Bible in 90 Days

¹¹ Thus Solomon finished the house of the LORD, and the king’s house; and all that came into Solomon’s heart to make in the house of the LORD and in his own house was prospered.

¹² ¶ And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer and have chosen this place for myself for a house of sacrifice.

¹³ If I shut up the heavens that there be no rain or if I command the locusts to devour the land or if I send pestilence among my people;

¹⁴ if my people, upon whom my name is invoked, shall humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from the heavens and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

¹⁵ Now my eyes shall be open and my ears attentive unto the prayer that is made in this place;

¹⁶ so that now I have chosen and sanctified this house, that my name may be in her for ever; and my eyes and my heart shall be there perpetually.

¹⁷ And as for thee, if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, and do according to all that I have commanded thee and keep my statutes and my rights,

¹⁸ I will confirm the throne of thy kingdom, according as I have covenanted with David, thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man to be ruler in Israel.

¹⁹ But if ye turn away and forsake my statutes and my commandments, which I have set before you, and shall go and serve other gods and worship them,

²⁰ I will pluck them up by the roots out of my land which I have given them; and this house, which I have sanctified for my name, I will cast out of my presence, and will make it to be a proverb and a byword among all peoples.

²¹ And this house, which is high, shall be an astonishment to every one that passes by it, so that they shall say, Why has the LORD done thus unto this land and unto this house?

²² And it shall be answered, Because they forsook the LORD God of their fathers, who brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods and worshipped them and served them; therefore, he has brought all this evil upon them.

8 ¶ And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, in which Solomon had built the house of the LORD and his own house,

² that Solomon rebuilt the cities which Hiram had given him and caused the sons of Israel to dwell there.

³ Then Solomon went to Hamathzobah and prevailed against it.

⁴ And he built Tadmor in the wilderness and all the store cities, which he built in the wilderness.

⁵ Likewise, he rebuilt Bethhoron the upper and Bethhoron the lower, fenced cities with walls, gates, and bars;

⁶ and Baalath and all the store cities that Solomon had and all the chariot cities and the cities of the horsemen and all that Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem and in Lebanon and throughout all the land of his dominion.

⁷ As for all the people that were left of the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, which were not of Israel,

⁸ but of their sons, who were left after them in the land, whom the sons of Israel, did not consume, Solomon made them pay tribute until this day.

⁹ But of the sons of Israel Solomon did not make slaves for his work, for they were men of war, and his princes and his captains, and princes of his chariots and horsemen.

¹⁰ And King Solomon had two hundred and fifty princes of the governors, who presided over the people.

¹¹ And Solomon brought up the daughter of Pharaoh out of the city of David unto the house that he had built for her, for he said, My wife shall not dwell in the house of David, king of Israel, because the places are holy, unto which the ark of the LORD has come.

¹² ¶ Then Solomon offered burnt offerings unto the LORD on the altar of the LORD, which he had built before the porch,

¹³ that each thing might be offered in its day, according to the commandment of Moses, on the sabbaths and on the new moons and on the feasts three times in the year, that is in the feast of unleavened bread and in the feast of weeks and in the feast of the tabernacles.

¹⁴ And he appointed, according to the order of David his father, the courses of the priests to their service and the Levites to their charges, to praise and minister before the priests, each thing in its day; the porters also by their courses at each gate, for so had David, the man of God, commanded.

¹⁵ And they departed not from the commandment of the king unto the priests and Levites concerning any matter or concerning the treasures.

¹⁶ Now all the work of Solomon was prepared from the day of the foundation of the house of the LORD and until it was finished. So the house of the LORD was perfected.

¹⁷ Then Solomon went to Eziongeber and to Eloth, at the sea side in the land of Edom.

¹⁸ For Hiram had sent him ships by the hands of his slaves and slaves that had knowledge of the sea, and they had gone with the slaves of Solomon to Ophir and had taken from there four hundred and fifty talents of gold and brought them to King Solomon.

9 ¶ And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to prove Solomon with enigmas at Jerusalem, with a very great host and camels that bore spices and gold in abundance and precious stones. And when she was come to Solomon, she spoke with him of all that was in her heart.

² But Solomon told her all her questions, and nothing remained that Solomon did not declare unto her.

³ And when the queen of Sheba had seen the wisdom of Solomon and the house that he had built

⁴ and the food of his table and the seat of his slaves and the attendance of his ministers and their apparel, his butlers also and their apparel, and his sacrifices which he sacrificed in the house of the LORD, there was no more spirit in her.

⁵ And she said to the king, It was a true report which I heard in my own land of thy word and of thy wisdom,

⁶ but I did not believe their words until I came, and my eyes had seen it, and, behold, not even the half of the greatness of thy wisdom was told me, for thou dost exceed the fame that I heard.

⁷ Blessed are thy men and blessed are these thy slaves, who stand continually before thee and hear thy wisdom.

⁸ The LORD thy God be blessed, who delighted in thee to set thee on his throne, to be king for the LORD thy God because thy God loved Israel, to establish them for ever, therefore, he made thee king over them, to do judgment and righteousness.

⁹ And she gave the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold and of spices great abundance and precious stones; never had there been any such spice as the queen of Sheba gave King Solomon.

¹⁰ Also the slaves of Hiram and the slaves of Solomon, who had brought gold from Ophir, brought brazil wood and precious stones.

