IV. KINGS—II. KINGS.

L After the death of Achab, Moab broke covenant with

2 Israel. And Ochozias fell through the lattice in his upper chamber at Samaria, and was sick, whereupon he sent messengers, saying to them, Go and inquire of Baal the fly-god of Ak-

3 karon, whether I shall recover from this sickness of mine. And when they set out to inquire of him, the angel of the Lord called Elias the Thesbite, and said, Arise and go, meet the

. messengers of Ochozias king of Samaria, and say to them, Is it because there is not a God in Israel, that you are going to

4 inquire of Baal the fly-god of Akkaron? Now is not this the case, Saith the Lord, From the bed to which thou art gone up

5 thou shall not come down, for thou shalt assuredly die? So Elias went and spoke to them, and the messengers returned to

6 the king. Thereupon he said to them, Why are you returned? To which they replied, There came up a man to meet us, and he said to us, Go, return to the king who sent you and say to him, Thus saith the Lord, Is it because there is not a God in Israel, that thou goest to inquire of Baal, the fly-god of Akkaron? Now is not this the case; From the bed to which thou hast gone up thou shalt not come down, for thou shalt assu-

7 redly die? Now when they who returned told the king what Elias had said, he said to them, What sort of a man was he who came up to meet you, and spoke these words to you ?

8 And they said to him, He was a hairy man, girt about the loins with a leathern girdle. Upon which he said, This is

9 Elias the Thesbite. Then he sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty, who went up to him. Now behold Elias was sitting on the top of the mount. And when the captain spoke to him and said, Man of God, the king hath sent for thcc, come down.

10 Elias, in reply, said to the captain, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume thce and thy fifty. So there came down fire from heaven and consumed him and his

11 fifty. But the king persisted, and sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And the captain spoke to him and said, Man of God, thus saith the king, Come clown quickly.

12 Whereupon Elias in reply, said to him, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume thee and thy fifty. Accordingly there came down fire from heaven and con-

13 sumed him and his fifty. Still the king persisted, and sent another captain and his fifty. But when the third captain came he'fell upon his knees before Elias, and with entreaties address- ed Ifim, saying, O man of God, let my life and the lives of thy

14 servants, these fifty, be precious in thy sight. Behold, fire hath come down from heaven and consumed the two former captains of fifty; but now let my life, I beseech thec, be precious

15 in thy sight. Then the angel of the Lord spoke to Elias, and

16 said, Go down with him; be not afraid of them. So Elias arose and went down with him to the king. And Elias spoke to him and said, Thus saith the Lord, Why didst thou send messengers to inquire of Baal the fly-god of Akkaron ? Is not this the case ? From the bed to which thou hast gone up thou

17 shalt not come down : for thou shalt assuredly die? So he died

18 according to the word of the Lord, which Elias spake. Now the rest of the acts of Ochozias which he did, behold are they not written in the book of the journal of the kings of Israel ? And Joram son of Achab reigned over Israel in Samaria, twelve years, commencing in the eighteenth year of Josaphat king of Juda. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, but not in the manner his brothers, nor as his mother had done. He indeed removed the pillars of Baal which his father had erected, and broke them to pieces. Nevertheless he adhered to the sins of the house of Jeroboami, who had caused Israel to sin, and did not depart from them. Therefore the Lord was provoked to wrath against the house of Achab.

II. Now when the Lord was about to take up Elias as it were with a whirlwind into heaven, Elias went with Elisha from

2 Galgflla. Now Elias had said to Elisha, Tarry here I pray thee, for God hath sent me to Baithel. But Elisha said, As the Lord liveth and thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they

3 went to Baithel. And the sons of the prophets who were at Baithel, came to Elisha and said to him, Dost thou know that the Lord will take thy master to-day from over thy head ?

4 And he said, I know it. Hold your peace. Then Elias said to Elisha, Tarry here I pray thee ; for the Lord hath sent me to Jericho. But he said, As the Lord liveth, and thy soul

5 liveth, I will not forsake thee. So they went to Jericho. And the sons of the prophets who were in Jericho, came to Elisha and said to him, Dost thou know that to-day the Lord will take away thy master from over thy head ? And he said, I

6 indeed know it; hold your peace. Then Elias said to him, Tarry here I pray thee, for the Lord hath sent me to the Tor- dan. But Elisha replied, As the Lord liveth and thy soul liveth,

7 I will not leave thee. So they both proceeded on. And fifty men, sons of the prophets stood over against them at a distance

8 when they two stopped at the Jordan. And Elias took his mantle and having rolled it up, he smote the water, and the water parted this way and that, so that they both crossed on dry

9 ground. And when they had crossed, Elias said to Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I am taken up from dice. Whereupon Elisha said, Let there be, I pray thee, a double por-

10 tion of thy spirit on me. And Elias said, Thou hast put me to a stand by this request. If thou seest me taken up from thee, it shall be so to thee ; but if not; it cannot be granted.

11 And as they proceeded on conversing as they went, behold a chariot of fire, with horses of fire, made a separation between 4hem; and Elias was carried up with a whirlwind as it were into

12 heaven. And Elisha sawand cried withaloud voice, My father! my fadier! The chariot of Israel and the driver thereof! And when he saw him no more, he took hold of his garment and

13 rent it in two pieces. Then he took up the mantle of Elias which fell from on high, and on his return back, he stood on

14 the bank of the Jordan, and took the mantle of Elias which had fallen from him, and smote the water and said, Where is the God of Elias now! And when he had smitten the waters

15 they parted this way and that, so Elisha crossed over. And when the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho over against him, saw him, they said, The spirit of Elias hath rested on Elisha, so they went to meet him, and made obeisance to him

16 by bowing to the ground. Then they said to him, Behold there are with thy servants fifty valiant men. Let them, we pray thee, go and seek thy master. Perhaps a blast of the Lord hath lifted him up and cast him by the Jordan, either on

17 one of the mountains, or one of the hills. And Elisha said. You shall not send. But when they pressed him till he was

18 asliamed, he said, Send. So they sent fifty men. And when they had searched three days, but did not find him, they returned to Elisha, who abode at Jericho. And Elisha said to them, Did I not tell you, you should not go ?

19 Then the men of the city said to Elisha, Behold the situation of the city is good as our lord seeth, but the water is bad

20 and the ground barren. Thereupon Elisha said to them, Bring

21 me a new pitcher and put salt therein. And when they ha'd got one and brought it to him, Elisha went to the spring of the waters, and threw the salt in there and said, Thus saith the the Lord, I cure the waters. There shall no more be thence

22 death or barren ground. So the waters were healed, and continue so to this day, according to the word which Elisha spoke.

23 Then he went up thence to Baithel, and as he was going up he met in the way, little boys who had come out of the city,

24 and who mocked him saying, Ascend bald head! Ascend! And looking back upon them, he beheld them, and denounced a curse against them, in the name of the Lord. And behold there came two bears from the forest, and they tore forty two

25 of the boys. Thence he went to mount Karmel, and thence returned to Samaria.

III. Now Joram son of Achab, began his reign in Israel in the

2 eighteenth year of Josaphat king of Juda, and reigned twelve years, and did evil in the sight of the Lord, but not like his

3 father nor his mother. He indeed removed the pillars of Baal which his father had erected; but he adhered to the sin of Jeroboam son of Nabat, who had caused Israel to sin, and did

4 not depart from that. Now Mosa king of Moab, was a Noked [one who paid tribute in sheep] and rebelliously withheld from the king of Israel a hundred thousand lambs, and a hun-

5 dred thousand rams with the wool. And it happened that after the death of Achab, when the king of Moab broke covenant

6 with Israel, king Joram was at that time gone from Samaria and

7 was reviewing Israel. So he proceeded on and sent to Josaphat king of Juda, saying, The king of Moab hath broken covenant with me, wilt thou go with me to battle against Moab ? To which he replied, I will go up. He is the same to me as he is to thee. My people is as thy people; my horses as thy

8 horses. Then he said, Which way must I go up ? To which

9 he answered, By the way to the wilderness of Edom. So the king of Israel and the king of Juda, and the king of Edom, went out and took a circuit of seven days, and there was no water for the army nor for the cattle which attended them.

10 And when the king of Israel said, Alas ! for the Lord hath called the three kings Avho have come thus far, to deliver them

11 into the hand of Moab; Josaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may inquire of the Lord by him? Whereupon one of the king of Israel's servants in reply, said, Elisha son of Saphat is here, who poured water on the hands

12 of Elias. And Josaphat said, The word of the Lord is with

*

him. So the king of Israel, with Josaphat king of Juda and

13 the king of Edom, went down to him. And Elisha said to the king of Israel, What hastthou to do with me ? Go to the prophets of thy father and the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said to him, I am fearful that the Lord hath called these

14 three kings to deliver them into the hands of Moab. To which Elisha replied, As the Lord of hosts liveth in whose presence I stand, were it not that I respect the person of Josaphat king

15 of Juda, I would not look on thee nor see thee. But now bring

16 me a musician. And when the musician played, the hand of

17 the Lord came upon him, and he said, Thus saith the Lord, Make this valley full of ditches. For thus saith the Lord, You shall not see wind nor shall you see rain, nevertheless this valley shall be filled with water that you and your beasts and your

18 cattle may drink. And this is but a small matter in the eyes of

19 the Lord; for I will deliver Moab into your hands, and you shall smite every fenced city, and cot down every goodly tree. And all the wells of water you shall stop up, and every good

20 piece of ground you shall mar with stones. Accordingly in the morning when the sacrifice ascended, behold there came water by the way of Edom, and the land was filled with water.

21 Now all Moab upon hearing that the three kings were coming to fight against them, had sounded the alarm, To arms from every place all who -wear a girdle, and having repeated the

22 alarm /^o, were drawn up at their border. And when they arose in the morning and the sun shone on the waters, the Mo- abites saw the waters over against them red like blood, and

23 said, This is the blood of the sword. The kings have fought and every man hath slain his fellow, now therefore to the

24 spoils, O Moab! But when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites, arose and smote Moab. And as the Moabites fled before them they entered the country advancing and sinit,

25 ing Moab. The cities they demolished, and on every good piece of ground they threw, every man his stone. And when they had filled it and stopped up every fountain, and cut down every goodly tree, until they left only the stones of the wall of Katheremenus, then tlie slingers surrounded this and smote

26 it. And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too strong for him, he took with him seven hundred men who

m

drew the sword, to cut their way through to the king of Edom.

27 But when he could not, he took his son, his first born, whom he had made king in his stead, and offered him up as a whole burnt offering on the walls. Upon which great commiseration came upon Israel, and they departed from him, and returned into their own land. '.

IV. When a woman, a widow, of one of the sons of the prophets cried to Elisha, saying, Thy servant, my husband, is dead, and thou knowest that thy servant was one who feared the Lord, and the creditor is come to take my two sons to be his

2 slaves, Elisha said to her, What can I do for thee? Tell me; What hast thou in thy house? To which she replied, Thy servant hath nothing in the house/ but only the oil with which I

3 anoint myself. Thereupon he said to her, Go and borrow of all

4 thy neighbours empty vessels. Spare not in borrowing. Then go in and shut the door on thee and thy sons, and pour out into

5 these vessels, setting aside that which is full. So she went away from him; and having shut the door on herself and her sons, they brought to her and she poured out until the vessels were

6 filled. And when she said to her sons, Bring me another vessel, and they replied, There is not a vessel more, the oil stop-

7 ped. Then she went and told the man of God, and Elisha said to her, Go and sell the oil and pay thy debts, and live thou and thy children on the oil which is left.

8 It happened also that one day when Elisha went to Soman, a woman of rank fhere prevailed on him to eat bread. So as oft

9 as he went thither he called in to eat. Whereupon the woman said to her husband, Behold I perceive that the man of God—

10 this holy man passeth by us on all occasions, let us I pray thee, prepare for him a small room up stairs, and let us put there for him a bed and a table and a chair and a lamp, so that when he

11 cometh to us he may turn in thither. So one day when he went there he turned aside into the chamber, and having slept there,

12 he said to his servant Giezi, Call me this Somanite. So he call-

13 ed her and she stood before him. (Now he had'said to his servant, Say, I pray thee, to her, Behold as thou hast taken all this trouble for us, what must I do for thee? Hast thou any message to send to the king or to the general of the army? And she had said to him, I indeed dwell in the midst of my

14 people. Upon which he said to Giezi, What can be done for her? And his servant Giezi replied, She indeed hath not a son

15 and her husband is old.) So when he had called her and she

16 stood at the door, Elisha said to her, This time twelve month, about this very hour thou alive and well hast embraced a son. To which she replied, Nay, my lord, do not deceive thy hand-

17 maid. So the woman conceived and bore a son about that time twelve month, about the very hour, being alive and well as Eli-

18 sha said to her. But when the child grew up, happening to go out to his father to the reapers, he said to his father, My head!

