E HISTORICAL BOO OF THE BIBLE. THE HISTORICAL BOOKS OF THE BIBLE. (SCHOOL AND FAMILY EDITION.) PUBLISHED Under the auspices of Congregation Adatk Israel, Louisville, Ky., and Congregation Emanu-El, Milwaukee, Wis., BY ADOLPH MOSES AND ISAAC S. MOSES, MILWAUKEE, WIS. 1884. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1884, by ADOLPH MOSES AND ISAAC S. MOSES, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington, D. C. < PREFACE. It is with a sense of joy that we herewith present the Historical Books of our School* and Family Edition of the Bible to American Israel. The rapid progress of this publication is mainly due to the liberality of two congregations: of K. K. Adath Israel, Louisville, Ky., and of Congregation Emanu-El, Milwaukee, Wis. In editing this part of the Bible we have followed the same principles that guided us in the arrangement of the Pentateuch. We have eliminated from the text, 1, all matters sexual, 2, unnecessary geneologies and repetitions, and 3, the harsh features of primitive warfare. While Sharpe's excellent translation of the Bible has on the whole been used in this publication, we departed from his rendering whereever the original Hebrew required it. After most careful deliberation we have in some places ventured slight emendations and transpositions by which the narrative was made more intelligible and connected, - as in I. Samuel Ch. xm, V. 15., II. Kings Ch. xm, V. 4 and V. 23. Where two contradictory versions of the same event occur, the less probable has been placed between two black lines, as in Judges Ch. x., V. 415., I. Samuel Ch. ix x V. 16., xv and xvi., xix V. 18, xx. The same means serve to mark obvious interpolations, as in I. Samuel Ch. xxili, V. 814, II. Samuel Ch. XI. V. 2 xil V. 25. Square brackets include those few words which are added to the text by way of explanation, or inserted rustead of the original inadmissible reading, as in II. Samuel Ch. xi. V. 4 ; Ch. xm. V. 1 ; II. Kings Ch. x. V. 7. Wherever references to other Books are made they refer to Chapter and Verse of the Massoretic text and not to the divisions in this edition. Quotations from earlier Books are printed in Italics, The dates accompanying the text will doubless be welcomed as a useful feature ; they are counted backward from the Common Era by the help of the eclipse in the fifth year of Nabopu- lassar's reign, and are marked B. C. To facilitate the study of Israel's history an excellent map of Palestine, and a comprehensive summary of events, chronologically arranged, have been added to this volume. Though this volume largely exceeds in bulk the first part, or the Pentateuch, the same low price has been retained. The Pro- phets, and the Hagiographa with selections from the Apocrypha, forming the last two volumes, will, with G-od's aid, shortly follow. The publishers will be thankful for suggestions and corrections and will profit thereby in a second edition. 44-2380THK MILWAUKEE, Wis., in the month of October, 1884. TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAGB. Joshua 1 Judges 21 I. Samuel .... t!> II. Samuel !M I. Kings 1 :>0 II. Kings 1 70 Ezra i>I!) Nehemiah 1*2 1 Summary of Events :V> JO SUIT A CHAPTER I. AFTER the death of Moses the servant of the LORD it came to pass, that the LORD spake to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, say- ing : 2 Moses my servant is dead ; now therefore arise, cross over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I give to them, even to the children of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given to you, as I said to Moses. 4 From the [southern] desert and this Lebanon even unto the Great River, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the Great Sea [or the Mediterranean] toward the going down o,f the sun, shall be your boundary. 5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with thee. I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. 6 Be strong and of good courage ; for thou shalt cause this people to inherit the land which I sware unto their fathers to give them. 7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law which Moses, my servant, commanded thee. Turn not aside from it to the right hand or to the left, so that thou mayest do wisely withersoever thou goest. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart out of thy mouth ; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, so that thou mayest observe to do ac- cording to all that is written therein. For then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt do wisely. 9 Have not I commanded thee ? Be strong and of good courage ; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed ; for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest. 10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying : 11 Pass through the middle of the camp, and command the people, say- ing, Prepare for yourselves victuals ; for within three days ye shall pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the LORD your God giveth you to possess it. 12 And to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the Half Tribe of Manasseh, spake Joshua, saying : 13 Remember the word which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, saying, the LORD your Gad hath given you rest, and hath given you this land. 14 Your wives, your little ones, and your cattle, shall remain in the land which Moses gave you beyond the Jordan ; but ye shall cross over armed before your brethren, all the warriors of valour, and help them ; 15 Until the LORD shall give rest to your brethren, as to you, and they JOSHUA. CHAPTER II, also have possessed the land, which the LORD : votir Gro'd /giv^tji them. Then ye shall 'return* to 'the land of your possession,; SCnd" ^qssfess iVwtiich Moses the ser-vstnfc "of tfte- Ld&D gave you beyond the Jordan toward the sunrising. 1 6 And they answered Joshua, say- ing, All that thou commandest us we will do, and withersoever thou sendest us, we will go. 17 According as we hearkened to Moses in all things, so will we hearken to thee. Only the LORD thy Grod be with thee, as he was with Moses. 18 Whosoever he be that doth rebel against thy command, and will not hearken to thy words in all that thou commandest us, he shall be put to death ; only be strong, and of good courage. CHAPTER H. A ND Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Sittim two men as spies secretly, saying, Gro view the land, and Jericho. And they went, and came into the house of a woman, named Rahab, and they lodged there. 2 And it was told the king of Je- richo, saying, Behold, there came men in hither to night, out of the children of Israel, to search out the land. 3 And the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, who are come into thy house ; for they are come to search out all the land. 4 And the woman took the two men and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I know not whence they were. 5 And it came to pass at the shut: ting of the city gate, when it was dark, that the men went out. Whither the men went I know not. Pursue after them quickly ; for ye will over- take them. 6 But she had brought them up to the roof of the house, and had hidden them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order upon the roof. 7 And the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan unto the fords. And as soon as they that pursued after them were gone out, they shut the city gate. 8 And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof ; 9 And she said to the men, I know- that the LORD hath given you the land, and that the fear of you is fallen upon us, and that all the in- habitants of the land faint because of you. 10 For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt ; and what ye did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye ut- terly destroyed. 11 And as soon as we had heard, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more courage in any man, because of you; for the LORD your Grod, he is God in heaven above, and on earth beneath. 12 Now, therefore, I pray you, swear to me by the LORD, since I have shewed you kindness, that ye will also shew kindness to my father's house ; and give me a true token ; 13 And that ye will save alive my father, and my mother, and my breth- ren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death. CHAPTER III. JOSHUA. 14 And the men answered her, Our life for yours unto death, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the LORD hath given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee. 15 Then she let them down by a cord through the window; for her house was upon the wall of the ram- part, and she dwelt upon the rampart. 16 And she said unto them, G-et you to the Hill country, lest the pur- suers meet you ; and hide yourselves there for three days, until the pur- suers be returned; and afterward may ye go your way. 17 And the men said to her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. 18 Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by ; and thou shalt gather thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household, home unto thee. 19 And it shall be that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guilt- less. And whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him. 20 But if thou utter this our busi- ness, then we will be quit of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. 21 And she said, According unto your words, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed. And she bound the scarlet line in the window. 22 And they went and came to the Hill country, and abode there three days, until the pursuers were returned. 23 So the two men returned, and went down from the Hill country, and crossed over [the Jordan], and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and related to him all that had befallen them. 24 And they said to Joshua, Truly the LORD hath delivered into our hands all the land : for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us. CHAPTER III. Joshua rose early in the morn- ing ; and they removed from Sit- tirn, and came to the Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they crossed over. 2 And it came to pass after three days, that the officers went through the camp ; 3 And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it. 4 Yet there shall be a space be- tween you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Come not near unto it, in order that ye may know the way by which ye must go. For ye have not passed this way hereto- fore. 5 And Joshua said to the people, Sanctify yourselves ; for to-morrow the LORD will do wonders among you. 6 And Joshua spake to the priests, saying, Take up the Ark of the Covenant, and cross over [the Jordan] before the people. And they took up the Ark of the Covenant, and went before the people. t And the LORD said to Joshua JOSHUA. CHAPTER IV. This day will I begin to magnify thee in the eyes of all Israel, that they may know that as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee. 8 And Joshua said to the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the LORD your God. 9 And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Ainorites, and the Jebusites. 10 Behold the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into the Jordan. 11 And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the Ark of the Eter- nal, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan will be cut off, even the waters that come down from above ; and they will stand up in a heap. 12 And the people removed from their tents to cross over the Jordan, and the priests bearing the Ark of the Covenant went before the people ; 13 And as they that bare the Ark were come to the Jordan, and their feet were dipped in the brim of the water, (for the Jordan is full on all its banks during all the time of harvest,) the waters which were coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap ; and those that were going down toward the Salt Sea, failed, and were cut off ; and the people crossed over [the Jordan] right against Jericho. 14 And the priests that bare the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all the Israelites crossed over on dry ground, until all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan. CHAPTER IV. A ND it came to pass, when all the nation had finished crossing over the Jordan, that the LORD spake to Joshua saying, 2 Take to you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man, 3 And command ye them, saying, Take up to you hence out of the midst of the Jordan, out of the firm foot- way of the priests, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging-place, where ye shall lodge this night. 4 And thus the children of Israel did, as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of the Jordan, as the LORD had spoken to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them to the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. 5 And it came to pass, when all the people had finished crossing over, that the Ark of the LORD crossed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people. And the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, crossed over armed in the presence of the children of Israel, as Moses had spoken to them. 7 About forty thousand prepared for war crossed over before the LORD unto battle, to the barren plains of Jericho. 8 On that day th.3 LORD magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel ; and CHAPTER V. JOSHUA. they feared him, as they had feared Moses, all he days of his life. 9 And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, on the east border of Jericho. 10 And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, did Jo- shua set up in Gilgal. 11 And he spake to the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What are these stones? 12 Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land. 13 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan from before you, until ye had crossed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up from before us, until we had crossed over ; 14 In order that all the peoples of the land might know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty ; and in order that you might fear the LORD your God, forever. 15 And the children of Israel en- camped at Gilgal, and kept the pass- over on the fourteenth day of the month at evening in the plains of Jericho. 16 And they did eat of the produce of the land on the morrow of the passover, unleavened cakes, and parched corn in the course of that day. 17 And the Manna ceased on the morrow as they did eat of the produce of the land. 18 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand. And Joshua went to him, and said to him, Art thou for us, or for our adversaries ? 19 And he said, Nay ; but as prince of the LORD of hosts am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and said to him, What saith my lord to his servant? 20 And the prince of the LORD of hosts said to Joshua, Put off thy shoe from off thy foot ; for the place whereon thou standest is holy. And Joshua did so. CHAPTER V. ]^OW Jericho was closely shut up because of the children of Israel. I None went out and none came in. J 2 And the LORD said to Joshua, ! See, I have given into thy hand Je- j richo, and the king thereof, and the warriors of valour. 3 And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said to them, Take up the Ark of the Covenant, and let seven priests bear seven jubilee trum- pets before the Ark of the LORD. 4 And he said to the people, Pass on and encompass the city, and let the armed men pass on before the Ark of the LORD. 5 And it came to pass, when Joshua had spoken to the people, that the seven priests bearing the seven jubilee trumpets before the LORD passed on, and blew with the trumpets ; and the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD fol- lowed after them. 6 And the armed men went before the priests that blew with the trum- pets, and the rear- guard came after the Ark, going on, and blowing with the trumpets. 7 And Joshua had commanded the people, saying, Ye shall not shout, nor make any noise with your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of 6 JOSHUA. CHAPTER VI. your mouth, until the day when I bid you shout ; then shall ye shout. 8 So the Ark of the LORD encom- passed the city, going round it once. And they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp. 9 And on the second day they en- compassed the city once, and returned into the camp. So they did for six days. 10 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early at the rising of the dawn, and encom- passed the city after the same manner seven times. 11 And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the trumpets, Joshua said to the people, Shout; for the LORD hath given to you the city. 12 And the city is accursed, it and all that is therein, to the LORD ; only Rahab shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent. 13 Only do ye keep yourselves from the accursed thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed, and make the camp of Israel to become accursed, and trouble it. 14 But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of copper and iron, shall be holy unto the LORD ; they shall come into the treasury of the LORD. 15 So the people shouted ; and they blew with the trumpets. And it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, that the wall fell down flat, so the people went . up into the city, every man straight before him, and took the city. 16 But Joshua had said to the two men that had spied out the land, Go into the house of Rahab and bring out thence the woman, and all that she hath, as ye sware unto her. 17 And the men went in, and brought out Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had; and they brought out all her kindred, and left them without the camp of Israel. 18 And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein ; only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of copper and of iron, they put into the treasury. 19 And Joshua adjured them at that time, saying, Cursed be the man before the LORD that riseth up and buildeth up this city of Jericho ; he shall lay the foundation thereof in his firstborn, and in his youngest son shall he set up the doors of it. 20 So the LORD was with Joshua ; and his fame was throughout all the land. CHAPTER VI. B u - T the children of Israel commit- ted a tresspass in the accursed thing ; for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabbi, the son of Zarah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of the accursed thing ; and the anger of the LORD was kindled against the children of Israel. 2 And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth- aven, (on the east side of Beth- el,) and spake to them, saying, Go up and spy the land. And the men went up and spied Ai. 3 And they returned to Joshua, and said to him, Let not all the people go up ; but let about two thousand or about three thousand men go up and smite Ai. Weary not all the people CHAPTER VI. JOSHUA. by sending them thither: for they are but few. 4 So they went up thither of the people about three thousand men; but they fled before the men of Ai. 5 And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men. For they chased them from before the city gate unto the breaches, and smote them in the going down. Therefore the hearts of the people melted, and became as water. 6 And Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face be- fore the Ark of the LORD until the eventide, he and the elders of Israel, and they put dust upon their heads. 7 And Joshua said, Alas, Lord God, wherefore hast thou at all brought this people over the Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to destroy us? Oh that we had been content, and had dwelt on the other side of the Jordan ; 8 Lord, what is to be said after Israel hath turned their backs before their enemies ? 9 For the Canaanites and all the in- habitants of the land will hear of it, and will environ us round, and cut off our name from the earth. And what wilt thou do for thy great name ? 10 And the LORD said to Joshua, Get thee up ; wherefore art thou thus fallen upon thy face ? 11 Israel hath sinned, and they have also transgressed my covenant which I commanded them. For they have even taken some of the accursed thing, and have both stolen, and dis- sembled, and they have also put it among their own baggage. 12 Therefore the children of Israel could not stand up before their ene- mies, but turned their backs before their enemies, because they had be- come accursed. Neither will I be with you any more except ye destroy the accursed thing from, among you. 13 Get thee up, sanctify the peo- ple, and say, Sanctify yourselves against to-morrow ; for thus said the LORD the God of Israel, There is an accursed thing in the midst of thee, Israel ; thou canst not stand up before thine enemies until ye put away the accursed thing from among you. 14 So Joshua rose up early in the morning, and brought up Israel by their tribes ; and the tribe of Judah was taken. 15 And he brought up the families of Judah ; and the family of the Zarhites was taken. And he brought up the family of the Zarhites man by man ; and Zabdi was taken. 16 And he brought up his house man by man ; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zarah, of the tribe of Judah was taken. It And Joshua, said to Achan, My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD the God of Israel, and make confession unto him ; and tell me now what thou hast done ; hide it not from me. 18 And Achan answered Joshua, and said, Indeed I have sinned against the LORD the God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done. 19 When I saw among the spoils a goodly Babylonian mantle, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels [or twenty-five ounces], then I coveted them, and took them ; and behold, 8 JOSHUA. CHAPTER VII. they are hidden in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver un- der it. 20 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent ; and behold, it was hidden in his tent, and the silver under it. 21 And they took them out of the midst of the tent, and brought them to Joshua, and all the children of Israel, and laid them before the LORD. 22 And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zarah, and the silver, and the mantle, and the wedge of gold, and all that he had ; and they brought them to the valley of Achor [or Trouble]. 23 And Joshua said, Why hast thou troubled us ? The LORD will trouble thee this day. And all Israel stoned him with stones. And they raised over him a great heap of stones which remain until this day. Therefore the name of that place has been called, The Valley of Achor, unto this day. CHAPTER VII. the LORD said to Joshua, Fear not, neither be thou dis- Take all the people of war with thee, and arise, go up to Ai. See, I have given into thy hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land. 2 And Joshua rose up early in the morning, and mustered the people, and went up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai. 3 And all the people of war of them that were with him went up, and drew nigh, and came before the city, and encamped on the north side of Ai. And there was a valley between them and Ai. 4 And he took about five thousand men, and set them to lie in ambush between Beth-el and Ai, on the west side of the city. 5 And when the people had set all the camp that was on the north of the city, and their Hers in wait on the west of the city, Joshua went that night into the midst of the valley. 6 And it came to pass, when the king of Ai saw it, that they hastened and rose up early, and the men of the city went out against Israel to bat- tle, he and all his people, at a time appointed, before the Barren Valley ; but he knew not that there was an ambush against him behind the city. 7 And Joshua and all Israel were beaten before them, and fled by the way of the desert. 8 And all the people that were in Ai were called together to pursue af- ter them. And they pursued after Joshua, and were drawn away from the city. 9 And there was not a man left in Ai or Beth-el, that went not out af- ter Israel. And they left the city open, and pursued after Israel. 10 And the ambush arose quickly out of their place. And they ran and entered into the city, and took it, and hastened, and set the ity on fire. 1 1 And when the men of Ai looked behind them, they saw, and behold, [he smoke of the city ascended up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that way. 12 And the people that fled to the desert turned upon the pursuers. And when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city, and that the smoke of the city ascended, CHAPTER VIII. JOSHUA. they returned, and sinote the men of Ai. 13 And the others issued out of the city against them ; so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side. And they smote them, so that they let none of them remain or escape. 14 (Then Joshua built an altar to the LORD the G-od of Israel on mount Ebal, as Moses the servant of the LORD commanded the children of Israel, as is written in the Book of the Law of MOSQS [Deut. xxvii. 4, 5, 6], an altar of whole stones, over which no man hath lifted up any iron; and they offered up thereon burnt offerings to the LORD, and sacrificed peace offerings. 15 And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the Law of Moses, in the presence of the children of Israel. 16 And all Israel, and their elders and officers, and their judges, stood on this side and on that side of the Ark before the priests the Levites.who bare the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD, the stranger, as well as he that was born among them ; half of them over against mount Gerizim, and half of them over against mount Ebal ; as* Moses had before command- ed that they should bless the people of Israel. 17 And afterwards he read all the words of the Law, the blessings and cursings, according to all that is written in the Book of the Law [Deut. xxviii.]. 18 There was not a word of all that Moses had commanded which Joshua read not before all the assembly of Israel, with the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that were among them.) CHAPTER VIII. A ND when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and to Ai, 2 They also did work wilily, and went and took provisions for them- selves, and took worn out sacks upon their asses, and wine-skins worn out; and rent, and bound up. 3 And shoes worn out and patched upon their feet, and worn out cloaks upon them ; and all the bread of their provision was dry with mouldiness. 4 And they went to Joshua to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him, and to the men of Israel, We are from a far country ; now therefore make ye a league with us. 5 And the men of Israel said to the Hivites, Peradventure ye dwell among us ; and how shall we make a league with you? 6 And they said to Joshua, We are thy servants. And Joshua said to- them, Who are ye ? and whence come ye ? 7 And they said to him, From a very far country thy servants are come because of the name of Yahveh thy God ; for we have heard the fame of him. 8 And all that he did in Egypt, and all that he did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon king of Hesh- bon, and to Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth. 9 Therefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spake to us, saying, Take in your hands victuals for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to them, We are your servants. Therefore now make ye a league with us. 10 JOSHUA. CHAPTER IX. 10 This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you ; but now, behold, it is dry, and it is mouldy. 11 And these wine-skins, which we filled, were new ; and behold, they are rent ; and these our cloaks and our shoes are worn out by reason of the very long journey. 12 And they received the men by reason of their victuals, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LOED. 13 And Joshua made peace with them, and made a league with them, to let them live ; and the princes of the congregation sware to them. 13 And it came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a league with them, that they heard that they were their neighbours, and that they dwelt among them. 14 And the children of Israel journeyed, and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Bee- roth, and the City of Jearim. 15 And the children of Israel smote them not, because the princes of .the congregation had sworn unto them by the LORD the God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the princes. 16 But all the princes said to all the congregation, We have sworn to them by the LORD the God of Israel; now therefore we may not touch them. 17 This we will do to them ; we will even let them live, lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we sware unto them. 18 And the princes said to them, Let them live ; but let them be hew- ers of wood and drawers of water un- to all the congregation, as we have promised them. 19 And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the Altar of the LORD, even unto this day, in The Place which he chose. CHAPTER IX. MOW it came to pass, when Adoni- zedec king of Jerusalem had heard how Joshua had taken Ai, and had utterly destroyed it ; as he had done to Jericho and her . king, so he had done to Ai and her king ; and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel, and were among them ; 2 That they feared greatly, because Gribeon was a great city, as one of the royal cities, and because it was great- er than Ai, and all the men thereof were wariors. 3 Therefore Adoni-zedec king of Jerusalem sent to Hoham king of Hebron, and to Pirani king of Jar- rnuth, and to Japhia king of Lachish, and to Debir king of Eglon, saying, 4 Come up unto me, and help me, that we may smite Gibeon ; for it hath made peace with Joshua and with the children of Israel. 5 Therefore the five kings of the Amorites gathered themselves together and went up, they and all their hosts, and encamped before Gibeon, and made war against it. 6 And the men of Gibeon sent to Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying, Slacken not thy hand from thy ser- vants ; come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us. For all the kings of the Amorites that dwell in the Hill country are gathered together against us. CHAPTER X. JOSHUA. 11 7 So Joshua went up from G-ilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, and all the wariors of valour. 8 And the LORD said to Joshua, Fear them not; for I have delivered them into thy hand. There shall not a man of them stand before thee. 9 Joshua therefore came to them suddenly, and went up from Gilgal all night, and he discomfited them and smote them with a great slaugh- ter at Gibeon, and chased them along the way of the hill-road up to Beth- horon, and smote them unto Azekah, and unto Makkedah. 10 Then spake Joshua in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel, 'Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; And thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon.' 11 And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed till the nation had avenged themselves on their enemies. Is not this written in the Book of Jasher ? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hastened not to go down for about a whole day. 12 And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the LORD hearkened to the voice of a man ; for the LORD fought for Israel. 13 And on that day Joshua took Makkedah, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof. 14 Then Joshua passed from Mak- kedah, and all Israel with him, to Libnah, and fought against Libnah. 15 And the LORD delivered it also, and its king, into the hand of Israel. 16 And Joshua passed from Lib- nah, and all Israel with him, unto Lachish, and encamped against it, and fought against it. 17 And the LORD delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel. And he took it on the second day, and smote it with the edge of the sword. 18 Then Horain king of G-ezer came up to help Lachish; and Joshua smote him and his people, until he had left him none to escape. 19 And from Lachish Joshua passed to Eglon, and all Israel with him ; and they encamped against it, and fought against it. 20 And they took it on that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword. 21 And Joshua went up from Eg- lon, and all Israel with him, unto Hebron ; and they fought against it: 22 And they took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and its king, and all the cities. 23 And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, to Debir ; and fought against it. 24 And he took it, and its king, and all its cities ; and they smote them with the edge of the sword. 25 So Joshua smote all the land of the Hill country, and of the South country, and of the Low country, and of the Hill-sides, and all their kings. 26 And Joshua smote them from Kadesh-barnea even unto Gaza, and all the land of Goshen, even unto Gibeon. 27 And all these kings and their lands did Joshua take at one time, because the LORD the God of Israel fought for Israel. 28 And Joshua returned, and all Is- rael with him, unto the camp to Gilgal. CHAPTER X. AND it came to pass, when Jabin, king of Hazor had heard, he sen to Jobab king of Madon, and to the 12 JOSHUA. CHAPTER X. king of Shimron [or Samaria], and to the king of Achshaph, 2 And to the kings that were on the north, in the Hill country, and in the Barren Valley south of Chinneroth [or Gennesaret], and in the Low Country, and on the Heights of Dor on the Sea ; 3 And to the Canaanite on the east and on the west, and to the Arnorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite in the Hill country, and to the Hivite under Hermon in the land of Mizpeh [or the Watchtower]. 4 And they went out, they and all their hosts with them, much people even as the sand that is upon the sea shore in multitude, with horses and chariots very many. 5 And when all these kings were met together, they came and encamp- ed together at the Waters of Merom, to fight against Israel. 6 And the LORD said to Joshua, Be not afraid because of them ; for to- morrow about this time will I deliver them all up before Israel. 7 So Joshua came, and all the peo- ple of war with him, against them by the Waters of Merom suddenly ; and they fell upon them. 8 And the LORD delivered them in- to the hand of Israel, who smote them, and chased them to Great Si- don, and to Misarepoth [or Sarepta] on the Sea, and to the valley of Miz- peh eastward ; and they smote them, until they left them none to escape. 9 And Joshua at that time turned back, and took Hazor, and smote the king therof with the sword. For Hazor beforetime was the capitol of all those kingdoms. 10 And all the cities of those kings, and all the kings of them, did Joshua take, and smote them with the edge of the sword. 11 But as for the cities that stood on their mounds, Israel burned none of them, save Hazor only, that did Joshua burn. 12 And all the spoil of those cities, and the cattle, the children of Israel took for a prey to themselves. 13 So Joshua took all that land, the Hill country, and all the South country, and all the land of Goshen, and the Low country, and the Barren Valley, and the hill country of Israel, and the low country of the same, 14 From the Smooth Hill, the As- cent to Seir, even to Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon under mount Her- mon. And all their kings he took and smote them. 15 Joshua made war for a long time with all those kings. 16 There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel, save the Hivites, the inhabitants of Gibeon ; all the others they took in battle. 17 And at that time came Joshua, and cut off the Anakites from the Hill country, from Hebron, from De- bir, from Anab, and from all the hill country of Judah, and from the hill country of Israel ; Joshua destroyed them utterly with their cities. 18 There was none of the Anakites left in the land of the children of Israel ; only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod, they remained. 19 So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the LORD had said to Moses ; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel ac- cording to their divisions by their tribes. And the land rested from war. [APIER XI-XII-XIII. CHAPTER XI. MOW these are the kings of the land, whom the children of Israel smote, and possessed their land be- yond the Jordan toward the sunris- ing, from the river Arnon unto mount Hermon, and all the Barren Valley on the east ; 2 Sihon king of the Arnorites, who dwelt in Heshbon and ruled from Aroer, which is upon the edge of the valley [or chasm] of the Arnon, both over the middle of the valley, and over half Gilead, even unto the river Jabbok, which is the boundary of the Children of Ammon; 3 And over the Barren Valley to the Sea of Chinneroth [or Gennesaret] on the east, and unto the Sea of the Barren Valley, even the Salt Sea on the east, on the waytoBeth-jeshimoth, and from the south, under the Hill- sides of Pisgah ; and also the bounda- ry of Og the king of Bashan, who was of the remnant of the giants, that dwelt at Ashtaroth and at Edrei, and who ruled in mount Hermon, and in Salcah, and in all Bashan, unto the boundary of the Geshurites and Maachathites, and over half Gilead, which is the boundary of Sihon king of Heshbon. 4 Them did Moses the servant of the LORD and the children of Israel smite. And Moses the servant of the LORD gave it for a possession unto the Reubenites, and theGadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh. CHAPTER XII. MOW Joshua was old and advanced in years : and the LORD said to him, Thou art old and advanced in years, and there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed. 2 This is the land that yet re- maineth : all the Circle of the Philis- tines, and all the Geshurites, from the Shihor [or Nile], which is before Lower Egypt, even unto the bound- ary of Ekron northward, which is counted to the Canaanites; five chiefs of the Philistines ; [namely] the Gazathites, and the Ashdodites, the Askalonites, the Gathites, and the Ekronites ; and also the Avites on the south ; all the land of the Canaan- ites, and Mearah [or the naked coast], that is besides the Sidonians, unto Aphek, to the boundary of the Arnor- ites; and the land of the Gebalites and all Lebanon, toward the sunris- ing, from Baal-gad under mount Her- mon unto the Pass of Hamath; all the inhabitants of the Hill country from Lebanon unto Misarepoth on the Sea, even all the Sidonians. 3 These will I drive out from before the children of Israel. Only divide thou it by lot unto the Israelites for inheritance, as I have commanded thee. 4 Now therefore divide this land for an inheritance unto the nine tribes, and the half tribe of Manasseh. CHAPTER XIII. A ND Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel, distributed the land of Canaan for inheritance to them. 2 By casting of lots was their in- heritance, as the LORD had com- manded by the hand of Moses [Numb, xxxvi. 55], for the nine tribes, and for the half tribe. 3 For Moses had given the in- heritance of two tribes and a half 14 JOSHUA. CHAPTER 3CIII. tribe beyond the Jordan ; but to the Levites he gave no inheritance among them. 4 For the children of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim. And they gave no part to the Levites in the land, save cities to dwell in, with their pasture lands for their cattle and for their substance. 5 As the LORD had commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did, and they divided the land. 6 Then the children of Judah came to Joshua in Gilgal ; and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenezite said to him, Thou knowest the word that the LORD said to Moses the man of God concerning me and thee in Kadesh- barnea. Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land ; and I brought him word again as it was in my heart. 7 Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people to melt ; but I wholly fol- lowed the LORD my God. 8 And Moses sware on that day, saying, Surely the land whereon thy feet have trodden shall be thine for an inheritance, and thy childrens' for ever, because thou hast wholly fol- lowed the LORD my God. 9 And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as he said these forty and five years, since the LORD spake this word to Moses, while Israel walked in the desert. And now, be- hold I am this day eighty and five years old. 10 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me. As my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, both to go out, and to come in. 11 Now therefore give me this hill country, whereof the LORD spake in that day ; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakites are there, and the cities are great and fenced ; if the LORD will be with me, then I shall drive them out, as the LORD said. 12 And Joshua blessed him, and gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh Hebron for an inheritance. 13 Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Je- phunneh the Kenezite unto this day, because that he wholly followed the LORD the God of Israel. 14 And the name of Hebron before was the City of Arba, who was a great man among the Anakites. And the land had rest from war. 15 And the children of Joseph spake to Joshua, saying, Why hast thou given me but one lot and one portion to inherit, seeing I am a great people, forasmuch as the LORD hath blessed me hitherto. 16 And Joshua answered them, If thou be a great people, then get thee up to the forest, and cut down for thyself there in the land of the Periz- zites [or Villagers], and of the Repha- ites [or Giants], if the hill country of Ephraim press too closely upon thee. 17 And the children of Joseph said, The hill country is not enough for us ; and all the Canaanites that dwell in the land of the Valley have chariots of iron, both they who are of Beth- shean and its suburbs, and they who are of the valley of Jezreel. 18 And Joshua spake to the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, Thou art a great people, and hast great power; thou shaft not have one lot only. 19 But the hill country shall be CHAPTER XIV-XV. JOSHUA. 15 thine ; for it is a forest and thou shalt cut it down. And the outgoings of it shall be thine ; for thou shalt drive out the Canaanites, though they have iron chariots, and though they be strong. CHAPTER XIV. A ND the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled to- gether at Shiloh, and set up the Tent of Meeting there. And the land was subdued before them. 2 And there remained among the children of Israel SEVEN TRIBES which had not yet received their in- heritance. 3 And Joshua said to the children of Israel, How long will ye be slow to go to possess the land, which the LORD the God of your fathers hath given you? 4 Appoint for yourselves three men for each tribe ; and I will send them, and they shall rise, and go about through the land, and describe it according to the inheritance of them ; and they shall come again to me. 5 And they shall divide it for your- selves into seven parts. Judah shall abide within their boundary on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide within their boundary on the north. 6 Ye shall therefore describe the land in seven parts, and bring [the description] hither to me, that I may cast lots for you here before the LORD our God. 7 But the Levites have no part among you ; for the priesthood of the LORD is their inheritance ; and Gad and Reuben, and half the tribe of Manasseh, have] received their in- heritance beyond the Jordan, on the east, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave them. 8 And the men arose, and went away. And Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying, Go and go about through the land, and describe it, and come again to- me, that I may here cast lots for you before the LORD in Shiloh. 9 And the men went and passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven parts in a book, and came again to Joshua to the camp at Shiloh. 10 And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD. And there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions. CHAPTER XV. ^ND the LORD spake to Joshua, saying, 2 Speak to the children of Israel, saying, Appoint for yourselves the CITIES OF REFUGE, whereof I spake to you by the hand of Moses, [Numb. xxxv. 11.] 3 That the manslayer that killeth any person unawares and unwittingly may flee thither. And they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood. 4 And when he that doth flee to one of those cities shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city, and shall declare his cause in the ears of the elders of that city, they shall take him into the city unto them, and give him a place, that he may dwell among them. 5 And if the avenger of blood pur- sue after him, then they shall not deliver the manslayer up into his hand : because he smote his neighbour 16 JOSHUA. CHAPTER XVI-XVII. unwittingly, and hated him not be- foretime. 6 And he shall dwell in that city, until he stand before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the liigh priest that shall be in those days ; then shall the slayer return, and come to his own city, and to his own house, to the city from whence he fled. 7 And they sanctified Kedesh in Galilee in the hill country of Naph- tali, and Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and the City of Arba, which is Hebron, in the hill country of Judah. 8 And beyond the Jordan by Je- richo in the east, they assigned Bezer In the desert upon the Table-land out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh. 9 These were the cities appointed for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them, that whoso killeth any person unaware might flee there, and that he die not by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stand before the congregation. CHAPTER XVI. the heads of the fathers of THE LEVITES came near to Eleazar the priest, and to Joshua the son of Nun, and to the heads of the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel : 2 And they spake to them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying. The LORD commanded by the hand of Moses [Numb, xxxv.l to give us cities to dwell in, with their pasture lands for our cattle. 3 And the children of Israel gave to the Levites out of their inheritance, at the command of the LORD, forty eight cities and their pasture lands. These cities were every one with their pasture lands round about them. 4 And the LORD, gave to Israel all the land which he sware to give to their fathers ; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. 5 And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers ; and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them ; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. 6 There failed not aught of any good thing which the LORD had spoken to the house of Israel; all came to pass. CHAPTER XVtt. Joshua called the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half tribe of Manasseh, and said to them, Ye have kept all that Moses the ser- vant of the LORD commanded you, and have obeyed my voice in all that I commanded you. 2 Ye have not left your brethren these many days unto this day, but have kept the charge of the command of the LORD your God. 3 And now the LORD your God hath given rest to your brethren, as he promised them. Therefore now turn ye, and get you to your tents, and to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave you beyond the Jordan. 4 But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of God charged you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave to CHAPTER XVII. JOSHUA. 17 him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. 5 So Joshua blessed them, and sent them away. And they went to their tents. Now to the one half of the tribe of Manasseh Moses had given possession in Bashan ; but to the other half thereof gave Joshua among their brethren beyond the Jordan westward. 6 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh returned, and when they came to the Circle of the Jordan, which is in the land of Canaan, they built there an altar by the Jordan, a great altar to look at. 7 And the children of Israel heard say, Behold the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh have built an altar over against the land of Canaan, in the Circle of the Jordan, beyond the children of Israel. 8 And when they heard of it, the whole congregation gathered them- selves together at Shiloh, to go up to war against them. 9 And the children of Israel sent to the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehasthe son of Eleazar the priest ; 10 And with him ten princes, of each chief house, one prince through- out all the tribes of Israel. 11 And they came unto the land of Gilead, and they spake saying, Thus saith the whole congrega- tion of the LORD, What trespass is this that ye have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following God, in that ye have builded for yourselves an altar, that ye might rebel this day against the LORD ? 12 Is the inquity of Peor too little for us, from which we are not cleansed unto this day, although there Was a plague in the congregation of the LORD, but that ye must turn away this day from following the LORD ? 13 And it will be, seeing ye rebel to-day against the LORD, that to- morrow he will be wroth with the whole congregation of Israel. 14 Nothwithstanding, if the land of your possession be unclean, then pass ye over unto the land of the possession of the LORD, wherein the Tabernacle of the LORD dwelleth, and take pos- session among us ; but rebel not against the LORD, nor rebel against us, in building for you an altar other than the Altar of the LORD our God. 15 Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing, and wrath fell on all the con- gregation of Israel ? and that man perished not alone in his iniquity. 16 Then the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh answered, and said to the heads of the thousands of Israel, 17 The LORD the God of gods, the LORD the God of gods, he knoweth, and Israel he shall know. If it be in rebellion, or if in transgression against the LORD, save us not this day. 18 If we have built us an altar to turn from following the LORD, or if to offer up thereon burnt offering or meal offering, or if to offer sacrifies of peace offerings thereon, let the LORD himself require it. 19 And if we have not rather done it for fear of this thing, saying, In time to come your children might speak to our children, saying, What have ye to do with the LORD the God of Israel! 18 JOSHUA. CHAPTER XVIII. 20 For the LORD hath made the Jordan a boundary between us and you, ye children of Reuben and chil- dren of Gad ; ye have no part in the LORD. So shall your children make our children cease from fearing the LORD. 21 Therefore we said, Let us now prepare to build us an altar, not for burnt offering, not for sacrifice ; but let it be a witness between us, and you, and our generations after us, that we may do the services of the LORD in his presence with our burnt offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace offerings ; that your children may not say to our children in time to come, Ye have no part in the Eternal. 22 Therefore said we, that it shall be, when they should so say to us, or to our generations in time to come, that we may say, Behold the pattern of the Altar of the LORD, which our fathers made. It is not for burnt offerings, nor for sacrifices ; but it is a witness between us and you. 23 And when Phinehas the priest, and the princes of the congregation, and heads of the thousands of Israel which were with him, heard the words that the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh spake, it was good in their eyes. 24 And they said to them, This day we perceive that the LORD is among us, because ye have not committed this trespass against the LORD. Now ye have delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of the LORD. 25 And Phinehas the son of Elea- zar the priest and the princes re- turned from the children of Reuben, and from the children of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, unto the land of Canaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them word again. 2tf And the thing was good in the eyes of the children of Israel ; and they blessed God, and did not intend to go up against them in battle. 27 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar, * * * for it shall be a witness between us, that the Eternal is God. CHAPTER XVIII. /\ND IT CAME TO PASS a long time after the LORD had given rest unto Israel from all their enemies round about, that Joshua grew old and advanced in years. 2 And Joshua called for all Israel, for their elders, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers, and said to them, I am old and advanced in years ; and ye have all seen what God hath done to all these nations before your face ; for the LORD your God is he that hath fought. 3 See, I have divided unto you by lot these nations that remain, to be an inheritance for your tribes, from the Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the Great Sea towards the sunset. 4 And God will expel them from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the LORD your God promised unto you. 5 Be ye therefore very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, turn- ing not aside therefrom to the right hand or to the left ; 6 So that ye come not among these nations, these that remain among you ; neither make mention of the name of CHAPTER XIX. JOSHUA. 19 their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor bow yourselves to them ; 7 But cleave to the LORD your God, as ye have done unto this day. For the LORD hath driven out from before you great and strong nations ; and as for you, no man hath been able to stand before you unto this day. 8 One man of you shall chase a thousand ; for the LORD your God, he it is that fighteth for you, as he hath promised you. 9 Take good heed therefore to your- selves, that ye love the LORD your God. 10 Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and shall make marriages with them, and go in unto them, and they to you ; 11 Know for a certainty that the LORD your God will no more drive out these nations from before you ; but they will be snares and traps unto you, and scourges in your sides, and thorns in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land, which the LORD your God hath given you. 12 And behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth ; and ye know in all your hearts and in all your souls, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spake concerning you ; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof. 13 Therefore it shall come to pass, that as all good things are come upon you, which the LORD your God promised to you; so will the LORD bring upon you all evil things, until he have destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD hath given you; 14 When ye transgress the covenant of the LORD your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods, and bow yourselves to them ; then shall the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and ye will perish quickly from off the good land which he hath given to you. CHAPTER XIX. A ND Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers ; and they presented themselves before God. 2 And Joshua said to all the people, Thus saith the LORD the God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt on the other side of the River [Euphrates] in old times, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nachor, and they served other gods. 3 And I took your father Abraham | from the other side of the river, and I led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his offspring, and gave him Isaac. 4 And to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau ; and I gave to Esau Mount Seir. to possess it; but Jacob and his children went down into Lower Egypt. 5 I sent Moses also and Aaron, and I plagued the Egyptians, according to that which I did among them. And afterward I brought you out ; 6 And I brought your fathers out of Lower Egypt : and ye came to the sea ; and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and horse- men unto the Red Sea. 7 And when they cried to the LORD, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them. And your 20 JOSHUA. CHAPTER XIX. eyes have seen what I did in Lower Egypt. And ye dwelt in the desert for many years. 