¹¹ And the king made of the brazil wood stairs to the house of the LORD and to the king’s palace and harps and psalteries for the singers, and such wood had never been seen before in the land of Judah.

¹² And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatever she asked, more than what she had brought unto the king. Then she turned and went away to her own land with her slaves.

¹³ ¶ Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred and sixty-six talents of gold,

¹⁴ besides that which the traders and merchants brought. And all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land brought gold and silver to Solomon.

¹⁵ And King Solomon made two hundred bucklers of beaten gold; six hundred shekels of beaten gold went to each buckler.

¹⁶ And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold; three hundred shekels of gold went to each shield. And the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.

¹⁷ Moreover, the king made a great throne of ivory and overlaid it with pure gold.

¹⁸ And there were six steps to the throne, with a footstool of gold, which were fastened to the throne, and stays on each side of the seat, and two lions standing by the stays.

¹⁹ There were also twelve lions standing on one side and on the other upon the six steps. There was not the like made in any kingdom.

²⁰ And all the drinking vessels of King Solomon were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold. In the days of Solomon silver was not esteemed.

²¹ For the king’s ships went to Tarshish with the slaves of Hiram, and every three years the ships came from Tarshish bringing gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.

²² And King Solomon passed all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom.

²³ And all the kings of the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, that God had put in his heart.

²⁴ And of these, each his present, vessels of silver and vessels of gold and raiment, arms, spices, horses, and mules, every year.

²⁵ And Solomon also had four thousand stalls for horses and chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.

²⁶ And he reigned over all the kings from the river even unto the land of the Philistines and to the border of Egypt.

²⁷ And the king made silver in Jerusalem as stones, and he made cedar trees as the sycamore trees that are in the low plains in abundance.

²⁸ And they brought unto Solomon horses out of Egypt and out of all lands.

²⁹ Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, first and last, are they not written in the books of Nathan, the prophet, and in the prophecy of Ahijah, the Shilonite, and in the visions of Iddo, the seer against Jeroboam, the son of Nebat?

³⁰ And Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years.

³¹ And Solomon slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the city of David, his father; and Rehoboam, his son, reigned in his stead.

10 ¶ And Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come together in Shechem to make him king.

² And when Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, heard it, who was in Egypt, where he had fled from the presence of Solomon, the king, Jeroboam returned out of Egypt.

³ And they sent and called him. So Jeroboam and all Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying,

⁴ Thy father made our yoke grievous; now, therefore, ease thou somewhat the grievous servitude of thy father and his heavy yoke that he put upon us, and we will serve thee.

⁵ And he said unto them, Come again unto me after three days. And the people departed.

⁶ Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the old men that had stood before Solomon, his father, while he yet lived, saying, What do you counsel to reply to this people?

⁷ And they spoke unto him, saying, If thou wilt seek the good of this people and please them and speak good words to them, they will be thy slaves for ever.

⁸ But he forsook the counsel which the old men gave him and took counsel with the young men that were brought up with him, that stood before him.

⁹ And he said unto them, What do you counsel us to reply to this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Ease somewhat the yoke that thy father did put upon us?

¹⁰ Then the young men that were brought up with him spoke unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou answer the people that spoke unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make it somewhat lighter for us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins.

¹¹ For whereas my father put a heavy yoke upon you, I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.

¹² ¶ So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, as the king had commanded, saying, Come again to me on the third day.

¹³ And the king answered them roughly, for King Rehoboam forsook the counsel of the old men

¹⁴ and answered them after the advice of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to it; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.

¹⁵ So the king did not hearken unto the people, for the cause was of God, that the LORD might perform his word, which he spoke by the hand of Ahijah, the Shilonite, unto Jeroboam, the son of Nebat.

¹⁶ And when all Israel saw that the king would not hearken unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion have we in David or inheritance in the son of Jesse? Every man to your tents, O Israel! Now, David, see to thine own house! So all Israel went to their tents.

¹⁷ But Rehoboam reigned over the sons of Israel that dwelt in the cities of Judah.

¹⁸ Then King Rehoboam sent Hadoram, who was over the tribute and the sons of Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. So King Rehoboam made speed to get into a chariot and fled to Jerusalem.

¹⁹ Thus Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day.

11 ¶ And when Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he gathered of the house of Judah and Benjamin one hundred and eighty thousand chosen men, who were warriors, to fight against Israel, that he might bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam.

² But the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah, the man of God, saying,

³ Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all Israel in Judah and Benjamin, saying,

⁴ Thus hath the LORD said, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren; return each man to his house; for this thing is done of me. And they heard the word of the LORD and returned and did not go against Jeroboam.

⁵ And Rehoboam dwelt in Jerusalem and built cities for defence in Judah.

⁶ He built Bethlehem and Etam and Tekoa

⁷ and Bethzur and Shoco and Adullam

⁸ and Gath and Mareshah and Ziph

⁹ and Adoraim and Lachish and Azekah

¹⁰ and Zorah and Aijalon and Hebron which are in Judah and in Benjamin, fenced cities.

¹¹ And he fortified the strong holds, and put captains in them and provisions and wine and oil;

¹² and in all the cities he put shields and spears. He fortified them greatly, having Judah and Benjamin on his side.

¹³ ¶ And the priests and the Levites that were in all Israel gathered unto him out of all their borders.

