2 Kings 15

In the twenty-seventh year that Jeroboam was king of Israel, Azariah son of Amaziah became king of Judah.

1In the twenty and seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel began Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah to reign.

NoteAfter Solomon's death the kingdom split in two: Israel in the north, with ten tribes and its own line of kings, and Judah in the south, ruled from Jerusalem by David's descendants. This chapter tracks both at once, dating each king's accession by how many years the rival kingdom's king had been on the throne, the standard way this book keeps time. The two sets of numbers in this chapter do not all fit together neatly, probably because reigns overlapped (a son ruling alongside his father) and because the two kingdoms counted a king's first partial year differently.

2He was sixteen years old when he became king, and he ruled in Jerusalem fifty-two years. His mother's name was Jecoliah, and she was from Jerusalem.

2Sixteen years old was he when he began to reign, and he reigned two and fifty years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem.

NoteThe records of Judah's kings routinely name the king's mother. The queen mother held a recognized position at court, and naming her also identified the king's family and home region.

3He did what was right in the LORD's eyes, just as his father Amaziah had done.

3And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done;

4But the high places were not taken down. The people kept offering sacrifices and burning incense at those places.

4Save that the high places were not removed: the people sacrificed and burnt incense still on the high places.

Note"High places" were open-air worship sites, usually on hilltops, with an altar and often a standing stone or sacred pole. They were used for sacrifice long before the Jerusalem temple existed, and the writers of Kings measure every king by whether he shut them down.

5The LORD struck the king with a skin disease that stayed with him until the day he died, so he lived in a separate house. His son Jotham was in charge of the palace and governed the people of the land.

5And the LORD smote the king, so that he was a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a several house. And Jotham the king’s son was over the house, judging the people of the land.

NoteThe Hebrew word covers a range of disfiguring skin conditions, not only the disease called leprosy today. Anyone with it was ritually unclean and had to live apart from the community, which is why even a king was moved to a separate house. "In charge of the palace" means Jotham ran the government in his father's place, effectively co-ruler.

6The rest of what Azariah did, and everything he accomplished, is written in the book of the history of the kings of Judah.

6And the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

NoteThis is a royal record kept by court scribes, now lost. It is not the biblical books of 1 and 2 Chronicles. The writer of Kings repeatedly points readers to it, the way a modern author cites a source.

7Azariah died and joined his ancestors, and they buried him with them in the City of David. His son Jotham became king in his place.

7So Azariah slept with his fathers; and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David: and Jotham his son reigned in his stead.

Note"Died and joined his ancestors" is a set phrase for dying peacefully and being buried in the family tomb; the burial is then mentioned separately. The City of David is the oldest part of Jerusalem, the ridge David captured, where the kings were buried.

8In the thirty-eighth year that Azariah was king of Judah, Zechariah son of Jeroboam became king of Israel. He ruled in Samaria six months.

8In the thirty and eighth year of Azariah king of Judah did Zachariah the son of Jeroboam reign over Israel in Samaria six months.

NoteSamaria was the capital city of the northern kingdom, built by King Omri, as Jerusalem was the capital of the south.

9He did what was evil in the LORD's eyes, as the kings before him had done. He did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to commit.

9And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, as his fathers had done: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.

NoteJeroboam son of Nebat was the first king of the breakaway northern kingdom. He set up golden calves at Bethel and Dan so his people would not travel to the temple in Jerusalem to worship. In Kings this is the benchmark failure, and every northern king is measured against it.

10Shallum son of Jabesh made a secret plan against him. He attacked him in front of the people and killed him, and became king in his place.

10And Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and smote him before the people, and slew him, and reigned in his stead.

NoteThe Hebrew phrase translated "in front of the people" is difficult; some ancient manuscripts read it as a place name, Ibleam, meaning Shallum killed him at that town.

11The rest of what Zechariah did is written in the book of the history of the kings of Israel.

11And the rest of the acts of Zachariah, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

12This fulfilled what the LORD had said to Jehu: "Your sons will sit on the throne of Israel down to the fourth generation." And that is exactly what happened.

12This was the word of the LORD which he spake unto Jehu, saying, Thy sons shall sit on the throne of Israel unto the fourth generation. And so it came to pass.

NoteA reference back to the promise made to Jehu, the general who seized the northern throne and wiped out the previous dynasty: his descendants would hold the throne for four generations. Zechariah was the fourth, and his murder ends the line.

13Shallum son of Jabesh became king in the thirty-ninth year that Uzziah was king of Judah, and he ruled in Samaria one full month.

13Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the nine and thirtieth year of Uzziah king of Judah; and he reigned a full month in Samaria.

NoteUzziah is the same king as Azariah in verses 1–7; both names are used for him throughout the Bible, and the writer switches between them without comment.

14Menahem son of Gadi came up from Tirzah to Samaria. There he attacked Shallum son of Jabesh and killed him, and became king in his place.

14For Menahem the son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, and came to Samaria, and smote Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria, and slew him, and reigned in his stead.

NoteTirzah was the earlier capital of the northern kingdom before Samaria was built, and it remained an important northern city, a natural base for a rival claimant.

15The rest of what Shallum did, including the plot he led, is written in the book of the history of the kings of Israel.

15And the rest of the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he made, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

16Then Menahem set out from Tirzah and attacked Tiphsah, everyone in it, and the territory around it, because the town would not open its gates to him. That is why he attacked it, and he cut open all the pregnant women there.

16Then Menahem smote Tiphsah, and all that were therein, and the coasts thereof from Tirzah: because they opened not to him, therefore he smote it; and all the women therein that were with child he ripped up.

