New Century Version NCV
The Complete Jewish Bible CJB
1 Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he ruled sixteen years in Jer-usalem. Unlike his ancestor David, he did not do what the Lord said was right.
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Achaz was twenty years old when he began his reign, and he ruled sixteen years in Yerushalayim. But he did not do what was right from the perspective of ADONAI, as David his ancestor had done.
2 Ahaz did the same things the kings of Israel had done. He made metal idols to worship Baal.
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Rather, he lived in the manner of the kings of Isra'el and made cast metal images for the ba'alim.
3 He burned incense in the Valley of Ben Hinnom and made his children pass through the fire. He did the same hateful sins as the nations had done whom the Lord had forced out of the land ahead of the Israelites.
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Moreover, he made offerings in the Ben-Hinnom Valley and even burned up his own children as sacrifices, in keeping with the horrible practices of the pagans, whom ADONAI had thrown out ahead of the people of Isra'el.
4 Ahaz offered sacrifices and burned incense at the places where gods were worshiped, and on the hills, and under every green tree.
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He also sacrificed and offered on the high places, on the hills and under any green tree.
5 So the Lord his God handed over Ahaz to the king of Aram. The Arameans defeated Ahaz and took many people of Judah as prisoners to Damascus. He also handed over Ahaz to Pekah king of Israel, and Pekah's army killed many soldiers of Ahaz.
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Because of this, ADONAI his God handed him over to the king of Aram; they attacked him and carried off from his people a great number of captives, bringing them to Dammesek. In addition, he was handed over to the king of Isra'el, who inflicted on him a great massacre.
6 The army of Pekah son of Remaliah killed one hundred twenty thousand brave soldiers from Judah in one day. Pekah defeated them because they had left the Lord, the God of their ancestors.
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For Pekach the son of Remalyah killed in Y'hudah 120,000 men in one day, all of them brave men, because they had abandoned ADONAI, the God of their ancestors.
7 Zicri, a warrior from Ephraim, killed King Ahaz's son Maaseiah. He also killed Azrikam, the officer in charge of the palace, and Elkanah, who was second in command to the king.
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And Zikhri, a champion from Efrayim, killed Ma'aseiyah the king's son, 'Azrikam the administrator of the household and Elkanah, who was second only to the king.
8 The Israelite army captured two hundred thousand of their own relatives. They took women, sons and daughters, and many valuable things from Judah and carried them back to Samaria.
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The people of Isra'el took captive from their kinsmen 200,000 wives, sons and daughters; they also captured from them much spoil, which they brought to Shomron.
9 But a prophet of the Lord named Oded was there. He met the Israelite army when it returned to Samaria and said to them, "The Lord, the God of your ancestors, handed Judah over to you, because he was angry with those people. But God has seen the cruel way you killed them.
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But a prophet of ADONAI named 'Oded was there; he went out to meet the army coming to Shomron and said to them, "Look, it's because ADONAI the God of your fathers was angry with Y'hudah that he has handed them over to you, and you have slaughtered them in a fury that has reached up to heaven.
10 Now you plan to make the people of Judah and Jerusalem your slaves, but you also have sinned against the Lord your God.
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Now you intend to force the people from Y'hudah and Yerushalayim into subjection as your slaves; but haven't you guilty deeds of your own that you committed against ADONAI your God?
11 Now listen to me. Send back your brothers and sisters whom you captured, because the Lord is very angry with you."
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Therefore listen to me now; and send the captives back, the people you have taken captive from your kinsmen; because the fierce anger of ADONAI is on you."
12 Then some of the leaders in Ephraim -- Azariah son of Jehohanan, Berekiah son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah son of Shallum, and Amasa son of Hadlai -- met the Israelite soldiers coming home from war.
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At this, some of the leaders of the people of Efrayim -'Azaryahu the son of Y'hochanan, Berekhyahu the son of Meshilemot, Y'chizkiyah the son of Shalum and 'Amasa the son of Hadlai - protested against those who were returning from the war,
13 They warned the soldiers, "Don't bring the prisoners from Judah here. If you do, we will be guilty of sin against the Lord, and that will make our sin and guilt even worse. Our guilt is already so great that he is angry with Israel."