¹⁴ For the Levites left their suburbs and their possessions and came to Judah and Jerusalem, for Jeroboam and his sons had cast them off from executing the priest’s office unto the LORD.

¹⁵ And he ordained himself priests for the high places and for the demons and for the calves which he had made.

¹⁶ And from after them out of all the tribes of Israel such as set their hearts to seek the LORD God of Israel came to Jerusalem to sacrifice unto the LORD God of their fathers.

¹⁷ So they strengthened the kingdom of Judah and made Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, strong for three years because they walked three years in the way of David and of Solomon.

¹⁸ And Rehoboam took Mahalath, the daughter of Jerimoth, the son of David, to wife, and Abihail, the daughter of Eliab, the son of Jesse;

¹⁹ who bore him sons: Jeush and Shamariah and Zaham.

²⁰ And after her he took Maachah, the daughter of Absalom, who bore him Abijah and Attai and Ziza and Shelomith.

²¹ But Rehoboam loved Maachah, the daughter of Absalom, above all his wives and his concubines (for he took eighteen wives and sixty concubines and begat twenty-eight sons and sixty daughters.)

²² And Rehoboam made Abijah, the son of Maachah, as head and prince among his brethren, for he thought to make him king.

²³ And he caused him to be instructed and dispersed of all his sons throughout all the lands of Judah and Benjamin, unto every fenced city; and he gave them provisions in abundance. And he desired many wives.

12 ¶ And it came to pass, when Rehoboam had confirmed the kingdom and had strengthened himself, he forsook the law of the LORD, and all Israel with him.

² And it came to pass that in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak, king of Egypt, came up against Jerusalem, because they had rebelled against the LORD,

³ with twelve hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen; and the people were without number that came with him out of Egypt: the Lubims, the Sukkiims, and the Ethiopians.

⁴ And he took the fenced cities which pertained to Judah and came to Jerusalem.

⁵ Then Shemaiah, the prophet, went to Rehoboam and to the princes of Judah, that were gathered together to Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said unto them, Thus hath the LORD said, Ye have forsaken me, and therefore, I have also left you in the hand of Shishak.

⁶ And the princes of Israel and the king humbled themselves; and they said, The LORD is righteous.

⁷ And when the LORD saw that they humbled themselves, the word of the LORD came to Shemaiah, saying, They have humbled themselves; therefore, I will not destroy them, but I will deliver them shortly; and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.

⁸ Nevertheless, they shall be his slaves that they may know what it is to serve me and to serve the kingdoms of the nations.

⁹ So Shishak, king of Egypt, came up against Jerusalem and took away the treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of the king’s house; he took it all; he also carried away the shields of gold which Solomon had made.

¹⁰ And in their place King Rehoboam made shields of brass and committed them to the hands of the princes of the guard that kept the entrance of the king’s house.

¹¹ And when the king entered into the house of the LORD, the guard came and brought them, and afterward they returned them again into the guard chamber.

¹² And when he humbled himself, the wrath of the LORD turned from him that he would not destroy him altogether; and also in Judah things went well.

¹³ ¶ So King Rehoboam was strengthened and reigned in Jerusalem; and Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mother’s name was Naamah, an Ammonitess.

¹⁴ And he did evil because he did not prepare his heart to seek the LORD.

¹⁵ Now the acts of Rehoboam, first and last, are they not written in the book of Shemaiah, the prophet, and of Iddo, the seer concerning genealogies? And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually.

¹⁶ And Rehoboam slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David, and Abijah, his son, reigned in his stead.

13 ¶ Now in the year eighteen of King Jeroboam, Abijah began to reign over Judah.

² He reigned three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Michaiah, the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah. And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam.

³ And Abijah set the battle in order with an army of valiant men of war, four hundred thousand chosen men; and Jeroboam set the battle in array against him with eight hundred thousand chosen men, being mighty men of valour.

⁴ And Abijah stood up upon Mount Zemaraim, which is in the mountains of Ephraim, and said, Hear me, Jeroboam and all Israel;

⁵ do ye not know that the LORD God of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel to David for ever, unto him and to his sons by a covenant of salt?

⁶ Yet Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, the slave of Solomon the son of David, is risen up and has rebelled against his lord.

⁷ And there are gathered unto him vain men, the sons of Belial, and have strengthened themselves against Rehoboam the son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was young and tenderhearted and could not withstand them.

⁸ And now ye think to withstand the kingdom of the LORD in the hand of the sons of David because ye are a great multitude, and ye have with you the golden calves, which Jeroboam made you for gods.

⁹ Have ye not cast out the priests of the LORD, the sons of Aaron and the Levites, and have made you priests after the manner of the peoples of other lands, so that whoever comes to consecrate himself with a young bullock and seven rams, the same may become a priest of those that are not gods.

¹⁰ But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and the priests, which minister unto the LORD, are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites wait upon their business;

¹¹ and they burn unto the LORD every morning and every evening burnt sacrifices and aromatic incense, and they place the showbread upon the clean table, and the lampstand of gold with its lamps, to burn every evening; for we keep the charge of the LORD our God, but ye have forsaken him.

¹² And, behold, God himself is with us for our captain, and his priests with sounding trumpets to cry alarm against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the LORD God of your fathers, for ye shall not prosper.

¹³ ¶ But Jeroboam caused an ambush to come about behind them; so they were before Judah, and the ambush was behind them.