19 my head! Whereupon he said to the servant, Carry him to his

20 mother. So he carried him to his mother, and he lay on her lap

21 till noon and died. And when she had carried him up and laid him on the bed of the man of God, she shut the door on him

22 and came out and called her husband and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the servants and one of the asses that I may go

23 speedily to the man of God and return. And he said to her, Why wouldst thou go to him to-day ? It is neither new moon

24 nor sabbath. To which she replied, Peace. So when he had saddled the ass, she said to her servant, Come, drive on. Slack not thy gait for me, unless I order thee. Come, press forward

25 and go to the man of God to mount Karmel. So she proceeded on and came to the man of God to the mount. Now Elisha saw her coming and said to his servant Giezi, Behold yonder is the

26 Somanite, run and meet her and say, Is it well with thee? Is it well with thy husband ? Is it well with the child? And she said,

27 It is well. But when she came to Elisha on the mount, she took hold of his feet, whereupon Giezi went near to push her back. But Elisha said, Let her alone: for her soul is full of sorrow and the Lord hath hid the cause from me and hath not told me.

28 Then she said, Did I ask a son of my lord? Did I not say, Do

29 not deceive me. Thereupon Elisha said to Giezi, Gird up thy loins and take my staff in thy hand and go. If thou meetest a man salute him not. And if any man salute thee, return him no

30 answer. And lay my staff on the face of the child. But the mother of the child said, As the Lord liveth and thy soul liveth

311 will not leave thee. So Elisha arose and followed her. Now Giezi had gone before her and laid the staff on the child's face; but there was no voice, nor attention. So when he came bark Vol. n. r

32 and met him he said to him, The child is not awaked. And when Elisha came to the house, behold the child was dead and

33 laid upon his bed. Then Elisha went into the house and shut the door upon them two; and having prayed to the Lord he

34 went up and lay down upon the child and put his mouth on the child's mouth, and his eyes on its eyes, and his hands on its hands, and bent himself down upon it; and the flesh of the child

35 was wanned. Then he withdrew, and when he had walked backward and forward in the house, he went up and bent himself upon the child seven times, and the child opened its eyes.

36 Whereupon Elisha called Giezi and said, Call the Somanite.

37 So he called her. And when she came to him, Elisha said, Take tip thy son. Thereupon she eame and fell at his feet, and having made obeisance to him by bowing to the ground she took up her son and went out.

38 When Elisha returned to Galgala there was a famine in the land, and the sons of the prophets sat before him. And Elisha said to his servant, Put on the large kettle and boil some pot-

39 tage for the sons of the prophets. And one went out into the fields to gather herbs, and having found a vine in the fields he gathered from it a lapful of wild berries and threw them into the

40 kettleofsoup; for they did not know them. Then they poured out forthemento eat: but when they had eaten of the pottage, behold they cried out and said, There is death in the kettle, O man of

41 God: for they could not eat. Whereupon he said, Take some meal and throw it into the kettle. Then Elisha said to his servant Giezi, Pour out for the people and let them eat. And

42 there was no more any tiling disagreeable in the kettle. After that there came a man from Baithariso and brought to the man of God, of the first fruits twenty loaves of barley bread and

43 some fig cakes. And he said, Give these to the peopk and let them eat. And when his servant said, Why should I set this before a hundred men? he said, Give it to the people and let

44 them eat; for thus saith the Lord, They shall eat and leave. So they ate and left according to the word of the Lord.

V. Naiman the captain general of the army of Syria, was a man

great in the sight of his master and highly honoured; because

by him the Lord had given deliverance to Syria. But this man

2 who was mighty in power, was leprous. Now the light armed bands had gone from Syria and brought away captive out of the land of Israel, a little girl and she waited on Naiman's wife.

3 And she said to her mistress, O that my master were before the prophet of God who is in Samaria: Then would he cure

4 him of his leprosy. And she went in and told her lord and said, Thus and thus hath the little girl spoken, who is from the

5 land of Israel. Upon this the king of Syria said to Naiman, Come, go, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel. So he set out and took with him ten talents of silver and six thousand pieces of gold and ten suits of apparel and carried the

6 letter to the king of Israel, the purport of which was, Now when this letter shall come to thee, behold I have sent to thee my servant Naiman that thou mayst cure him of his leprosy.

7 And when the king of Israel had read the letter he rent his clothes and said, Am I God to kill or give life, that he send- eth to me to cure a man of his leprosy ? For only consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a pretence for quarreling

8 with me. But when Elisha heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes he sent to him saying, Why hast thou rent thy clothes ? Let Naiman come to me and know that there is

9 a prophet in Israel. So Naiman went with his horses and cha-

10 riot and stopped at the doors of Elisha's house. And Elisha sent a messenger to him saying, Go and wash thyself seven times in the Jordan, and thy flesh shall return to thee and thou

11 shalt be cleansed. Thereupon Naiman was inflamed with indignation and went away saying, Behold I thought he would at least come out and stand and call on the name of his God,

12 or lay his hand on the place, and cure the leprous part. Are not Abana and Pharphar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel ? Why may I not go and wash in them, and be cleansed ? So he turned and went away in a

13 rage. But his servants drew near and said to him, Had the prophet enjoined thee some great thing, wouldst thou not do

14 it? And wilt thou not, because he said, Wash and be clean? Then Naiman went down, and when he had dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the prophet, his flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and

15 he was cleansed. Upon this he and all his retinue, returned to Elisha, and came and stood before him and said, Behold I now know that there is not a God in all the earth but only in Israel. Now therefore accept this acknowledgment, from thy 16 servant. But TLlisha said, As the Lord liveth in whose pre- 17 sence I stand, I will not receive it. And when he urged him to take it and he refused, Naiman said, But if not; pray let there be given to thy servant a couple of mules burden of earth; for thy servant will no more offer a whole burnt offering or a sacrifice to other gods, but only to the Lord. But in this

18 thing may the Lord be gracious to thy servant. When my master goeth into the house of Remman to Avorship there, should he lean on my hand, and I bow down in the house of Remman, when he boweth down there, may the Lord, I pray,

19 -be gracious to thy servant in this respect. And Elisha said

20 to Naiman, Go in peace. Now when he had gone a little way from him, Giezi the servant of Elisha said, Behold my master hath spared Naiman the Syrian, in not receiving at his hand what he brought. As the Lord liveth, I will run after him, and receive something from him. So Giezi went after Nai-

21 man with all speed. And when Naiman saw him running after

22 him, he turned about from his chariot to meet him. And he said, Peace ! My master hath sent me saying, Behold there are just come to me from mount Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets. Give, I pray thee for them a talent

23 of silver and two suits of apparel. To which he replied, Take two talents of silver. So he took two talents of silver, in two bags, and two suits of raiment and laid them on two of his

24 servants and they carried them before him. And when he came to a dark place, he took them from the hands of his servants,

25 and laid them up in the house. And when he had dismissed the men, he went in and stood before his master. And Elisha said to him, Whence comest thou, Giezi? To which he re-

26 plied, Thy servant hath not gone any where. And Elisha said to him, My heart indeed did not go with thee, when the man turned about from his chariot to meet thee. Now thou hast received silver; and thou hast now received the apparel and olive yards and vine yards, and flocks and herds and men ser-

27 vants, and maid servants; but the leprosy of Naiman shall cleave to thee, and thy seed forever. So he went out from his presence, leprous like snow.

VI. When the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, Behold the place where we dwell before thee is too confined for us;

2 let us we pray thee, go to the Jordan, and take thence every man a piece of timber, and build there for ourselves a dwell-

3 ing, and he said, Go ; one of them intreated him saying, Come along with thy servants ; and he said I will go. So he went

4 with them. And when they came to the Jordan and were cut-

5 ting the timber, behold as one was felling the beam the ax dropped in the water. Upon which he cried out, O my lord'.

6 Now it was quite hid. And the man of God said, Where did it fall ? And when he had shewed him the place, he cut a chip of wood and threw it there, and the ax swam on the surface.

7 And he said, Take it up. So he stretched forth his hand and took it up.

8 When the king of Syria was carrying on a war against Israel, and consulted with his servants saying, In such and such

9 a place I will encamp in ambush, Elisha sent to the king of Israel saying, Take care not to pass by such a place, for the

10 Syrians lie concealed there. And when the king of Israel sent to the place which Elisha mentioned, and avoided it more than once or twice, the heart of the king of Syria was. moved

11 at this. And he called his servants and said to them, Why will you not tell me, who it is that betrayeth me to the king of Israel?

12 Thereupon one of his servants said, That is not the case, my lord, O king! For it is Elisha the prophet in Israel who tell- eth the king of Israel all the words which thou speakest in

13 thy bed chamber. Then he said, Go see where he is, and I

14 will send and take him. And when they told him saying, Behold he is at Dothaim, he sent thither horses and chariots,

15 even a strong detachment. And they came by night and surrounded the city. And when Elisha's servant arose early in the morning and went out, behold an army with horses and chariots surrounded the city, whereupon the servant said to

16 him, O my lord, what shall we do? And Elisha said, Fear '7 not; for there are more with us than with them. Then Elislui

prayed and said, O Lord I beseech thee, open his eyes that he may see. Accordingly the Lord opened his eyes and he- looked and lo! the mountain was full of horses and chariots of 18 fire around Elisha. And as the Syrians were coming down upon him Elisha prayed to the Lord and said, Smite I pray thee,

19 this people with dimness of sight. And when he had smitten them with dimness of sight, according to the word of Elisha, Elisha said to them, This is not the city ; nor this the way.

20 Come, follow me, and I will lead you to the man whom you are seeking. So he led them away to Samaria; and when they had entered Samaria, Elisha said, Open, O Lord, I beseech thce, their eyes, and let them see. So he opened their eyes and looked, and behold they were in the midst of Samaria.

21 Now when the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha,

22 My father, shall I smite them? To which he replied, Thou must not smite them. Dost thou smite any but those whom thou hast captivated with thy own sword, or thy own bow? Set bread and water before them and let them eat and drink,

23 and go to their lord. So he made a great entertainment for them. And when they had eaten and drunk he dismissed them, and they went to their master, and the predatory bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.

24 After this, Son Ader king of Syria, assembled his whole army and came up and sat down before Samaria, and there was

25 a great famine in Samaria. For behold they besieged it until an ass's head was sold for fifty shekels of silver, and a quarter of

26 a kab of vetches for five shekels of silver. And as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried to him and said>

27 Save me, my lord, O king! And the king said to her, Unless the Lord save thee, whence can I save thee, from the threshing

28 floor or from the press ? Then the king said to her, What is the matter with thee? And the woman said, This woman said to me, Give thy son that we may eat him to-day ; and we will

29 eat my son to-morrow. So when we had boiled my son and eaten him, I said to her on the next day, Give thy son that we

30 may eat him ; but she hath hidden her son. When the king of Israel heard the words of the woman he rent his clothes, as lie was passing along on the wall, so that all the people saw the

31 sackcloth underneath on his flesh. And he said, God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha shall stand on him this

32 day. Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. And when the king despatched a man before him; before the messenger came to him he said to the elders, Do you see that this son of a murderer hath sent to take off my head ? Look ! when the messenger cometh, shut the door and stop him there. Is not the sound of his master's feet behind

33 him? And while he was speaking with them, behold the messenger came down to him. And when the king said, Behold this calamity is from the Lord ; why should I wait any longer

VII. for the Lord ? Elisha replied, Hear a word of the Lord, Thus saith the Lord, About this time to-morrow, a measure of fine flour for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel,

"2 in the gates of Samaria. Upon this a nobleman on whose hand the king leaned, in reply to Elisha said, Behold should the Lord make flood gates in heaven, can such a thing be ? And Elisha replied, Behold thou shalt see it with thy eyes but shalt not eat thereof.

