15
King Uzziah of Judah
1 After Jeroboam #2 had been ruling Israel for almost twenty-seven years, Uzziah, the son of King Amaziah of Judah, began to rule.
2 He was 16 years old when he started to rule, and he ruled in Jerusalem for 52 years. His mother was Jecoliah, from Jerusalem.
3 He did things that Yahweh was pleased with, like his father Amaziah had done.
4 But, the places at the pagan shrines where they worshiped Yahweh were not destroyed, and the people continued to burn incense to honor Yahweh at those places instead of in Jerusalem, the place that Yahweh had appointed.
5 Yahweh caused Uzziah to become a leper, and he was a leper for the rest of his life. He was not allowed to live in the palace. He lived alone in a house, and his son Jotham ruled the country.
6 If you want to know about everything else that Uzziah did, it is written [RHQ] in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Judah’.
7 Uzziah died [EUP], and they buried him in the part of Jerusalem called ‘The City of David’, where his ancestors had been buried. Then his son Jotham officially became the king.
King Zechariah of Israel
8 After Uzziah had been ruling Judah for almost thirty-eight years, Zechariah, the son of Jeroboam #2, became the king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria city for only six months.
9 He did many things that Yahweh considered to be evil, like his ancestors had done. He committed the same kind of sins that Jeroboam #1 had committed, sins which led the Israeli people to sin.
10 Then Shallum, the son of Jabesh, made plans to assassinate Zechariah. He killed him at Ibleam town, and then he became the king.
11 Everything else that Zechariah did is written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.
12 When Zechariah died, that ended the dynasty of King Jehu. That fulfilled what Yahweh said to King Jehu would happen: “Your son and grandson and great-grandson and great-great-grandson will all be kings of Israel.”
King Shallum of Israel
13 Shallum, the son of Jabesh, became the king of Israel after King Uzziah had been ruling Judah for almost thirty-nine years. But Shallum ruled in Samaria for only one month.
14 Then Menahem, the son of Gadi, went up from Tirzah city to Samaria and assassinated Shallum. Then Menahem became the king of Israel.
15 Everything else that Shallum did, including his killing King Zechariah, is written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.
16 While Menahem was ruling in Samaria, he completely destroyed Tappuah village south of Samaria and killed all the people who lived there and in the surrounding territory. He did that because the people in that city refused to surrender to him. With his sword he even ripped open the bellies of pregnant women.
King Menahem of Israel
17 When King Azariah had been ruling Judah for almost thirty-nine years, Menahem, the son of Gadi, became the king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria for ten years.
18 He did many things that Yahweh considered to be evil. He committed the same kinds of sins that King Jeroboam #1 had committed, sins that led the people of Israel to sin. He continued to commit those sins for the rest of his life.
19 Then King Tiglath-Pileser of Assyria came with his army to attack Israel. So Menahem gave him ◄thirty-eight tons/35,000 kg.► of silver in order that Tiglath-Pileser would help Menahem to continue to be king and rule his country more strongly.
20 Menahem obtained that money from the rich men in Israel. He compelled each of them to contribute 50 pieces of silver. So Tiglath-Pileser took that money and went back home.
21 If you want to know more about everything that Menahem did, it is written [RHQ] in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.
22 Menahem died [EUP] and was buried, and his son Pekahiah became the king of Israel.
King Pekahiah of Israel
23 When King Uzziah had been ruling Judah for almost 50 years, Menahem’s son Pekahiah became the king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria for only two years.
24 He did many things that Yahweh considered to be evil. He committed the same kind of sins that King Jeroboam #1 had committed, sins which led the people of Israel to sin.
25 Then one of Pekahiah’s army commanders whose name was Pekah, the son of Remaliah, planned with 50 men from the Gilead region to kill Pekahiah. They assassinated him in a fortified place in the king’s palace in Samaria. Then Pekah became the king.
26 Everything else that Pekahiah did is written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.
King Pekah of Israel
27 When King Uzziah had been ruling Judah for almost 52 years, Pekah, the son of Remaliah, became the king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria for 20 years.
28 He also did many things that Yahweh considered to be evil. He committed the same kind of sins that King Jeroboam #1 had committed, sins that led the people of Israel to sin.
29 While Pekah was the king, Tiglath-Pileser, the king of Assyria, came with his army and captured the cities of Ijon, Abel-Beth-Maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, and the regions of Gilead, Galilee, and Naphtali. His army forced the Israeli people to leave their country and go to live in Assyria.
30 Then Hoshea, the son of Elah, plotted to kill Pekah. He assassinated him when Uzziah’s son Jotham had been ruling Judah for almost 20 years. Then Hoshea became the king of Israel.
31 Everything else that Pekah did is written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.
King Jotham of Judah
32 When Pekah had been ruling Israel for almost two years, Uzziah’s son Jotham began to rule Judah.
33 He was 25 years old when he started to rule, and he ruled from Jerusalem for 16 years. His mother was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok.
34 He did many things that pleased Yahweh, like his father Uzziah had done.
35 But he did not destroy the places on the tops of hills where the people worshiped Yahweh, and the people continued to burn incense there to honor Yahweh. Jotham’s workers built the Upper Gate of the temple.
36 If you want to know more about everything else that Jotham did, it is written [RHQ] in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Judah’.
37 It was during the time that Jotham was the king that Yahweh sent King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah of Israel with their armies to attack Judah.
38 Jotham died [EUP] and was buried where his ancestors had been buried in the part of Jerusalem called ‘The City of David’. Then his son Ahaz became the king of Judah.