¹⁴ So when Judah looked back, behold, the battle was before and behind; and they cried unto the LORD, and the priests sounded with the trumpets.

¹⁵ Then the men of Judah gave a shout, and as the men of Judah shouted, it came to pass that God smote Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.

¹⁶ And the sons of Israel fled before Judah, and God delivered them into their hand.

¹⁷ And Abijah and his people slew them with a great slaughter; so there fell down slain of Israel five hundred thousand chosen men.

¹⁸ Thus the sons of Israel were humbled at that time, and the sons of Judah prevailed because they relied upon the LORD God of their fathers.

¹⁹ And Abijah pursued after Jeroboam and took cities from him, Bethel with its towns and Jeshanah with its towns and Ephron with its towns.

²⁰ Neither did Jeroboam recover strength again in the days of Abijah; and the LORD struck him, and he died.

²¹ But Abijah waxed mighty and married fourteen wives, and begat twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.

²² And the rest of the acts of Abijah and his ways and his words are written in the story of the prophet Iddo.

14 ¶ So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In his days the land had rest ten years.

² And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God,

³ for he took away the altars of the strange gods and the high places and broke down the images and cut down the groves

⁴ and commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and they fulfilled the law and the commandments.

⁵ Also he took away out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the images, and the kingdom had rest before him.

⁶ And he built fenced cities in Judah, for the land had rest, and he had no war in those years because the LORD had given him rest.

⁷ Therefore, he said unto Judah, Let us build these cities and make about them walls and towers, gates, and bars, now that the land is ours; because we have sought the LORD our God, we have sought him, and he has given us rest on every side. So they built and were prospered.

⁸ And Asa had an army of men that bore shields and spears, out of Judah three hundred thousand and out of Benjamin, that bore shields and drew bows, two hundred and eighty thousand; all these were mighty men of valour.

⁹ ¶ And there came out against them Zerah, the Ethiopian, with a host of a thousand thousand and three hundred chariots and came unto Mareshah.

¹⁰ Then Asa went out against him, and they ordered the battle in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.

¹¹ And Asa cried unto the LORD his God and said, LORD, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many or with those that have no power; help us, O LORD our God, for we rely on thee, and in thy name we go against this multitude. O LORD, thou art our God; do not let man prevail against thee.

¹² So the LORD smote the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled.

¹³ And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar, and the Ethiopians were overthrown until there were none left alive, for they were destroyed before the LORD and before his host, and they carried away very much spoil.

¹⁴ And they smote all the cities round about Gerar, for the fear of the LORD came upon them; and they spoiled all the cities, for there was exceeding much spoil in them.

¹⁵ They smote also the booths of livestock and carried away sheep and camels in abundance and returned to Jerusalem.

15 ¶ And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah, the son of Oded;

² and he went out to meet Asa and said unto him, Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The LORD is with you, while ye are with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.

³ For many days Israel has been without the true God, and without a priest and without a teacher and without law,

⁴ but when they in their trouble turned unto the LORD God of Israel and sought him, he was found of them.

⁵ And in those times there was no peace to him that went out, nor to him that came in, but great destruction upon all the inhabitants of the lands.

⁶ And one Gentile destroyed the other, and one city the other; for God discomforted them with all adversity.

⁷ Be ye strong, therefore, and do not let your hands be weak, for your work shall be rewarded.

⁸ ¶ And when Asa heard the words and prophecy of Oded, the prophet, he was comforted and put away the abominations out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin and out of the cities which he had taken in Mount Ephraim and repaired the altar of the LORD, that was before the porch of the LORD.

⁹ And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and the strangers with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon, for many of Israel had gone over to him, when they saw that the LORD his God was with him.

¹⁰ So they gathered themselves together at Jerusalem in the third month, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa.

¹¹ And they offered unto the LORD the same day, of the spoil which they had brought, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep.

¹² And they entered into a covenant to seek the LORD God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul;

¹³ that whoever would not seek the LORD God of Israel should be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman.

¹⁴ And they swore unto the LORD with a loud voice, and with shouting and with trumpets and with shofar.

¹⁵ And all those of Judah rejoiced at the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart and sought him with their whole desire; and he was found of them; and the LORD gave them rest round about.

¹⁶ And also concerning Maachah, the mother of Asa the king, he removed her from being queen because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa cut down her idol and stamped it and burnt it at the brook Kidron.

¹⁷ But with all this the high places were not taken away out of Israel; nevertheless, the heart of Asa was perfect all his days.

¹⁸ And he brought into the house of God the things that his father had dedicated and that he himself had dedicated, silver and gold and vessels.

¹⁹ And there was no more war until the year thirty-five of the reign of Asa.

16 ¶ In the year thirty-six of the reign of Asa, Baasha, king of Israel, came up against Judah and built Ramah, to the intent that he might let no one go out or come in to Asa, king of Judah.

² Then Asa brought out the silver and the gold out of the treasuries of the house of the LORD and of the king’s house, and sent unto Benhadad, king of Syria, that dwelt at Damascus, saying,

³ There is a covenant between me and thee, as there was between my father and thy father; behold, I have sent thee silver and gold; go, break thy league with Baasha, king of Israel, that he may depart from me.

⁴ And Benhadad hearkened unto King Asa and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel, and they smote Ijon and Dan and Abelmaim and all the store cities of Naphtali.