-3 Now there were four lepers before the gate of the city, and

4 one said to another, Why sit we here till we die? If we say, let us go into the city; there is a famine in the city and we must die there. And if we stay here we must die. Now therefore come, let us desert to the camp of Syria; if they take us alive we may live; and if they put us to death, we can but die.

5 So they arose when it was dark to go to the Syrian camp, € But when they came to a part of the camp of Syria; behold

there was not a man there. For the Lord had caused the sound of chariots and the sound of horses, and the sound of a great army to be heard in the Syrian camp: whereupon they said one to another, Now hath the king of Israel hired against us> the kings of the Chettites and the kings of Egypt to come upon

7 us. Therefore they arose and fled while it was dark. They left their tents and their horses and their asses in the camp as

8 it was, and fled for their lives. So when the lepers came to a part of the camp they went into a tent and ate and drank, and carried thence silver and gold and raiment, and went away. And returning again they went into another tent and took

9 things out of it and hid them. Then one said to another, We should not do so. This is a day of good news. Should we be silent and wait till the morning light, we shall incur guilt. No\v therefore, come, let us go and inform the king's household.

10 Accordingly they came and cried with a loud voice at the gate of the city and told them the news, saying, We have been to the camp of Syria and behold there rs not a man there., nor tlv sound of a man. For there is nothing there but the horses and

11 the asses tied, and the tents as they were. And when the watchmen atthe gates cried and told the king's household within, the

12 king arose and said to his servants, Let me tell you what Syria hath done to us. They know that we are famishing, therefore they have left their camp and hid themselves in the fields, saying, They will come out of the city and we shall take the.m

13 alive and enter the city. To this one of his servants said in reply, Pray let them take five of the remaining horses which are left here, behold they are nearly all the multitude belonging to

14 Israel which are left; and let us send thither and see. So they took two horsemen, and the king of Israel sent them after the

15 king of Syria, saying, Go and see. And they went on after them as far as the Jordan. And behold all the way was full of clothes and vessels, which the Syrians had thrown away in their pa- nick fright. And when the messengers returned and told the king, the people went out and plundered the camp of Syria.

16 So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the Lord.

17 Now the king had stationed at the gate the nobleman on whose hand he had leaned, but the people trode him down so that he died, according to the saying of the man of God, who spoke to

18 him when the messenger came down to him. For when Elisha spoke to the king, saying, Two measures of barley for a shekel and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, and this shall be about

19 this time to-morrow in the gate of Samaria; this nobleman answered and said to Elisha, Behold should the Lord make flood gates in heaven, could this be? Thereupon Elisha said, Behold thou shall see with thy eyes but shalt not eat thereof. And so it fell out: For the people trampled him down at the gate, so that he died.

VIII. Elisha having spoken to the woman whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise and go thou and thy family and sojourn where thou canst; for the Lord hath called for

2 a famine against this land, and it is come upon the land for seven years; the woman arose and did according to the word of Eli-

3 sha, and both she and her family sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years. And at the end of the seven years, the woman returned from the land of the Philistines to the city, and went to apply to the king about her house and her fields.

4 Now the king had spoken to Giezi, the servant of Elisha, the man of God, saying, Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things

5 which Elisha hath done. And it happened that as he was relating how he had brought to life a son that was dead, behold the woman whose son Elisha had restored to life, applied to the king about her house and her fields. And Giezi said, My Lord the king! This is the woman, and this is her son, whom

6 Elisha restored to life. Upon which the king inquired of the woman, and when she told him, the king appointed for her an officer, and said, Restore all that belonged to her, and all the produce of the fields from the day she left the land even to this day.

7 When Elisha went to Damascus, Son Ader king of Syria

8 was sick. And when they told him, saying, The man of God is arrived here, the king said to Azael, Take in thy hand an offering, and go meet the man of God, and inquire of the Lord

9 by him, saying, Shall I recover of this disease ? So Azael went to meet him, and took with him of all the good things of Damascus, forty camels' burden. And coming, he stood before Elisha, and said to him, Thy son, Son Ader king of Syria, hath sent me to thee to inquire, saying, Shall I recover of this dis-

10 ease of mine ? And Elisha said, Go say, Thou shalt be in vigour of life as the Lord hath shewn me, when thou by death shalt

11 die. Then he stood with his eyes fixed on the countenance of Azael, and kept them fixed till he blushed. And the man of

12 God wept. Whereupon Azael said, Why doth my lord weep? To which he replied, Because I know all the evils which thou wilt do to the children of Israel. Their fortresses thou wilt demolish with fire; their chosen men thou wilt slay with the sword. Thou wilt dash to pieces their infants, and rip up their

13 women with child. At this Azael said, Who is thy servant! a dead dog! that I should do such a thing ? And Elisha said, To me the Lord hath pointed thee out reigning over Syria.

14 Then lie departed from Elisha, and went to his master, who said to him, What did Elisha say to thee? To which he re-

15 plied, He said thou shalt be in vigour of life. And on the next day he took a napkin, and having dipped it in water, he spread it over his face, so that he died. And Azael reigned in his stead-.

VOL. II. <l

16 In the fifth year of Joram, son of Achab, king of Israel, while Josaphat reigned over Jucla, Joram son of Josaphat be-

17 gan to reign as king of Juda. He was thirty two years of age when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusa-

18 lem, and walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as the house of Achab did, for he had for his wife a daughter of Achab.

19 But though he did evil in the sight of the Lord, yet the Lord would not destroy Juda for David his servant's sake; as he had

20 promised to give a lamp to him, and his children forever. Irt his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Juda, and

21 made a king over themselves. When Joram went up to Sior and all his chariots with him, though upon their rising he smote Edom, who had surrounded him and the captain of the

22 chariots, yet the people fled to their habitations, and Edom re-

23 volted from under the hand of Juda even to this day. At the same time Lobna also revolted. Now the rest of the acts of Joram and all that he did, behold are they not written in the

24 book of the journal of the kings of Juda? And when Joram slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David, Ochozias his son reigned in his stead.

25 In the twelfth year of Joram, son of Achab, king of Israel,

26 Ochozias son of Joram reigned. He was in his twenty second year when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was Gotholia, a grand daughter

27 of Ambri king of Israel. And he walked in the way of Achab and did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, like the house

28 of Achab. Now he went with Joram son of Achab to battle against Azael king of Syria, at Remmath Galaad, and the Sy-

29 rians smote Joram. And when king Joram returned to Jezrael to be cured of the wounds with which the Syrians had smitten him, when he fought Azael king of Syria; and Ochozias son of Joram went down to see Joram son of Achab at Jezrael,

IX. because he was sick; Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets, and said to him, Gird up thy loins and take this cruise of oil in thy hand and go to Remmath Galaad.

2 And when thou art come there, and shalt see Jehu, son of Josaphat, son of Namessi, thou shalt go in and cause him to rise from among his brethren, and having taken him into an inner

3 chamber, thou shalt take the cruise of oil and pour it on his head, and say, Thus saith the Lord, I have anointed thee to be king over Israel. Then thou shalt open the door and flee,

4 and shalt not tarry. So the young man, the prophet went to

5 Remmath Galaad, and when he came, behold the chiefs of the army were seated, and he said, I have a message to thee, O

6 chief. Whereupon Jehu said, To which of us all? And he said, To thee, the chief. And when he arose and went into the house, the prophet poured the oil on his head, and said to him, Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel, I have anointed

7 thee to be king over the people of the Lord—over Israel. And thou shalt utterly destroy the house of thy master Achab, from before me, and avenge the blood of my servants the prophetsy

8 and the blood of all the servants of the Lord at the hand of Jezabel and at the hand of all the house of Achab. And thou shalt cut off from the house of Achab every male, both him

9 who is attended and him who is neglected in Israel. For I will make the house of Achab like the house of Jeroboam son of

10 Nabat, and like the house of Baasa son of Achia. And the dogs shall devour Jezabel in the portion of Jezrael, and there

11 shall be none to bury her. Then he opened the door and fled. And when Jehu went out to the servants of his master, they said to him, Is all well? Why came this mad man to thee?

12 And he said to them, You know the man, and his idle discourse. And they said, Thou wrongest us. Pray tell us. Then Jehu, said, Thus and thus he spoke to me, saying. And when he said, Thus saith the Lord, I have anointed thee to be king

13 over Israel, they who heard hasted, and every one taking his garment, they spread theih under him on the top of the stairs,

14 and sounding a trumpet, they said, Jehu is king. Thus Jehu son of Josaphat the son of Namessi conspired against Jorum.

Now Joram and all Israel kept garrison at Remmath Ga-

15 laad because of Azael king of Syria, but king Joram had returned to Jezrael to be cured of the wounds which the Syrians had given him when he fought Azael king of Syria. Therefore Jehu said, If your soul is with me let no deserter escape from

16 the city to go and tell the news at Jezracl. Then Jehu drew out the cavalry and set out on the march and went down to Jezrael, because Joram king of Israel was there under cure, on account of the wounds from arrows with which the Aramins shot him at Remmath Galaad in the battle with Azael king of Syria ; for he was a valiant man and a warrior. And Ochozias the

17 king of Juda had gone down there to see him. And when a watchman ascended the tower of Jezrael and saw the dust of Jehu as he advanced, he said, I see a dust. Upon which Joram said, Take a horseman and send to meet them, and let him

18 say, Is all well; So the horseman went to meet them. And when he said, Thus saith the king, Is all well? Jehu replied, What is it to thee? Fall in behind me. Then the watchman proclaimed saying, The messenger went up to them, but re-

19 turneth not. Thereupon the king despatched a second horseman ; and when he came up to him and said, Thussaiththe king, Is all well? Jehu replied, What is it to thee? Fall in behind me.

20 And when the watchman proclaimed saying, He went up to them but returneth not. And he who is the leader, leadeth on

21 like Jehu the Namessite, for it is with great speed; Joram said, Prepare a chariot. And when the chariot was ready Joram king of Israel and Ochozias king of Juda went out each in his own chariot, to meet Jehu, and met him at the field of Nabuthi the

22 Jezraelitc. And when Joram saw Jehu he said, Is all well ? To which Jehu replied, How can it be well, when the fornications of Jezabel thy mother and her sorceries are still so many ?

23 Thereupon Joram turned his hand and fled and said to Ocho-

24 zias, Treason! Ochozias. Then Jehu grasping the bow shot Joram between the shoulders, and the arrow passed through

25 his heart and he fell on his knees. Then Jehu said to Badekar his principal officer, Throw him into that part of the field of Nabuthi the Jezraelite. For I remember that when I and thou were riding together after Achab his father, the Lord pro-

26 nounced this prophecy against him, Have I not seen the blood of Nabuthi and the blood of his sons yesterday? saith the Lord. Therefore I will retribute to him in this very plat of ground, saith the Lord. Now therefore take him up I pray thee and cast him into that plat of ground according to the word of the Lord;

27 And when Ochozias king of Juda saw this he fled by die way of Baithgan and Jehu pursued after him, for he said, And him also; and smote him in his chariot, as he was going down to Gai which is Jeblaam. But he fled to Mageddo and died there.

28 And his servants took him up in his chariot and brought him

to Jerusalem and they buried him in his own sepulchre in the

29 city of David, he having begun to reign over Juda in the eleventh year of Joram king of Israel.

30 Now when Jehu came to Jezrael and Jezabel heard, she painted her eyes and dressed her head and looked out at a win-

31 dow. And as Jehu was entering the city she said, Was it well

32 withZambri who murdered his master? Whereupon he looked up to the window, and when he saw her he said, Who art thou? Come down to me. Then two chamberlains looked out at him

33 and he .said, Throw her down. So they threw her down and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall and on the horses;

34 for they trampled upon her. And when he had gone in and had eaten and drunk he said, Look, I pray you, for that cursed

35 woman and bury her, for she is a king's daughter. But when they went out to bury her and found nothing of her but only the scull and the feet and the palms of the hands, they returned

36 and told him, whereupon he said, This is the word of the Lord which he spoke by the ministry of Elias the Thesbite, In the

37 field of Jezrael the dogs shall devour the flesh of Jezabel; and the carcase of Jezabel shall be like dung on the ground in the field of Jezrael, that they may not say, Here lieth Jezabel.

