The Daily Audio Bible

Jehoahaz Rules Israel

13 In the twenty-third year of Ahaziah’s son Joash the king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu became the king of Israel at Samaria. He ruled for seventeen years. ² Jehoahaz did what was sinful in the eyes of the Lord. He followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which made Israel sin. He did not turn from them. ³ So the anger of the Lord burned against Israel. He put them always under the power of King Hazael of Syria, and Ben-hadad the son of Hazael. ⁴ Then Jehoahaz begged for the Lord’s favor, and the Lord listened to him. For He saw the bad power held over Israel. He saw how the king of Syria made it hard for them. ⁵ So the Lord gave Israel someone to save them. And they were saved from the power of the Syrians. The people of Israel lived in their tents as before. ⁶ But they did not turn away from the sins of the family of Jeroboam, which made Israel sin. They walked in those sins. And the object of the false goddess Asherah was left standing in Samaria. ⁷ The king of Syria did not leave to Jehoahaz an army of more than fifty horsemen, ten war-wagons and 10,000 foot-soldiers. For the king of Syria had destroyed them and made them like the dust of beaten grain. ⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, all he did and his strength, are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. ⁹ When Jehoahaz died, they buried him in Samaria. And his son Joash became king in his place.

Jehoash Rules Israel

¹⁰ In the thirty-seventh year of Joash king of Judah, Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz became king of Israel in Samaria. He ruled for sixteen years. ¹¹ And he did what was sinful in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn away from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, in which he made Israel sin. But he walked in those sins. ¹² Jehoash did many things. With his strength he fought against Amaziah king of Judah. The rest of his acts are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. ¹³ Jehoash died, and Jeroboam sat on his throne. Jehoash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

The Death of Elisha

¹⁴ Elisha became sick with the sickness of which he was to die. And Joash the king of Israel came down to him and cried over him, saying, “My father, my father, the war-wagons of Israel and its horsemen!” ¹⁵ Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows.” So he took a bow and arrows. ¹⁶ Then he said to the king of Israel, “Put your hand on the bow.” So he put his hand on it. Then Elisha laid his hands on the king’s hands. ¹⁷ And he said, “Open the window toward the east,” and he opened it. Then Elisha said, “Shoot!” And he shot. Elisha said, “The Lord’s arrow of winning the battle! The arrow of winning the battle against Syria! For you will fight the Syrians at Aphek until you have destroyed them. ¹⁸ Then Elisha said, “Take the arrows,” and he took them. He said to the king of Israel, “Hit the ground,” and he hit it three times, and stopped. ¹⁹ So the man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have hit it five or six times. Then you would have fought Syria until you had destroyed it. But now you will win the fight against Syria only three times.”

²⁰ Elisha died, and they buried him. Now groups of Moabite soldiers would come and fight in the land in the spring of the year. ²¹ As a man was being buried, some Moabite soldiers were seen, so the man was thrown into Elisha’s grave. When the man touched the bones of Elisha, he came alive and stood up on his feet.

The War between Israel and Syria

²² Now King Hazael of Syria had made it hard for Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. ²³ But the Lord showed them kindness and loving-pity and turned to them because of His agreement with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He would not destroy them or put them away from Him until now. ²⁴ When King Hazael of Syria died, his son Ben-hadad became king in his place. ²⁵ Then Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took back from Hazael’s son Ben-hadad the cities he had taken in war from his father Jehoahaz. Three times Joash won in battle against him and took back the cities of Israel.

Amaziah Rules Judah

14 In the second year of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel, Joash’s son Amaziah began to rule as king of Judah. ² He was twenty-five years old when he became king. And he ruled twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin of Jerusalem. ³ Amaziah did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, but not like David his father. He did all that his father Joash had done. ⁴ But the high places were not taken away. The people still gave gifts and burned special perfume on the high places. ⁵ As soon as the nation was under Amaziah’s power, he killed the servants who had killed his father when he was king. ⁶ But he did not kill the sons of the killers. Because it is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, as the Lord said, “The fathers must not be put to death for the sons. And the sons must not be put to death for the fathers. Each must be put to death for his own sin.” ⁷ Amaziah killed 10,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt, and took Sela by war. He gave it the name Joktheel, which is its name to this day. ⁸ Then Amaziah sent men with news to Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come, let us look at each other in the face.” ⁹ Jehoash king of Israel answered Amaziah king of Judah, saying, “The thorn bush in Lebanon sent word to the cedar tree in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ But a wild animal passed by in Lebanon, and crushed the thorn bush under its feet. ¹⁰ Yes, you have won the battle against Edom. Your heart has become proud. Be happy with your greatness and stay at home. For why should you make trouble so that you fall, and Judah with you?”

¹¹ But Amaziah would not listen. So King Jehoash of Israel went up. He and Amaziah king of Judah fought each other at Beth-shemesh, which belongs to Judah. ¹² Israel won the battle against Judah, and every man of Judah ran away to his tent. ¹³ King Jehoash of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh. Then he came to Jerusalem and tore down the city wall, from the Gate of Ephraim to the Corner Gate. He tore down the wall as far as 200 long steps. ¹⁴ He took all the gold and silver and all the objects found in the house of the Lord and in the store-rooms of the king’s house. He took people against their will also, and he returned to Samaria.

