who'd raised Ahab's sons in Samaria. It said, ² 'I know that the sons of your lord are living among you with their chariots, horses, weapons, and fortified cities. So, when you receive this letter, ³ I want you to search among the sons of your lord for a good, upright man, and put him on the throne of his father. Then I will go to war against his sons.'

⁴ Well, this frightened them all, for they said: '{Look!} The two kings weren't able to stand against him, so how can we oppose him?'

⁵ So they sent the family heads, the city mayors, the elders, and those who'd raised Ahab's sons to Jehu, and they said, 'We're your servants and we'll do whatever you say. However, we won't choose a man to rule. So, you do whatever you find good in your eyes.'

⁶ Then he sent them a second letter that said, 'If you're with me and will do whatever I say, then bring the heads ⁷ of the sons of your lord to me here in JezreEl at this hour tomorrow… all seventy of them!'

Well, they were all big men, because the people of the cities provided food for them. ⁷ But when the people received this letter, they killed all seventy of them, put their heads in baskets, and sent them to Jehu in JezreEl. ⁸ And when the messenger arrived saying, 'They've brought the heads of the sons of the king,' he told him to place the heads in two piles by the city gate and leave them there until the next morning.'

⁹ Then the next morning, he went out and stood at the city gatehouse and said to the people, '{Look!} You've proven yourselves righteous, for although I plotted against my lord and killed him… who killed all of them? ¹⁰ {Look!} Now everything that Jehovah said through EliJah concerning what would happen to the house of Ahab has come true. For, it was Jehovah who did everything that He said He would do through His servant EliJah.'

¹¹ And thereafter, Jehu struck down everyone who was left of the house of Ahab in JezreEl, as well as all his mighty men, advisors, and priests… he wiped out every trace of him.

¹² Then he went to Samaria. And as he was traveling along the road near BethAkad-of-the-Shepherds, ¹³ Jehu met up with the brothers of AhaziAh (the king of Judah). And when he asked, 'Who are you?' they replied, 'We're the brothers of AhaziAh, and we've come in peace to visit the sons of the king, and the sons of the woman who is in charge.'

¹⁴ Well when they said that, he shouted 'Seize them!' And he had all forty-two of them executed at BethAkad… he didn't leave one of them alive.

¹⁵ And from there he went and found JoNadab (the son of ReChab), who was on his way to meet him. Then Jehu blest him and asked him, 'Is your heart with my heart, as my heart is with yours?'

And JoNadab replied, 'It is.'

And Jehu said, 'Well if it is, then give me your hand!'

So, he stuck out his hand and lifted him into the chariot ¹⁶ and said, 'Come with me and see my zeal for Jehovah of Armies!'

And from there they rode in the chariot ¹⁷ to Samaria, where they killed all who were left of Ahab in Samaria… he wiped them all out, just as Jehovah had said through EliJah.

¹⁸ Then Jehu gathered all the people and said to them, 'Ahab served BaAl a little, but Jehu will serve him in a great way. ¹⁹ So, find all the prophets of BaAl and all his servants and priests, and send them to me! Don't overlook a man, because we're going to offer a great sacrifice to BaAl. And anyone who doesn't show up will be killed.'

Well, this was a trick on Jehu's part, so he could destroy all the servants of BaAl.

²⁰ Then Jehu told them: 'Prepare the sacrifices for BaAl.' And the message went out. ²¹ For, Jehu sent a message throughout all IsraEl that said, 'Now all the servants, priests, and prophets of BaAl must come. No one may be left behind, for we're going to offer a great sacrifice to BaAl, and anyone who misses it won't be allowed to live!'

So, all the servants of BaAl (including his priests and prophets) came, and everyone was there in the temple of BaAl… it was filled to capacity and people were jammed together head-to-head. ²² Then Jehu told the person who was over the temple wardrobe to bring out the official robes for all the servants of BaAl to wear, and he brought them out. ²³ So, Jehu went in with JoNadab (the son of ReChab) and said to the servants of BaAl, 'Now, look around and make sure that there are no servants of Jehovah; for, we just want the servants of BaAl here!'

²⁴ Well, everyone went inside to offer the sacrifices and whole burnt offerings, and Jehu ordered eighty men to stand outside. Then he told them, 'Don't leave anyone alive here, for if you do, I'll demand your lives for theirs.'

²⁵ Then, as he completed the offerings, Jehu said to the guards and soldiers, 'Now kill them… don't let a man get away!'

So, they killed them with swords and threw their bodies outside. And thereafter, the soldiers and guards went throughout the city of the temple of BaAl, ²⁶ and dragged out the images of BaAl and burned them. ²⁷ Then they tore down the temple of BaAl and turned it into a public toilet, which is what it's still used for today.

²⁸ So, Jehu removed BaAl from IsraEl, ²⁹ but he still followed in the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) who led IsraEl into sin, for he worshiped the golden heifers in BethEl and in Dan. ³⁰ Yet, Jehovah said to Jehu: 'Because of the many good things that you did that were righteous in My eyes, and the things that you did to the house of Ahab, which was what My heart desired, your sons will sit on the throne of IsraEl through the fourth generation.'

³¹ However, Jehu didn't follow the Law of Jehovah (the God of IsraEl) with his whole heart. And because he didn't remove the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat), ³² Jehovah started cutting IsraEl down. For HazaEl attacked the borders of IsraEl ³³ from the Jordan to the sunrise – all the land of Gilead of the sons of Gad, and of ReuBen, and of ManasSeh – from AroEr to the Arnon Wadi, and from Gilead to BaShan.

³⁴ All the rest of the things that Jehu said and did, and the area of his rulership and alliances {Look!} have been written about in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl. ³⁵ Then Jehu went to sleep with his ancestors, and they buried him in a tomb in Samaria; and his son JehoAhaz became king after him. ³⁶ So, Jehu reigned over IsraEl from Samaria for twenty-eight years.

Chapter 11

¹ Well, when AhaziAh's mother (AthaliAh) heard that her son was dead, she had all the [heirs to the throne] killed. ² But JehoSheba (the daughter of King JehoRam and the sister of AhaziAh) took her nephew JoAsh and hid him away while the other sons of the king were being killed. She hid him and his nurse in a storage closet for beds, so AthaliAh couldn't find him and kill him. ³ Then she kept him hidden in the Temple of Jehovah for six years.

So, AthaliAh ruled over the land. ⁴ But after seven years, JehoiAda (the Priest) took the commanders who were in charge of patrolmen and couriers, and brought them into the Temple of Jehovah. Then he had them make an agreement with Jehovah and bound them with an oath in the presence of Jehovah, and that's when JehoiAda showed the son of the king to them.

⁵ He told them, 'This is what you're going to have to do: ⁶ On the Sabbath, a third of you must take control of the city gates, a third must take control of the gate that leads to the road, and a third must take control of the gate to the king's guardhouse. Then everyone must [protect our king]. ⁷ Two of you must go to the Temple of Jehovah on the Sabbath to guard the king, ⁸ and all of you must gather there and kill anyone who comes [to attack] him. He must be protected wherever he goes.'

⁹ Well, the commanders did just as JehoiAda instructed them. On the Sabbath, each one took his men; and as the people were coming and going, they went inside to JehoiAda the Priest. ¹⁰ Then the Priest gave the commanders the spears and shields of King David that were kept in the Temple of Jehovah, ¹¹ and they formed a contingent of armed bodyguards who stayed at the extension of the Temple, which was to the right of the Altar, and they formed a protective circle around the [young prince].

¹² Then they took the son of the king outside, placed the royal turban on him, gave him [the royal scepter], poured the anointing oil [over his head], and crowned him king. And thereafter, everyone clapped their hands and shouted, 'Long live the king!'

¹³ Well, when AthaliAh heard the sound of people running, she went to the Temple of Jehovah, and that's when she saw the king standing at the columns and ruling. All the singers and trumpeters were there by the king, and all the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing horns.

¹⁴ Well, AthaliAh started ripping her clothes and shouting 'Conspiracy! Conspiracy!' ¹⁵ And that's when JehoiAda (the Priest) told the commanders and their lieutenants, 'Take her outside and kill her with your swords, because she shouldn't die inside the Temple of Jehovah.'

¹⁶ So, they grabbed her and dragged her along the road that leads to the stables next to the king's palace, and killed her there. ¹⁷ Then JehoiAda proclaimed an agreement between Jehovah, the king, and his people, that they would be the people of Jehovah.

¹⁸ Thereafter, all the people of the land gathered at the temple of BaAl and tore it down. They smashed its images and altars into fine pieces, and they killed Mathan (the priest of BaAl) in front of the altars.

Then the Priest appointed men as overseers in the Temple of Jehovah. ¹⁹ And he took the military commanders and their troops of patrolmen and couriers, along with all the people in the land, and led the king from the Temple of Jehovah, through the gate of the royal bodyguards, and into the palace of the kings. Then they seated him on the throne, ²⁰ and all the people of the land rejoiced. And thereafter, the city was very tranquil.

Chapter 12

¹ Well, JoAsh was just a seven-year-old boy when he started his reign, ² which was during the seventh year of the reign of Jehu, and he ruled in JeruSalem for forty years. His mother's name was SabiAh and she was from BeerSheba.

³ JoAsh did what was upright before Jehovah throughout his entire life, for he had been well trained by JehoiAda the Priest. ⁴ However, he still allowed the people to offer sacrifices and burn incense in the high places.

⁵ Now, JoAsh told the Priests that they could keep any money or sell anything of value that was brought to the Temple of Jehovah, ⁶ but he told them that they (in return) would have to make all needed repairs to the Temple. ⁷ Well, by the twenty-third year to King JoAsh, the Priests hadn't made any repairs on the Temple. ⁸ So he called JehoiAda and all the other Priests, and asked them why they hadn't made the repairs. Then he told them, 'Well, from now on, you may not keep any money from the things you sell. Rather, you must use the money to repair the Temple.'

⁹ As the result, the Priests no longer took money from the people, other than what [they were willing to contribute] just for the upkeep of the Temple. ¹⁰ So, JehoiAda the Priest built a chest, bored a hole in its top, and he placed it by the Altar of the Temple of Jehovah. Then Priests were assigned to stand next to the doors to guard all the money that was brought to Jehovah's Temple.

¹¹ Well after a while, quite a bit of money had accumulated in the chest at the Temple of Jehovah, so the Scribe and the High Priest went to the king, then they closed the doors and counted the money, ¹² and they gave the money for the repairs into the hands of those who were in charge of the workers at the Temple of Jehovah – the woodcutters, carpenters, construction workers, fabricators, quarry workers, and stonemasons – so they could make the necessary repairs. ¹³ And they spent whatever was needed to complete the project. ¹⁴ However, they weren't authorized to spend it for doors, items of silver or gold, nails, bowls, or trumpets, ¹⁵ because those who were doing the work were going to contribute such things.

Well, all the repairs were finally made to the Temple of Jehovah, and no one had to account for it. ¹⁶ They just paid out whatever was required, and those who were doing the work were trusted [to do the right thing]. ¹⁷ And thereafter, any money that was brought to the Temple as a sin offering or a trespass offering, once again, became the property of the Priests.

¹⁸ Then HazaEl (the king of Syria) went to war against Gath, and he was the first to capture it. And next, he turned his attention toward JeruSalem. ¹⁹ So, JoAsh (the king of Judah) gathered all the holy things of his ancestors (JehoShaphat, JehoRam, and AhaziAh) as well as his own holy things and all the gold in the treasury of the Temple of Jehovah and in the king's palace, and sent it to HazaEl, the king of Syria, so he would leave JeruSalem alone.

²⁰ Well, all the rest of the things that JoAsh said and did {Look!} have been written about in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of Judah.

²¹ Then the servants of JoAsh rebelled against him and attacked him in a house called MalLo in GaAla. ²² JeZiChar (the son of JemuAth) and JeZebUth (his son through Somer) cut him down and killed him. Then he was buried with his ancestors in the city of David, and his son AmaziAh started ruling after him.

Chapter 13

¹ In the twenty-third year of JoAsh (the son of AhaziAh, the king of Judah), JehoAhaz (Jehu's son) started reigning in Samaria, and he ruled there for seventeen years. ² However, he acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah, because he [actively promoted] the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat), who led IsraEl into sin… and he kept on doing it. ³ So, this provoked Jehovah's rage against IsraEl, and he gave them into the hands of HazaEl (the king of Syria) and his son BenHader, throughout his entire reign.

⁴ However, JehoAhaz went before the face of [Jehovah to beg for help], and Jehovah listened to him, because He saw how badly the king of Syria was oppressing the people of IsraEl. ⁵ So, Jehovah freed IsraEl from bondage to Syria, and the sons of IsraEl could [once again] sit in their tents in peace, as they used to. ⁶ But, they continued in the sins of the house of JeroBoam, and they once again set up sacred poles in Samaria.