X. Now Achab had seventy sons in Samaria, therefore Jehu wrote a letter and sent it to Samaria to the chiefs of Samaria and to the elders and to them who had the charge of bringing

2 up Achab's sons, saying, Soon as this letter shall reach you, as you have with you your master's sons and there are with you

3 chariots and horses and strong cities and arms, look out the best and fittest of your master's sons and set him on the throne

4 of his father and fight for the house of your master. Upon which they were greatly terrified and said, Behold the two kings

5 were not able to^tand before him, and how can we? Therefore the officers of the household and the chiefs of the city and the elders and they who had the charge of bringing up the children sent to Jehu saying, We are thy servants and will do whatever thou shalt order us. We will not make any man

6 king. We will do what is good in thy eyes. Thereupon Jehu wrote them a second letter saying, If you are for me and will hearken to my voice, take the heads of the men—the sons of your lord and bring them to me about this time tomorrow to Jezracl. Now the king's sons were seventy men

7 and the nobles of that city brought them up. So when this letter reached them, they took the king's sons and slew them, the seventy men, and put their heads in baskets, and

8 sent them to him at Jezrael. And when a messenger came and told him saying, They have brought the heads of the king's sons; he said, Pile them up in two heaps at the gate of the

9 city till the morning. And in the morning he went out, and standing up, said to all the people, Ye righteous men ! behold I conspired against my master and slew him: but who hath

10 slain all these ? You see now that there shall not fall to the ground any part of the word of the Lord which he spake against the house of Achab. For the lord hath executed all

11 that he spoke by the ministry of his servant Elias. Then Jehu slew all that were left of the house of Achab in Jezrael, and all his nobles and his acquaintance, and his priests, so that there

12 was not a remnant of him left. Then he arose and set out on

13 his march to Samaria; and coming to the shepherd's pit on the way, he met the brothers of Ochozias king of Juda, and said, Who are ye ? And when they said, We are the brothers of Ochozias and are come down to salute the children of the king and the children of the queen, he said, Take them alive.

14 So they slew them at that pit. Of forty two men he did not

15 leave a man of them. And going thence he met Jonadab son of Rechab, coming to meet him. And when he had saluted him, Jehu said to him, Is thy heart right with my heart, as my heart is with thine ? And when Jonadab said, It is : Jehu said to him, Give me thy hand. So he gave him his hand. Then he caused him to come up to him into the chariot, and said,

. 16 Come with me and see my zeal for the Lord. So he caused

17 him to take a seat in the chariot. And when he arrived at Samaria, he slew all that were left of Achab in Samaria until he had utterly destroyed him, according to the word of the Lord which he spoke to El'ias.

18 Then Jehu assembled all the people and said to them,

19 Achab served Baal a little, Jehu will serve him much. Now therefore all ye, the prophets of Baal, call before me all his servants and his priests. Let not a man be wanting; for I have a great sacrifice for Baal. Whoever is missing shall not live. This Jehu did in subtilty, that he might destroy all the

20 servants of Baal. Then Jehu said, Hallow a solemnity for Baal. And when they had proclaimed it, Jehu sent to all Israel, say-

21 ing, Now let all his servants and all his priests, and all his prophets attend. Let none be missing. For I am going to make a great sacrifice; whoever is missing shall not live. So all the servants of Baal came, with all his priests and all his prophets. There was not a man left who did not attend. And when they came to the house of Baal the house was filled from door to

23 door. Jehu said to the keeper of the wardrobe, Bring out vestments for all the servants of Baal. And when the keeper of the wardrobe had brought them out, Jehu went with Jonadab son of Rechab into the house of Baal, and said to the servants of Baal, Search and see whether there be with you any of the servants of the Lord; for there must be none but only the ser-

£4 vants of Baal. Then he went in to offer incense and whole burnt offerings. Now Jehu had stationed for himself eighty men without, and said to them, If any of these men escape whom I deliver into your hands, the life of him who letteth

25 him escape shall answer for his life. So when he had finished offering the whole burnt offering, Jehu said to the guards and to the officers, Go in and smite them; let not a man of them

26 get out. So the guards and the officers smote them with the edge of the sword; and having thrown them out, they went to the city of the house of Baal, and brought out the pillar of

27 Baal and burned it. And having pulled down the pillars of

28 Baal they made it a jakes even to this day. Thus Jehu de-

29 stroyed Baal out of Israel. But he did not refrain from following the sins of Jeroboam son of Nabat, who had caused Israel to sin. The golden calves continued in Baithel and in Dan.

30 Though the Lord said to Jehu, Because thou hast taken a pleasure in doing what is right in my sight, and hast done to the house of Achab according to all that was in my heart, thy children of the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Isra-

31 el; yet Jehu was not careful to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel wkh his whole heart. He did not refrain from following the sins of Jeroboam who had caused Israel to sin.

32 In those days the Lord began to lop Israel; and Azael S3 smote them all along the border of Israel, from the Jordan. towards the rising of the sun—all the land of Galaad belonging to the Gadites and the Reubenites and the Manassites from Aroer, which is on the bank of the brook Arnon, including

34 Galaad and Basan. Now the rest of the acts of Jehu and all that he did and all his power, and the connexions which he formed, are they not written in the journal of the kings of Is-

35 rael? When Jehu slept with his fathers, they buried him in

36 Samaria, and Joachas his son reigned in his stead. The time which Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty eight years.

XI. Now when Gotholia the mother of Ochozias saw that her

2 son was dead, she destroyed all the royal seed. But Josabee king Joram's daughter, the sister of Ochozias, took Joas her brother's son—having stolen him from among the king's sons who were slain, both him and his nurse, she hid him in the chamber of beds from Gotholia, so that he was not put to

3 death. An"d he was with her hidden in the house of the Lord

4 six years, while Gotholia reigned over the land. .But in the seventh year Jodae sent for the centurions of the Chorrites and the Rasimites, and had them brought to him into the house of the Lord, and made a covenant of the Lord with them; and having exacted an oath of them he shewed them the king's

5 son. Then he gave them a charge saying, This is the thing which you shall do. Let one third of you come in on the sab-

6 bath and keep guard, over the king's house at the gate; another third at the gate of the high way, and the other third at the

7 gate behind the guards. So you will guard the house. And two companies among you even all who go out on the sabbath shall keep guard in the house of the Lord before the

8 king. And you shall encompass the king round about, every man with his weapon in his hand. And whoever cometh within the saderoth, let him be put to death. And they shall be with

9 the king when he goeth out and when he cometh in. Accordingly the centurions did all that the prudent Jodae commanded them. And they took every man his men, both those who came in on duty on the sabbath and those who were to go off

10 on that day, and went to Jodae the priest. And the priest gave the centurions the spears and the shields of king David, which

11 were in the house of the Lord. And the guards stood every

man with his weapon in his hand, from the right corner of the house to the corner of the house which is on the left of the al-

12 tar, and of the house near the king round about. Then he sent for the king's son and put upon him the nezer and the testimony, and announcing him king, anointed him. Upon which they clapped with the hand, and said, Long live the

13 king. When Gotholia heard the noise of the people's guards, she came to the people into the house of the Lord and looked.

14 -And behold the king was standing on the pillar as the manner was, and the musicians and the trumpeters were before the king, and all the people of the land were rejoicing and the trumpets sounding. Whereupon Gotholia rent her clothes and

15 cried with a loud voice, Treason! Treason! Then Jodae the priest gave orders to the centurions, the officers of the army, and said to them, Lead her out from within the saderoth and let

16 one go after her and put her to death with the sword. Because the priest said, Let her not be killed in the house of the Lord, therefore they laid hands on her and went out into the street leading from the king's house to the horse gate, and she was

17 slain there. Then Jodae made a covenant between the Lord and the king and the people, that they would be the Lord's people. And he made a covenant also between the king and,

18 the people. Then all the people of the land went into the house of Baal and tore him down and broke all to pieces, his altars and his images, and slew Mathan the priest of Baal before the altar. And when the priest had appointed overseers over the

19 house of the Lord, he took the centurions with the Chorrite? and the Rasimites and all the people of the land and they conducted the king out of the house of the Lord into the street leading from the king's house to the gate of the guard house,

20 and set him on the throne of the kings. And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was at peace after they had slain Gotholia at the king's house.

XII. Joas was seven years old when he began to reign. He

commenced his reign in the seventh year of Jehu and reigned

2 forty years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Sabia qf

Bersabee. And Joas did what was right in the sight of the

Lord, all the time Jodae the priest, instructed him. But none

VOL. II. R

3 of the high places were removed. There the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.

4 Though Joas said to the priests, With regard to all the money arising from things consecrated, the income of the house of the Lord, the money of estimation at which every man is rated, and all the money which it may come into any man's

5 heart to bring into the house of the Lord, let the priests take for themselves; but they must bear, every one from what he selleth, the expence of the repairs of the house wherever a repair is found necessary; yet in the three and twentieth year of

6 king Joas it was found that the priests had not made the repairs

7 of the house. Wherefore Joas the king sent for Jodae the priest and the other priests, and said to them, Why have you not made the repairs of the house ? Now therefore you must not take the money arising from your sales; for you shall give

8 it for repairing the house. So the priests agreed not to receive any money from the people, on condition that they should

9 not bear the expence of the repairs of the house. Then Jodae the priest took a chest and bored a hole in the lid of it, and

' placed it before the Ammazeibi in the house of the superin- tendant of the house of the Lord; and the priests who kept the weights put therein all the money which was found in the

10 house of the Lord. And when they saw that there was much money in the chest, the king's secretary went with the chief

11 priest, and tied up and numbered the money found in the house of the Lord, and delivered the money when ready into the hands of them who did the works, the overseers of the house of the Lord; and they dealt it out to the carpenters and

12 masons who wrought in the house of the Lord ; and to them who built the wall, and to stone cutters, to purchase wood and hewn stone sufficient for the repairs of the house; and to

13 defray all the expences of the house. But there were not to be made for the house of the Lord silver doors, nails, goblets, nor any vessels of gold or silver out of the money brought

14 into the house of the Lord; for they were to give it to them, who did the work; and with it they were to keep in repair the

15 house of the Lord. Now they did not call the men to account, into whose hands they delivered the money to deal it out to the

16 workmen, for they acted faithfully. The money for sin offerings, and the money for trespass offerings which was brought into the house of the Lord, was for the priests.

17 At that time Azael king of Syria went up and fought

18 against Geth and took it. And when Azael set his face to come up against Jerusalem, Joas king of Juda, took all the dedicated things which Josaphat and Joram and Ochozias, his forefathers the kings of Juda had dedicated, together with his own dedications, and all the gold which was found in the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the king's house, and sent them to Azael king of Syria, and he went up from Jcru-

19 salem. Now all the acts of Joas and all that he did, behold

20 are they not written in the journal of the king's of Juda?

When his servants arose and having formed a conspiracy smote Joas at the house of Mello which is in Sela, (Now Jezir-

21 char son of Jemuath and Jezebuth son of Somer his servants smote him) so that he died, he was buried with his fathers in the city of David, and Amessias his son reigned in his stead.

XIII. In the twenty third year of Joas son of Ochozias king of Juda, Joachaz son of Jehu reigned in Samaria, and reigned

2 seventeen years. And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked after the sins of Jeroboam son of Na- bat who had caused Israel to sin, and did not depart from them.

3 Therefore the Lord was angry with Israel, and delivered them into the hand of Azael king of Syria, and into the hands of

4 Son Ader son of Azael all those days. But Joachaz intreated the favour of the Lord, and the Lord hearkened to him ; for he

5 saw the affliction of Israel because the king of Syria oppressed them, and the Lord gave deliverance to Israel, so that they got from under the hand of Syria, and the Israelites dwelt in

6 their habitations as in former times. Notwithstanding this they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam who had

7 caused Israel to sin; but walked therein. And die grove also at Samaria still remained, though there had not been left to Joachaz any army, but only fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand infantry. For the king of Syria, had destroy-

8 ed them and made them like dust to be trampled on. Now the rest of the acts of Joauhaz, and all that he did and his exploits, are they not written in the journal of the kings of Is-

9 rael ? And Joachaz slept widi his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria, and Joas his son reigned in his stead.

