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 brothers of Ahaziah, that ministered to Ahaziah, he killed them.

Then Jehu looked for Ahaziah, and Jehu’s soldiers captured him (he was hiding in Samaria). So they brought Ahaziah to Jehu, and they killed him. The soldiers buried him, for they said, “He is the grandson of Jehoshaphat who sought the Lord with all his heart.” So no one from the house of Ahaziah had the strength to rule the kingdom.

But when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal descendants of the house of Judah.

But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him away from among the king's sons that were being slain, and put him and his nurse in a 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.

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

As she looked, there was the king standing by his pillar at the entrance. The commanders and the trumpeters were by the king, and all the people of the land were rejoicing and blowing trumpets while the singers with musical instruments were leading the praise. Athaliah tore her clothes and screamed, “Treason, treason!”

So they laid hands on her; and when she was come to the entering of the horse gate by the king's house, they slew her there.

Also Jehoiada appointed the oversight of the house of the LORD to the hands of the priests, the Levites, whom David had assigned in the house of the LORD, to offer the burnt offerings of the LORD, as it is written in the law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, as it was ordained by David.

And he set the gatekeepers at the gates of the house of the LORD, that none which was unclean in anything should enter in.

And all the people of the land rejoiced: and the city was quiet, after they had slain Athaliah with the sword.

Joash was seven years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Zibiah of Beer-sheba.

And Joash did that which was right in the sight of the LORD all the days of Jehoiada the priest.

Jehoiada acquired two wives for him, and he was the father of sons and daughters.

And it came to pass after this, that Joash was minded to renew the house of Jehovah.

Then the king called Jehoiada that was the chiefest, and said to him, "Why requirest thou not of the Levites to bring in, out of Judah and Jerusalem the sum appointed by Moses the servant of the LORD, and by the congregation of Israel, for the tabernacle of witness?"

At the king’s command a chest was made and placed outside the gate of the Lord’s temple.

Then a proclamation was issued in Judah and Jerusalem that the tax God’s servant Moses imposed on Israel in the wilderness be brought to the Lord.

All the leaders and all the people rejoiced, brought the tax, and put it in the chest until it was full.

Now it came to pass, that at whatsoever time the chest was brought unto the king's office by the hand of the Levites, and when they saw that there was much money, the king's scribe and the high priest's officer came and emptied the chest, and took it, and carried it to its place again. Thus they did day by day, and gathered money in abundance.

So the workmen labored, and the work was completed by them, and they put the house of God in order, and strengthened it.

When they had completed the work, they brought what was left of the money to the king and to Jehoiada, and it was used to cast utensils for the LORD's Temple that were to be utilized for daily service and for burnt offerings, for incense vessels, and for both gold and silver vessels. Burnt offerings were offered on a regular basis in the LORD's Temple throughout Jehoiada's lifetime.

But Jehoiada grew old, and was full of days when he died; a hundred and thirty years old was he when he died.

He was buried in the city of David with the kings because he had done what was good in Israel with respect to God and His temple.

and they abandoned the temple of Yahweh, the God of their ancestors and served the Asherah poles and the idols. So there was wrath against Judah and Jerusalem for this guilt of theirs.

Then Jehoiada the priest's son Zechariah was clothed by the Spirit of God, and he stood above the people and told them, "This is what God has to say: "Why are you breaking the LORD's commandments. You'll never be successful! Because you have abandoned the LORD, he has abandoned you.'"

But when they had made a secret design against him, he was stoned with stones, by the king's order, in the outer square of the Lord's house.

King Joash didn’t remember the kindness that Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had extended to him, but killed his son. While he was dying, he said, “May the Lord see and demand an account.”

And when the year was out, the host of the Syrians came against him: and they came to Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the lords of the people from among the people and sent all the spoil of them unto the king to Damascus.

Even though the invading Syrian army was relatively weak, the Lord handed over to them Judah's very large army, for the people of Judah had abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors. The Syrians gave Joash what he deserved.

When they withdrew, they left Joash badly wounded. His servants plotted against him because of what he had done to the son of Jehoiada the priest. They murdered him on his bed. Thus he died and was buried in the City of David, but not in the tombs of the kings.

Amaziah was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.

And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, but not with a perfect heart.

Now it came to pass, when the kingdom was established to him, that he slew his servants that had killed the king his father.

