The Reign of Amaziah

¹ Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king. And he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother was Jehoaddan from Jerusalem.

² And he did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh, only not with a fully-devoted heart.

³ And it happened that as his reign was strengthened, he killed his servants who had killed his father the king.

⁴ But he did not put their children to death, according to what is written in the law, in the scroll of Moses, where Yahweh commanded, saying, “Fathers shall not be put to death on account of the sons, and the sons shall not be put to death on account of the fathers, but each shall be put to death for his own sin.”

⁵ Then Amaziah assembled the men of Judah and set them by ⌞families⌟¹ under commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds for all Judah and Benjamin. And he counted them from twenty years old and upward, and found them to be three hundred thousand chosen for going out to battle, able with spear and shield.

1. Literally “the house of the fathers”

⁶ And he hired from Israel one hundred thousand strong, mighty warriors for one hundred talents.

⁷ But a man of God came to him, saying, “O king, do not let the army of Israel go with you, for Yahweh is not with Israel, all the Ephraimites.

⁸ But even still, you yourself go, do! Be strong for the battle else God will make you stumble before the enemy! For there is power with God to help and to cause stumbling.”

⁹ And Amaziah said to the man of God, “Now what should I do with the one hundred talents that I have given to the troops of Israel?” And the man of God said, “⌞Yahweh is able to give⌟¹ to you more than this.”

1. Literally “There is to Yahweh to give”

¹⁰ Then Amaziah dismissed the troops that came to him from Ephraim to go to their home.¹ And ⌞they became very angry⌟² with Judah, and they returned to their home ⌞in great anger⌟.³

1. Or “their place”
2. Literally “their noses became very hot”
3. Literally “in hotness of nose”

¹¹ Then Amaziah strengthened himself, and leading his army, he went to the Valley of Salt. And he struck down ten thousand men¹ of Seir.

1. Or “sons”

¹² Now the ⌞troops⌟¹ captured ten thousand others alive, and they brought them to the top of the rock and threw them from the top of the rock. So all of them were smashed to pieces.

1. Literally “the sons of the troop”

¹³ As for the ⌞troops⌟¹ Amaziah had sent back from going with him to war, they raided the cities of Judah from Samaria to Beth-Horon. And they struck down three thousand of them and plundered much booty.

1. Literally “sons of the troop”

¹⁴ And it happened that after Amaziah came back from killing the Edomites, he brought the gods of the sons of Seir, and he stood them up to himself as gods and bowed down before them and make smoke offerings for them.

¹⁵ So ⌞Yahweh became very angry⌟¹ with Amaziah and sent a prophet to him, and he said to him, “Why have you sought the gods of the people who could not deliver their own people from your hand?”

1. Literally “Yahweh’s nose became very hot”

¹⁶ And it happened that while he was speaking to him, he said to him, “Have we appointed you as a counselor to the king? Stop—⌞why should you be killed⌟?”¹ So the prophet stopped and said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not listened to my advice.”

1. Literally “why shall he strike you?”

¹⁷ Then Amaziah king of Judah took counsel, and he sent to Joash the son of Jehoahaz the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, “Come,¹ ⌞let us face one another⌟.²

1. This translation follows the Qere reading
2. Literally “let us look at faces”

¹⁸ And Joash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, “The thorn bush that is in Lebanon has sent to the cedar which is in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son as wife.’ But a wild animal of the field that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thorn bush.

¹⁹ Look, you say that you have struck Edom, and your heart has lifted you up to boast. Now remain at your home. Why stir up disaster that you fall, you and Judah with you?”

²⁰ But Amaziah did not listen, for it was from God that he might give them into the hand of enemies, because they sought the gods of Edom.

²¹ So Joash the king of Israel went up, and he and Amaziah the king of Judah ⌞faced one another⌟¹ at Beth-Shemesh, which belongs to Judah.

1. Literally “looked at one another’s faces”

²² And Judah was defeated before Israel, and each man fled to his tent.

²³ And Joash the king of Israel captured Amaziah the king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, at Beth-Shemesh. And they brought him to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Gate of Ephraim to the Corner Gate, four hundred cubits.

²⁴ Then with all the gold and silver, all the objects found in the house of God with Obed-Edom, the storehouses of the house of the king, and ⌞the hostages⌟,¹ he returned to Samaria.

1. Literally “the sons of the pledges”

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

²⁶ Now the remainder of the words of Amaziah, from the first to the last, behold, are they not written in the scroll of the kings of Judah and Israel?

²⁷ And from the time that Amaziah turned away from Yahweh, they had plotted a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem. And he fled to Lachish, but they sent after him to Lachish and killed him there.

²⁸ And they carried him on the horses and buried him with his ancestors¹ in the city of Judah.

1. Or “fathers”