⁷ Now, JehoAhaz wasn't left with much of an army. All he had was fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand infantry, because the king of Syria had considered them as dust to be trampled on.

⁸ All the rest of the things that JehoAhaz said and did, and the area of his rulership, are written about in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl.

⁹ Then JehoAhaz went to sleep with his ancestors and they buried him in a tomb in Samaria, and his son JehoAsh started ruling in place of him. ¹⁰ This happened in the thirty-seventh year of the reign of JehoAsh, the king of Judah, and JehoAsh (the son of JehoAhaz) ruled IsraEl from Samaria for sixteen years. ¹¹ He also acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah, and he didn't remove the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) who led IsraEl into sin.

¹² All the rest of the things that JehoAsh said and did, and the stories of his conquests with AmaziAh (the king of Judah) have been written about in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl. ¹³ Then JehoAsh went to sleep with his ancestors, and JeroBoam succeeded him on the throne. So, they buried him in a tomb in Samaria with the sons of IsraEl.

¹⁴ Well, EliSha got very sick and was about to die, and JehoAsh (the king of IsraEl) went to see him and cried in his face, saying, 'O father, O father… the chariot of IsraEl and his horseman.'

¹⁵ Then EliSha said to him, 'Go get your bow and some arrows.' So, he got his bow and some arrows, ¹⁶ and EliSha told him, 'Now lift the bow!' So, JehoAsh raised his bow. Then EliSha placed his hands on the hands of the king ¹⁷ and said, 'Now, open the window that faces east!' And he opened it. Then EliSha said, 'Now shoot!' And he shot. Then EliSha said, 'This is the arrow of the salvation of Jehovah and the arrow of deliverance from Syria. For, you will keep attacking Syria at Aphek until you've won!'

¹⁸ And then EliSha told him, 'Now, pick up the bow again!' And he picked it up. Then he told the king of IsraEl, 'Now, shoot into the ground!' So, the king shot three arrows into the ground, and then he stopped, ¹⁹ which made the man of God very upset and angry, for he said, 'If you would have struck the ground five or six times, you would have attacked Syria and finished them off. But now you'll have to beat them three times!'

²⁰ Then EliSha died, and they buried him in a tomb.

Well, in the following year, the land was invaded by armed bands of Moabites. ²¹ And it was during a funeral procession that {Look!} the people saw one of these armed bands of Moabites coming, so they simply threw the body of the man into the tomb of EliSha. And when it touched EliSha's bones, he came back to life and stood up on his feet!

²² Thereafter, HazaEl kept squeezing IsraEl throughout the reign of JehoAhaz. ²³ But Jehovah showed mercy on them, pitied them, and watched over them, because of the Sacred Agreement He had made with AbraHam, IsaAc, and Jacob, and He didn't allow them to be destroyed or torn from before His face.

²⁴ Then HazaEl (the king of Syria) died, and his son BenHader started reigning instead of him. ²⁵ And that's when JehoAsh (the son of JehoAhaz) took back the cities from the hands of BenHader, the son of HazaEl, who had taken it from the hands of his father JehoAhaz in the war. But JehoAsh had to attack him three times to return the cities to IsraEl.

Chapter 14

¹ It was in the second year of JehoAsh (the son of JehoAhaz, the king of IsraEl) that AmaziAh (the son of JehoAsh the king of Judah) started his reign. ² At the time, he was twenty-five years old, and he reigned in JeruSalem for twenty-nine years. His mother's name was JoAdeEn, and she was from JeruSalem.

³ AmaziAh was an upright man in the eyes of Jehovah, but he wasn't as righteous as his ancestor David. ⁴ He did all the things that his father JehoAsh did, but he never removed the high places where the people offered sacrifices and burned incense.

⁵ Well, after he'd become strong in his kingdom, he had all those servants who murdered his father executed; ⁶ but he didn't have their sons killed. [He did] this, because the Law that Jehovah gave to Moses said, 'Fathers shouldn't be put to death [for the sins] of their sons, and the sons shouldn't be put to death [for the sins] of their fathers. Rather, each one should die for his own sins.'

⁷ Then he attacked the Edomites at GeMela, killing ten thousand. And he captured The Rock in the war, which he renamed JokTheEl (and that's what it's still called today).

⁸ Then AmaziAh sent messengers to JehoAsh (the son of JehoAhaz and grandson of Jehu the king of IsraEl) saying, 'Come here and meet me face-to-face!'

⁹ And JehoAsh (the king of IsraEl) replied to AmaziAh (the king of Judah), 'A thorn bush in Lebanon sent a message to one of the cedars of Lebanon, saying, Give your daughter to my son as his wife! [As the result], the wild animals in the fields of Lebanon went and trampled the thorn bush.

¹⁰ 'Now, you've beaten the Idumeans, and that has encouraged your heart. So, sit back in your palace and revel in your glory. But if you're planning to do evil, you will fall… and Judah will fall with you.'

¹¹ Well, AmaziAh refused to listen, so JehoAsh (the king of IsraEl) went and faced the king of Judah at BethSamus in Judea. ¹² But Judah lost the battle to IsraEl, and all their soldiers ran back to their tents. ¹³ Then JehoAsh (the king of IsraEl) captured AmaziAh (the son of JehoAsh and grandson of AhaziAh) the king of Judah, and he marched into JeruSalem and tore down almost seven hundred feet of its wall, from the gate of Ephraim all the way to the corner. ¹⁴ Then he carried away all the gold and silver utensils that he found in the Temple of Jehovah, everything in the kings' treasury and palace, and all the sons of [AmaziAh's] allies; bringing them all back to Samaria.

¹⁵ Well, the rest of the things that JehoAsh said and did, and his area of rule and the wars that he fought with AmaziAh (the king of Judah), have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl. ¹⁶ Then JehoAsh went to sleep with his ancestors and they buried him in a tomb in Samaria with the kings of IsraEl. And his son JeroBoam started reigning after him.

¹⁷ Well, AmaziAh (the king of Judah) survived the death of JehoAsh (the son of JehoAhaz the king of IsraEl) by fifteen years. ¹⁸ And all the rest of the things that AmaziAh said and did have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of Judah. ¹⁹ For, conspirators plotted a rebellion against him in JeruSalem, so he fled to LachIsh, but they chased him down and killed him there in LachIsh. ²⁰ Then they put his body on a horse and buried him in a tomb with his ancestors in JeruSalem, the city of David.

²¹ After the death of AmaziAh, all the people of Judah chose his son AzariAh (Uzziah) to be their king, but he was only sixteen-years-old at the time. ²² It was just after he had built ElAth that [AmaziAh] was returned to Judah and went to sleep with his ancestors.

²³ Well, JeroBoam (the son of JehoAsh) reigned over IsraEl in Samaria for forty-one years, starting in the fifteenth year of AmaziAh (who was also the son of JehoAsh, the king of Judah), ²⁴ and he acted wickedly before Jehovah, because he didn't remove the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) who led IsraEl into sin. ²⁵ However, he moved the boundary of IsraEl from the entrance of HaMath to the sea of ArabAh, just as Jehovah the God of IsraEl said would happen through His servant JoNah the Prophet, the son of Amathi, to Gath Hepher. ²⁶ But Jehovah saw the bitter humiliation of IsraEl; for there was little unity, they were being abandoned, and no one would help them, so their size was dwindling. ²⁷ As the result, Jehovah didn't say anything about wiping their seed out from under the skies, but He used JeroBoam (the son of JehoAsh) to save them.

²⁸ Well, the rest of the things that JeroBoam said and did, and of his conquests and wars, and of how he returned Damascus and HaMath to Judah in IsraEl, have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl. ²⁹ Then JeroBoam went to sleep with his ancestors, the kings of IsraEl, and his son ZechariAh started ruling in place of him.

Chapter 15

¹ It was in the twenty-seventh year of the reign of JeroBoam (the king of IsraEl) that AzariAh (the son of AmaziAh, the king of Judah) started his reign. ² He was sixteen years old at the time, and he reigned in JeruSalem for fifty-two years. His mother's name was JeCheliAh, and she was from JeruSalem. ³ And like his father (AmaziAh), AzariAh did what was right in the eyes of Jehovah. ⁴ However, he too failed to remove the high places where the people sacrificed and burned incense. ⁵ So, Jehovah touched the king and gave him leprosy until the day he died, and he had to live in his own house. As the result, JoTham (the king's son) was put in charge of the palace family and staff, and he served as the judge of the people of the land.

⁶ All the rest of the things that AzariAh said and did have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of Judah. ⁷ Then AzariAh went to sleep with his ancestors, and they buried him in the tomb with his ancestors in the city of David. So, his son JoTham started to rule in his place.

⁸ And it was in the thirty-eighth year of the reign of AzariAh (the king of Judah) that ZechariAh (the son of JeroBoam, the king of IsraEl) started his reign in Samaria, which only lasted six months. ⁹ He was very wicked in the eyes of Jehovah and he did all the things that his ancestors had done… he practiced all the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) who led IsraEl into sin. ¹⁰ And then ShalLum (the son of JaBis through KeblaAm) had him murdered, and he became the king.

¹¹ All the rest of the things that ZechariAh said and did have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of Judah. ¹² And as Jehovah told Jehu when He said that his sons would sit on the throne of IsraEl to the fourth generation; it came to be so.

¹³ So, ShalLum (the son of JaBis) started his reign in the thirty-ninth year of the reign of AzariAh (the king of Judah), but he only ruled in Samaria for a month, ¹⁴ because that's when MenaHem (the son of GadDi, from TharSila) marched on Samaria and killed him.

¹⁵ All the rest of the words of ShalLum and the story of his plot {Look!} have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl.

¹⁶ Then MenaHem attacked TiphSah and its surrounding cities, and killed everyone there, because they wouldn't open their gates to him… he killed them all and ripped open all the pregnant women.

¹⁷ So, in the thirty-ninth year of the reign of AzariAh (the king of Judah), MenaHem (the son of GadDi) became the king of IsraEl in Samaria, and he ruled for ten years. ¹⁸ He too acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah, because he didn't remove the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) who led IsraEl into sin.

¹⁹ It was during his reign that Pul, the king of Assyria, came against the land. Then MenaHem gave him three-and-a-half-tons of silver to satisfy him. ²⁰ So, MenaHem sent the silver from IsraEl, and he had it delivered by mighty men who each carried fifty large silver coins to Assyria. And as the result, the king of Assyria didn't post garrisons in the land.

²¹ Well, the rest of the things that MenaHem said and did {Look!} have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl. ²² Then MenaHem went to sleep with his ancestors, and his son PekahJah started ruling place of him.

²³ So, it was in the fiftieth year of AzariAh (the king of Judah) that PekahJah (the son of MenaHem) started his rule over IsraEl from Samaria, but he only reigned for two years, ²⁴ because he also acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah by not removing the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) who led IsraEl into sin. ²⁵ So, his royal proclaimer, PekAh (the son of RomeliAh), attacked PekahJah right in front of the royal palace with the help of ArGob, AriJa, and fifty Gileadites. And after they killed him, PekAh became the king.

²⁶ Well, the rest of the things that PekahJah said and did {Look!} have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl.

²⁷ So, it was in the fifty-second year of the reign of AzariAh the king of Judah, that PekAh (the son of RomeliAh) started his reign over IsraEl from Samaria, which lasted twenty years. ²⁸ But he also acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah by not removing the sins of JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) who led IsraEl into sin.

²⁹ Now, it was during the reign of PekAh (the king of IsraEl) that Tiglath Pileser (the king of Assyria) captured Ain, Abel-BethMaAcha, AniOch, Kenez, Hazor, GileAd, Galilee, and the whole land of NaphTali, and he resettled all the people in Assyria.

³⁰ Then HosheA (the son of ElAh) rebelled against PekAh (the son of RomeliAh), and he attacked him and killed him. So in the twentieth year of the reign of JoTham (the son of AzariAh), HosheA began his rule.

³¹ All the rest of the things that PekAh said and did {Look!} have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of IsraEl.

³² It was in the second year of the reign of PekAh (the son of RomeliAh the king of IsraEl) that JoTham (the son of AzariAh) became the king of Judah. ³³ He was twenty-five years old at the time, and he reigned in JeruSalem for sixteen years. The name of his mother was JeroUsa, and she was the daughter of ZaDoc. ³⁴ He did what was upright in the eyes of Jehovah, as did his father AzariAh; ³⁵ however, he didn't remove the high places where the people offered sacrifices and burned incense. But he was the one who rebuilt the upper gate to the Temple of Jehovah.

³⁶ All the rest of the things that JoTham said and did have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of Judah.

³⁷ It was back in those days that Jehovah started sending RasSon (the king of Syria) and PekAh (the son of RomeliAh) against Judah.

³⁸ Then JoTham went to sleep with his ancestors, and they buried him in a tomb along with his ancestors in the city of David (his ancestor). And thereafter, his son Ahaz started ruling in place of him.