NoteKilling pregnant women this way was a known atrocity of ancient warfare, mentioned elsewhere in the Bible as the mark of a particularly brutal conqueror; it destroyed the next generation as well as the present one. The location of Tiphsah is uncertain, and some manuscripts read the name as Tappuah, a town nearer Tirzah.

17In the thirty-ninth year that Azariah was king of Judah, Menahem son of Gadi became king of Israel, and he ruled ten years in Samaria.

17In the nine and thirtieth year of Azariah king of Judah began Menahem the son of Gadi to reign over Israel, and reigned ten years in Samaria.

18He did what was evil in the LORD's eyes. As long as he lived, he did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to commit.

18And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.

19Pul, the king of Assyria, invaded the land. Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver so that Pul would support him and help him keep a firm hold on the kingdom.

19And Pul the king of Assyria came against the land: and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand.

NotePul is the Babylonian name of Tiglath-pileser III of Assyria, the same king named in verse 29; Assyria was the dominant military power of the region. A talent was roughly seventy-five pounds, so a thousand talents is an enormous sum, tribute paid to buy off an invasion and to have the emperor recognize Menahem as the legitimate king.

20Menahem raised this money by taking it from Israel, from all the wealthy men, fifty pieces of silver from each man, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria went back home and did not stay in the land.

20And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and stayed not there in the land.

NoteA shekel was a weight of silver, a little under half an ounce; coins did not yet exist, so payment was weighed out. Fifty shekels was a substantial sum for an individual, comparable to the price paid for a slave, and it was levied on the wealthy landowning class.

21The rest of what Menahem did, and everything he accomplished, is written in the book of the history of the kings of Israel.

21And the rest of the acts of Menahem, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

22Menahem died and joined his ancestors, and his son Pekahiah became king in his place.

22And Menahem slept with his fathers; and Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead.

23In the fiftieth year that Azariah was king of Judah, Pekahiah son of Menahem became king of Israel in Samaria, and he ruled two years.

23In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned two years.

24He did what was evil in the LORD's eyes. He did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to commit.

24And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.

25One of his officers, Pekah son of Remaliah, made a secret plan against him. With Argob and Arieh and fifty men from Gilead, Pekah attacked him in the strong inner part of the royal palace in Samaria. He killed him and became king in his place.

25But Pekah the son of Remaliah, a captain of his, conspired against him, and smote him in Samaria, in the palace of the king’s house, with Argob and Arieh, and with him fifty men of the Gileadites: and he killed him, and reigned in his room.

NoteThe Hebrew names Argob and Arieh without saying clearly whether they were Pekah's accomplices or further victims killed with the king; both readings are possible. Gilead was the Israelite territory east of the Jordan River, and the fifty Gileadites were probably soldiers under Pekah's command.

26The rest of what Pekahiah did, and everything he accomplished, is written in the book of the history of the kings of Israel.

26And the rest of the acts of Pekahiah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

27In the fifty-second year that Azariah was king of Judah, Pekah son of Remaliah became king of Israel in Samaria, and he ruled twenty years.

27In the two and fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned twenty years.

28He did what was evil in the LORD's eyes. He did not turn away from the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel to commit.

28And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD: he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin.

29While Pekah was king of Israel, Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria came and captured Ijon, Abel-beth-maacah, Janoah, Kedesh, Hazor, Gilead, and Galilee, including all the land of Naphtali. He took the people away as prisoners to Assyria.

29In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglathpileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abelbethmaachah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria.

NoteAssyria's standard policy was mass deportation: conquered populations were marched away and resettled elsewhere in the empire to break their capacity to rebel. This campaign stripped the northern kingdom of its whole northern and eastern territory, leaving little more than the hill country around Samaria.

30Hoshea son of Elah made a secret plan against Pekah son of Remaliah. He attacked him and killed him and became king in his place, in the twentieth year of Jotham son of Uzziah.

30And Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him, and reigned in his stead, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah.

NoteThe dating here is odd, since verse 33 says Jotham reigned only sixteen years. It may count from when Jotham would have been reigning had he lived, or reflect a period when his son Ahaz ruled while Jotham was still formally on the throne.

31The rest of what Pekah did, and everything he accomplished, is written in the book of the history of the kings of Israel.

31And the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

32In the second year that Pekah son of Remaliah was king of Israel, Jotham son of Uzziah became king of Judah.

32In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel began Jotham the son of Uzziah king of Judah to reign.

33He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he ruled in Jerusalem sixteen years. His mother's name was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok.

33Five and twenty years old was he when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Jerusha, the daughter of Zadok.

34He did what was right in the LORD's eyes, just as his father Uzziah had done.

34And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD: he did according to all that his father Uzziah had done.

35Still, the high places were not taken down. The people kept offering sacrifices and burning incense there. Jotham built the Upper Gate of the LORD's temple.

35Howbeit the high places were not removed: the people sacrificed and burned incense still in the high places. He built the higher gate of the house of the LORD.

NoteThe Upper Gate was an entrance to the temple complex in Jerusalem, on the north side; building or repairing it was a public works project of the kind kings were remembered for.

36The rest of what Jotham did, and everything he accomplished, is written in the book of the history of the kings of Judah.

36Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

37In those days the LORD began to send Rezin king of Aram against Judah, along with Pekah son of Remaliah.

37In those days the LORD began to send against Judah Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah.

NoteAram, called Syria in older translations, was the kingdom centered on Damascus, north-east of Israel. Rezin and Pekah were allies pressing Judah to join their coalition against Assyria; the war that follows dominates the next chapter.

38Jotham died and joined his ancestors, and he was buried with them in the City of David, the city of his ancestor David. His son Ahaz became king in his place.

38And Jotham slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.