8 And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, who dwelt beyond the Jordan ; and they fought with you. And I gave them into your hand, that ye might possess their land. 9 Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and warred against Israel ; and he sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you 10. But I would not hearken unto Ba- laam; therefore he blessed you greatly. So I delivered you out of his hand. 11 And ye went over the Jordan, and came to Jericho. And the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Je- busites ; and I delivered them into your hand. 12 And I have given you a land for which ye did not labour, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell in them ; of the vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not, do ye eat. 13 Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth ; and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the river [Euphrates], and in Egypt, and serve ye the LOBD. 14 And if it seem evil to you to serve the LORD, choose ye this day whom ye will serve ; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the river, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell ; but as for me and iny house we will serve the LORD. 15 And the people answered and said, It were wicked in us to forsake the LORD, to serve other gods ; 16 For the LORD our God, he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and who did those great signs in our sight, and guarded us on all the way wherein we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed. 17 And the LORD drove out from before us all the peoples, even the Amorites who dwelt in the land; therefore will we also serve the LORD ; for he is our God. 18 And Joshua said to the people, Ye cannot serve the LORD ; for he is a holy God ; he is a jealous God ; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins. 19 If ye forsake the LORD, and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good. 20 And the people said to Joshua, Nay, but we will serve the LORD. And Joshua said to the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves, that ye have chosen for yourselves the LORD to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses. 21 Now therefore put away [said he] the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart to the LORD the God of Israel. 22 And the people said to Joshua, the LORD our G-od will we serve, and his voice will we obey. 23 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem. 24 And Joshua wrote these words in the Book of the Law of God, and took a great stone, and set it up there under the oak that was by the Sanc- tuary of the LORD. 25 And Joshua said to all the CHAPTER I. JUDGES. 21 people, Behold this stone shall be a witness unto us ; for it hath heard all the words of the LORD which he spake to us. It shall be therefore a wit- ness unto you, lest ye deny your God. 26 So Joshua let the people depart, every man to his inheritance. [Here follows Judges ii.] 27 And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being a hundred and ten years old [A. M. 2739]. 28 And they buried him within the boundary of his inheritance in Tim- nath-serah, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, on the north side of the hill of Gaash. 29 And Israel served the LORD all the days o f Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, and who had known all the works of the LORD, that he had done for Israel. 30 And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in a parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred Kesitahs [or pieces of silver] ; . and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph. 31 And Eleazar the son of Aaron died ; and they buried him in the hill of Phinehas his son, which was given to him in the hill country of Ephraim. THE BOOK OF JUDOES. CHAPTER I. AFTER THE DEATH OF JOSHUA it came to pass that the children of Israel asked the LORD, saying. Who shall go up for us against the Canaanites first, to fight them? 2 And the LORD said, Judah shall go up. Behold, I have delivered the land into his hand. 3 An4 Judah said to Simeon his brother, Come up with me into my lot, that we may tight against the Canaanites ; and I likewise will go with thee into thy lot. So Simeon went with him. 4 And Judah went up ; and the LORD delivered the Canaanites and Perizzites into their hand. And they smote them in Bezek ten thousand men. 5 And they found the lord of Bezek in Bezek: and they fought against him, and they slew the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6 And the children of the Kenite, Moses' father in law, went up out of the City of Palmtrees [or Jericho] with the children of Judah into the desert of Judah, which lieth in the south country of Arad ; and they went and dwelt among the people. 7 And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they slew the Canaan- ites that inhabited Zephath, and utter- ly destroyed it. And he called the name of the city Horniah. 8 And the LORD was with Judah ; and he drove out the inhabitants of the Hill country ; but could not drive out the inhabitants of the Val- ley, because they had chariots of iron. 9 And they gave Hebron to Caleb, as Moses had said ; and he drove out thence the three sons of Anak. 22 JUDGES. CHAPTER II. 10 And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that inherited Jerusalem; but the Jebu- sites dwell with the children of Ben- janii i in Jerusalem unto this day. 11 And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Beth-el ; and the LORD was with them. 12 And the house of Joseph sent to spy out Beth-el. (Now the name of the city before was Luz.) 13 And those on the watch saw a man come forth out of the city, and they said to him, Show us, we pray thee, an entrance into the city, and we will do thee kindness. 14 And when he showed them an entrance into the city, they smote the city with the edge of the sword ; but they let go the man and all his fami- ly. And the man went into the land of the Hittites, and built a city, and called the name thereof Luz : which is its name unto this day. 15 Neither did Manasseh drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean and its suburbs, nor Taanach and its suburbs, nor the inhabitants of Dor and its suburbs, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and its suburbs, nor the inhabitants of Megiddo and its suburbs : but the Canaanites would dwell in that land. 16 And it came to pass when Israel was strong, that they put the Canaanites to tribute, and did not utterly drive them out. 17 Neither did Ephraim drive out the Canaanties that dwelt in Gezer ; but the Canaanites dwelt in Grezer among them. 18 Neither did Zebulun drive out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and were tributaries. 19 Neither did Asher drive out the inhabitants of Accho, nor the in- habitants of Sidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achezib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob ; but the Ashe- rites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land : for they did not drive them out. 20 Neither did Naphtali drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth-anath ; but he dwelt among the Canaanites, the in- habitants of the land ; nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath became tributaries un- to them. 21 And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the hill country ; for they would not suffer them to come down into the valley. 22 But the Amorites would dwell in mount Heres, in Ajalon, and in Shaalbini ; yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they be- came tributaries. 23 (And the boundary of the Amo- rites was from the hill-road of Akrab- bim, from Sela [or Petra], and up- ward. ) CHAPTER II. WHEN JOSHUA and also all that generation were gathered to their fathers : there arose another generation after them, which knew not the LORD, nor yet the works which he had done for Israel. 2 AND THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL DID EVIL in the sight of the LORD, and served Baal. And they forsook the LORD the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they followed other gods, of the gods of the people that were round about them, and bowed themselves PTER III. JUDGES. 28 unto them, and provoked the LORD to anger. 3 And they forsook the LORD and served Baal and Ashtaroth, and the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of the spoilers that spoiled them, and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies. 4 Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had said , and as the LORD had sworn to them. And they were greatly distressed. 5 And the LORD raised up Judges, who delivered them out of the hand of those that spoiled them, and yet they hearkened not to their judges, but they went astray after other gods, and bowed themselves unto them. They turned quickly out of the way which their fathers walked in, obey- ing the commandments of the Lord. But they did not so. 6 And when the LORD raised up for them Judges, then the LORD was with the judge, and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge ; for it repent- ed the LORD because of their groan- ings by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them. 7 And it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they returned, and corrupted themselves more than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down un- to them ; they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way. 8 And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel ; and he said, Be- cause that this nation hath trans- gressed my covenant which I conr manded their fathers, and have not hearkened to my voice. 9 I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the na- tions which Joshua left when he died; in order through them to prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the LORD to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not. Therefore the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily ; neither did he deliver them into the hand of Joshua. CHAPTER III. N OW these are THE NATIONS which the LORD left to prove by them many of Israel as had not known any of the wars of Canaan . 2 Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof ; [namely) 3 Five chiefs of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt on mount Lebanon, from mount Baal-hermon unto the Pass of Haniath. 4 And they were to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken to the commandments of the LORD, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses. 5 And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, and the Hit- tites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 6 And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daugh- ters to their sons, and served their gods. 7 And THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL DID EVIL in the sight of the LORD, 24 JUDGES. CHAPTER III. and forgot the LORD their God, and served Baal and Ashera. 8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of the most wick- ed Cushan, king of Syria of the Rivers. And the children of Israel served the most wicked Cushan for eight years. 9 And when the children of Israel cried to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. 10 And the spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went to war. And the LORD de- livered the most wicked Cushan, king of Syria, into his hand ; and his hand prevailed against the most wicked Cushan, and the land had rest for forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died. 11 And THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL DID EVIL again in the sight of the LORD. And the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD. 12 And he gathered to him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of Palmtrees [or Jericho. ] 13 So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years. 14 But when the children of Israel cried to the LORD, the LORD raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man crippled in his right hand. And by his hand the children of Israel sent a present to Eglon the king of Moab. 15 And Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a span's length ; and he did gird it under his outer garment upon his right thigh. 16 And he brought the present to Eglon, king of Moab. And Eglon was a very fat man. 17 And it came to pass that when he had made an end to give the pres- ent, he sent away the people that bare the present. 18 But he himself turned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, king. And he said, Let there be silence. And all that stood by him went out from him. 19 And Ehud came to him ; and he was sitting in a cool upper chamber, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat. 20 And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his body. 21 Then Ehud went forth into the porch, and shut the doors of the upper chamber upon him, and locked them. 22 When he was gone out, his ser- vants came : and when they saw that the doors of the upper cham- ber were locked, they said, Surely he sleepeth in his cool chamber. 23 And they tarried till late ; and behold, he opened not the doors of the upper chamber. Therefore they took the key, and opened them ; and be- hold, their lord was fallen down dead on the ground. 24 And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quar- ries, and escaped to Seirath [or the Goat walks], 25 And it came to pass, when he CHAPTER IV. JUDGES. 25 was come, that he blew a trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the hill country, and he before them. 26 And he said to them, Follow me; for the LORD hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand. 27 And they went down after him, and took the fords of the Jordan toward Moab, and suffered not a man to pass over. 28 And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, all lusty, and all men of valour ; and there escaped not a man. 29 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest for eighty years. 30 And after him was Shamagar the son of Anath, who slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad. And he also delivered Israel. CHAPTER IV. THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL DID EVIL again in the sight of the LORD when Ehud was dead. 2 And the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera, who dwelt in Harosheth of the Gentiles for Gali- lee]. 3 And the children of Israel cried to the LORD. For he had nine hun- dred chariots of iron : and twenty years he mightily oppressed the chil- dren of Israel. 4 And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time. 5 And she dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Beth- el in the hill country of Eph- raim ; and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment. 6 And she sent and called Barak, the son of Abinoam out of Kedesh in Naphtali ; and she said to him, Hath not the LORD the God of Israel commanded, [saying], Go and draw mount Tabor, and take with thee- ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun? 7 And I will draw unto thee to the brook Kishon, Sisera, the captain of Jabin' s army, with his chariots and and his rabble: and I will deliver him into thy hand. 8 And Barak said to her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go. But if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go. 9 And she said, I will surely go with thee. Notwithstanding, there will be no honour for thee on the journey that thou takest; for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. And Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh. 10 And Barak called together Ze- bulun and Naphtali to Kedesh ; and he went up with ten thousand men at his feet. And Deborah went up with him. 11 Now Heber the Kenite had severed himself from the Kenites, the children of Hobab the brother in- law of Moses, and had pitched his- tent at the oak of Zaanim, which i& by Kedesh. 12 And they told Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was gone up to- mount Tabor. 13 And Sisera called together all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people 26 JUDGES. CHAPTER V. that were with him, from Harosheth of the Gentiles unto the brook Kishon. 14 And Deborah said to Barak, Up; for this is the day in which the LORD hath delivered Sisera into thy hand. Is not the LORD gone out before thee? So Barak went down from mount Tabor, and ten thousand men after him. 15 And the LORD discomfited Sise- Ta, and all his chariots, and all his "host, with the edge of the sword be- fore Barak ; so that Sisera lighted down off his chariot, and fled away on his feet 16 But Barak pursued after the chariots, and after the host, unto Harosheth of the Gentiles. And all the host of Sisera fell by the edge of j had destroyed Jabin king of hand, and went to him softly, and smote the pin into his temples, and drove it down into the ground : for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died. 22 And behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael went out to meet him, and said to him, Come, and I will show thee the man whom thou seekest. And when he came in unto her, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the tent-pin was in his temples. 23 So God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan before the children of Israel. 24 And the hand of the children of Israel prospered, and was heavy upon Jabin the king of Canaan, until they Canaan. the sword ; and there was not one man left. 17 Howbeit Sisera fled away on his feet to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite : for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and she said to him, Turn in, iny lord, turn in to me; fear not. And when he had turned in unto her into the tent she covered him with a blanket. 19 And he said to her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bot- tle of milk, and gave him a drink, and covered him. "20 And he said to her, Stand in the doorway of the tent, and it shall be, when any man doth come and inquire of thee, and say, Is there any man here? that thou shalt say, No. 21 Then Jael Heber' s wife took a tent-pin, and took a hammer in her CHAPTER Y. sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on that day, say- ing, 2 When princes lead in Israel, When the people nobly rise, Praise ye the LORD. 3 Hear, O kings; listen, O rulers; To the Eternal I, to Him I sing; I chant to the Eternal, Irael's God. 4 Eternal, at thy coming from Seir, At the marching from Edom's field; The earth trembled, and the heavens dropped, 5 Mountains melted before the LORD, Yon Sinai, before the Eternal, Israel's God. 6 In the days of Shamgar, Anath'sson, In the days of Jael, the roads were deserted ; High-way travellers walked on winding paths. 7 Deserted were Israel's fields, de- serted. Until I, Deborah arose, I arose a mother in Israel. 8 They had chosen new gods; Then war was at the gates ; Was there a shield seen or a spear Among forty thousand in Israel? CHAPTER V. JUDGES. 27 9 My heart is with Israel's leaders, The willing champions of the peo- ple Praise ye the LORD 10 Ye who ride on white-dappled asses, Ye who sit on carpets, And ye who walk by the way, speak! 11 Louder than herd-drivers shout be- tween water-troughs Let men sing the victories of the LOBD; His victories in Israel's fields, When down came to the gates the people of the LORD. 12 Awake, awake, Deborah; Awake, awake, utter a song; Arise, Barak, carry off thy captives, O son of Abinoam. 13 Then came a remnant of the migh- ty ones, The LORD'S people came down for me among the heroes. 14 Branches of Ephraim went out against Amalek, Behind thee, Benjamin, with thy hosts ; From Machir leaders came ; From Zebulun men wielding a com- mander's staff. 15 The princes of Issachar with De- borah, Issachar, so Barak, rushed on foot into the valley. By the brooks of Reuben minds meditated grandly. 16 Why sattest thou among the sheep- folds, Listening to the pipings of the flocks ? By the brooks of Reuben minds speculated grandly. 17 Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan ; And Dan why did he dwell on ships ? Asher remained on the sea-shore, Abode by his inlets. 18 Zebulun is the people that threw away life to death; Naphtali, too on the hight? of the field. 19 The kings came and fought, Then fought the kings of Canaan, At Taanach by Megiddo's waters; Booty of silver they took not away. 20 The stars fought from heaven, From their courses they fought against Sisera. 21 The river Kishon swept them away, That ancient river, the river Kishon. (March on, O my soul, in triumph!) 22 There clattered hoofs of steeds, The champions dashing on, dash- ing. 23 'Curse ye Meroz' said God's messenger, 'Curse, curse its inhabitants; Foj they came not to fight by the LORD, To fight by the LORD among the mighty ones. 24 Blessed above women be Jael, The wifeofHeber, the Kenite Blessed above women in tents.' 25 He asked for water, milk she gave ; In a lordly bowl she brought forth cream. 26 She grasped a nail with one hand, With her right hand the workmen's hammer And struck Sisera, batterd his head, And crushed and smashed his tem- ples. 27 At her feet he bent, and sank, and lay; At her feet he bent and sank ; Where he bent, there he fell de- stroyed. 28 Through the window she looks, lamenting, The mother of Sisera, through the lattice, Why lingers his car in coming? Why tarry the wheels of his char- iots? 29 The wise among her ladies answer, Yea she returns answer to herself: 30 'Do they not find and divide booty? A vuture-ornament or two for each hero's head ; To Sisera a spoil of coloured cloth, Two robes dyed and embroidered. From the necks of the captured.' 31 So let all thine enemies perish, LORD. But they who love him are like the rising sun in its strength. And the land had rest for forty years. JUDGES. CHAPTER VI. CHAPTER VI. ^ND THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL DID EVIL in the sight of the LORD, and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian for seven years. 2 And the hand of Midian pre- vailed against Israel. Because of the Midianites the children of Israel made for themselves the caverns which are in the mountains, and the caves and the strongholds. 3 And so it was, when Israel had sown their seed that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the East, even they came up against them. 4 And they encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance for Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. 5 For they came up with their cat- tle and their tents, and they came as locusts for multitude ; for both they and their camels were without number. And they entered into the land to destroy it. 6 And Israel was greatly impover- ished because of the Midianites: and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD. 7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried to the LORD because of the Midianites, that the LORD sent a prophet to the children of Israel, who said to them, Thus saith the LORD the God of Israel, I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage; and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land; and I said to you, I am the LORD your God; fear not the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell. 'But ye have not obeyed my voice. 8 And the angel of the LORD came and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abi-ezrite. And his son Gideon was threshing wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. 9 And the angel of the LORD ap- peared to him, and said to him, The LORD is with thee, thou warrior of valour. 10 And Gideon said to him, my lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? And where are all his wondrous works which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? But now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. 11 And the LORD looked upon him and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hands of the Midianites. Have not I sent thee? 12 And he said to him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel ? Behold, my family is the^poorest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house. 13 And the LORD said to him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man. 14 And he said to him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me. 15 Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come to thee, and bring forth my meal offering, and set it before thee. CHAPTER VI. JUDGES. 29 16 And he said, I will tarry until them come again. 17 And Gideon went in and made ready a kid of the goats, and un- leavened cakes of an Ephah [or bush- el] of meal. The flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot and brought it out to him under the oak, and presented it. 18 And the angel of God said to him, Take the flesh and the unleaven- ed cakes and lay them upon this rock and pour out the broth. And he did so. 19 Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the LORD depart- ed out of his sight. 20 And when Grideon perceived that he was the angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, Lord Eternal ! for whereas I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face. 21 And the LORD said to him, Peace be unto thee ; fear not ; thou shalt not die. 23 Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Yahveh- shalom [or peace] ; unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abi ez rites. 24 And it came to pass on the same night, that the LORD said to him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and cut down the grove of Ashera | that is by it. 25 And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered manner, and take the second bullock, and offer up a burnt offering with the wood of the Ashera which thou shalt cut down. 26 Then Gideon took ten men of his servants and did as the LORD had said to him ; and so it was, be- cause he feared his father's house- hold, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night. 27 And when the men of the city rose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove of Ashera was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered up on the altar that was built, 28 And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they inquired ^ind asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash, hath done this thing. 29 Then the men of the city said to Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die ; because he hath cut down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove of Ashera that was by it. 30 And Joash said to all that stood against him, Will ye plead for Baal? Will ye save him? He that will plead for him, let him be put to death whilst it is yet morning. If he be a god, let him plead for himself, be- cause one hath cast down his altar. 31 Therefore on that day he called him Jerubbaal [or Let Baal plead], saying, Let Baal plead against him, because he hath thrown down his altar. 32 Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites, and the children of the East gathered themselves together, and crossed over [the Jordan], and en- camped in the valley of Jezreel. 33 But the spirit of the LORD came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet : and he called together the Abi-ezrites after him. 30 JUDGES. CHAPTER VII. 34 And he sent messengers through- out all Manasseh ; who also were called together after him. 35 And Gideon said to God, If thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as thou hast said, behold I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; and if the dew be on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the earth, then shall I know that thou wilt save Israel by thy hand, as thou hast said. 36 And it was so. For he rose up early on the morrow, and squeezed the fleece, and wringed the dew out of the fleece, a bowl full of water. 37 And Gideon*feaid to God, Let not thine anger be hot against me, and I will speak but this once. Let me prove, I pray thee, but this once with the fleece. Let it now be dry upon the fleece only, and upon all the ground let there be dew. 38 And God did so that night. For it was dry upon the fleece, and there was dew on all the ground. CHAPTER VII. YHEN Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and encamped be- side the Well of Harod ; so that the north side 'of the camp of the Midian- ites was on the north side of them by the hill of Moreh in the valley. 2 And the LORD said to Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me; saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. 3 Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Who- soever is fearful and afraid, let him return and wander around the hill country of Gilead. And there re- turned of the people twenty and two thousand ; and there remained ten thousand. 4 And the LORD said to Gideon, The people are yet too many. Bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there. And it shall be, that of whom I say to thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee ; and of whomsoever I say to thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. 5 So he brought down the people to the water. And the LORD said to Gideon, Every one that lappeth out of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself ; likewise every one that kneeleth down upon his knees to drink. 6 And the number of them that lapped with their hand to their mouth were three hundred men : but all the rest of the people knelt down upon their knees to drink water. 7 And the LORD said to Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and will deliver the Midianites into thy hand. And all the other people may go every man to his own place, 8 So the people took victuals in their hand, and their trumpets. And he sent all the rest of Israel every man to his tent, and retained those three hundred men. And the camp of Midian was beneath him in the val- ley. 9 And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said to him, Arise, get thee down against the camp; for I have delivered it into thy hand. 10 But if thou fear to go down, go thou down with Phurah thy servant to the camp. PTER VII. JUDGES. 31 11 And thou shalt hear what they | say : and afterward shall thy hands be strengthened to go down to the camp. Then went he down with Phurah the servant to the outside of the armed men that were in the camp. 12 And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all ths Children of the East lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude ; and their camels were without number, as the sand that is by the sea side for multi- tude. 13 And when Gideon was come, be- hold, there was a man that told a dream unto his fellow, and said, Be- hold, I dreamed a dream : and lo, a cake of barley bread was turned over into the camp of Midian, and it came to a tent, and smote it that it fell, and overturned it, so that the tent fell. 14 And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel ; into his hand hath God delivered Midian and all the camp, 15 And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the camp of Israel, and said, Arise ; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the camp of Midian. 16 And he divided the three hun- dred men into three companies ; and he put trumpets in the hand of all of them, with empty pitchers, and torch- es within the pitchers. 17 And he said to them, Look on me, and do likewise. And behold, when I come to the outside of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do. 18 When I blow with a trumpet, I and all that are with me, then blow ye also with the trumpet on every side of the camp, and say, For the LORD- and for Gideon. 19 Then Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, came to the outside of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch, when they had but newly set the watchmen. And they blew the trumpets, and brake the pitchers that were in their hands. 20 And the three companies blew their trumpets and brake the pitch- ers, and held the torches in their left hands, and the trumpets in their right hands to blow with. And they cried, The sword is for the LORD and for Gideon. 2 1 Arid they stood every man in his- place round about the camp. And all the host ran, and cried out, and fled. 22 And the three hundred blew the trumpets, and the LORD set every man's sword against his fellow, even throughout all the host. And the host fled to Beth-sittah in Zererath [or Zeredath], and to the border of Abel-meholah, unto Tabbath. 23 And the men of Israel were called together out of Naphtali, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued af- ter the Midianites, 24 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill country of Ephraim, saying, Come down against the Midianites, and take possession before them of the waters unto Beth- barah [or Beth-abarah] and the Jor- dan. Then all the men of Ephraim were called together, and took pos- session of the waters unto Beth-barah and the Jordan. 25 And they took two princes of the Midianites, Oreb andZeeb; and they 32 JUDGES. CHAPTER VIII. slew Oreb upon the rock of Oreb ; and Zeeb they slew at the winepress of Zeeb. And they pursued the Midianites, and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon from the other side of the Jordan. CRATER VIII. A ND the men of Ephraim said to him, Why hast thou done this thing to us, that thou calledst us not when thou wentest to fight against the Midianites? And they did chide with him sharply. 2 And he said to them, What have I done now in comparison with you? Is not Ephraim's grape-gleaning bet- ter than Abi-ezer's vintage? 3 God hath delivered into your hands the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb; and what was I able to do in comparison with you ? Then their anger was abated toward him, when he had said that word. 4 And Gideon came to the Jordan, and crossed over, he, and three hun- dred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing. 5 And he said to the men of Suc- coth, Give, I pray you, some cir- cular loaves of bread to the people that follow me; for they are faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna the kings of Midian. 6 And the princes of Succoth said, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmun- na now in thy hand, that we should give bread to thine army? 7 And Gideon said, Therefore when the LORD hath delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the desert, and with briers. 8 And he went up thence to Penuel, and he spake to them in like wise. And the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had an- swered. 9 And he spake also to the men of Penuel, saying, When I come again in peace, I will break down this tow- er. 10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their hosts with them, about fifteen thousand men, all that were left, of all the hosts of the Chil- dren of the East. For there fell a hundred and twenty thousand men that drew a sword. LI And Gideon went up by the way of them that dwelt in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and smote the host. For the host was as if in safety. 12 And when Zebah and Zalmunna fled, he pursued after them, and took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmimna, and frightened away all the host. 13 And Gideon the son of Joash re- turned from battle before the sun was up: 14 And he caught a young man of the men of Succoth, and inquired of him, and he described to him the princes of Succoth, and the elders thereof, even seventy and seven men. 15 And he came to the men of Suc- coth, and said, Behold Zebah and Zalmunna, with whom ye did upbraid me, saying, Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thy hand, that we should give brea d to thy men that are weary? 16 And he took the elders of the city, and the thorns of the desert and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth. 17 And he beat down the tower of Penuel, and slew the men of the city. CHAPTER IX. JUDGES. 33 18 Then said he to Zebah and Zal- munna, What manner of men were they whom ye slew at Tabor? And they said, As thou art, so were they: each one resembled the children of a king. 19 And he said, They were my brethren, the sons of my mother. As the LORD liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not slay you. 20 And he said to Jether his first- born, Rise up, and slay them. But the youth drew not his sword; for he feared, because he was yet a youth. 21 Then Zebah andZalmunna said, Rise up thyself, and fall upon us ; for as the man is, so is his strength. And Gideon rose up, and slew Zebah and Zalmunna, and took away the moon-shaped ornaments that were on their camels' necks. 22 Then the men of Israel said to Gideon, Rule thou over us, both thou and thy son, and thy son's son also ; for thou hast delivered us from the hand of Midian. 23 And Gideon said to them, I will not rule over you : neither shall my son rule over you ; the LORD shall rule over you. 24 And Gideon said to them, I would ask a request of you, that ye would give me every man the earrings out of his booty. (For they [the enemy] had golden earrings, because they were Ishmaelites. ) 25 And they answered, We will willingly give them. And they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the earrings of the booty. 26 And the weight of the golden earrings that he requested was a thousand and seven hundred [Shekels] of gold; beside the moon-shaped ornaments, and ear-drops, and purple raiments that were on the kings of Midian, and beside the chains that were about their camels' neck. 27 And Gideon made thereof an Ephod [or image,] and put it in his city, even in Ophrah; and all Israel went thither astray after it. And it be- came a snare unto Gideon and to his house. 28 Thus was Midian subdued be- fore the children of Israel, so that they lifted up their heads no more. And the land had rest for forty years in the days of Gideon. 29 And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house. And Gideon had seventy sons : for he had many wives. 30 And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the burial-place of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abi- ezrites. 31 And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel turned again, and went astray after Baal, and made Baal- berith their god. And the children of Israel remembered not the Eternal their God, who had delivered them out of the hands of their enemies on every side ; 32 Neither shewed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely, Gide- on, according to all the goodness which lie had shewed to Israel. CHAPTER IX. A ND Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shecheni to his mother's brethren, and spake with them, and with all the family of the house of tris mother's father, saying, 2 Speak, I pray you, in the ears of all the men of Shechem, Which is 34 JUDGES. CHAPTER IX. better for you? Shall all the sons of Jerubbaal, who are seventy men, reign over you, or shall one man reign over you? Remember also that I am your bone and your flesh. 3 And his mother's brethren spake of him in the ears of all the men of Shechem all these words. And their hearts inclined to follow Abime- lech; for they said, He is our brother. 4 And they gave him seventy pieces of silver out of the house of Baal- berith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light persons, who followed him. 5 And he went to his father's house at Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, being seventy men upon one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left: for he hid himself. 6 And all the men of Shechem gathered themselves together, and all of Beth-Mil lo [the Tower], and went, and made Abimelech king, by the oak of the pillar that was in Shechem. 7 And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount G-erizim, and lifted up his voice and cried, and said to them, Hearken to me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken to you. 8 The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them ; and they said to the olive tree, Reign thou over us. 9 But the olive tree said to them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to bear sway over the trees. 10 And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou and reign over us. But the fig tree said to them, Should I leave my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to bear sway over the trees ? 11 Then said the trees to the vine, Come thou, and reign over us. And the vine said to them, Should I leave my grape juice, which cheereth gods and men, and go to bear sway over the trees ? 12 Then said all the trees to the bramble, Come thou, and reign over us. And the bramble said to the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow. And if not, fire shall come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. 13 Now, therefore, if ye have done truly and sincerely, in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and with his house, and if ye have done to him according to the deserving of his hands ; 14 For my father fought for you, and cast his life in front and delivered you out of the hand of Midian ; and ye are risen up against my father's house this day, and have slain his sons, seventy men, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maid-servant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother ; 15 If ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you. 16 But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and Beth-Millo ; or let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from Beth-Millo, and devour Abimelech. 17 Then Jotham ran away, and fled CHAPTER IX. JUDGES. 35 and went to Beer, and dwelt there, out of sight of Abimelech his brother. 18 When Abimelech had ruled three years over Israel, then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem ; and the men of She- chem dealt treacherously with Abime- lech ; that the cruelty done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come, and their blood be laid upon Abime- lech their brother, who slew them : and upon the men of Shechem, who strengthened his hands to slay his brethren. 19 And the men of Shechem set liers in wait for him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them. And it was told to Abimelech. 20 And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brethren, and went over to Shechem ; and the men of Shechem trusted in him. And they went out into the fields and gathered their vineyards, and trod the grapes, and made rejoicings, and went into the house of their god, and did eat and drink, and cursed Abimelech. 21 And Gaal the son of Ebed said, Who is Abimelech, and who was Shechem, that we should serve him ? Is not he the son of Jerubbaal ? And Zebul is his officer. Serve ye the men of Hamor the father of Shechem ; for why should we serve him ? 22 And oh that some one would put this people under my hand, then would I remove Abimelech. And he said to Abimelech, Increase thine army, and come out. 23 And when Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was kindled. 24 And he sent messengers to Abi- melech craftily, saying, Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his brethren are come to Shechem ; and behold, they fortify the city against thee. 25 Now therefore rise up by night, thou and the people that is with thee, and lie in wait in the field. 26 And it shall be, that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, thou shalt rise early, and rush for- ward upon the city. And behold, when he and the people that is with him come out against thee, then mayest thou do to them as thy hand is able. 2T And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by night, and they laid wait against Shechem in four companies. 28 And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood at the entrance of the gate of the city. And Abimelech rose up and the people that were with him, from the lying in wait. 29 And when Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, Behold, there come people down from the tops of the mountains. And Zebul said to him, Thou seest the shadow of the moun- tains as if they were men. 30 And Gaal spake again and said, See, there come people down from near the very middle of the land, and another company come along by the Oak of the Cloud- observers. 31 Then said Zebul to him, Where is now thy mouth, wherewith thou saidst, Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him ? Is not this the people that thou hast despised ? Go out, I pray now, and fight with them. 32 And Gaal went out before the men of Shechem, and fought against Abimelech. And Abimelech chased him ; and he fled before him, and many were overthrown and wounded, JUDGES. CHAPTER X. even unto the entrance of the city gate. 33 And Abimelech remained at Arumah. And Zebul thrust out Gaal and his brethren, that they should not dwell in Shechem. 34 And it came to pass on the mor- row, that the people went out into the field ; and they told Abimelech. 35 And he took the people, and divided them into three companies, and laid wait in the field. And he looked, and behold the people were come forth out of the city. And he rose up against them, and smote them. 36 And Abimelech, and the com- pany that was with him, rushed for- ward, and stood at the entrance of the gate of the city ; and the two other companies rushed forward upon all that were in the fields, and smote them. 37 And Abimelech fought against the city all that day ; and he took the city, and slew the people that were therein, and destroyed the city, and sowed it with salt. 38 And when all the men of the Tower of Shecheni heard, they entered into a watch-tower of the house of El-Berith. 39 And it was told Abimelech, that all the men of the Tower of Shechem were gathered together. And Abi- melech got him up to Mount Zalmon, he and all the people that were with him. And Abimelech took an axe in his hand, and cut down a bough from the trees, and took it, and laid it on his shoulder, and said to the people that were with him, What ye have seen me do, make haste, and do as I have done. 40 And all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and fol- lowed Abimelech, and put them to the watch-tower, and set the watch- tower on fire upon them ; so that all the men of the Tower of Shecheni also died, about a thousand men and women. 41 Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it. 42 But there was a strong tower in the middle of the city, and thither fled all the men and women, and all the chiefs of the city, and shut it to them, and got them up to the roof of the tower. 43 And Abimelech came to the tower, and fought against it, and went near to the doorway of the tower, to burn it with fire. 44 And a certain woman cast an up- per millstone upon Abimelech' s head, and she brake his scull. 45 Then he called hastily to the young man his armour-bearer, and said to him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that men say not of me, A woman slew him. . And his young man thrust him through, and he died. 46 And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they de- parted every man to his own place. Thus God rendered back the wicked- ness of Abimelech, which he did to his father, in slaying his seventy brethren ; 47 And all the evil of the men of Shechem did God render back upon their heads ; and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal. CHAPTER X. after Abimelech there arose to deliver Israel Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar ; and he dwelt in Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. CHAPTER XI. JUDGES. 37 2 And he judged Israel for twenty and three years ; and he died, and was buried in Shamir. 3 And after him arose Jair, the Gileadite, and he judged Israel for twenty and two years. And he had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass- colts. And they had thirty cities, which are called the Hamlets of Jair unto this day, which are in the land of Gilead. And Jair died, and was buried in Camon. 4 And the CHILDREN OF ISRAEL DID EVIL again in the sight of the LORD, and served Baal, and Ashta- roth, and the gods of Syria, and the gods of Sidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the Children of Ain- mon, and the gods of the Philistines, and forsook the LORD and served not him. 5 And the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the Children of Ammon. 6 And that time they vexed and crushed the children of Israel for eighteen years, and all the children of Israel that were beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Grilead. 7 Moreover the Children of Ammon passed over the Jordan to fight also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim ; so that Israel was sore distressed. 8 And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, saying, We have sinned against thee, both because we have forsaken our God , and also have served Baal. 9 And the LORD said to the chil- dren of Israel, Did not I deliver you from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, from the children of Am- mon, and from the Philistines ? 10 The Sidonians also, and the Amalekites, and the Maonites, did oppress you ; and ye cried to me, and I delivered you out of their hand. 11 Yet ye have forsaken me, and ye serve other gods ; therefore I will deliver you no more. Go and cry unto the gods which ye have chosen ; let them deliver you in the time of your distress. 12 And the children of Israel said to the LORD, We have sinned. Do thou to us whatsoever seemeth good unto thee ; only deliver us, we pray thee this day. 13 And they put away the foreign gods from among them, and served the LORD ; and he could not bear to see the misery of Israel. 14 Then the Children of Ammon were called together ; and they en- camped in Grilead. And the children of Israel assembled themselves to- gether, and encamped in Mizpeh. 15 And the people and princes of Grilead said one to another, What man is he that will begin the fight against the children of Ammon ? He shall be head over all the inhab itants of Gilead. CHAPTER XI. JEPHTHAH the Gileadite was a warrior of valour, and he was the son of a strange woman. And Gilead was the father of Jephthah. 2 And Gilead' s wife bare him sons. And his wife's sons grew up, and they thrust out Jephthah, and said to him, Thou shalt not inherit in our father's house ; for thou art the son of another woman. 38 JUDGES. CHAPTER XI, 3 Then Jephtha hfled from his breth- ren, and dwelt in the land of Tob. And there were gathered vain men to Jephthah ; and they went out with him. 4 And it came to pass in process of time, that the Children of Ammon made war against Israel. 5 And it was so that, when the Children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob. 6 And they said to Jephthah, Come and be our captain, that we might fight against the Children of Ammon. 7 And Jephthah said to the elders j of Gilead, Did not ye hate me, and j thrust me out of my father's house ? And why are ye come to me now when ye are in distress ? 8 And the elders of Gilead said to j Jephthah, Therefore we turn again to thee now, thatthou mayest go with us, and fight against the Children of Ammon, and be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead. 9 And Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, If ye bring me home again to fight against the Children of Am- mon, and the LORD deliver them be- fore me, shall I be your head ? 10 And the elders of Gilead said to Jephthah, May the LORD be the hearer between us, if we do not so according to thy words. 11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and captain over them. And Jephthah uttered all his words before the LORD in Mizpeh. 12 And Jephthah sent messengers to the king of the Children of Am- mon, saying, What hast thou to do with me, that thou art come against me to fight in my land ? 13 And the king of the Children of Ammon said to the messengers of Jephthah, Because Israel took away my land when they came up out of Egypt, from the Arnon even unto the Jabbok, and unto the Jordan. Now therefore restore those lands again peaceably. 14 And Jephthah sent messengers yet again to the king of the Children of Ammon, and said to him, Thus saith Jephthah, Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the Children of Ammon. 15 But when Israel came up from Egypt, and walked through the desert unto the Red Sea, and came to Kadesh ; 16 Then Israel sent messengers unto the king of Edom, saying, Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy land. But the king of Edom would not hearken thereto. 17 And in like manner they sent to the king of Moab ; but he would not consent. And Israel abode in Kadesh. 18 Then they went through the desert, and went round the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and encamped on the other side of the Arnon, but came not within the boundary of Moab. For the Arnon was the boundary of Moab. 19 And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Arnorites, the king of Heshbon. And Israel said to him, Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land unto my place. 20 But Sihon trusted not Israel to pass through his boundary. And Sihon gathered all his people together, and encamped in Jahazah, and fought against Israel. 21 And Yahveh the God of Israel CHAPTER XI. JUDGES. delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel. And they smote them. So Israel seized all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country. 22 And they seized all the boundary of the Amorites, from the Arnon even unto the Jabbok, and from the desert even unto the Jordan. 23 So now Jahveh the God of Israel hath dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and shouldest thou dispossess us ? 24 Shalt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever Yahveh our G-od shall dispossess from before us, them will we possess. 25 And now art thou anything bet- ter than Balat the son of Zippor, the king of Moab ? Did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them ? 26 While Israel dwelt in Heshbon and its suburbs, and in Aroer and its suburbs, and in all the cities that are on the banks of the Arnon, there were three hundred years. Why therefore did ye not recover them within that time ? 27 Therefore I have not sinned against thee, and thou doest me wrong to war against me. May Yah- veh the Judge be judge this day between the Children of Israel, and the Children of Ammon. 28 Howbeit the king of the Children of Ammon hearkened not to the words of Jephthah which he sent to him. 29 Then the spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead, and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over to the Children of Ammon. 30 And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the LORD, and said, If thou shalt without fail deliver the Children of Ammon into my hands, then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the Children of Ammon, shall surely be the LORD'S, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering. 31 So Jephthah passed over to the Children of Ammon to fight against them ; and the LORD delivered them into his hands. 32 And he smote them from Aroer, even till thou come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and unto the Meadow of the Vineyards, with a very great slaughter. Thus the Children* of Am- mon were subdued before the children of Israel. 33 And Jephthah came to Mizpeh to his house, and behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances ; and she was his only child ; beside her he had neither son nor daughter. 34 And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said, Alas, my daughter ! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art one of them that trouble me ; for I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back. 35 And she said to him, My father, as thou hast opened thy mouth unto the LORD, do to me according to that which hath gone forth out of thy mouth ; forasmuch as the LORD hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies the Children of Ammon. 36 And she said to her father, Let this thing be done for me. Let me alone two months, that I may go up and down upon the mountains, an 40 JUDGES. CHAPTER XII. bewail my youth, I and my com panions. 37 And he said, Go. And he sem her away for two months. And she went with her companions, and sh bewailed her youth upon the moun tains. 38 And it came to pass at the enc of two months, that she returned to her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed. 39 And it was a custom in Israel that the daughters of Israel went yearly to celebrate the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year. . CHAPTER XII. the men of Ephraim were callec together, and passed over [the Jordan] northward, and said to Jeph thah, Wherefore passedst thou over to fight against the Children of Am- mon, and didst not call us to go with thee ? We will burn thy house upon thee with fire. 2 And Jephthah said to them, I and my people were at great strife with the Children of Ammon ; and when I called to you, ye delivered me not out of their hands. 3 And when I saw that thou wast no help, I put my life in my hands, and I passed over against the Children of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand. Wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me ? 4 Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim. And the men of Gilead smote Ephraim because they said, Ye Gileadites* are fugitives of Ephraim among the Ephraimites, and among the Manassites. 