Chapter 16

¹ In the seventeenth year of PekAh (the son of RomeliAh), Ahaz (the son of JoTham) became the king of Judah. ² He was twenty years old at the time, and he reigned in JeruSalem for sixteen years. However, he didn't do what was upright in the eyes of Jehovah his God and trust in Him, as did his ancestor David. ³ Rather, he followed in the path of the kings of IsraEl by offering up his own son in fire, in the same disgusting way as the nations that God had driven away from the sons of IsraEl. ⁴ He also offered sacrifices and burned incense in the high places, on the hills, and under every tree in the woods.

⁵ Then RasSon (the king of Syria) and PekAh (the son of RomeliAh, the king of IsraEl) came against JeruSalem to war against Ahaz, but they weren't successful. ⁶ So, RaAson (the king of Syria) went to ElAth and drove all the Judeans out of the city, and then the Idumeans moved into ElAth and they still live there today.

⁷ Thereafter, Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath Pileser (the king of Assyria), saying, 'I am your servant and your son. Please come and save me from the kings of Syria and IsraEl who have come to fight me!'

⁸ Then Ahaz took all the silver and gold that he found in the treasuries of the Temple of Jehovah and in the king's palace, and sent it as a gift to the king of Assyria. ⁹ So the king of Assyria listened to him and attacked Damascus. He captured it, killed King RaAsson, and then he repopulated the city.

¹⁰ Thereafter, King Ahaz went to Damascus to meet with Tiglath Pileser (the king of Assyria), and when he saw the altar in Damascus, he examined its dimensions and its construction, and he sent a representation of the altar to UriAh the Priest. ¹¹ So UriAh built a similar Altar, following the instructions that were sent to him from Damascus by King Ahaz. ¹² And when the king saw the Altar, he climbed up on it, then he burned incense, and sacrificed whole burnt offerings (plus his own offerings and a drink offering), and he poured the blood of the peace offerings on the Altar ¹³ (which was made of brass and which was placed before Jehovah).

¹⁴ He had the Altar moved forward and placed in front of the Temple of Jehovah, between the Temple and the [old] Altar, and he displayed it next to [the old] Altar, on its north side. ¹⁵ And thereafter, he gave instructions to UriAh the Priest, saying, 'I want a great sacrifice offered on this Altar early tomorrow morning and tomorrow evening. I will bring my whole burnt offerings and other sacrifices, and then the people should bring their sacrifices and drink offerings. So, you are to offer the blood of the whole burnt offerings and other sacrifices, pouring them out over the brass Altar for me in the morning.'

¹⁶ Well, UriAh the Priest did exactly as King Ahaz told him.

¹⁷ Then King Ahaz had the bases for the washbasins and the Sacred Sea (the oxen) disassembled, and the brass Sea was lowered onto a new base that was made of stone. ¹⁸ He also built a foundation for a Sabbath Seat inside the Temple of Jehovah, ¹⁹ and he had the outside of the king's entrance turned so it wouldn't face of the king of Assyria.

¹⁹ All the rest of the things that Ahaz said and did have been written in the scroll that tells of the days of the kings of Judah. ²⁰ Then Ahaz went to sleep with his ancestors, and he was buried in a tomb in the city of David. And thereafter, his son HezekiAh began ruling in place of him.

Chapter 17

¹ It was in twelfth year of the reign of Ahaz (the king of Judah) that HosheA (the son of ElAh) started reigning over IsraEl from Samaria, and he ruled there for nine years. ² But he also acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah… however, he wasn't as bad as the kings who came before him.

³ Then Shalmaneser (the king of Assyria) came against him and made HosheA his vassal, forcing him to send many gifts. ⁴ However, the king of Assyria became [very unhappy] with HosheA, because he had sent messengers to Segor (Shabaka?) the king of Egypt, and he didn't send any gifts to the king of Assyria that year. So, the king of Assyria had him tied him up and thrown into prison. ⁵ Then the king of Assyria marched through IsraEl and laid siege to Samaria for three years. ⁶ (This happened in the ninth year of HosheA's reign.) And then the king of Assyria captured Samaria and moved all the people of IsraEl into Assyria – to Halae, Habor, along the Gozan River, and into the mountains of the Medes.

⁷ This all happened because the sons of IsraEl had sinned against Jehovah their God who had brought them out of the land of Egypt and from under the hand of PharaOh, the king of Egypt, and they started fearing other gods. ⁸ They had also started following in the ways of the nations that Jehovah removed from in front of them… and their kings were doing the same things.

⁹ There were so many things that the sons of IsraEl did to cover over the words of Jehovah, and so as not to do anything that their God had said; for they [built altars] for themselves in high places near all their cities… from their guard towers to their walled cities. ¹⁰ They also erected stone monuments and groves of sacred poles on every high hill and under every tree in the woods. ¹¹ On the high places they burned incense in the same ways that the nations whom Jehovah moved far away from them had done. And they formed alliances, and carved images to provoke Jehovah to rage. ¹² Then they served the very idols that Jehovah had warned them against!

¹³ However, Jehovah sent warnings to IsraEl and Judah through all His Prophets (all of whom were Seers) who told them, 'Turn from your wicked ways and obey My Commandments, My instructions, and all the Laws that I gave to your ancestors, which I sent to you by the hands of My servants the Prophets!' ⁴ But they just wouldn't listen to Him, and they made themselves even more stubborn than the stubbornness of their ancestors. ¹⁵ He warned them time and again, but they just wouldn't do what He said. They did foolish, silly things, and followed in the paths of the nations around them… the very ones that Jehovah had warned them against when He said, 'Don't do these things.'

¹⁶ They abandoned the Commandments of Jehovah their God, and they made for themselves two heifers of cast metal, and the groves of sacred poles. Then they bowed to all the powerful things in the sky and started serving BaAl. ¹⁷ They also offered their sons and daughters in fires; they went to fortunetellers to learn the future; and they sold themselves into wickedness in the eyes of Jehovah, provoking Him to anger. ¹⁸ As the result, He became so enraged with IsraEl that He removed them from before His face, and He didn't leave any of them behind, other than the tribe of Judah. ¹⁹ But even Judah didn't follow the Commandments of Jehovah their God, for they followed in the ways of IsraEl and did the same bad things… pushing Jehovah away!

²⁰ So, Jehovah became enraged with all the seed of IsraEl and He just shook them off, handing them over to be ripped to pieces, and throwing them away from His face. ²¹ For IsraEl had rebelled against the house of David and made JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) their king, and JeroBoam removed IsraEl from the way of following Jehovah and led them into a great sin. ²² And from then on, the sons of IsraEl followed along in all the sins that JeroBoam committed, and they never changed their ways until Jehovah removed them from before His face… just as He said He would do, through all His servants the Prophets.

²³ So, IsraEl was resettled in the land of Assyria, where they still live today. ²⁴ Then the king of Assyria took all the people from HoUtha (near Babylon), AiA, HaMath, and SePharaim, and settled them in the cities of Samaria, in place of the sons of IsraEl. And they inherited Samaria and started living in its cities.

²⁵ Well, from the very beginning, these [new] people wouldn't fear Jehovah either, so He sent lions among them to kill them. ²⁶ Then they went to the king of Assyria and told him, 'The nations that you resettled and relocated in the cities of Samaria just don't understand the God of that land, so He has sent lions against them that are killing them off, because of the lack of their understanding of this God.'

²⁷ Then the king of Assyria said, 'Take some of the IsraElites back to the land and let them start living there once again, so they can enlighten the people there [on how to please] the God of the land.'

²⁸ So they brought one of the Priests from Samaria and returned him to BethEl, so he could teach the people there to fear Jehovah.

²⁹ Well, all the nations [that were resettled in the land] were taking their gods and putting them in the temples on the high places (which were built by the Samaritans) and in the cities where they lived. ³⁰ Then the men who were [relocated from] Babylon built SukCoth-BenOth; the men from Cuth built NerGal; the men from HaMath built AsiMath; ³¹ and the Hivites built EblaZer and TarTak.

Well, the [people of] SePharaim were still burning their sons in fires to their gods AdraMelek and AneMelek. ³² And although they had started fearing Jehovah, they kept the images of their gods in the temples that they built on the high places in Samaria, near the cities where each nation lived. And although they feared Jehovah, they still appointed priests to serve at the temples of the high places. ³³ And although they feared Jehovah, they still served the gods of the countries they came from, ³⁴ and they're still following that same form of worship today. So, although they feared Jehovah, they didn't follow the instructions, Laws, and Commandments that He gave to the sons of Jacob, to whom He gave the name IsraEl.

³⁵ For, when Jehovah made a Sacred Agreement [with IsraEl], He told them: 'Don't fear other gods! Don't bow to them, serve them, or offer sacrifices to them. ³⁶ You may only serve Jehovah, the God who led you out of the land of Egypt with His great strength and outstretched arm. You must fear, bow before, and sacrifice to just Him, ³⁷ and you must follow His decisions, rules, Laws, and Commandments that He wrote down for you. You must obey these things for as long as you live, and never serve other gods. ³⁸ You must not forget the Sacred Agreement that He made with you, and you should not fear other gods. ³⁹ You should fear only Jehovah your God, for He alone will rescue you from all your enemies, ⁴⁰ so don't pay any attention to what [the other nations] are doing.'

⁴¹ Well, those nations feared Jehovah, but they also served things that they carved for themselves… as did their sons and grandsons, and which they're still doing today.

Chapter 18

¹ It was in the third year of the reign of HosheA (the son of ElAh, the king of IsraEl) that HezekiAh (the son of Ahaz the king of Judah) started his reign. ² He was twenty-five years old when he started to rule, and he reigned for twenty-nine years in JeruSalem. His mother's name was Abou, and she was the daughter of ZachariAh.

³ HezekiAh did what was upright in the eyes of Jehovah (every bit as much as did his ancestor David), ⁴ for he removed the high places of worship and all the monuments. He also destroyed the groves of sacred poles and the brass snake that Moses had made, because back in those days, the people of IsraEl were burning incense to it, so he called it the Consumer.

⁵ He placed his hope in Jehovah the God of IsraEl, and there were none like him among the kings of Judah… those who lived before him or who came after him. ⁶ He stuck to Jehovah, he never stopped following Him, and he obeyed all the Commandments that Moses [wrote]. ⁷ So, Jehovah was with him in everything that he did. He was wise and he annulled Judah's allegiance to the king of Assyria, and refused to serve him. ⁸ Then he attacked the Philistines in Gaza and throughout its borders, from their guard towers to their walled cities.

⁹ Well, it was in the fourth year of the reign of King HezekiAh (the seventh year of HoSheA, the son of ElAh, the king of IsraEl) that Shalmaneser (the king of Assyria) came against Samaria and laid siege to it. ¹⁰ It took him three years, but in the sixth year of HezekiAh and in the ninth year of HoSheA (the king of IsraEl), he conquered Samaria. ¹¹ And then he resettled all the people of IsraEl to Assyria (in Halae, Habor, on the Gozan River, and in the mountains of the Medes), ¹² [which happened] because they wouldn't listen to the voice of Jehovah their God. For they had violated the Sacred Agreement that He made through His servant Moses, and they just refused to listen and do as they were told.

¹³ Then in the fourteenth year of King HezekiAh, SenNacherIb (the king of Assyria) came against the walled cities of Judah and captured them. ¹⁴ So, HezekiAh (the king of Judah) sent messengers to the king of Assyria, who was at LachIsh at the time, saying, 'I have sinned! Please turn away from me! Whatever you tell me to do, I will do!'

Then HezekiAh (the king of Judah) sent a tribute to the king of Assyria, consisting of ten-tons of silver and a ton of gold… ¹⁵ he sent him all the silver that he could find in the Temple of Jehovah and in the treasuries of the king's palace. ¹⁶ He even cut off the Temple doors and supports, which he had covered with gold, and gave them to the king of Assyria. ¹⁷ But the king of Assyria sent Tharthan, Raphis, and Rapsakes from LachIsh to King HezekiAh at JeruSalem with a huge army. And when they got to JeruSalem, they stood outside by the aqueduct to the upper pool, along the road to the field where [women] washed clothes, ¹⁸ and they yelled for HezekiAh.

Well, EliAkim (the son of HelkiAh), HezekiAh's right-hand man, SomNas the Scribe, and JehoAsh (the son of ShaPhat) the record-keeper, came out. ¹⁹ And Rapsakes said, 'You tell HezekiAh that the great king of Assyria says: What is this thing that you're putting your trust in? ²⁰ For, with your lips you've spoken of your power to go to war; so who is it that you were trusting in when you annulled your allegiance to me? ²¹ {Look!} Are you leaning on that broken stalk of reeds called Egypt? Who would [be foolish enough] to lean on them, for they would puncture your hand and go right through it. Why, that's what PharaOh (the king of Egypt) does to all those who rely on him.

