25 Amaziah was 25 years old when he began to rule as king. He ruled in Jerusalem for 29 years. His mother's name was Jehoaddin. She was from Jerusalem. 2 He did things that the Lord said were good. But he was not completely faithful.
3 Amaziah made himself strong to rule his kingdom with authority. Then he killed the officers who had murdered his father, King Joash. 4 But he did not punish their sons with death. He obeyed the Lord 's command that was written in the Book of the Law of Moses. The command says, ‘Do not punish fathers with death when their sons do bad things. Do not punish children with death when their fathers do bad things. Each person must die only because of his own sins.’ [ a ]
5 Then Amaziah brought all the people of Judah together. For each of their clans he chose officers to lead groups of 1,000 men and groups of 100 men. He did that for the clans of Judah's tribe and the clans of Benjamin's tribe. [ b ] He counted all the men who were 20 years old or older who could fight with spears and shields. There were 300,000 of them. 6 He also paid 3,500 kilograms of silver for 100,000 soldiers from Israel to join his army.
7 But a prophet went to meet Amaziah and he said, ‘Please sir, do not take these soldiers from Israel to go and fight beside your own soldiers. The Lord has turned away from the tribe of Ephraim and all of Israel. 8 The Lord will allow your enemies to win against you, even if you fight very well. God has the power to help you, but he can also cause your enemies to win against you.’
9 Amaziah said to God's prophet, ‘But I have paid 3,500 kilograms of silver for these soldiers from Israel. What should I do about that?’ The prophet replied, ‘The Lord is able to give you much more than all that money!’
10 So Amaziah sent away the soldiers who had come from Ephraim. [ c ] He told them to go back to their homes. So they became very angry with Judah's people. As they went home, they had angry thoughts.
11 But Amaziah was brave. He led his army to Salt Valley. There they killed 10,000 soldiers from Edom. [ d ] 12 They also caught 10,000 soldiers as their prisoners. They took them to the top of a high rock. They threw their prisoners from the top. They all fell down onto the rocks below and they died.
13 But the soldiers from Israel that Amaziah had sent home attacked some towns in Judah. They were angry because Amaziah had not allowed them to join his army in the battle. They killed 3,000 men in Judah's towns between Samaria and Beth Horon. They took away many valuable things from those towns.
14 After Amaziah's army had killed the soldiers from Edom, he returned to Judah. He brought back some idols of the gods that the people of Edom worshipped. He started to worship them as his own gods. He offered sacrifices to them. 15 So the Lord became angry with Amaziah. He sent a prophet to him with a message. The prophet said to Amaziah, ‘You should not worship these foreign gods! They could not even save their own people from your power!’
16 While the prophet was still speaking, the king said to him, ‘We did not choose you to be the king's advisor! If you do not stop speaking, my men will kill you.’ So the prophet stopped. But then he said, ‘I know what God has decided to do. He will destroy you because you have done these bad things and you have not listened to my advice.’
17 Then King Amaziah of Judah met with his advisors. Then he sent a message to King Jehoash of Israel. He was the son of Jehoahaz and the grandson of Jehu. King Amaziah's message said, ‘Come here and meet me!’
18 But King Jehoash of Israel sent this message back to King Amaziah of Judah: ‘In Lebanon, a thorn bush sent this message to a cedar tree: “Please give your daughter to my son, to be his wife.” Then a wild animal of Lebanon came and knocked down the thorn bush. It walked all over it! 19 You are proud that you have won the fight against Edom. But do not boast about your power! You may be very happy, but stay at home! Do not try to fight against us. If you do that, you will cause trouble that destroys both you and your kingdom, Judah.’
20 But Amaziah did not accept Jehoash's message. God had decided to put him under the power of his enemies because he worshipped the gods of Edom. 21 So King Jehoash of Israel prepared to attack Amaziah's army. Jehoash and Amaziah met together in battle at Beth Shemesh, a town in Judah. 22 Israel's army won the battle against Judah's army. All the soldiers from Judah ran back home. 23 At Beth Shemesh, King Jehoash of Israel caught the king of Judah, Amaziah, the son of Joash and the grandson of Ahaziah. King Jehoash took him to Jerusalem. He destroyed the wall of Jerusalem, between the Ephraim Gate and the Corner Gate. That part of the wall was 180 metres long. [ e ] 24 He took away all the gold and the silver from the temple, including the valuable things that Obed-Edom was taking care of. Jehoash also took the valuable things from the king's palace. He also took some of the people away with him as prisoners. Then he returned to Samaria.