5 And the Gileadites seized the fords of the Jordan before the Eph- raimites. And it was so, that those Ephraimites who were escaped said, Let me cross over. And the men of Gilead said to each, Art thou an Ephraimite ? And he said, Nay. 6 Then said they to him, Say now Shibboleth. And he said, Sibboleth. For he could not frame to speak it right. Then they took him, and slew him at the fords of the Jordan. And there fell at that time of the Ephraimites forty and two thousand. 7 And Jephthah judged Israel for six years. Then died Jephthah the Gileadite, and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead. 8 And after him Ibzan of Beth- lehem [in Zebulun] judged Israel. And he had thirty sons ; and thirty daughters, whom he sent abroad ; and he took in thirty daughters from abroad for his sons. And he judged Israel for seven years. Then died Ibzan, and was buried at Beth- lehem. 9 And after him Ajalon, a Zebulu- nite, judged Israel ; and he judged Israel for ten years. And Ajalon the Zebudnite died, and was buried in Ajalon in the land of the Ze- bulun. 10 And after him Abdon the sou of Hillel, a Pirathonite, judged Israel. And he had forty sons and thirty grandsons, that rode on seventy ass- colts. And he judged Israel for eight years. 11 And Abdon the son of Hillel the 3 irathonite died, and was buried in r'irathon in the land of Ephraim, in he hill country of the Amalekites. XIII. JUDGES. 41 CHAPTER XIII. A ND the CHILDREN OF ISRAEL DID EVIL again in the sight of God ; and the LORD delivered them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years. 2 And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife had no children. 3 And the angel of the LORD ap- peared to the woman, and said to her, Behold now, thou shalt bear a son. 4 Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing. 5 For lo, thou shalt bear a son ; and no razor shall come on his head. For the child shall be a Nazarite [or Set apart] unto God from his birth ; and he shall be first to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines. 6 Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man of God came to me, and his appearance was like the appearance of the angel of God, very terrible. But I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name. 7 But he said to me, Behold, thou shalt bear a son ; and now drink no wine nor strong drink, neither eat any unclean thing ; for the child shall be a Nazarite to God from his birth to the day of his death. 8 Then Manoah entreated the LORD, and said, my Lord, let the man of God whom thou didst send come again to us, and teach us what we shall do to the child that shall be born. 9 And God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; and the angel of God came again to the woman as she sat in the field ; but Manoah her husband was not with her. 10 And the woman made haste, and ran, and shewed to her husband, and said to him, Behold, the man hath appeared to me, that came to me the other day. 11 And Manoah arose and went after his wife, and came to the man, and said to him, Art thou the man that spakest to the woman ? And he said, I am. 12 And Manoah said, Now let thy words come to pass. What shall be the treatment of the child, and his doings. 13 And the angel of the LORD said to Manoah, Of all that I said to the woman let her beware. She may not eat of anything that cometh of the grape-vine ; neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing. All that I commanded her let her observe. 14 And Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, I pray thee, let us de- tain thee, until we shall have made ready a kid of the goats for thee. 15 And the angel of the LORD said to Manoah, Though thou detain me, I will not eat of thy bread. And if thou makest a burnt offering, thou. must offer it up to the LORD. For Manoah knew not that he was the- angel of the LORD. 16 And Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, What is thy name, that when thy sayings come to pass we may do thee honour ? 17 And the angel of the LORD said to him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is wonderful ? So- Manoah took a kid of the goats and a meal offering, and offered them up on a rock unto the LORD. And a. 42 JUDGES. CHAPTER XIV. wondrous thing was done ; and Ma- noah and his wife saw it. 18 For it came to pass when the flame went up toward the heavens from off the altar, that the angel of the LOKD went up in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife saw it, and fell on their faces to the ground. 19 But the angel of the LORD did no more appear to Manoah and to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of the LORD. 20 And Manoah said to his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen Grod. But his wife said to him, If the LORD were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt offering and a meal offering at our hands, neither would he have shewed us all these things, nor would he as at this time have told us such things as these. 21 And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson. And the child grew, and the LORD blessed him. 22 And the spirit of the LORD be- gan to move him in the Camp of Dan between Zora and Bshtaol. CHAPTER XIV. A ND Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath, one of the daughters of the Philistines. 2 And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath, one of the daughters of the Philistines. Now therefore get her for me to wife. 3 Then his father and his mother said to him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircum- cised Philistines. And Samson said to his father, Do thou get her for me, for she pleaseth me well. 4 And his father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD, that he sought an occassion against the Philistines. For at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel. 5 Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and they came to the vine -yards of Timnath ; and behold a lion's whelp roared on meeting him. 6 And the spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he rent it as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing whatever in his hand. But he told not his father or his mother what he had done. 7 And he went down, and talked with the woman, and she pleased Samson well. And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion ; and behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the body of the lion. 8 And he took thereof in his hands, and went on and eat, and he came to his father and mother, and he gave to them, and they did eat ; but he told them not that he had taken the honey out of the body of the lion. 9 So his father went down to the woman ; and Samson made there a drinking feast ; for so used the young men to do. 10 And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him. 11 And Samson said to them, I will now put forth a riddle to you. If ye can certainly declare it to me within the seven days of the drinking feast, and find it out, then I will give you CHAPTER XV. JUDGES. 43 thirty shirts and thirty changes of garments. 12 But if ye are unable to declare it to me, then shall ye give me thirty shirts and thirty changes of garments. And they said to him, Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it. 13 And he said to them, Out of the eater came forth food, and out of the strong came forth sweetness. And they could not in three days declare the riddle. 14 And it came to pass on the fourth day, that they said to Samson's wife, Entice thy husband, that he may declare to us the riddle, lest we burn thee and thy father's house with fire. Have ye called us to dispossess us ? Is it not so ? 15 And Samson's wife wept before him, and said, Thou dost but hate me, and lovest me not. Thou hast put forth a riddle to the children of my people, and hast not declared it to me. And he said to her, Behold, I have not declared it to my father nor to my mother, and shall I declare it to thee ? 16 And she wept before him [the rest of] the seven days, while their drinking feast lasted. And it came to pass on the seventh day, that he declared it to her, because she pressed him ; and she declared the riddle to the children of her people. 1 7 And the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down, What is sweeter than honey ? and what is stronger than a lion ? And he said to them, If ye had not plowed with my heifer, ye had not found out my riddle. 18 And his anger was kindled, and he went up to his father's house. And Samson's wife was given to his companion, who had been his friend. CHAPTER XV. it came to pass after a while, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid of the goats; and he said, I will go in and see my wife. But her father would not suffer him to go in. 2 And her father said, I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her ; therefore I gave her to thy com- panion. Is not her younger sister fairer than she ? Let her be thine, I pray thee, instead of her. 3 And Samson said concerning them, This time shall I be more blameless than the Philistines, though I do them an evil. And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took torches, and turned tail to tail, and put each torch in the midst between two tails. 4 And when he had set the torches on fire, he let them go into the staml ing corn of the Philistines, and bur.it up both the shocks, and also tins standing corn, with the olive-garden . 5 Then the Philistines said, Who hath done this? And they answered, Samson, the son in law of the Tim- riite, because he had taken his wife, and given her to his companion. And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father with fire. 6 And Samson said to them, Though ye have done thus, yet will I be avenged of you, and after that I will cease. And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter. And he went down and dwelt in a cleft in the rock Etam. 7 Then the Philistines went up, and encamped in Judah, and spread them- 44 JUDGES. CHAPTER XVI. selves in Lehi. And the men of Judah said, Why are ye come up against us? And they answered, To bind Samson are we come up, to do to him as he hath done to us. 8 Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft in the rock Etam, and said to Samson, Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us ? And what is this that thou hast done to us ? And he said to them, As they did to me, so have I done to them. 9 And they said to him, We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hand of the Philistines. And Samson said to them, Swear to me that ye will not fall upon me yourselves. 10 And they spake to him, saying, No ; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their hand ; but surely we will not kill thee. And they bound him with two new cords, and brought him up from the rock. 11 And when he came to Lehi, the Philistines shouted on meeting him. And the spirit of the LORD came upon him, and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands were loosed from off his hands. 12 And he found a fresh cheek- bone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith. And Samson said, With the cheek-bone of an ass, a heap of heaps, With the cheek-bone of an ass have I slain a thousand men. 13 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the cheek-bone out of his hand, and called that place the hill of Lehi [or the Cheek.] 14 And he was sore athirst, and called on the LORD, and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant; and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the enemy. 15 But God clave the hollow place which is in Lehi, and there came water thereout. And when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived. Therefore he called its name the Well of Kore [or of him that called], which is in Lehi unto this day. 16 And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines for twenty years. CHAPTER XVI. went Samson to Gaza, and saw there a woman, and loved her. And on the Gazites saying, Samson is come hither; they compassed him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and kept them- selves quiet all the night, saying, In the morning when it is light, we will kill him. 2 And Samson stayed till mid- night, and arose at midnight ; and seized upon the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and he pulled them up with the cross-bar, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the hill that is before Hebron. 3 And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up to her, and said to her, Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail against him, that wo may bind him to overpower him ; and we CHAPTER XVI. JUDGES. 45 will give thee every one of us eleven hundred pieces of silver. 4 And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound to overpower thee. 5 And Samson said to her, If they bind me with seven green withs that were never dried, then shall I be weak, and be as another man. 6 Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven green withs which had not been dried, and she bound him with them. 7 Now there were men lying in wait, abiding with her in the chamber. And she said to him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he brake the withs, as a thread of tow is broken when it smelleth the fire. So his strength was not known. 8 And Delilah said to Samson, Be- hold thou hast befooled me, and told ine lies. Now tell me, I pray thee, wherewith thou mightest be bound. 9 And he said to her, If they bind me fast with new ropes wherewith no work hath been done, then shall I be weak, and be as another man. 10 Delilah therefore took new ropes, and bound him therewith ; and said to him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And there were Hers in wait abiding in the chamber. And he brake them from off his arms like a thread. 11 And Delilah said to Samson, Hitherto thou hast mocked me, and told me lies. Tell me wherewith thou mightest be bound. And he said to her, If thou weavest the seven locks of my head into the web. 12 And she fastened it with the pin, and said to him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awaked out of his sleep, and pulled away the weaving pin and the web. 13 And she said to him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thy heart is not with me ? Thou hast befooled me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth. 14 And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death, 15 That he told her all his heart, and said to her, There hath not come a razor upon my head ; for I have been a Nazarite unto God, from my birth. If I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man. 16 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philis- tines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath told me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her, and brought the silver in their hand. It And she made him sleep upon her knees. And she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head. And she be- gan to overpower him, and his strength went from him. 18 And she said, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he knew not that the LORD was departed from him. 19 But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with copper fetters ; and he did grind in the prison house. 46 JUDGES. CHAPTER XVII. 20 Howbeit the hair of his head began to grow again as before he was shaven. And the lords of the Philis- tines gathered themselves together for to sacrifice a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice ; for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. 21 And when the people saw him they praised their god ; for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hands our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, who slew many of us. 22 And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make sport for us. And they called for Samson out of the prison-house, that he might make sport before them; and they set him between the pillars. 23 And Samson said to the lad that held him by the hand, Place me so that I may feel the pillars where- upon the house standeth, that I may lean upon them. 24 Now the house was full of men and women ; and all the lords of the Philistines were there ; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, that looked on while Samson was made sport of. 25 And Samson called to the LORD and said, Lord Eternal remember me, I pray thee, and strenghten me, I pray thee, only this once, Grod, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes. 26 And Samson bent himself toward the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on which it was borne up, the one on his right hand, and the other on his left. 27 And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself with all his might ; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death, were more than they which he slew in his life. 28 Then his brethren and all the house of his father came down, and took him, and brought him up, and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the burying-place of Manoah his father. And he judged Israel for twenty years. CHAPTER XVII. AND THERE WAS A MAN of the hill country of Ephraim, whose name was Micah. 2 And he said to his mother, The eleven hundred pieces of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou cursedst, and spakedst of also in mine ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it. And his mother said Blessed be thou of the LORD, my son, 3 And he restored the money to his mother. And his mother took two hundred pieces of the silver, and gave them the metal founder, who made thereof a graven image and a molten image. And they were in the house of Micah. 4 And the man Micah had a house of gods, and he made an Ephod [or priest's robe], and Teraphs [or ima- ges] and he filled the hands of one of his sons [with offerings], who became his priest. 5 In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes. 6 And there w.as a young man in Beth-lehem in Judah of the family of Judah, who was a Levite, and he sojourned there. 7 And the man departed out of the CHAPTER XVIII. JUDGES. 47 city from Beth-lehem of Judah to so- journ where he could find a place. And he canie to the hill country of Ephraim to the house of Micah, as he journeyed. 8 And he said to him, Whence comest thou? And he said to him, I am a Levite of Beth-lehem in Judah, and I go to sojourn where I may find a place. 9 And Micah said to him, Dwell with me, and be unto me a father and a priest, and I will give thee ten pieces of silver by the year, and a suit of apparel, and thy victuals. So the Levite went in. 10 And the Levite was content to dwell with the man ; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons. 11 And Micah filled the hand of the Levite [with offering]; and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah. 12 Then said Micah, Now know I that the LORD will do me good, see- ing I have the Levite for my priest. CHAPTER XVIII. TN those days there was no king in Israel; and in those days the tribe of the Danites sought them an in- heritance to dwell in : for unto that day no inheritance had fallen unto them among the tribes of Israel. 2 And the children of Dan sent of their family five men from their bor- ders, men of valour, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to search it ; and they said to them, Go, search the land. And they came to the hill country of Eph- raim, to the house of Micah, and they lodged there. 3 When they were by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite; and they turned in thither, and said to him, Who brought thee hither? And whatdoest thou in this place? And what hast thou here? 4 And he said to them, Thus and thus dealeth Micah with me, and he hired me, and I am his priest. 5 And they said to him, Ask, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous. 6 And the priest said to them, Go, in peace ; before the LORD is your way wherein ye go. 7 Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw the people that were therein, how they dwelt as if in safety, according to the laws of the Sidonians. quiet and trusting. And no one possessed power in the land, that might hurt them in any- thing. But they were far from the Sidonians, and had no dealings with any man. 8 And they came to their brethren to Zorah and Eshtaol. And their brethren said to them, What say ye? 9 And they said, Arise, that we may go up against them. For we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good. And are ye still? Be not slothful to go, and to enter to possess the land. 10 When ye go, ye shall come to a people secure, and to a land wide in its sides. For God hath given it into your hands ; a place where there is no want of anything that is on the earth. 1 1 And there removed from thence of the family of the Danites, out of Eshtaol, six hundred men girded with weapons of war. 12 And they went up, and encamp- 48 JUDGES. CHAPTER XVIII. ed by the city of Jeraim in Judah. Therefore they called that place the Camp of Dan unto this day. Behold, it is to the west of the City of Jearim. 13 And they passed thence unto the hill country of Ephraim, and came to the house of Micah. 14 Then spake the five men that went to spy out the land of Laish, and said to their brethren, Do ye know that there is in these houses an Ephod, and Teraphs, and a graven image, and a molten image? Now therefore consider what ye have to do. 15 And they turned thitherward, and came to the house of the young man the Levite, even to the house of Micah and saluted him. 16 And the six hundred men girded with their weapons of war, who were of the children of Dan, stood by the entrance of the gate. 17 And the five men that went to spy out the land went up, and came in thither, and took the graven image, and the Ephod, and the Teraphs, and the molten image. And the priest stood at the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men that were gird- ed with weapons of war; 18 And these went into Micah 's house, and took the graven image, the Ephod, and the Teraphs, and the molten image. Then said the priest to them, What do ye? 19 And they said to him, Hold thy peace, lay thy hand upon thy mouth, and go with us, and be to us a father and a priest. Is it better for thee to be a priest unto the house of one man, or that thou be a priest unto a tribe and a family in Israel? 20 And the priest's heart was glad, and he took the Ephod, and the Teraphs, and the graven image, and went in the midst of the people. 21 So they turned and departed, and put the little ones and the cattle and the heavy baggage before them. 22 And when they were a good way from the house of Micah, the men that were in the houses near to Micah' s house were called together, and they overtook the children of Dan. 23 And they cried to the children of Dan. And they turned their faces, and said to Micah, What aileth thee, that thou art called together? 24 And he said, Ye have taken away my gods which I made, and the priest, and ye are gone away. And what have I more? And what is this that ye say to me, What aileth thee? 25 And the children of Dan said to him, Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest men of bitter souls run upon you, and thou lose thy life, with the lives of thy household. 26 And the children of Dan went on their way. And Micah saw that they were too strong for him, and he turn- ed and went back to his house. 27 And they took the things which Micah had made, and the priest which he had, and they came to Laish, to a people that were quiet and trusting. And they smote them with the edge of the sword, and burnt the city with fire. 28 And there was no deliverer, be- cause it was far from Sidon, and they had no dealings with any man : and it was in the valley that is by Beth- rehob. And they built the city, and dwelt therein. 29 And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born unto Israel. CHAPTER I. I. SAMUEL. 49 Howbeit the name of the city was Laish at the first. 30 And the children of Dan set up for themselves the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Moses, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land [B. C. 722]. 31 And they set up for themselves Micah's graven image, which he had made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh. * * 32 In those days there was no king in Israel ; every man did that which was right in his own eyes. THK FIRST BOOK OF SAJVEUEL. CHAPTER I. MOW THERE WAS a certain man of Ramathaim of the Zuphites of j the hill country of Ephraim, and his j name was Elkanah, the son of Jero- ham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephra- thite. 2 And he had two wives; the name of the one was Hannah, and the | name of the second Peninnah. And Peninnah had children, but HUnnah had no children. 3 And this man went up out of his city yearly to worship and to sacrifice unto the LORD of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the priests of the LORD, were there. 4 And when the time was that El- j kanah sacrificed, he gave to Peninnah ' his wife, and to all her sons and her j daughters, portions [of the meat]. 5 But to Hannah he gave a double portion, for he loved Hannah; 6 And her rival provoked her sore in order to make her fret, because j she had no children. 7 And so was done year by 3 T ear, as often as she went up to the house of ; the LORD, she provoked her. There- fore she wept, and did not eat. 8 Then said Elkanah her husband to her, Hannah, why weepest thou? And why eatest thou not? And why is thy heart grieved? Am not I bet- ter to thee than ten sons? 9 So Hannah rose up after she had eaten in Shiloh, and after she had drunk. And Eli the priest sat upon a seat by the door-post of the temple of the LORD. 10 And she was bitter of soul, and prayed to the LORD, and wept sore. 11 And she vowed a vow, and said, Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thy handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thy handmaid, but wilt give to thy handmaid a man child, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head. 12 And it came to pass, as she con- tinued praying before the LORD, that Eli marked her mouth. 13 Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard; therefore Eli thought she had been drunken. 50 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER II. 14 And Eli said to her, How long wilt thou be drunken? Put away thy wine from thee. 15 And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sor- rowful spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I poured out my soul before the LORD. 16 Count not thy handmaid for a daughter of Belial. For out of the abundance of my complaint and grief have I been speaking hitherto. 17 Then Eli answered and said, G-o in peace. And may the G-od of Is- rael grant thee thy petition that thou hast asked of him. 18 And she said, Let thy handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the wo- man went her way, and did eat, and her conntenance was not as it had been. 19 And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the LORD, and returned, and came to their house at Ramah. 20 And the LORD remembered Hannah, and she bare a son, and she called his name Samuel, [saying,] Because I have asked him of the LORD. 21 And the man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to sacrifice to the LORD the yearly sacrifice, and his vow. 22 But Hannah went not up, for she said to her husband, Wait until the child be weaned, and I may bring him, that he may appear before the LORD, and there abide for ever. 23 And Elkanah her husband said to her, Do what seemeth good to thee. Tarry until thou have weaned him ; only may the LORD establish his word. So the woman abode until she weaned him. 24 And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks, and one Ephah [or Bushel] of meal, and a bottle of wine, and she brought him to the House of the LORD in Shiloh. And the child was very young. 25 And they slew a bullock, and brought the child to Eli. 26 And she said, Oh my lord, as thy soul liveth, my lord, I am the wo- man that stood by thee here, praying to the LORD. 27 I prayed for this child ; and the LORD hath given me my petition which I asked of him. 28 And also I have lent him to the LORD, as long as he liveth he shall be a loan to the LORD, And they wor- shipped the LORD there. CHAPTER II. Hannah prayed and said, My heart rejoiceth in the Eternal, My horn is exalted in the LOKD; My mouth is enlarged over mine enemies; Because I rejoiced in thy salvation. 2 None is holy as the LOBD; for beside thee is none: Neither is there any rock like our God, 3 Talk no more so exceeding proudly, With arrogance coming out of your mouth ; For the Eternal is a God of knowl- edge, And by him actions are weighed. 4 The bows of the warriors are broken, And they that stumbled are girded with strength: 5 The full have hired out themselves for bread, And the hungry are so no longer; The woman hitherto barren hath born seven, And she that hath many children languisheth. 6 The LORD killeth and maketh alive; He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up. CHAPTER II. I. SAMUEL. 51 7 The Eternal maketh poor, and inak- eth rich ; He bringeth low, and he also lifteth up. 8 He raiseth up the poor out of the dust, And lifteth up the beggar from the dunghill, To make them sit among princes; And he maketh them to inherit a throne of glory. For the pillars of the earth are the LOKD'S, And upon them he hath set the world. 9 He will keep the feet of his godly ones, And the wicked will be silent in darkness; For by strength will no man pre- vail. 10 They that strive against the Eternal will be dismayed; Out of heaven will he thunder upon them ; The LOKD will judge the ends of the earth ; And he will give strength to his king, And exalt the horn of his anointed. 11 And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the LORD before Eli the priest. 12 Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial ; they knew not the LORD. 13 And the priests' custom with the people was, that, when any man sacri- ficed a sacrifice, the priest's servant came, while the flesh was boiling, with a fleshhook of three teeth in his hand; 14 And he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot ; all that the fleshhook brought up the priest took for himself. So they did in Shiloh to all the Israelites that came thither. 15 Also before they burnt the fat for incense, the priest's servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed, G-ive flesh to be roasted for the priest; for he will not receive cooked flesh of I thee, but raw. 16 And if any man said to him, Let them not fail to burn the fat for incense at once, and then take as much as thy soul desireth; then he would answer him, Nay; but thou shalt give it me now ; and if not, I will take it by force. 17 Therefore, the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD: for men abhorred to make the offering to the LORD. 18 But Samuel ministered before the LORD, while a child, girded with a linen Ephod for a priestly dress]. 19 Moreover his mother made him a little cloak, and brought one to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to sacrifice the yearly sacrifice. 20 And Eli blessed Elkanah and his wife, and said, May the LORD give thee chidren of this woman in place of that asked for, which is lent to the LORD. And they went to their home. 21 And the LORD visited Hannah, and she bare three bons and two daughters. And the child grew be- fore the LORD. 22 Now Eli was very old, and heard all that his sons did to Israel. 23 And he said to them, Why do ye do such things? For I hear of your evil dea ; ings by all this people. 24 Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear. Ye make the LORD'S people to transgress. 25 If one man sin against another, Grod may acquit him ; but if a man sin against the LORD, who shall en- treat for him ? Notwithstanding, they 52 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTEB III. hearkened not to the voice of their father. 26 And the child Samuel grew on, and was in favour both with Grod, and also with men. 27 And there came a man of Grod to Eli, and said to him. Thus saith the LORD, Did I plainly reveal myself to the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's house? 28 And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to offer up on mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an Ephod before me? And did I give to the house of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children of Israel? 29 Wherefore kick ye at my sacrifice and at my meal offering, which I have commanded in my habitation; and honourest thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people. 30 Therefore (the Eternal the Grod of Israel hath said it) I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever; but now, the LORD hath said it, be it far from me ; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed. 31 Behold, the days will come that I will cut off thy offspring, and the off- spring of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man in thy house. 32 And thou shalt see adversity in thy habitation, in all wherein Israel hath prospered. 33 And the man of thine, whom I shall not cut off from mine altar, shall be to consume thine eyes, and to grieve thy soul. And all the increase of thy house shall die when men. 34 And this shall be a sign unto thee, that shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phiuehas; in one day they shall die both of them. 35 And I will raise up for myself a faithful priest [Zadok], that shall do according to that which is in my heart and in my soul. And I will build unto him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed all his days. 36 And it shall come to pass, that j every one that is left in thy house I shall come and crouch to him for a | silver Grerah [or penny] and a circular | loaf of bread, and shall say, Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests' offices, that I may eat a morsel of bread. CHAPTER III. A ND the child Samuel ministered un- to the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; divine visions were not frequent. 2 And it came to pass at that time when Eli was laid down to sleep in his place, and his eyes began to be weak, that he could not see; and before the lamp of Grod was put out, and Sam- uel was laid down to sleep in the tem- ple of GrOD, where the Ark of Q-od was; that the LORD called to Samuel. And he answered, Here I am. 3 And he ran to Eli, and said, Here I am; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not ; lie down again. And he went out and lay down. 4 And the LORD called yet again, Samuel. And Samuel arose, and went to Eli, and said, Here I am ; for thou didst call me. And he answered, I called not, my son ; lie down again. 5 Now Samuel did not yet know the CHAPTER VI. I. SAMUEL. 53 LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed to him. 6 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said, Here I am, for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the LORD had call- ed the child. 7 Therefore Eli said to Samuel, Go, lie down ; and it shall be, if He call thee, thou shalt say, Speak, O LORD ; for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 8 And the LORD came, and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak ; for thy servant heareth. 9 And the LORD said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle. 10 In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house, from be- ginning to end. 11 For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth ; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. 12 And therefore I have sworn un- to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged by sacrifice nor meal offerings for ever. 13 And Samuel lay until the morn- ing, and then he opened the doors of the House of the LORD. And Samuel feared to show Eli the vision. 14 Then Eli called Samuel, and said, Samuel, my son. And he an- swered, Here I am. 15 And he said, What is the thing that hath been spoken to thee ? I pray thee, hide it not from me. Grod do so to thee, and more also, if thou hide a word from me of all the things that were spoken to thee. 16 And Samuel told him every word and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the LORD. Let him do what seemeth him good. 17 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him ; and he did let none of his words fall to the ground. 18 And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba, knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD. 19 And the LORD continued to ap- pear in Shiloh ; for the LORD re- vealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD ; and the word of Samuel came to all Israel. CHAPTER IV. N ow ISRAEL WENT OUT against the Philistines to battle, and pitched besides Eben-ezer ; and the Philis- tines pitched in Aphek. 2 And the Philistines set them- selves in array against Israel ; and when the battle spread, Israel was smitten before the Philistines. And there were slain of the ranks in the field about four thousand men. 3 And when the people were come into the camp, the elders of Israel said, Wherefore hath the LORD smit- ten us to-day before the Philistines ? Let us fetch the Ark of the Cove- nant of the LORD out of Shiloh un- to us, that, when it cometh among us, it may save us out of the grasp of oar enemies. 4 So the people went to Shiloh, and they carried from thence the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD of hosts, who dwelleth between the cherubim. And the two sons of Eli, 54 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER V. Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the Ark of the Covenant of God. 5 And it came to pass when the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD came into the camp, that all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth rang again. 6 And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, What meaneth the noise of this great shout in the camp of the He- brews? And they understood that the Ark of Yahveh was come into the camp. 7 And the Philistines were afraid, for they said, Their God is come into the camp. And they said, Woe un- to us ! for there hath not been such a thing heretofore. 8 Woe unto us ! who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty Gods? These are the very Gods that smote the Egyptians with all the slaughter in the desert. 9 Be strong, and acquit yourselves like men, ye Philistines, that ye be not servants to the Hebrews, as they have been servants to you. Acquit yourselves like men, and fight. 10 And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man to his tent. And there was a very great slaughter ; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand men on foot. 11 And the Ark of God was taken ; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain. 12 And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the ranks, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head. 13 And when he came, lo, Eli sat upon a seat by the wayside watching ; for his heart trembled for the Ark of God. And when the man came into the city, and told it, all the city cried out. 14 And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said, What meaneth the noise of this tumult? And the man came in hastily, and told Eli. 15 Now Eli was ninety and eight years old ; and his eyes were fixed, and he could not see. 16 And the man said to Eli, I am he that came out of the ranks, and I fled to-day out of the ranks. And he said, What is there done, my son ? 17 And he that brought the news answered and said, Israel is fled be- fore the Philistines, and there hath been also a great slaughter among the people, and thy two sons also, Hoph- ni and Phinehas, are dead, and the Ark of God is taken. 18 And it came to pass when he made mention to him of the Ark of God, that he fell from off the seat by the side of the city gate, and his neck broke, and he died. For he was an old man, and heavy. And he had judged Israel for forty years. 19 And when his daughter in law, Phinehas' wife, heard the tidings that the Ark of God was taken, and that her father in law and her husband were dead, she died while giving birth to a son. 20 And she named the child I- chabod [or No- glory,] saying, the glory is departed from Israel ; for the Ark of God is taken. CHAPTER V. ^ND the Philistines took the Ark of God, and brought it from Eben- ezer to Ashdod. 2 When the Philistines took the CHAPTER VI. I. SAJMUEL. 55 Ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon [or the Fish-god], and set it by the side of Dagon. 3 And when the men of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the Ark of G-od. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again. 4 And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground be- fore the Ark of God ; and Dagon' s head and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold ; only the fish part was left to him. 5 Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Da- gon' s house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashod unto this day. 6 And the hand of the LORD was heavy upon the men of Ashdod, and he destroyed them, and smote them with swellings, even Ashdod and the boundaries thereof. 7 And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The Ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us. For his hand is hard upon us, and upon Dagon our god. 8 They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said, What shall we do with the Ark ^of the God of Israel? And they answered, Let Gath carry about the Ark of the God of Israel. And they carried the Ark of the God of Israel about. 9 And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great trouble. And he smote the city both small and great, and swell ings broke out upon them. 10 Therefore they sent away the Ark of God to Ekron. And it came ;o pass as the Ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have carried about the Ark of the God of Israel unto us, to slay us and our people. 11 So they sent and gathered to- gether all the lords of the Philistines, and said, Send away the Ark of the jrod of Israel, and let it go again to its own place, that it slay us not, and our people. For there was a deadly trouble throughout the city ; the hand of God was very heavy there. 12 And the men that died not were smitten with the swellings ; and the cry of the city went up to heaven. CHAPTER VI. the Ark of God was in the country of the Philistines for seven months. 2 And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying, What shall we do to the Ark of Yah- veh? Tell us wherewith we shall send it to its own place. 3 And they said, If ye send away the Ark of the God of Israel, send it not away empty ; but in any wise return him a guilt offering. Then ye shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why His hand was not removed from you. 4 Then said they, What shall be the guilt offering which we shall re- turn to him? They answered, Ac- cording to the number of the lords of the Philistines, five golden swellings and five golden mice ; for one plague is on you all, and on your lords. 5 Therefore ye shall make images of your swellings, and images of your mice that mar the land ; and ye shall give the glory to the God of Israel. 56 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTEB VII. Perad venture he will lighten his hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land. 6 Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts ? When he had wrought wonderfully among them, did they not let the peo- ple go, and they departed? I Now therefore take and make a new cart, and take two milk cows, on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the cows to the cart, and send their calves home from them. 8 And take the Ark of Fahveh, and lay it upon the cart ; and put the jewels of gold, which ye return him for a guilt offering, in a coffer by the side thereof ; and send it away, that it may go. 9 And see, if it goeth up by the way of its own boundary to Beth- shemesh, then He hath done us this great evil. But if not, then we shall know that it is not His hand that smote us ; it was a chance that hap- pened to us. 10 And the men did so, and took two milk cows, and tied them to a cart, and shut up their calves at home. II And they laid the Ark of God upon the cart, and the coffer with the jewels of gold. 12 And the cows took the straight way on the way of Beth-sheinesh, and went along the one highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left ; and the lords of the Philistines went af- ter them unto the boundary of Beth- shemesh. 13 And the men of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley ; and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the Ark, and rejoiced to see it. 14 And the cart came into the field of Joshua, a Beth-shemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone. And they cut up the wood of the cart, and offered up the cows as a burnt offering to the LORD. And the men of Beth-shemesh offered up burnt of- ferings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day to the LORD. 15 And when the five lords of the Philistines had s^en it, they returned to Ekron the same day. 16 And the LORD smote the men of Beth-shemesh, because they had looked into the Ark of God, even seventy men, 17 And the men of Beth-shemesh said, Who is able to stand before the Eternal, the Holy G-od? 18 And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of the City of Jearim, saying, The Philistines have sent back the Ark of the LORD. Come ye down, and fetch it up to yourselves. CHAPTER VII. A ND the men of the City of Jearim came and fetched up the Ark of God ; and they brought it into the house of Abinadab in Gibeah, and they sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the Ark of the LORD. 2 And it came to pass from the day that the Ark abode in the City of Jearim, that the days were many; for it was twenty years ; and all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD, 3 And Samuel spake to all the house of Israel, saying, If ye return to the LORD with all your hearts, and put away the foreign gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your CHAPTER VIII. I. SAMUEL. 57 hearts unto the LORD, and serve him alone ; then he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines. 4 Then the children of Israel put away Baal and Ashtaroth, and served the LORD alone. 5 And Samuel said, Gather all Is- rael to Mizpeh, and I will pray for you unto the LORD. 6 And they gathered themselves to- gether to Mizpeh, and drew water, and poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and said there, We have sinned against the Eternal. And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh. 7 And when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpeh, the lords of the Philistines went up against Is- rael. And when the children of Is- rael heard it, they were afraid of the Philistines. 8 And the children of Israel said to Samuel, Cease not to cry to the LORD our G-od for us, that he may save us out of the hand of the Philis- tines. 9 And Samuel took a suckling lamb, and offered it up for a whole burnt offering unto the LORD. 10 And Samuel cried to the LORD on behalf of Israel ; and the LORD answered him. And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel. But the LORD thundered with a great noise on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfitted them; and they were smitten before Israel. 11 And the men of Israel went out from Mizpeh, and pursued the Philis- tines, and smote them, until they came under Beth-car. 12 Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Eben-ezer [or Stone of Help], saying, Hitherto hath the LORD helped us. 13 So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no more within the boundary of Israel. And the hand of the LORD was against the Philis- tines all the days of Samuel. 14 And the cities which the Philis- tines had taken from Israel were re- stored to Israel, from Ekron even un- to Grath ; and the boundaries thereof did Israel deliver out of the hands of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amo- rites. 15 And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. 16 And he went from year to year in circuit to Beth-el, and G-ilgal, and Mizpeh, and judged Israel in all those places. 17 And his return was to Ramah ; for there was his house. And there he judged Israel ; and there he built an altar unto the LORD. CHAPTER VIII. A ND it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel. 2 Now the name of his firstborn was Joel ; and the name of his sec- ond, Abiah. They were judges in Bersheba. 3 And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted judg- ment. 4 Then all the elders of Israel gath- ered themselves together, and came to Samuel at Ramah, 5 And said to him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER IX. ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. 6 But the thing was evil in the eyes of Samuel, when they said, Grive us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD said to Samuel, Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to thee. For they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not reign over them. 8 According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, wherewith they have forsaken me, and served other gods, so do they also to thee. 9 But now hearken to their voice. Howbeit yet protest solemnly unto them, and shew them the manner of the king that will reign over them. 10 And Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people that asked of him a king. 11 And he said-, This will be the manner of the king that will reign over you. He will take your sons, and ap- point them for himself, for his char- iots, and to be his horsemen ; and some shall run before his chariots. 12 And he will appoint for himself captains over thousands, and captains over fifties ; and will take some to plough his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his char- iots. 13 And he will take your daughters to be ointment makers, and to be cooks, and to be bakers. 14 And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards even the best of them and give them to his servants. 15 And he will take the tenth of your seed and of your vineyards, and give to his chamberlains and to his servants. 16 And he will take your men-ser- vants, and your maid- servants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work. 17 He will take the tenth of your sheep. And ye will be his servants. 18 And ye will cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen for yourselves ; and the LORD will not answer you in that day. 19 Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel ; and they said, Nay ; but we will have a king over us ; 20 That we also be like all the na- tions; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles. 21 And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed them before the LORD. 22 And the LORD said to Samuel, Hearken to their voice, and make them a king. And Samuel said to the men of Israel, Go ye every man to his city. CHAPTER IX. THERE WAS A MAN of Benja- min, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a man a Jaminite [or a Benjamite], a warrior of valour. 2 And he had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly ; and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier man than he. From his shoulders and upward he was taller than any of the people. CHAPTER IX. I. SAMUEL. 59 3 And the asses of Kish Saul's father were lost. And Kish said to Saul his son, Take now one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses. 4 And he passed through the hill country of Ephraim, and passed through the land of Shalisha, but they found them not. Then they passed through the land of Shalim, and there they were not. And he passed through the land of the Jaminites, but they found them not. 5 And when they were come to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his ser- vant that was with him, Come and let us return ; lest my father leave caring for the asses, and fear for us. 6 And he said to him ; Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is a man to be honoured. All that he saith cometh surely to pass. Now let us go thither; peradventure he can shew us our way that we should go. 7 Then said Saul to his servant. But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring road to the city, they found young maidens going out to draw water, and said to them, Is the seer here? 12 And they answered them, and said, He is. Behold, he is before you. Make haste now, for he came to-day to the city; for there is a sacri- fice of the people to-day on the High Place [or Altar.] 13 As soon as ye come into the city, ye shall straightway find him, before he go up to the High Place to eat. For the people will not eat until he come, because he doth bless the sacri- fice ; and afterwards they that be bid- den will eat. Now therefore get you up ; for about this time ye will find him. 14 And they went up into the city. And when they were come into the city, behold, Samuel came out against them, to go up to the High Place. 15 Now the LORD had revealed to Samuel a day before Saul came, saying, 16 To-morrow about this time I will send to thee a man out of the land of have we? 8 And the servant answered Saul again, and said, Behold, I happen to have in my hand the fourth part of a Shekel of silver. That will I give to the man of God, to tell us our way. 9 (Be foretime in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, thus he spake, Come, and let us go to the seer : for a Prophet of to-day was beforetime called a Seer.) 10 Then said Saul to his servant, Well said ; come, let us go. So they went to the city where the man of God was. 11 And as they went up the hill- the man ? For the bread is spent in \ Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him our vessels, and there is not a present! to be captain over my people Israel, to bring to the man of God. What that he may save my people out of the hand of the Philistines. For I have looked upon my people, because their cry is come unto me. 17 And when Samuel saw Saul, the LORD said to him, Behold the man whom I spake to thee of ! This man shall rule over my people. 18 Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the city gate, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer's house is. 19 And Samuel answered Saul and said, I am the seer. Go up before me to the High Place. For ye shall eat with me to-day, and to-morrow I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thy heart. 60 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER X. 20 And as for thine asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy heart on them ; for they are found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on thee, and on thy father's house ? 21 And Saul answered and said, Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my fami- ly the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? Wherefore then speakest thou so to me? 22 And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the chamber, and gave to them a place at the head of them that were bidden, who were about thirty men. 23 And Samuel said to the cook, Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said unto thee, Set it by thee 24 And the cook took up the leg, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul, And [Samuel] said, Behold that which is left ! Set it be- fore thee, and eat. For unto this ap- pointed time hath it been kept for thee since I said, I have invited the people. So Saul did eat with Samuel that day. 25 And when they were come down from the High Place into the city, he spake with Saul upon the roof of the house. 26 And they arose early. And it came to pass as daybreak arose, that Samuel called to Saul on the roof of the house, saying, Up, that I may send thee away. And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad. 27 And as they were going down to the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul, Bid the servant pass on before us, (and he passed on,) but stand thou still a while, that I may show thee the word of Grod. CHAPTER X. Samueltook a vial of oil, and poured it on his head and kissed him, and said, Is it not that the LORD hath anointed thee to be captain over his inheritance? 2 When thou art departed from me to-day, then thou shalt find two men by Rachel's sepulchre in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say to thee, The asses which thou went- est to seek are found; and lo, thy father hath left the care of the asses, and feareth for you, saying, What shall I do for my son? 3 Then shalt thou go on forward from thence and beyond ; and thou shalt come to the Oak of Tabor, and there shall meet thee three men -going up to Grod to Bethel, one carrying three kids, and another carrying three circular loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine. 4 And they will salute thee, and give thee two loaves of bread; which thou shalt receive from their hands. 5 After that thou shalt come to the Gribeah [or Hill] of God, where is the garrison of the Philistines. And it shall come to pass, when thou art come thither to the city, that thou wilt meet a band of prophets coming down from the High Place with a psaltery, and a timbrel, and a pipe, and a harp, be- fore them ; and they will prophesy ; 6 And the spirit of the LORD will come upon thee, and thou wilt prophe- sy with them, and wilt be turned into another man. 7 And let it be, when these signs are come to thee, that thou do as thy hand shall find ; for Grod is with thee. CHAPTER X. I. SAMUEL. 