²² 'Or if you should say to me that you're relying on your God Jehovah; aren't you the one who removed His high places of worship and His altars, and who told the people of Judah and JeruSalem to bow before the Altar in JeruSalem?

²³ 'Now, come and ally yourself with my master the king of Assyria, and I'll give you two thousand horses that you can use to mount yourself and your cavalrymen on. ²⁴ But if you turn your back on even the lowliest of my lord's servants, you'll have to trust in Egypt for chariots and horsemen.

²⁵ 'Do you really think that we came here to destroy this place without [the blessings of Jehovah]? Why, it was Jehovah who told me to attack this land and destroy it!'

²⁶ Then EliAkim (the son of HelkiAh), SomNas, and JehoAsh said to RapSakes: 'Please speak to your servants in Syrian, because we can understand that. Don't speak to us in the Judean language, because all the people who are on the walls can hear what you're saying.'

²⁷ And RapSakes replied, 'Do you think that my lord sent me here just to speak to you and to your lord? I'm here to speak to the men who are sitting on the wall… those who will have to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine along with you.'

²⁸ Then RapSakes stood and shouted as loud as he could in the Judean language, 'Listen to the words of the great king of Assyria! ²⁹ The king says, Don't trust in HezekiAh, because there's no way that he's going to save you from my hands! ³⁰ And don't listen to HezekiAh when he tells you to put your hope in Jehovah and that He will rescue you and never give you into the hands of the king of Assyria.

³¹ 'Don't listen to HezekiAh, because this is what the king of Assyria [has promised]: Praise me and come out to me, and you'll all drink [wine] from your own grapevines, eat figs from your own trees, and drink water from your own wells. ³² Because, I'll come and take you to a land that's like yours… it's a land of grain, wine, bread, and vineyards… it's a land of olive oil and honey, where you can live and not have to be killed.

'So, don't listen to HezekiAh, because he's fooling you when he says that Jehovah will rescue you. ³³ Why, which of the [other] gods of the nations have saved [their people] from the hand of the king of Assyria? ³⁴ Where are the gods of HaMath and ArPhad? Where are the gods of SepharVaim, Ana, and Aba? They didn't rescue Samaria from my hands! ³⁵ Which of the gods of any land have saved their countries from my hand? So, how can Jehovah rescue JeruSalem from my hand?'

³⁶ Then everything got very quiet and no one said a word in reply, because the king had commanded that no one should give an answer.

³⁷ Thereafter, EliAkim (the son of HelkiAh), the king's right-hand man, SomNas the scribe, and JehoAsh (the son of ShaPhat) the recorder, returned to HezekiAh and started ripping their clothes as they told him what RapSakes said.

Chapter 19

¹ And as King HezekiAh listened, he ripped off his clothes and dressed himself in sackcloth, then he went to the Temple of Jehovah. ² He also had his right-hand-man EliAkim, SomNas the scribe, and the elders among the Priests put on sackcloth, and he sent them to see the Prophet IsaiAh (the son of Amos). ³ And he told them to say, 'HezekiAh [wants us to tell you that] today is a day of oppression, scolding, and rage, because the sons now have birth pangs, but they don't have the power to give birth. ⁴ So, if Jehovah your God heard all the things that RapSakes (who was sent by his lord the king of Assyria) said to berate the living God and blaspheme Him – if He heard what was said – then pray to your God on behalf of the few of us who are left [in Judea].'

⁵ So, the servants of King HezekiAh went to IsaiAh, ⁶ and IsaiAh told them, 'Tell your lord that this is what Jehovah has said: Don't be afraid of the words that you heard and the blasphemies of the servants of the king of Assyria. ⁷ {Look!} I will send [My] Breath, and he will hear a message and return to his land. Then I will cut him down with a sword in his own land.'

⁸ Well, when RapSakes returned, he found that the king of Assyria had left LachIsh and was off waging war against LobNa, ⁹ because he heard that Tharaka (the king of the Ethiopians) had told him that he would do battle with him. But when he returned, he sent messengers to HezekiAh that said, ¹⁰ 'Don't allow the God that you rely on to encourage you. [Don't believe Him] if He says that JeruSalem won't be given into the hands of the king of Assyria, ¹¹ {Look!} for you've heard all the things that the king of Assyria has done, and of all the lands he destroyed. So, how can you be rescued? ¹² Have any of the gods of the nations that have been destroyed by me or my ancestors been able to rescue them… in places such as Gozan, Harran, Raphis, the sons of Edem, or the people of ThaEsthen? ¹³ Where are the kings of HaMath and Arphad? Where is the king of the SepharVaim, or of Ana and Aba?'

¹⁴ Well, HezekiAh took the letter from the hands of the messengers and read it, and then he went to the Temple of Jehovah and unrolled it before Jehovah. ¹⁵ And he prayed, 'O Jehovah, God of IsraEl, the One who rests on cherubs; You alone are the God of all the kingdoms of the earth, and the One who made the heavens and the earth. ¹⁶ O Jehovah, turn Your ear to me and hear! O Jehovah, open Your eyes and Look… [read] the words that SenNacherIb sent to berate the living God. ¹⁷ For it was You, O Jehovah, who allowed the kings of Assyria to destroy the nations, ¹⁸ and You have thrown their gods into the fire. Because, they aren't gods; they're just things that men made with their hands from wood and stone, and which will be destroyed.

¹⁹ 'Now, O Jehovah our God; please save us from his hand, so all the kingdoms of the earth will know that You – Jehovah – are the only [true] God.'

²⁰ Then IsaiAh (the son of Amos) sent a message to HezekiAh that said, 'This is what Jehovah the God of IsraEl and of armies has said: I have heard what you said to Me in prayer concerning SenNacherIb (the king of Assyria). ²¹ And Jehovah went on to speak these words against him: The daughters of JeruSalem will shake their heads at you… you who would treat the virgin daughters of Zion with contempt and sneer at them. ²² For, who have you berated and who have you blasphemed… against whom have you raised your voice and put yourself higher in your own eyes? Against the Holy One of IsraEl… ²³ you sent your messengers and berated Jehovah!

'Then you said, With all my chariots I have ridden to the tops of mountains along the borders of Lebanon, and I have cut down their great cedars (their best ones), then I rode among the forests of CarMel. ²⁴ There I cooled myself and drank from alien waters, and then with the sole of my foot I destroyed all the moats around the city walls. ²⁵ I have reshaped and moved things; and in my pride, I have resettled the combative peoples of fortified cities. ²⁶ By my own hand I made the peoples who live there weak, for they were shocked and disgraced, and became like grass in the field… like green hay or young shoots that grow on roofs, which are easily trampled by the people who stand there.

²⁷ 'I have known it whenever you sat down or gone anywhere, and I know of your rage against Me. ²⁸ And it's on account of your rage against Me that the things you've been doing have reached My ears. So, now I'm going to put My hooks in your nostrils and My bit between your lips, and I'm going to turn you around and send you back by the same way you came!

²⁹ [Then he told the messengers], 'This will be your sign: This year you must eat the things that grow on their own and everything that grows next year also. But in the third year, you will sow seeds and harvest, and plant vineyards and eat their fruit. ³⁰ And [Jehovah] will add those who were taken away to those who have been preserved of the house of Judah – like roots beneath the ground – and they too will produce fruitage. ³¹ For, a remnant will come from JeruSalem and a rescuer will come from Mount Zion. And it is the zeal of Jehovah of armies, which will accomplish this… ³² isn't that the truth?

'Now, this is what Jehovah says to the king of Assyria: He won't enter this city, says Jehovah, he won't even shoot an arrow there, so no one will have to lift a shield. And he won't pour dirt to build a mound around the city. ³³ For, the way he came is the way he'll return. He won't enter this city, says Jehovah. ³⁴ For, I will put a shield around this city and save her, because of Myself and because of David My servant.'

³⁵ And that's what happened. For during the night, a messenger of Jehovah came and destroyed the camp of Assyria, killing a hundred-and-eighty-five-thousand men. So, when [the people of JeruSalem] got up the next morning, {Look!} all [they found] was dead bodies.

³⁶ Then SenNacherIb (the king of Assyria) returned to his home in Nineveh. ³⁷ And one day, while he was bowing in the temple of his god MeserAk, his sons AdraMelek and SarAsar killed him with swords, and ran off to the land of Ararat. Then his son AsorDan started ruling in place of him.

Chapter 20

¹ Well, HezekiAh [developed an infection] and was sick to the point of dying. So, the Prophet IsaiAh (the son of Amos) went to see him and said, 'Jehovah says that you should [settle your affairs], because you're not going to live… you're going to die!'

² And at that, HezekiAh turned his face to the wall and made a vow to Jehovah, saying, ³ 'O Jehovah, remember that I walked before You in truth and with a heart that's full of good; for I did what was right in Your eyes.' Then he broke down and cried.

⁴ Well at the time, IsaiAh was walking out through the courtyard, and these words of Jehovah came to him. ⁵ 'Return to HezekiAh (the one who is leading My people) and say: I've heard your prayer and I've seen your tears. So {Look!}, I will heal you on the third day, and then you must go to the Temple of Jehovah. ⁶ For, I will add fifteen more years to your life. I will also bring you and this city out from under the hand of the king of Assyria… for Myself and because of My servant David.'

⁷ Then He said, 'Have them take a cluster of dried figs and wrap it around the sore, and you'll be healed!'

⁸ And HezekiAh asked IsaiAh, 'What's the sign that Jehovah will heal me, and that I will go to the Temple on the third day?'

⁹ And IsaiAh said, 'This is the sign that Jehovah will do the things He said: The shadow on your stairway will go up ten stairs, then go back down ten stairs.'

¹⁰ Then HezekiAh said, 'It's nothing unusual for a shadow to go up ten stairs, but it never goes back down ten stairs!'

¹¹ And the Prophet IsaiAh called out to Jehovah, and then the shadow went back down ten stairs.

¹² Well at the time, Maradak Baladan (the son of Baladan the king of Babylon) had sent letters and gifts to HezekiAh, because he heard that he was sick. ¹³ Well, this made HezekiAh very happy, so he showed [the messengers] everything in his palace. He showed them all his good things… his spices, silver, gold, perfumes, oils, weapons, and everything that he had in his treasury. There wasn't anything in his house that he failed to show them.

¹⁴ Then the Prophet IsaiAh came to HezekiAh and asked, 'Who were those men, and why did they come to you?'

And HezekiAh replied, 'They came from far away… all the way from Babylon!'

¹⁵ And IsaiAh asked, 'What did they see in your palace?'

And he said, 'They saw everything that's here. I showed them everything in my house and in my treasury.'

¹⁶ And IsaiAh said, 'Listen to the words of Jehovah! ¹⁷ Look; the days are coming, says Jehovah, when all the things in your palace, and all the treasures that your ancestors have stored away until now will be taken to Babylon… there won't be a thing Jehovah spoke about that will be left. ¹⁸ Also, the sons that you sire and those who descend from you will be taken as eunuchs to serve in the palace of the king of Babylon.'

¹⁹ Then HezekiAh said to IsaiAh, 'The words of Jehovah are good. But may there be peace during my lifetime!'

²⁰ Well, the rest of the things that HezekiAh said and did, and the area of his rulership, and of the wells he dug, and of the aqueduct that he built to bring water into the city {Look!} have been written in the scroll of the words of the days of the kings of Judah. ²¹ Then HezekiAh went to sleep with his ancestors, and he was buried in a tomb in the city of David. And after him, his son ManasSeh took over his rule.

Chapter 21

¹ ManasSeh was just twelve years old when he started his reign, and he ruled from JeruSalem for fifty-five years. His mother's name was OpSiba.

² ManasSeh acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah, for he returned to the disgusting practices of the nations that Jehovah had removed from before the sons of IsraEl. ³ He went and rebuilt the high places of worship that his father HezekiAh had torn down, he rebuilt the altar to BaAl, and he built groves of sacred poles like those of Ahab the king of IsraEl. He also worshiped before the powerful objects in the sky and served them.

⁴ Then he built an altar inside the Temple of Jehovah, because, as he had said, 'I will have my name remembered in JeruSalem.'

⁵ And he built an altar to all the powerful things in the sky in two of the courtyards of the Temple of Jehovah. ⁶ He also sacrificed two of his own sons in fire, and he brought many fortunetellers, diviners, and seers into the land where he established sacred precincts for them. Well, all of this was very wicked in the eyes of Jehovah, which made Him very angry.

⁷ Then he put carvings of the sacred poles inside the Temple… in the very place where Jehovah had said to David and his son Solomon, 'This is the House in JeruSalem that I chose out of all the rest of the tribes of IsraEl as the place to put My Name though the ages. ⁸ And I will never shake the feet of IsraEl from off this land that I gave to their ancestors, as long as they do everything that I told them to do and follow the Commandments that I gave them through My servant Moses.'

