And now send me a man skilful to work in gold, and in silver, and in bronze, and in iron, and in purple and crimson and blue, and experienced in carving, besides the skilful men that are with me in Judah and in Jerusalem, whom David my father provided.

And the king made of the sandal-wood stairs for the house of Jehovah, and for the king's house, and harps and lutes for the singers. And there were none such seen before in the land of Judah.)

When all Israel saw that the king did not listen and pay attention to them, the people answered him,“What portion do we have in David?
We have no inheritance in the son of Jesse.
Every man to your tents, O Israel;
Now, [Rehoboam, descendant of] David, see to your own house.” So all Israel went to their tents.

But as for the children of Israel that dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.

And Rehoboam came to Jerusalem; and he assembled the house of Judah and Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thousand chosen men apt for war, to fight against Israel, that he might bring the kingdom again to Rehoboam.

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

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

and Zorah, and Ajalon, and Hebron, which are in Judah and in Benjamin, fortified cities.

and in every several city, targets and spears, and made them exceedingly strong. And Judah and Benjamin were his.

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 exercising the priesthood to Jehovah;

And they strengthened the kingdom of Judah, and made Rehoboam the son of Solomon strong three years; for during three years they walked in the way of David and Solomon.

And he dealt wisely, and dispersed of all his sons throughout all the lands of Judah and Benjamin, to all the fortified cities; and he gave them food in abundance. And he desired for them a multitude of wives.

And he took the fortified cities that belonged to Judah, and came to Jerusalem.

And Shemaiah the prophet came to Rehoboam and to the princes of Judah that had gathered together to Jerusalem because of Shishak, and said to them, Thus saith Jehovah: Ye have forsaken me, and therefore have I also left you in the hand of Shishak.

And when he humbled himself, the anger of Jehovah turned away from him, that he would not destroy him altogether; and also in Judah there were good things.

Now the acts of Rehoboam, from the first to the last, are they not written in the records of Shemaiah the prophet and of Iddo the seer, according to genealogical enrollment? There were wars between Rehoboam [of Judah] and Jeroboam [of Israel] continually.

In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, began Abijah to reign over Judah:

But, Jeroboam, sent round an ambush, to come up from behind them, - so they were before Judah and, the ambush, did come up from behind them.

And, when Judah turned and lo! as for them, the battle was before and behind, then made they outcry unto Yahweh, - and, the priests, kept on blowing with the trumpets.

Then the men of Judah gave a shout, - and it came to pass, when the men of Judah shouted, then, God himself, smote Jeroboam and all Israel, before Abijah and Judah.

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

Thus were the sons of Israel subdued at that time, - and the sons of Judah prevailed, because they leaned upon Yahweh the God of their fathers.

and bade Judah seek Yahweh, God of their fathers,-and execute the law, and the commandment;

and removed from all the cities of Judah, the high places, and the sun-images, - and the kingdom became quiet before him.

And he built cities of defence, in Judah, - for the land had quiet, nor was there near him any war, in these years, because Yahweh had given him rest.

Therefore said he to Judah, Let us build these cities, and let us surround them with walls and towers, doors and bars, while the land is yet before us, for we have sought Yahweh our God, we have sought him, and he hath given us rest on every side. So they built, and prospered.

And it came to pass that, Asa, had a force bearing shield and spear, out of Judah, three hundred thousand, and, out of Benjamin, such as bare a buckler and trode a bow, two hundred and eighty thousand, - all these, were heroes of valour.

Now Zerah the Ethiopian (Cushite) came out against Judah with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots, and he came as far as Mareshah.

So Yahweh smote the Ethiopians, before Asa, and before Judah, - and the Ethiopians fled.

and Asa and his army chased them as far as Gerar. The Cushites were wiped out; they were shattered before the Lord and his army. The men of Judah carried off a huge amount of plunder.

They defeated all the cities surrounding Gerar, for the Lord caused them to panic. The men of Judah looted all the cities, for they contained a huge amount of goods.

So he went forth to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear me, O Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin, - Yahweh, is with you, so long as ye are with him, and, if ye seek him, he will be found of you, but, if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.

"Listen to me, Asa, Judah, and Benjamin! The LORD is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will allow you to find him, but if you abandon him, he will abandon you. Israel lived for years without the true God, priests to teach them, and the Law,

And, when Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he strengthened himself, and put away the abominations out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the cities which he had captured out of the hill country of Ephraim, - and renewed the altar of Yahweh, that was before the porch of Yahweh.