61 8 And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal ; and behold I will come down to thee to offer up burnt offer- ings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace offerings. Seven days shalt thou tar- ry, till I come to thee, and shew thee what thou shalt do. 9 And it was so, that when he turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart ; and all those signs came to pass that day. 17 And Samuel called the people to- gether unto the LORD to Mizpeh. 18 And he said to the children of Israel, Thus saith the internal the God of Israel, I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and delivered you out of the 10 And when they came thither to Gibeah, behold, a band of prophets I hand of the Egyptians, and out of the had hand of all the kingdoms of them that oppressed you. 19 And ye have this day rejected your God, who himself saved you out met him. And the came upon him, and among them. 11 And it came to pass, when all that knew him beforetinie saw that, behold, he prophesied with the proph- 1 ets, then the people said to one j of all your evils and your troubles and ye said to him, Nay, but set a another, What is this that is come unto the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets ? 12 And one of the same place an- swered and said, But who is their father? Therefore it became a pro- verb, Is Saul among the prophets ? 13 And when he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the High Place. 14 And Saul's uncle said to him and to his servant, Whither went ye? And he said, To seek the asses ; and when we saw that they were no where we came to Samuel. 15 And Saul's uncle said, Tell me, I pray thee, what Samuel said to you. 16 And Saul said to his uncle, He told us plainly that the asses were found. But of the matter of the kingdom he told him not what Sam- uel had said. spirit of God | king over us. Now therefore present he prophesied | yourselves before the LORD by your tribes, and by your thousands. 20 And when Samuel had caused all the tribes of Israel to come near, the trib ; of Benjamin was taken. 21 When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their fami- lies, the family of Matri was taken, and Saul the son of Kish was taken : and when they sought him he could not be found. 22 Therefore they inquired of the LORD further, Hath the man yet come thither? And the LORD an- swered, Behold, he hath hidden him- self among the baggage. 23 And they ran and fetched him. thence. And when he presented him- self among the people he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward. 24 And Samuel said to all the peo- ple, See ye him whom the LORD hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people? And all the people shouted and said, May the king live. 25 Then Samuel told the people the manner of the Kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the 62 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XI . LORD. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house. 26 And Saul also went home to Gibeah ; and there went with him a band of men, whose hearts God had touched. 27 But the sons of Belial said, How shall this man save us? And they despised him, and brought him no present. But he was as though he heard not. CHAPTER XL HTHEN Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped against Jabesh in Gilead. And all the men of Ja- besh said to Nahash, Make a cove- nant with us, and we will serve thee. 2 And Nahash the Ammonite an- swered them, On this condition will I make a covenant with you, that I may thrust out all your right eyes, and that I lay it for a reproach upon all Israel. 3 And the elders of Jabesh said to him, Give us seven days respite, that we may send messengers to all the boundaries of Israel; and then, if there be no man to save us, we will come to thee. 4 Then came the messengers to Gribeah of Saul, and told the tidings in the ears of the people. And all the people lifted up their voices, and wept. 5 And behold, Saul was coming af- ter the herd out of the field. And Saul said, What aileth the people that they weep ? And they told him the tidings of the men of Jabesh. 6 And the spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his anger was kindled greatly. 7 And he took a yoke of oxen, and hewed them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the boundaries of Is- rael by the hands of messengers, say- ing, Whosoever cometh not forth af- ter Saul and Samuel, so shall it be done to his oxen. And the fear of the LORD fell on the people, and they came out as one man. 8 And when he mustered them in Bezek, the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. 9 And they said to the messengers that came, Thus shall ye say to the men of Jabesh in Gilead, To-mor- row when the sun is hot, ye shall have help. And the messengers came and shewed it to the men of Jabesh. And they were glad. 10 Therefore the men of Jabesh said, To-morrow we will come out to you, and ye shall do with us all that is good in your eyes. 11 And it was so on the morrow, that Saul put the people in three com- panies. And they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch, and slew the Ammonites un- til the heat of the day. And it came to pass that they which remained were scattered, so that two of them were not left together. 12 And the people said to Samuel, Who is he that said, Shall Saul reign over us ? Bring the men that we may put them to death. 13 And Saul said, There shall not a man be put to death this day ; for to-day the LORD hath wrought salva- tion in Israel. 14 Then said Samuel to the people, Come, and let us go toGilgal, and re- new the kingdom there. 15 And all the people went to Gil- gal : and there they made Saul king before the LORD in Gilgal ; and there CHAPTER XII. I. SAMUEL. 63 they sacrificed sacrifices of peace offer- ings before the LORD. And there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly. CHAPTER XII. AND Samuel said to Israel, Behold, I have hearkened to your voice in all that ye said to me, and have made a king over you. 2 And now, behold, the king walketh before you. And I atn old and grey- headed ; and behold, my sons are with you. And I have walked be- fore you from my childhood unto this day. 3 Behold, here I am. Witness against me before the LORD and be- fore his anointed. Whose ox have I taken ? or whose ass have I taken ? or whom have I defrauded? whom have I oppressed ? or from whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith ? and I will restore it you. 4 And they said, Thou hast not de- frauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken aught from any man's hand. 5 And he said to them, the LORD is witness against you, and his anoint- ed is witness this day, that ye have not found aught in my hand. And they answered, He is witness. 6 And Samuel said to the people, It is the LORD that made Moses and Aaron, and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. 7 Now therefore stand still, that I may reason with you before the LORD of all the righteous acts of the LORD which he did to you and to your fathers. 8 When Jacob was come into Egypt, and your fathers cried to the LORD, then the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and made them dwell ID this place. 9 And when they forgot the LORD their God, he sold them into the hand of Sisera, captain of the army at Hazor, and into the hand of the Philis- tines, and into the hand of the king ofMoab; and they fought against them. 10 And they cried to the LORD, and said, We have sinned, because we have forsaken the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth. But now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve thee. 11 And the LORD sent Jerubbaal, and the Danite [or Samson], and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and ye dwelled safe. 12 And when ye saw that Nahash the king of the Children of Ammon came against you, ye said to me, Nay; but a king shall reign over us ; when the LORD your God was your king. 13 Now therefore, behold the king whom ye have chosen, and whom you asked for ! And behold, the LORD hath set a king over you. 14 If ye will fear the LORD, and will serve him, and will obey his voice, and not rebel against the commands of the LORD, then shall both ye, and also the king that reigneth over you, continue following the LORD your God. 15 But if ye will not obey the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commands of the LORD, then will the hand of the LORD be against you, as it was against your fathers. 16 Now therefore stand and see this great thing, which' the LORD will do before your eyes. 64 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XIII. 17 Is it not wheat harvest to-day ? I will call to the LORD, and he will send thunder and rain ; that you may perceive and see that your wicked- ness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking for yourselves a king. 18 So Samuel called to the LORD ; and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day. And all the people great- ly feared the LORD and Samuel. 19 And all the people said to Sam- uel, Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not, For we have added to all our sins evil to ask for ourselves a king. 20 And Samuel said to the people, Fear not. Ye have done all this wickedness ; yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart. 21 And turn ye not aside after vain things, which cannot profit nor de- liver ; for they are vain. 22 For the LORD will not forsake his people for his great name's sake ; because it hath pleased the LORD to make you his people. 23 Moreover as for me, it were wrong that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you ; but I will teach you the good and the right way. 24 Only fear the LORD, and serve him in truth with all your heart : for consider how great things he hath done for you. 25 But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye will be cut off, both ye and your king. CHAPTER XIII. QAUL was [fifty] years old when he began to reign ; and when he had reigned two years over Israel, 2 Saul chose him three thousand men of Israel ; whereof two thou- sand were with Saul inMichmash and in the hill country of Beth-el, and a thousand were with Jonathan at Gribeah of Benjamin. And the rest of the people he sent every man to his tent. 3 And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was at Gribeah, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the trumpet through all the land, saying, Let those on the fur- ther side [of the Jordan] hear. 4 And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten the garrison of the Philis- tines, and that Israel also was had in abomination with the Philistines. And the people were called together after Saul to Grilgal. 5 And the Philistines gathered them- selves together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the sea shore in multitude. And they came up, and pitched in Michmash, eastward from Beth-aven. 6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in a difficulty, (for the peo- ple were distressed,) then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in high towers, and in pits. 7 But those from the further side crossed over the Jordan to the land of Grad and Grilead. As for Saul, he was yet in Grilgal, and all the peo- ple followed him trembling. 8 And he tarried seven days, accord- ing to the set time that Samuel had appointed. But Samuel came not to Grilgal ; and the people were being scattered from him. CHAPTER XIV. I. SAMUEL. 65 9 And Saul said, Bring hither a burnt-offering to me, and peace off- erings. And he offered up the burnt offering. 10 And it came to pass, that as soon as he had made an end of offering up the burnt offering, behold, Samuel came ; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might bless him. 11 And Samuel said, What hast thou done ? And Saul said, Because I saw that the people were being scat- tered from me, and that thou earnest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines were gathering themselves together at Michmasch : - 12 Therefore said I, the Philistines will come down now upon me to Gil- gal, and I have not entreated the face of the LORD ; I forced myself there- fore, and offered up the burnt offering. 13 And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly. Thou hast not kept the command of the LORD thy God, which he commanded thee : for now would the LORD have established they kingdom upon Israel for ever. 14 But now thy kingdom shall not continue. The LORD hath sought for himself a man after his own heart; and the LORD hath commanded him to be a captain over his people, be- cause thou hast not kept what the LORD commanded thee. j but the Philistines encamped in Mich- | mash. 17 And the plunderers came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies. One company turned to the way that leadeth to Ophrah, unto j the land of Shual : 18 And another company turned the \vay to Beth-horon ; and another com- pany turned to the way of the boun- I dary that looketh to the valley of Zeboim toward the desert. 19 Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel ; for the Philistines said, Lest the He- brews make them swords* or spears. 20 But all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his plowshare, and his coulter, and his axe, and his mattock. 21 (But there was a file for the edg- i es of the mattocks, and the coulters, and the three-pronged forks, and the i axes, and to point the goads.) | 22 So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan ; but with Saul and Jona- than his son was there found. 23 And the garrison of the Philis- | tines went out to the passage at Mich- mash. 15 And Saul* arose, and got him up from Gilgal to Gibeah of Benja- min. And Saul mustered the peo- ple that were found with him, about six hundred men. 16 And Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that were found with them, abode in Gibeah of Benjamin ; ^Amended for Samuel. CHAPTER XIV. NOW it came to pass upon a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison, that is on the other side. But he told not his father. 2 And Saul tarried in the uttermost part of Gibeah under [the rock of] Rimmon which is in Migron. And I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XIV. the people that were with him were about six hundred men ; 3 And Ahiah, the son of Ahitub, I- chabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the LORD'S priest in Shiloh, wearing an Ephod [or priestly robe]. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone. 4 And between the passages, by which Jonathan sought to pass over to the Philistines' garrison, there was a crag of rock on the one side, and a crag of rock on the other side. And the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh. 5 The one crag was situate north- ward over against Michmash, and the other southward over against Gibeah. 6 And Jonathan said to the young man that bare his armour, Come, and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised ; it may be that the LORD will work for us. For there is no hinderance to the LORD to save by many or by few. 7 And his armour-bearer said to him, Do all that is in thy heart. Turn thee ; behold, I am with thee according to thy heart. 8 Then said Jonathan, Behold, we will pass over to the men, and we will discover ourselves to them. 9 If they say thus to us, Tarry un- til we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up to them. 10 But if they say thus, Come up to us ; then we will go up. For the LORD hath delivered them into our hand ; and this shall be the sign to us. 11 And both of them discovered themselves to the garrison of the Philistines ; and the Philistines said, Behold, the Hebrews come forth out | of the holes were they had hid them- selves. 12 And the men of the garrison answered Jonathan and his armour- bearer, and said, Come up to us, and we will shew you a thing. And Jonathan said to his armour-bearer, Come up after me ; for the LORD hath delivered them into the hand of Is- rael. 13 And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armour-bearer after him; and they fell before Jonathan ; and his armour- bearer slew after him. 14 And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armour-bearer made, was about twenty men, within as it were the half of a field, which a yoke of oxen might plow. 15 And there was trembling in the camp, in the field, and among all the people : the garrison, and the plun- derers, they also trembled, and the earth quaked ; so it was a trembling before G-od. 16 And the watchmen of Saul in Gribeah of Benjamin looked, and be- hold, the crowd melted away, and they went and were scattered. 17 Then said Saul to the people that were with him, Muster now, and see who is gone from us. And when they had mustered, behold, Jonathan and bis armour-bearer were not there. 18 And Saul said to Ahiah, Bring hither the Ark of Grod. For the Ark of Grod was at that time with the children of Israel. 19 And it came to pass, while Saul talked to the priest, that the tumult that was in the camp of the Philis- tines went on and increased. 20 And Saul said to the priest, Withdraw thy hand. And Saul and CHAPTER XIV. I. SAMUEL. 67 all the people that were with him were called together, and they came to the battle. And behold, every man's sword was against his fellow, in very great confusion. 21 Moreover the Hebrews that were with the Philistines before that time, who went up with them into the camp from round about, even they also turned to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and Jonathan. 22 Likewise all the men of Israel which had hid themselves in the hill j country of Ephraim, when they heard | that the Philistines fled, even they ! also followed hard after them in the battle. 23 So the LORD saved Israel that day. But the battle passed over to Beth-aven. 24 And the men of Israel were dis- tressed that day ; for Saul had ad- jured the people, saying, Cursed be the man that eateth any food until j evening, and I shall have been aveng- ed on mine enemies. So none of the people tasted any food. 25 And all they of the land came to wood ; and there was honey upon the face of the field. 26 And when the people were come into the wood, behold, the honey flowed ; but no man put his hand to his mouth ; for the people feared the oath. 27 But Jonathan had not heard when his father charged the people with the oath. Therefore he put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and dipped it in a honey- comb, and put his hand to his mouth ; and his eyes were enlightened. 28 Then answered one of the peo- ple and said, Thy father strictly charged the people with an oath, say- ! ing, Cursed be the man that eateth i any food this day. And the people I were faint. 29 Then said Jonathan, My father hath troubled the land. See, I pray you, how mine eyes have been en- lightened, because I tasted a little of this honey. 30 How much more, if haply the people had eaten freely to-day of the spoil of their enemies which they found ? For had there not been now a much greater slaughter among the Philistines ? 31 And they smote the Philistines that day from Michrnash to Ajalon. And the people were very faint. 32 And the people rushed upon the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground. And the people did eat with the blood. 33 And they told Saul, saying, Be- hold, the people sin against the LORD in that they eat with the blood. And he said, Ye have dealt treacherously. Roll a great stone unto me this day. 34 And Saul said, Scatter your- selves among the people, and say to them, Bring hither to me every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slay them here, and eat ; and sin not against the LORD in eating with the blood. And all the people brought every man his ox with him that night, and slew them there. 35 And Saul built an altar unto the LORD. The same was the first altar that he built unto the LORD. 36 And Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night and plunder them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them. And they said, Do whatsoever is good in thine eyes. Then said the priest, Let us draw near hither unto God. 68 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XV. 37 And Saul asked counsel of G-od, Shall I go down after the Philistines? Wilt thou deliver them into the hand of Israel? Bat He answered him not that day. 38 And Saul said, Draw near hith- er, all ye pillars of the people , and know and see wherein this sin hath been this day. 39 For, as the LORD the saviour of Israel liveth, though it be in Jona- than my son, he shall surely die. But there was not a man among all, the people that answered him. 40 Then said he to all Israel, Be ye on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side. Anl the people said to Saul, Do what seemeth good unto thee. 41 Then Saul said to the LORD, O G-oi of Israel, let [the lot] declare the truth. And Saul and Jonathan were taken : but the people escaped. 42 And Saul said, Cast [lots] be- tween me and Jonathan my son. And Jonathan was taken. 43 Then said Saul to Jonathan, Tell me what thou hast done. And Jonathan told him, and said, I did but taste a little honey with the end of the staff that was in my hand, and lo, I must die. 44 And Saul answered, Gk>d do so and more also ; for thou shalt surely die, Jonathan. 45 And the people said to Saul, Shall Jonathan die, who hath wrought this great salvation in Israel ? It were wrong; as the LORD liveth, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground. For he had wrought with Grod this day. So the people rescued Jonathan, that he died 'not. 46 Then Saul went up from follow- ing the Philistines : and the Philis- tines went to their own place. 47 So Saul took the kingdom over Israel, and fought against all his enemies on every side against Moab, and against the Children of Aramon, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines ; and whither- soever he turned himself, he punish- ed them. 48 And he did mighty acts, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that plundered them. 49 Now tha sons of Saul were Jona- than, and Ishui, [or Ish-baal] and Melchi-shua. And the names of his two daughters were these; the name of the first-born Merab, and the name of the younger Michal. 50 And the name of Saul's wife was Abinoam, the daughter of Ahi- maaz; and the name of the captain of the host was Abner, the son of Ner, Saul's uncle. And Kish the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Ab- ner, were sons of Abiel. 51 And the war was sore against the Philistines all the days of Saul, and when Saul saw any mighty man, or any son of valour, he took him to him- self. CHAPTER XV. gAMUEL also said to Saul, The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over his people, over Israel ; now therefore hearken thou to the voice of the words of the LORD. 2 Thus saith the LORD of hosts ; I took note of what Amalok did to Israel, what he laid upon him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. 3 Now go and smite the Amalekites, CHAPTER XV. I. SAMUEL. and utterly destroy all that they have, and be not tender to them. 4 And Saul called to the people, and mustered them in Telairn, two made a circuit, and passed over [the Jordan], and hath gone down to Gilgal/ 13 And Samuel came to Saul. And hundred thousand men on foot, and Saul said to him, Blessed be thou of ten thousand men of Judah. 5 And Saul came to a city of Amalek, anl laid wait in the valley. 6 And Saul said to the Kenites, Go, depart, get you down from among the LORD. I have performed the command of the LORD. 14 And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen saiu, They have the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with which I hear? them. For ye shewed kindness to all 15 And Saul the children of Israel, when they | brought them from the Amalekites. came up out of Lower Egypt. So the j For the people spared the best of the from among the I sheep and of the oxen, for a sacrifice unto the LORD thy God ; and the rest we have utterly destroyed. 16 Then Samuel said to Saul, Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD Kenites departed Amalekites. 7 And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur [or Pelusium], that is over against Egypt. hath said to me this night. And he 8 And he took Agag the king of \ said to him, Say on. the Amalekites alive, and destroyed the people with the edge of the sword. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and those of the second 17 And Samuel said, Though thou wast little in thine own sight, art thou not the head of the tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over Israel ? 18 And the LORD sent thee on a sort, and the lambs, and all that was ! journey, and said, Go and utterly good, and were not willing utterly to i destroy the sinners the Amalekites, destroy them. But every thing that j and fight against them until they be was vile and refuse, that they de- \ consumed. 19 Wherefore then didst thou not obey the voice of the LORD, but didst rush upon the spoil, and didst evil in the eyes of the LORD. 20 And Saul said to Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, performed my commands. And it , and have gone in the way which the grieved Samuel ; and he cried to the ( LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took of the spoil, stroyed utterly. 10 Then came the word of the LORD to Samuel, saying, 11 It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king ; for he is turned back from following me, and hath not LORD all night. 12 And when Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning, it was told Samuel, saying, Saul came to j sheep and oxen, Carmel, himself the chief of the and behold, he set up for | things doomed to be destroyed, to i way-mark, and he hath sacrifice to the LORD thy God in Gilgal. 70 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XVI. 22 And Samuel said, Hath the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obedience to the voice of the LORD ? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken, than the fat of rams. 23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as idolatry and Teraphim [or Images]. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he also will reject thee from being king. 24 And Saul said to Samuel, I have sinned. For I have transgressed the command of the LORD, and thy words ; because I feared the people, and obeyed their voice. 25 Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the LORD. 26 And Samuel said to Saul, I will not return with thee. For thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD will reject thee from being king over Israel. 27 And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold on the skirt of his mantle, and it rent. 28 And Samuel said to him, The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is bet- ter than thou. 29 And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent. For he is not a man, that he should repent. 30 Then he said, I have sinned. Yet honour me now, I pray thee, be- fore the elders of my people, and be- fore Israel, and return with me, that I may worship the LORD thy Grod. 31 So Samuel returned after Saul ; and Saul worshipped the LORD. 32 Then said Samuel, Bring ye hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites. And Agag came to him with joy. And Agag said, Surely the bitterness of death is removed. 33 But Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Grilgal. 34 Then Samuel went to Ramah ; and Saul went up to his house in Gribeah of Saul. 35 And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death ; for Samuel was sorry about Saul. CHAPTER XVI. the LORD said to Samuel, How long wilt thou be sorry about Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel ? Fill thy horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to I Jesse the Beth-lehemite; for I have ' provided me a king among his sons. 2 And Samuel did that which the LORD spake ; and he came to Beth- lehem. And the elders of the town trembled at meeting him, and said, Comest thou peaceably? 3 And he said, Peaceably. I am | come to sacrifice unto the LORD. Sanctify yourselves, and come with me to sacrifice. And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice. 4 And it came to pass, when they were come, that he saw Eliab, and said, Surely the anointed of the LORD is before him. 5 But the LORD said to Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature : because I have refused him. For it is not what man seeth. For man looketh on the eyes, but the LORD looketh on the heart. CHAPTER XVII. I. SAMUEL. 71 6 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen this one. 7 Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the LORD chosen this. 8 Again, Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, the LORD hath not chosen these. 9 And Samuel said to Jesse, Are there all the young men? And he j said, There remaineth yet the young- j est, and behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, Send and j fetch him. For we will not go away j till he come hither. 10 And he sent and brought him j in. Now he was red-haired, and | withal of beautiful eyes, and goodly \ to look at. And the LORD said, Arise, anoint him ; for this is he. 11 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. And the spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah. 12 But the spirit of the LORD de- parted from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him. 13 And Saul's servants said to him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee. 14 Let our lord now command thy servants, who are before thee, to seek out a man who is a skillful player on the harp. And it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from Grod is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou wilt be well. 15 And Saul said to his servants, Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me. 16 Then answered one of the young men and said, Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, that is skillful in playing, and a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and prudent in matters, and a comely person, and the LORD is with him. 17 Therefore Saul sent messengers to Jesse, and said, Send me David thy son, who is with the sheep. 18 And Jesse took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid of the goats, and sent them by the hand of David his son to Saul. 19 And David came to Saul, and stood before him. And he loved him greatly. And he became his armour bearer. 20 And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me ; for he hath found favour in my sight. 21 And it came to pass, when the spirit from Grod was upon Saul, that David took a h*rp, and played with his hand. So spirit came on Saul, and he was well, and the evil spirit departed from him. CHAPTER XVII. MOW THE PHILISTINES gathered closely together their armies to battle, and were gathered together atSochoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Sochoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched in the valley of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on a mount on the one side, and Israel stood on a mount on the other side. 72 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XVII. se went and followed Saul to the bat- tle. three And there was a low ground between them. 4 And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 And he had a helmet of copper upon his head, and he was clothed with a coat of mail with scales ; and the weight of the coat of mail was j morning and evening, and presented five thousand Shekels [or one hundred j himselfs forty days. and fifty pounds] of copper. | 16 And Jesse said to David his son, 6 And he had greaves of copper j Take now for thy brethren an Ephah upon his legs, and a javelin of copper | [or Bushel] of this parched corn, and And the names of his sons that went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, and next unto him, Abinadab, and the third Sham- mah. 14 And David was the youngest. And the three eldest followed Saul* 15 And the Philistine drew near these ten loaves, and run to the camp to thy brethren. 17 And carry these ten slices of cheese to the captain of their thou- between his shoulders. 7 And the staff of his spear was like a weaver's beam ; and his spear's head was of six hundred Shekels of iron. And one bearing a shield went before him. 8 And he stood and called to the ranks of Israel, and said to them, I men of Israel, were in the valley of Why are ye come out to set your i Elah, fighting with the Philistines, battle in array ? Am I not a Philis- j 19 And David rose up early in the tine, and ye servants to Saul ? Choose | morning, and left the sheep with a ye a man for yourselves, and let him j keeper, and took and went, as Jesse come down to me. ! had commanded him. And he came and look after the welfare of thy brethren, and fetch their pledge. 18 Now Saul, and they, and all the 9 If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants. But if him, and kill him, to the barrier of wagons as the host was going forth to form ranks ; and our servants, and serve us. I prevail against | they shouted for the battle, then shall ye be j 20 For Israel and the Philistines had put themselves in array, rank 10 And the Philistine said, I defy against rank. the army of Israel this day. Give me a man, that we may fight together. 11 And Saul and all Israel heard 21 And David left behind his bag- gage in the hand of the keeper of the baggage, and ran into the ranks, and those words of the Philistine, and they | saluted his brethren, were dismayed, and greatly afraid. ! 22 And as he came and talked with 12 Now David was the son of that | them, behold there came up the chain- Ephrathite of Beth-leheni in Judah, whose name was Jesse. And he had eight sons : and the man went among men for an old man in the days of Saul. 13 And the three eldest sons of Jes- pion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the ranks of the Philistines, and spake according to the same words. And David heard them. 23 And all the men of Israel, when CHAPTER XVII. I. SAMUEL. 78 they saw the man, fled from him, and were afraid. 24 And the men of Israel said, Have ye seen this man that is come up? Surely to defy Israel is he come up. And it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house free in Israel. 25 And David spake to the men that stood by him, saying, What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the reproach from Israel ? For who is this Philistine, that he should defy the army of the living God ? 26 And the people answered him after this manner, saying, So shall it be done to the man that killeth him. And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake to the men. 27 And Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why comest thou down hither? And with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the desert? I know thy pride, and the naughti- ness of thy heart. For thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle. 28 And David said, What have I now done? Is not this a cause? 29 And he turned away from him toward another, and spake after the same manner. And the people answered him again after the former manner. 30 And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul. And he sent for him. 31 And David said to Saul, Let no man's heart fail because of him ; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine. 32 And Saul said to David, Thou art not able to go against this Philis- tine to fight with him. For thou art but a lad, and he a man of war from his youth. 33 And David said to Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and with him a bear,. I and he took a lamb out of his flock: I 34 And I went out after him, and I smote him, and delivered it out of his I mouth. And when he rose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. ! 35 Thy servant slew both the lioa | and the bear. And this Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the army of the living God. 36 David said moreover, The LORD who delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said to David, Go, and the LORD be with thee. 37 And Saul clothed David with his own garments, and he put a helmet of copper upon his head ; also he j clothed him with a coat of mail. | 38 And David girded his sword up- j on his garments, and he endeavoured I to go: for he had not tried. And j David said to Saul, I cannot go with I these : for I have not tried. And j David put them off him. I 39 And he took his staff in his j hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in a shepherd's bag which he had, and in a scrip ; and his sling was in his I hand. And he drew near the Philis- I tines. I 40 And the Philistine came on and drew near to David ; and the man that bare the shield went before him. 74 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XVIII. 41 And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he despised him. For he was but a youth, and red-haired, with a beautiful counte- nance. 42 And the Philistine said to David, Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves? And the Philistine | cursed David by his gods. 43 And the Philistine said to David, Come to me, and I will give thy flesh to the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field. 44 Then said David to the Philis- tine, Thou comest to me with a sword, i and with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come tothee in the name of the ; LOBD of hosts, the God of the army | of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 45 This day will the LORD deliver ; thee into my hand ; and I will i smite thee, and take thy head from j thee ; and I will give the carcass of the hosts of the Philistines this day I to the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth ; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 46 And all this assembly shall know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear. For the battle is the LORD'S, and he will give you into our hands. 47 And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David has- tened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 48 And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk in- to his forehead. And he fell upon his face to the earth. 49 And David ran, and stood upon the Philistines, and took his sword, and drew it out of its sheath, and slew him, and cut off his head there- with. And when the Philistines saw their warrior was dead, they fled. 50 So David prevailed over the Philistine wih a sling and with a stone. And there was no sword in David's hand. 51 And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pur- sued the Philistines, until they came to the valley, and to the gates of Ek- ron. And the wounded of the Philis- tines fell down by the way to Shaa- rini, even to G-ath, and to Ekron. 52 And the children of Israel re- turned from their chasing after the Philistines, and they plundered their camp. 53 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the captain of the host, Ab- ner, whose son is this youth ? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, king, I do not know. 54 And the king said, Inquire thou whose son the stripling is. 55 And as David returned from smiting the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. 5*5 And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man ? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite. CHAPTER XVIII. A ND it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jona- than loved him as his own soul. 2 And Saul took him that day, and CHAPTER XVIII. I. SAMUEL. 75 would let him go no more home to his father's house. 3 Then Jonathan and David made j a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul. 4 And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, even | to his sword, and to his bow, and to his belt. 5 And David went out whitersoever ! Saul sent him. He behaved himself wisely ; and Saul set him over the men of war ; and he was accepted in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants. 6 And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from smit ing the Philistine, that the women | came out of all the cities of Israel, I singing and dancing, to meet Saul, ! with timbrels, with joy, and with ; musical triangles. 7 And the women sang in answers as they played, and said, Saul hath j slain his thousands, and David his ten j thousands. 8 And Saul was very wroth, and that saying displeased him; and he ! said, They have given to David ten thousands, and to me they have given but thousands. And what can he | have more but the kingdom? 9 And Saul had an eye on David from that day and forward. 10 And it came to pass on the rnor- 1 row, that the evil spirit from Grod j came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house. And David | played on the harp with his hand, as at other times. And there was a spear in Saul's hand. 11 And Saul cast the spear, for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice. 12 And Saul was afraid of the presence of David, because the LORD was with him, and was departed from Saul. 13 Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his captain over a thousand. And he went out and came in before the people. 14 And David behaved himself wise- ly in all his ways : and the LORD was with him. 15 Therefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was in dread of his presence. 16 But all Israel and Judah loved David because he went out and came in before them. 17 And Saul said to David, Behold my eldest daughter Merab, her will I give thee to wife. Only be thou valiant for me, and fight thb LORD'S battles. For Saul said, Let not my hand be upon him, but let the hand of the Philistines be upon him. 18 And David said to Saul, Who am I ? And what is my life, or my father's family in Israel, that I should be son in law to the king ? 19 But it came to pass at the time when Merab Saul's daughter should have been given to David, that she was given to Adriel the Meholathite to wife. 20 And Saul's daughter Michal loved David. And they told Saul, and the thing pleased him. 21 Therefore Saul said to David, Thou shalt this day be my son in law in one of the twain. And Saul gave him Michal his daughter to wife . 22 And Saul saw and knew that the LORD was with David, and that Mi- chal Saul's daughter loved him. 76 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XIX . 23 And Saul was yet the more afraid of David ; and Saul became David's enemy all his days. 24 Then the princes of the Philis- tines went forth [to battle] ; and it came to pass, whenever they went forth, that David behaved himself more wisely than all Saul's servants ; so that his name was much valued. CHAPTER XIX. Saul spake to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should kill David. 2 But Jonathan Saul's son delight- ed much in David. And Jonathan told David, saying, Saul my father seeketh to kill thee. Now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself in the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide thyself. 3 And I will speak with my father of thee : and what I see, that I will tell thee. 4 And Jonathan spake good of David unto Saul his father, and said to him, Let not the king sin against his servant David ; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his works toward thee have been very good. 5 For he did put his life in his hand, and smote the Philistine : and the LORD wrought a great salvation for all Israel. Thou sawest it, and didst rejoice. Wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause? 6 And Saul harkened to the voice of Jonathan. And Saul sware, As the LORD liveth, he shall not be slain 7 And Jonathan called David ; and Jonathan showed him all these things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, | and he was in his presence, as in times | past. ; 8 And there was war again. And j David went out, and fought with the I Philistines, and smote them with a I great slaughter ; and they fled from before him. I 9 And the evil spirit from the LORD | was upon Saul, as he sat in his house I with his spear in his hand. 10 And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the spear ; but he slipped away out of Saul's pres- i ence. And he smote the spear into | the wall. And David fled, and es- | caped that night. I 11 Saul also sent messengers to ! David's house to watch him, and to slay him in the morning. And Mi- i chal David's wife told him, saying, If thou save not thy life to-night, to- morrow thou wilt be slain. j 12 So Michal let David down i through a window ; and he went, and fled, and escaped. 13 And Michal took the Teraph [or image], and laid it in the bed, and ! put a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster, and covered it with a cloth. 14 And when Saul sent messengers to David, she said, He is sick. 15 And Saul sent the messengers to \ see David, saying, Bring him up to I me in the bed, that I may slay him. 16 And when the messengers were j come in, behold, there was the Teraph in the bed, with a pillow of goats' hair for his bolster. 17 And Saul said to Michal, Why hast thou deceived me so, and sent away mine enemy, that he escaped ? And Michal answered Saul, He said to me, Let me go ; why should I kill thee? CHAPTER XX. I. SAMUEL. 77 18 So David fled, and escaped, and came to Samuel to Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth. 19 And it was told Saul, saying, Behold, David is in Naioth at Ramah. 20 And Saul sent messengers to take David. And when they ssiw the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as appointed over them, the spirit of Grod was upon Saul's messen- gers, and they also prophesied. 21 And when it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. And Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they also prophesied. 22 Then he went also himself to Ramah, and came to a great well that is in Sechu. And he asked, and said, Where are Samuel and David? And one said, Behold, they are in Naioth in Ramah ; and the spirit of G-od was upon him also, and he went on his journey, and prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah. 23 And he stripped off his clothes also, and prophesied before Samuel in like manner, and lay down = 11 that day and all that night. Therefore they say, Is Saul also among the prophets? CHAPTER XX. David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said be- fore Jonathan, What have I done? What is mine iniquity? And what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life ? 2 And he said to him, It were wrong ; thou shalt not die. Behold, my father doeth nothing either great or small, but that he revealeth it to mine ear. And why should iny father hide this thing from me? It will not be so. 3 And David sware moreover and said, Thy father certainly knoweth that I have found grace in thine eyes; and he saith, Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved ; but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death. 4 Then said Jonathan to David, Whatsoever thou askest, I will even do it for thee. 5 And David said to Jonathan, Be- hold, to-morrow is new moon, and I should not fail to sit with the king at meat. But let me go, that I may hide myself in the field until the third day at evening. 6 If thy father at all miss me, then say, David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Beth-lehem his city. For there is a yearly sacri- fice there for all the family. 7 If he say thus, It is well ; thy servant will have peace. But if he be very wroth, then be sure that evil is determined by him. 8 Therefore thou shalt deal kindly with thy servant : for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of Grod with thee. Notwithstanding, if there be in me iniquity, slay me thy- self ; for why now shouldest thou bring me to thy father ? 9 And Jonathan said, It were wrong toward thee, if I should know certain- ly that evil is determined by my father to come upon thee, and I do not tell it thee? 10 Then said David to Jonathan, Who shall tell me ? Or what if thy father answer thee roughly ? 11 And Jonathan said to David, 78 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XX. Come, and let us go out in the field. And they went out both of them into the field. 12 And Jonathan said to David, May the LORD the G-od of Israel, when I have searched out from my father about this time to-morrow, or the third day, and behold, there be good toward David, and then send not to thee, and reveal it to thine ear; 13 May the LORD do so and much more to Jonathan. And if it please my father to do thee evil, I will also reveal it to thine ear, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace. And may the LORD be with thee, as he hath been with my father. 14 And thou shalt not only while yet I live show me the kindness of God ; but also thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever. 15 So Jonathan made a covenant with David. 16 And Jonathan caused David to swear again, because he loved him. For he loved him as he loved his own soul. 17 Then Jonathan said to him, To- morrow is new moon ; and thou wilt be missed, because thy seat will be empty. 18 And when thou hast stayed to the third day, then thou shalt go down quickly, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself on the day of the deed, and shalt remain by the stone Ezel. 19 And I will shoot three arrows on the side thereof, as though I shot at a mark. 20 And behold, I will send a lad, [saying,] G-o, find out the arrows. If I expressly say to the lad, Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee, take , him, and come ; for there is peace to thee, and no hurt ; as the LORD | liveth. 21 But if I say thus to the young man, Behold, the arrows are beyond I thee; go, for the LORD hath sent thee away. 22 And as to the matter which I i and thou have spoken of, behold, the LORD be between me and thee for ever. 23 So David hid himself in the field. i And when the new moon was come, the king sat him down to meat, to : eat. j 24 And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, upon a seat by the wall ; and Jonathan stood ; and Ab- ner sat by Saul's side, and David's I place was empty. | 25 Nevertheless Saul spake not any- thing that day ; for he thought, I Something hath befallen him, he is not clean : surely he is not clean. 26 And it came to pass on the mor- row, which was the second newmoon I day, that David's place was empty. | And Saul said to Jonathan his son, Wherefore cometh not the son of Jes- se to meat, neither yesterday, nor to- day? 27 And Jonathan answered Saul, David earnestly asked leave of me to i go to Beth-lehem. I 28 And he said, Let me go, I pray I thee : for our family hath a sacrifice in the city ; and my brother, he hath commanded me to be there. And now, if I have found favour in thine. eyes, let me slip away, I pray thee, and see my brethren. Therefore he cometh not to the king's table. 29 Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said to him, Thou son of perverse rebellion, do not I know thou hast chosen the son CHAPTER XXI. I. SAMUEL. 79 of Jesse to thine own shame, and to the shame of thy father's house. 30 For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the ground, thou and thy kingdom will not be established. Therefore now send and fetch him to me, for he is doomed to die. 31 And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said to him, Where- fore shall he be slain ? What has he done ? 32 And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him. Thereby Jonathan knew that it was determined by his father to slay David. 33 So Jonathan arose from the ta- ble in fierce anger, and did eat no meat the second newrnoon day, For he was grieved for David, because his father had put him to shame. 34 And it came to pass in the morn- ing that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed unto David, and a little lad with him. 35 And he said to his lad, Run, find out now the arrows which I shoot. And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow to pass over him. 36 And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jona- than had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said, Is not the arrow be- yond thee? 37 And Jonathan cried after the lad, Make speed, haste, stay not. And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master. 38 But the lad knew not any thing; only Jonathan and David knew the matter. 39 And Jonathan gave his weapons to the lad that was with him, and said to him, Gro, carry them to the city. 40 As soon as the lad was gone, David arose from the south side, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed himself three times. And they kissed one another and wept one with another, until David exceeded. 41 And Jonathan said to David, G-o in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the Eternal saying, Grod be between me and thee, and my children and thy children for ever. And he arose and departed. And Jonathan went into the city. CHAPTER XXI. came David to Nob to Ahi- melech the priest. And Ahi- melech was afraid on meeting David, and said to him, Why art thou alone, and no man with thee ? 2 And David said to Ahimelech the priest, The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said to me, Let no man know any thing of the busi- ness whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee. And I have made known to my servants such and such a place. 3 Now therefore what is under thy hand ? Give me five loaves of bread into my hand, or what there is to be found. 4 And the priest answered David > There is no common bread under my hand, but there is holy bread. 5 So the priest gave him holy bread. For there was no bread there but the shew bread, that had been taken from the presence of the LORD, to put hot bread on the day when this was taken away. 6 Now a certain man of Saul's ser- vants was there that day, detained be- fore the LORD ; and his name was Doeg, an Edornite, the chiefest of the herdsmen that belonged to Saul. I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XXII . 7 And David said to Ahimelech, And is there not here under thy hand spear or sword ? For I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons in my hand, because the king's business required haste. 8 And the priest said, The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the valley of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the Ephod [or priestly dress]. If thou -wilt take that, take it : for there is no other save that here. And David said, There is none like that ; give it me. 9 And David arose, and fled that day from before Saul, and went to Achish the king of G-ath. 10 And the servants of Achisch said to him, Is not this David the king of the land ? Did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands ? 11 And David laid up these words in his heart, and was afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 12 And he changed his behaviour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scribbled on the doors of the city gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. 13 Then said Achish to his servants, Lo, ye see the man is mad. Where- of then have ye brought him to me ? 14 Have I need of mad men, that ye have brought this man to play the mad man in my presence ? Shall this man come into my house ? CHAPTER XXII. FJAVID therefore departed thence, and escaped to a cave near Adul- lam. And when his brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down thither to him. 2 And every one that was in dis- tress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was bitter of soul, gathered themselves unto him ; and he became a captain over them. And there were with him about four hun= dred men. 3 And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab. And he said to the king of Moab, Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, come forth, and be with you, till I know what God will do with me. 4 And he brought them before the king of Moab. And they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the fastness. 5 And the prophet Gad said to David, Abide not in the fastness; de- part, and get thee into the land of Judah. Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hareth. 6 When Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him, (now Saul was sitting in Gibeah under a tamarisk tree in Ramah having his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him ;) 7 Then Saul said to his servants that stood about him, Hear now, ye Benjamites. Will the son of Jesse give to every one of you fields and vineyards? Will he make you all captains of thousands, and captains of hundreds ; 8 That all of you have conspired against me, and no one revealed to mine ear that my son had made a league with the son of Jesse, and no one of you was sorry for me, or re- vealed to mine ear that iny son had CHAPTER XXIII. I. SAMUEL. 