Then Amaziah separated them, the army that had come to him out of Ephraim, to go home again: therefore their anger was greatly kindled against Judah, and they returned home in great anger.

Now it came to pass, after that Amaziah was come from the slaughter of the Edomites, that he brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned incense unto them.

Therefore the anger of the LORD was kindled against Amaziah, and he sent unto him a prophet, who said unto him, Why have you sought after the gods of the people, who could not deliver their own people out of your hand?

While he was still speaking to him, the king asked, “Have we made you the king’s counselor? Stop, why should you lose your life?”

So the prophet stopped, but he said, “I know that God intends to destroy you, because you have done this and have not listened to my advice.”

And Joash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give your daughter to my son as a wife: and there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trod down the thistle.

But Amaziah would not listen, for this turn of events was from God in order to hand them over to their enemies because they went after the gods of Edom.

And Joash king of Israel will go up; and they will see faces, he and Amaziah king of Judah, in the house of the sun which was to Judah.

And Judah was defeated by Israel, and they fled every man to his tent.

and, Amaziah king of Judah, son of Joash son of Jehoahaz, was taken by Joash king of Israel, in Beth-shemesh, - and he brought him to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem, from the gate of Ephraim as far as the corner-gate, four hundred cubits;

From the time Amaziah turned from following the Lord, a conspiracy was formed against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish. However, men were sent after him to Lachish, and they put him to death there.

His body was carried back by horses, and he was buried in Jerusalem with his ancestors in the City of David.

Then all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah.

It was he that built Eloth, and restored it to Judah, after the king slept with his fathers.

Sixteen years old was Uzziah when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty and two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Jecoliah of Jerusalem.

And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah did.

And he began to seek God in the days of Zechariah who was teaching in visions of God. And {whenever} he sought Yahweh God made him have success.

And the Ammonites paid tribute to Uzziah. And his name spread abroad even to the entrance of Egypt, for he was made very strong.

Since he had many cattle both in the Judean foothills and the plain, he built towers in the desert and dug many wells. And since he was a lover of the soil, he had farmers and vinedressers in the hills and in the fertile lands.

The total number of heads of families was 2,600 brave warriors.

And under their hand was an army, three hundred thousand and seven thousand and five hundred, that made war with mighty power, to help the king against the enemy.

And he made in Jerusalem devices, invented by skillful men, to be on the towers and upon the corners, to shoot arrows and great stones. And his name spread far abroad; for he was marvelously helped, till he was strong.

But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his destruction: for he transgressed against the LORD his God, and went into the temple of the LORD to burn incense upon the altar of incense.

Then Uzziah was angry, and had a censer in his hand to burn incense: and while he was angry with the priests, leprosy even broke out in his forehead before the priests in the house of the LORD, from beside the incense altar.

And Azariah the chief priest, and all the priests, looked upon him, and, behold, he was leprous in his forehead, and they thrust him out from there; yea, he himself hastened also to go out, because the LORD had struck him.

And Uzziah the king was a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a separate house, being a leper; for he was cut off from the house of the LORD: and Jotham his son was over the king's house, judging the people of the land.

Uzziah rested with his fathers, and he was buried with his fathers in the burial ground of the kings’ cemetery, for they said, “He has a skin disease.” His son Jotham became king in his place.

Jotham was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Jerushah, the daughter of Zadok.

And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Uzziah did: although he entered not into the temple of the LORD. But the people acted yet corruptly.

It was he who built the upper gate of the house of Jehovah, and on the wall of Ophel he built much.

Jotham grew powerful because he was determined to please the Lord his God.

He was five and twenty years old when he began to reign, and reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem.

Jotham rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David. His son Ahaz became king in his place.

Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: but he did not that which was right in the sight of the LORD, like David his father:

Therefore the LORD his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria; and they defeated him, and carried away a great multitude of them captives, and brought them to Damascus. And he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who defeated him with a great slaughter.

And Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king's son, and Azrikam the officer over the house, and Elkanah that was next to the king.

But a prophet of the LORD was there, whose name was Oded: and he went out before the army that came to Samaria, and said unto them, Behold, because the LORD God of your fathers was angry with Judah, he has delivered them into your hand, and you have slain them in a rage that reaches up unto heaven.

