Old/New Testament
Jehu Wipes Out Ahab’s Family
10 Ahab had seventy sons living in Samaria. So Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria to the leading officials of Jezreel and to the guardians of Ahab’s dynasty. This is what the letters said,[a] 2 “You have with you the sons of your master, chariots and horses, a fortified city, and weapons. So when this letter arrives,[b] 3 pick the best and most capable[c] of your master’s sons, place him on his father’s throne, and defend[d] your master’s dynasty.”
4 They were absolutely terrified[e] and said, “Look, two kings could not stop him![f] How can we?”[g] 5 So the palace supervisor,[h] the city commissioner,[i] the leaders,[j] and the guardians sent this message to Jehu, “We are your subjects![k] Whatever you say, we will do. We will not make anyone king. Do what you consider proper.”[l]
6 He wrote them a second letter, saying, “If you are really on my side and are willing to obey me,[m] then take the heads of your master’s sons and come to me in Jezreel at this time tomorrow.”[n] Now the king had seventy sons, and the prominent men[o] of the city were raising them. 7 When they received the letter, they seized the king’s sons and executed all seventy of them.[p] They put their heads in baskets and sent them to him in Jezreel. 8 The messenger came and told Jehu,[q] “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons.” Jehu[r] said, “Stack them in two piles at the entrance of the city gate until morning.” 9 In the morning he went out and stood there. Then he said to all the people, “You are innocent. I conspired against my master and killed him. But who struck down all of these men? 10 Therefore take note that not one of the Lord’s words which he pronounced against Ahab’s dynasty[s] will fail to materialize.[t] The Lord has done what he announced through his servant Elijah.”[u] 11 Then Jehu killed all who were left of Ahab’s family in Jezreel, and all his nobles, close friends, and priests. He left no survivors.
12 Jehu then left there and set out for Samaria.[v] While he was traveling through Beth Eked of the Shepherds, 13 Jehu encountered[w] the relatives[x] of King Ahaziah of Judah. He asked, “Who are you?” They replied, “We are Ahaziah’s relatives. We have come down to see how[y] the king’s sons and the queen mother’s sons are doing.” 14 He said, “Capture them alive!” So they captured them alive and then executed all forty-two of them by the cistern at Beth Eked. He left no survivors.
15 When he left there, he met[z] Jehonadab son of Rekab who had been looking for him.[aa] Jehu greeted him and asked,[ab] “Are you as committed to me as I am to you?”[ac] Jehonadab answered, “I am!” Jehu replied, “If so, give me your hand.”[ad] So he offered his hand and Jehu[ae] pulled him up into the chariot. 16 Jehu[af] said, “Come with me and see how zealous I am for the Lord’s cause.”[ag] So he[ah] took him along in his chariot. 17 He went to Samaria and killed each of Ahab’s remaining family members who were in Samaria until he destroyed them,[ai] in keeping with the Lord’s message which he had announced to Elijah.
Jehu Executes the Prophets and Priests of Baal
18 Jehu assembled all the people and said to them, “Ahab worshiped[aj] Baal a little; Jehu will worship[ak] him with great devotion.[al] 19 So now, bring to me all the prophets of Baal, as well as all his servants and priests.[am] None of them must be absent, for I am offering a great sacrifice to Baal. Any of them who fails to appear will lose his life.” But Jehu was tricking them[an] so he could destroy the servants of Baal. 20 Then Jehu ordered, “Make arrangements for[ao] a celebration for Baal.” So they announced it. 21 Jehu sent invitations throughout Israel, and all the servants of Baal came; not one was absent. They arrived at the temple of Baal and filled it up from end to end.[ap] 22 Jehu ordered the one who was in charge of the wardrobe,[aq] “Bring out robes for all the servants of Baal.” So he brought out robes for them. 23 Then Jehu and Jehonadab son of Rekab went to the temple of Baal. Jehu[ar] said to the servants of Baal, “Make sure there are no servants of the Lord here with you; there must be only servants of Baal.”[as] 24 They went inside to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jehu had stationed eighty men outside. He had told them, “If any of the men inside gets away, you will pay with your lives!”[at]
25 When he finished offering the burnt sacrifice, Jehu ordered the royal guard[au] and officers, “Come in and strike them down! Don’t let any escape!” So the royal guard and officers struck them down with the sword and left their bodies lying there.[av] Then they entered the inner sanctuary of the temple of Baal.[aw] 26 They hauled out the sacred pillar of the temple of Baal and burned it. 27 They demolished[ax] the sacred pillar of Baal and[ay] the temple of Baal; it is used as[az] a latrine[ba] to this very day. 28 So Jehu eradicated Baal worship[bb] from Israel.
