2 Chronicles 25; 2 Chronicles 26; 2 Chronicles 27

1 Amaziah was 25 years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for 29 years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jehoaddan from Jerusalem.

2 He did what the LORD considered right, but he did not do it wholeheartedly.

3 As soon as he had firm control over the kingdom, he executed the officials who killed his father, the former king.

4 But he didn't execute their children. He obeyed the LORD's command written in the Book of Moses' Teachings: "Parents must never be put to death for the crimes of their children, and children must never be put to death for the crimes of their parents. Each person must be put to death for his own crime."

5 Amaziah called the people of Judah together and assigned them by families to regiment and battalion commanders for all of Judah and Benjamin. He organized those who were at least 20 years old and found that he had 300,000 of the best men for the army, those who could handle a spear and a shield.

6 He also hired 100,000 soldiers from Israel for 7,500 pounds of silver.

7 But a man of God came to him and said, "Your Majesty, Israel's army must not go with you, because the LORD isn't with Israel. He's not with these men from Ephraim.

8 If you go into battle with them, no matter how courageous you are, God will use the enemy to defeat you, because God has the power to help you or to defeat you."

9 Amaziah asked the man of God, "What should I do about the 7,500 pounds of silver I gave the troops from Israel?" The man of God answered, "The LORD can give you much more than that."

10 Then Amaziah dismissed the troops that had come to him from Ephraim. But they became furious with Judah and returned home.

11 Amaziah courageously led his troops. When he came to the Dead Sea region, he killed 10,000 men from Seir.

12 The Judeans captured another 10,000 alive, took them to the top of a cliff, and threw them off the top of the cliff so that they were dismembered.

13 The troops that Amaziah sent back so that they couldn't go with him into battle raided the towns in Judah from Samaria to Beth Horon. They killed 3,000 people and took a lot of goods.

14 After Amaziah came back from defeating the Edomites, he brought the gods of the people of Seir, set them up as his gods, bowed down to them, and burned sacrifices to them.

15 The LORD became angry with Amaziah. He sent him a prophet who asked him, "Why do you dedicate your life to serving the gods of those people? Those gods couldn't save their own people from you."

16 As he was talking, the king asked him, "Did we make you an adviser to the king? Stop! Do you want me to have you killed?" The prophet stopped. He said, "I know that God has decided to destroy you because you did this, but you refuse to listen to my advice."

17 After getting advice [from his advisers], King Amaziah of Judah sent messengers to King Jehoash, son of Jehoahaz and grandson of Jehu of Israel, to declare war on Israel.

18 King Jehoash of Israel sent this message to King Amaziah of Judah: "A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon. It said, 'Let your daughter marry my son,' but a wild animal from Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle.

19 You say you defeated Edom, and now you've become arrogant enough to look for more fame. Stay home! Why must you invite disaster and your own defeat and take Judah with you?"

20 But Amaziah wouldn't listen. (God made this happen because he wanted to hand over the Judeans to Jehoash because they had sought help from Edom's gods.)

21 So King Jehoash of Israel attacked, and King Amaziah of Judah met him in battle at Beth Shemesh in Judah.

22 Israel defeated the army of Judah, and the Judeans fled to their homes.

23 King Jehoash of Israel captured King Amaziah, son of Joash and grandson of Ahaziah of Judah, at Beth Shemesh and brought him to Jerusalem. He tore down a 600-foot section of the wall around Jerusalem from Ephraim Gate to Corner Gate.

24 [He took] all the gold, silver, and all the utensils he found in God's temple with Obed Edom and in the royal palace treasury. He also took hostages. Then he returned to Samaria.

25 Joash's son King Amaziah of Judah lived 15 years after the death of Jehoahaz's son King Jehoash of Israel.

26 Isn't everything else about Amaziah, from beginning to end, written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel?

27 After Amaziah turned away from the LORD, conspirators in Jerusalem plotted against him. Amaziah fled to Lachish, but they sent men to Lachish after him and killed him there.

28 They brought him back by horse and buried him in the city of Judah with his ancestors.

1 All the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was 16 years old, and made him king in place of his father Amaziah.