⁵ And when Baasha heard it, he left off building of Ramah and let his work cease.

⁶ Then Asa, the king, took all Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and the timber thereof, with which Baasha was building, and he built Geba and Mizpah with it.

⁷ ¶ And at that time Hanani, the seer, came to Asa, king of Judah, and said unto him, Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria, and not relied on the LORD thy God, therefore, the host of the king of Syria has escaped out of thy hands.

⁸ Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubims a huge host, with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet, because thou didst rely on the LORD, he delivered them into thy hand.

⁹ For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of those whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly, for from now on thou shalt have wars.

¹⁰ Then Asa was wroth with the seer and put him in the prison house, for he was in a rage with him because of this thing. And Asa killed some of the people at the same time.

¹¹ And, behold, the acts of Asa, first and last, they are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.

¹² And Asa in the year thirty-nine of his reign was diseased from his feet up; yet in his disease he did not seek the LORD, but the physicians.

¹³ And Asa slept with his fathers and died in the year forty-one of his reign.

¹⁴ And they buried him in his own sepulchres, which he had made for himself in the city of David, and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet odours and aromas prepared by the apothecaries’ art; and they made a very great burning for him.

17 ¶ And Jehoshaphat, his son, reigned in his stead and prevailed against Israel.

² And he placed forces in all the fenced cities of Judah and set garrisons in the land of Judah and likewise in the cities of Ephraim, which Asa, his father had taken.

³ And the LORD was with Jehoshaphat because he walked in the first ways of his father David and sought not unto the Baalim

⁴ but sought the LORD God of his father and walked in his commandments, and not after the doings of Israel.

⁵ Therefore, the LORD confirmed the kingdom in his hand; and all Judah brought Jehoshaphat presents, and he had riches and glory in abundance.

⁶ And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the LORD, and he took away the high places and groves out of Judah.

⁷ Also in the third year of his reign he sent his princes, Benhail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethaneel, and Michaiah, to teach in the cities of Judah.

⁸ And with them he sent the Levites, Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tobadonijah, Levites, and with them Elishama and Jehoram, priests.

⁹ And they taught in Judah and had the book of the law of the LORD with them and went about throughout all the cities of Judah and taught the people.

¹⁰ ¶ And the fear of the LORD fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, so that they did not dare to make war against Jehoshaphat.

¹¹ And the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat presents and tribute of silver; and the Arabians brought him flocks, seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred he goats.

¹² And Jehoshaphat waxed great exceedingly; and he built in Judah castles and cities of store.

¹³ And he had many works in the cities of Judah and men of war, mighty men of valour, in Jerusalem.

¹⁴ And these are the numbers of them according to the houses of their fathers: In Judah, princes of thousands; the prince Adnah and with him three hundred thousand mighty men of valour;

¹⁵ and after him, Prince Jehohanan and with him two hundred and eighty thousand;

¹⁶ after him, Amasiah the son of Zichri, who willingly offered himself unto the LORD and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of valour;

¹⁷ of Benjamin, Eliada, a mighty man of valour, and with him two hundred thousand armed with bow and shield;

¹⁸ after him, Jehozabad and with him one hundred and eighty thousand ready and prepared for the war.

¹⁹ These were servants of the king, besides those whom the king had put in the fenced cities throughout all Judah.

18 ¶ Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abundance, and married into the family of Ahab.

² And after a few years he went down to Ahab to Samaria. And Ahab killed sheep and oxen for him in abundance and for the people that he had with him, and persuaded him to go up with him to Ramothgilead.

³ And Ahab, king of Israel, said unto Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, Wilt thou go with me to Ramothgilead? And he answered him, I am as thou art and my people as thy people; and we will be with thee in the war.

⁴ ¶ And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Enquire, I pray thee, at the word of the LORD today.

⁵ Therefore, the king of Israel gathered together of prophets four hundred men and said unto them, Shall we go to Ramothgilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up, for God will deliver it into the king’s hand.

⁶ But Jehoshaphat said, Is there yet here a prophet of the LORD besides, that we might enquire by him?

⁷ And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man here, by whom we may enquire of the LORD, but I hate him, for he never prophesies good unto me, but always evil; the same is Micaiah, the son of Imla. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so.

⁸ So the king of Israel called for a eunuch and said, Bring quickly Micaiah, the son of Imla.

⁹ And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, were each sitting on their thrones, clothed in their robes, and they sat in the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them.

¹⁰ And Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, had made himself horns of iron and said, Thus hath the LORD said, With these thou shalt push Syria until they are consumed.

¹¹ And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramothgilead and be prospered, for the LORD shall deliver it into the hand of the king.

¹² And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, Behold, the words of the prophets declare good to the king with one assent; let thy word therefore, I pray thee, be like one of theirs, and speak thou good.

¹³ And Micaiah said, As the LORD lives, that what my God says, that will I speak.

¹⁴ And when he was come to the king, the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramothgilead to battle or shall I forbear? And he said, Go up, and ye shall be prospered; they shall be delivered into your hands.

¹⁵ And the king said to him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou say nothing but the truth to me in the name of the LORD?

¹⁶ Then he said, I did see all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd; and the LORD said, These have no master; let each one return to his house in peace.

¹⁷ And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would not prophesy good unto me, but evil?