⁹ However, they just wouldn't listen, and ManasSeh misled them into doing things that were even wickeder in the eyes of Jehovah than what the nations did, whom Jehovah had removed from before the sons of IsraEl.

¹⁰ So, Jehovah spoke to them through His servants the Prophets, and said, ¹¹ 'I'm not going to allow ManasSeh the king of Judah to continue doing these disgusting things, which are even worse that what the Amorites used to do before him. For, he has led Judah into sin with their idols, ¹² and this cannot continue!'

Then Jehovah (the God of IsraEl) said this: '{Look!} I'm going to bring so much evil upon JeruSalem and Judah that everyone will hear about it with both of their ears. ¹³ I'm going to stretch the measuring line out over JeruSalem as I did over Samaria, and bring all the weight of the house of Ahab down upon it. I will wipe away JeruSalem like someone wipes out an alabaster jar… I'll wipe it clean and turn it over on its face. ¹⁴ Then I'll wipe away every trace of My inheritance and hand them over to their enemies, who will ravage and plunder them. ¹⁵ Why, they've done many wicked things in My eyes and they've been provoking Me to anger from the time I led their ancestors out of Egypt to this day.'

¹⁶ Also, ManasSeh shed the blood of many innocent [people], so much so, that it filled JeruSalem mouth to mouth… and this was in addition to all the rest of his sins and the ways he led Judah into sin by acting wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah.

¹⁷ And the rest of the things that ManasSeh said and did (and of his sins) are written in the scroll of the words of the days of the kings of Judah. ¹⁸ Then ManasSeh went to sleep his ancestors, and they buried him in a tomb in the garden of his house (the Garden of Oza). And thereafter, his son Amon started ruling in his place.

¹⁹ Amon was twenty-two years old when he started his reign, and he reigned in JeruSalem for just two years. His mother's name was MesolLam (she was the daughter of Arus from JeTeba). ²⁰ And like his father ManasSeh, he also acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah, ²¹ because he did everything that his father did. He served and bowed before the same idols that his father served, ²² and he abandoned Jehovah the God of his ancestors. He certainly didn't walk in the paths of Jehovah.

²³ However, Amon's servants plotted a coup against him, and they murdered the king in his palace. ²⁴ Then the people of the land took those who had plotted against King Amon and had them killed, and they appointed Amon's son JosiAh to rule in his place.

²⁵ Well, the rest of the things that Amon said and did {Look!} have been written in the scroll of the words of the days of the kings of Judah. ²⁶ And they buried him in his tomb in the Garden of Oza. So then, JosiAh began his reign.

Chapter 22

¹ JosiAh was only eight years old when he started his reign, and he ruled for thirty-one years in JeruSalem. His mother's name was JediYa, and she was the daughter of EdeYa of BasorOth.

² JosiAh did what was upright in the eyes of Jehovah, and he followed in the paths of his ancestor David. He didn't swerve to the right or to the left.

³ Well, it was during the eighth month of the eighteenth year of King JosiAh's reign that the king sent for SaPhan (the son of EselJah and grandson of MesolLam) who was the scribe in the Temple of Jehovah. And he told him, ⁴ 'Go to HelkiAh the great High Priest, and have him set aside the money from the treasury, which the people have been bringing to the Temple, ⁵ and have him give it to the men who are assigned to work on the Temple of Jehovah!'

So, they gave the money to the men who were working on the Temple of Jehovah, who used it to repair its walls. ⁶ It was given to the craftsmen, laborers, and stonemasons, and it was used to buy wood and stones to fortify its walls. ⁷ No one required an accounting; they just trusted everyone to do the right thing.

⁸ Then HelkiAh (the High Priest) went to SaPhan the scribe and reported: 'We've found a scroll of the Law in the Temple of Jehovah!'

So, HelkiAh gave the scroll to SaPhan and he read it, ⁹ then he carried it to King JosiAh. And when he went before the king, the king said, 'Set aside more of the silver in the Temple of Jehovah and give it to your servants who are appointed to do the repairs on the Temple.'

¹⁰ Then SaPhan (the scribe) said to the king, 'HelkiAh the Priest gave me this scroll;' and he read it to the king. ¹¹ And when the king heard the Law that was written on the scroll, he started ripping his clothes. ¹² Then the king gave instructions to HelkiAh the Priest, AchiKan (the son of SaPhan), AchObor (the son of MichaJah), SaPhan the scribe, and to AsaJah (the king's personal representative), telling them: ¹³ 'Go and search for Jehovah on behalf of myself and all my people in the land of Judah, because of the things that this scroll, which you found, says. Why, the anger of Jehovah is surely blazing against us, because we haven't been paying attention to any of the instructions, or to any of the things that were written about us in this scroll.'

¹⁴ So, HelkiAh the Priest, AchiCam, AchObor, SaPhan, and AsiAh, went to the Prophetess HuldAh (the wife of SelLem, who was the son of Thekou and grandson of Aras the keeper of the robes), who lived in Masena near JeruSalem, and they spoke to her. ¹⁵ And she told them, 'Jehovah the God of IsraEl says you should speak to the man who sent you to me ¹⁶ and tell him that Jehovah says this: {Look!} I'm bringing bad things against this place and upon those who live here… everything that's written in the scroll that the king of Judah read. ¹⁷ For, they have abandoned Me and are offering incense to other gods, and they're making Me angry with the things they've made with their hands. So, My rage is blazing against this place, and it won't be extinguished.

¹⁸ 'And tell the king of Judah (the one who sent you to inquire of Jehovah) that these are the words of Jehovah the God of IsraEl, which you've heard. ¹⁹ But, because you are tenderhearted and you felt ashamed when you heard the things I said about this place and those who live here (that they deserve to be cursed and extinguished), and you ripped your clothes and cried before Me, I've heard you. ²⁰ So, none of this will happen to you. For {Look!}, I will add you to your ancestors, and you will be buried in your tomb in peace, so you won't have to see with your eyes all the bad things that I will bring against this place.'

And with that, they returned to the king and told him what was said.

Chapter 23

¹ Then the king sent for all the elders of Judah and JeruSalem and had them brought to him. ² And the king went to the Temple of Jehovah with the men of Judah and JeruSalem, the Priests and the Prophets, and all the people (the small and the great), and he read all the words of the scroll of the Sacred Agreement that had been found there. ³ Then the king stood by the column and proposed an agreement with Jehovah; that they would return to Jehovah and obey His Commandments, proclamations, and Laws with all their hearts and souls, and that they would restore His Sacred Agreement that was written in the scroll. Then he had all the people who were there, ratify his agreement.

⁴ Next, the king had the High Priest HelkiAh (as well as all the other lesser priests and those who guarded the doors) go into the Temple of Jehovah and carry out all the objects for BaAl worship, as well as things for the groves of sacred poles, and for the worship of the things in the sky. Then he burned them outside JeruSalem in the Cedar (Kidron) Valley and had the ashes carried off to BethEl. ⁵ And following that, he had all the idolatrous priests (those who had been appointed by the kings of Judah) who burned incense in the high places around the cities of Judah and JeruSalem, or who burned incense to BaAl, or to the sun and moon, or to the Zodiac and all the mighty things in the sky, [killed and] incinerated. ⁶ He also had the carvings of the groves of sacred poles carried out of the Temple of Jehovah and outside of JeruSalem to the Cedar (Kidron) Wadi, and he had them burned there and ground to dust, which was then scattered among the tombs in graveyards.

⁷ Then he had the rooms in the Temple of Jehovah where male prostitutes were kept, and where women wove robes for the worship of the sacred poles, demolished. ⁸ And he took all the priests from the cities of Judah up to the high places where the priests burned incense (all the way from GabaA to BeerSheba) and defiled them. He also demolished The Temple of the Gates that was near the entrance to the Gate of JoShua (the man who was in charge of the gate), which was to the left of the main city gate.

⁹ Then [the king] forbade the priests of the high places to ever be allowed to approach the Altar of Jehovah in JeruSalem, or to share in eating the fermentation-free bread among their brothers.

¹⁰ Next, he defiled Topheth, which is the place [of worship] in the vally of the sons of Hinnom, where people took their sons and daughters and burned them in a fire to [the image of] Moloch. ¹¹ And he incinerated the horses that the kings of Judah had offered to the sun, which were kept inside the Temple compound near the Temple entrance, in the treasury room of Nathan (the king's eunuch). He also burned the Chariot of the Sun, ¹² the altars that were on the roof of the upper room of Ahaz (that had been built by the kings of Judah), and he demolished the altars that ManasSeh had made in two of the Temple courtyards, and threw their dust into the Cedar (Kidron) Wadi.

¹³ Then the king had the temples that were built across from JeruSalem (on the right side of Mount MosOath) that King Solomon had built to Astarte (the disgusting thing of the Sidonians), and to Chemosh (the disgusting thing of Moab), and to Moloch (the disgusting thing of the sons of Ammon) defiled. ¹⁴ He broke up all the monuments and destroyed the groves of sacred poles, and then he had the areas where they used to be located covered with dead men's bones.

¹⁵ Then he went to the high altar in BethEl that JeroBoam (the son of NaBat) had built to lead IsraEl into sin, and had it torn down, its stones crushed into fine dust, and its grove of sacred poles incinerated.

¹⁶ But before he did that, JosiAh noticed the tombs of the people who were buried there in the city, and he had the bones taken from the tombs and burned them on the altar to defile it. So, the [prophecy] of Jehovah, which the man of God spoke on the holiday that JeroBoam called for when he built the altar, was fulfilled. For at that time, the man of God looked toward the graveyard and said, ¹⁷ 'What is this high rock that I see?' And then the men of the city [heard] the man of God (who had come from Judah) foretell that this would happen to the altar of BethEl. ¹⁸ And they said, 'Leave him alone, and may no man ever move his bones!' So, his bones were placed with the bones of the Prophets of Samaria.

¹⁹ Then [the king] went throughout the cities of Samaria and had all the temples on the high places that the kings of IsraEl had built to provoke Jehovah to anger, torn down. JosiAh removed them all, along with all the things that were built for worship in BethEl. ²⁰ And he sacrificed all the priests of the high places on their own altars, and then he incinerated their bones upon them.

After that, he returned to JeruSalem ²¹ and he told all the people, 'Now you must observe the Passover of Jehovah our God, just as it is written in the scroll of this Sacred Agreement.' ²² For, the Passover hadn't been celebrated since the time of the Judges… not during the time of any of the kings of Judah!

²³ So, it was in the eighteenth year of King JosiAh that the Passover to Jehovah was once again celebrated in JeruSalem.

²⁴ Then King JosiAh had all the witches, fortunetellers, objects for providing omens, idols, and all the other disgusting things and practices that were taking place in the land of Judah and JeruSalem removed, so the words of the Law that were written in the scroll, which was found by HelkiAh the Priest in the Temple of Jehovah, could be followed once again.

²⁵ Never before was there any king like him who had turned toward Jehovah and to the Law of Moses with his whole heart, strength, and inner self. And after him, no one like him ever arose again.

²⁶ However, none of this turned Jehovah from His rage and great anger against Judah, because of the things that ManasSeh had done. ²⁷ For Jehovah had said, 'Yes, I will indeed remove Judah from before My face as I removed IsraEl. I'll throw this city that I chose (JeruSalem) away, as well as the Temple where I said I will put My Name.'

²⁸ Well, the rest of the things that JosiAh said and did have been written in the scroll of the words of the days of the kings of Judah. ²⁹ For back then, PharaOh Necho (the king of Egypt) attacked the king of Assyria at the Euphrates River, and JosiAh fought against him. So, when Necho saw him at MegidDo, he killed him. ³⁰ Then his servants brought his dead body back from MegidDo to JeruSalem, and they buried him in his tomb in the city of David. And thereafter, the people of the land anointed JehoAhaz (JosiAh's son), and he started reigning in place of his father.

³¹ JehoAhaz was twenty-three years old when he started his reign, and he only ruled in JeruSalem for three months. The name of his mother was AmiTal, and she was the daughter of JeremiAh of Lobna. ³² For, he followed in the paths of his ancestors and acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah. ³³ Then PharaOh Necho moved against him at DebLatha (in the land of HaMath) and removed him from [the throne] of JeruSalem. And thereafter, he fined the land four-tons of silver and four-tons of gold, ³⁴ and he put EliAkim (another son of JosiAh) on [the throne] of Judah, in place of his father, and he changed his name to JehoiAkim.

Well, JehoAhaz was carried into Egypt, where he finally died. ³⁵ Then JehoiAkim collected taxes from all the people of his land (which was assessed by how much they owned) to do what PharaOh said, and he sent all the silver and gold to PharaOh Necho.