25 Joash's son Amaziah, the king of Judah, lived for 15 years after Jehoahaz's son Jehoash, the king of Israel, died. [ f ] 26 All the other things that happened while Amaziah was king are written in a book. The book is called ‘The history of the kings of Judah and Israel’. 27 After Amaziah had turned away from the Lord , some people in Jerusalem made a plan to kill him. So he ran away to Lachish. But the people in Jerusalem sent men to catch him in Lachish. They killed Amaziah there. [ g ] 28 They carried his dead body back to Jerusalem on a horse. They buried him there beside his ancestors in the city of Judah.
25 Amaziah was 25 years old when he became king. He ruled for 29 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin. Jehoaddin was from Jerusalem. 2 Amaziah did what the Lord wanted him to do, but not with all his heart. 3 He became a strong king and killed the officials who had killed his father the king. 4 But Amaziah obeyed the law written in the Book of Moses and did not kill the official’s children. The Lord commanded, “Parents must not be put to death for something their children did, and children must not be put to death for something their parents did. People should be put to death only for what they themselves did.” [ a ]
5 Amaziah gathered the people of Judah together. He grouped them by families and he put generals and captains in charge of these groups. The leaders were in charge of all the soldiers from Judah and Benjamin. All the men who were chosen to be soldiers were 20 years old and older. In all there were 300,000 skilled soldiers ready to fight with spears and shields. 6 Amaziah also hired 100,000 soldiers from Israel. He paid 3 3/4 tons [ b ] of silver to hire these soldiers. 7 But a man of God came to Amaziah and said, “King, don’t let the army of Israel go with you. The Lord is not with Israel or the people of Ephraim. 8 Maybe you will make yourself strong and ready for war, but God can help you win or help you lose.” 9 Amaziah said to the man of God, “But what about the money I already paid to the Israelite army?” The man of God answered, “The Lord has plenty. He can give you much more than that.”
10 So Amaziah sent the Israelite army back home to Ephraim. These men were very angry with the king and the people of Judah. They went back home very angry.
11 Then Amaziah became very brave and led his army to the Salt Valley in the country of Edom. There his army killed 10,000 men from Seir. [ c ] 12 They also captured 10,000 men from Seir and took them to the top of a cliff. Then the army of Judah threw them from the top of the cliff while they were still alive and their bodies were broken on the rocks below.
13 Meanwhile, the Israelite army was attacking towns in Judah. They attacked the towns from Beth Horon all the way to Samaria. They killed 3000 people and took many valuable things. They were angry because Amaziah didn’t let them join him in the war.
14 Amaziah came home after he defeated the Edomites. He brought the idols that the people of Seir worshiped. He started to worship those idols. He bowed down in front of them and burned incense to them. 15 The Lord was very angry with Amaziah, so he sent a prophet to him. The prophet said, “Amaziah, why have you worshiped the gods those people worship? Those gods could not even save their own people from you!”
16 When the prophet spoke, Amaziah said to the prophet, “We never made you an advisor to the king. Be quiet! If you don’t be quiet, you will be killed.” The prophet became quiet, but then said, “God has decided to destroy you because you did this and didn’t listen to my advice.”
17 King Amaziah of Judah talked with his advisors. Then he sent a message to King Jehoash of Israel. Amaziah said to Jehoash, “Let’s meet face to face.” Jehoash was Jehoahaz’s son. Jehoahaz was Jehu’s son.
18 Then Jehoash sent his answer to Amaziah. Jehoash was the king of Israel and Amaziah was the king of Judah. Jehoash told this story: “A little thornbush of Lebanon sent a message to a big cedar tree of Lebanon. The little thornbush said, ‘Let your daughter marry my son.’ But a wild animal came and walked over the thornbush and destroyed it. 19 You say to yourself, ‘I have defeated Edom!’ You are proud and you brag. But you should stay at home. There is no need for you to get into trouble. If you fight me, you and Judah will be destroyed.”
