15 In the twenty-seventh year of Jeroboam [II] king of Israel, Azariah (Uzziah) son of Amaziah king of Judah began to reign.
2 He was sixteen years old when he began his fifty-two-year reign in Jerusalem. His mother was Jecoliah of Jerusalem.
3 He did right in the Lord’s sight, in keeping with all his father Amaziah had done—
4 Except the high places were not removed; the people sacrificed and burned incense still on the high places.
5 And the Lord smote the king, so that he was a leper to his dying day, and dwelt in a separate house. Jotham the king’s son was over the household, judging the people of the land.(A)
6 The rest of Azariah’s acts, all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?
7 Azariah slept with his fathers, and they buried him with them in the City of David. Jotham his son reigned in his stead.
8 In the thirty-eighth year of Azariah king of Judah Zechariah son of Jeroboam [II] reigned over Israel in Samaria six months.
9 He did evil in the sight of the Lord, as his fathers had done; he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam [I] son of Nebat, with which he made Israel to sin.
10 Shallum son of Jabesh conspired against Zechariah and struck and killed him before the people and reigned in his stead.
11 The rest of the acts of Zechariah, see, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
12 This was the fulfillment of the promise to Jehu from the Lord: Your sons shall sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation. And so it came to pass.(B)
13 Shallum son of Jabesh, in the thirty-ninth year of Uzziah king of Judah, began his reign of a full month in Samaria.
14 For Menahem son of Gadi went up from Tirzah and came to Samaria, and smote and killed Shallum son of Jabesh in Samaria and reigned in his stead.
15 The rest of Shallum’s acts, his conspiracy, see, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
16 Then Menahem smote Tiphsah and all who were in it and its territory from Tirzah on; he attacked it because they did not open to him. And all [a]the women there who were with child he ripped up.
17 In the thirty-ninth year of Azariah king of Judah, Menahem son of Gadi began his ten-year reign over Israel in Samaria.
18 He did evil in the sight of the Lord; he did not depart all his days from the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he caused Israel to sin.
19 There came against the land Pul king of Assyria, and Menahem gave Pul 1,000 talents of silver, that he might help him to confirm his kingship.
20 Menahem exacted the money from Israel, from all the men of wealth, from each man fifty shekels of silver to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back and did not stay in the land.
21 The rest of Menahem’s acts, all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
22 Menahem slept with his fathers; Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead.
23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekahiah son of Menahem began his two-year reign over Israel in Samaria.
24 He did evil in the sight of the Lord; he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam [I] son of Nebat, which he made Israel sin.
25 But Pekah son of Remaliah, his captain, conspired against [Pekahiah] and attacked him in Samaria, in the citadel of the king’s house, with Argob and Arieh; [for] with [Pekah] were fifty Gileadites. And he killed him and reigned in his stead.
26 The rest of the acts of Pekahiah, all he did, see, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel.
27 In the fifty-second year of Azariah king of Judah, Pekah son of Remaliah began his twenty-year reign over Israel in Samaria.
28 He did evil in the Lord’s sight; he did not depart from the sins of Jeroboam [I] son of Nebat, which he made Israel sin.
29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and took Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried the people captive to Assyria.
30 Hoshea son of Elah conspired against Pekah son of Remaliah [of Israel]; he smote and killed him, and reigned in his stead in the twentieth year of Jotham son of Uzziah king of Judah.
31 The rest of Pekah’s acts, all that he did, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of Israel’s Kings.
32 In the second year of Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel, Jotham son of Uzziah king of Judah became king.
33 When he was twenty-five years old, he began his reign of sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother was Jerusha daughter of Zadok.
34 He did right in the Lord’s sight, according to all his father Uzziah had done.
35 Yet the high places were not removed; the people sacrificed and burned incense still on the high places. He built the Upper Gate of the house of the Lord.
36 The rest of the acts of Jotham, all he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of Judah’s Kings?
37 In those days the Lord began sending Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah against Judah.
38 Jotham slept with his fathers and was buried [with them] in the city of David his [forefather]. Ahaz his son succeeded him.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 15:16 This savage conduct was among the enormities that a heathen ruler might perpetrate, but only here do we find such cruelty employed by an Israelite. It shows the great degradation and barbarity of the times (The Cambridge Bible).