A Summary of Jehu’s Reign
29 However, Jehu did not repudiate the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had encouraged Israel to commit; the golden calves remained in Bethel and Dan.[bc] 30 The Lord said to Jehu, “You have done well. You have accomplished my will and carried out my wishes with regard to Ahab’s dynasty. Therefore four generations of your descendants will rule over Israel.”[bd] 31 But Jehu did not carefully and wholeheartedly obey the law of the Lord God of Israel.[be] He did not repudiate the sins which Jeroboam had encouraged Israel to commit.[bf]
32 In those days the Lord began to reduce the size of Israel’s territory.[bg] Hazael attacked their eastern border.[bh] 33 He conquered all the land of Gilead, including the territory of Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh, extending all the way from the Aroer in the Arnon Valley through Gilead to Bashan.[bi]
34 The rest of the events of Jehu’s reign, including all his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[bj] 35 Jehu passed away[bk] and was buried in Samaria. His son Jehoahaz replaced him as king. 36 Jehu reigned over Israel for twenty-eight years in Samaria.
Athaliah is Eliminated
11 When Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah, saw that her son was dead, she was determined to destroy the entire royal line.[bl] 2 So Jehosheba, the daughter of King Jehoram[bm] and sister of Ahaziah, took Ahaziah’s son Joash and stole him away from the rest of the royal descendants who were to be executed. She hid him and his nurse in the room where the bed covers were stored.[bn] So he was hidden from Athaliah and escaped execution.[bo] 3 He hid out with his nurse in the Lord’s temple[bp] for six years, while Athaliah was ruling over the land.
4 In the seventh year Jehoiada summoned[bq] the officers of the units of hundreds of the Carians[br] and the royal bodyguard.[bs] He met with them[bt] in the Lord’s temple. He made an agreement[bu] with them and made them swear an oath of allegiance in the Lord’s temple. Then he showed them the king’s son. 5 He ordered them, “This is what you must do. One third of the unit that is on duty during the Sabbath will guard the royal palace. 6 Another third of you will be stationed at the Foundation[bv] Gate. Still another third of you will be stationed at the gate behind the royal guard.[bw] You will take turns guarding the palace.[bx] 7 The two units who are off duty on the Sabbath will guard the Lord’s temple and protect the king.[by] 8 You must surround the king. Each of you must hold his weapon in his hand. Whoever approaches your ranks must be killed. You must accompany the king wherever he goes.”[bz]
9 The officers of the units of hundreds did just as[ca] Jehoiada the priest ordered. Each of them took his men, those who were on duty during the Sabbath as well as those who were off duty on the Sabbath, and reported[cb] to Jehoiada the priest. 10 The priest gave to the officers of the units of hundreds King David’s spears and the shields that were kept in the Lord’s temple. 11 The royal bodyguard[cc] took their stations, each holding his weapon in his hand. They lined up from the south side of the temple to the north side and stood near the altar and the temple, surrounding the king.[cd] 12 Jehoiada[ce] led out the king’s son and placed on him the crown and the royal insignia.[cf] They proclaimed him king and poured olive oil on his head.[cg] They clapped their hands and cried out, “Long live the king!”
13 When Athaliah heard the royal guard[ch] shout, she joined the crowd[ci] at the Lord’s temple. 14 Then she saw[cj] the king standing by the pillar, according to custom. The officers stood beside the king with their trumpets, and all the people of the land were celebrating and blowing trumpets. Athaliah tore her clothes and screamed, “Treason, treason!”[ck] 15 Jehoiada the priest ordered the officers of the units of hundreds, who were in charge of the army,[cl] “Bring her outside the temple to the guards.[cm] Put to death by the sword anyone who follows her.” The priest gave this order because he had decided she should not be executed in the Lord’s temple.[cn] 16 They seized her and took her into the precincts of the royal palace through the horses’ entrance.[co] There she was executed.
17 Jehoiada then drew up a covenant between the Lord and the king and people, stipulating that they should be loyal to the Lord.[cp] 18 All the people of the land went and demolished[cq] the temple of Baal. They smashed its altars and idols[cr] to bits.[cs] They killed Mattan the priest of Baal in front of the altar. Jehoiada the priest[ct] then placed guards at the Lord’s temple. 19 He took the officers of the units of hundreds, the Carians, the royal bodyguard, and all the people of the land, and together they led the king down from the Lord’s temple. They entered the royal palace through the Gate of the Royal Bodyguard,[cu] and the king[cv] sat down on the royal throne. 20 All the people of the land celebrated, for the city had rest now that they had killed Athaliah with the sword in the royal palace.
Joash’s Reign over Judah
21 (12:1)[cw] Jehoash[cx] was seven years old when he began to reign. 12 1 (12:2) In Jehu’s seventh year Jehoash became king; he reigned for forty years in Jerusalem. His mother was Zibiah, who was from Beer Sheba. 2 Jehoash did what the Lord approved[cy] all his days when[cz] Jehoiada the priest taught him. 3 But the high places were not eliminated; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense on the high places.