20 But Amaziah refused to listen. God made this happen. God planned to let Israel defeat Judah, because the people of Judah followed the gods the people of Edom followed. 21 So King Jehoash of Israel met King Amaziah of Judah face to face at the town of Beth Shemesh in Judah. 22 Israel defeated Judah. Every man of Judah ran away to his home. 23 Jehoash captured Amaziah at Beth Shemesh and took him to Jerusalem. Amaziah was the son of Joash, and Joash was the son of Jehoahaz. Jehoash tore down the wall of Jerusalem from the Ephraim Gate to the Corner Gate, a section about 600 feet [ d ] long. 24 He took the gold and silver and all the other things in God’s Temple that Obed Edom was responsible for. Jehoash also took the treasures from the king’s palace and some people as hostages. Then he went back to Samaria.
25 Amaziah lived 15 years after Jehoash died. Amaziah’s father was King Joash of Judah. 26 Everything else Amaziah did, from beginning to end, is written in the book, The History of the Kings of Judah and Israel . 27 When Amaziah stopped obeying the Lord , the people in Jerusalem made plans against Amaziah. He ran away to the town of Lachish. But the people sent men to Lachish and they killed Amaziah there. 28 Then they carried his body on horses and buried him with his ancestors in the City of Judah.
25 Amaziah was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem.
2 And he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord , but not with a perfect heart.
3 Now it came to pass, when the kingdom was established to him, that he slew his servants that had killed the king his father.
4 But he slew not their children, but did as it is written in the law in the book of Moses, where the Lord commanded, saying, The fathers shall not die for the children, neither shall the children die for the fathers, but every man shall die for his own sin.
5 Moreover Amaziah gathered Judah together, and made them captains over thousands, and captains over hundreds, according to the houses of their fathers, throughout all Judah and Benjamin: and he numbered them from twenty years old and above, and found them three hundred thousand choice men, able to go forth to war, that could handle spear and shield.
6 He hired also an hundred thousand mighty men of valour out of Israel for an hundred talents of silver.
7 But there came a man of God to him, saying, O king, let not the army of Israel go with thee; for the Lord is not with Israel, to wit, with all the children of Ephraim.
8 But if thou wilt go, do it; be strong for the battle: God shall make thee fall before the enemy: for God hath power to help, and to cast down.
9 And Amaziah said to the man of God, But what shall we do for the hundred talents which I have given to the army of Israel? And the man of God answered, The Lord is able to give thee much more than this.
10 Then Amaziah separated them, to wit, the army that was come to him out of Ephraim, to go home again: wherefore their anger was greatly kindled against Judah, and they returned home in great anger.
11 And Amaziah strengthened himself, and led forth his people, and went to the valley of salt, and smote of the children of Seir ten thousand.
12 And other ten thousand left alive did the children of Judah carry away captive, and brought them unto the top of the rock, and cast them down from the top of the rock, that they all were broken in pieces.
13 But the soldiers of the army which Amaziah sent back, that they should not go with him to battle, fell upon the cities of Judah, from Samaria even unto Bethhoron, and smote three thousand of them, and took much spoil.
14 Now it came to pass, after that Amaziah was come from the slaughter of the Edomites, that he brought the gods of the children of Seir, and set them up to be his gods, and bowed down himself before them, and burned incense unto them.
15 Wherefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against Amaziah, and he sent unto him a prophet, which said unto him, Why hast thou sought after the gods of the people, which could not deliver their own people out of thine hand?
16 And it came to pass, as he talked with him, that the king said unto him, Art thou made of the king's counsel? forbear; why shouldest thou be smitten? Then the prophet forbare, and said, I know that God hath determined to destroy thee, because thou hast done this, and hast not hearkened unto my counsel.
17 Then Amaziah king of Judah took advice, and sent to Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us see one another in the face.
18 And Joash king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, Give thy daughter to my son to wife: and there passed by a wild beast that was in Lebanon, and trode down the thistle.
19 Thou sayest, Lo, thou hast smitten the Edomites; and thine heart lifteth thee up to boast: abide now at home; why shouldest thou meddle to thine hurt, that thou shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah with thee?
20 But Amaziah would not hear; for it came of God, that he might deliver them into the hand of their enemies, because they sought after the gods of Edom.
21 So Joash the king of Israel went up; and they saw one another in the face, both he and Amaziah king of Judah, at Bethshemesh, which belongeth to Judah.
22 And Judah was put to the worse before Israel, and they fled every man to his tent.
23 And Joash the king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Jehoahaz, at Bethshemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim to the corner gate, four hundred cubits.
24 And he took all the gold and the silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of God with Obededom, and the treasures of the king's house, the hostages also, and returned to Samaria.