81 stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day ? 9 Then answered Doeg the Edomite, who was standing near the servants of Saul, and said, I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech, the son of Ahitub. 10 And he inquired of God for him, and gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine. 11 Then the king sent to call Ahi- melech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nob. And they came all of them to the king. 12 And Saul said, Hear now, thou son of Ahitub. And he answered, Here I am my lord. 13 And Saul said to him, Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast inquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day ? 14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said, And who is so faith- ful among all thy servants as David? And he is the king's son in law, and cometh to thy councils, and is honour- ed in thy house. 15 Did I on that day begin to in- quire of God for him ? It were wrong in me. Let not the king im- pute any thing to his servant, nor to all the house of my father. For thy servant knew nothing of all this, less or more. 16 And the king said, Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's house. 17 And the king said to the runners that stood about him, Turn, and slay the priests of the LORD; because their hand also is with David, and be- cause they knew when he fled, and did not reveal it to mine ear. But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the LORD. 18 And the king said to Doeg, Turn thou, and fall upon the priests. And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and slew on that day eighty and five persons that did wear a linen Ephod. 19 And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword. 20 And one of the sons of Ahi- melech the son of Ahitub, named Abi- athar, escaped, and fled after David. 21 And Abiathar told David that Saul had slain the priests of the LORD. 22 And David said to Abiathar, I knew it in that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul. I have occasioned the death of all the persons of thy father's house. 23 Abide thou with me, fear not. For he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life. But with me thou shalt be taken care of. CHAPTER XXIII. they told David, saying, Be- hold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah, and they are robbing the threshing-floors. 2 Therefore David inquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go and smite these Philistines ? And the LORD said to David, Go and smite the Philistines, and save Keilah. 3 And David's men said to him, Be- hold, we are afraid here in Judah. How much more then if we come to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines. 82 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTEB XXIII. 4 Then David inquired of the LORD yet again. And the LORD answered him and said, Arise, go down to Kei- lah ; for I will deliver up the I'hilis- tines into thy hand. 5 So David and his men went to Keilah, and fought with the Philis- tines, and brought away their cattle, and smote them with a great slaugh- ter. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah. 6 And it came to pass, when Abi- athar the son of Ahimelech fled to David to Keilah, that he came down with an Ephod [or priestly dress] in his hand. 7 And it was told Saul that David was come to Keilah. And Saul said, God hath thrown him off into my hand ; for he is shut in, by entering into a town that hath doors and cross- bars. 8 And Saul called all the people to- gether to war, to go down to Keilah, to besiege David and his men. 9 And David knew that Saul was plotting mischief against him'; and he said to Abiathar the priest, Reach hither the Ephod. 10 Then said David, Eternal God of Israel, thy servant hath certainly heard that Saul seeketh to come to Keilah, to destroy the city for my sake. 11 Will the men of Keilah deliver me up into his hand? Will Saul come down, as thy servant hath heard? Eternal God of Israel, I beseech thee, tell thy servant. And the LORD said, He will come down. 12 Then said David, Will the men of Keilah deliver up me and my men into the hand of Saul ? And the LORD said, They will deliver thee up. 13 Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose and de- parted out of Keilah, and went about whithersoever they could go. And it was told to Saul that David was es- caped from Keilah; but he for bare to go forth. 14 And David abode in the desert in fastnesses, and abode in the hill country in the desert of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand. 15 And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life. And David was in the desert of Ziph in a thicket- camp. 16 Then came up the Ziphites to Saul to Gibeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself with us in the fast- ness in a thicket- camp, in the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of the Wilderness ? 17 Now therefore, king, come down according to all the desire of thy soul ; and our part shall be to deliver him up into the king's hand. 18 And Saul said, Blessed be ye of the LORD ; for ye have compassion on me. 19 Go, I pray you, prepare yet, and know and see his place where his footstep is, and who hath seen him there. For it is told me that he dealeth very subtilely. 20 See therefore, and take knowl- edge of all the hiding-places where he hideth himself, and come y<5 again to me with the certainty, and I will go with you. And it shall come to pass, if he be in the land, that I will search him out throughout all the thousands of Judah. 21 And they arose, and went to Ziph before Saul. But David and his men were in the desert of Maon, . in the Arabah [or Barren Valley], on \ the south of the Wilderness. CHAPTER XXIV. I. SAMUEL. 83 22 Saul also and his men went to seek him. And they told David. Therefore he went to Sela [or Petra], and abode in the desert of Maon. And when Saul heard, he pursued af- ter David in the desert of Maon. 23 And Saul went on this side of the mountain, and David and his men on that side of the mountain. And David made haste to get away from Saul's sight ; for Saul and his men surrounded David and his men to take them. 24 But there came a messenger to Saul, saying, Haste thee, and come : for the Philistines have spread them- selves over the land. 25 Therefore Saul returned from pursuing after David, and went against the Philistines. Therefore they called that place the Rock of Divisions [or Divided Rock]. 26 And David went up from thence and dwelt in strong holds at Ain- gedi. CHAPTER XXIV. A ND it came to pass, when Saul was returned from following the Philis- tines, that it was told him, saying, Behold, David is in the desert of Ain- gedi. 2 Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men upon the face of the rocks of the wild goats. 3 And he came to the walled sheep- folds by the way, where was a cave. And Saul retired into the cave ; and David and his men were waiting in the back of the cave. 4 And David's men said to him, Be- hold the day of which the LORD said to thee, Behold, I will deliver up thine enemy into thy hand, that thou mayest do to him as it shall seem good in thine eyes. Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe privi- ly. 5 And ho said to his men, It were wrong in me before G-od that I should do this thing to my lord, the anointed of the LORD, to stretch forth rny hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD. 6 So David stayed his men with these words, and suffered them not to rise against Saul. And Saul rose up out of the cave and went on his way. 7 David also arose afterward, and went out of the cave, and cried after Saul, saying, My lord the king. And when Saul looked behind him, David stooped his face to the earth, and bowed himself. 8 And David said to Saul, Where- fore hearkenest thou to men's words, who say, Behold, David seeketh thy hurt? 9 Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how the LORD had delivered thee to-day into my hand in the cave. And some bade me to kill thee. But mine eye spared thee ; and I said, I will not put forth my hand against my lord : for he is the anointed of G-od. 10 Moreover, my father, see, yea see the skirt of the robe in my hand. For in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe, and killed thee not, know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in my hand, and I have not sinned against thee ; yet thou huntest my soul to take it. 11 May the LORD judge between me and thee, and the LORD avenge me of thee. But my hand shah 1 not be upon thee. 12 As saith the proverb of the 84 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XXV. ancients, 'Wickedness goeth forth from the wicked' ; but my hand shall not be upon thee. After whom is the king of Israel come out ? 13 After whom dost thou pursue ? After a dead dog, after a single flea. 14 The LORD therefore be judge, and do justice between me and thee, and see, and* plead my cause, and get justice for me from thy hand. 15 And it came to pass, when Da- vid had made an end of speaking these words to Saul, that Saul said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept. 16 And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I. For thou hast rewarded me with good, whereas I have rewarded thee with evil. 17 And thou hast shewed this day how that thou hast dealt with me. Forasmuch as when the LORD had delivered me up into thy hand thou didst not kill me. 18 For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away ? There- fore may the LORD reward thee with good for what thou hast done to me this day. 19 And now, behold, I know well that thou wilt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel will be estab- lished in thy hand. 20 Swear now therefore unto me by the LORD, that thou wilt not cut off my children after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of my father's house. 21 And David sware unto Saul. And Saul went home ; but David and his men got them up unto the strong hold. Then David arose, and went down to the desert of Paran. CHAPTER XXV. N Q1 W there was a man in Maon. whose business was in Carmel. i And the man was very great, and he I had three thousand sheep, and a | thousand goats ; and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. 2 Now the name of the man was Nabal ; and the name of his wife Abi- gail. And she was a woman of good understanding, and of a beautiful countenance, but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was a Calebite. 3 And David heard in the desert that Nabal did shear his sheep. And David sent out ten young men ; and David said to the young men, Gret you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name. 4 And thus shall ye say, Life and peace be to thee, and peace to thy house, and peace to all that thou hast. 5 And now I have heard that thou hast shearers. Now thy shepherds who were with us, we hurt them not, neither was there aught missing unto them, all the while they were in Car- niel. 6 Ask thy young men, and they will shew thee. Therefore let the young men find favour in thine eyes. For we come into a good day. Give, I pray thee, whatsoever thy hand cometh upon to thy servants, and to thy son David. 7 And when David's young men came, they spake to Nabal according to all those words in the name of Da- vid. 8 And when they ceased, Nabal an- swered David's servants, and said, Who is David ? And who is the son of Jesse ? There are many servants CHAPTER XXV. I. SAMUEL. 85 now a days that break away every man from his master. 9 Shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men, whom I know not whence they are? 10 So David's young men turned their way, and went again, and came and told him all those sayings. 11 And David said to his men, Gird ye on every man his sword. And they girded on every man his sword ; and David also girded on his sword. And there went up after David about four hundred men ; and two hundred remained by the baggage. 12 But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying, Be- hold, David sent messengers out of the desert to bless our master ; and he railed on them. 13 But the men have been very good to us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we any thing, as long as we went about with them, when we were in the fields. 14 They were a rampart to us both by night and day, all the days that we were with them keeping the sheep. 15 Now therefore know and con- sider what thou wilt do ; for evil is determined against our master, and all his household. For he is such a son of Belial, that a man cannot speak to him. 16 Then Abigail made haste ; and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five Seahs [or a bushel and a quarter] of parched corn, and a hundred cakes of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on the asses. 17 And she said to her servants, Go on before me ; behold, I come after you. But she told not her husband Nabal. 18 And it was so, as she rode on the ass, that she came down by the covert of the hill, and behold, David and his men came down against her ; and she met them. 19 Now David had said, Surely in vain have I guarded all that this man hath in the desert, so that nothing was missed that belonged to him. And he hath requited me evil for good. 20 So and more also do God to the enemies of David, if I leave of all that belong to him by the morning light even one man or boy. 21 And when Abigail saw David, she hastened, and lighted off the ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed herself to the ground. 22 And she fell at his feet, and said, Upon me, my lord, upon me let this iniquity be. And let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine ears ; and hear thou the words of thy hand- maid. 23 Let not my lord, I pray thee, give thought to this man of Belial, even Nabal. For as his name is, so is he. Nabal [or Fool] is his name, and folly is with him. But I thy handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send. 24 Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD liveth, and thy soul liveth, see- ing the LORD hath withholden thee from going into bloodshed, and from helping thyself with thine own hand, now let thine enemies, and they that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. 25 And now this blessing [or gift] which thy maid-servant brough t to my lord, let it even be given to the young men that walk in my lord's footsteps. I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XXV. 26 I pray thee, forgive the tress- pass of thy handmaid. For the LOED will certainly make my lord a sure house ; because my lord fighteth the battles of the LORD, and evil hath not been found in thee all thy days. 27 Yet a man is risen to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul. But the soul of my lord is bound up in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God : and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as out of the middle of the hollow of a sling. 28 And it shall come to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to all the good that he hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee to be chief over Israel ; that this shall be no grief to thee, nor a stumbling-block of heart to my lord, either that thou hast shed blood without cause, or that my lord hath helped himself. When the LORD shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thou thy hand- maid. 29 And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the Eternal the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to me. 30 And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, who has kept me this day from going into bloodshed, and from helping myself with mine own hand. 31 For in every deed, as the LORD the God of Israel liveth, who hath kept me back from hurting thee, ex- cept thou hadst hastened and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light even one man or boy. 32 So David received from her hand that which she had brought him, and said to her, Go up in peace to thy house. See, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have Accepted thy per- son. 33 And Abigail came to Nabal ; and behold, he held a drinking feast in his house, like the drinking feast of a king ; and Nabal's heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken. Therefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light. 34 But it came to pass in the morn- ing, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died with- in him, and he became as a stone. 35 And it came to pass, about ten days after, that the LORD smote Na- bal, and he died. 36 And when David heard that Na- bal was dead, he said, Blessed be the LORD, who hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept his servant from wick- edness. For the LORD hath return- ed the wickedness of Nabai upon his own head. And David sent and talk- ed with Abigail, to take her to him to wife. 37 And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spake to her, saying, David sent us to thee, to take thee to him to wife. 38 And she arose, and bowed herself on her face to the earth, and said, Behold, let thy handmaid be a maid- servant to wash the feet of my lord's servants. 39 And Abigail hastened, and arose and rode upon an ass, with five dam- sels of hers that went at her feet. And she went after David's messengers and became his wife. 40 David also had taken Ahinoam of Jezreel ; and they were also both of them his wives. CHAPTER XXVI. I. SAMUEL. 87 41 But Saul had given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Phalti the son of Laish, who was of Gallim. CHAPTER XXVI. pHEN came up the Ziphites to Saul ,.to Gribeah, saying, Doth not David hide himself on the hill of Hachilah, which is before the Wilderness ? 2 Then Saul arose, and went down to the desert of Ziph. 3 And Saul pitched on the hill of Hachilah, which is before the Wilder- ness, by the way. But David abode in the desert, and he saw that Saul had come after him into the desert. 4 David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was come in very deed. 5 And David arose, and came to the place where Saul had pitched, And David beheld the place where Saul lay, and Abner the son of Ner, the captain of his host. And Saul lay within the entrenchment of wagons, and the people pitched round about him. 6 Then answered David and said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah [David's sister], the brother to Joab, saying, Who will go down with me to Saul to the camp. And Abishai said, I will go down with thee. 7 So David and Abishai came to the people by night. And behold, Saul lay sleeping with in the entrench- ment of wagons, and his spear stuck in the ground at his bolster. And Abner and the people lay round about him. 8 Then said Abishai to David, Glod hath delivered thine enemy into thy hand this day. Now therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear even to the earth at once, and I will not smite him the second time. 9 And David said to Abishai, Destroy him not. For who can stretch forth his hand against the anointed of the LORD, and be guilt- less? 10 And David said. As the LORD liveth, the LORD will smite him ; either his day will come to die, or he will go down into battle, and perish. 11 It were wrong in me before the LORD that I should stretch forth my hand against the anointed of the LORD. But, I pray thee, take thou now the spear that is at his bolster, and the cruse of water, and let us go our way. 12 So David took the spear and the cruse of water from Saul's bolster; and they got them away, and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither awaked ; for they were all asleep ; because a deep sleep from the LORD was fallen upon them. 13 Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of a hill afar off ; a great space being between them. 14 And David cried to the people, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, Answerest thou not, Abner ? Then Abner answered and said, Who art thou that criest to the king ? 15 And David said to Abner, Art not thou a man ? And who is like to thee in Israel ? Wherefore then hast thou not guarded thy lord the king ? For there came one of the people in to destroy the king thy lord. 16 This thing is not good that thou hast done. As the LORD liveth, ye are doomed to die, because ye have not guarded your lord, the anointed of Yahveh. And now see where the 88 I. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XXVII. king's spear is, and the crnse of water that was at his bolster. 17 And Saul knew David's voice, and said, Is this thy voice, iny son David ? And David said, It is my voice, my lord, king. 18 And he said, Wherefore doth my lord thus pursue after his servant ? Or what evil is in my hand ? 19 Now therefore, I pray thee, let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If the LORD have stirred thee up against me, let him accept an offering of incense ; but if men have done it, cursed be they be- fore the LORD. For they have driven me out this day from abiding in the inheritance of Yahveh, saying, Go, serve other gods. 20 Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth before the face of the LORD. For the king of Israel is come out to seek even one flea, as when one doth hunt a partridge on the mountains. 21 Then said Saul, I have sinned ; return, my son David. For I will no more do thee harm, because my soul was precious in thine eyes this day. Behold, I have played the fool, and have erred exceedingly. 22 And David answered and said, Behold the king's spear ! And let one of the young men come over and fetch it. 23 May the LORD render back to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness. For the LORD delivered thee into my hand to-day, but I would not stretch forth my hand against the anointed of the LORD. 24 And behold, as thy life was valued this day in mine eyes, so let my life be valued in the eyes of God, and let him deliver me out of all tribulation. 25 Then Saul said to David, Blessed be thou, my son David. Thou wilt both do great things, and also wilt surely prevail. So David went on his way, and Saul returned to his place. CHAPTER XXVII. David said in his heart, I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul. There is nothing better for me than that I should escape safely into the land of the Philistines ; and Saul will despair of me, to seek me any more within any boundary of Israel, and I shall escape out of his hand. 2 And David arose, and he passed over with the six hundred men that were with him unto Achish, the son of Maoch, king of G-ath. 3 And David dwelt with Achish at G-ath, he and his men, every man with his household, even David with his two wives, Abinoam the Jezree- lite, and Abigail the Carmelite, NabaPs wife. 4 And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath. And he sought no more again for him. 5 And David said to Achish, If I have now found grace in thine eyes, let them give me a place in one of the cities in the fields, that 5 1 may dwell there. For why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee? 6 Then Achish gave him Ziklag that day ; wherefore Ziklag hath be- longed to the kings of Judah unto this day. 7 And the number of days that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines was a year and four months. CHAPTER XXVIII. I. SAMUEL. 8 And David and his men went up, I and invaded the G-eshurites, and the i G-ezerites, and the Amalekites ; for those were of old the inhabitants of the land, as thou goest to Shur [or Pelusium], even to the land of Lower Egypt. 9 And David smote the land, and left neither man nor woman alive, and took away the sheep, and inst him, and cursed as he went, %-nd threw stones at him, and cast dust. 14 And the king, and all the people that were with him, came weary, and refreshed themselves there. 15 And Absalom, and all the people the men of Israel came to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel with him. 16 And it came to pass, when Hushai the Archite, David's friend, was come to Absalom, that Hushai said to Absalom, May the king live, may the king live. 17 And Absalom said to Hushai, Is this thy kindness to thy friend? Why wentest thou not with thy friend ? 18 And Hushai said to Absalom, Nay; but whom the LORD, and this people, and all the men of Israel choose, his I will be, and with him will I abide. 19 And again, whom should I serve? Am I not in the presence of his son? As I have served in thy father's pre- sence, so will I be in thy presence. 20 Then said Absalom to Ahitho- phel, Grive counsel among you what we shall do. 21 And the counsel of Ahithophel, which he counselled in those days, was as if a man had inquired at the word of God; so was all the counsel of Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom. CHAPTER XVn. A ND Ahithophel said to Absalom, Let me choose out twelve thou- sand men, and I will arise and pursue after David this night. 2 And I will come upon him while he is weary and weak in the hands, and will make him afraid. And all the people that are with him will flee ; and I will smite the king when he is alone. 3 And I will bring back all the peo- ple unto thee. When every man whom thou seekest is returned, all the people will be in peace. 4 And the saying was right in the eyes of A.bsalom and in the eyes of all the elders of Israel. 5 Then said Absalom, Call now Hushai the Archite also, and let us hear likewise what is in his mouth. 6 And when Hush-ii was come to Absalom, Absalom spake to him, say- CHAPTER XVII. II. SAMUEL. 117 ing, Ahithophel hath spoken after this manner ; shall we do after his say- ing ? If not, speak thou. 7 And Hushai said to Absalom, The counsel that Ahithophel hath given is not good at this time. 8 And Hushai said, Thou knowest thy father and his men, that they are warriors, and they are chafed in their minds, as a bear robbed of her whelps in the field. And thy father is a man of war, and will not lodge with the people. 9 Behold, he is hid now in some pit, or in some other place. And it will come to pass, when some of them be overthrown at the first, that whoso- ever heareth it will say, There is a slaughter among the people that fol- low Absalom. 10 And he also that is a son of valour, whose heart is as the heart of a lion, will utterly melt ; for all Is- rael knoweth that thy father is a warrior, and they that be with him are sons of valour. 11 Therefore I counsel that all Is- rael be generally gathered unto thee, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, as the sand that is by the sea for multitude; and that thou go to battle in thine own person. 12 So shall we come upon him in some place where he shall be found, and we will light upon him as the dew falleth on the ground. And of him and of all the men that are with him shall not be left so much as one. 13 Moreover, if he be got into a ci- ty, then shall all Israel bring ropes to that city, and we will draw it as into a river, until there be not one small stone found there. 14 And Absalom and all the men of Israel said, The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel. For the LORD had appointed to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to the end that the LORD might bring evil upon Absa- lom. 15 Then said Hushai to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, Thus and thus did Ahithophel counsel Absalom and the elders of Israel; and thus and thus have I counseled, 16 Now therefore send quickly, and tell David, saying, Lodge not this night in the barren valleys of the de- sert, but speedily pass over [the Jor- dan]; lest the king be swallowed up, and all the people that are with him. 1Y Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz had stayed by Ain-rogel ; for they might not be seen to come into the city. And a maid-servant went and told them: and they went and told king David. Nevertheless a lad saw them, and told Absalom. 18 But they went both of them away quickly, and came to a man's house in Bahurim, who had a well in his court ; into which they went down. 19 And the woman took and spread a covering over the well's mouth, and scattered ground corn thereon; and the thing was not known. 20 And when Absalom's servants came to the woman to the house, they said, Where are Ahimaaz and Jona- than ? And the woman said to them, They are gone over the brook of wa- ter. And when they had sought and could not find them, they returned to Jerusalem. 21 And it came to pass, after they were departed that they came up out of the well, and went and told king David, and said to David, Arise, and 118 II. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XVIII. pass quickly over the water; for thus hath Ahithophel counselled against you. 22 Then David arose, and all the people that were with him, and they passed over the Jordan. By the morn- ing light there lacked not one of them that was not gone over the Jordan. 23 And when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he sad- dled his ass, and arose, and went to his house, to his city, and gave orders to his household, and hanged himself, and died, and was buried in the buri- al place of his father. 24 Then David came to Mahanaim. And Absalom passed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. 25 And Absalom made Amasa cap- tain of the host instead of Joab. This Amasa was the son of a man, whose name was Ithra, an Israelite, that had taken Abigail the daughter of Nahash, and sister to Zeruiah Joab's mother. 26 So Israel and Absalom pitched in the land of Grilead. 27 And it came to pass, when Da- vid was come to Mahanaim, that Shobi the son of Nahash ofRabbah of the Children of Ammon, and Machir the son of Ammiel of Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Grileadite of Rogelim, 28 Brought beds, and basons, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and bar- ley, and meal, and parched corn, and lentiles, and parched pulse, 29 And honey, and curds, and sheep, and cheese of cows, for David, and for the people that were with him, to eat. For they said, The people are hungry, and weary, and thirsty, in the desert. CHAPTER XVIII. A ND David mustered the people that were with him, and set cap- tains of thousands and captains of hundreds ovef them. 2 And David sent forth a third part of the people under the hand of Joab and a third part under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, and brother of Joab, and a third part under the hand of Ittai the Grathite. And the king said to the people, I will surely go forth with you myself also. 3 But the people answered, Thou shalt not go forth. For if we flee away, they will not care about us ; neither if half of us die, will they care about us. But now thou art Worth ten thousand of us ; therefore now it is better that thou succour us from out of the city [of Maha- naim]. 4 And the king said to them, What seemeth to you best I will do. And the king stood by the side of the city gate, and all the people went out by hundreds and by thousands. 5 And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom. And all the people heard when the king gave all the cap- tains charge concerning Absalom. 6 So the people went out into the field against Israel ; and the battle was in the forest of Ephraini. 7 And there the people of Israel were defeated before the servants of David, and there was there a great defeat that day. of twenty thousand men. 8 For the battle was there spread over the face of all the country ; and XVIII. II. SAMUEL. 119 the forest devoured more people that day than the sword devoured. 9 And Absalom met the servants of David. And Absalom rode upon a mule, and the mule went under the thick boughs of a great oak, and his head was caught in the oak, and he was taken up between the heavens and the earth ; and the mule that was under him passed on. 10 And a certain man saw it, and told Joab, and said, Behold, I saw Absalom hanged in an oak. 11 And Joab said to the man that told him, And behold, thou sawest him, and why didst thou not smite him there to the ground ? And I would have given thee ten pieces of silver and a girdle. 12 And the man said to Joab, Though I should feel the weight of a thousand pieces of silver in my hand, yet would I not put forth my hand against the king's son. For in our hearing the king charged thee and Abishai and Ittai, saying, Let every- one take care of the young man Ab- salom. 13 Otherwise I should have wrought falsehood against mine own life. For there is no matter hid from the king, and thou thyself wouldst have set thyself against me. 14 Then said Joab, I may not tarry thus with thee. And he took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through Absalom's heart, while he was yet alive in the midst of the oak. 15 And ten young men that bare Joab's armour, surrounded and smote Absalom, and slew him. 16 And Joab blew the trumpet, and the people returned from pursuing after Israel ; for J oab held back the people. 17 And they took Absalom, and cast him into a great pit in the forest, and laid a very great heap of stones upon him. And all Israel fled every one to his tent. 18 Now Absalom in his lifetime had taken and reared up for himself a pillar, which is in the king's dale ; for he said, I have no son to keep my name in remembrance. And he call- ed the pillar after his own name. And it is called unto this day Absalom's monument. 19 Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok, Let me now run, and bear the king tidings, how that the LORD hath done him justice against the hand of his enemies. 20 And Joab said to him, Thou art not a man to bear tidings this day, but thou shalt bear tidings another day; but this day thou shalt not bear tidings, because it is that the king's son is dead. 21 Then said Joab to a Cushite [or Negro], G-o tell the king what thou hast seen. And the Cushite bowed himself to Joab, and ran. 22 Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again to Joab, But how- ever it be, let me, I pray thee, also run after the Cushite. And Joab said, Wherefore wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou hast no fortunate tidings. 23 But however it is, [said he,] let me run. And he said to him, Run. Then Ahimaaz run by the way of Circle [of the Jordan], and outran the Cushite. 24 And David was sitting between the two city gates. And the watch- man went up to the roof over the city gate to the wall, and lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a man running alone. 120 II. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XIX. 25 And the watchman cried, and told the king. And the king said, If he be alone, there is tidings in his mouth. And he came apace and drew near. 26 And the watchman saw another man running. And the watchman called to the gate-keeper, and said, Behold, a man is running alone. And the king said, He also bringeth ti- dings. 2 7 And the watchman said , Methink- eth the running of the foremost is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok. And the king said, He is a good man, and cometh with good tidings. 28 And Ahimaaz called, and said to the king, All is well. And he bow- ed down to the earth upon his face before the king, and said, Blessed be the LORD thy God, who hath de- livered up the men that lifted up their hands against my lord the king. 29 And the king said, Is the young man Absalom safe ? And Ahimaaz answered, When Joab sent the king's servant, and me thy servant, I saw a great tumult, but I knew not what it was. 30 And the king said to him, Turn aside, and stand here. And he turn- ed aside, and stood still. 31 And behold, the Cushite came. And the Cushite said, Tidings for my lord the king. For G-od hath done thee justice this day against the hand of all them that rose up against thee. 32 And the king said to the Cush- ite, Is the young man Absalom safe? And the Cushite answered, May the enemies of my lord the king, and all that rise against thee to do thee hurt, be as that young man is. 33 And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the city gate, and wept. And as he went thus, he said, O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom ! I would that I had died instead of thee, Absa- lom, my son, my son ! CHAPTER XIX. it was told Joab, Behold, the king weepeth and mourneth for Absalom. 2 And the victory that day was turn- ed into mourning unto all the people. For the people heard say that day how the king was grieved for his son. 3 And the people got them by stealth that day into the city, as peo- ple being ashamed steal away when they flee in battle. 4 But the king covered his face, and the king cried with a loud voice, my son Absalom, Absalom, my son, my son ! 5 And Joab came into the house of the king, and said, Thou hast sham- ed this day the faces of all thy ser- vants, who this day have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons and of thy daughters, and the lives of thy wives, in that thou lovest those that hate thee, and hatest those that love thee. 6 For thou hast declared this day, that princes and servants are nothing to thee. For this day I perceive, that if Absalom had lived, and all we had died this day, then it had been right in thine eyes. 7 Now therefore arise, go forth, and speak to the heart of thy ser- vants. For I swear by the LORD, if thou go not forth, there will not tarry one with thee this night. And that will be worse unto thee than all the CHAPTER XIX. II. SAMUEL. 121 evil that hath coine upon thee from thy youth until now. 8 Then the king arose, and sat at the city gate. And they told to all the people, saying, Behold the king doth sit at the city gate. And all the people came before the king. 9 Then Israel fled every man to his tent, and all the people were quarrel- ing throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying, The king saved us out of the hand of the Philistines ; and now he is fled out of the land for Absalom. 10 And Absalom whom we anointed over us, is dead in battle. Now there- fore why are ye silent about bringing the king back ? 11 And king David sent to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, saying, Speak to the elders of Judah, saying, Why are ye the last to bring the king back to his house ? seeing the speech of all Israel is come to the king, even to his house. 12 Ye are my brethren, ye are my bone and my flesh. Wherefore then are ye the last to bring back the king? 13 And say ye to Amasa, Art thou not of my bone, and of my flesh? God do so to me, and more also, if thou be not captain of the host before me for the future in the room of Joab. 14 And he turned the heart of all the men of Judah, even as one man ; so that they sent to the king, [saying,] Return thou, and all thy servants. 15 So the king returned, and came to the Jordan. And Judah came to G-iigal, to go to meet the king, to con- duct the king over the Jordan. 16 And Shimei the son of Grera, the Benjamite, who was of Bahurim, has- tened and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David. 17 And there were a thousand men of Benjamin with him, and Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him, and they smoothed the passage of the Jordan before the king. 18 And there went over a ferry- boat to carry over the king's house- hold, and to do what was good in his eyes. And Shimei the son of G-era fell down before the king, as he was come over the Jordan. 19 And he said to the king, Let not my lord impute iniquity unto me, neither do thou remember that which thy servant did perversely on the day that my lord the king went out of Je- rusalem, that the king should take it to his heart. 20 For thy servant knoweth that I have sinned ; therefore, behold, I am come the first this day of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king. 21 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered and said, Shall not Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed the anointed of the LORD ? 22 And David said, What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah, that ye should this day be accusers before me? Shall any man be put to death this day in Israel ? For do not I know that I am this day king over Israel? 23 Therefore the king said to Shi- mei, Thou shalt not die. And the king sware to him. 24 And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king, and had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his beard, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king de- parted until the day he came again in peace. 25 And it came to pass, when he 122 II. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XIX . was come to Jerusalem to meet the king, that the king said to him, Wherefore wentest not thou with me, Mephibosheth ? 26 And he answered, My lord, king, my servant deceived me. For thy servant said, I will saddle for me an ass, that I may ride thereon, and go with the king ; for thy servant is lame. 27 And he hath slandered thy ser- vant unto my lord the king. But my lord the king is an angel of G-od. Do therefore what is good in thine eyes. 28 For all of my father's house j were but dead men before my lord i the king. Yet didst thou set thy ser- vant among those that did eat at thine | own table. What right therefore have I yet to cry any more to the king? 29 And the king said to him, Why speakest thou any more of thy mat- ters? I have said, Thou and Ziba divide the land. 30 And Mephibosheth said to the king, Yea, let him take all, foras- much as my lord, the king is come again in peace to his own house. 31 And Barzillai the Grileadite had come down from Rogelim, and he went over the Jordan with the king, to conduct him over the Jordan. 32 Now Barzillai was a very aged man, even eighty years old. And he had provided the king with food dur- ing his stay at Mahanaim; for he was a very great man. 33 And the king said to Barzillai, Come thou over with me, and I will feed thee with me in Jerusalem. 34 And Barzillai said to the king, How many years have I to live, that I should go up with the king to Je- rusalem? 35 I am this day eighty years old ; and can I discern between good and evil ? Can thy servant taste what I eat or drink? Can I hear any more the voice of singing men and singing women ? Wherefore then should thy servant be henceforth a burden to my lord the king ? 36 Thy servant will go a little way over the Jordan with the king. And why should the king reward me with such a reward ? 37 Let thy servant, I pray thee, turn back again, that I may die in mine own city, by the grave of my father and of my mother. But behold thy servant Chimham ; let him go over with my lord the king; and do him what shall seem good to thee. 38 And the king answered, Chim- ham shall go over with me, and I will do to him that which shall seem good to thee; and whatsoever thou shalt re- quire of me, that will I do for thee. 39 And all the people went over the Jordan. And when the king was come over, the king kissed Barzillai, and blessed him. And he returned to his own place. 40 Then the king went on to Grilgal, and Chimham went on with him ; and all the people of Judah conducted the king, and also half the people of Israel. 41 And behold, all the men of Is- rael came to the king and said to the king, Why have our brethren the men of Judah stolen thee away, and have brought the king, and his house- hold, and all David's men with him, over the Jordan ? 42 And all the men of Judah an- swered the men of Israel, Because the king is near of kin to us. And why are ye angry for this matter ? Have AFTER XX. II. SAMUEL. 123 we eaten at all the king's cost ? or j hath he given us any gift? 43 And the men of Israel answer- 1 ed the men of Judah and said, We I have ten parts in the king, and we i have also more right in David than j ye. Why then did ye despise us, j that our advice should not be first had j in bringing back our king ? And j the words of the men of Judah were ' fiercer than the words of the men of Israel. CHAPTER XX. A ND there happened to be there a man of Belial [or wickedness], whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Jaminite [or Benjamite]. And he blew a trumpet, and said, We have no part in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse ; every man to his tent, Israel. 2 So every man of Israel went up from following David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri. But the men of Judah clave to their king, from the Jordan even to Jerusalem. 3 And David came to his house at Jerusalem. 4 Then said the king to Amasa, Call together unto me the men of Ju- dah within three days, and be thou here present. 5 So Aiuasa went to call together Judah ; but he tarried longer than the set time which he had appointed him. 6 And David said to Abishai, Now will Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than Absalom. Take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue- after him, lest he get for himself fenced cities, and escape from our eyes. 7 And there went out after him Joab's men, and the axe- bearers, and the runners, and all the warriors. And they went out of Jerusalem, to pursue after Sheba the son of Bichri. 8 When they were at the great stone which is in Gideon, Amasa came to meet them. And Joab had girded his outer garment that he had put on, and upon it was girded a sword fast- ened upon his loins in its sheath; and as he went forth it fell out. 9 And Joab said to Amasa, Art thou in health, my brother? And Joab took Amasa by the beard with the right hand to kiss him. 10 But Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab's hand. So he smote him therewith in the fifth rib, and shed out his bowels to the ground, and struck him not again ; and he died. And Joab and Abi- shai his brother pursued after Sheba the son of Bichri. 11 And one of Joab's young men stood by him, and said, He that fa- voureth Joab, and he that is for Da- vid, let him go after Joab. 112 And Amasa wallowed in his blood in the midst of the highway. And when the man saw that all the people stood still, he removed Amasa out of the highway into the field, and cast a cloth upon him, when he saw that every one that came by him stood still. 13 When he was put aside out of the highway, every man went on af- ter Joab to pursue after Sheba the son of Bichri. 14 And [Sheba] went through all the tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to Beth-maacha. And all the chosen men were gathered together, and went also after him. 15 And they came and besieged him in Abel near Beth-maachah, and they 124 II. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XXI. cast up a siege-mound against the ci- ty, and it stood against the rampart. And all the people that were with Joab battered the wall to throw it down. 16 Then cried a wise woman out of the city, Hear, hear; say, I pray you, unto Joab, Come near hither that I may speak with thee. 17 And when he was come near to her, the woman said, Art thou Joab ? And he answered, I am he. Then she said to him, Hear the words of thy handmaid. And he answered, I do hear. 18 Then she spake, saying, They were wont to speak in old times, say- ing, 'They shall surely ask at Abel' ; and so they ended a matter. 19 We are peaceable and faithful in Israel ; thou seekest to destroy a city, and a chief city in Israel. Why wilt thou swallow up the LORD'S in- heritance ? 20 And Joab answered and said, Far be it, far be it from me, that I should swallow up or destroy. 21 The matter is not so. But a man from the hill country of Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted up his hand against king David. Deliver up him only, and I will depart from the city. And the woman said to Joab, Behold, his head shall be thrown to thee over the wall. 22 Then the woman went to all the people in her wisdom. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and cast it out to Joab. And he blew a trumpet, and they retired from the city, every man to his tent. And Joab returned to Jerusalemto the king. 23 Now Joab was over all the host of Israel ; and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Axe-bearers and over the Runners ; 24 And Adoram was over the trib- ute ; and Jehosophat the son of Ahilud was recorder ; 25 And Sheva was scribe ; and Za- dok and Abiathar were priests ; 26 And Ira also the Jairite was a priest unto David. CHAPTER XXI. 'J'HEN there was a famine in the days of David for three years, year after year; and David inquired, and he was told, It is for Saul, and for the house of bloodshed, because he slew the G-ibeonites. 2 And the king called the Gribeon- ites, and said to them; (now the Gribeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and all the children of Is- rael had sworn to them; but Saul sought to slay them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah;) 3 And David said to the Gribeonites, What shall I do for you ? And wherewith shall I make atonement, that ye may bless YAVVEH'S inherit- tance ? 4 And the Gribeonites said to him, We will have no silver nor gold from Saul, nor from his house ; neither for us shall any man be put to death within [the land of] Israel. And he said, What ye shall say, that will I do for you. 5 And they answered the king, The man that consumed us, and that devised against us, that we should be destroyed from remaining within any of the boundaries of Israe 1, let seven men of his sons be delivered to us, and we will impale them in Gibe- CHAPTER XXI. II. SAMUEL. 125 ah of Saul. And the king said, I will give them. 6 But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the oath of G-od that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. 7 But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bare unto Saul, Armoni and Me- phibosheth ; and the five sons of Michal [or Merab] the daughter of Saul, whom she bare to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite ; 8 And he delivered them into the hands of the Gribeonites, and they impaled them on the hill before the LORD. And they fell all seven to- gether, and were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first [month], in the beginning of the barley har- vest. 9 And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her upon the rock, from the be- ginning of harvest until water drop- ped upon them out of the heavens, and she suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the wild beasts of the field by night. 10 And it was told David what Riz- pah, the daughter of Aiah had done. 11 And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jona- than his son from the men of Jabesh in Grilead, who had stolen them from the broad place in Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, when the Philistines had slain Saul in Grilboa. 12 And he brought up from thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his sou : and they gathered up the bones of them that were im- 13 And the bones of Saul and Jo- nathan his son buried they in the land of Benjamin, in Zelah, in the burial-place of Kish his father ; and they performed all that the king com- manded. 14 Moreover the Philistines had yet again war with Israel. And Da- vid went down, and his servants with him, and fought against the Philis- tines; and David waxed faint. 15 And Ishbi-tanob, who was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred [Shekels] of copper in weight, he be- ing girded with a new sword, thought to have slain David. 16 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philis- tine and killed him. Then the men of David swareto him, saying, Thou shalt go no more out with us to bat- tle, that thou quench not the lamp of Israel. 17 And it came to pass after this, that there was again a battle with the Philistines at Grob. Then Sibbechai the Hushathite slew Saph, who was of the sons of the giant. 18 And there was again a battle in Grob with the Philistines, where El- hanan the son of Jair [or David the son of Jesse] a Beth-lehemite, slew Goliath the Gathite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam. 19 And there was again a battle in Grath, where was a man of great stat- ure, that had on every hand six fin- gers and on every foot six toes, four and twenty in number; and he also was born to the giant. 20 And when he defied Israel, Jo- nathan the son of Shimeah the brother of David slew him. 21 These four were born to the 126 II. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XXII. giant in (rath, and they fell by the hand of David, even by the hand of his servants. CHAPTER XXII. AND David spake unto the LORD the words of THIS SONG in the day that the LORD had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul. 2 And he said, THE LORD is iny rock, and my for- tress, and ray deliverer ; 3 My God, my rock, in whom I will trust ; My shield, and the horn of my salvation ; My high tower, a^d my refuge, my saviour ; Thou savest me from violence. 4 With praises I will call on the LORD ; So shall I be saved from mine ene- mies. 6 When the waves of death encom- passed me, The floods of wickedness made me afraid ; 6 The cords of the nether-world en- compassed me about; The snares of death were before me. 7 In my distress I called on the LORD, Yea, I called to my G-od ; And he heard my voice out of his temple ; And my cry did enter into his ears. 8 Then the earth shook and trembled ; The foundations of the heavens were disquieted, And they were shaken because he was wroth. 9 There went up a smoke before his presence, And fire out of his mouth devoured ; Coals were kindled by it. 10 He bowed the heavens also, and came down ; And darkness was under his feet. 11 And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly ; And he appeared upon the wings of the wind. 12 And he made darkness pavilions round about him, The gatherings of waters, thick clouds of the skies. 13 At the brightness before him were coals of fire kindled. The LORD thundered from the heavens, 14 And the Most High gave forth his voice. 15 And he sent out arrows, and scat- tered them ; Lightning, and he discomfited them. 16 And the channels of the sea were seen, The foundations of the world were laid bare, At the LORD'S rebuke, at a blast of the breath of his presence., 17 He stretched forth from above, he took me ; He raised me up out of great waters ; 18 He delivered me from my strong enemy, From my foes, for they were too strong for me. 19 They came against me in the day of my calamity ; But the LORD was my support. 20 He brought me forth also into open space ; He delivered me, because he de- lighted in me. 21 The LORD recompensed me accord- ing to my righteousness ; According to the cleanness of my hands he rewarded me. 22 For I have kept the ways of the LORD, And have not wickedly departed from my God. 23 For all his judgments were before me ; And as for his statutes, I did not de- part from them. 24 I was also upright before him, And I have kept myself from mine iniquity. 25 And the LORD rewarded me accord- ing to my rightousness : According to my cleanness before his eyes. 26 With the merciful thou she west thyself merciful, And with an upright man thou shewest thyself pure ; CHAPTER XXIII. II. SAMUEL. 127 And with the froward thou shewest thyself perverse. 27 And the afflicted people thousavest; But bringest down thine eyes upon the haughty, 28 For thou art my lamp, O Eternal ; And the LORD will enlighten my darkness. 29 For by thee I would run through a troop ; By my God would I leap over a wall. 30 As for God, his way is perfect ; The word of the LOUD is tried ; He is a shield to all those that trust in him. 31 For who is God, save the Eternal? And who is a rock, except our God ? 32 God is my fortress of strength ; And he sheweth to the perfect his path. 33 He maketh my feet like deer's feet ; And setteth me upon my high places. 34 He teacheth my hands to war ; So that a bow of copper is bent by mine arms. 35 Thou also givest me the shield of thy salvation ; And thy answering my prayer maketh me great. 36 Thou hast widened my steps under me; So that my ankles do not totter. 37 I pursued mine enemies and de- stroyed them ; And I turned not back till they were consumed. 38 And I consumed them, and shat- tered them ; That they rise not ; yea. they are fallen under my feet. 39 For thou didst gird me with strength for battle ; Thou subduedst under me those that rose up against me. 40 Thou also gavest me the necks of mine enemies, That I might destroy them that hate me. 41 They cried for help, but there was none to save; Even unto God, but he answered them not. 42 Then did I beat them small as the dust of the earth. I pounded them, I crushed them as the mire of the street. 43 Thou also deliveredst me from the strivings of my people. Thou hast kept me to be the head of nations ; A people whom I know not serve me ; 44 Sons of the foreigner fawn before me ; When the ear heareth, they are obedient to me. 45 Sons of the foreigner fade away, And they gird themselves in their border-fastnesses. 46 The LORD liveth : and blessed be my rock ; And exalted be my God, the rock of my salvation. 47 It is God that giveth me vengeance, And that bringeth down the peoples under me, 48 And that bringeth me forth from mine enemies. Thou also liftest me above those that rise up against me ; Thou hast delivered me from the man of violence. 