10 In the thirty seventh year of Joas, king of Juda, Joas son

11 of Joachaz king of Israel reigned over Israel in Samaria. His reign was sixteen years, and he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam, son of Nabat, who had caused Israel to sin, but

12 walked therein. Now the rest of the acts of Joas and all that he did and his exploits with Amessias king of Juda, are they

13 not written in the journal of the kings of Israel ? When Joas slept with his fathers, and Jeroboam sat on his throne, he was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

14 Now when Elisha was sick, with the sickness of which he died; Joas king of Israel went down to him, and wept over

15 him and said, My father! my father! The chariot of Israel and the horseman thereof! And Elisha said to him, Take a bow and arrows. And when he had gotten himself a bow and arrows, Elisha said to the king, Lay thy hand firm on the bow.

16 And when Joas had laid his hand firm on the bow, Elisha put his hand on the king's hand and said, Open that window

17 to the east. And when he had opened it, Elisha said, Shoot. And when he shot Elisha said, The Lord hath an arrow of

» deliverance—yes, an arrow of deliverance from Syria, and

18 thou shalt smite Syria at Aphek to destruction. Then Elisha said to him, Take the quiver full of arrows. And when he had taken it, he said to the king of Israel, Smite against the

19 ground. And when the king had smitten tlirice, he stopt. At which the man of God was grieved and said, Hadst thou smitten five or six times, then wouldst thou have smitten Syria to utter destruction, but now thou shalt smite Syria only thrice.

20 Now Elisha died, and they buried him. And the year following the predatory bands of Moab invaded the land. And it happened that while they were bury ing a man, behold they

21 saw the band ; upon which they threw the man into Elisha's tomb, and when he sunk down and touched the bones of Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet.

22 Now Azael had oppressed Israel all the days of Joachaz, but the Lord pitied them and compassionated them, and looked upon them, because of his covenant with Abraham and Isaak

23 and Jacob : and the Lord would not utterly destroy them

24 nor did he cast them out of his sight. So when Azael king of Syria was dead, and Son Ader his son reigned in his stead,

25 Joas son of Joachaz returned and took out of the hand of Son Ader son of Azael, the cities which he had taken in war out of the hands of Joachaz, his father. Thrice Joas smote him and recovered the cities of Israel.

XIV. In the second year of Joas son of Joachaz king of Is-

2 rael, Amessias son of Joas king of Juda, began his reign. He was twenty five years old, when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty nine years in Jerusalem, and his mother's

3 name was Joadim of Jerusalem. And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, but not like his father David.

4 According to all that his father Joas had done, he did. But he did not remove the high places. Still the people sacrificed

5 and burned incense on the high places. And when the kingdom was confirmed in his hand, he smote his servants who had slain his father. But the children of the murderers he did not put to death. As it is written in the book of the laws of

6 Moses—as the Lord commanded saying, Fathers shall not be put to death for children; nor shall children be put to

7 death for fathers ; for every one shall die for his own sins.

He smote of Edom in Gemeled ten thousand and took Petra by war and called its name Jethoel which it now hath.

8 Then Amessias sent messengers to Joas son of Joachaz son of Jehu king of Israel saying, Come, let us look one another

9 in the face. Whereupon Joas king of Israel, sent to Amessias king of Juda, saying, The thistle which is on Libanus sent to the cedar on Libanus saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife; but the wild beasts of the field in traversing Liba-

10 nus trampled down the thistle. Thou hast smitten Idumea, and thy heart is elated. Enjoy thy glory at home. Why seek- est thou a quarrel to thy hurt, that thou shouldst fall and Juda

11 with thee? But Amessias would not hearken. Therefore Joas king of Israel went up. And he and Amessias king of Juda

12 met each other at Baithsamus in Juda. And Juda gave way

13 before Israel and fled every man to his tent. And Joas king of Israel took Amessias son of Joas son of Ochozias at Baithsamus, and came to Jerusalem, and demolished of the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim, to the gate of the corner,

14 four hundred cubits. And he took the gold and silver and all the vessels which were found in the house of the Lord, and in the treasuries of the king's house, and hostages for the per-

15 formance of their agreements, and returned to Samaria. Now the rest of the acts of Joas and all the exploits which he performed in his war with Amessias king of Juda, are they not

16 written in the journal of the kings of Israel? And Joas slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel, and Jeroboam his son reigned in his stead.

17 Amessias son of Joas king of Juda, lived after the death of

18 Joas son of Joachaz king of Israel, fifteen years. Now the rest of the acts of Amessias and all that he did, are they not writ-

19 ten in the journal of the kings of Juda? A conspiracy being formed against him in Jerusalem he fled to Lachis, but they

20 sent after him to Lachis and there put him to death. But they brought him on horses and he was buried in Jerusalem with

21 his fathers in the city of David. Afterwards all the people of Juda took Azarias when he was sixteen years old and made

22 him king in the room of his father Amessias. He rebuilt Ailoth and recovered it for Juda after the king slept with his fathers.

23 In the fifteenth year of Amessias son of Joas king of Juda Jeroboam son of Joas reigned over Israel in Samaria. His

24 reign was forty one years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from the sins of Jeroboam son of Na-

25 bat who had caused Israel to sin. He extended the border of Israel from the bay of Aimath to the sea of Araba, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which he spoke by the ministry of his servant Jonas son of Amathi the prophet of

26 Gethchopher. For the Lord saw that the affliction of Israel was very bitter, that they were few in number, closely confined, reduced to penury and forsaken; and that there was no helper

27 for Israel; And the Lord had said that he would not blot out the seed of Israel from under heaven. Therefore he saved

28 them by the hand of Jeroboam son of Joas. Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam and all that he did, and his exploits, how- he warred, and how he recovered Damascus and Aimath which belonged to Juda, for Israel; are they not written in the journal

29 of the kings of Israel? And Jeroboam slept with his fathers.—

with the kings of Israel, and Zacharias his son reigned in his stead. XV. In the twenty seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel,

2 Azarias son of Amessias king of Juda began to reign. He was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty two years in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was Jechelia

3 of Jerusalem. He did that which was right in the sight of the

4 Lord, according to all that his father Amessias had done. But the high places he did not remove. Still the people sacrificed

5 and burned incense on the high places. Though the Lord struck the king with a leprosy and he was leprous to the day of his death, yet he reigned in the house, Apphusoth; and Jo- atham the king's son was over the household and judged the

6 people of the land. Now the rest of the acts of Azarias and all that he did, are they not written in the journal of the kings of

7 Juda? And when Azarias slept with his fathers, they buried him with his fathers in the city of David, and Joatham his son reigned in his stead.

8 In the thirty eighth year of Azarias king of Juda, Zacharias son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in Samaria. His

9 reign was six months. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord as his father had done. He departed not from all the sins of Je-

10 roboam son of Nabat who caused Israel to sin. And Sellum son of Jabis conspired against him, and when they had smitten him at Keblaam and put him to death, he reigned in his stead.

11 Now the rest of the acts of Zacharias, behold they are written

12 in the journal of the kings of Israel. This was the word of the Lord which he spake to Jehu saying, Thy sons in the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel; and so it came to pass.

13 Sellum son of Jabis began to reign in the thirty ninth year

14 of Azarias king of Juda; and when he had reigned one month in Samaria, Manaem son of Gaddi went up from Tharsila and came to Samaria and smote Sellum son of Jabis in Samaria and

15 put him to death. Now the rest of the acts of Sellum and his conspiracy, behold they are written in the journal of the kings

16 of Israel. Then Manaem smote Thersa and all in it, and the suburbs adjoining Thersa. Because they opened not to him, therefore he smote it and ripped up the women with child.

17 In the thirty ninth year of Azarias king of Juda, Manaem son of Gaddi began to reign over Israel in Samaria. His reign

18 was ten years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord. He . . departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam son of Nabat, who

19 had caused Israel to sin. In his days Phua king of the Assyrians, came up against the land. And Manaem gave Phua a

20 thousand talents of silver that he might aid him. This money Manaem levied on Israel, fifty shekels a piece upon every mighty man, to be given to the king of the Assyrians. So the king of the Assyrians returned and made no establibhment in

21 the land. Now the rest of the acts of Manaem and all that he did, behold are they not written in the journal of the kings of

22 Israel ? And when Manaem slept with his fathers his son Pha- kesias reigned in his stead.

23 In the fiftieth year of Azarias king of Juda, Phakesias son of Manaem began to reign over Israel in Samaria. His reign

24 was two years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord. He departed not from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nabat, who

25 caused Israel to sin. And Phakee son of Romelias, his chief captain, conspired against him. And being assisted by Argob and Aria and having with him fifty men of the guard of four hundred, he slew him at Samaria before the palace. And when

26 he had slain him he reigned in his stead. Now the rest of the acts of Phakesias and all that he did, behold they are written in the journal of the kings of Israel.

27 In the fifty second year of Azarias king of Juda, Phakee son of Romelias began to reign over Israel in Samaria. His reign

28 was'twenty years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord and did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam son of Nabat, who

29 had caused Israel to sin. In the days of Phakee king of Israel, Thalgathphellasar king of the Assyrians came up and took Ain and Abel, and Thamacha and Anioch, and Kenez and Asor, and Galen and Galilee—all the land of Nephthaleim, and

30 removed the inhabitants to Assyria. And Osea son of Ela formed a conspiracy against Phakee son of Romelias, and smote him, and having put him to death reign,ed in his stead

31 in the twentieth year of Joatham son of Azarias. Now the rest of the acts of Phakee and all that he did, behold they are writ- t^n in the journal of the kings of Israel.

32 In the second year of Phakee son of Romelias, king of Israel, Joatham son of Azarias, king of Juda, began to reign.

33 He was twenty five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was

34 Jerusa, a daughter of Sadok. And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Azarias had

35 done. But the high places he did not remove. Still the people sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. He built the

36 upper gate of the house of the Lord. Now the rest of the acts of Joatham and all that he did, are they not written in the jour-

37 nal of the kings of Juda? In these days the Lord began to send against Juda Raasson king of Syria, and Phakee son of

38 Romelias. When Joatham slept with his fathers he was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father, and Achaz ,his son reigned in his stead.

XVI. In the seventeenth year of Phakee, son of Romelias,

2 Achaz son of Joatham king of Juda, began to reign. Achaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, but he did not do what was right in die sight of the Lord his God with fidelity like David his fa-

3 ther. He indeed walked in the way of the kings of Israel. He even made his son pass through fire according to the abomi. nable acts of the nations which the Lord had removed from

4 before the Israelites. He sacrificed also and burned incense on the high places, and on the mounts and under every shady

5 tree. Then came up Raasson, king of Syria, and Phakee son of Romelias king of Israel, against Jerusalem for war, and be-

6 sieged Achaz but could not bring him to battle. At that time Raasson, king of Syria, recovered Ailath for Syria; and when he had driven the Jews out of Ailath the Idumeans went to

7 Ailath, and have dwelt there to this day. Then Achaz sent messengers to Thalgathphellasar, king of the Assyrians, saying, I am thy servant and thy son. Come up: Save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand

8 of the king of Israel, who are risen up against me. And Achaz took the silver and the gold which was found in the treasures of the house of the Lord and the king's house, and sent gifts

9 to the king. Whereupon the king of the Assyrians hearkened to him and came up against Damascus and took it, and having

VOL. II. S

removed the inhabitants thereof he put king Raasson to death.

10 Then Achaz went up to Damascus to meet Thalgathphella- sar king of the Assyrians, at that place. And having taken a view of the altar at Damascus, king Achaz sent a model of it with its proportions and workmanship to Ourias the priest.

11 And Ourias the priest built an altar according to all that king

12 Achaz sent from Damascus. And when the king saw the altar

13 he went up to it and offered thereon his whole burnt offering, and his sacrifice and his libation, and sprinkled the blood of

14 his peace offering upon that altar. As for the braseii altar which was before the Lord he brought it forward towards the front of

the house of the Lord, from between this altar and the house

15 of the Lord and put it upon the north side of this altar. And king Achaz commanded Ourias the priest saying, Offer the morning and evening whole burnt offering with its sacrifice, andthe whole burnt offering of the king with his sacrifice, and the whole burnt offering of the whole people with their sacrifice and their libation on this great altar, and pour out on it all the blood of the whole burnt offering and all the blood of the sacrifice. And the brasen altar shall be for me for the morning.

16 So Ourias the priest did according to all that king Achaz com-

17 manded him. And king Achaz cut off"the embossments of the mechonoths and took away from them the lavers, and took down the braseir sea from the oxen of brass that were under

18 it, and set it on a base of stone. He built also the foundation of the seat in the house of the Lord, and altered the way of the king's coming into the house of the Lord on account of the

19 king of the Assyrians. Now the rest of the acts of Achaz and all that lie did, are they not written in the journal of the kings

20 of Juda? And when Achaz slept with his fathers he was buried in the city of David, and Ezekias his son reigned in his stead.