25 And Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of Joash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years.
26 Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, first and last, behold, are they not written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel?
27 Now after the time that Amaziah did turn away from following the Lord they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to Lachish: but they sent to Lachish after him, and slew him there.
28 And they brought him upon horses, and buried him with his fathers in the city of Judah.
25 ( A ) Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned for twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. 2 He did what was right in the sight of the Lord , ( B ) only not wholeheartedly. 3 Now ( C ) it came about, as soon as the kingdom was [ a ] firmly in his grasp, that he killed his servants who had killed his father the king. 4 However, he did not put their children to death, but did as it is written in the Law in the Book of Moses, which the Lord commanded, saying, “ ( D ) Fathers shall not be put to death for sons, nor sons be put to death for fathers; but each shall be put to death for his own sin.”
5 Moreover, Amaziah assembled Judah and appointed them according to their fathers’ households under commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds throughout Judah and Benjamin; and he [ b ] took a census of those ( E ) from twenty years old and upward and found them to be ( F ) three hundred thousand choice men, able to go to war and handle spear and shield. 6 He also hired a hundred thousand valiant warriors from Israel for [ c ] a hundred talents of silver. 7 But ( G ) a man of God came to him saying, “O king, do not let the army of Israel come with you, for the Lord is not with Israel nor with any of the sons of Ephraim. 8 But if you do go, do it , be strong for the battle; yet God will [ d ] bring you down before the enemy, ( H ) for God has the power to help and to [ e ] bring down.” 9 Amaziah said to the man of God, “But what are we to do about the [ f ] hundred talents which I have given to the troops of Israel?” And the man of God answered, “ ( I ) The Lord has much more to give you than this.” 10 Then Amaziah [ g ] dismissed the troops which came to him from Ephraim, to go home; so their anger burned against Judah, and they returned [ h ] home in fierce anger.
11 Now Amaziah gathered his courage and led his people out, and went to ( J ) the Valley of Salt, and struck and killed ten thousand of the sons of Seir. 12 The sons of Judah also captured ten thousand alive and brought them to the top of the cliff, and threw them down from the top of the cliff so that they were all dashed to pieces. 13 But the [ i ] troops whom Amaziah sent back, those not going with him to battle, raided the cities of Judah from Samaria to Beth-horon, and struck and killed three thousand of them, and plundered a large amount of spoils.
14 Now after Amaziah came from slaughtering the Edomites, ( K ) he brought the gods of the sons of Seir and set them up as his gods. Then he bowed down before them and burned incense to them. 15 So the anger of the Lord burned against Amaziah, and He sent him a prophet who said to him, “Why have you sought the gods of the people ( L ) who have not saved their own people from your hand?” 16 As he was talking with him, [ j ] the king said to him, “Have we appointed you to be a royal counselor? Stop! Why should [ k ] you be put to death?” Then the prophet stopped and said, “I know that God has planned to destroy you, because you have done this and have not listened to my counsel.”
17 ( M ) Then Amaziah king of Judah took counsel and sent word to Joash the son of Jehoahaz the son of Jehu, the king of Israel, saying, “Come, let’s face each other.” 18 But Joash the king of Israel sent a reply to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, “ ( N ) The thorn bush that was in Lebanon sent word to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ But a wild beast that was in Lebanon passed by and trampled the thorn bush. 19 You said, ‘Behold, you have [ l ] defeated Edom.’ And ( O ) your heart has lifted you up in boasting. Now stay home; why should you provoke trouble so that you, would fall, you and Judah with you?”
20 But Amaziah would not listen, for it was from God, so that He might hand them over to Joash , because they had sought the gods of Edom. 21 So Joash king of Israel went up, and he and Amaziah king of Judah faced each other at Beth-shemesh, which belonged to Judah. 22 And Judah was defeated [ m ] by Israel, and they fled, every man to his tent. 23 Then Joash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash the son of ( P ) Jehoahaz, at Beth-shemesh, and brought him to Jerusalem and tore down the wall of Jerusalem from the Gate of Ephraim to the Corner Gate, [ n ] four hundred cubits. 24 He took all the gold and silver and all the utensils which were found in the house of God with ( Q ) Obed-edom, and the treasures of the king’s house, the hostages too, and returned to Samaria.