¹⁸ So he said, Therefore, hear the word of the LORD; I saw the LORD sitting upon his throne, and all the host of the heavens standing on his right hand and on his left.

¹⁹ And the LORD said, Who shall entice Ahab, king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one spoke saying after this manner, and another saying after that manner.

²⁰ Then a spirit came out and stood before the LORD and said, I will entice him. And the LORD said unto him, In what manner?

²¹ And he said, I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And the LORD said, Thou shalt entice him, and thou shalt also prevail; go out and do even so.

²² Now, therefore, behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets, and the LORD has decreed evil concerning thee.

²³ Then Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, came near and smote Micaiah upon the cheek and said, Which way did the Spirit of the LORD depart from me to speak unto thee?

²⁴ And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see on that day when thou shalt go from chamber to chamber to hide thyself.

²⁵ Then the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah and carry him back to Amon, the governor of the city, and to Joash, the king’s son

²⁶ and say, Thus hath the king said, Put this fellow in the prison and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction until I return in peace.

²⁷ And Micaiah said, If thou certainly return in peace, then the LORD has not spoken by me. And he said, Hearken, all ye peoples.

²⁸ ¶ So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, went up to Ramothgilead.

²⁹ And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself to enter into the battle, but put thou on thy robes. So the king of Israel disguised himself and entered into the battle.

³⁰ Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of the chariots that were with him, saying, Fight not with small nor great, but only with the king of Israel.

³¹ And when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, It is the king of Israel. Therefore, they compassed about him to fight; but Jehoshaphat cried out, and the LORD helped him; and God separated them from him.

³² And when the captains of the chariots perceived that it was not the king of Israel, they withdrew from pursuing him.

³³ But a certain man drew a bow in all his perfection and smote the king of Israel between the joints of his coat of mail; therefore, he said to his chariot man, Turn thy hand, and carry me out of the camp, for I am wounded.

³⁴ And the battle increased that day; howbeit, the king of Israel stayed himself up in his chariot against the Syrians until the evening, and about the time of the sun going down he died.

19 ¶ And Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, returned to his house in peace to Jerusalem.

² And Jehu, the son of Hanani, the seer, went out to meet him and said to king Jehoshaphat, Should thou help the ungodly and love those that hate the LORD? Therefore, the wrath of the presence of the LORD shall be upon thee.

³ Nevertheless, good things have been found in thee, in that thou hast burned down the groves of the land and hast prepared thy heart to seek God.

⁴ And Jehoshaphat dwelt at Jerusalem, and he went out again through the people from Beersheba to Mount Ephraim and brought them back unto the LORD God of their fathers.

⁵ ¶ And he set judges in the land throughout all the fenced cities of Judah, city by city,

⁶ and said to the judges, Take heed what ye do, for ye do not judge for man, but for the LORD, who is with you in the word of judgment.

⁷ Therefore, now let the fear of the LORD be upon you; take heed and do it, for there is no iniquity with the LORD our God, nor respect of persons, nor taking of bribes.

⁸ Moreover, in Jerusalem Jehoshaphat placed some of the Levites and of the priests and of the heads of the fathers of Israel for the judgment of the LORD and for controversies. And they returned to Jerusalem.

⁹ And he charged them, saying, Ye shall proceed thus in the fear of the LORD, in truth and with a perfect heart.

¹⁰ In whatever case that shall come to you of your brethren that dwell in their cities, between blood and blood, between law and commandment, statutes or rights, ye shall warn them lest they become guilty against the LORD so that wrath will not come upon you and upon your brethren. Doing thus, ye shall not be guilty.

¹¹ Behold, Amariah, the high priest, who shall be over you in all matters of the LORD; and Zebadiah, the son of Ishmael, prince of the house of Judah, for all the king’s matters; and the Levites who shall be teachers before you. Take courage and do, for the LORD shall be with the good.

20 ¶ It came to pass after this also that the sons of Moab and the sons of Ammon and with them others besides the Ammonites came against Jehoshaphat to battle.

² Then some came and told Jehoshaphat, saying, There comes a great multitude against thee from beyond the sea, and from Syria; and, behold, they are in Hazazontamar, which is Engedi.

³ Then Jehoshaphat feared and set himself to seek the LORD and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah.

⁴ And Judah gathered themselves together, to consult the LORD; and out of all the cities of Judah they came to consult the LORD.

⁵ And Jehoshaphat stood in the congregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court,

⁶ and said, O LORD God of our fathers, art not thou God in the heavens and dost thou not rule in all the kingdoms of the Gentiles? Is there not power and might in thy hand so that no one is able to withstand thee?

⁷ Art not thou our God, who didst drive out the inhabitants of this land before thy people Israel and didst give it to the seed of Abraham, thy friend, for ever?

⁸ And they have dwelt in it and have built thee a sanctuary in it for thy name, saying,

⁹ If evil comes upon us or the sword of judgment or pestilence or famine, we shall stand before this house and in thy presence (for thy name is in this house) and cry unto thee out of our tribulations, and thou wilt hear us and save us.

¹⁰ And now, behold, the sons of Ammon and of Moab and those of Mount Seir, whose land thou would not let Israel enter when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them and did not destroy them;

¹¹ behold they reward us by coming to cast us out of thy possession, which thou hast given us to inherit.