³⁶ JehoiAkim was twenty-five years old when he started his reign, and he ruled from JeruSalem for eleven years. His mother's name was JelDaph, and she was the daughter PhadaEl of RoUma. ³⁷ He also acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah and did all the things that his ancestors had done.

Chapter 24

¹ It was during the time of JehoiAkim that NebuChadnezzar became the king of Babylon, and JehoiAkim became his vassal for three years… but then he annulled his allegiance. ² So during that time, Jehovah sent armed bands of Chaldeans, Syrians, Moabites, and Ammonites against him and the land of Judah, and they were finally overrun, just as Jehovah had foretold through His servants the Prophets. ³ This happened because of the rage of Jehovah against Judah and His purpose to remove them from in front of Him, due to the sins of ManasSeh and all the [bad] things he did. ⁴ For he had [killed] many innocent [people] and he had filled JeruSalem with innocent blood, and refused to repent.

⁵ Now, the rest of the things that JehoiAkim said and did have been written in the scroll of the words of the days of the kings of Judah. ⁶ For, then he went to sleep with his ancestors, and his son JehoiAchin started ruling in place of him.

⁷ And during this time, the king of Egypt no longer came into his land, because the king of Babylon had claimed all the land from the Euphrates River to the [Nile]… everything that had belonged to the king of Egypt.

⁸ JehoiAchin was only eighteen years old when he started his reign, and he ruled from JeruSalem for just three months. The name of his mother was Nestha, and she was the daughter of ElLanathan of JeruSalem. ⁹ But JehoiAchin followed in the ways of his father and acted wickedly in the eyes of Jehovah.

¹⁰ Then the time came when NebuChadnezzar (the king of Babylon) came to JeruSalem and laid siege all around the city [walls]. ¹¹ Yes, NebuChadnezzar [himself] came to the city when his army attacked it. ¹² Then JehoiAchin (the king of Judah) surrendered to the king of Babylon, along with his mother, servants, governors, and eunuchs, so the king of Babylon [took him captive] during the eighth year of his reign. ¹³ Then he went in and took all the treasures in the Temple of Jehovah, and all the treasures in the king's palace. And he had all the gold things that Solomon (the king of IsraEl) had placed in the Temple of Jehovah cut off and removed, just as Jehovah said would happen.

¹⁴ Then he took all the governors and all the important people from JeruSalem and carried them into captivity (some ten thousand people), including all the contractors and their workers, so all that was left in the land was just poor people. ¹⁵ He carried off JehoiAchin, his mother, his wives, his eunuchs, and all the great people of the land. He took them all from JeruSalem and resettled them in Babylon. ¹⁶ He also carried off seven thousand of [Judah's] greatest men, a thousand contractors and their craftsmen, and a thousand of the best soldiers, and took them to Babylon.

¹⁷ Then the king of Babylon appointed MatThaniAh (JehoiAchin's son) to be [the king of Judah], and he renamed him ZedekiAh.

¹⁸ Well, ZedekiAh was twenty-one years old when he started his reign, and he ruled in JeruSalem for eleven years. His mother's name was AmiTal, and she was the daughter of JeremiAh. ¹⁹ And like his father JehoiAchin, he also acted wickedly before Jehovah, ²⁰ so Jehovah's rage continued against JeruSalem and Judah, until He threw them away from before His face.

Then ZedekiAh also annulled his allegiance to the king of Babylon.

Chapter 25

¹ So, in the ninth year of his reign (on the tenth day of the tenth month) NebuChadnezzar (the king of Babylon) came against JeruSalem with his whole army. Then he camped outside the city and built a siege wall around it. ² So, the city was cut off until the eleventh year and ninth month of the reign of ZedekiAh. ³ And by then, famine raged throughout the city, for none of the people in the land had any bread. ⁴ Then its walls were breached, and all the soldiers slipped away during the night following a road that ran between the walls of the gate to the king's garden.

Then the Chaldeans, who were all around the city, marched after them along the desert road. ⁵ Well, they caught up with the king in the desert near JeriCho, and his men just deserted him. ⁶ So they captured the king and carried him off to the king of Babylon (who was in DebLatha at the time), where he was put on trial. ⁷ Then the king of Babylon had ZedekiAh's sons murdered before his eyes, and he was blinded and carried off to Babylon in chains.

⁸ Well, it was in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, in the nineteenth year of the reign of NebuChadnezzar (the king of Babylon) that NabuZarDan (the chief bodyguard of Babylon's king) came to JeruSalem. ⁹ Then he burned the Temple of Jehovah, the king's palace, and all the houses of JeruSalem… he burned everything, ¹⁰ and he had his soldiers tear down JeruSalem's walls. ¹¹ The only ones he left behind were those who had fallen in with the king of Babylon. And thereafter, NabuZarDan (the chief guard) removed his troops, ¹² leaving behind the poor of the land as vinedressers and farmers.

¹³ The Chaldeans also broke up the brass columns in the Temple of Jehovah, its basins, and the Sacred Sea, and carried all the brass back to Babylon. ¹⁴ They also took all the cooking pots, the shovels, the bowls, the incense pans, and everything else in the Temple that was made of brass, ¹⁵ as well as the gold and silver censers and bowls. ¹⁶ Well, with the two columns, the Sacred Sea, and the bases that Solomon had made for the Temple of Jehovah, no one could estimate the weight of all the brass that they took, ¹⁷ for each column stood thirty-feet tall, and the brass caps for each column stood five-feet tall. There was also the latticework, the brass pomegranates that were all around each cap, and then the hundred brass pomegranates that were all around the latticework on each column.

¹⁸ The chief bodyguard also took the High Priest SaraiAh and his son ZephaniAh (who was in charge of [Temple] collections). ¹⁹ In addition, he carried off the eunuch who supervised the warriors, five of the king's advisors, the secretary of the army (who handled recruiting), and sixty other people whom he found in the city. ²⁰ Then NabuZarDan (the chief guard) took them to the king of Babylon, who was in DebLatha, ²¹ who had them killed there in DebLatha (which was in the land of HaMath). And he resettled the people of Judah [away from] their own land.

²² Then NebuChadnezzar (the king of Babylon) appointed GedaliAh (the son of AchiCam and grandson of SaPhan) to rule over all those who were still left in the land of Judah. ²³ And when all the army generals and their men heard that the king of Babylon had put GedaliAh in charge, IsMaEl (the son of NathaniAh), JoAnan (the son of Kareth), SariAh (the son of ThanaMath the Netophathite), and JezoniAh (the son of the Mahathite) and their men went to GedaliAh in MizPah, ²⁴ and he swore an oath to them and their men. He said, 'Don't be afraid when the Chaldeans leave; just settle in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and all will go well for you.'

²⁵ Then in the seventh month, IsMaEl (the son of NathaniAh and grandson of EliSama), who was related to the kings, took ten men and murdered GedaliAh, along with all the Judeans and Chaldeans who were with him in MizPah. ²⁶ Then all the people (the small and the great) and the army generals got up and left for Egypt, because they were afraid of what the Chaldeans would do.

²⁷ Well, it was in the thirty-seventh year of the resettlement of JehoiAchin (the king of Judah), on the seventh day of the twelfth month, ²⁸ that Ebil Marodach became the king of Babylon. And during the first year of his reign, he allowed JehoiAchin (the king of Judah) out of his prison. ²⁸ Then he said good things about him and put him on a throne that was higher than those of all the other kings who were in Babylon. ²⁹ He also gave him new clothes to wear and allowed him to eat [at his table] for the rest of his life. ³⁰ He ate at all the feasts in the palace of the king, every day, throughout the rest of his life.

Notes

Age or Forever?

Two words imply infinite states in the Bible; one is the Greek word athanasia (undying), which is only found in two places, 1 Corinthians 15:53, where it mentions resurrected ones as clothing themselves with immortality, and at 1 Timothy 6:16, where Paul speaks of Jesus alone as having it. The other Greek word is aidios, which is used at Romans 1:20 to describe God's Power and Might as eternal, and at Jude 6 when speaking of the perpetual state of gloomy darkness that rebellious angels have been confined to.

However, the Greek word aionos, which is used throughout the Bible in various conjugated forms and is often translated as eternal and forever, is what the English word eon is derived from. It means an indefinite period, and there is no exact English word to translate it. The best equivalents are age or era.

Where the singular form (aionos) is used, this appears to mean a period such as a lifetime, generation, or era. And where the plural form of the word (aiōnōn) is used, it refers to a longer time… at least multiple generations. Also, where the term ages of the ages is used (such as at Ephesians 3:21), which is usually said in reference to The God, we would assume that this truly means forever.

It is noteworthy that aionos is the word that is used in the Greek Septuagint in place of the Hebrew word ohlam, which is also translated as forever and time indefinite in popular versions of the Ancient Scriptures of IsraEl. So, this one word (aionos) is translated as forever, everlasting, eternal, system of things, time indefinite, [end of] the world, long ago, from of old, etc. Obviously, something is very wrong here, because the word can't mean a period having a definite end in one place and infinity in another.

Take for example, the unique way that aionos is used in the question that Jesus' Apostles asked him, which is found at Matthew 24:3: 'Tell us; When will these things happen… what will be the signs when you are to arrive and this age will come to its conclusion?' Notice that aionos is also translated as world here in many Bibles, such as the KJ, and as system of things in other Bibles, such as the NWT. However, if the Apostles had meant any of those things, they would have used the Greek word cosmos (world or arrangement), not aionos.

You can see that aionos obviously doesn't mean forever, everlasting, or eternal in this case, nor did it mean world or system of things. It simply meant the age, or, the time before the end would come. And for them, that meant the age when God's Temple in JeruSalem would be destroyed, because that's what Jesus was explaining to them.

Yet, there are instances when some forms of the word could imply forever, such as when we find it in the form aiōniŏn. This is an adjective in the singular case, which, when combined with the Greek word zoe (in its various forms) is usually translated in other Bibles as everlasting life. However, that isn't a totally-accurate description.

In the past, we had tried to reconcile the words zoe aiōniŏn as meaning, life in the age. However, the word age in this instance would not be an adjective, so we have recently chosen, in most cases where we find this word combination, to translate them more accurately as age-long life, which we will agree could mean everlasting life.

For more information, see the linked Scriptural Commentary, Does the Bible Promise Everlasting Life?

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Anointing

At Exodus 29:29 we find that Aaron and his sons were to be 'anointed' as Priests to Jehovah, and that this action would make them 'holy' or clean. It also signified that they had been chosen to this office by God. And in Leviticus, when we read of the 'anointed' Priest, the reference seems to be to one of the Priests who has been chosen for the special office of what later became known as the High Priest.

The Greek word that we have translated as anointed here, is chriseis, which can also be translated as Christ (it's just a conjugation of Christos), since christ and anointed both come from the same root, which is Greek for olive oil. So, Jesus wasn't the first or the only one to be correctly referred to as a christ.

Why olive oil? Because, that substance was traditionally poured over the heads of those whom God chose to be Priests and kings over IsraEl. However, at least in the case of Aaron and his sons, fragrant herbs were added to the oil to give it a pleasing odor. This is implied at Exodus 25:7, where the IsraElites were asked to donate 'fragrances for anointing oil.' And we find the exact formula for the anointing oil at Exodus 30:34, where we read that it was to be made from 'sixteen pounds of choice myrrh flowers, eight pounds of sweet-smelling cinnamon, eight pounds of sweet-smelling calamus, sixteen pounds of cassia (for the Holy Place), and a gallon of olive oil.'

The physical anointing with oil also appears to have pictured their receiving God's Holy Breath, making them 'holy,' which was an appropriate description for Jesus years later. And remember that both the 'anointed' priests and the kings pictured Jesus. So, the term christ, when referring to them, is apropos.

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Hades: Hell or the Grave?

The Greek word Hades (the Greeks pronounced it hah-dess) has been translated both as Hell (which many today think of as a place of torture) and as the Grave in other Bible versions (such as the King James). Since one word can't mean two very different things, which translation is correct?

Hades (like the English word Hell) actually means the place of the dead. However, as pagan Greek philosophy started to develop and creep into Christianity, the later-day Greek view of Hades (a place of torture) was applied to it. Was this a correct application?

An insight into how the ancient Hebrews and the early Christians understood the word can be gained from looking at how it was applied in the Greek Septuagint translation of the Ancient Scriptures of IsraEl (the 'Old Testament' Bible of Jesus' day). There, the Hebrew word Sheol is translated into Greek as Hades in every instance; yet in each case, these are obvious references to the grave (the place of the dead), not to a place of conscious torture (see Ecclesiastes 9:5, 10).

Another revealing application of the word Hades is found at Revelation the 20:13. It says there, 'The sea (gr. he thalassa) gave up its dead, death and the grave (gr. thanatos kai ho hades) gave up those dead in them, and they were all judged by the things that they did.'

So, notice that those who die at sea are differentiated from those who are buried in graves (Hades) and in other places (thanatos). Therefore, Hades is better translated as grave, and even better translated as the place of the dead.