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saying to them, "Don't bring the captives here, because you intend to do something that will bring guilt on us against ADONAI. It will only add to our sins and guilt, for our guilt is great, and there is fierce anger against Isra'el."
14 So the soldiers left the prisoners and valuable things in front of the officers and people there.
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So the armed soldiers left the captives and the spoil there with the leaders and the whole community;
15 The leaders who were named took the prisoners and gave those who were naked the clothes that the Israelite army had taken. They gave the prisoners clothes, sandals, food, drink, and medicine. They put the weak prisoners on donkeys and took them back to their families in Jericho, the city of palm trees. Then they returned home to Samaria.
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while the men named above took charge of the captives and from the spoil clothed those among them who were inadequately clothed, giving them garments and shoes, providing them food and drink and anointing them with oil. After placing all the weak among them on donkeys, they brought them to Yericho, the City of Date-Palms, to their kinsmen; only then did they return to Shomron.
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It was at that time that King Achaz sent to the kings of Ashur to help him.
17 At that time the Edomites came again and attacked Judah and carried away prisoners. So King Ahaz sent to the king of Assyria for help.
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For again the people from Edom had come, attacking Y'hudah and carrying off captives.
18 The Philistines also robbed the towns in the western hills and in southern Judah. They captured the towns of Beth Shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Soco, Timnah, and Gimzo, and the villages around them. Then the Philistines lived in those towns.
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The P'lishtim too had invaded the cities in the Sh'felah and in the Negev of Y'hudah; they had captured Beit-Shemesh, Ayalon, G'derot, Sokho with its villages, Timnah with its villages and Gimzo with its villages; and they settled there.
19 The Lord brought trouble on Judah because Ahaz their king led the people of Judah to sin, and he was unfaithful to the Lord.
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For ADONAI brought Y'hudah low because of Achaz king of Isra'el, since he had caused disturbances in Y'hudah and acted very treacherously against ADONAI.
20 Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria came to Ahaz, but he gave Ahaz trouble instead of help.
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Tilgat-Piln'eser king of Ashur attacked and besieged Achaz instead of strengthening him -
21 Ahaz took some valuable things from the Temple of the Lord, from the palace, and from the princes, and he gave them to the king of Assyria, but it did not help.
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even though Achaz had stripped the house of ADONAI and the palaces of the king and princes and had given the plunder to the king of Ashur, it didn't help him at all.
22 During Ahaz's troubles he was even more unfaithful to the Lord.
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During his time of distress this same King Achaz added to his treachery against ADONAI
23 He offered sacrifices to the gods of the people of Damascus, who had defeated him. He thought, "The gods of the kings of Aram helped them. If I offer sacrifices to them, they will help me also." But this brought ruin to Ahaz and all Israel.
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by sacrificing to the gods of Dammesek, who had attacked him, reasoning, "The gods of the kings of Aram helped them, so I will sacrifice to them, and then they'll help me." But they became the ruin of him and of all Isra'el.
24 Ahaz gathered the things from the Temple of God and broke them into pieces. Then he closed the doors of the Temple of the Lord. He made altars and put them on every street corner in Jerusalem.
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Achaz collected the equipment from the house of God, broke to pieces the equipment from the house of God and sealed the doors of the house of ADONAI; then he made himself altars in every corner of Yerushalayim.
25 In every town in Judah, Ahaz made places for burning sacrifices to worship other gods. So he made the Lord, the God of his ancestors, very angry.
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In every city of Y'hudah he made high places for offering to other gods, thus provoking ADONAI the God of his ancestors.
26 The other things Ahaz did as king, from beginning to end, are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.
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Other activities of Achaz and his ways [of doing things], from beginning to end, are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Y'hudah and Isra'el.
27 Ahaz died and was buried in the city of Jerusalem, but not in the graves of the kings of Israel. Ahaz's son Hezekiah became king in his place.
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Achaz slept with his ancestors, and they buried him in the city, in Yerushalayim; because they did not bring him to the tombs of the kings of Isra'el. Then Hizkiyahu his son took his place as king.
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.