49 Therefore I confess thee, O LOED, among the nations, And I will sing praises unto thy name. 50 He is a tower of salvation to his king ; And he sheweth kindness to his anointed, To David, and to his offspring for evermore. CHAPTER XXIII. MOW these are the last words of David, the inspired word of David the son of Jesse, and the inspired word of the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the Grod of Jacob, and sweet psalmist of Israel. 2 The spirit of the LORD spake within me, And his word was on my tongue ; 3 The God of Israel said to me, The Rock of Israel spake A ruler of men must be just, Ruling in the fear of God. 128 II. SAMUEL. CHAPTER XXIII. 4 And he shall be as the light of the morning, When the sun riseth, in a morning without clouds ; Shining after rain on the grass of the earth : 5 Although my house be not right with God ; Yet he hath made with me an ever- sting covenant, Ordered in all things, and to be kept. For this is all my salvation, and all my desire. For the wicked are not made to grow. 6 They all shall be thrust away as thorns, Because they cannot be taken hold of with the hands ; 7 But the man that shall touch them Must be fenced with iron and the staff of a spear ; And they shall be utterly burned with fire in their place. 8 These are the names of the warriors whom David had; Josheb bassebet, the Tachmonite, head of the chiefs of three [or chariot- warriors] ; the same was Adino the Eznite ; because of eight hundred, whom he slew at one time. 9 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the son of Ahohi, one of the three warriors with David, when they defied the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away ; 10 He arose and smote the Philis- tines until his hand was weary, and his hand clave unto the sword. And the LORD wrought a great salvation that day ; and the people returned after him only to spoil. 11 And after him was Shammah the son of Agee the Hararite. And the Philistines were gathered together to Lehi, where there was a piece of ground full of lentiles. And the people fled from the Philistines. 12 But he stood in the midst of the piece of ground, and defended it, and slew the Philistines. And the LORD wrought a great salvation. 13 And three of the thirty chiefs went down, and came to David in the harvest time to the cave near Adul- lam ; and the Philistine wild beasts pitched in the Valley of the Giants. 14 And David was then in a strong- hold, and the garrison of the Philis- tines was then in Beth-lehem. 15 And David longed, and said, Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Beth-lehem, which is by the city gate ! 16 And the three warriors brake through the camp of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Beth-lehem, that was by the city gate, and took it, and brought it to David. Nevertheless he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD. 17 And he said, It were wrong in me, LORD, that I should do this. This is the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives. Therefore he would not drink it. These things did these three warriors, 18 And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was a chief among three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred, and slew them, and had a name among the three. 19 Was he not most honourable of the three? therefore he was their captain. Howbeit he attained not unto the three. 20 And Benaiah the son of Jehoi- ada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, CHAPTER XXIV. II. SAMUEL. 129 he slew two lion- like men of Moab. He went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in the time of snow. 21 And he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man. And the Egyptian had a spear in his hand ; but he went down to him with a stick, and plucked the spear out of the Egyp- tian's hand, and slew him with his own spear. 22 These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had a name among the three warriors. 23 He was honourable among the thirty, but he attained not to the three. And David set him over his council. CHAPTER XXIV. A ND the king said to Joab the captain of the forces that were with him, Go now to and fro through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, and register ye the people, that I may know the number of the people. 2 And Joab said to the king, Now may the LORD thy Grod add to the people, how many soever they be, a hundred-fold, and may the eyes of my lord the king see it. But why doth my lord the king delight in this thing ? 3 Notwithstanding, the king's word prevailed against Joab, and against the captains of the forces. And Joab and the captains of the forces went out from the presence of the king, to register the people of Israel. 4 And they passed over the Jordan, and pitched in Aroer, on the right [or south side] of the city that lieth in the midst of the valley of G-ad, and toward Jazer. 5 Then they came to Grilead, and to the land of the Lower-Hodeshites ; and they came to Dan-jaan [or Paneas], and passed round to Sidon, I 6 And came to the stronghold of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Hivites, and of the Canaanites ; and they went out to the South country of Judah, even to Beer-sheba. 7 So when they had gone to and fro through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 8 And Joab gave up the sum of the register of the people to the king. I And there were in Israel eight hun- I dred thousand valiant men that drew the sword ; and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men. 9 And David's heart smote him after that he had numbered the people. 10 And the LORD sent a pestilence upon Israel, and there died of the people from Dan even to Beer-sheba seventy thousand men. 11 And the angel of the LORD stretched out his hand upon Jerusa- lem to destroy it. 12 And David spake to the LORD, when he saw the angel that smote the people, and said, Lo, I have sinned, and I have done wicked ; but these sheep, what have they done? Let thy hand, I pray thee, be against me, and against my father's house. 13 And the LORD repented him of the evil, and said to the angel that was destroying the people, It is enough. Stay now thy hand. And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing- place of Araunah the Jebu- site. 14 And the prophet G-ad came that day to David, and said to him, Go up 130 I. KINGS. CHAPTER I. rear an altar unto the LORD on the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebu- site. 15 And David, according to the saying of Gad, went up as the LORD commanded. 16 And Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him. And Araunah went out, and bowed himself before the king on his face upon the ground. 17 And Araunah said, Wherefore is my lord the king come to his ser- vant ? And David said, To buy the threshing-floor of thee, to build an altar unto the LORD, that the plague may be stayed from the people. 18 And Araunah said to David, Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good to him. Be- hold, here are oxen for burnt offering, and threshing instruments and in- struments of the oxen for wood. 19 All these things did king Arau- nah give to the king. And Araunah said to the king, May the LORD thy God accept thee. 20 And the king said to Araunah,. Nay ; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price ; neither will I offer up- i burnt offerings to the LORD my God I of that which doth cost me nothing. | So David bought the threshing-floor ! and the oxen for fifty shekels of ! silver. j 21 And David built there an altar j to the LORD, and offered up burnt I offerings and peace offerings. So the ' LORD was intreated for the land, and | the plague was stayed from Israel. THE FIRST BOOK OF KHSTOS. CHAPTER I. KING DAVID WAS OLD and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he got no heat. 2 Then Adonijah the son of Hag- gith exalted himself, saying, I will be king. And he prepared for him- self a chariot and horsemen, and fif- ty horsemen, and fifty men to run be- fore him. 3 And his father had not blamed him at any time saying, Why hast thou done so ? And he also was of a very handsome figure ; and his mother bare him after Absalom. 4 And he took counsel with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and withAbiathar the priest ; and they helped Adonijah as followers. 5 But Zadok the priest, and Be- naiah the son of Jehoiada, and Na- than the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the warriors who belonged to David, were not with Adonijah. 6 And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the stone of Zoheleth, which is by Ain-rogel, and called all his brethren the king's sons, and all the men of Judah the king's servants. 7 Then Nathan spake to Bath- sheba the mother of Solomon, say- ing, Hast thou not heard that Adoni- jah the son of Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth it not? 8 Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon. 9 Go and get thee in unto king Da- CHAPTER I. I. KINGS. 131 vid, and say to him, Didst not thou iny lord, king, swear, to thy handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solo- mon thy son shall reign after me, and j he shall sit upon my throne? Why then doth Adonijah reign ? 10 Behold, while thou yet talkest there with the king, I also will come in after thee, and confirm thy words. 11 And Bath-sheba went in unto the king into the chamber. And the king was very old : and Abishag the Shunemite ministered to the king. 12 And Bath-sheba bowed, and did reverence to the king. And the king said, What wouldest thou? 13 And she said to him, My lord, thou didst sware by the LORD thy God unto thy handmaid, saying, As- suredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne, 14 And now, bohold, Adonijah reigneth; and now my lord the king, thou knowest it not. 15 And he hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the army; but Solomon thy servant hath he not called. 16 And thou, my lord, king, the eyes of all Israel are on thee, that thou shouldest tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king af- ter him. 17 Or it will come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders. 18 And lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet al- so came in. 19 And they told the king saying, Behold Nathan the prophet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed himself before the king with his face to the ground. 20 And Nathan said, My lord, O king, hast thou said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? 21 For he is gone down this day, and hath slain oxen and fat cattle in abundance, and hath called all the king's sons, and the captains of the army, and Abiathar the priest; and behold, they eat and drink before him, and say, May king Adonijah live. 22 But me, even me thy servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and thy ser- vant Solomon, hath he not called. 23 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not shewed to thy servant who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him? 24 Then king David answered and said to Bath-sheba, As the LORD | liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all distress, 25 Even as I sware to thee by the LORD the God of Israel, saying, As- suredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead ; even so will I certainly do this day. 26 Then Bath-sheba bowed with her face to the earth, and did rever- ence to the king, and said, May my lord king David live for ever. 27 And king David said, Call to me Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they came in before the king. 28 The king also said to them, Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride up- on mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 132 I. KINGS. CHAPTER I. 29 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there to be the king over Israel. And blow ye with a trumpet and say, May king Solomon live. 30 Then ye shall go up after him, and he shall come and sit upon my throne ; for he shall be king in my stead; and I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah. 31 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king and said, Amen ; may the Eternal the God of my lord the king say so too. 32 As the LORD hath been with my lord the king, even so may he be with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David. 33 So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Axe-bearers, and the Runners, went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king David's mule, and brought him to Gihon. 34 And Zadok the priest took a horn of oil out of the tent, and anoint- ed Solomon. And they blew a trum- pet : and all the people went up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that | the earth was rent with the sound of them. 35 And when Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it they made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the trumpet, he said, Wherefore is this noise of the city being in an uproar ? 36 And while he yet spake, behold Jonathan the son of Abiathar the prie.st came. And Adonijah said to him, Come in; for thou art a" man of valour, and bringest good tidings. 37 And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Verily our lord king David hath made Solomon king. 38 And the king hath sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Axe-bearers, and the Runners, and they have caused him to ride upon the king's mule. 39 And Zadok the priest and Na- ! than the prophet have anointed him I to be king in Gihon. And they are come up from thence rejoicing, so that ] the city is in an uproar. This is the I noise that ye have heard. | 40 And moreover the king's servants | came to bless our lord king David, | saying, May God make the name of Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne greater than thy throne. And the king bowed him- self upon the bed. 41 And also thus said the king, Blessed be the LORD the God of Is- rael, who hath given one to sit on my throne this day, mine eyes even see- ing it. I 42 And all the guests that were I with Adonijah were afraid, and rose I up, and went every man his own way. I 43 Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the al- tar. 44 And it was told Solo r.on, say- ing, Behold Adonijah feareth king Solomon. For lo, he hath taken hold on the horns of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear to me to-day that he will not slay his servant with the sword. 45 And Solomon said, If he will be a worthy man, there shall not a hair of him fall to the earth. But if wickedness shall be found in him, then he shall die. PTER II. I. KINGS. 133 46 So king Solomon sent, and they I brought him down from the altar, j And he came and bowed himself to j king Solomon; and Solomon said to him, Go to thy house. CHAPTER II. MOW David's days drew nigh that he should die ; and he charged Solomon his son, saying, 2 I go the way of all the earth ; be thou strong therefore, and be a man : 3 And keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, his commandments, and his judgments and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, so that thou mayest do wisely in all that thou doest, and withersoever thou turnest thyself ; 4 So that the LORD may establish his word which he spake concerning me, saying, If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee (said he) a man on the throne of Is- rael. 5 Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, even what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner, and to Ainasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his belt that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet. 6 Do therefore according to thy wis- dom, and let not his hoary head go down to the grave in peace.' 7 But show kindness to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those that eat at thy ta- ble ; for so they came to me when I fled from before Absalom thy brother. 8 And behold, thou hast with thee Shimei the son of Gera, aBenjamite, of Bahurim, who cursed me with a violent curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim. But he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I sware to him by the LORD, saying, I will not put thee to death with the sword. 9 Now therefore, hold him not guilt- less ; for thou art a wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to do; him and his hoary head bring thou down to the grave with blood. 10 So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David. 11 And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years. Seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem. 12 Then sat SOLOMON upon the throne of David his father [B. C. 976] ; and his kingdom was establish- ed greatly. 13 And Adonijah the son of Hag- gith came to Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, Comest thou peaceably ? And he said, Peace- ably. 14 He said moreover, I have some- what to say to thee. 15 And she said, Say on. And he said, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their faces on me that I should reign . Howbeit the kingdom is turned about and is become my brother's ; for it was his from the LORD. 16 And now I ask one petition of thee ; turn me not back. And she said to him, Say on. 17 And he said, Speak, I pray thee, to Solomon the king, (for he 134 I. KINGS. CHAPTER II. will not turn thee back,) that he give me Abishag the Shunemite to wife. 18 And Bath-sheba said, Well ; I will speak for thee to the king. 19 Bath-sheba therefore went to king Solomon, to speak to him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her, and bowed himself to her, and sat down on his throne, and caus- ed a throne to be placed for the king's mother ; and she sat on his right hand . 20 Then she said, I desire one small petition of thee ; turn me not back. And the king said to her, Ask on, my mother, for I will not turn thee back. 21 And she said, Let Abishag the Shunemite be given. to Adonijah thy brother to wife. 22 And king Solomon answered and said to his mother, And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunemite for Adonijah? Ask for him the king- dom also ; (for he is mine elder brother ;) even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zertiiah. 23 Then king Solomon sware by the LOED, saying, God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this against his own life. 24 Now therefore as the LORD liveth, who hath established me, and made me sit on the throne of David | my father, and who hath made for me a house, as he promised, Adoni- jah shall be put to death this day. 25 And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And he fell upon him that he died. 26 And to Abiathar the priest said the king, Get thee to Anathoth, to thine own fields ; for thou art worthy of death. But I will not at this time put thee to death, because thou didst j bear the Ark of the LORD before i David my father, and because thou ! hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted. 27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar i from being priest unto the LORD ; that he might fulfil the word of the LORD, which he spake concerning the ! house of Eli in Shiloh. . 28 Then tidings came to Joab : for Joab had turned aside after Adoni- jah, though he turned not aside after Absalom. And Joab fled to the Tent of the LORD, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. 29 And it was told king Solomon that Joab was fled to the Tent of the LORD, and behold, he is by the altar. Then Solomon sent Beuaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go, fall upon him. 30 And Benaiah came to the Tent of the LORD, and said to him, Thus saith the king, Come forth. And he i said, Nay ; but I will die here. And Benaiah brought the king word again, saying, Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me. 31 And the king said to him, Do as he hath said, and fall upon him, and bury him ; that thou tnayest take away the wanton bloodshed which Joab shed, from me, and from the house of my father. 32 And the LORD will return his blood upon his own head, who fell upon two men, more righteous and better than he, and slew them with the sword, my father David not know- ing thereof, to-wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the host of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the host of Judah. 33 Their blood shall therefore re- turn upon the head of Joab, and up- CHAPTER III. on the head 1-kTi-f it r\r\n TV I. KINGS. 136 the head of his children for ever ; \ but upon David, and upon his chil- j dren, and upon his house, and upon j his throne, shall there be peace for ever from the LORD. 34 So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and slew I him. And he was buried in his own | house in the desert. 35 And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his room over the J host ; and Zadok the priest did the king put in the room of Abiathar. 36 And the king sent and called for Shiniei, and said to him, Build for thee a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and go not forth thence any whither. 37 For it shall be, that on the day thou goest out, and passest over the valley of the Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that thou shalt surely die; thy blood shall be upon thine own head. 38 And Shimei said to the king, The saying is good. As my lord the king hath said, so will thy servant do. And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days. 39 And it came to pass at the end of three years, that two of the ser- vants of Shiniei ran away unto Achish son of Maachah king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, Behold, thy servants are in Grath. 40 And Shimei arose, and saddled his ass, and went to Grath to Achish to seek his servants. And Shimei went, and brought his servants from Gath. 41 And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and was come again. 42 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said to him, Did I not make thee to swear by the LORD, and protested to thee, saying, Know for certain, that on the day thou goest out, and walkest abroad any whither, thou shalt surely die ? And thou saidst to me, The word that I have heard is good. 43 Why then hast thou not kept the oath of God, and the command that I charged thee with ? 44 The king said moreover to Shi- niei, Thou knowest all the wicked- ness which thy heart is privy to, that thou didst to David my father. Therefore the LORD returneth thy wickedness upon thine own head ; 45 And king Solomon shall be bless- ed, and the throne of David shall be established before the LORD for ever. 46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada ; who went out, and fell upon him, that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon. CHAPTER III. A ND Solomon joined himself by marriage to Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh's daughter, and brought her into the City of Da- vid, until he made an end of build- ing his own house, and the House of the LORD, and the wall of Jerusa- lem round about. i 2 The people sacrificed only on i High Places, because there was no | House built unto the name of the LORD, until those days. 3 And Solomon loved the LROD, I walking in the statutes of David his 1 father; and he sacrificed and burnt in- ! cense on High Places. | 4 And the king went to Gibeon to ! sacrifice there ; for that was the great High Place. A thousand burnt of- 186 I. KINGS. CHAPTER III. ferings did Solomon offer up on that altar. 5 In Gribeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night. And God said, Ask what I shall give thee? 6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed to thy servant David my fa- ther great kindness, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with thee ; and thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. 7 And now, LORD, my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my father ; and I am but a little child ; I know not how to go out or come in. 8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be number- ed nor counted for multitude. 9 Give therefore thy servant an un- derstanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad. For who is able to judge this great people ? 10 And the speech was good in the eyes of the LORD, that Solomon had asked this thing. 11 And God said to him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself length of days : neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor ha>t asked the life of thine ene- mies ; but hast asked for thyself un- derstanding to discern judgment; 12 Behold, I have done according to thy words ; lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart, so that there was none like thee be- fore thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. 13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and 'honour ; so that there ! shall not be a man among the kings j like unto thee all the days. 14 And if thou wilt walk in my ! ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy | days. I 15 And Solomon awoke ; and be- hold, it was a dream. And he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the i ark of the covenant of God and offer- ed up burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings, and made a drinking ; feast to all his servants. 16 Then came there two women to I the king, and stood before him. I 17 And the one woman said, my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house ; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. I 18 And it came to pass the third I day after that I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also. And we were together ; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house. 19 And this woman's son died in the night ; because she overlaid it. : 20 And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, whije thy handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead son in my bosom. 21 And when I rose in the morn- ing to give my son suck, behold, it was dead. But when \I had con- sidered it well in the morning, behold, I it was not my son, whom I had born. 22 And the other woman said, Nay; ! but the living is my son, and the dead : is thy son. And this said, No ; but | the dead is thy son, and the living is | my son. Thus they spake before the i king. CHAPTER IV. I. KINGS. 137 23 Then said the king, The one saith, This is rny son that liveth, and thy son is the dead. And the other saith, Nay ; but thy son is dead, and my son is the living. 24 And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king. 25 And the king said, Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one woman, and half to the other. 26 Then spake the woman whose the living son was unto the king, for her heart yearned upon her son, and she said, O my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it. 27 Then the king answered and said, Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it ; . she is its mother. 28 And all Israel heard of the judg- ment which the king had judged ; and they feared the king ; for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment. CHAPTER IV. QO king Solomon was king over all Israel. And these were the prin- ces which he had, Azarih the son of Zadok was the priest ; Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were the scribes ; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahi- lud was the recorder ; and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the army : Zadok and Abiathar were priests; and Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers ; and Zabud the son of Nathan, a priest, was the king's friend; and Ahishar was over the household ; and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the tribute [or labour- levy.] 2 And Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided victuals for the king, and his household ; each man in his month in a year provided victuals. 3 Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multi- tude, eating and drinking, and mak- ing merry. 4 And Solomon had sway over all the kingdoms from the River [Eu- phrates] unto the land of the Philis- tines, and unto the boundary of Low- er Egypt. They brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life. 5 And Solomon's provision for one day were thirty Cors [each seven- ty-five gallons] of fine flour, and sixty Cors of meal, 6 Ten fatted oxen, and twenty oxen out of his pastures, and a hun- dred sheep, beside harts, and roe- bucks, and fallow deer, and fatted fowl. 7 For he had dominion over all the region beyond [or westward of] the River [Euphrates], from Tiphsah even to Gaza, over all the kings be- yond the River. And he had p^ace on all sides round about him. 8 And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan even to- Beer-sheba, all the days of Solomon. 9 And Solomon had forty thou- sand stalls of horses for his chariots, ann twelve thousand horsemen. 10 And those officers provided vic- tuals for king Solomon, and for all that came to king Solomon's table, every man in his month. They lack- ed nothing. 11 Barley also and straw for the [draft] horses and swift horses brought they to the place where they were ; every man according to his charge. 138 I. KINGS. CHAPTER V . 12 And God gave Solomon wisdom i and understanding exceeding much, j and largeness of heart. 13 And Solomon's wisdom excelled j the wisdom of all the children of the I East country, and all the wisdom of Egypt. 14 For he was wiser than all man- kind; than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And his name was in all the nations round about. 15 And he spake three thousand proverbs ; and his songs were a thou- sand and five. 16 And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is on Lebanon even to the hyssop that springeth out of the wall. He spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes. 17 And there came some of all the peoples to hear the wisdom of Solo- mon, from all the kings of the earth that had heard of his wisdom. CHAPTER V. A ND Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon ; for he had heard that they had anointed him to be king in the room of his father ; for Hiram had been ever a lover of Da- vid. 2 And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying, Thou knowest how that David my father could not build a house unto the name of the LORD his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the LORD put them under the soles of his feet. 3 But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every side ; there is neither adversary nor evil opposer. And behold I purpose to build a house unto the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spake to Davia my fa- ther, saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room he shall build the House unto my name. 4 Now therefore command thou that they hew for me cedar trees out of Lebanon; and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt say ; for thou know- est that there is not among us any that hath skill to hew timber like the Si- donians. 5 And it came to pass when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be the LORD this day, who hath given to David a wise son over this great people. 6 And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have heard what thou sent- est to me for; and I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar and concerning timber of fir. 7 My servants shall bring them | down from Lebanon to the sea ; and I will convey them by sea as floats to the place that thou shalt appoint me, and I will take them to pieces there, and thou shalt receive them. And then thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household. I 8 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire. 9 And Solomon gave Hiram twen- ty thousand Cors of wheat for food ; to his household, and twenty Cors of ; beaten oil. Thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year. | 10 And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him ; and j there was peace between Hiram and Solomon ; and they two made a | league together. 11 And king Solomon raised a la- CHAPTER VI. I. KINGS. 139 bour levy out of all Israel ; and the labour levy was thirty thousand men. ! 12 And he sent them to Lebanon, ; ten thousand a month by courses. A | month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home. And Ado- nirarn was over the labour levy. 13 And Solomon had seventy thou- j sand that bare burdens, and eighty thousand hewers in the mountains, 14 Besides the captains of Solo- mon's officers who were over the work, three thousand and three hun- dred, who ruled over the people that wrought in the work. 15 And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the % House. 16 And Solomon's builders, and Hiram's builders, and the men of Gebal [orByblus], did hew them. So they prepared the timber and the stones to build the House. CHAPTER VI. ^ND it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel [A. M. 3148 and B. C. 973], in the month of Zif, which is the second month, that he began to build the HOUSE OF YAHVEH. 2 And the House which king Solo- mon built for.the LORD, its length was sixty cubits, and its breadth twenty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. 3 And the porch before the Great Hall of the House, twenty cubits was is length on the face of the breadth of the House ; and ten cubits was its dth before the House. brea 4 And for the House he made win- dows with closed lattices. 5 And against the wall of the House he built floors [for chambers] about the walls of the house, round about both the Great Hall and the PLACE OF ORACLE; and he made ROWS OF CHAM- BERS round about. 6 The nethermost floor was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad ; for on the outside of the House he made narrowed rests round about, so that nothing should be fastened into the walls of the House. 7 And the House, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither ; so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the House, while it was in building. 8 The entrance for the middle row of chambers was in tho right corner of the House ; and they went up with winding stairs into the middle [row], and out of the middle into the third. 9 So he built the House, and finish- ed it ; and panelled the House, the vault-beams, and the boards, with cedar. 10 And he built a floor, [or inner gallery,] against all the House, five cubits high; and it rested on the House with timbers of cedar. , 11 And the word of God came to Solomon, saying, Concerning this House which thou art building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all i my commandments to walk in them, 1 then I will perform my word with thee, which I spake to David thy father. ; 12 And I will dwell among the chil- j dren of Israel, and will not forsake I my people Israel. 140 I. KINGS. CHAPTER VII. 13 In the fourth year was the foun- dation of the House of the LORD laid, in the month Zif ; 14 And in the eleventh year [B. C. 966], in the month Bui, which is the eighth month, was the House finish- ed throughout all its parts, and ac- cording to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it. CHAPTER VII. ^ND Solomon was building HIS OWN HOUSE thirteen years, and he finished all his house. 2 And he built the HOUSE OF THE FOREST OF LEBANON. 3 Then he made the PORCH OF THE THRONE where he might judge, even the porch of judgment. Solomon made also a HOUSE FOR PHARAOH'S DAUGHTER, whom he had taken to wife, like to this porch. 4 And king Solomon sent and fetch- ed Hiram out of Tyre. 5 He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in copper; and he was filled with wisdom, and under- standing, and with knowledge to work all the works in copper. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his works. 6 And he cast the TWO PILLARS of copper. Eighteen cubits was the height of each pillar ; and a line of twelve cubits did encompass either of the two pillars. 7 And he made two capitals of mol- ten copper, to set upon the tops of the pillars. The height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits; 8 And trellises of trellis work, with wreaths of chain work, for the capi- tals wjiich were upon the top of the pillars, seven for the one capital, and seven for the other capital. 9 And he made the pillars, and ! two rows of pomegranates round ; about on the one trellis work, to cover the capital that was on the top ; and ! so did he for the other capital. j 10 And he set up the pillars at the : porch of the great Hall [of the tem- I pie] ; and he set up the right pillar, | and called its name JACHIN ; and he set up the left pillar, and called the name BOAZ. 11 And on the top of the pillars was lily work, so was the work of the pillars finished. 12 And he made a molten WATER- CISTERN of ten cubits from brim to I brim. i 13 It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three , looking toward the west, and three I looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east. It contain- ! ed two thousand Baths [or 15,000 gallons]. 14 And he made TEN BASIN-STANDS of copper ; all of them were of one casting, one measure, and one shape. 15 Then made he ten LAYERS [or Basins] of copper ; one Laver con- tained forty Baths [or 300 gallons ] ; and every Laver was four cubits ; and upon every one of the Basin- stands was one Laver. I 16 Apd Solomon made all the ves- sels that were for the House of God ; the Grolden Altar, arid the Table of gold, whereupon the presence-bread was. 17 And the Lamp-stands of pure gold, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the Place of the Oracle, with flowers, and the lamps, ! and the tongs of gold. CHAPTER VIII. I. KINGS. 141 18 And the bowls, and the snuffers, and the sprinkling buckets, and the spoons, and the censers of pure gold ; and the hinges of gold, both for the doors of the inner room, the Holy of Holies, and for the doors of the House, to wit, for the Great Hall. 19 So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for the LORD. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicat- ed ; the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the trea- sures of the House of God. CHAPTER VIII. Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the Ark of the Cove- nant of God out of the city of David, which is Zion. 2 And all the men of Israel as- sembled themselves unto king Solo- mon at the Feast [of Tabernacles] in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. 3 And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the Ark. 4 And they brought up the Ark of God. 5 And king Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, that were as- sembled unto him, were with him before the Ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor num- bered for multitude. 6 And the priests brought in the Ark of the Covenant of God to its place, into the Place of the Oracle of the House, into the HOLY OF HOLIES, even under the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim spread forth ! their wings to the place of the Ark, and the cherubim covered over the Ark and its staves from above. 8 And so long were the staves, that the ends of the staves were seen from he Holy [room] in front of the Place of the Oracle, but they were not seen j on the outside. And there they are unto this day. 9 There was nothing in the Ark save the Two Tables of Stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when God made a covenant with the children of i Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt. 10 And it came to pass, when the priests went out of the Holy Place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, 11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud ; for the glory of the LORD had filled the House of God. 12 Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell in the thick darkness. j 13 I have surely built thee a house to dwell in, a settled place for thee to abide in for ever. 14 And the king turned his face ! about, and blessed all the assembly j of Israel ; and all the assembly of Israel stood ; 15 And he said, Blessed be the LORD the God of Israel, who spake i with his mouth to David my father, and | hath with his hand fulfilled it, saying, 16 Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel out of Egypt I I chose no city out of all the tribes of | Israel to build a House, that my i Name might be therein ; but I chose David to be over my people Israel. 17 And it was in the heart of David my father to buil.d a House for the Name of the LORD the God of Israel. 142 I. KINGS. CHAPTER VIII. 18 And the LORD said to David my I which thou didst speak to thy servant father, Whereas it was in thy heart to ; David my father, build a House for my Name, thou 27 But will God in a House for my Name, didst well that it was in thy heart. 19 Nevertheless thou shalt not build the House ; but thy son shall build the House for my Name. 20 And the LORD hath performed his But will God in truth dwell on the earth ? Behold, the heavens and the heaven of heavens cannot contain thee ; how much less this House which I have built ? 28 Turn thou therefore to the word that he spake, and I .am prayer of thy servant, and to his sup- risen up in the room of David my ; plication, Eternal my God, to father, and I sit on the throne of | hearken to the cry and to the prayer, Israel, as the LORD promised, and I j which thy servant prayeth before have built a House for the Name of j thee to-day ; the Eternal the God of Israel. 29 That thine eye may be open 2 1 And I have set there a place j toward this House night and day, for the Ark, wherein is the Covenant | toward the Place of which thou hast of the LORD, which he made with ! said, My name shall be there ; that our fathers when he brought them j thou mayest hearken to the prayer out of the land of Egypt. which thy servant shall pray toward 22 And Solomon stood before the j this place. Altar of the LORD in the presence of j 39 And hearken thou to the sup- all the assembly of Israel, and spread j plications of thy servant, and of thy forth his hands towards heaven ; ; peop i e l arA Q\ t w hen they shall pray 23 And he said, Eternal God of j toward this place ; and hear thou in Israel, there is no God like thee, in I heaven thy dwellins-place ; and when heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant and kindness with thy servants that walk before thee with all their heart : thou nearest, forgive. 31 In whatever a man sin against his neighbour, and an oath [or self- curse] be laid upon him to make him ^ Qath CQme beforethiae 24 Who hast kept with thy servant David my father what thou promis- ; ^ ^ fchig House edst him ; and thou spakest with thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with thy hand, as it is this day. 25 Now therefore, Eternal God of Israel, keep with thy servant David my father what thou prornisedst him, saying, There shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit upon the throne of Israel ; if so be that thy sons keep to their way, to walk be- fore me as thou hast walked before me. 26 And now, God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee, be verified, 32 Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, condemn- ing the wicked, by bringing his way upon his own head ; and justifying the righteous. 33 When thy people Israel be smit- ten down before the enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make sup- plication to thee in this House ; 34 Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy people Israel, CHAPTER VIII. I. KINGS. 143 and bring them again unto the land i which thou gavest to their fathers. 35 When the heavens are shut up, \ and there is no rain, because they j have sinned against thee ; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy j name, and turn from their sin, when < thou afflictest them ; 36 Then hear thou in heaven, and ; forgive the sin of thy servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou mayest teach them the good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land, which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance. 37 If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, blight, mildew, locust, or if 'there be caterpillar; if their enemy besiege them in the land at their city gates ; for every plague, for every sickness, 38 What prayer and supplication so- ever be made by any man, or by any one of thy people Israel, who shall know every man the plague on his own heart, and spread forth his hands towards this House ; 39 Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling-place, and forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways, whose heart thou knowest, (for thou, even thou only, knowest the hearts of all the sons of men ; ) 40 So that they may fear thee all the days that they live upon the face of the land which thou gavest to our fathers. 41 Moreover concerning a foreigner, that is not of thy people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy Name's sake ; 42 (For they will hear of thy great Name, and of thy strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm;) when he shall come and pray toward this House ; 43 Hear thou in heaven, thy dwell- ing-place, and do according to all that the foreigner calleth to thee for ; so that all the peoples of the earth may know thy Name, to fear thee, as do thy people Israel ; and that they may know that this House, which I have builded, is called by thy Name. 44 When thy people go out to battle against their enemy, whitherso- ever thou shalt send them, and shall pray to the LORD toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the House that I have built for thy Name ; 45 Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause. 46 When they sin against thee, (for there is no man that sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and give them up to the enemy, so that they carry them away captives to the land of the enemy far or near ; 47 Yet if they shall again lay it to heart in the land whither they were carried, and turn and make supplica- tion to thee in the land of them that carried them away, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we have committed wickedness ; 48 And so shall return to thee with all their heart, and with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, who led them away captive, and shall pray to thee toward their land, which thou gavest to their fathers, toward the city which thou hast chosen, and the House which I have built for thy Name ; 49 Then hear- thou in heaven thy dwelling-place their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause, 50 And forgive thy people what 144 I. KINGS. CHAPTER VIII. they have sinned against thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have 59 And let these my words, where- with I have made supplication before transgresed against thee, and grant ; the LORD, be nigh to the LORD our them to find mercy in the sight of j God day and night, that he may them who carried them captive, that ; maintain the cause of his servant, and they may have mercy on them ; | the cause of his people Israel, each 51 For they are thy people and matter on its own day ; thine inheritance, whom thou { 60 So that all the peoples of the broughtest forth out of Egypt, from | earth may know that the LORD is the midst of the furnace of iron : I God, and that there is none else. 52 That thine eyes may be open \ 61 Let your heart therefore be per- unto the supplication of thy people j feet with the LORD our G-od, to walk Israel to hearken to them in all that j in his statutes, and to keep his com- they call for unto thee. | mandments, as at this day. 53 For thou didst separate them j 62 And the king, and all Israel from among all the peoples of the j with him, sacrificed a sacrifice before earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou spakest by the hand of Moses thy servant, when our fathers out of Eternal. 54 And it was so, that when the LORD. 63 And Solomon sacrificed as a thou broughtest j sacrifice of peace offerings which he Egypt, Lord | sacrificed to the LORD, two and twenty I thousand oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king Solo- mon had made an end of praying all I and all the children of Israel dedica- this prayer and supplication to the j ted the House of the LORD. 64 The same day did LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread to heaven. 55 And he stood and blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, saying, 56 Blessed be the LORD that hath given a resting-place to his people Israel, according to all that he The same day did the king hal- low the middle of the Court that was before the House* of the LORD; for there he offered burnt offerings, and meal offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings ; because the copper altar that was before the LORD was too little to receive the burnt offerings, and meal offerings, and the fat of the promised ; there hath not failed one j peace offerings, word of all his good promise, which I 65 And at that time Solomon held he promised by the hand of Moses ! the Feast [of Tabernacles], and all his servant. Israel with him, a great assembly, 57 May the LORD our God be with from the 1 'ass of Hainath unto the us, as he was with our fathers ; him not leave us, nor forsake us ; let valley of Lower Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven 58 That he may incline our hearts days, even fourteen days. to him, to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes, and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers. 66 On the eighth day he sent the people away. And they blessed the king, and went to their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness CHAPTER IX. I. KINGS. 145 that the LORD had done to David his servant, and to Israel his people. CHAPTER IX. A ND it came to pass when Solomon had finished the building of the House of God, and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do, 2 That the LORD appeared to Solo- mon the second time, as he had ap- peared to him at Gibeon. 3 And the LORD said to him, I have heard thy prayer and thy sup- plication, that thou hast made before me. 1 have hallowed this House, which thou hast built, to put my Name there for ever ; and mine eyes and my heart shall be there per- petually. 4 And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in honesty j of heart, and in uprightness, to do | according to all that I have com- 1 manded thee, and wilt keep my j statutes and my judgments ; 5 Then I will establish the throne of j thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, say- ing, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. 6 But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes which I have set be- fore you, but go and serve other gods, and bow down before them ; 7 Then will I cut off Israel from the face of the land which I have given them ; and this House, which I have hallowed for my Name, will I cast out of my sight ; and Israel shall be a proverb and a byword among all the peoples ; 8 And this House shall be set on high, that every one that passeth by it may be astonished, and hiss ; and they shall say, Why hath God done thus to this land, and to this House ? 9 And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers of the land of Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have bowed down to them, and served them ; therefore hath the LORD brought i upon them all this evil. 10 And it came to pass at the end ! of twenty years, when Solomon had I built the two houses, the House of I God, and the king's house, ! 11 After Hiram the king of Tyre ! had furnished Solomon with cedar ! trees and fir trees, and with gold, ac- cording to all his desire, that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 12 And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him ; and they were not pleas- ing in his eyes. 13 And he said, What cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother ? And he called them the land of Cabul unto this day. 14 And Hiram sent to the king a hundred and twenty Kikars of gold. 15 And this is the reason of the labour- levy which king Solomon raised; for to build the House of God, and his own house, and Millo [or the castle], and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer. 16 For Pharoah king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and had given it as a dower for his daughter, Solo- mon's wife. 146 I. KINGS. CHAPTER X. 17 And Solomon built G-ezer, and Beth-horon the lower, 18 And Baalath, and Tadmor [or Palmyra] in the inland desert, 19 And all the cities of store that Solomon had, and cities for his chariots, and cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. 20 And all the people that were left of the Amorites, Hittites, Periz- zites, Hivites, and Jebusites, who were not of the children of Israel, their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bond-service 'unto this day. 21 But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bond-servants ; but they were men of war, and his ser- vants, and his princes, and his chiefs- of- three [or chariot warriors], and rulers of his chariots, and his horse- men. 22 These were the captains of the officers that were over Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty, that bare rule over the people that laboured in the work. 23 And Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her. Then did he build Millo. 24 And three times in a year did Solomon offer up burnt offerings and peace offerings on the Altar which he built unto the LORD, and he burnt incense on that which was in the presence of the LORD. So he finished the House. 25 And king Solomon made ships at Bzion-geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. 26 And Hiram sent in the ships his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solo- mon. 27 And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold to the weight of four hundred and twenty Kikars, arid brought it to king Solomon. CHAPTER X. A ND when the queen of Sheba had heard of the fame of Solomon con- cerning the Name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions, 2 And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train of camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious stones. And when she was coine to Solomon, she spake to him of all that was in her heart. 3 And Solomon told her all her questions ; there was not any thing hidden from the king, which he told her not. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom, and the house that he had built, 5 And the food of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the atten- dance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cup-bearers, and his Ascent [or Bridge] by which he went up into the House of the LORD ; there was no more spirit in her. 6 And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thine acts and of thy wisdom. 7 Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it ; and behold, the half was not told me. Thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard. CHAPTER X. I. KINGS. 147 8 Happy are thy men, happy are these thy sarvants, that stand con- tinually before thy wisdom. 9 Blessed be thee, and that hear the LORD thy God, who delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel ; because the LORD loveth Israel for ever, there- fore made he thee king, to do judg- ment and righteousness. 10 And she gave the king a hun- dred and twenty Kikars of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones. There came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon. 11 And the ships also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of Almug [or ebony] trees, and precious stones. 12 And the king made of the al- mug trees stair-rails for the House of God, and for the king's house, harps also and psalteries for singers ; there came no such almug trees, nor were seen unto this day. 13 And king Solomon gave to die queen of Sheba all her desire, what- soever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her as of the king's hand. So she turned and went to her own country, she and her servants. 14 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred sixty and six Kikars of gold, 15 Beside that of the traders, and of the traffic of the merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia, and of the Pachas for governors] of the country. 16 And king Solomon made two hundred targets of gold beaten thin ; six hundred [shekels] of gold went to one target. 17 And he made three hundred shields of gold beaten thin ; three Minse of gold went to one shield. And the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. 18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with purified gold. 19 The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was round be- hind ; and there were arms on either side on the place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the arms. 20 And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps ; there was not the like made in any kingdom. 21 And all king Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold, and all the ves- sels of the House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold ; none were of silver ; that was accounted as nothing in the days of Solomon. 