Then rose up the men who have been expressed by name - and took the captives, and, all who were naked among them, clothed they out of the spoil, and arrayed them and sandalled them, and gave them to eat and to drink, and anointed them, and conducted them with asses for every one that was exhausted, and brought them to Jericho the city of palm-trees, near unto their brethren, - and then returned to Samaria.

For the Lord humbled Judah because of King Ahaz of Judah, who threw off restraint in Judah and was unfaithful to the Lord.

Then Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria, came to him, but was a cause of trouble and not of strength to him.

for Ahaz took a portion [from] the house of Yahweh and the house of the king and the princes, and he gave [it] to the king of Assyria, but it was no help to him.

During his time of trouble King Ahaz was even more unfaithful to the Lord.

and established high places in every city of Judah where incense was burned to other gods, thus provoking the LORD God of his ancestors to anger.

Ahaz rested with his fathers and was buried in the city, in Jerusalem, but they did not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel. His son Hezekiah became king in his place.

Hezekiah began to reign when he was five and twenty years old, and he reigned nine and twenty years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah.

And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father had done.

For our fathers have trespassed, and done that which was evil in the eyes of the LORD our God, and have forsaken him, and have turned away their faces from the habitation of the LORD, and turned their backs.

Therefore the wrath of the LORD was upon Judah and Jerusalem, and he has delivered them to trouble, to astonishment, and to hissing, as you see with your eyes.

And the priests went into the inner part of the house of the Lord to make it clean, and everything unclean which was to be seen in the Temple of the Lord they took out into the outer square of the Lord's house, and the Levites got it together and took it away to the stream Kidron.

They began their consecration duties on the first day of the first month and finished at the LORD's outer vestibule on the eighth day of the month. Another eight days was used to consecrate the LORD's Temple, so they completed the work on the sixteenth day of the first month.

Moreover, we have prepared and consecrated all the utensils which King Ahaz had discarded during his reign in his unfaithfulness; and behold, they are in front of the altar of the Lord.”

So they put the oxen to death and their blood was given to the priests to be drained out against the altar; then they put the male sheep to death, draining out their blood against the altar, and they put the lambs to death, draining out their blood against the altar.

And he set the Levites in the house of the LORD with cymbals, with lyres, and with harps, according to the commandment of David, and of Gad the king's seer, and Nathan the prophet: for so was the commandment of the LORD by his prophets.

And Hezekiah gave the word for the burned offering to be offered on the altar. And when the burned offering was started, then the song of the Lord was started, with the blowing of horns and with all the instruments of David, king of Israel.

And all the congregation worshiped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded: and all this continued until the burnt offering was finished.

And when the offering was finished, the king and all who were found with him knelt down and bowed themselves.

After this, Hezekiah announced, "Now that you've consecrated yourselves to the LORD, come near and bring your sacrifices and thanksgiving offerings to the LORD's Temple." So the assembly brought sacrifices and thanksgiving offerings, and everyone who was willing to do so brought burnt offerings.

And the number of the burnt offerings, which the congregation brought, was threescore and ten bullocks, a hundred rams, and two hundred lambs: all these were for a burnt offering to the LORD.

But the priests were too few, so that they could not skin all the burnt offerings: therefore their brethren the Levites did help them, till the work was ended, and until the other priests had sanctified themselves: for the Levites were more upright in heart to sanctify themselves than the priests.

And also the burnt offerings were in abundance, with the fat of the peace offerings, and the drink offerings for every burnt offering. So the service of the house of the LORD was set in order.

And Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people, that God had prepared the people: for the thing was done suddenly.

For they could not keep it at that time: for there were not priests enough sanctified, neither was the people gathered together to Jerusalem.

The thing was right in the eyes of the king and of all the assembly.

So they established a decree to make proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beer-sheba even to Dan, that they should come to keep the passover unto the LORD God of Israel at Jerusalem: for they had not done it for a long time in the way in which it was written.

Also the hand of God was upon Judah to give them one heart to do the commandment of the king and of the princes, by the word of the LORD.

A very large assembly of people was gathered in Jerusalem to observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread in the second month.

And they took their places in their right order, as it was ordered in the law of Moses, the man of God: the priests draining out on the altar the blood given them by the Levites.

For there were many in the congregation that were not sanctified: therefore the Levites had charge of the killing of the passover lambs for everyone that was not clean, to sanctify them unto the LORD.