25 ( R ) And Amaziah, the son of Joash king of Judah, lived fifteen years after the death of Joash, son of Jehoahaz, king of Israel. 26 Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, from the first to the last, behold, are they not written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel? 27 From the time that Amaziah turned away from following the Lord they conspired against him in Jerusalem, and he fled to Lachish; but they sent men after him to Lachish, and they killed him there. 28 Then they brought him on horses and buried him with his fathers in the city of Judah.
25 Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Jehoaddan; she was from Jerusalem. 2 He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord , but not wholeheartedly. ( D ) 3 After the kingdom was firmly in his control, he executed the officials who had murdered his father the king. 4 Yet he did not put their children to death, but acted in accordance with what is written in the Law, in the Book of Moses, ( E ) where the Lord commanded: “Parents shall not be put to death for their children, nor children be put to death for their parents; each will die for their own sin.” [ a ] ( F )
5 Amaziah called the people of Judah together and assigned them according to their families to commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds for all Judah and Benjamin. He then mustered ( G ) those twenty years old ( H ) or more and found that there were three hundred thousand men fit for military service, ( I ) able to handle the spear and shield. 6 He also hired a hundred thousand fighting men from Israel for a hundred talents [ b ] of silver.
7 But a man of God came to him and said, “Your Majesty, these troops from Israel ( J ) must not march with you, for the Lord is not with Israel—not with any of the people of Ephraim. 8 Even if you go and fight courageously in battle, God will overthrow you before the enemy, for God has the power to help or to overthrow.” ( K )
9 Amaziah asked the man of God, “But what about the hundred talents I paid for these Israelite troops?”
The man of God replied, “The Lord can give you much more than that.” ( L )
10 So Amaziah dismissed the troops who had come to him from Ephraim and sent them home. They were furious with Judah and left for home in a great rage. ( M )
11 Amaziah then marshaled his strength and led his army to the Valley of Salt, where he killed ten thousand men of Seir. 12 The army of Judah also captured ten thousand men alive, took them to the top of a cliff and threw them down so that all were dashed to pieces. ( N )
13 Meanwhile the troops that Amaziah had sent back and had not allowed to take part in the war raided towns belonging to Judah from Samaria to Beth Horon. They killed three thousand people and carried off great quantities of plunder.
14 When Amaziah returned from slaughtering the Edomites, he brought back the gods of the people of Seir. He set them up as his own gods, ( O ) bowed down to them and burned sacrifices to them. 15 The anger of the Lord burned against Amaziah, and he sent a prophet to him, who said, “Why do you consult this people’s gods, which could not save ( P ) their own people from your hand?”
16 While he was still speaking, the king said to him, “Have we appointed you an adviser to the king? Stop! Why be struck down?”
So the prophet stopped but said, “I know that God has determined to destroy you, because you have done this and have not listened to my counsel.”
17 After Amaziah king of Judah consulted his advisers, he sent this challenge to Jehoash [ c ] son of Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, king of Israel: “Come, let us face each other in battle.”
18 But Jehoash king of Israel replied to Amaziah king of Judah: “A thistle ( Q ) in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon, ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ Then a wild beast in Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle underfoot. 19 You say to yourself that you have defeated Edom, and now you are arrogant and proud. But stay at home! Why ask for trouble and cause your own downfall and that of Judah also?”
20 Amaziah, however, would not listen, for God so worked that he might deliver them into the hands of Jehoash, because they sought the gods of Edom. ( R ) 21 So Jehoash king of Israel attacked. He and Amaziah king of Judah faced each other at Beth Shemesh in Judah. 22 Judah was routed by Israel, and every man fled to his home. 23 Jehoash king of Israel captured Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash, the son of Ahaziah, [ d ] at Beth Shemesh. Then Jehoash brought him to Jerusalem and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the Ephraim Gate ( S ) to the Corner Gate ( T ) —a section about four hundred cubits [ e ] long. 24 He took all the gold and silver and all the articles found in the temple of God that had been in the care of Obed-Edom, ( U ) together with the palace treasures and the hostages, and returned to Samaria.
25 Amaziah son of Joash king of Judah lived for fifteen years after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel. 26 As for the other events of Amaziah’s reign, from beginning to end, are they not written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel? 27 From the time that Amaziah turned away from following the Lord , they conspired against him in Jerusalem and he fled to Lachish ( V ) , but they sent men after him to Lachish and killed him there. 28 He was brought back by horse and was buried with his ancestors in the City of Judah. [ f ]