4 Jehoash said to the priests, “I place at your disposal[da] all the consecrated silver that has been brought to the Lord’s temple, including the silver collected from the census tax,[db] the silver received from those who have made vows,[dc] and all the silver that people have voluntarily contributed to the Lord’s temple.[dd] 5 The priests should receive the silver they need from the treasurers and repair any damage to the temple they discover.”[de]
6 By the twenty-third year of King Jehoash’s reign the priests had still not repaired the damage to the temple. 7 So King Jehoash summoned Jehoiada the priest along with the other priests, and said to them, “Why have you not repaired the damage to the temple? Now, take no more silver from your treasurers unless you intend to use it to repair the damage.”[df] 8 The priests agreed[dg] not to collect silver from the people and relieved themselves of personal responsibility for the temple repairs.[dh]
9 Jehoiada the priest took a chest and drilled a hole in its lid. He placed it on the right side of the altar near the entrance of[di] the Lord’s temple. The priests who guarded the entrance would put into it all the silver brought to the Lord’s temple. 10 When they saw the chest was full of silver, the royal secretary[dj] and the high priest counted the silver that had been brought to the Lord’s temple and bagged it up.[dk] 11 They would then hand over[dl] the silver that had been weighed to the construction foremen[dm] assigned to the Lord’s temple. They hired carpenters and builders to work on the Lord’s temple, 12 as well as masons and stonecutters. They bought wood and chiseled stone to repair the damage to the Lord’s temple and also paid for all the other expenses.[dn] 13 The silver brought to the Lord’s temple was not used for silver bowls, trimming shears, basins, trumpets, or any kind of gold or silver implements. 14 It was handed over[do] to the foremen who used it to repair the Lord’s temple. 15 They did not audit the treasurers who disbursed[dp] the funds to the foremen, for they were honest.[dq] 16 (The silver collected in conjunction with reparation offerings and sin offerings was not brought to the Lord’s temple; it belonged to the priests.)
17 At that time King Hazael of Syria attacked[dr] Gath and captured it. Hazael then decided to attack Jerusalem.[ds] 18 King Jehoash of Judah collected all the sacred items that his ancestors Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah, kings of Judah, had consecrated, as well as his own sacred items and all the gold that could be found in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and the royal palace. He sent it all[dt] to King Hazael of Syria, who then withdrew[du] from Jerusalem.
19 The rest of the events of Joash’s reign, including all his accomplishments, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Judah.[dv] 20 His servants conspired against him[dw] and murdered Joash at Beth Millo, on the road that goes down to Silla.[dx] 21 His servants Jozabad son of Shimeath and Jehozabad son of Shomer murdered him.[dy] He was buried[dz] with his ancestors in the City of David. His son Amaziah replaced him as king.
29 On the next day John[a] saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God[b] who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one about whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who is greater than I am,[c] because he existed before me.’ 31 I did not recognize[d] him, but I came baptizing with water so that he could be revealed to Israel.”[e]
32 Then[f] John testified,[g] “I saw the Spirit descending like a dove[h] from heaven,[i] and it remained on him.[j] 33 And I did not recognize him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining—this is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have both seen and testified that this man is the Chosen One of God.”[k]
35 Again the next day John[l] was standing there[m] with two of his disciples. 36 Gazing at Jesus as he walked by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”[n] 37 When John’s[o] two disciples heard him say this,[p] they followed Jesus.[q] 38 Jesus turned around and saw them following and said to them, “What do you want?”[r] So they said to him, “Rabbi” (which is translated Teacher),[s] “where are you staying?” 39 Jesus[t] answered,[u] “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day. Now it was about four o’clock in the afternoon.[v]
Andrew’s Declaration
40 Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two disciples who heard what John said[w] and followed Jesus.[x] 41 He first[y] found his own brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah!”[z] (which is translated Christ).[aa] 42 Andrew brought Simon[ab] to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon, the son of John.[ac] You will be called Cephas” (which is translated Peter).[ad]
The Calling of More Disciples
43 On the next day Jesus[ae] wanted to set out for Galilee.[af] He[ag] found Philip and said[ah] to him, “Follow me.” 44 (Now Philip was from Bethsaida,[ai] the town of[aj] Andrew and Peter.) 45 Philip found Nathanael[ak] and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the law, and the prophets also[al] wrote about—Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46 Nathanael[am] replied,[an] “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”[ao] Philip replied,[ap] “Come and see.”
47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and exclaimed,[aq] “Look, a true Israelite in whom there is no deceit!”[ar] 48 Nathanael asked him, “How do you know me?” Jesus replied,[as] “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree,[at] I saw you.” 49 Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God; you are the king[au] of Israel!”[av] 50 Jesus said to him,[aw] “Because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You will see greater things than these.”[ax] 51 He continued,[ay] “I tell all of you the solemn truth[az]—you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”[ba]
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