XVII. In the twelfth year of Achaz king of Juda, Osea son of Ela, began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned nine

2 years. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, but not like

3 the kings of Israel who were before him. Against him Salnia - nassar king of the Assyrians came up. Now Osea was his

4 vassal and had withheld from him the customary homage gift, and the king of the Assyrians had found infidelity in Osea; for he had sent messengers to Segor king of Egypt, and had not carried to the king of the Assyrians the customary homage gift that year. Therefore the king of the Assyrians besieged

5 him and bound him in prison. When the king of Assyria had come up through all the land he went to Samaria and besieged

6 it three years. In the ninth year of Osea, the king of Assyria took Samaria and transplanted Israel among the Assyrians, and caused them to dwell on the Alae and the Abor,rivers of Gosan, and on the mountains of the Medes.

7 Now this came to pass, because the Israelites had sinned against the Lord their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharao king of Egypt;

8 and had feared other gods, and walked in the ordinances of the nations which the Lord had removed from before the Is-

9 raelites. Indeed with regard to the acts which the kings of Israel did and which the Israelites adopted; were they not in direct opposition to the Lord their God? They built for themselves high places in all their cities, from the watch tower to

10 the fortified city; and erected for themselves pillars and. bow-

11 ers on every high hill, and under every shady tree; and there

12 burned incense in all the high places, as the nations did which the Lord had removed from before them. Nay, they unhallowed and marked themselves to provoke the Lord to wrath; and served the idols, concerning which the Lord said to them, You shall

13 not do such a thing for the Lord. And though the Lord testified to Israel and to Juda by the ministry of all his prophets— of every seer, saying, Turn from your evil ways and keep my commandments and my statutes and all my law which I enjoined on your fathers, and which I sent them by the ministry

14 of my servants the prophets; yet they hearkened not; but

15 hardened their neck more than their fathers had done—His testimonies which he gave them in charge, they did not keep; but walked after vanities and became vain, and followed the nations around them in the very things which the Lord com-

16 mandedthem not to do. They forsook the commandments of the Lord their God, and made for themselves a molten image —even two calves. And having made bowers, they worship-

17 ped the whole host of heaven, and served Baal. They made their sons and their daughters to pass through fire, and used divination rind practised augury. Indeed they sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord to provoke him to wrath.

18 And though the Lord was very angry with Israel, and removed them from his presence, and there was none left but

19 only the tribe of Juda, yeteven then Juda did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God; but walked in the ordinances

20 which Israel had made, and rejected the Lord. Therefore the Lord was angry with the whole race of Israel and shook them off, and delivered them into the hands of spoilers who ransacked them until he cast them out of his sight.

21 Because Israel, besides revolting from the house of David, made Jeroboam son of Nabat king; therefore Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord, and caused them to commit a

22 great sin; and the Israelites proceeded on in the sin of Jeroboam which he had caused them to commit; and departed not

23 from it, until the Lord removed them from his presence, as he spoke by the ministry of all his servants the prophets.

Now when Israel was removed from their own land to As-

24 syria, where they continue to this day ; the king of the Assyrians brought people from Babylon and from Chutha and from Aia and from Aimath and Seppharuim, and planted them in the cities of Samaria, in stead of the children of Israel. And they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in the cities thereof.

25 But as they did not, at the beginning of their settlement, fear the Lord; therefore the Lord sent lions among them. And when they were making havock among them, some spoke to

26 the Icing of Assyria saying, The nations which thou hast removed and placed in the cities of Samaria do not know the ritual of the God of that land; therefore he hath sent lions among them, and behold they are killing them, because they

27 do not know the ritual of the God of that land. Thereupon the king of Assyria gave orders, saying, Take some who came from that country, and let them go and dwell there, that they

28 may teach them the rites of the God of that land. So they brought one of the priests whom they had-transported from Samaria, and he settled at Baithel. And while he was instructing them how they should fear the Lord, they were making,

29 every nation, their own gods, which they set up in the house of the high places which the Samaritans had erected—every

30 nation in the cities where they dwelt. Thus the men of BabyIon made Sokchoth-benith; and the men of Chuth made Er- gal; and the men of Aimath made Aslmath; and the Evites

31 made Eblazer and Tharthak; and the Seppharuims made Adramelech and Anemelech, because they of Seppharuim

32 burned their children to these gods. Though they feared the Lord, yet they set up their own abominations, in the houses of the high places which they had made in Samaria, every nation

33 in the city where they dwelt. Though they feared the Lord, yet they made for themselves priests of the high places, and sacrificed for themselves in the house of the high places. They both feared the Lord and served their own gods, according to the, ritual of the nations from which they had been transplant-

34 ed. Even to this day they have acted according to this ritual of theirs. They fear; and tliey do according to their own rites and their own institutions, and according to the law and the command which the Lord commanded the children of Jacob

35 to whom he gave the name Israel. Though the Lord had made a covenant with them and commanded them, saying, You shall

36 not fear other gods nor worship them nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them, for these acts you must do to the Lord only, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and with an outstretched arm—Him you shall fear, and Him

37 you shall worship, and to Him you shall offer sacrifice—These statutes and these judgments and this law and the commandments which he hath written for you to do, you shall keep con-

38 tinually ; and you shall not fear other gods—and this cove-

39 nant which he hath made with you, you must not forget. You shall not fear other gods; but fear the Lord your God only,

40 and he will deliver you from all your enemies; and you shall

41 pay no regard to the rites which they practise. Yet these nations feared the Lord and at the same time served their graven images. And even to this day their children and Uieir children's children do as their fathers did.

XVIII. Now in the third year of Osea son of Ela king of Israel,

2 Ezekias son of Achaz king of Juda acted as king. He was twenty five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty nine years in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was

3 Abu, a daughter of Zacharias. He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David his father

4 had done. He removed the high places and broke in pieces the pillars and destroyed the bowers and the brasen serpent which Moses made. Because in those days the Israelites were burn-

5 ing incense to it, therefore he called it 'Neesthan. He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that there was not after him one like him among the kings of Juda, nor among those who were

6 before him. For he cleaved to the Lord and departed not from following him, and kept all his commandments which he had

7 given in charge to Moses. And the Lord was with him and

8 assisted him in all that he did. And he revolted from the king of Assyria and would not serve him. He smote the Philistines even to Gaza and the border thereof, from the watch tower to the fenced city.

9 Now in the fourth year of Ezekias which was the seventh year of Osea son of Ela king of Israel, Salamanasser king of Assyria came up against Samaria and besieged it, and took it

10 at the end of three years. In the sixth year of Ezekias, which

11 was the ninth of Osea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. And the king, of Assyria removed the Samaritans to Assyria, and placed them along the Alae and the Abor, a river of Gozan,

12 and on the mountains of the Medes, because they had not hearkened to the voice of the Lord dieir God, but transgressed his covenant—and, with regard to all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded, had neither hearkened to them nor

13 done them. And in the fourteenth of king Ezekias, Sennache- rim the king of the Assyrians came up against the fortified cities of Juda, and when he had taken some of them, Ezekias king

14 of Juda sent messengers to the king of Assyria at Lachis, saying, I have done wrong. Depart from me. Whatever thou im- posest on me I will bear. Thereupon the king of Assyria imposed on Ezckiasking of Juda, three hundred talents of silver andthir-

15 ty talents of gold. And Ezekias gave him all the silver which was found in the house of the Lord and in the treasury of the king's

16 house. At that time Ezekias cut up the doors of the temple, and the braces which he, Ezekias king of Juda, had overlaid with

17 gold, and gave them to the king of Assyria. Nevertheless the king of Assyria sent Tharthan and Raphis, andRapsakes of Lachis, to king Ezekias with a great army against Jerusalem. And when they had marched up and arrived at Jerusalem they halt-

I

ed at the conduit of the upper pool, which is by the high way

18 to the fuller's field, and cried to Ezekias. And there went out to him Eliakim son of Chelkias, the steward, and Somnas the

19 secretary, and Joas son of Saphat, the recorder. And Rapsakes said to them, Say, I pray you, to Ezekias, Thus saith the king,

20 the great king of the Assyrians, Of what avail is diat confidence on which thou hast relied? Thou saidst—but they

21 were vain words—I have counsel and strength for war. Now therefore on whom dost thou rely that thou shouldst rebel against me? Perhaps thou leanest on that staff—that broken reed—on Egypt; on which if any one lean, it will enter his

22 hand and pierce it. Such is Pharao king of Egypt to all who trust in him. As to thy telling me, We have relied on the Lord God; Is not this he, whose, high places and whose altars Ezekias hath pulled down, saying to Juda and Jerusalem, You

23 shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem? Though you were now in close connexion with my master the king of Assyria, and I were to give thee two thousand horses, couldst thou, I

24 pray thee, mount for thyself riders on them ? How then canst thou turn back the face of a petty governor—one of die lowest servants of my lord, relying on Egypt for chariots and horse -

25 men? And now are we come up without the Lord against this place to destroy it? The Lord hath said to me, Go up against that land and destroy it.

26 Then Eliakim son of Chelkias, and Somnas and Joas, said to Rapsakes, Speak, we pray thee, to thy servants in Syriac, for we understand it. Therefore speak not to us in the Jewish language. Why shouldst thou speak to the ears of the people Oh

27 the wall? Thereupon Rapsakes said to them, Did my master send me to thy master or to thee, to deliver this message ? Was it not to those men who are set on that wall that they

28 may eat their own ordure and drink their own urine? Then Rapsakes stood and cried with a loud voice in the Jewish language and said, Hear the words of the great king of the Assy-

29 riaiis. Thus saith the king, Let not Ezekias deceive you; for

30 he cannotdeliver you out of his hand. Neither let Ezekias cause you to trust in the Lord, saying, The Lord will deliver us— this city shall not l>e delivered into the hands of the king of

31 the Assyrians. Hearken not to Ezekias. For thus saith the.

king of the Assyrians, Make peace with me and come out to me. And every one shall drink of his own vine, and every one shall eat of his own fig tree, and drink the water of his own cis-

32 tern; until I come and take yon to a land like your own—a land of corn and wine, and bread and vineyards—a land of olive oil and honey, that you may live and not die. Hearken not to Ezekias: for he deceiveth you, saying, The Lord will deliver

S3 us. Have the gods of the nations delivered their respective

34 countries out of the hand of the king of the Assyrians ? Where is the God of Aimath and Arphad? Where the god ofSeppha- ruaim, Ana and Aba? Have they delivered Samaria out of

35 my hand? Who is there among all the gods of these countries who have delivered their countries out of my hand, that the

36 Lord should deliver Jerusalem out of it? But they held their peace and answered him not a word, For this was the king's command, Make him no answer.

37 - Then came Eliakim son of Chelkias the steward, and Sotn- nas the secretary, and Joas the son of Saphat the recorder to Ezekias, with their clothes rent and told him the words of

XIX. Rapsakes. And when the king Ezekias heard them he rent his clothes and put on sackcloth and went into die house

2 of the Lord. Then he sent Eliakim the steward, and Somnas the secretary, and the elders of the priests clothed with sackcloth to Esaias the prophet the son of Amos, that they should

3 say to him, Thus saith Ezekias, This is a day of affliction and rebuke. This is indeed a day of fierce indignation; for children are come to the birth and there is not strength to bring forth.

4 Perhaps the Lord thy God will attend to all the words of Rap- sakes, whom the Assyrian king his master hath sent to reproach the living God and blaspheme, in the words which the Lord thy God hath heard. Therefore put up a prayer for the rem-

5 nant which is left. And when the servants of the king Ezekias came to Esaias he said to them, Thus shall you say to your

6 master, Thus saith the Lord, Be not terrified at the words which thou hast heard, with which the servants of the Assyrian

7 king have blasphemed. Behold I will put such a spirit in him and he shall hear such news, that he shall return to his own land. And I will destroy him with the sword in his own land.