¹² O our God, wilt thou not judge them? For we have no might against this great company that comes against us; we do not know what to do; but our eyes are fixed upon thee.

¹³ And all Judah stood before the LORD, with their little ones, their wives, and their children.

¹⁴ ¶ Then upon Jahaziel, the son of Zechariah, the son of Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite of the sons of Asaph, came the Spirit of the LORD in the midst of the congregation;

¹⁵ and he said, Hearken, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou King Jehoshaphat, Thus saith the LORD unto you, Do not be afraid nor dismayed before this great multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s.

¹⁶ Tomorrow ye shall go down against them; behold, they shall come up by the cliff of Ziz; and ye shall find them next to the brook, before the wilderness of Jeruel.

¹⁷ Ye shall not need to fight in this battle; set yourselves, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD with you. O Judah and Jerusalem; fear not, neither be dismayed; tomorrow go out against them, for the LORD shall be with you.

¹⁸ Then Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground, and likewise all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell before the LORD, worshipping the LORD.

¹⁹ And the Levites, of the sons of the Kohath and of the sons of the Korah, stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel with a loud voice on high.

²⁰ ¶ And when they arose early in the morning and while they were going forth into the wilderness of Tekoa, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, O Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem; Believe the LORD your God, and ye shall be secure; believe his prophets, and ye shall be prospered.

²¹ And when he had consulted with the people, he appointed some to sing unto the LORD and to praise in the beauty of holiness, while the army went out and to say, Praise the LORD, for his mercy endures for ever.

²² And when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set the sons of Moab and those of Mount Seir to ambush the sons of Ammon, who were coming against Judah; and they smote one another.

²³ And the sons of Ammon and Moab rose up against the inhabitants of Mount Seir, utterly to slay and destroy them; and when they had made an end of the inhabitants of Seir, each one helped his companion to kill himself.

²⁴ And when Judah came to the watch tower of the wilderness, they looked for the multitude, and, behold, they were fallen to the earth dead, for none had escaped.

²⁵ And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to spoil them, they found among them an abundance of riches and of dead bodies and clothing and precious vessels which they took for themselves, more than they could carry away; and they were three days gathering in the spoil, it was so much.

²⁶ And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Berachah; {Heb. of Blessing} for there they blessed the LORD; therefore, they called the name of that place, The valley of Berachah, unto this day.

²⁷ Then they returned, those of Judah and those of Jerusalem with Jehoshaphat at their head, to go again to Jerusalem with joy, for the LORD had made them to rejoice over their enemies.

²⁸ And they came to Jerusalem with psalteries and harps and trumpets unto the house of the LORD.

²⁹ And the fear of God came upon all the kingdoms of the land when they heard how the LORD had fought against the enemies of Israel.

³⁰ So the kingdom of Jehoshaphat had rest, for his God gave him rest round about.

³¹ ¶ Thus Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah; he was thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi.

³² And he walked in the way of Asa, his father, and did not depart from it, doing that which was right in the sight of the LORD.

³³ With all this the high places were not taken away, for as yet the people had not prepared their hearts unto the God of their fathers.

³⁴ Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of Jehu, the son of Hanani, who is mentioned in the book of the kings of Israel.

³⁵ After these things, Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, joined himself with Ahaziah, king of Israel, who was given over to wickedness;

³⁶ he joined himself with him to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Eziongeber.

³⁷ Then Eliezer, the son of Dodavah of Mareshah, prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, Because thou hast joined thyself with Ahaziah, the LORD shall destroy thy works. And the ships were broken, and they were not able to go to Tarshish.

21 ¶ Now Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And Jehoram, his son, reigned in his stead.

² And he had brethren, sons of Jehoshaphat, Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, and Shephatiah; all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat, king of Israel.

³ And their father had given them great gifts of silver and of gold and of precious things, with fenced cities in Judah, but he gave the kingdom to Jehoram because he was the firstborn.

⁴ Now Jehoram rose up against the kingdom of his father, and he strengthened himself and slew all his brethren with the sword and likewise some of the princes of Israel.

⁵ Jehoram was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.

⁶ And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, like as did the house of Ahab, for he had the daughter of Ahab to wife; and he wrought that which was evil in the eyes of the LORD.

⁷ However, the LORD would not destroy the house of David because of the covenant that he had made with David and as he promised to give a light to him and to his sons for ever.

⁸ In his days Edom rebelled from under the dominion of Judah and made themselves a king.

⁹ Then Jehoram went forth with his princes and all his chariots with him, and he rose up by night and smote Edom who had compassed him in and all the captains of the chariots.

¹⁰ With all this Edom remained in rebellion, out from under the hand of Judah unto this day. Libnah also rebelled at the same time to not be under his hand because he had forsaken the LORD God of his fathers.

¹¹ Moreover he made high places in the mountains of Judah and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication and compelled Judah unto this.

¹² ¶ And a writing came to him from Elijah, the prophet, that said this: Thus hath the LORD, the God of David, thy father, said, Because thou hast not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat thy father nor in the ways of Asa, king of Judah,

¹³ but hast walked in the way of the kings of Israel and hast made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fornicate, like unto the fornication of the house of Ahab, and also hast slain thy brethren of thy father’s house, who were better than thyself,

¹⁴ behold, the LORD shall smite thy people with a great plague, and thy sons and thy wives and all thy goods;

¹⁵ and thou shalt have great sickness, with disease of thy bowels, until thy bowels fall out by reason of the sickness day by day.