And he gathered together all Judah and Benjamin, and the sojourners with them, out of Ephraim and out of Manasseh, and out of Simeon, - for they fell unto him out of Israel, in great numbers, because they saw that, Yahweh his God, was with him.

And all Judah rejoiced over the oath, for, with all their heart, had they sworn, and, with all their good will, had they sought him, and he was found of them, - and Yahweh gave them rest round about.

In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah, and built Ramah, - that he might let none come out or go in, unto Asa king of Judah.

And, Asa the king, took all Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the timbers thereof, which Baasha had used in building, - and he built therewith, Geba and Mizpah.

And, at that time, came Hanani the seer, unto Asa the king of Judah, - and said unto him, Because thou hast leaned upon the king of Syria, and hast not leaned upon Yahweh thy God, for this cause, hath the force of the king of Syria escaped out of thy hand.

But lo! the story of Asa, first and last, there it is, written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel.

and put forces in all the fortified cities of Judah, - and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim, which Asa his father had captured.

Therefore did Yahweh establish the kingdom in his hand, and all Judah gave a present unto Jehoshaphat, - and he came to have riches and honour, in abundance.

And his heart was encouraged, in the ways of Yahweh, - and he, yet further, took away the high places and the Sacred Stems, out of Judah.

And, in the third year of his reign, he sent to his rulers, even to Ben-hail and to Obadiah and to Zechariah, and to Nethanel, and to Micaiah, - that they were to teach throughout the cities of Judah;

and they taught throughout Judah, and, with them, was the book of the law of Yahweh, - so they went round throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught the people.

And it came to pass, that, the dread of Yahweh, was upon all the kingdoms of the countries, that were round about Judah, - and they warred not against Jehoshaphat.

And so it came to pass that, Jehoshaphat, went on waxing surpassingly great, - and he built, throughout Judah, fortresses and cities for store;

and, much business, had he, throughout the cities of Judah, - but, the men of war, the heroes of valour, were in Jerusalem.

And, these, are the numbers of them, by their ancestral house, - To Judah, pertained rulers of thousands, Adnah the chief, and, with him, mighty men of valour, three hundred thousand;

These, were they who were waiting upon the king, - besides those whom the king placed in the fortified cities, throughout all Judah.

For Ahab king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat king of Judah, Wilt thou go up with me to Ramoth-gilead? And he said unto him - So am I, even as thou, and, like thy people, are my people, and, with thee, in the war.

Now, the king of Israel, and Jehoshaphat king of Judah, were sitting, each upon his throne, clothed in robes, and they were sitting in an open space, at the entrance of the gate of Samaria, - and, all the prophets, were prophesying before them.

Then went up the king of Israel, and Jehoshaphat king of Judah, against Ramothgilead.

So when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat [of Judah], they said, “It is the king of Israel!” So they turned to fight against him, but Jehoshaphat called out [for God’s help], and the Lord helped him; and God diverted them away from him.

And Jehoshaphat the king of Judah returned unto his own house in peace, to Jerusalem.

And he stationed judges in the land, throughout all the fortified cities of Judah, city by city;

And lo! Amariah the chief priest, is over you as to every matter of Yahweh, and Zebadiah son of Ishmael the chief ruler for the house of Judah, as to every matter of the king, and, as officers, the Levites are before you, - Be strong and act, and Yahweh be with the good!

And Jehoshaphat was afraid, and set his face to seek unto Yahweh, - and proclaimed a fast for all Judah.

And Judah gathered themselves together, to enquire of Yahweh, - even, out of all the cities of Judah, came they in, to seek Yahweh.

And Jehoshaphat stood, in the convocation of Judah and Jerusalem in the house of Yahweh, - before the new court;

And all Judah stood before Jehovah, with their little ones, their wives, and their sons.

and he said, Be attentive, all Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and thou king Jehoshaphat! Thus saith Jehovah unto you: Fear not, nor be dismayed by reason of this great multitude; for the battle is not yours, but God's.

Ye shall not have to fight on this occasion: set yourselves, stand and see the salvation of Jehovah who is with you! Judah and Jerusalem, fear not nor be dismayed; to-morrow go out against them, and Jehovah will be with you.

And Jehoshaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground; and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before Jehovah, worshipping Jehovah.

And they rose early in the morning, and went forth towards the wilderness of Tekoa; and as they went forth, Jehoshaphat stood and said, Hear me, Judah, and ye inhabitants of Jerusalem! Believe in Jehovah your God, and ye shall be established; believe his prophets, and ye shall prosper!