8 So Rapsakes returned and found the king warring against Lob-

9 na; for he heard that he had removed from Laehis. But When he heard it reported of Tharaka king of the Ethiopians, saying,

10 Behold he is coining to fight thee, he retreated and sent messengers to Ezekias saying, Let not thy God on whom thou reliest lead thee astray, saying, Jerusalem shall not be delivered

11 into the hand of the king of the Assyrians. Behold thou hast heard all that the kings of the Assyrians have done to all the

12 countries to destroy them utterly; and shall thou be delivered? Did the gods of the nations, which my father destroyed, deliver them, namely Gosan and Charran and Raphis and the children

13 of Eden who were at Thaesthin? Where is the king of Aimath and the king of Arphad? And where is the king of Seppha-

14 ruaim, Ana and Aba? And when'Ezekias received the letter from the hand of the messengers and had read it, he went up

15 to the house of the Lord, and spreading it before the Lord said, 0 Lord the God of Israel, who art enthroned on the cherubim,

46 Thou alone art God in all the kingdoms of the earth. Thou hast made the heaven and the earth. Incline, O Lord, thine ear and hear! Open, O Lord, thine eyes and see and hear the words of Sennacherim, which he hath sent to reproach the living God.

17 Of a truth, O Lord, the kmgs of Assyria have laid waste these

18 nations and committed to the flames their gods. Because they are not gods, but the works of men's hands, wood and stone;

19 therefore they destroyed them. But now, O Lord our God, save us out of his hand* and all the kingdoms of the earth will know

20-that thou the Lord alone art God. Thereupon Esaias son of Amos sent to Ezekias saying, Thus saith the Lord the God of hostSj the God of Israel, I have heard the prayer which thou hast made to me concerning Sennacherim king of Assyria.

21 This is the word which the Lord hath spoken against him, The virgin daughter of Zion hath despised thee and laughed thee to

22 scorn. At thee the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head. Whom hast thou reproached? And whom hast thou blasphemed? And against whom hast thou exalted thy voice and

23 lifted up thine eyes? Against the Holy One of Israel! By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord and said, "With the multitude of my chariots I wrH ascend the lofty mountains—the sides off LibanUs. I have; <Jut down its stately cedafrs, the choicest cypresses thereof, and entered mta the midst of the forest of

VOL. II. T

24 Karmel: I have refreshed myself and drunk strange waters, and with the soles of my feet dried up all the streams of the siege."

25 It was I who formed it—I who made it close so that it was effectual against strong cities, to cany into captivity captive war-

26 riors. So the inhabitants therein became weak handed—were dismayed and confounded—became like the grass of the field or the green herb—like grass on the house top and that trodden

27 under foot. I know indeed thy sitting down and thy going out

28 and thy wrath against me. Because thy rage is against me and thy haughtiness hath come up to my ears, therefore I will put my hook in thy nose and my bridle in thy lips, and turn thec back the way thou earnest.

29 Now this shall be the sign to thee, Eat this year what grow- eth spontaneously, and the next year what springeth up; but in the third year there shall be sowing and reaping and plant -

30 ing of vineyards, and you shall eat the fruit thereof. And the remnant of the house of Juda which are left, shall strike root

31 downwards and bear fruit upwards. For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Sion he who hath escaped.

32 The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. Therefore thus saith the Lord respecting the king of Assyria, He shall not come to this city; nor shall he shoot an arrow there. A shield shall not

33 approach it, nor shall he raise a mount against it. By the way he came by the same he shall return; and to this city he shall

34 not come, saith the Lord. For I will shield this city for my own sake and for the sake of my servant David.

35 Accordingly in the night an angel of the Lord went forth and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and eighty five thousand. And when they arose early in the morning, be-

36 hold all these were dead corpses. Thereupon Sennacherim king of the Assyrians struck his tent and began his march and

37 returned and dwelt in Nineve. And as he was worshipping in the house of Meserach his god, Adramelech and Sarasar his sons slew him with the sword; and as they escaped to the land of Ararath, Asardan his son reigned in his stead.

XX. In those days Ezekias was sick unto death, and Esaias son of Amos the prophet went to him and said to him, Thus

2 saith the Lord, Give a charge to thy household. Thou art at

3 the point of death and shall not live. Upon this Ezekias turned

-

his face to the wall, and prayed to the Lord saying, O Lord, remember I beseech thee, how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done what is good in thy

4 sight. And Ezekias wept sore. Now Esaias was in the mid-

5 die court, and a word of the Lord came to him saying, Return and say to Ezekias the leader of my people, Thus saith the Lord the God of thy father David, I have heard thy prayer.

6 I have seen thy tears. Behold I will heal thee. On the third day thou shalt go up to the house of the Lord. And I will add to thy days, fifteen years, and deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city, for my own sake, and for the sake of my servant David.

7 And when he said, Let them take a fig cake and lay it

8 on the boil, and he will recover, Ezekias said to Esaias, What is the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up

9. to the house of the Lord on the third day ? To which Esaias replied, This is the sign from the Lord, that the Lord will perform the word which he hath spoken, The shadow shall

10 advance ten steps, or go back ten steps. And Ezekias said, It is an easy matter for the shadow to decline ten steps. No. Let the shadow return upon the steps, ten steps backwards.

11 Then Esaias the prophet cried to the Lord, and the shadow returned on the steps, ten steps backward.

12 On that occasion Marodoch Baladan son of Baladan king of Babylon, sent a letter and presents to Ezekias, because he

13 heard that Ezekias had been sick. At this Ezekias was rejoiced, and shewed the messengers all the house of Nechotha; the silver and the gold, the spices and the precious oil, and the house of the vessels, and all that was in his treasuries. There was not a tiling in his house, or within his power which

14 he did not shew them. Whereupon Esaias the prophet went to king Ezekias, and said to him, What have these men said, and whence are they come to thee ? To which Ezekias replied, They are come to me from a far distant country—from

15 Babylon. Then he said, What have they seen in thy house ? And he said, They have seen all that are in my house. There is not a thing in my house, or in my treasuries which I have

16 not shewn them. Then Esaias said to Ezekias, Hear a word

17 of the Lord. Behold the days are coming, when all that are in thy house, and all that thy fathers have been treasuring up

18 even to this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Not a. word shall fail which the Lord hath spoken. And as for thy sons who. shall spring from thee, whom thou shall beget, he will take them and they shall be eunuchs in the house of the king of

19 Babylon. And Ezekias said to Esaias, Good is that word which the Lord spoken-There shall be peace in my days.

20 Now the rest of the acts of Ezekias and all his power and all that he did, the pool and the aqueduct to bring water into the city, are they not written in the book of. the journal of the kings of Juda ? And Ezekias slept with his fathers, and Manasses his son reigned in his stead.

XXI. Manasses was twelve years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty five years in Jerusalem ; and. his mother's

2 name was Apsiba. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all the abominable acts of the nations which the

3 Lord had removed from before Israel. He restored and rebuilt the high places which his father Ezekias had demolished ; and erected an altar to Baal; and made bowers as Achab king of Israel had done ; and worshipped the whole host of

4 heaven and served them. He even built an altar in the house

5 of the Lord. Though the Lord had said, In Jerusalem I will put my name; yet he built an altar to the whole host of heaven,

6 in the two courts of the house of the Lord; and made his sons pass through fire, and consulted omens, and auguries, and built temples, and multiplied diviners, to do evil in the sight

7 of the Lord, to provoke him to anger. Nay, he placed the graven image of the bower in the very house, concerning which the Lord had said to David and to Solomon his son, In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of"

8 all the tribes of Israel, I will place my name forever, and I will no more remove the foot of Israel, from the laud which I gave their fathers, provided they will keep all that I have commanded, according to the command which my servant Moses

9 commanded them. Now when they kearkened not, and Manasses led them astray to do evil in the sight of the Lord, more than those nations, which the Lord had destroyed from 10 before the Israelites; then by the ministry of his servants the

11 prophets, the Lord spoke saying, Because Manasses the king of Judahath committed all these alwminations—these evils surpassing all that the Amorites did before him, and hath caused

12 Juda also to sin by their idols; therefore thus saith the Lord the God of Israel, Behold I will bring evils upon Jerusalem and Juda, so that both the ears of every one who- heareth them

13 shall tingle. And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Achab; and wipe Jerusalem as a vessel of alabaster is wiped and turned on its

14 mouth. And I will cast off the remnant of my inheritance, and deliver them into the hand of their enemies, and they shall

15 be for a spoil, and for a prey to all their enemies, because they have done evil in my sight and gone on provoking me from the day I brought them out of Egypt, even to this day.

16 Moreover Manasses shed innocent blood in great abundance till he filled Jerusalem, from one end to the other, in addition to the sins by which he caused Juda to sin, by doing

17 evil in the sight of the Lord. Now the rest of the acts of Manasses and all that he did, and the sins which he committed are they not written in the journal of the kings of Juda ?

18 When Manasses slept with his fathers, he was buried in the garden of his house in the garden of Oza; and Amos his so» reigned in his stead.

19 Amos was twenty two years old, when he began to reign and he reigned two years in Jerusalem, and his mother's name

20 was Mesollam. She was a daughter of Arus of Jeteba. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, as Manasses his father

21 had done, and walked in all the way in which his father walked and served the idols, which his father served and worshipped

22 them. He forsook the Lord God of his fathers and did not

23 walk in the way of the Lord, therefore Amos' servants con-

24 spired against him, and slew the king in his own house. But the people of the land, smote all those who conspired against king Amos. And the people of the land made his son Josias

25 king in his stead. Now the rest of the acts of Amos and all that he did, behold are they not written in the journal of the kings of Juda ?

26 Now when they had buried him in his sepulchre in the

XXII. garden of Oza, Josias his son reigned in his stead. Jo- sias was eight years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty one years in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was Jedia. She was a daughter of Edeia of Basuroth. He did that which was right in the sight of the Lord, and walked in all the ways of David his father, and turned not aside to the right

3 nor to the left. Accordingly in the eighteenth year of king Josias in the eighth month, the king sent Sapphan son of Ezelias, son of Mesollam, the scribe of the house of the Lord, saying,

4 Go up to Chelkias the high priest and seal the money which is

5 brought into the house of the Lord—which they who keep the weights have received from the people, and let it be delivered into the hand of the board of works in the house of the Lord.

6 And when he had given this to the board of works in the house of the Lord to defray the expence of the repairs of the house —for the carpenters and the masons, and diem who built the walls, and to purchase wood and hewn stone to repair the

7 breaches of the house; (now they to whom the money was given were not to be called to account, for they acted in confi-

8 dence) Chelkias the high priest said to Sapphan the scribe, I

9 have found a book of the law in the house of the Lord. So CheIkias gave the book to Sapphan; and when he had read it he went to the king in the house of the Lord, and having made report to the king, saying, Thy servants have melted the silver found in the house of the Lord, and have given it to the

10 board of works which hath charge of the house; Sapphan the scribe spake to the king, saying, Chelkias the priest hath

11 given me a book. And Sapphan read it before the king. And when the king heard the words of the book of the law he rent

12 his clothes. Then the king gave orders to Chelkias the priest and Achikam son of Sapphan and Achobar son of Michaias, and to Sapphan the scribe and Asaias a servant of the king,

13 saying, Go and inquire of the Lord concerning me and concerning all this people and concerning all Juda, and concerning the words of this book which is found. For great must be the wrath of the Lord which is kindled against us; because our fathers have not hearkened to the words of this book to do ac-

14 cording to all that is written for us. Accordingly Chelkias the priest went with Achikam and Achobar and Sapphan and, Asaias to Olda the prophetess the mother of Sellem son of Thekuan, son of Arasthe keeper of the wardrobe. Now she

15 dwelt at Jerusalem in the Masena. And when they had spoken to her, she said to them, Thus saith the Lord the God of Is-

16 rael, Say to the man who hath sent you to me, Thus saith the Lord, Behold I am bringing evils on this place and on the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the

17 king of Juda hath read. Because they have Torsaken me and burned incense to other gods, that they might provoke me by the works of their hands, therefore my wrath shall be kindled

18 against this place and shall not be quenched. But to the king of Juda who hath sent you to inquire of the Lord, thus shall

19 you say to him, Thus saith the Lord the God of Israel, With respect to the words which thou hast heard, because thy heart was softened and thou didst humble thyself on the account of them soon as thou didst hear what I had spoken against this place and the inhabitants thereof—that they should become a desolation and a curse ; and didst rqnd thy clothes and weep

20 before me; for I heard, saith the Lord; therefore behold I will gather thee to thy fathers and thou shall be gathered to thy grave in peace, and thy eyes shall not see all the evils which I will bring on this place.