¹⁵ Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash, his strength and how he fought with King Amaziah of Judah are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. ¹⁶ Jehoash died and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel. His son Jeroboam became king in his place.

The Death of Amaziah

¹⁷ Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. ¹⁸ The rest of the acts of Amaziah are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. ¹⁹ They made plans against Amaziah in Jerusalem, and he ran away to Lachish. But they sent men after him to Lachish and killed him there. ²⁰ Then they brought him on horses and buried him with his fathers at Jerusalem the city of David. ²¹ The people of Judah took Azariah and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah. He was sixteen years old. ²² Azariah built Elath and returned it to Judah, after the king died.

Jeroboam II Rules Israel

²³ In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash, king of Judah, Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel, began to rule in Samaria and ruled forty-one years. ²⁴ Jeroboam did what was sinful in the eyes of the Lord. He did not turn away from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which made Israel sin. ²⁵ He took back the land of Israel from Hamath as far as the Sea of the Arabah, as was told by the word of the Lord, the God of Israel. The Lord spoke about this through His servant Jonah the son of Amittai. Jonah was the man from Gath-hepher who spoke for the Lord. ²⁶ For the Lord saw that the trouble of Israel was very bitter. There was no one left of the servants or of those who were free. There was no one to help Israel. ²⁷ The Lord did not say that He would destroy the name of Israel from under heaven. So He saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.

²⁸ Jeroboam fought Judah and took back Damascus and Hamath for Israel. The rest of the acts of Jeroboam, all he did and his strength are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. ²⁹ Jeroboam was buried with his fathers, the kings of Israel. His son Zechariah became king in his place.

²³ Paul stayed there for some time. Then he went from city to city through the countries of Galatia and Phrygia. In each place he helped the Christians become strong in the faith.

Aquila and Priscilla Help Apollos in Ephesus

²⁴ A Jew by the name of Apollos had come to Ephesus. He was from the city of Alexandria. He could talk to people about the Holy Writings very well. ²⁵ He had been taught in the way of the Lord. And with a strong desire in his heart, he taught about Jesus. What he said was true, but he knew only about the baptism of John.

²⁶ He began to speak without fear in the Jewish place of worship. Aquila and Priscilla heard him. They took him to their house and taught him much more about the things of God. ²⁷ Apollos wanted to cross over to Greece. The Christians wrote a letter to the followers there asking them to be good to him. When he got there, he was much help to those who had put their trust in Christ. ²⁸ In front of everyone he proved with great power that the Jews were wrong. He showed from the Holy Writings that Jesus was the Christ.

Christians in Ephesus Are Filled with the Holy Spirit

19 While Apollos was in the city of Corinth, Paul went through the hill country to get to the city of Ephesus. He found a few followers there. ² He asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you put your trust in Christ?” They said, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” ³ He asked them, “How were you baptized?” They answered, “The way John baptized.” ⁴ Paul said, “John baptized those who were sorry for their sins and turned from them. He told the people to put their trust in Jesus Who was coming later.”

⁵ The people there were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus when they heard this. ⁶ When Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them. They started to talk in special sounds and to speak God’s Word. ⁷ There were about twelve men.

Paul Preaches in a Place of Worship and in a School in Ephesus

⁸ For three months Paul went into the Jewish place of worship and spoke without fear. He taught them things about the holy nation of God. ⁹ Some let their hearts grow hard. They would not put their trust in Christ. These spoke against the Christian religion in front of other people. Then Paul took the followers away from the others. He taught them each day in the school of Tyrannus. ¹⁰ He did this for two years. All the Jews and the Greeks in the countries of Asia heard the Word of the Lord.

Paul Does Powerful Works

¹¹ God used Paul to do powerful special works. ¹² Pieces of cloth and parts of his clothes that had been next to his body were put on sick people. Then they were healed of their diseases and demons came out of them.

The Lord—Our Helper

146 Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! ² I will praise the Lord as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God as long as I live. ³ Do not put your trust in princes, in a son of a man, who cannot save us. ⁴ When his spirit leaves, he returns to the earth. His thoughts end on that day. ⁵ Happy is he whose help is the God of Jacob, and whose hope is in the Lord his God. ⁶ The Lord made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them. He is faithful forever. ⁷ He helps those who have a bad power over them. He gives food to the hungry. And He sets those in prison free.

⁸ The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord raises up those who are brought down. The Lord loves those who are right and good. ⁹ The Lord keeps the strangers safe. He takes care of the children who have no father and the woman whose husband has died. But He destroys the way of the sinful. ¹⁰ The Lord will rule forever. Your God, O Zion, will rule over all people for all time. Praise the Lord!

² A fool does not find joy in understanding, but only in letting his own mind be known.

³ When a sinful man comes, hate comes also, and where there is no honor, there is shame.