In the book of Job, another word that is used once in the Christian-era Scriptures and often translated as Hell, is found twice. That Greek word is Tartarus, which refers to the place where evil gods or angels are sent. For more information on this and other words that are translated as Hell, see the linked document, Is There a Burning Hell?

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Bible Measurements

The most common unit for measuring length, height, and depth in the Bible is a cubit, which is the length of a man's forearm. And of course, the lengths of forearms vary depending on the size of the person; so a cubit may be anywhere between eighteen and twenty-two inches. However, to give you a better idea of the size and proportions of things in the Bible, we have converted the units of measure to more familiar terms, such as feet and inches. And we have roughly averaged the sizes or lengths.

Also, some units of measure, such as a cor (about 32 bushels), hin, or bath (about 6 gallons), have been roughly estimated, since such terms are obsolete.

We have also dropped the obscure names of coins, since most readers have no idea of their value, and simply inserted the type of coin they are (gold, silver, or copper), and sometimes their size, to provide you some frame of reference.

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Soul

The Greek word psyche (as in psychology) has been translated many ways, including soul, life, etc. However, psyche actually means something that breathes. It is used in the Bible to describe both breathing animals and breathing humans. So by definition, a soul cannot leave the body, because a soul is what the living body (whether human or animal) is (see Genesis 2:7).

In ancient Greece, philosophers eventually added another meaning to psyche: The inner person (as opposed to the person that others see and come to know). And with time, the pagan religion of Greece started to teach that this inner person is its own entity and can never die (is immortal). Over the centuries, this pagan Greek doctrine thereafter crept into the Christian religions. Please see the Wikipedia definition Soul for more history of the word.

However, such Greek philosophical thought never influenced Jesus and his Apostles. So, they consistently used psyche to indicate a living person or animal. Therefore, the later teaching that the soul is immortal stands in direct conflict with Jesus' promise of a resurrection, because, if a person is immortal (can never die) he/she can never be resurrected (brought back to life).

In addition, the teaching of the immortality of the human soul is totally without support from the Bible. For the word immortal(ity) (Gr: athanasia or undying) is only mentioned in the Bible in two places, and it isn't used with or applied to the word soul in either case. Both of these scriptures show that immortality is only given by God as a reward for righteousness. And as EzekiEl 18:4 says, 'The person (gr. psyche or soul) that is sinning will die (gr. apothaneitai).'

Of course, there are places in the Bible where the word soul means more than just a living, fleshly body. For example, God is recorded to have spoken of 'My Soul' in several places. Obviously, God is much more than just a 'soul' as most people think of that term, and He surely wasn't talking about His having a human body. So we must conclude that what He was referring to is His life or His person.

Then there are Jesus' words found at Matthew 10:28, which read, 'Don't be afraid of those who kill the body but can't kill the person (psyche or soul). Rather, be afraid of him who can destroy both the person (soul) and the body in the garbage dump.' Here, Jesus is using the word psyche (soul) to refer to the value of life that remains with God until the resurrection. And he obviously isn't referring the soul as immortal in this instance, because he says God will destroy (gr. apolesai) the [unrighteous] soul or person.

Unfortunately, no single word can be used to translate psyche in every possible Bible application, so various terms are used herein, depending on the circumstances, but always in an attempt to harmonize with the meaning.

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Breath

The Greek word pneuma (as in pneumonia, a breathing disease) means breath or wind – the movement of air. In other Bible translations, this word is often translated as spirit or ghost, as in Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost. However, spirit is just a shortened form of the Latin word spiritu, which just means breath in Latin. And ghost conveys another meaning altogether.

In the Bible, the most common use of the word pneuma is to convey the idea of a force that can't be seen, such as breath or wind. And the problem with translating it as spirit or ghost, is that those words have been given religious meanings that aren't implied by the Greek texts.

Therefore, to prevent confusion, the Greek word pneuma is frequently translated as breath herein. However, there are exceptions, as in instances where the Bible refers to demons as 'spirits.' Translating pneuma as breath in these cases, although correct, might just be confusing. There are also places where we have left pneuma translated as spirit, when the word implies a person's tendency (or spirit). And, since the nuance implied by the word spirit in the English language (an unseen power) is correct, we recently changed back to translating pneuma as spirit in several places, when referring to God's Holy Spirit. However, recognize that pneuma is often best defined by calling it [God's] Holy Breath. For an example, see the Note Worshiping God In Spirit and Truth.

Another important use of the word pneuma is in the phrase, 'Breath of Life.' This phrase appears to mean more than just breathing, for it seems to refer to the entire mechanics of life itself. It's the unseen force of life for all creatures… it's what makes each cell alive. However, nowhere does the Bible describe the 'pneuma' as immortal, nor is it the same as the soul (a breathing thing), so it can (figuratively) 'return to God' at death,' because all hope of future life depends on God and His promise of a resurrection.

Note in particular how the term Breath is used at Job 27:3, where Job spoke of God's Breath or Spirit. For there he asked, 'Does the Breath of the Divine One remain in my nose?' As you can see from his application of this word, pneuma obviously referred to God's Breath, not to a person or to an unseen force. He was talking about that which comes from God and which caused him (Job) to breathe… the Breath of Life.

It is interesting that at Genesis 6:3, God said concerning the wicked people on earth before the Downpour: 'I won't allow My Breath to stay with these men through the age, for they are fleshly.' In Greek that reads, 'Ou me katameine to pneuma mou en tois anthropois toutoiseis ton aiona, dia ai einai autous sarka,' or, 'Not not should stay the Breath Mine with these men the age through, their being flesh.'

While the words Breath Mine (pneuma mou) here can refer to God's Holy Breath, it seems more likely that He is referring to the breath of life that He gave to Adam. So it appears as though what God was saying here, is that the breath of life (of the people of that age) would be removed prematurely. However, since God referred to it as 'My Breath,' there may be a link implied between God's Holy Breath and the breath of life.
For more information, see the linked document, 'The Powers of God's Holy Spirit.'

However, when Jesus died (as the words recorded at John 19:30 say), 'he hung his head and gave up the breath' (gr. kai klinas ten kephalen paredoken to pneuma, or, and inclined his head giving/up the breath). In this case, the obvious reference is to 'the breath of life,' or that force which gave him life as a human.

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God's Messengers

Most Bible translations render the Greek word aggelos (pronounced ahn-gel-ose – with a hard g) as angel wherever it is found. However, aggelos is just the Greek word for messenger. True, in most cases where the Bible speaks of angels, it is referring to spirit messengers from God. However, this may not be the meaning in every instance, and always translating it as angel may distort what was meant.

For example, consider the words at Acts 12:15, where Peter had just been released from prison and came to the door of some faithful Christians. Here the housemaid told the people inside that Peter was outside. And according to many other Bibles, they thought that it was 'his angel' at the door. However, this rendering doesn't sound reasonable, for it would have been unusual for Christians to assume that an angel from God (who looked like Peter) was standing and knocking at their door. Rather, the rendering we have used herein makes more sense, 'So they said, It's his messenger.'

Another good example of why aggelos shouldn't always be translated as angel can be found at Genesis 32:3, which reads in Greek, 'Apasteile de Iakob aggelous emprosthen autou pros Hesau ton adelphon autou' or, 'Sent of Jacob angels(?) ahead of/him toward Esau the brother of/him.' Here Jacob was obviously sending human messengers to his brother, not heavenly ones (angels).

And consider the words at Numbers 20:14, where we read that Moses sent messengers (gr. aggelous – messengers, plural) from Cades to the king of Edom.' Then in verse 16, it says that 'Jehovah … heard our voice and sent His messenger (gr. aggelon – messenger, singular) who brought us out of Egypt.'

Obviously, the same word (with only conjugated variations) is used there to speak of two different types of messengers… those who were human and the one who was sent from heaven by God. And in this case, most Bibles translate the first instance as messengers, but the second as angel. We have not chosen to make this distinction, however, for the readers should be able to discern from the context which ones are human and which ones are spirit by themselves. And when there is some question, each person should keep an open mind.

Consider the words of Haggai 1:13, where we read: 'Then the Messenger (or angel) of Jehovah, Haggai, one of the messengers (or angels) of Jehovah, said to the people: Jehovah says, I am with you!'

Yet, Haggai was just a man, not a spirit. So, there may be other cases in the Bible where some translations have presumptuously written angel, when the one that God sent was a human messenger!

Also consider that; Translating aggelos as messenger when it is truly speaking of a spirit from God, helps to provide readers a better, deeper understanding of the actual role that such sons of God play in His dealings with mankind… and that the term angel isn't a type of creature or a heavenly rank (as most think), but an assignment that may even be temporary. It also helps us to understand why the Bible never speaks of female or baby angels (because dead men, dead women, and dead babies don't become angels, since heavenly spirits are direct creations by God).

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The Heavens or Sky, the Earth or the Land?

In both the Ancient Scriptures of IsraEl (OT) and the Christian Era Scriptures (NT), we find all the realm of non-living creation divided into just three entities; the heavens (or sky), the earth (the land or ground), and the seas (or the waters) and rivers.

Now, in contemporary English, we understand that there is a difference between the heavens and the sky, the earth and the land (or ground), and the seas and waters. However, in both Hebrew and Greek, these fine distinctions that we accept because of our modern technology, can't be found. So, Genesis 1:1 is literally translated herein as, 'In the beginning, The God created the skies and the lands.' This is very accurate, because it was man's view of creation from the earth. There was just the land that he stood on, the sky above him, and the waters or seas over there. He had no technical understanding of the earth as a planet, because men had never seen the earth as a globe in space, as most of us have done today. However, because of these distinctions that we are aware of, translators must choose the proper words to provide the right nuances in English, in order for readers to grasp the proper meaning of each text. And as you will see, something as simple as selecting another synonym can give us a quite different view of the meanings of some common verses.

The Greek word ourano(n), for example, can be correctly translated as heaven, heavens, sky, and skies, depending on the context and tense. But if the translator should choose the wrong word, people will reach very different (and often wrong) conclusions, because of the nuances implied in English.

Likewise, the Greek words ge, ges, and gen can be translated as earth, earths, ground, grounds, land, or lands, depending on the context and tense. So, the symbolic words at 2 Peter 3:5, 6, for example, are translated herein as, 'The thing that they don't want to understand is this: That the ancient skies and land were out of the water, but (in obedience to God's instructions) they stood together between the waters.' (For an example of the problems created by the wrong use of the words ge, ges, and gen, see the linked document Isaiah 24 - Is It Speaking of Armageddon?).

Notice that the 'skies and land' were located 'between the water.' So, although other Bibles translated this verse as speaking of the 'heavens and earth,' the reference is to the portion of the heavens that are close to the earth… to the skies.

The same is true of the famous words of Jesus at Matthew 5:5, which read in Greek: 'Makarioi oi praeis hoti outoi kleronomesousin ten gen,' or, Blest the gentle for they will/inherit the (earth, ground, or land).' Notice that in some Bibles Jesus is recorded as saying, 'The meek will inherit the earth;' while in others he said, 'The meek will inherit the land.' Do you see the difference in nuances implied here? Yet, both word choices are equally correct.

And finally, when it comes to the seas (gr. tas thalassan), there are already distinctions as to different types of waters in the Greek text. For instance, seas are called thalassan and rivers are called potamos (or 'flowing'). However, notice (in Revelation 20: 13) how the resurrection of the dead is divided between those who died on land and those who were lost in the water; 'The sea gave up its dead, death and the grave gave up those dead in them, and they were all judged by the things that they did.'

We again find all three of these realms of creation brought together symbolically at Revelation 21:1, whIch we have translated as saying, 'Then I saw new skies and new lands, because the previous sky and land had disappeared, as did the sea.' So, did John see 'a new heavens and a new earth,' as some translate his words, or did he see 'new skies and new lands,' as we have quoted him? The Greek words that are used in the beginning of this verse are both in the plural tense, but in the singular tense in the latter half of the verse. So, what John says that he saw was 'new skies and new lands' which took the place of the old 'sky, land, and sea' that had just disappeared before him (he didn't see the globe and the realm of God disappear).

Also, in the case of where EliJah was taken away in a celestial chariot; most people think he was taken (as their Bibles put it) 'to heaven,' where he went to live with God. This isn't true, because King JehoRam later received a letter from Elijah (see 2 Chronicles 21:12). So, God had apparently used the celestial chariot to take him into 'the sky' (the proper translation here), where he was then sent to another place here on the earth. For more information on this, see the linked document, The Hereafter.

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The 'Lost' Ten Tribes of IsraEl

Over the centuries, many things have been written about what may have happened to the ten tribes of IsraEl that were carried away as captives by the King of Assyria. Some religious groups once speculated that they became the natives of Great Britain, while another religion teaches that they became the American Indians. Of course, both of these theories have been proven untrue by archeology and genetic research, but such teachings still continue.