XXIII. When they brought back this answer to the king, the king sent and assembled before him all the elders of Juda and

2 Jerusalem. And the king went up to the house of the Lord, accompanied by all the chiefs of Juda and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, with the priests and the prophets and all the people

3 small and great. And when he had read in their hearing all the words of the book of the covenant, which was found in the house of the Lord, the king stood before the pillar and made a covenant in the presence of the Lord to follow the Lord—to keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes, with all his heart and with all his soul—to conform to the terms

4 of the covenant, the things written in the book. And all the- people joined in the covenant. Then the king ordered Chel- kias the high priest and the priests of the second order and them who had the charge of the weights, to bring out of the temple of the Lord all the utensils which were made for Baal and for, the bower and for all the host of heaven, and he burned them without Jerusalem at Sademoth Kedron, and sent the

5 ashes thereof to Baithel. He burned also the Chomarims, whom the kings of Juda had appointed. These Were they who burned incense on the high places and in the cities of Juda and in the places around Jerusalem. He burned them also, who offered incense to Baal and to the sun and the moon and

6 the signs in the zodiack and to all the host of heaven. And he brought out the bower out of the house >of the Lord without Jerusalem to the brook Kedron, and having burned it by the brook Kedron, he ground it to powder, and strewed the

7 powder over the graves of the children of the people. He pulled down also the house of Kadesim in the house of the Lord,

8 where the women wove hangings for the bower. Then he brought up all the priests out of the cities of Juda, and defiled the high places where the priests burned incense from Gaibal to Bersabee. He demolished also the house of the gates which was at the door of the gate of Jesus, the governor of the city, on

9 the left of a man entering at the gate of the city. But the priests of the high places did not go up to the altar of the Lord at Jerusalem; for they only eat unleavened bread among their

10 brethren. He denied also Tapheth which was set apart in the valley of the son of Ennom, for a man to cause his son or

11 his daughter to pass through fire to Moloch. And he burned the houses which the kings of Juda had dedicated to the sun at the entrance of the house of the Lord, at the treasury office

12 of Nathan, the king's chamberlain, at Pharurim. He burned also with fire the chariot of the sun, and the altars which were on the roof of Achaz's chamber, which the king's of Juda had erected? and he pulled down the altars which Manasses had made in the two courts of the house of the Lord, and having dragged them out thence piece meal, he threw the rubbish

13 of them into the brook Kedron. The king defiled also the house which was in front of Jerusalem—that which was on the rightof mount Mosthath, which Solomonking of Israel had buflt for Astarte, the abomination of the Sidonians, and for Chamos, the abomination of Moab, and for Moloch the abomination of

14 the Ammonites. And when he had broken in pieces the pillars, and utterly destroyed the bowers, and filled their places

15 with 'human bones, he then tore down also the altar which was at Baithel, that high altar which was erected by Jeroboam, son of Nabat, who had caused Israel to sin. Even that high altar he tore down and broke the stones thereof to pieces and pound-

16 ed them to dust, and burned the bower. Now when Josias turned and saw the graves which were there in the city, he sent and took the bones out of the graves and burned them on the altar, and polluted it according to the word of the Lord, which the man of God spoke when Jeroboam was standing on the altar at the festival. Then turning he cast- his eyes on the tomb

17 of the man of God who spoke these words, and^he said, What monument is that which I see? And when the men of the city said, It is the man of God who came from Juda to denounce, and who denounced these very things against this altar at

18 Baithel; he said, Let him alone, Let no man move his bones. So his bones escaped with the bones of the prophet, who came

19 from Samaria. All the houses also of the high places which were in the cities of Samaria—which the kings of Israel had built to provoke the Lord, Josias removed, and did to them all

20 that he had done at Baithel. And when he had sacrificed all the priests of the high places who were there over the altars, and burned the bones of men upon them, he returned to Jerusalem.

21 Then the king issued orders Jo all the people, saying, Celebrate the passover to the Lord our God, as it is written in

22 the book of this covenant. For from the days of the Judges who judged Israel, there had not been during all the days of

23 the kings of Israel and the kings of Juda, such a passover as this which was kept to the Lord in Jerusalem in the eighteenth

24 year of Josias. For Josias removed all the devotees and the diviners and the theraphins and the idols and all the abominations which were in the land of Juda and in Jerusalem, that he might conform to the words of the law which were written in the book which Chelkias the priest had found in the house of

25 the Lord. Like him there was no king before him who turned to the Lord with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, according to all the law of Moses; nor did there

26 arise after him any one like him. Nevertheless the Lord turned not from the fervency of his great wrath with which lie was incensed against Juda at the provocations with which Manasses

VOfc. II. 1T t

27 had provoked him. So the Lord said, I will remove Juda also from my presence as I have removed Israel; and I will cast off this city Jerusalem which I chose, and this house of which I

28 said, My name shall be there. Now the rest of the acts of Jo- sias and all that he did, are they not written in the journal of

29 the kings of Juda? In those days when Pharao Nechao king of Egypt was going up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates, Josias went out to meet him. And Nechao slew

30 him at Mageddo when he saw him. And his servants took him up mortally wounded at Mageddo and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own tomb. And the people of the land took Joachaz son of Josias and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead.

31 Joachaz was twenty three years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was Amital. She was a daughter of Jeremias of Lobna.

32 He did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord according

33 to all that his forefathers had done. So when Pharao Nechao was at Rablaam in the land of Emath, he removed him from, reigning in Jerusalem, and imposed as a fine on the land a hundred talents of silver and a hundred talents of gold; and

34 having made Eliakim son of Josias, king of Juda, king over them in the room of his father Josias, Pharao Nechao changed his name to Joakim ; and he took Joachaz and carried him to

35 Egypt, and he died there. And Joakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharao: moreover he assessed the land to give the money at the command of Pharao. Every man of rank according to his assessment gave with the people of the land silver and gold to be given to Pharao Nechao.

36 Joakim was twenty five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Jeldath. She was a daughter of Phadail of Ruma.

37 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that XXIV. his forefathers had done. In his days Nabuchodono-

sar king of Babylon came up, and Joakim became his vassal. 2 Three years. Then he turned and revolted from him, and the Lord sent against him predatory bands of the Chaldeans, and predatory bands of Syria, and predatory bands of Moab, and the predatory bands of the Ammonites. These he let loose to prevail in the land of Juda, according to the word of the Lord

3 which he spoke by the ministry of his prophets. But to add to the wrath of the Lord against Juda, that he might remove them from his presence, for all the sins which Manasses had committed, Joakim shed innocent blood, and filled Jc-

4 rusalem with it. Therefore the Lord would not be pacified.

5 Now the rest of the acts of Joakim and all that he did, behold are they not written in the book of the journal of the kings of

6 Juda? And Joakim slept with his fathers, and Joachim his

7 son reigned in his stead. And the king of Egypt never came any more out of his land; for the king of Babylon took all that belonged to the king of Egypt, from the brook of Egypt to the river Euphrates.

8 Joachim was eighteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned three months in Jerusalem, and his mother's name was Nestha. She was a daughter of Ellanastham of Je-

9 rusalem. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, according 10 to all that his father had done. At that time Nabuchodonosar

king of Babylon, came up to Jerusalem, and the city was bell sieged. Now when Nabuchodonosar came to the city, and his servants laid siege to it, Joachim king of Juda, went out to

12 the king of Babylon, he and his servants and his mother and his chiefs and his officers; and the king of Babylon in the

13 eighth year of his reign, took him, and carried out thence all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord,

14 according to the word of the Lord. And he carried away captive from Jerusalem all the chiefs and mighty men of valour/ ten thousand captives, with all the carpenters and mechanics,

15 so that there were none left but the poor of the land. When he carried away Joachim to Babylon, he carried away also out of Jerusalem in captivity to Babylon, the king's mother and the king's wives, and his officers, and the mighty men of the coun-

16 try, and all the men of the army, amounting to seven thousand, and the carpenters and mechanics amounting to a thousand. All these were valiant men fit for war. These the king of

17 Babylon carried away captives to Babylon. And the king of Babylon made Batthainas king in his stead, and called his name Sedekias.

- Sedekias was twenty one years old when he began to reign arid he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother's

19 name was Amital. She was a daughter of Jeremias. And he did evil in the sight of the Lord according to all that Joachim

20 had done. Because the anger of the Lord was against Jerusalem and Juda until he cast them out from his presence; therefore when Sedekias rebelled against the king of Babylon,

XXV. Nabuchodonosar the king of Babylon came up with

his whole army against Jerusalem, in the ninth year of his

reign, in the tenth month, and encamped against it and built a

. circumvallation against it, and the city was besieged until the

2 eleventh year of king Sedekias. On the ninth of that month

3 when the famine prevailed in the city so that there was not bread for the people of the land, a breach was made into the

4 city; and all the men of the army went out by night by the way of the gate between the walls, namely the gate of the king's garden, while the Chaldeans besieged the city round

5 about. And the king took the way to Araba. But the army of the Chaldeans pursued him and overtook him at Araboth of

6 Jericho. When all his army was dispersed from about him, they took the king and brought him to the king of Babylon at

7 fteblatha, and he pronounced sentence against him. And when he had slain his sons before his eyes, he put out the eyes of Sedekias and bound him with chains, and carried him to Baby-

8 Ion. And in the fifth month, on the seventh of the month, in the nineteenth year of Nabuchodonosar king of Babylon, Na- buzardan the marshal who attended the king of Babylon, came

9 up to Jerusalem and burned the house of the Lord and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem. And while the

10 marshal was burning all the houses, the army of the Chaldeans

11 broke down the walls of Jerusalem round about. Then Nabu- zardan the marshal, carried away the residue of the people who had been left in the city, and the deserters who had deserted to the king of Babylon, and what remained of the army.

12 But he left some of the poor of the land for vine dressers and

13 husbandmen. The pillars of brass in the house of the Lord and the mechonoths, and the brasen sea in the house of the Lord, the Chaldeans broke to pieces and carried the brass

14 thereof to Babylon. And the marshal took the kettles and the

15 goblets, and the dishes and the censers, and all the utensils ot brass with which the priests ministered, together with the fire

16 pans and the cups of gold and silver. Now with regard to the two pillars and the sea, and the mechonoths which Solomon made for the house of the Lord', there was no weighing the

17 brass of all these utensils. The height of one pillar was eighteen cubits. And there was upon it a chapiter of brass, the height of the chapiter being three cubits, with a net work and

18 pomegranates on the chapiter round about, all of brass. And such was the second pillar with its net work. And the marshal took Saraias the first priest, and Sophonias the priest of the-

19 second order and the three keepers of the weights; and out of the city he took one officer, who was chief commander of the warriors, and five principal men of them who attended in the king's presence, who were found in the city, and the secretary of the general of the army—him who mustered the people of the land; and sixty chief men of the people of the country

20 who were found in the city. These Nabuzardan the marshal took and carried them to the king of Babylon to Reblatha, and

21 the king of Babylon smote them and put them to death at Reblatha in the land of Aimath.

22 Thus was Juda carried from this land. And as for the people who were left in the land of Juda—whom Nabuchodonosar king of Babylon had left; over them he set Godolias son of

23 Achikam son of Sapphon. And when all the chiefs of the army, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Godolias, they came to him at Massephath, namely, Ismael son of Nathanias, and Jona son of Kareth, and Saraias son of Thanamath, the Netophathite, and Jezonias son of Macha-

24 thi, they and their men. And Godolias swore to them and their men, and said to them, Be not afraid of the coming of the Chaldeans. Dwell in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and it

25 will be well with you. Nevertheless in the seventh month Ismael son of Nathanias, son of Elisama of the royal family, came accompanied with ten chiefs, and smote Godolias and killed him and the Jews and the Chaldeans who were with him

26 at Masscpha. Whereupon all the people small and great, with the chiefs of the army arose and went to Egypt; for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.

27 ' In the thirty seventh year of the captivity of Joachim king of Juda, in the twelfth month and twentieth day of the month, Evial Marodek king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign raised up the head of Joachim king of Juda. And having taken

28 him out of prison he spoke kindly to him, and set his seat above the seats of the kings who were with him in Babylon.

29 And having changed his prison garments he eat bread continually before him all the days of his life. And his allowance, a continual allowance, was duly sent to him every day all the days of his life.