And when they began the song of triumph and praise, Jehovah set liers-in-wait against the children of Ammon, Moab, and mount Seir, who had come against Judah, and they were smitten.

And Judah came on to the mountain-watch in the wilderness, and they looked toward the multitude; and behold, they were dead bodies fallen to the earth, and none had escaped.

And they returned, all the men of Judah and Jerusalem, and Jehoshaphat at their head, to go again to Jerusalem with joy; for Jehovah had made them to rejoice over their enemies.

And 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, daughter of Shilhi.

And after this Jehoshaphat king of Judah joined himself with Ahaziah king of Israel, who did very wickedly.

He had brothers, sons of Jehoshaphat: Azariah, Jehiel, Zechariah, Azariah, Michael, and Shephatiah; all these were the sons of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah.

And their father had given them great gifts of silver and of gold and of precious things, besides fortified cities in Judah; but the kingdom he gave to Jehoram, for he was the firstborn.

In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and they set a king over themselves.

But the Edomites revolted from under the hand of Judah unto this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time from under his hand, because he had forsaken Jehovah the God of his fathers.

Moreover he made high places on the mountains of Judah, and caused the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication, and compelled Judah thereto.

And there came a writing to him from Elijah the prophet saying, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of David thy father: Because thou hast not walked in the ways of Jehoshaphat thy father, nor in the ways of Asa king of Judah,

but hast walked in the way of the kings of Israel, and hast made Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit fornication, like the fornications of the house of Ahab, and also hast slain thy brethren, thy father's house who were better than thyself:

and they came up into Judah, and broke into it, and carried away all the substance that was found in the king's house, and his sons also, and his wives; so that there was no son left him, except Jehoahaz the youngest of his sons.

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

And he returned to be healed in Jizreel because of the wounds that 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 Jizreel; for he was sick.

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

And when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she rose up and exterminated all the royal seed of the house of Judah.

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

And the Levites and all Judah did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded; and they took every man his men, those that were to come in on the sabbath, with them that were to go forth on the sabbath; for Jehoiada the priest did not liberate the divisions.

And he gathered together the priests and the Levites, and said to them, Go out to the cities of Judah and collect of all Israel money for the repair of the house of your God from year to year, and ye shall hasten the matter. But the Levites hastened it not.

And the king called for Jehoiada the chief, and said to him, Why hast thou not required of the Levites to bring in out of Judah and out of Jerusalem the tribute of Moses the servant of Jehovah laid upon the congregation of Israel, for the tent of the testimony?

and they made a proclamation through Judah and Jerusalem, to bring to Jehovah the tribute of Moses the servant of God laid upon Israel in the wilderness.

And after the death of Jehoiada the princes of Judah came and made obeisance to the king; then the king hearkened to them.

And they forsook the house of Jehovah the God of their fathers, and served the Asherahs and idols; and wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem for this their trespass.

And it came to pass at the end of the year that the army of Syria came up against him; and they entered into Judah and Jerusalem, and destroyed all the princes of the people from among the people, and sent all the spoil of them to the king at 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.

And Amaziah gathered Judah together and arranged them according to the fathers' houses, according to the captains of thousands and the captains of hundreds, throughout Judah and Benjamin; and he numbered them from twenty years old and upwards, and found them three hundred thousand choice men, able for military service, that could handle spear and target.

But a man of God came to him, saying, “O king, do not let this army of Israel go with you, for the Lord is not with Israel nor with any of the sons of Ephraim.

Then Amaziah separated them, the troop that was come to him out of Ephraim, to go home again. And their anger was greatly kindled against Judah, and they returned home in fierce anger.

And the children of Judah took ten thousand captive, alive, and brought them to the top of the cliff, and cast them down from the top of the cliff, so that they all were broken in pieces.

But those of the troop that Amaziah had sent back, that they should not go with him to battle, fell upon the cities of Judah from Samaria as far as Beth-horon, and smote three thousand of them, and took much spoil.

And Amaziah king of Judah took counsel, and sent to Joash the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us look one another in the face.

And Joash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thorn-bush that is in Lebanon sent to the cedar that is in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son as wife; and there passed by the wild beast that is in Lebanon, and trode down the thorn-bush.

Thou thinkest, Lo, thou hast smitten Edom; and thy heart has lifted thee up to boast: abide now at home; why shouldest thou contend with misfortune, that thou shouldest fall, thou and Judah with thee?

But Amaziah would not listen, for it was from God, so that He might hand Judah over to Joash because they had desired the gods of Edom.