22 For the king had at sea ships of Tarshish [or Tarsus], with the ships of Hiram. Once in three years came the ships of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, tusks of ivory, and apes, and parrots. 23 So king Solomon was greater than all kings of the land for riches and for wisdom. 24 And all the earth sought the face of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 25 And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and cloaks, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year. 26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen ; and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the chariot-cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. 148 I. KINGS. CHAPTEBXI, 27 And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycamore trees that are in the Low Country, for abundance. 23 And Solomon had horses brought out of JWgypt ; a troop of the king's merchants received the troop [of horses] at a price. 29 And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred [Shekels or three hundred ounces] of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty. And so for all the kings of the Hit- tites, and for the kings of Syria did they bring them out by their hands. CHAPTER XL PUT king Solomon loved many foreign women together with the daugh- ter of Pharaoh, women of the Moa- bites, Ammonites, Edornites, Sidoni- ans, and Hittites ; 2 Of the nations concerning which the LORD had said to the children of Israel, Ye shall not go in unto them neither shall they come in unto you ; for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods ; Solomon clave unto these in love ; and his wives turned away his heart. 3 For it came to pass, when Solo- mon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods ; and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his G-od, as was the heart of David his father. 4 For Solomon went after Ashta- roth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom [or Molech] the abomi- nation of the Ammonites. 5 And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully af- ter the LORD, as David his father had done. 6 Then did Solomon build a High Place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is in front of Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. 7 And likewise did he for all his | foreign wives, who burnt incense and j sacrificed to their own gods. I 8 And the LORD was angry with ! Solomon, because his heart was turn- | ed from the LORD the God of Israel, I who had appeared unto him twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go af- ! ter other gods. But he kept not I that which the LORD had commanded. 9 Therefore the LORD said to Solo- ! mon, Forasmuch as this is done by thee, and thou has not kept my cove- | nant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. 10 Nowithstanding, in thy days I will not do it for David thy father's sake ; but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. LI HowbeitI will not rend away all the kingdom ; but will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen. 12 And the LORD raised up an ad- versary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite. He was of the children of the kings of Edom. 13 For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the army was gone up to bury the slain, after he had smitten Edom, that Hadad fled, ho and certain Elomites of his father's servants with him, to go into Egypt ; Hadad being yet a little child. CHAPTER XI. I. KINGS. 149 14 And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran. And they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt ; who gave him a house, and promised him victuals, and gave him land. 15 And Hadad found great favour in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen. 16 And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son, whom Tah- penes weaned in Pharaoh's house. And Genubath was in Pharaoh's household among the sons of Pharaoh. 17 And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the army was dead, Hadad said to Pha- raoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own country. 18 Then Pharaoh said to him, But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine own country? And he answered, Nothing; howbeit let me go in any wise. 19 And God raised up against him as an adversary Rezon the son of Eliadah, who had fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah. 20 And he gathered men unto him, and became captain over a troop, when David slew them [of Zobah]. And they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damas- cus. And he was an adversary to Is- rael of all the days of Solomon, be- side the mischief that Hadad did. And he harassed Israel, and reigned over Syria. 21 And JEROBOAM the son of Ne- | bat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, whose ' mother's name was Zeruah, a widow | woman, though he was Solomon's I servant, yet he lifted up his hand j against the king. | 22 And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king. j Solomon had built Millo [or the cas- | tie], and had repaired the breaches ; of the city of David his father. 23 And the man Jeroboam was a warrior of valour. And Solomon j seeing the young man that he had ; done the work, he made him ruler | over all the charge of the house of ; Joseph. | 24 And it came to pass at that time | when Jeroboam went out of Jerusa- | lem, that the prophet Ahijah the ; Shilonite found him in the way ; and he had clad himself with a new cloak; ; and they were alone in the field. I 25 And Ahijah caught the new I cloak that was on him, and rent it in- to twelve pieces. 2f) And he said to Jeroboam, Take I to thyself ten pieces; for thus saith I the LORD the God of Israel, Behold, I 1 will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee ; (21 But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's sake, and for Je- rusalem's sake, the city which I have cbosen out of all the tribes of Israel;) 28 Because that they have forsaken me, and have worshipped Ashtaroth the goddess of theSidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the Children of Amrnon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judg- ments as did David his father. 29 Howbeit I will not take the king- 150 I. KINGS. CHAPTER X II. dom out of his hand ; but I will make him prince all the days of his life for David my servant's sake, whom I chose because he kept my command- ments and my statutes. 30 But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it to thee, even ten tribes. 31 And to his son will I give one tribe, so that there may be a lamp for David my servant always before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen for myself to put my Name there. 32 And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and thou shalt be king over Israel. 33 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do what is right in my sight, to keep my statutes, and my commandments, as David my servant did ; that I will be with thee, and will build unto thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee. 34 And I will for this afflict the house of David, but not for ever. 35 Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon. 36 And the rest of the acts of Solo- mon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in tha Book of the Acts of Solomon ? 37 And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Isr lei was forty years. 38 And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father ; and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead [B. C. 933.] CHAPTER XII. REHOROAM went to Shechcm ; for all Israel were come to She- chem to make him king. 2 And it came to pass when Jerobo- am the son of Nebat heard of it, (for he was as yet in Egypt, where he was fled from the presence of king Solo- mon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt,) 3 That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came, and spake to Rehobo- am, saying, 4 Thy father made our yoke grievous; now therefore do thou lighten the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, and we will serve thee. 5 And he said to them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed. 6 And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise, that I may return answer to this people? 7 And they spake to him, saying, If thou wilt be a servant unto this peo- ple this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and spsak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever. 8 Bat he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they had counselled him, and consulted with the young men that had grown up with him, and who stood before him. 9 And he said to them, What counsal give ye, that we may return answer to this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Do tbou lighten the yoke which thy father did put upon us? 10 And the young men that had PTER XII. I. KINGS. 151 grown up with him spake to him, say- ing, Thus shalt thou speak to this people that spake to thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but do thou lighten it unto us thus shalt thou say to them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins. 11 And now wheras my father did lade you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My father had chas- tised you with whips, but I will chas- tise you with scorpions. 12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again on the third day. 13 And the king answered the peo- ple roughly, and forsook the old men's counsel that they counselled him. 14 And he spake to them after the counsel of the young men, saying. My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your yoke. My father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. 15 And the king hearkened not to the people ; for the guidance was from God, so that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spake by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the son of Nebat. , 16 So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not to them, the peo- ple returned answer to the king, say- ing, What portion have we in Da- vid ? Neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel. Now see to thine own house, David. So Israel departed to their tents. 17 But as for the children of Is- rael that dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18 Then king Rehoboam sent Ado- ram, who was over the tribute ; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19 So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto this day. 20 And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that JEROBOAM was come again, that they sent and called him to the congregation, and made him KING OVER ALL ISRAEL [B.C. 936]. There was none that followed the house of David, but only the tribe of Judah. 21 And when Rehoboim was come to Jerusalem, he assembled all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and eighty thou- sand chosen men, who were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to Reho- boam the son of Solomon. 22 But the word of God came to Shemaiah, a man of God, saying, 23 Speak to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, 24 Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel. Re- turn every man to his house ; for this thing is from me. They hearkened therefore to the word of God, and re- turned to depart, according to the word of the LORD. 25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and dwelt therein. And he went oat from thence, and built Penuel. 26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, 152 I. KINGS. CHAPTER XIIT. Now will the kingdom return to the house of David. 27 If this people go up to sacrifice in the House of YAHVEH at Jerusa- lem ; then will the heart of the peo- ple turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they will kill me, and turn again to Rehoboam king of Judah. 28 Whereupon the king took coun- sel, and made two calves of gold. And he said to them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem ; be- hold thy gods, Israel, who brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. 29 And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other in Dan. 30 And this thing became a sin ; for the people went up before the one, evert unto Dan. 31 And he made a House of High Places [or Altars], and made priests of the lowest of the people, who were not the sons of Levi. 32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast that is in Judah, and he offered up on the altar. So did he in Beth -el, sacrific- ing to the calves that he had made. And he placed in Beth- el the priests of the High Places which he had made. 33 So he went up to the altar which he made in Beth-el on the fifteenth day of the eight month, even in a month which he had set apart of his own heart ; and he ordained a feast unto the children of Israel : and he went up to the altar to burn incense. CHAPTER XIII. A ND behold, there came A MAN OF GOD out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Beth-el ; and Jerobo- am stood at the altar to burn incense. 2 And he cried against the altar by the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, thus saith the LORD ; Behold, a child will be born unto the house of David, (Josiah by name) ; and he will burn upon thee the bones of the priests of the High Places who burn incense upon thee. 3 And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the LORD hath spoken ; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the bone-ashes that are upon it shall be poured out. 4 And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the say ing of the man of God, who had cried against the altar in Beth-el, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him. 5 The altar also was rent, and the bone-ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. 6 And the king answered and said to the man of God, Entreat now the face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me again. And the man of God entreated the face of the LORD and the king's hand was restored him again, and became as it was before. 7 And the king said to the man of God, Come home with me, and re- fresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward. 8 And the man of God said to the king, If thou wilt give me half thy house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place. 9 For so was it charged me by the word of the LORD saying, Eat no CHAPTER XIV. I. KINGS. 153 bread, nor drink water, nor return again by the same way that thou earnest. 10 So he went another way, and re- turned not by the way that he came to Beth-el. 11 N"ow there dwelt an old prophet in Beth-el : and his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day. 12 And their father said to them, What way went he? For his sons had seen what way the man of God went, who came from Judah. 13 So he went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak. And he said to him, Art thou the man of God that earnest from Judah? And he said to him, I am. 14 Then he said to him, Come home with me, and eat bread. 15 And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee ; neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place ; 16 For it was said to me by the word of God. Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou earnest, 17 And he said to him, I am a prophet also as thou art ; and an angel spake to me by the word of God saying, Bring him back with thee into thy house, that he may eat bread and drink] water. But he lied unto him. 18 So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water. 19 And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him. 20 And behold, men passed by, and saw the carcase cast in the way, and the lion standing by the carcases : and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt. 21 And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard thereof, he said, It is the man of God who was disobedient to the command of the LORD. 22 And he went and found his car- case cast in the way. The lion had not eaten the carcase. 23 And the prophet took up the body of the man of God, and brought it back. And the old prophet came to the city, to mourn and to bury him, 24 And he laid his body in his own burying- place ; and they mourned over him, [saying], Alas, my brother* 25 And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he spake to his sons, saying, When I am dead bury me in the bury ing- place wherein the man of God is buried ; lay my bones besides his bones ; 20 For the saying which he cried by the word of the LORD against the altar in Beth-el, and against all the houses of the High Places which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass. CHAPTER xiv. AT that time Abijah the son of Je- roboam fell sick. 2 And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thy- self, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam ; and get thee to- Shiloh. Behold, Ahijah the prophet is there, who told me that I should be king over this people. 3 And take in thy hand ten loaves*, and cracknels, and a bottle of honey, and go to him ; he will tell thee wha t will become of the child. 4 And Jeroboam's wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah 154 I. KINGS. CHAPTER XIV could not see ; for his eyes were set by reason of his old age. 5 And the LORD said to Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick. Thus and thus shalt thbu say to her ; for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign her- self to be a stranger. 6 And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the doorway, that he said, Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam ; why now f eignest thou thyself to be a stranger? For I am sent to thee with heavy ti- dings. 7 Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LOUD the God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over my people Israel, 8 And I rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it to thee ; and yet thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes ; 9 But thou hast done evil above all that were before thee ; and hast gone and made for thyself other gods and molten images, to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back ; 10 Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam every man and boy, whether bondsman or free in Israel; and I will put away be- hind me the house of Jeroboam, as a man putteth away dung, till it be all gone. 11 Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house ; when thy feet en- ter into the city, the child shall die. 12 And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him ; for he only of Je- roboam shall come to a burial-place, because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD the God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam. 13 Moreover the LORD will raise up for himself a king over Israel, who will cut off the house of Jeroboam that day. And what if it be even now? 14 For the LORD will smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he will root up Israel out of the good land, which he gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the river [Euphrates], because they have made their images of Ashera, pro- voking the LORD to anger. 15 And he will give Israel up be- cause of the sins of Jeroboam, which he did sin, and wherein he made Is- rael to sin. 16 And Jeroboam's wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah ; and when she came to the threshold of the house, the child died. 17 And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him, according to the word of God, which he spake by the hand of his servant Ahijah the I prophet. 18 And the rest of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, be- hold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel. 19 And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years ; and he slept with his fathers, and Na- dab his son reigned in his stead. 20 And REHOBOAM the son of Solo- mon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seven- teen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD choose out of all the CHAPTER XV. I. KINGS. 155 tribes of Israel, to put his name there. And his mothers name was Naamah an Ammonite woman. 21 And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they committed, above all that their fath- ers had done. 22 For they also built for them- selves High Places, and images, and groves of Ashera, on every high hill, and under every green tree. 23 And they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel. 24 And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam [B. C. 932], that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem. 25 And he took away the treasures of the king's house ; he even took away all. And he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made. 26 And king Rehoboam made in their stead shields o^ copper, and committed them unto the hands of the chief of the Runners, who kept the door of the king's house. 27 And it was so, whenever the king went into the house of the LORD, that the Runners bare them, and brought them back into the Runners' chamber. 28 Now the rest of the acts of Re- hoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chroni- cles of the kings of Judah ? 29 And there was war between Re- hoboam and Jeroboam, all their days. 30 And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fa- thers in the city of David. And Abi- jam his son reigned in his stead. CHAPTER XV. MOW in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam the son of Nebat [B. C. 919] reigned ABIJAM over Judah. 2 Three years reigned he in Jerusa- lem. And his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Absalom. 3 And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him ; and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father. 4 Nevertheless for David's sake did the LORD his God give him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his son after him, and to establish Jerusalem. 5 Because David did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, and turned not aside from anything that he com- manded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. 6 And there was war between Abi- jam and Jeroboam all the days of his life. 7 Now the rest of the acts of Abi- jam, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam. 8 And Abijam slept with his fathers; and they buried him in the city of David ; and Asa his son reigned in his stead. 9 And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel [B. C. 917] reigned ASA over Judah. 10 And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his [grand] mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Absalom. 11 And Asa did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as David his father had done. 156 12 And he took away the abomina- tion out of the land, and removed all the filthy idols that his father had made. 13 And also Maachah his [grand] mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made a frightful idol to Ashera. And Asa destroyed her frightful idol, and burnt it in the valley of the Kidron. 14 But the High Places were not removed. Nevertheless Asa's heart was perfect with the LORD all his days. 15 And he brought in the things which his father had made holy, and the things which himself had made holy, in the House of the LORD, silver, and gold, and vessels. 16 And there was war between Asa and Baasha king' of Israel all their days. 17 And Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might not suffer any to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 18 Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treas- ures of the House of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants ; and king Asa sent them to Ben-hadad [1st], the son of Ta- brimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, who dwelt at Damascus, say- ing, 19 There is a league between me and thee, and between my father and thy father ; behold, I have sent to thee a present of silver and gold ; come and break thy league with Baasha king of Israel, that he may depart from me. 20 So Ben-hadad hearkened to king Asa, and sent the captains of the hosts I. KINGS. CHAPTER xv. which he had against the cities of Is- rael, and smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel near Beth-maacha, and all Chinneroth [or Gennesaret], with all the land of Naphtali. 2t And it came to pass, when Baasha heard thereof, that he left off building Ramah, and dwelt inTirzah. 22 Then king Asa made a procla- I mation throughout all Judah ; no one j was exempted ; and they took away j the stones of Ramah, and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasha had build- ed ; and king Asa built with them Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah. 23 The rest of all the acts of Asa, and all his might, and all that he did, I and the cities which he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah? Nevertheless in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet. 24 And Asa slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father ; and Je- hoshaphat his son reigned in his stead. 25 And NADAB the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the sec- ond year of Asa king of Judah [B. j C. 916], and he reigned over Israel two years. 20 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in the sin wherewith he made Israel sin. 27 And BAASHA the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him ; and Baasha smote him at Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines : for Nadab and all Israel laid siege to Gibbethon. 28 Even in the third year of Asa king of Judah did Baasha slay him, and reigned in his stead. - PTER XVI. I. KINGS. 157 29 And it reigned, he Jeroboam. He left not Jeroboam any that breathed, until he had de- came to pass when he j are they not written in the Book of smote all the house of | the Chronicles of the kings of Israel? 5 So Baasha slept with his fathers, and was buried in Tirzah ; and Elah stroyed him, according to the saying of Ahijah the Shilonite : 30 Because of the sins of Jeroboam his son reigned in his stead. 6 In the twenty and sixth year of Asa king of Judah [B.C. 892] began which he sinned, and which he made j ELAH the son of Baasha to reign Israel to sin, by his provocation where- 1 over Israel in Tirzah for two years. with he provoked the LORD the G-od of Israel to anger. 31 Now the rest of the acts of Na- dab, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chroni- cles of the kings of Israel ? 32 And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all days. 33 In the third year of Asa king of Judah [B. C. 915] began Baasha the son of Ahijah to reign over all Is- rael in Tirzah for twenty and four years. 34 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin. CHAPTER XVI. the word of the LORD came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying, 2 Forasmuch as I raised thee out of t^e dust, and made thee prince over my people Israel ; and thou hast walk- ed in the way of Jeroboam, and hast made my people Israel to sin, to pro- voke me to anger with their sins ; 3 Behold, I will take away the posterity of Baasha, and the posterity of his house ; and will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 4 Now the rest of the acts of Baa- sha. and what he did, and his might, 7 And his servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots, -conspired against him, as he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over his house in Tirzah. 8 And Zimri went in and smote him, and killed him in the twenty and their ; seventh year of Asa king of Judah I [B. C. 891], and he reigned in his stead. 9 And it came to pass when he be- gan to reign, as soon as he sat on his throne, that he slew all the house of Baasha ; he left him not a man or boy, neither of his kinsfolks nor of his friends. 10 Now the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel ? 11 In the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah [B. C. 891] did ZIMRI reign for seven days in Tirzah. And the people were en- camped against Gribbethon, which be- longed to the Philistines. 12 And the people that were en- camped heard say, Zimri had con- spired, and hath also slain the king ; wherefore all Israel made OMRI, the captain of the host, king over Israel that day in the camp. 13 And Ornri went up from Gribbe- thon, 'and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah. And it came to pass, when Zimri saw that the city 158 I. KINGS. CHAPTER XVII. was taken, that he went into the strong tower of the king's house, and he burnt over himself the king's house with fire, and he died. 14 Now the rest of the acts of Zimri and his conspiracy that he made, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel ? 15 Then were the people of Israel divided into two parts [B. C. 891). Half of the peopte followed TIBNI the son of G-inath, to make him king ; and half followed OMRI. 16 But the people that followed Omri prevailed against the people that followed Tibni the son of G-inath ; and when Tibni died, then Omri reign- ed [alone], 17 In the the thirty and first year of Asa king of Judah [B. C. 887]. OMRI reigned over Israel twelve years ; six years he reigned in Tirzah, 18 And then he bought the hill Samaria from Shemer for two Ki- kars [or hundred weights] of silver ; and ho built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, after the name of Shemer, owner of the hill, Samaria. 19 But Omri wrought evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than all that were before him. 20 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD the God of Israel to anger with their vanities. 21 Now the rest of the acts of Om- ri which he did, and his might that he shewed, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel? 22 So Omri slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria; and Ahab his son reigned in his stead. 23 And in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of Judah [B. C. 880] began AHAB the son of Omri to reign over Israel ; and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Sama- ria twenty and two year. 24 And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the eyes of the LORD above all that were before him. 25 And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Ne- bat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Si- donians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. 26 And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. 27 And Ahab made an image of Ashera ; and Ahab did more to pro- voke the LORD the God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him. 28 In his days did Hiel the Bethe- lite build Jericho ; he laid the foun- dation thereof in Abirarn his first- born, and set up the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD which he spake by the hand of Joshua the son of Nun [Jos. vi. 26]. CHAPTER XVII. ELIJAH the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead. said to Ahab, As the Eternal the God of Is- rael liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word. 2 And the word of the LORD came to him, saying, Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself in the valley of the Cherith, that is CHAPTER XVII. I. KINGS. 159 before [or on the east side of] the Jor- dan. 3 And it shall be, thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee thera. 4 So he went and did according to the word of God ; for he went and dwelt in the valley of the Cherith, that is before the Jordan. 5 And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening ; and he drank of the brook. 6 And it came to pass at last, that the brook dried up, because there had been no heavy rain in the land. 7 And the word of the LORD came to him, saying, Arise, get thee to Zarephath for Sarepta], which be- longeth to Sidon, and dwell there ; behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to feed thee. 8 So he arose and went to Zare- phath. And when he came to the entrance of the city, behold, a wi- dow woman was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. 9 And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said, Bring me,I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thy hand. 10 And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, but a handful of meal in a pitcher, and a little oil in a cruse ; and behold, T am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it and die. 11 And Elijah said to her, Fear not ; go and do as thou hast said ; but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it out to me, and af- terwards make for thee and for thy son. 12 For thus saith the LORD the God of Israel, The pitcher of meal shall not be finished, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth heavy rain upon the face of the earth. 13 And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah ; and she, and he, and her house, did eat for many days. 14 And the pitcher of meal was not finished, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of God, which he spake by the hand of Elijah. 15 And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick ; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him. 16 And she said to Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God ? Art thou come to me to call my sins to remembrance, and to slay my son ? 17 And he said to her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into the upper chamber, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed. 18 And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried to the LORD, and said, O LORD iny God, I pray thee, let this child's soul return again into his body. 19 And the LORD hearkened to the voice of Elijah ; and the soul of the child returned into his body again, and he lived. 20 And Elijah took the child, and brought him out of the upper cham- ber into the house, and delivered him to his mother. And Elijah said, See, thy son liveth. 160 I. KINGS. CHAPTER XVIII- 21 And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of God in thy mouth is truth. CHAPTER XVIII. A ND it came to pass after many days, that the word of God came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself to Ahab ; and I will send rain upon the face of the ^arth. 2 And Elijah went to shew himself to Ahab. And the famine was sore in Samaria. 3 And Ahab called Obadiah, who was over his house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly ; for it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah took a hundred prophets, and hid them by fifties in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.) 4 And Ahab said to Obadiah, Go into the land, to all wells of water, and to all brooks ; peradventure we may find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts. 5 So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it. Ahab went one way by himself, and Oba- diah went another way by himself. 6 And as Obadiah was on the way, behold Elijah met him/ And he knew him ; and he fell on his face, and said, Art thou then my lord Eli- jah? 7 And he answered him, I am ; go tell thy lord, Elijah is here. 8 And he said, In what have I sinned, that thouwouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me ? 9 As the LORD thy God liveth, theie is no nation or kingdom, whith- er my lord hath not sent to seek thee. And when they said, He is not here : he made the kingdom and nation to swear, that they had not found thee. 10 And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Elijah is here. 11 And it will come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the spirit of the LORD will carry thee j whither I know not ; and so when I I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot j find thee, he'will slay me. But I thy I servant fear the LORD from my I youth. 12 Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the LORD, how I hid a hundred men of the LORD'S prophets by fifties in a cave, and fed them with bread and water ? 13 And now thou sayest, Go, tell my lord, Elijah is here ; and he will slay me. 14 And Elijah said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely shew myself to him to- day. 15 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him. And Ahab went to meet Elijah. 16 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said to him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel ? 17 And he answered, I have not troubled Israel ; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have for- saken the commandments of the LORD and thou hast followed Baal. 18 Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carinel, and the prophets of Baal four hun- dred and fifty, and the prophets of the images of Ashera four hundred, who eat at Jezebel's table. AFTER XVIII. I. KINGS. 161 19 So Ahab sent among all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together to mount Carmel. 20 And Elijah drew nigh unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? If the Eternal be God, follow him : but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word. 2 1 Then said Elijah to the people, I, one only, remain a prophet of the Eternal ; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men. 22 Let them therefore give us two bullocks. And let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on wood, and put no fire to it. And I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire to it. 23 And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Eternal. And the God that answereth by fire, let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken. 24 And Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, Choose ye one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first ; for ye are many ; and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire to it. 25 And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even unto noon, saying, Baal answer us. But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they limped about upon the altar which was made. 26 And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked at them, and said, Cry with a loud voice, for he is only a god. Either he is thinking, or he hath stepped aside, or he is on a jour- ney ; or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked. 27 And they cried with a loud voice, and cut themselves after their man- ner with swords and spears, till the blood gushed out upon them. 28 And it came to pass, when mid- day was past, and they prophesied until the meal offering, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded. 29 And Elijah said to all the people, Come near to me. And all the peo- ple came near to him, and he repaired the altar of the LORD that was broken down. 30 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of tribes of the sons of Jacob, (unto whom the word of God had come, saying, Is- rael shall be thy name, ) 31 And with the stones he built the altar in the name of the Eternal. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two Seahs [or half a bushel] of seed. 32 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, Fill four pitchers with water, and pour it on the burnt offering, and on the wood. 33 And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time. 34 And the water ran round about the altar ; and the trench also was filled with water. 35 And it came to pass at the time of offering up the meal offering, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, Eternal, God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known, this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I 162 I. KINGS. CHAPTER XIX. have done all these things at thy word. 36 Answer me, Eternal, answer me, that this people may know that thou YAHVEH art God, and do thou turn their heart back again. 37 Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. 38 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces. And they said, The ETERNAL he is God ; the ETERNAL he is God. 39 And Elijah said to them, Seize the prophets of Baal; let not a man of them escape. And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the valley of the Kishon, and slew them there. 40 And Elijah said to Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink ; for there is a sound of the noise of heavy rain. 41 So Ahab went to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carrnel ; and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees, 42 And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing whatever. And he said, Go again, seven times. 43 And it came to pass at the sev- enth time, that he said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say to Ahab, Harness thy chariot, and get thee down, that the heavy rain stop thee not. 44 And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heavens were black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel. 45 And the hand of the LORD was on Elijah ; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel. CHAPTER XIX. ^ND Ahab told Jezebel all that Eli- jah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to- morrow about this time. 3 And he was afraid, and he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongeth to Ju- dah, and left his servant there. 4 But he himself went a day's journey into the desert, and came and sat down under a broom tree. And he asked for himself that he might die ; and he said, It is enough. Now, LORD, take away my life ; for I am not better than my fathers. 5 And as he lay and slept under the broom tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said to him, Arise and eat. 6 And he looked, and behold, a cake baked on the hearth and a cruse of water at his head-rest. And he did eat and drink, and laid himself down again. 7 And the angel of the LORD came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat ; be- cause the journey is too great for thee. 8 And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went on the strength of that food forty days and forty nights unto the mount of God in Horeb. 9 And he came thither to a cave, CHAPTER XX. I. KINGS. 163 and lodged there. And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and said over Israel ; and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah shalt thou to him, What doest thou here, Elijah? | anoint to be prophet in thy room. 10 And he said, I have been very | 18 And it shall coine to pass, that zealous for the Eternal the God of hosts. For the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword ; and I only am left ; and they seek my life, to take it away. 11 And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount LORD. And behold, passed by ; and a great before the the LORD and strong and brake wind rent the mountains, in pieces the rocks before the LORD ; but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind there was an earthquake ; but the LORD was not j in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake there | was a fire ; but the LORD was not in i the fire. And after the fire there was a still small voice. 13 And it was so, when Elijah heard i it, he wrapped his face in his mantle, i and went out, and stood in the en- i tering in of the cave. 14 And behold, the voice came to i him, and said, What doest thou here, ! Elijah? 15 And he said, I have been very him that escapeth the sword of Ha- zael shall Jehu slay ; and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay. 19 Yet I have left me seven thou- sand in Israel, all whose knees have not bowed to Baal, and all whose mouth hath not kissed him. 20 So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing ; twelve yoke of oxen were before him, and he with the twelfth. And Elijah passed over to him, and cast his mantle upon him. 21 And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee. And he said to him, Go, return ; for what have I done to thee ? 22 And he returned back from him. and took a yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh in the vessels of the oxen, and gave to the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him. CHAPTER XX. zealous for the Eternal the God of hosts. For the children of Israel have A ND Ben-hadad [the Ilnd], the king forsaken thy convenant, thrown down of Syria, gathered all his host to- thine altars, and slain thy prophets i gether. And there were thirty and with the sword ; and I only am left ; j two kings with him, and horses, and and they seek my life to take it j chariots. And he went up and be- away. I sieged Samaria, and warred against it. 16 And the LORD said to him. Go, j 2 And he sent messengers to Ahab return on thy way to the desert of i king of Israel into the city, and said Damascus ; and when thou comest, j to him, Thus saith Ben-hadad, anoint Hazael to be a king over Syria. I 3 Thy silver and thy gold are mine ; 17 And Jehu the [grand] son of i thy wives also and thy children, even Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king I the goodliests are mine. 164 I. KINGS. CHAPTER XX. 4 And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have. 5 And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Ben-hadad, saying, As I sent to thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver to me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children ; 6 So I will send my servants to ! thee to-morrow about this time, and ! they shall search thy house, and j the houses of thy servants ; and it | shall be, that all that is pleasant in j thine eyes, they shall put it in their j hand, and take it away. 7 Then the king of Israel called all | the elders of the land, and said, I Mark, I pray you, and see how this I man seeketh mischief. For he sent to me for my wives, and for my i children, and for my silver, and for ; my gold : and I denied him not. 8 And all the elders and all the j people said to him, Hearken not to j him, nor consent. 9 Therefore he said to the inessen- i gers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the | king, All that thou didst send for to i thy servant at the first I will do ; but j this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed ; and brought \ him word again. 10 And Ben-hadad sent to him, and said, May the gods do so to me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handf uls for all the people that follow me. 11 And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on [his sword] boast himself [ as he that putteth it off. 12 And it came to pass, when [Ben- hadad] heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings in the pavilion, that he said to his servants, Set yourselves in array. And they set themselves in array against the city. 13 And behold, there came a prophet to Ahab king of Israel, saying, Thus | saith the LORD, Hast thou seen all i this great multitude ? Behold, I will | deliver it into thy hand this day ; and I thou shalt know that I am the LORD. i 14 And Ahab said, By means of whom ? And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces. Then he said, Who shall begin the battle ? And he answered, Thou. 15 Then he mustered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty- two. And after them he mustered all the people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thousand. 16 And they went out at noon. But Ben hadad was drinking himself drunk in the pavilion, he and the kings, the thirty and two kings that helped him. 17 And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first. And Ben-hadad sent out ; and they told him, saying, There are men come out of Samaria. 18 And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive ; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive. 19 So these young men of the prin- ces of the provinces came out of the city, also the army which followed them. 20 And they slew every one his man. And the Syrians fled ; and Israel pursued them. And Ben- hadad the king of Syria escaped on a horse with the horsemen. CHAPTER XX. I. KINGS. 165 21 And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter. 22 And the prophet came near to the king of Israel, and said to him, Go strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou doest. For at the re- turn of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee. 25 And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, Their gods are gods of the hills ; therefore they were stronger than we ; but if we fight against them on level ground, shall we not be stronger than they ? 24 And do this thing. Take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put Pachas [or governors] in their room. 25 And prepare for thyself an army, like the army that fell away from thee, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot. And we will fight against them on level ground, and shall we not be stronger than they ? And he hearkened to their voice, and did so. 26 And it came to pass at the re- turn of the year, that Ben-hadad mustered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel. 27 And the children of Israel were mustered, and were victualled, and went against them. And the chil- dren of Israel pitched before them like two little flocks of kids ; but the Syrians filled the country. 28 And there came a man of God, and spake to the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians have said, the LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thy hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 29 And they encamped one opposite the other for seven days. And so it was, that on the sevejith day the battle was joined. And the children of Israel slew of the Syrians a hundred thousand men on foot in one day. 30 But the rest fled to Aphek into the city ; and the wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were left. 31 And Ben-haded fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber. And his servants said to him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merci- ful kings. Let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes round our heads, and go out to the king of Israel ; peradventure he will save thy life. 32 So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes round their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive ? He is my brother. 33 Now the men did watch for an omen, and did hasten, and took up his word, and said, Thy brother Ben- haded. Then he said, Go ye, bring him, Then Ben-haded came forth to him ; and he caused him to come up into the chariot. 34 And [Ben-haded] said to him, The cities, which my father took from thy father, I will restore ; and thou shalt make highways for thee into Damascus, as my father made into Samaria. Then [said Ahab], I will send thee away with this covenant. So he made a covenant with him, and sent him away. 35 And a certain man of the sons of the prophets waited for the king 166 I. KINGS. CHAPTER XXI. by the way, and disguised himself with a covering upon his eyes. 36 And as the king passed by, he cried to the king, and said, Thy ser- vant went out into the midst of the battle ; and behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and said, Keep this man. If by any means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a Kikar [or hundred-weight] of silver. 37 And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said to him, So shall thy judgment be ; thyself hast decided it. 38 And he hastened, and took the covering away from his eyes ; and the king of Israel discerned him that he was one of the prophets. 39 And [the prophet] said to him, Thus saith the LORD, Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I had appointed to utter de- struction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people. CHAPTER XXL j^ND it came to pass after these things, that NABOTH THE JEZ- BEELITE had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. 2 And Ahab spake to Naboth, saying, Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, j because it is near to my house ; and I I will give thee for it a better vine- 1 yard than it ; or, if it seem good to | thee, I will give thee the worth of it j in silver. 3 And Naboth said to Ahab, It were ! wrong in me before the LORD, that ! I should give the inheritance of my fathers to thee. 4 And Ahab came into his house heavy and troubled because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him ; for he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread. 5 But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said to him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread ? 6 And he said to her, Because I spake to Naboth the Jezreelite, and said to him, Give me thy vineyard for money ; or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it. And he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard. 7 And Jezebel his wife said to him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel ? Arise, and eat bread, and let thy heart be merry ; I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. 8 So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters to the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth. 9 And she wrote in the letters, say- ing, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people. 10 And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, Thou didst curse God and the king. And then put him forth, and stone him, that he may die. 11 And the men of his city, even the elders and the nobles who were the inhabitants in his city, did as Je- zebel had sent to them, and as it was written -in the letters which she had sent to them. CHAPTER XXII. 12 They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people. 13 And there came in two men, sons of Belial, and sat before him. And the men of Belial witnessed against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, Naboth did curse G-od and the king. Then they carried him forth out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died. 14 Then they sent to Jezebel, say- ing, Naboth is stoned, and is dead. 1 5 And it came to pass, when Je- zebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money ; for Naboth is not alive but dead. 16 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vine- yard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it. 17 And the word of God came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who is in Samaria. Behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it. 18 And thou shalt speak to him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou murdered, and also taken pos- session ? 19 And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, mine enemy ? And he answered, I have found thee. Because thou hast sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the LORD 20 Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity and will cut off from Ahab every man and boy, whether bondsman or free in Israel, 21 And I will make thy house like he house of Jeroboam the son of Ne- at, and like the house of Baasha the on of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to anger, and made Israel to sin. 22 And it came to pass, when Ahab leard those words, that he rent his lothes, and put sackcloth upon his lesh, and fasted, and lay in sack- jloth, and walked slowly. 23 Arid the word of the LORD came ,o Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Seest hou how Ahab humbleth himself be- 'ore me? Because he humbleth him- elf before me, I will not bring the evil in his days ; but in his son's days will I bring the evil upon his house. 24 But there was none like Ahab, who did sell himself to work wicked- ness in the sight of G-od, whom Jeze- el his wife stirred up. 25 And he did very abominably in Following filthy idols, according to all that the Amorites did, whom the LORD had cast out before the chil- dren of Israel. CHAPTER XXII. ND THEY CONTINUED three years without war between Syria and Israel. 2 And it came to pass in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to [Ahab] the king of Israel. 3 And the king of Israel said to his servants, Know ye that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, and are we still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Syria? 4 And he said to Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramoth in Gilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as thou art, 168 I. KINGS. CHAPTER XXII. my people as thy people, niy horses as thy horses. 5 And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, Inquire, I pray thee, at the word of the LORD to-day. 6 Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them, Shall I go against Ramoth in Gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they said, Go up ; for the Lord will deliver it into the hand of the king. 7 And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD be- sides, that we might inquire of him? 8 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, by whom we may inquire of the LORD. But I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. He is Micaiah the son of Im- lah. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so. 9 Then the king of Israel called a chamberlain, and said, Hasten hither Micaiah the son of Imlah. 