Amasias’ reign: he begins well, but ends ill: he is overthrown by Joas, and slain by his people.

¹ Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he had begun to reign. And he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Jehoaddan, from Jerusalem.

² And he accomplished good in the sight of the Lord. Yet truly, not with a perfect heart.

³ And when he saw himself to be strengthened in his rule, he cut the throats of the servants who had killed his father, the king.

⁴ But he did not put to death their sons, just as it was written in the book of the law of Moses, where the Lord instructed, saying: “The fathers shall not be slain because of the sons, nor the sons because of their fathers. Instead, each one shall die for his own sin.”

⁵ And then Amaziah gathered together Judah, and he organized them by families, and tribunes, and centurions, throughout all of Judah and Benjamin. And he numbered them from twenty years old and upward. And he found three hundred thousand young men, who could go forth to battle, and who could hold spear and shield.

⁶ Also, he hired for pay from Israel one hundred thousand experienced men, for one hundred talents of silver.¹

1. 25:6One thousand men were hired for each talent, and so each received about 3 shekels (or 60 obols).(Conte)

⁷ Then a man of God came to him, and he said: “O king, let not the army of Israel go forth with you. For the Lord is not with Israel, nor with all the sons of Ephraim.

⁸ But if you think that a war stands by the strength of the army, God will cause you to be overwhelmed by the enemies. For indeed, it belongs to God to assist, and to put to flight.”

⁹ And Amaziah said to the man of God, “Then what will become of the one hundred talents, which I gave to the soldiers of Israel?” And the man of God responded to him, “The Lord has that from which he is able to give much more than this to you.”

¹⁰ And so, Amaziah separated the army, which had come to him from Ephraim, so that they would return to their place. But having become very angry against Judah, they returned to their own region.

¹¹ Then Amaziah confidently led forth his people. And he went away to the Valley of the Salt Pits, and he struck down ten thousand of the sons of Seir.

¹² And the sons of Judah captured another ten thousand of the men. And they led them to the precipice of a certain rock. And they threw them from the summit, and they were all broken apart.

¹³ But the army that Amaziah had sent away, so that they would not go with him into battle, spread out among the cities of Judah, from Samaria as far as Beth-horon. And having killed three thousand, they took away much plunder.

¹⁴ Truly, after the slaughter of the Edomites, and when the gods of the sons of Seir were brought, Amaziah chose them as gods for himself. And he was adoring them, and burning incense to them.

¹⁵ For this reason, the Lord became angry against Amaziah, and he sent a prophet to him, who would say to him, “Why have you adored gods who did not free their own people from your hand?”

¹⁶ And after he spoke these things, he responded to him: “Are you the counselor of the king? Be quiet! Otherwise I will put you to death.” And departing, the prophet said, “I know that God has decided to kill you, because you have done this evil, and also because you have not agreed to my counsel.”

¹⁷ And so Amaziah, the king of Judah, undertaking a very wicked counsel, sent to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, the king of Israel, saying: “Come, let us see one another.”

¹⁸ But he sent back messengers, saying: “The thistle which is in Lebanon sent to the cedar of Lebanon, saying: ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife.’ And behold, the beasts that were in the forest of Lebanon passed through, and they trampled the thistle.

¹⁹ You said, ‘I struck down Edom.’ And for this reason, your heart is lifted up with pride. Settle in your own house. Why do you provoke evil against yourself, so that you may fall, and then Judah with you?”

²⁰ Amaziah was not willing to listen to him, because it was the will of the Lord that he be delivered into the hands of the enemies, because of the gods of Edom.

²¹ And so Joash, the king of Israel, ascended, and they presented themselves within the sight of one another. Now Amaziah, the king of Judah, was in Beth-shemesh of Judah.

²² And Judah fell before Israel. And each one fled to his own tent.

²³ Then Joash, the king of Israel, captured Amaziah, the king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, at Beth-shemesh, and he led him to Jerusalem. And he destroyed its walls, from the gate of Ephraim as far as the gate of the corner, four hundred cubits.

²⁴ Also, he brought back to Samaria all the gold and silver, and all the vessels, which he had found in the house of God, and with Obededom in the treasuries of the king’s house, as well as sons for hostages.

²⁵ Then Amaziah, the son of Joash, the king of Judah, lived for fifteen years after the death of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the king of Israel.

²⁶ Now the rest of the words of Amaziah, the first and the last, have been written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.

²⁷ And after he withdrew from the Lord, they set up an ambush against him in Jerusalem. But since he had fled into Lachish, they sent and killed him in that place.

²⁸ And having carried him back upon horses, they buried him with his fathers in the City of David.