2 Uzziah rebuilt Elath and returned it to Judah after King Amaziah lay down in death with his ancestors.

3 Uzziah was 16 years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for 52 years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jecoliah from Jerusalem.

4 He did what the LORD considered right, as his father Amaziah had done.

5 He dedicated his life to serving God in the days of Zechariah, who taught him to fear God. As long as he dedicated his life to serving the LORD, the LORD gave him success.

6 Uzziah went to wage war against the Philistines. He tore down the walls of Gath, Jabneh, and Ashdod. He built cities near Ashdod and elsewhere among the Philistines.

7 God helped him when he attacked the Philistines, the Arabs who lived in Gur Baal, and the Meunites.

8 The Ammonites paid taxes to Uzziah, and his fame spread to the border of Egypt because he became very powerful.

9 Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at Corner Wall, Valley Gate, and the Angle, and he reinforced them.

10 He built towers in the desert. He dug many cisterns because he had a lot of herds in the foothills and the plains. He had farmers and vineyard workers in the mountains and the fertile fields because he loved the soil.

11 Uzziah had an army of professional soldiers. They were ready to go to war in their companies based on the number organized by the scribe Jeiel and the officer Maaseiah. They were commanded by Hananiah, one of the king's officials.

12 The total number of family heads among these warriors was 2,600.

13 Under them was an army of 307,500 soldiers. They were a powerful force that could support the king against the enemy.

14 For the entire army Uzziah prepared shields, spears, helmets, armor, bows, and stones for slings.

15 In Jerusalem he made machines designed by inventive people. The machines were placed on the towers and corners to shoot arrows and hurl large stones. Uzziah's fame spread far and wide because he had strong support until he became powerful.

16 But when he became powerful, his pride destroyed him. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God. He went into the LORD's temple to burn incense on the incense altar.

17 The priest Azariah went in after him with 80 of the LORD's courageous priests.

18 They opposed King Uzziah. They said to him, "Uzziah, you have no right to burn incense as an offering to the LORD. That right belongs to the priests, Aaron's descendants, who have been given the holy task of burning incense. Get out of the holy place because you have been unfaithful. The LORD God will not honor you for this."

19 Uzziah, who held an incense burner in his hand, became angry. While he was angry with the priests, a skin disease broke out on his forehead. This happened in front of the priests in the LORD's temple as Uzziah was at the incense altar.

20 When the chief priest Azariah and all the priests turned toward him, a skin disease was on his forehead. They rushed him away. Uzziah was in a hurry to get out because the LORD had inflicted him [with the disease].

21 King Uzziah had a skin disease until the day he died. Since he had a skin disease, he lived in a separate house and was barred from the LORD's temple. His son Jotham was in charge of the royal palace and governed the country.

22 Everything else about Uzziah, from beginning to end, is recorded by the prophet Isaiah, son of Amoz.

23 Uzziah lay down in death with his ancestors and was buried with them in a field containing tombs that belonged to the kings. People said, "He had a skin disease." His son Jotham succeeded him as king.

1 Jotham was 25 years old when he began to rule. He ruled for 16 years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jerushah, daughter of Zadok.

2 He did what the LORD considered right, as his father Uzziah had done. But unlike his father, he didn't [illegally] enter the LORD's temple. Nevertheless, the people continued their corrupt ways.

3 Jotham built the Upper Gate of the LORD's temple and did extensive building of the wall at the Ophel.

4 He built cities in the hills of Judah, and he built forts and towers in the wooded areas.

5 He fought with the king of the Ammonites and conquered them. That year the Ammonites gave him 7,500 pounds of silver, 60,000 bushels of wheat, and 60,000 bushels of barley. The Ammonites gave him the same amount for two more years.

6 Jotham grew powerful because he was determined to live as the LORD his God wanted.

7 Everything else about Jotham--all his wars and his life--is written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

8 He was 25 years old when he began to rule as king. He ruled for 16 years in Jerusalem.

9 Jotham lay down in death with his ancestors, and they buried him in the City of David. His son Ahaz succeeded him as king.