¹⁶ Then the LORD stirred up against Jehoram the spirit of the Philistines and of the Arabians, that were near the Ethiopians;

¹⁷ and they came up against Judah and invaded the land and carried away all the substance that was found in the king’s house, and his sons also and his wives so that none of his sons remained except Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.

¹⁸ And after all this the LORD smote him in his bowels with an incurable disease.

¹⁹ And it came to pass, that in process of time, after the end of two years, his bowels fell out by reason of his sickness; so he died of sore diseases. And his people made no burning for him, like they had done for his fathers.

²⁰ He was thirty-two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years and departed without being desired. And they buried him in the city of David, but not in the sepulchres of the kings.

22 ¶ And the inhabitants of Jerusalem made Ahaziah, his youngest son, king in his stead; for the band of men that came with the Arabians to the camp had slain all the elder sons. So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram, king of Judah reigned.

² Ahaziah was forty-two years old {another text: twenty-two} when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Athaliah, the daughter of Omri.

³ He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab, for his mother was his counsellor to do wickedly.

⁴ Therefore, he did evil in the sight of the LORD like the house of Ahab, for they were his counsellors, after the death of his father, to his destruction.

⁵ And He walked after their counsel and went with Jehoram, the son of Ahab, king of Israel, to war against Hazael, king of Syria at Ramothgilead, where the Syrians smote Joram.

⁶ And he returned to be healed in Jezreel because of the wounds which were given him at Ramah, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria. And Azariah, the son of Jehoram, king of Judah went down to see Jehoram, the son of Ahab, at Jezreel, because he was there sick.

⁷ But this was of God so that Ahaziah would be tread under foot by coming to Joram; for when he was come, he went out with Jehoram to encounter Jehu, the son of Nimshi, whom the LORD had anointed to cut off the house of Ahab.

⁸ And it came to pass that when Jehu was executing judgment upon the house of Ahab and found the princes of Judah and the sons of the brethren of Ahaziah, that ministered to Ahaziah, he slew them.

⁹ And he sought Ahaziah, and they caught him (for he had hid himself in Samaria) and brought him to Jehu; and when they had slain him, they buried him, Because, they said, He is the son of Jehoshaphat, who sought the LORD with all his heart. So the house of Ahaziah had no strength to be able to retain the kingdom.

¹⁰ ¶ So when Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah, saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal seed of the house of Judah.

¹¹ But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash, the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king’s sons that were being slain, and kept him and his nurse in the bedchamber. So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada, the priest (for she was the sister of Ahaziah) hid him from Athaliah, so that she slew him not.

¹² And he was with them hid in the house of God six years; and Athaliah reigned over the land.

23 ¶ And in the seventh year Jehoiada strengthened himself and took the captains of hundreds, Azariah, the son of Jeroham, and Ishmael, the son of Jehohanan, and Azariah, the son of Obed, and Maaseiah, the son of Adaiah, and Elishaphat, the son of Zichri, into covenant with him.

² And they went about in Judah and gathered the Levites out of all the cities of Judah and the heads of the fathers of Israel, and they came to Jerusalem.

³ And all the congregation made a covenant with the king in the house of God. And he said unto them, Behold, the king’s son who shall reign, as the LORD has said of the sons of David.

⁴ This is the thing that ye must do: A third part of you, those who enter on the sabbath, shall be porters at the doors with the priests and the Levites;

⁵ and a third part shall be at the king’s house; and a third part at the gate of the foundation; and all the people shall be in the courts of the house of the LORD.

⁶ But let no one come into the house of the LORD, except the priests and the Levites that minister; they shall go in, for they are holy; but all the people shall keep the watch of the LORD.

⁷ And the Levites shall compass the king round about, each one shall have his weapons in his hand; and whoever else comes into the house shall be put to death; and ye shall be with the king when he comes in and when he goes out.

⁸ So the Levites and all Judah did according to all the things that Jehoiada, the priest, had commanded, and each one took his men, those that were to come in on the sabbath with those that were to go out on the sabbath, for Jehoiada the priest did not dismiss the courses.

⁹ Moreover, Jehoiada, the priest, delivered to the captains of hundreds spears and bucklers and shields, that had been king David’s, which were in the house of God.

¹⁰ And he set all the people in order, each one having his weapon in his hand, from the right side of the house to the left side of the house, along by the altar and the house, by the king round about.

¹¹ Then they brought out the king’s son and put the crown upon him and gave him the testimony and made him king. And Jehoiada and his sons anointed him and said, Long live the king.

¹² ¶ Now when Athaliah heard the noise of the people running of those that were praising the king, she came to the people into the house of the LORD:

¹³ And she looked and, behold, the king stood at his pillar at the entrance and the princes and the trumpets by the king; and all the people of the land rejoiced and sounded with trumpets, and those that knew how to praise sang with instruments of music. Then Athaliah rent her clothes and said, Treason, Treason.

¹⁴ Then Jehoiada, the priest, brought out the captains of hundreds that were set over the host and said unto them, Remove her from the order of the house, and whoever follows her, let them be slain with the sword. For the priest had commanded, Slay her not in the house of the LORD.

¹⁵ So they laid hands on her, and she entered into the entrance of the horse gate of the king’s house, and they slew her there.