Whatever happened to the ten 'lost' tribes? The Bible tells us clearly, for at 2 Kings 17:6 we read, 'Then the king of Assyria captured Samaria and moved all the people of IsraEl into Assyria – to Alae-Abor, along the Gozan River, and into the mountains of the Medes.' Notice that this is into the land around Persia and modern-day Iraq. And there is a river in NW Iran named the Qezel Owzan, which is thought to be the Gozan.

What happened to them after that? Notice that the whole account at 1 Chronicles 5:26 says, 'So the God of IsraEl caused the spirit of Pul, the king of Assyria (who was also known as Tiglath-Pileser) to become enraged with them, and he sent fifty-thousand men and they relocated [the tribes of] Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of ManasSeh. He moved them to Chalak, Mabor, and along the Gozan River, where they still are today.'

So, since it is believed that the Chronicles were written by Ezra after Judah's repatriation from Babylon (c. 560-B.C.E), it can be clearly seen that the peoples of the ten tribes were still living around Persia at that time, and they were likely disseminated among the local population, since they no longer worshiped (or had a Sacred Agreement with) Jehovah. In fact, recent genetic research indicates a strong link between them and the Kurds of Northern Iran.

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Proper Pronunciation of the Letters C and CH in Greek Words

The most mispronounced letters when English-speaking people try to pronounce Greek or Hebrew names, is C (or CH). For, there is no 'soft C' pronunciation in those languages; it is always a hard C (as in Call), even when a CH is used (as in CHrist). So, the title Caesar was actually pronounced more like Kaiser (as in German). And the faithful woman Priscilla was called Prees-kee-lah, as the town of Laodicea was called La-oh-dee-keh-ah. However, don't try to pronounce those names and titles properly, because the mispronunciations are just too well entrenched in English.

When it comes to less familiar names though, one might try to pronounce them properly. Take for example, the name of the king of Elam, Chodollogomor, or the sons of Chet, or the people called the Chaldeans. In ancient Greek, they were pronounced (approximately and respectively), Kah-dah-lah-gah-mer, Ket, and Kahl-dee-owns. Oh yes, it helps to have an interlinear Bible translation to know how the word was actually spelled, and a knowledge of how Greek vowels are pronounced.

The Greeks had two letters that they pronounced as a K. One looks like a K and is pronounced that way, with the tongue touching the roof of the mouth. The other (the one we render as C and CH in English) looks like an X and is pronounced like a K, but with the tongue touching the soft palate at the back of the mouth, which gives a breathier sound to the K. For example, say Christ and notice the part of your mouth that the tongue touches. Then say Kill and notice the difference. This is the difference between CH and K.

So, why did the Greeks have different letters for such a small variation in sound? This is because they had no alphabet until about the time of their classical poet, Homer. They then borrowed or adapted their alphabet from the Hebrews (if you could examine both alphabets from that period, you would see the similarities). And since Hebrew is a more guttural language, their letter cheth (where the Greeks got their letter for CH from) has a far more pronounced palate sound.

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Eunuchs

When we hear the word eunuch, we usually think of a man who has been castrated, because that's what the term has come to mean through the years. However, when someone is described as a eunuch in the Bible, it doesn't necessarily mean that he was sexually mutilated. In fact, during the reigns of faithful kings of IsraEl, such mutilation would have been considered repulsive; for a sexually-mutilated person, by Law, couldn't serve as a Priest or worship at the Temple of Jehovah.

Does this mean then, that God dislikes men whose testicles have been forcibly or accidentally removed? No, surely the reasons for this law involved His knowledge that some men, in their desire to better serve Him, may have considered castration to remove any carnal desires; and He clearly didn't want that to happen. So, God provided a law to disallow any who were castrated from serving Him in these special ways.

Notice that the Greek word eunuch doesn't really carry the meaning of castration. Rather, it means bed keeper. However, most bed keepers (or harem watchers) for kings were in fact castrated to keep them from temptation. Yet, eunuchs are frequently mentioned in the Bible as holding other offices (such as the Ethiopian Eunuch), which didn't necessarily require castration. So, why were they then referred to as bed keepers? Because the term had come under common use to apply to all trusted servants of kings.

Was DaniEl (who served under the chief Babylonian eunuch) a eunuch? His position as a special servant to the king would indicate that he held the title of eunuch. But is it possible that he had also been castrated? Well, as an early captive from JeruSalem, he was a member of the nobility or royalty, and notice the prophecy that God gave to King HezekiAh at Isaiah 39:7, where we read, 'They will take your children – those who you have fathered – and make them eunuchs in the houses of the Babylonians.'

In the above case, the Greek word that we have translated as eunuch (which is also a Greek word) is castrati, or one who has been sexually mutilated. And the fact that there is no mention of DaniEl having a wife or children, and that none of his descendants are listed among those who returned to JeruSalem, makes this a possible conclusion.

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Why Capitals in Bible Names?

You have likely noticed that we are putting some of the letters in Bible names in capital letters. For example, we've started spelling such names as Jonathan as JoNathan, Isaiah as IsaiAh, and Eliezer as EliEzer. Why? Well, partly to help with the correct pronunciations of the names, and partly to show some translating consistency.

Of course, the common English pronunciation of Jonathan (for example) is Jon-uh-thun. But did you know that the first part of the name (Io in Greek, Ieho in Hebrew) refers to the name Jehovah, and the second part of the Name (Nathan) means Gift? So, the name was originally pronounced closer to Ye-hoh-nuh-thahn.

In the case of names that end with an iah, as in Isaiah, the last part of the name often includes the name of God. Isaiah, for example, means Salvation [of] JehovAH, and it was originally pronounced Ee-sai-Yah. Yet, there are other names (such as EliJah), where the IEs have been changed to Js.

So, why have translators substituted a capital 'J' for the letters 'Ie' in both of the above cases? Well, there is an inconsistency here, because there was no letter 'J' in Hebrew or Greek alphabets. However, the letters were changed to coincide with the common English pronunciations of these names. Unfortunately though, this process wasn't followed consistently by ancient translators; so while some names are spelled with a J, many others are still spelled with an Ie or Iah.

Another important word in names that we usually capitalize is 'El' (from the Hebrew Elohe, or God). So EliEzer (which people commonly pronounce Eelai-eezer and means God [has] Helped), should actually be pronounced Elee-ehzer. The same is true for the letters Ai, especially in the names of cities, because Ai in Hebrew refers to the word city. So, AiLam (for example) probably meant the City of Lam.

Similar words, such as Bel (as in BelShazzar), Baal, and Beel, refer to 'the Lord' or 'the God.' Also, the prefixes 'Ben' and 'Bar' mean 'the son of.' 'Beth' means 'the house of,' 'Beer' refers to a 'well,' 'Is' or 'Ish' means 'Man,' etc.

Does this mean that we have put all the capitals in the right places? No, for we make no claim to Hebrew scholarship (all our translating here has been from Greek). So, what we are trying to do is provide a better understanding to how these names were pronounced by First-Century Christians.

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Seismos

The Greek words seismos and seismoi are usually thought of as meaning earthquake and earthquakes, for the modern study of earthquakes is called seismology. Therefore, when Jesus was speaking about the signs of his being near, and he said one of the signs would be seismoi (Matthew 24:7), most have assumed that this referred just to a greater frequency of earthquakes.

However, the Greek word seismos appears to actually refer to a shaking or disturbance, which doesn't necessarily imply just earthquakes. For, Matthew used the word (at Matthew 8:24) to describe an agitated sea when Jesus was on a boat with his disciples. Then at 2 Kings 2:11, when the Prophet EliJah was taken into the sky in a flaming chariot, the word that was used to describe the storm that took him, was once again seismos. So, Jesus' use of the word at Matthew 24:7 implies more than just earthquakes. It could be speaking of any natural disasters, such as those brought by earthquakes, high winds, floods, or tsunamis.

It has also been recently brought to our attention that seismos could be translated as turmoil or unrest. So, could Jesus have implied even more than natural disasters in that single word? This is probably so.

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Edem

Was there such as thing as the Garden of Eden, and if so, where was it located?

Actually, the Septuagint says, at Genesis 2:8, 'God planted a Paradise on the east side of Edem, where He put the man whom he had formed.' Then in verses 10-14 we read, 'A river flowed from Edem to water the Paradise, and from there [came the] head [waters] of four [rivers]. The name of the [first river] is Phison. It circles the entire land of Evilat, where there is gold (and the gold from that land is good). There is also coal and ornamental stone. The name of the second river is Geon. It runs around the land of Cush. The third river is the Tigris, which flows over toward the Assyrians; and the fourth river is the EuPhrates.'

As you can see; according to the Septuagint, the Garden was not named Eden, it was just called 'the Paradise,' or 'the Walled Garden' (from the word's old Iranian roots). And it was also called 'the Paradise of Delights,' at Genesis 2:15. So, where did Eden come in? Well, the Septuagint tells us that the Garden ran along the east side of 'the land of Edem.' Therefore, the garden wasn't named Eden (or Edem), but rather, it was located next to a land of that name.

But, which spelling is correct? We don't know. However, we frequently find the letters M and N interchanged in Bible names; and as you will see below, similar names are spelled with an M in both the Septuagint and Masoretic texts.

Don't confuse this name (Ed-em) with Edom (Ed-om), although they both have similar meanings, referring to something that is red. For, Edom is the name of the land that belonged to IsaAc's son Esau, and Edem is the name of a land in the east where the Garden of God was located, and from which we get the name Eden.

And where is Edem? Notice that when Moses wrote this portion of Genesis, he used places and countries that existed in his day to describe its location. For, at Genesis 2:14 he tells us that the Tigris river 'flows over toward the Assyrians.' Therefore, we must assume that the land of Edem existed during the time of the Assyrians and of Moses.

A people called the Sons of Edem are mentioned in other scriptures, such as 2 Kings 19:12 (4 Kings 19:12 Sept.), where the Assyrians were taunting the people of JeruSalem by bragging about the cities they had conquered. In the Septuagint, it says the Sons of Edem were conquered at 'ThaEsthen' ('Tel Assar' in Hebrew), which almost all references cite as being a country annexed to Assyria.' But where?

Recent research indicates that the land of Edem (or Eden) may well have been north of where most people think of it as being (in southern Iraq). For, its location is likely where you'll find the headwaters of the Tigris, EuPhrates, and two other rivers, the Geon (likely the Gihon or the Gaihun-Aras) and the Phison (likely the Pishon, which is now known as the Sephid-Rud, or, Long Red River), since they have similar names today. They are all located near Mt. Ararat, SW of Tabriz in Azerbaijan, a place that was inhabited by the Medes in the 7th Century B.C.E.

Notice that the Bible account does speak of these rivers all coming together in Edem (or Eden, which most people think of as being the Garden). And if this was near Babylon, a geographical map shows that this has never happened. However, the Hebrew words that are usually translated as saying that the rivers come together in four heads, may also be translated as saying that the headwaters of these four rivers are found in the land. And this aptly describes the area which is still called Edin, near Mt. Ararat.

Was there a man named Edem, from whom the land at the foot of Mt. Ararat derives its name? That could be, but since Edem appears to mean red earth, the term sons of Edem could also mean sons of the red earth, after the bright red ochre soil which is found near Tabriz. It is interesting that the name Adam also seems to imply Red Earth, so the Septuagint spelling of the land (Edem) appears to be correct, and soil from that area (SW of Ararat) could also be the dust of the ground from which Adam was made.

Also notice that one of the descendants of Cush was Evilat (according to Genesis 10:7). And this is the name of the land around which the Phison flowed (see Genesis 2:11), where it was said that there was gold and other valuable minerals.

This location appears to be confirmed at Genesis 25:18, where the land of Esau is described as running to the land of Evilat, which it says, is in the country of Assyria. Notice that this location is also confirmed at Amos 1:5.

Then, if the Geon River is located in Azerbaijan, why does the Septuagint say (at Genesis 2:13) that it runs around Ethiopia?

Well, notice that Ethiopia is just the Greek word for the land of the blacks. The Hebrew (Masoretic) text says there that 'it runs around the entire land of Cush,' which means the same thing, since Cush also means Black. But, doesn't this mean that the Geon is located near or in Africa?

Obviously, the present country of Ethiopia is not the original location of the headwaters of the River Geon that flowed into Edem (Eden). For, not only is that impossible geologically, but the Bible's account about the sons of Edem and the location of the land of Evilat, indicates that the descendants of Cush (whom the Ethiopians still claim as their progenitor… but they spell it Kush), at least in part, originally lived in areas north of Iran. The fact that Cush's son Nimrod founded many cities in Iran and Iraq gives credence to the thought that black or dark-skinned people once inhabited that area. Although there are no archaeological records of these people, they could be the same as the Cadusii (although there is no record of skin color), who are mentioned by the ancient Greeks.

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