10 And the king of Israel and Je- hoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, having put on their robes, in an open place at the entrance of the gate of Samaria ; and all the prophets prophesied before them. 11 And Zedekiah the son of Che- naanah made for himself horns of iron. And he said, Thus saith the LORD, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until thou have consumed them. 12 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth in Gi- lead, and prosper ; for the LORD will deliver it into the king's hand. 13 And the messenger that was gone to call Micaiah spake to him, saying, Behold now, the words of the prophets speak good to the king with one mouth. Let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak thou good. 14 And Micaiah said, As the LORD liveth, what the LORD saith to me that will I speak. 15 So he came to the king. And the king said to him, Micaiah, shall we go against Ramoth in Gilead to battle, or shall we forbear ? And he answered him, GQ and prosper ; for the LORD will deliver it into the hand of the king. 16 And the king said to him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but what is true in the name of the LORD? 17 And he said, I saw all Israel scattered toward the hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd. And the LORD said, These have no master; let them return every man to his house in peace. 18 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil ? 19 And [Micaiah] said, Hear thou therefore the word of the LORD. I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. 20 And the LORD said, Who will entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth in Gilead? And one said on this manner, and another said on that manner. 21 And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the LORD, and said, I will entice him. 22 And the LORD said to him, Wherewith ? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in XXII. I. KINGS. the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt entice him, and prevail also ; go .forth, and do so. 23 Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets ; and the LORD hath spoken evil concerning thee. 24 But Zedekiah the son of Che- naanah went near, and smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said, Which way went the spirit of the LORD from me to speak to thee ? 25 And Micaiah said, Behold thou shalt see in that day, when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thy- self. 26 And the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah, and carry him back to Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king's son ; 27 And say, Thus saith the king, Put this man in the prison, and feed him with the bread of affliction and with the water of affliction, until I come in safety. 28 And Micaiah said, If thou return at all in safety, the LORD hath not spoken by me. (Moreover he said [Mic. i. l.],.Hear, ye peoples* every one of you.) 29 So the king of Israel and Jeho- shaphat the king of Judah went up to Ranioth in Grilead. 30 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, that he would disguise himself and enter into the battle, But put thou on thy robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle. 31 And the king of Syria com- manded his thirty and two captains of his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel. 32 And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehosha- phat, that they said, Surely it is the king of Israel. And they turned aside to fight against him. And Je- hoshaphat cried out. 33 And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots perceived that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him. I 34 And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the shoulder joints and the breastplate ; wherefore he said to the driver of his chariot, Turn thy hand, and carry me out of the host ; for I am wounded, 35 And the battle increased that day, And the king was propped up in his chariot in face of the Syrians, and died at evening ; and the blood ran out of the wound into the hollow; of the chariot. 36 And there went a cry through- out the camp about the going down of the sun, saying, Every man to his city, and every man to his own. country. 37 So the king died, and was brought to Samaria ; and they buried the king in Samaria. 38 Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, and the ivory house which he built, and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel? 39 So Ahab slept with his fathers ; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead. 40 And JEHOSHAPHAT the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel [B. C. 877]. 41 Jehoshaphat was thirty and five 170 II. KINGS. CHAPTER I. years old when he began to reign ; and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. 42 And he walked in all the ways of Asa his father ; he turned not aside from it, doing what was right in the eyes of the LORD. Neverthe- less the High Places were not taken away ; for the people sacrificed and burnt incense yet on the High Places. 43 And Jehoshaphat remained at peace with the king of Israel. 44 Now the rest of the acts of Je- hoshaphat and his might that he shewed, and how he warred, are they not written in the Book of the Chro- nicles of the kings of Judah ? 45 And the remnant of the abomina- tions, which remained in the days of his father Asa, he took out of the land. 46 There was then no king in Edom; a [Jewish] officer reigned. 47 Jehoshaphat made ships of Tar- shish to go to Ophir for gold. But they went not ; for the ships were wrecked at Ezion-geber. 48 Then said Ahaziah the son of Ahab to Jehoshaphat, Let my serv- ants go with thy servants in the ships. But Jehoshaphat would not. 49 And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers [B. C. 853]; and Jehoram his son reigned in his stead. 50 AHAZIAH the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah [B. C. 861], and reigned two years over Israel. 51 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in the,, way of his mother, and in the way %f Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin ; 52 For he served Baal, and wor- shipped him, and provoked to anger the Eternal the G-od of Israel, ac- cording to all that his father had done. THE SECOND BOOK OF CHAPTER I. 'J'HEN MOAB REBELLED against Israel after the death of Ahab. 2 And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick. And he sent messengers, and said to them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this sickness. 3 But the angel of G-od said to Eli- jah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Sa- maria, and say to them, Is it because there is not a G-od in Israel, that ye go to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron ? 4 Now therefore thus saith the LORD, Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed. 5 And when the messengers re- turned to him [the king], he said to them, Why now are ye returned? 6 And they said to him, There came a man up to meet us, and said CHAPTER II. 171 to us, Go, turn again 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 sendest to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron? Therefore thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. 7 And he said to them, What man- ner of man was he that came up to meet you, and told you these words? 8 And they answered him, He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite. 9 Then [the king] sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him ; and behold, he sat on the top of the mountain. And he spake to him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down. 10 And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then shall fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and it consumed him and his fifty. 11 Again also he sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said to him, man of God, thus hath the king said, Come down quickly. 12 And Elijah answered and said let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight. 14 Behold there came fire down from heaven, and consumed the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties ; therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight. 15 And the angel of God said to Elijah, Go down with him ; be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him to the king. 16 And he said to him, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to inquire of Baal- zebub the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word ? Therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. 17 So he died according to the word of God which Elijah had spoken. And Joram [his brother] reigned in his stead, in the second year of Jeho- rain the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, because he had no son. 18 Now the rest of the acts of A haziah which he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel ? CHAPTER II. A ND it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah sent me to Beth-el. And Elisha said, As the LORD liveth, and as to them, If I be a man of God, fire j went with Elisha from Gilgal. shall come down from heaven, and 2 And Elijah said to Elisha, Tarry consume thee and thy fifty. And the j here, I pray thee ; for the LORD hath fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. 13 And he sent again a captain of j thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. the third fifty with his fifty. And So they went down to Beth-el, the third captain of fifty went up, 4 And the sons of the prophets that and came and fell on his knees before were at Beth-el came forth to Elisha, Elijah, and besought him, and said | and they said to him, Knowest thou to him, man of God, I pray thee, ! that the LORD will take up thy 172 II. KINGS. CHAPTER II. master above thy head to-day? And he said, Yea, I know it. Hold ye your peace. 4 And Elijah said to him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee ; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho. 5 And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said to him, K no west thou that the LORD will take up thy master above thy head to-day? And he answered, Yea, I know it. Hold ye your peace. 6 And Elijah said to him, Tarry, I pray thee, here ; for the LORD hath sent me to the Jordan, And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on. 7 And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood within sight afar off ; and they two stood by the Jordan. 8 And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground. 9 And it came to pass when they were gone over, that Elijah said to Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me. 10 And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing. Nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee ; but if not, it shall not be so. 11 And it came to pass, as they went on walking, and talked, that, behold, there came a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. 12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more. And he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces. 13 He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him. And he went back, and stood by the bank of the Jordan ; 14 And he took the mantle of Eli- jah that fell from him, and he smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD the Grod of Elijah? So he also smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither ; and Elisha went over. 15 And when the sons of the pro- phets who were within sight at Je- richo saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him. 16 And they said to him, Behold now, there be with thy servants fifty men, sons of strength ; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy mas f er ; lest peradventure the spirit of the LORD hath taken him up, ana cast him on some mountain, or into some valley. And he said, Ye shall not send. 17 And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, Send. They sent therefore fifty men. And they sought for three days, but found him not. 18 And when they came again to him, (for he tarried at Jericho,) he said to them, Did I not say to you, G-o not ? 19 And the men of the city said to CHAPTER III. II. KINGS. 173 Elisha, Behold, I pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, 'as my lord seeth; but the waters are bad, and the ground barren. 20 And he said, Bring me a new dish, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him. 21 And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the LORD, I have healed these wa- ters ; there shall not be from thence any more death or barrenness. 22 So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spake. 23 And he went up from thence to Beth-el. And he went from thence to mount Carmel, and from thence he returned to Samaria. CHAPTER III. MOW JORAM the son of Ahab be- gan to reign over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehosha- phat king of Judah [B. C. 860], and reigned twelve years. 2 And he did evil in the eyes of God ; only not like his father, or like his mother. For he put away the image of Baal that his father had made. 3 Nevertheless he cleaved to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin ; he departed not therefrom. 4 Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep master, and rendered to the king of Israel a hundred thousand lambs, and the wool of a hundred thousand rams. 5 But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab re- belled against the king of Israel. 6 And the king Joram went out of Samaria at the same time, and mustered all Israel. 7 And he went and sent to Jeho- j shaphat the king of Judah, saying, | The king of Moab hath rebelled | against me. Wilt thou go with me | against the Moabites to battle ? And i he said, I will go up ; I am as thou I art, my people as thy people, and my horses as thy horses. I 8 And he said, Which way shall we ! go up? And he answered, The way | through the desert of Edom. j 9 So the king of Israel went, and I the king of Judah, and the king of j Edom. And they went round about for a seven days' journey ; and there [ was no water for the host, and for i the cattle that followed them. 10 And the king of Israel said, Alas ! the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of the Moabites ? 11 But Jehoshaphat said, Is there ! not here a prophet of the LORD that ! we may inquire of the LORD by him? i And one of the king of Israel's serv- | ants answered and said, Here is I Elisha the son of Shaphat, who poured I water on the hands af Elijah. 12 And Jehoshaphat said, The | word of God is with him. So the king of Israel and Johoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him. 13 And Elisha said to the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee ? Get thee to the prophets of thy ] father, and to the prophets of thy | mother. And the king of Israel said to him, Nay ; for the LORD hath called these three kings together, I to deliver them into the hand of the Moabites. 14 And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, 174 II. KINGS. CHAPTER IV. sjirely, were it not that I regard the j presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee. 15 But now bring me a minstrel. And it came to pass, when the min- strel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him. 16 And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Make this valley full of ditches. 17 For thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain ; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts. 18 And this is but a light thing in the eyes of the LORD ; he will also deliver the Moabites into your hand. 19 And it came to pass in the morning, when the meal offering was offered up, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water. 20 And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to fight | against them, they called together all \ that were able to wear a belt, and j upward ; and they stood at the boun- i dary. 2 1 And they rose up early in the j morning, and the sun shone upon the | water, and fehe Moabites who were within sight saw the waters as red as blood. 22 And they said, This is blood. The kings are surely slain, and they j have smitten one another. Now therefore, Moabites, to the spoil. 23 And when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled before them. And they went forward there smiting the Moabites. 24 And they beat down the cities, and on every good piece of land cast every man his stone, and filled it ; and they stopped all the wells of water, and felled all the good trees ; until in Kir-hareseth they left only the stones thereof. Howbeit the slingers went about it and smote it. 25 And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too sore for him, he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords, to break through unto the king of Edom ; but they could not. 26 But he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him up for a burnt offering upon the wall. And there came great indignation over Israel. And they departed from him, and returned to their own land. CHAPTER IV. W THERE CRIED a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead ; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD. And the creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bond- servants. 2 And Elisha said to her, What shall I do for thee? Tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thy handmaid hath not any- thing in the house, save a pot of oil. 3 Then he said, Go, borrow for thyself vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels. Let them not be few. 4 And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full. CHAPTER IV. II. KINGS. 175 5 So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who carried to her while she poured out. 6 And it came to pass when the vessels were full, that she said to her I son, Bring rne yet a vessel. And he j said to her, There is not a vessel | more. And the oil stayed. 7 Then she came and told the man | of G-od. And he said. G-o sell the | oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou ! and thy children on the rest. 8 AND IT FELL. ON A DAY, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman ; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned j in thither to eat bread. 9 And she said to her husband, Be- hold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, who paaseth by us continually. 10 Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall ; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a chair, and a lamp- stand. And it may be, when he cometh to us, that he will turn in thither. 11 And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there. 12 And he said to Gehazi his serv- ant, Call this Shunemite. And when he had called her, she stood before him. 13 And he said to him, Say now to her, Behold, thou hast been over careful for us with all this care ; what is to be done for thee ? Wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among mine own people. 14 And he said, What then is to be done for her ? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no child, and her husband is old. 15 And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the doorway. 16 And he said, About the set season, according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thy handmaid. 1 7 And the woman bare a son at the set season that Elisha had said unto her according to the time of life. 18 And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to- his father to the reapers, 19 And he said to his father, My head, my head. And he said to a lad, Carry him to his mother. 20 And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died. 21 And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out. 22 And she called to her husband, and said, Send to me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again. 23 And he said, Wherefore wilt thou go to him to day ? It is neither New-moon nor Sabbath. And she said, It shall be well. 24 Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward ; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee. 25 So she went and came to the man of God at mount Carmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to t Ge- hazi his servant, Behold that is the Shunemite. 176 24 Run, now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say to her, Is it well with thee ? Is it well with thy husband ? Is it well with the child ? And she answered, It is well. 27 And when she came to the man of God to the mountain, she caught him by his feet. But Gehazi came near to thrust her away. And the man of God said, Let her alone ; for her soul is II. KINGS. CHAPTER IV. the flesh of the child waxed warm. 35 Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro ; and went up, and stretched himself upon him ; and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. 36 And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunemite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto vexed within her. And the LORD him, he said, Take up thy son. hath hidden it from me, and hath not told me. 28 Then she said, Did I ask a son of my lord ? Did I not say, Do not deceive me ? 37 Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son and went out. 38 AND ELISHA CAME again to Gilgal : and there was a famine in 29 Then he said to Gehazi, Gird | the land ; and the sons of the pro- np thy loins, and take my staff in phets were sitting before him. And thy hand, and go thy way. If thou meet, any man, salute him not ; and if any he said to his servant, Set on the great pot, and boil pottage for the salute thee, answer him not | sons of the prophets. again. And lay my staff upon the | 39 And one went out into the field face of the child. j to gather herbs, and found a wild 30 And the mother of the child I vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy | his lap full ; and he came and cut soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And he arose and followed her. 31 And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the them up into the pot of postage. For they knew them not. 40 So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they face of the child ; but there was | were eating of the pottage, that they neither voice nor attention. There- cried out, and said, thou man of fore he returned to meet him, and God, there is death in the pot. And told him, saying, The child is not [ they could not eat thereof. .awaked. 4.1 But he said, Then bring meal. 32 And when Elisha was come into And he cast it into the pot ; and he the house, behold, the child was said, Pour out for the people, that dead, and laid upon his bed. they may eat. And there was noth- 33 He went in therefore, and shut | ing evil in the pot. the door upon them twain, and prayed ! 42 And there came to the LORD. Baal-shalisha, and man from brought to the 34 And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands. And man of God bread of the first fruits, twenty loaves of barley and ripe ears of corn in his bag. And he said, Give to the people that they may eat. '.he stretched himself upon him ; and \ 43 And his serving man said, What? CHAPTER V. II. KINGS. 177 Should I set this before a hundred men? He said again, Give to the people, that they may eat ; for thus saith the LORD, They shall eat, and shall have to spare. 44 So he set it before them, and they did eat, and had to spare ac- cording to the word of the LORD. CHAPTER Y. NAAMAN, captain of the hos*t of the king of Syria, was a great man with his lord, and honourable, because by him God had given de- liverance to Syria. But this warrior of valour was a leper. 2 And the Syrians had gone out in troops, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife. 3 And she said to her mistress, I wish that my master were with the prophet that is in Samaria ; for he would recover him of his leprosy. 4 And Naaman went in and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel. 5 And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter to the king of Israel. And he departed and took with him ten Kikars [or hundred weights] of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment. 6 And he brought to the king of Is- rael the letter, which said, Now when this letter is come to thee, behold, I have herewith sent Naaman my serv- ant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy. 7 And it came to pass when the king of Israel had read the letter that he rent his clothes and said, Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this one doth send to me to recover a man of his leprosy ? Therefore con- sider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh a quarrel against me. 8 And it was so, when Elisha the man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying, Where- fore hast thou rent thy clothes? Let him come to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel. 9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again in the.e, and thou shalt be clean. 11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said, Behold, I said to myself, He will surely come out, and stand, and call on the name of Yahveh his God, and wave his hand over the place and recover the leper. 12 Are not Amana and Pharpar, rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters 9f Israel ? May I not wash in them, and be clean ? So he turned and went away in a rage. 13 And his servants came near, and spake to him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid thee to do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? How much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and be clean? 14 Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God ; and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean. 15 And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came and stood before him. And he 178 II. KINGS. CHAPTER VI. said, Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Is- rael. Now, therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing [or present] from thy servant. 16 But he said, As the LORD liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it ; but he refused. 17 And Naarnan said, Shall there not then, I pray thee, be given to thy j servant two mules' burden of earth ? ! For thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt- offering nor sacrifice j unto other gods, but unto the LORD, j 18 In this thing may the LORD par- don thy servant, that when my lord goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, I also bow myself in the house of Rimmon. When I bow down my- 1 self in the house of Rimmon, may the I LORD pardon thy servant in this | thing. 19 And he said to him, Go in peace. So he departed from him a little way. 20 But Gehazi the servant of Eli- sha the man of God, said, Behold, my master hath spared Naarnan this Syrian, in not receiving at his hands \ that which he brought. But as the LORD liveth, I will run after him, and take somewhat from him. 21 So Gehazi followed after Na- aman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well? 22 And he said, All is well. My master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there are come to. me from the hill country of Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets : give them, I pray thee, a Kikar of silver, and two changes of garments. 23 And Naaman said, Be pleased to take two Kikars. And he pressed him, and bound two Kikars of silver in two bags, with two changes of gar- ments, and laid them upon two of his servants ; and they bare them before him. 24 And when he came to the mount, he took them from their hand, and be- stowed them in the house. And he sent away the men ; and they departed . 25 But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said to him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi ? And he said, Thy servant went no whither. 26 And he said to him, My mind was not absent when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee. Is it a time to receive silver, and to receive garments, and oliveyards, and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and men-servants, and maid-servants ? 27 The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave to thee, and thy descend- ants for ever. And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow. CHAPTER VI. THE SONS OF THE PROPHETS said to Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too small for us. 2 Let us go, we pray thee, to the Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make for ourselves a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye. 3 And one said, Be pleased, I pray thee, to go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go. 4 So he went with them, And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down wood. 5 But as one was felling a beam, he let fall the axe head into the wa- CHAPTER VI. II. KINGS. 179 ter. And he cried, and said, Alas, master ! for it was borrowed. 6 And the man of God said, Where fell it ? And he shewed him the place. And he cut* a stick, and cast it in thither ; and it made the iron to swim. 7 And he said, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it. 8 THEN THE KING OF SYRIA war- red against Israel, and took counsel with his servants, saying, In such and such a place shall be my camp. 9 And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass not such a place ; for thith- er the Syrians are coming down. 10 And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God had told him and warned him of, and took heed there, not once or twice. 11 Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing ; and he called his servants, and said to them, Will ye not show me who that belongeth to us is for the king of Israel ? 12 And one of his servants said, None, my lord, king. ButElisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bed-chamber. 13 And he said, Go and see where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan. 14 Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host ; and they came by night, and encompassed the city about. 15 And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, a host encompassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, Alas, my master ! how shall we do ? 10 And he answered, Fear not ; for they that are with us are more than, they that are with them. 17 And Elisha prayed, and said, O LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man ; and he saw. And behold, the moun- tain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha, 18 And when [the Syrians] came down to him, Elisha prayed to God and said, Smite this nation, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. 19 Then Elisha said to them, This is not the way, neither is this the city. Follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. But he led them to Samaria. 20 And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, LORD open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And God opened their eyes, and they saw ; and behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. 21 And the king of Israel said to Elisha, when he saw them, My father, shall I smite them ? Shall I smite them? 22 And he answered, Thou shalt not smite them. Wouldest thou smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow ? Set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and may go to their master. 23 And he prepared great provision for them ; and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. So the troops of Syria came no more into the land of Israel. 180 II. KINGS. CHAPTER VII. 24 AND IT CAME TO PASS after this that Ben-hadad [the Had] king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. 25 And there was a great famine in Samaria. And behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for eighty pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a Cab [or three pints] of herb Dove's-dung for five* pieces of silver. 26 And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, king. 27 And he said, If G-od do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? Out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress? 28 And the king said to her, What aileth thee ? And she answered, This woman said to me, Give thy son that we may eat him to-day, and we will eat niy son to-morrow. 29 So we boiled my son, and did eat him. And I said to her on the next day, Give thy son that we may eat him. And she hath hid her son. 30 And it came to pass when the king heard the words of the wo .nan, that he rent his clothes ; and he passed by upon the wall, and the people looked, and behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh. 31 Then he said, God do so, and more also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day. 32 But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him. And [the king] sent a man from before him ; but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away my head ? Look when the messenger corneth, shut the door, and hold him fast at the door. Is not the sound of his master's feet behind him? 33 And while he yet talked with them, behold the messenger came down to him. And he said, Behold, this evil is from God ; why should I tarry for the LORD any longer ? CHAPTER VII. CN Elisha said, Hear ye the word of the LORD. Thus saith the LORD, To-morrow about this time shall a Seah [or two gallons] of fine flour be sold for a Shekel [or two shillings], and two Seahs of barley for a Shekel, at the city gate of Samaria. 2 Then the chief -of -three [or char- iot warrior], on whose hand the king leaned, answered the man of God, and said, Behold, even if the LORD would make windows in the heavens, could this thing be ? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but thou shilt not eat thereof. 3 And there were four leprous men at the entering in of the city gate ; and they said one to another, Why sit we here until we die ? 4 If we say, We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there ; and if we sit still here, we die also. Now there- fore come, and let us desert to the camp of the Syrians. If they save us alive, we shall live ; and if they kill us, we shall but die. 5 And they rose up in the twilight, to go to the camp of the Syrians. And when they were come to the uttermost part of the camp of the Syrians, behold, there was no man there. 6 For the LORD had made the host of the Syrians to hear a noise of CHAPTER VIII. II. KINGS. 181 chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host : and they said one to another. Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us. 7 Therefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the the host of the Syrians, saying, Go camp as it was, and fled for their life, and see. 8 And when these lepers came to | 15 And they went after them unto swered and said, Let some take, I pray thee, five of the horses that re- main, which are left here, (behold, they that are consumed are as all the multitude of the Israelites,) and let us send and see. 14 They took therefore two chariots with horses ; and the king sent after the uttermost part of the camp they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and gold and raiment, and went and hid it. And they came again, and en- tered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it. 9 Then they said one to another, We do not right. This day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace. If we tarry till the morning light, we shall be found guilty. Now therefore come that we may go and tell the king's household. 10 So they came and called to the gate-keeper of the city. And they told them, saying, We came to the Syrians, and behold, there was no man there, neither voice of man, but horses tied, asses tied, and the tents as they were. 11 And he called the gate-keepers : and they told it to the king's house within. 12 And the king arose in the night, and said to his servants, Let me now show you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we suffer hunger ; therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, When they come out of the city, we shall catch them alive, and get into the city. 13 And one of his servants an- the Jordan. And lo, all the way was full of garments and vessels, which the Syrians had cast away in their hasty flight. And the messengers re- turned; and told the king. 16 And the people went out, and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a Seah of fine flour was sold for a Shekel, and two Seahs of barley for a Shekel, according to the word of the LOED. 17 And the king appointed the chief-of- three on whose hand he leaned to have the charge of the city gate. But the people trod upon him in the city gate, and he died, as the man of God had said, who spake when the king came down to him. CHAPTER VIII. spake Elisha to the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, Arise, and go thou and thy household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn ; for the LORD hath called for a famine ; and it will also come upon the land seven years. 2 And the woman arose, and did after the saying of the man of God ; and she went with the household, and so- journed in the land of the Philistines for seven years. 3 And it came to pass, at the seven years' end, that the woman returned 182 II. KINGS. CHAPTER VIII. out of the land of the Philistines. And she went forth to cry to the king for her house and for her field. 4 And the king talked with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, say- ing, Recount to me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done. 5 And it came to pass, as he was recounting to the king how he had restored a dead body to life, that, be- hold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her field. And Gehazi said, My lord, king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life. 6 And when the king asked the woman, she recounted it to him. So the king appointed unto her a certain chamberlain, saying, Restore all that ! was hers, and all the increase of the | field since the day that she left the I land, even until now. 7 AND ELISHA CAME TO DAMASCUS. ; And Ben-hadad the king of Syria was .sick, And it was told him, saying, A man of God is come hither. 8 And the king said to Hazael, Take a present in thy hand, and go, meet the man of God, and inquire of the LOED by him, saying, Shall I re- cover from this sickness ? 9 So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present in his hand, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels' burden, and came and stood before him, and said, Thy son Ben- hadad king of Syria hath sent me to thee, saying, Shall I recover from this sickness ? 10 And Blisha said to him, Go, say to him, Thou shalt certainly recover, j Howbeit the LORD hath shewed me .that he shall certainly die. 11 And he set his countenance and settled it, and he was ashamed. And the man of God wept. 12 And Hazael said, Why weepeth my lord ? And he answered, Be- cause I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel. Their strongholds wilt thou set on fire, and their young mon wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash to pieces their babeb. 13 And Hazael said, But what is thy servant the dog, that he should do this great thing ? And Elisha answered, the LORD hath shewed me that thou wilt be king over Syria. 14 So he departed from Elisha, and came to his lord ; who said to him, What slid Elisha to thee ? And he answered, He told me that thou shouldst certainly recover. 15 And it came to pass on the mor- row, that [Hazael] took a thick cloth, and dipped it in water, and spread it on his face, so that he died ; and Hazael reigned in his stead. 16 And in the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel [B. C. 868], while Jehoshaphat was yet king of Judah, JEHORAM the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah began to re ign. 17 Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. 18 And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab ; for the daughter of Ahab was his wife, and he did evil in the sight of the LORD. 19 Yet the LORD would not de- stroy Judah for David his servant's sake, as he promised him to give to him always a lamp for his children. 20 In his days Edom revolted from CHAPTER IX. II. KINGS. 183 under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves. 21 So Jehoram went over to Zair, and all the chariots with him. And he rose by night, and smote the Edorn- ites, who encompassed him about and the captains of the chariots. But the people fled to their tents. 22 And Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah unto this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time. 23 And the rest of the acts of Je- horam, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chroni- cles of the kings of Judah ? 24 And Jehoram slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead. 25 In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel [B. C. 849] did AHAZIAH the son of Jehoram king of Judah begin to reign. 26 Two and twenty years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign ; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Athaliah, the [grand] daughter of Omri king of Israel. 27 And he walked in the way of the house of Ahab, and did evil in the sight of God, as did the house of Ahab, for he was a son in law of the house of Ahab. 28 And he went with Joram the son of Ahab to the war against Hazael king of Syria at Ramoth in Gilead. And the Syrians wounded Joram. 29 And king Joram went back to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him at Ramoth, when he fought against Hazael king of Syria. And Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick. CHAPTER IX. Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets, and said to him, Gird up thy loins and take this vial of oil in thy hand, and go to Ramoth in Gilead. 2 And when thou comest thither, look out there for Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi ; and go in, and make him arise up from among his brethren, and bring him to an inner chamber. 3 Then take the vial of oil, and put it on his head, and say, Thus saith the Eternal, I have anointed thee to be king over Israel. Then open the door, and flee, and tarry not. 4 So the young man, the minister of the prophet, went to Ramoth in Gilead. And when he came, behold, the captains of the host were sitting ; and he said, I have an errand to thee, captain. And Jehu said, Unto which of us all ? And he said, To thee, captain, 5 And he arose, and went into the house. And he poured the oil on his head, and said to him, Thus saith the Eternal the God of Israel, I have anointed thee to be king over the peo- ple of the LOED, even over Israel. 6 And thou shalt smite the house of Ahab thy master, that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the LORD, upon Jezebel. And he opened the door, and fled. 7 Then Jehu came forth to the serv- ants of his lord. And one said to him, Is all well ? Wherefore came this madman to thee? And he said to them. Ye know the man and his 184 II. KINGS. CHAPTER IX . talk. And they said, It is false ; tel us now. And he said, Thus and thus spake he to nie, saying, Thus saith the LORD, I have anointed thee to be king over Israel. 8 Then they hastened, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the steps of the stairs, and blew with the trumpets, saying, Jehu is king. 9 So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (Now Joram had kept watch in Ramoth in Gilead, he and all Is- rael, because of Hazael king of Syria. But king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) And Jehu said, If it be your minds, then let none escape to go forth out of the city to go to tell it in Jezreel. 10 So Jehu rode, and went to Jez- reel ; for Joram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah was come down to see Joram. 11 And there stood a watchman on the tower in Jezreel, and he saw the company of Jehu as he came, and said, I see a company. And Joram said, Take a horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say, Is it peace ? 12 So there went one on horseback to meet him, and said, Thus saith the king, Is it peace ? And Jehu said, What hast thou to do with peace ? Turn thee behind me. And the watchman told, saying, The messen- ger came to them, but he cometh not again. 13 Then he sent out a second on horseback, who came to them, and said, Thus saith the king, Is it peace? And Jehu answered, What hast thou to do with peace ? Turn thee be- hind me. 14 And the watchman told, saying, tie came even unto them, and cometh not again. And the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nim- shi ; for he driveth furiously. 15 And Joram said, Make ready. And his chariot was made ready. And Joram king of Israel and Ahazi- ah king of Judah went out against Jehu, and met him in the field of Naboth the Jezreelite. 16 And it came to pass, when Jo- ram saw Jehu, that he said, Is it peace Jehu ? And he answered, Why should it be peace, while the vices of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many ? 17 And Joram turned his hands and fled, and said to Ahaziah, There is treachery, Ahaziah. 18 And Jehu drew a bow with his full strength, and smote Joram . be- tween his arms ; and the arrow went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot. 19 Then said [Jehu] to Bidkar, a chief-of-three [or chariot-warrior], Take him up, and cast him into the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite. For remember how that, when I and thou rode together after Ahab his father, the LORD laid this burden upon him [saying], 20 Surely I have seen in time past the blood of Naboth, and the blood of his sons, the LORD hath said it. And I will requite thee in this parcel of ground, the LORD hath said it. Now therefore take and cast him into the parcel of ground according to the word of God. 21 But when Ahaziah the king of CHAPTER X. II. KINGS. 185 Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. A.nd Jehu fol- lowed after him, and said, Smite him also in the chariot. It was at the hill-road to G-ur, which is by Ibleam. And he fled to Megiddo, and died there. 22 And his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in the burial-place with his fathers in the city of David. 23 And Ahaziah reigned over Ju- dah in the eleventh year of Joram the son of Ahab [B. C. 862]. 24 And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it ; and she painted her eyes, and dressed her head, and looked out at a window, 25 And as Jehu entered in at the city gate, she said, Had Zimri peace, who slew his master? 26 And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? Who ? And there looked out to him two or three chamberlains. 27 And he said, Throw her down. So they threw her down. And she died. CHAPTER X. Jehu slew all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men and his com- panions, and his priests, until he left of him none remaining. 2 And he arose and departed, and came to Samaria. And as he was at a shearing house of shepherds on the way, Jehu met with the brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah, and said, Who are ye? And they answered, We are the brethren of Ahaziah ; and we go down to salute the children of the king and the children of the queen. 3 And he said, Take them alive. And they took them alive, and Slew them at the pit of the shearing house r even two and forty men ; neither left he a man of them. 4 And when he was departed thence, he found Jehonadab a son of Rechab ! coming to meet him. And he blessed him, and said to him, Is thy heart 1 right, as my heart is with thy heart ? And Jehonadab answered, It is. If it be, give me thy hand. And he gave him his hand ; and took him up- I to him into the chariot. I 5 And he said, Come with me, and see my zeal for the LORD. So they made him ride in his chariot. 6 And when he came to Samaria, he slew all that remained unto Ahab- in Samaria, till he had destroyed him, according to the saying of Grod, which he spake to Elijah. 7 [And Jehu utterly destroyed Baal out of Israel, and slew all the priests of Baal.] And he brought forth the images out of the house of Baal, and burned them. And he brake down the image of Baal, and brake down the house of Baal, and made it a draught house unto this day. 8 Howbeit from the sins of Jero- boam the son of Nebat, who made Is- rael to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, to wit, the golden calves that were in Beth-el, and that were in Dan. 9 And the LORD said to Jehu, Because thou hast done well in ex- ecuting what is right in mine eyes, and hast done to the house of Ahab according to all that was in my heart, thy children of the fourth genera- tion shall sit on the throne of Israel. 10 But Jehu took no heed to walk in the way of the Eternal the G-od of 186 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XI. Israel with all his heart ; for he de- parted not from the sins of Jeroboam, who made Israel to sin. 11 In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short ; and Hazael smote them in all the boundaries of Israel ; 12 From the Jordan towards the rising of the sun, all the land of Gilead, the G-adites, and the Reuben- ites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the river Arnon ; even Gilead and Bashan. 13 Now the rest of the acts of Je- hu, and all that he did, and all his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel ? 14 And Jehu slept with his fathers. And they buried him in Samaria. And Jehoahaz his son reigned in his stead. And the days that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria were twenty and eight years. CHAPTER XL when ATHALIAH the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the royal descendents. 2 But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Jehoram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him from among the king's sons who were slain. And they hid him, even him and his nurse, in the bedchamber from Athaliah, so that he was not slain. 3 And he was with her hidden in the House of God for six years. And Athaliah did reign over the land. 4 And on the seventh year [B. C. 843] Jehoiada sent and fetched the captains over hundreds, with the axe- bearers and the runners, and brought them to him into the house of the LORD, and made covenant with them, and took an oath from them in the House of the LORD, and shewed them the king's son. 5 And he commanded th3m, saying, This is the thing that ye shall do. Of you that come in on the sabbath, a third part shall be keepers of the watch of the king's house ; 6 And a third part shall be at the Gate of Turning ; and a third part at the gate behind the runners. So shall ye keep the watch of the House against a carrying oft'. 7 And of all you that go out on the sabbath, two parts shall keep the watch of the House of the LORD about the king. 8 And ye shall encompass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and he that cometh unto the ranks, let him be slain. And be ye with the king as he goeth out and as he cometh in. 9 And the captains over the hun- dreds did according to all things that Jehoiada the Priest commanded. And they took every man his men that were to come in on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the Priest. 10 And to the captains over hundreds did the Priest give king David's spears and shields, that were in the House of the LORD. 11 And the runners stood every man with his weapons in his hand round about the king, from the right front corner of the House to the left corner of the House, against the Altar and against the House. 12 And he brought forth the king's son, and put the crown upon him, and the Testimonials, and they made him king, and anointed him. And they clapped their hands, and said, May the king live. CH AFTER XII. II. KINGS. 187 13 And when Athaliah heard the noise of the runners and of th^ peo- ple, she came to the people into the House of the LORD. 14 And when she looked, behold, the king stood upon the pillar, as was the custom, and the captains and the trumpeters by the king, and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew the trumpets. And Athaliah rent her clothes and cried, Treason, trea- son. 15 But Jehoiada the Priest com- manded the captains of hundreds, the officers of the host, and said to them, Lead her forth within the ranks; and let him that followeth her be slain with the sword. For the Priest had said, Let her not be slain in the House of the LORD. 16 And they laid hands on her ; and she went by the way by which the horses came into the king's house ; and there was she slain. 17 And Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people, that they should be the LORD'S people ; between the king also and the people. 18 And all the people of the land went into the house of Baal, and brake it down : his altars and his images brake they in pieces thorough- ly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the Priest appointed to the offices in the House of the LORD. 19 And he took the captains over hundreds, and the axe-bearers, and the runners, and all the people of the land ; and they brought down the king from the House of the LORD, and came by the way of the gate of the runners to the king's house. And he sat on the throne of the kings. 20 And all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was in quiet ; and they slew Athaliah with the sword at the king's house. 21 Seven years old was Jehoash when he began to reign. CHAPTER XII. |N the seventh year of Jehu [B. C. 843] JOASH began to reign ; and forty years reigned he in Jerusa- lem. And his mother's name was Zibiah of Beer-sheba. 2 And Joash did what was right in the sight of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the Priest instruct- ed him. 3 But the High Places were not taken away ; and the people still sacri- ficed and burnt incense on the High Places. 4 And Joash said to the priests, All the money of the holy things that is brought into the House of the LORD, the current money of every one, the head-money of his taxation, and all the money that cometh into any man's heart to bring into the house of the LORD, 5 Let the priests take it to them- selves, every man from his friend ; and let them repair the breaches of the House, wheresoever any breach shall be found. 6 But it was so, that in the three and twenthieth year of king Joash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the House. 7 Then king Joash called for Jehoiada the Priest, and the other priests, and said to them, Why re- pair ye not the breaches of the House? Now therefore receive no more money from your fiiends, but deliver it for the breaches of the House. 188 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XIII. 8 And the priests consented to re- ceive no more money from the people neither to be the repairers of the breaches of the House. 9 But Jehoiada the Priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it, and set it near the altar, on the right hand as one cometh into the House of the LORD. And the priests that kept the door put therein all the money that was brought into the House of the LORD. 10 And it was so, when they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king's scribe and the high priest came up, and they put it up in bags, and counted the money that was found in the House of the LORD. 11 And they gave the money, when weighed, into the hands of them that did the work, that had the oversight of the House of the LORD ; and they brought it forth to the carpenters and builders, that worked upon the House of God, 12 And to the masons, and hewers of stone, and to buy timber and stone, and to repair the breaches of the House of God, and for all that was laid out for the House to repair it. 13 However, there were not made for the House of God bowls of silver, snuffers, sprinkling buckets, trumpets, any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the House of God. 14 But they gave that to the work- men, and repaired therewith the House of God. 15 Moreover they reckoned not with the men into whose hand they de- livered the money to be given to the workmen ; for they dealt faithfully. 16 The guilt-offering money and sin-offering money was not brought in- to the House of God ; it was the priests. 17 Then Hazael king of Syria went up, and fought against Gath, and took it. And Hazael set his face to go up to Jerusalem. 18 And Joash king of Judah took all the holy things that Jeho- shaphat, and Jehoram, and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had made holy, and his own holy things, and all the gold that was found in the treasures of the House of the LORD, and in the king's house, and sent it to Hazael king of Syria. And he went away from Jerusalem. 19 And the rest of the acts of Jo- ash, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chroni- cles of the kings of Judah ? 20 And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and slew Joash at Beth- Mil lo [or the castle], at the go- ing down to Silla. 2 1 For Jozachar the son of Shime- ath, and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his servants, smote him, and he died. And they buried him with his fathers in the city of David ; and Amaziah his son reigned in his stead. CHAPTER XIII. |N the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah king of Judah [B. C. 821] JEHOAHAZ the son of Jehu began to reign for seven- teen years over Israel in Samaria. 2 And he did ev 1 in the sight of * God, and followed the sins of Jerobo- am the son of Nebat, who made Is- j l to sin ; he departed not there- from. 3 And the anger of the LORD was CHAPTER XIII. II. KINGS. 189 kindled against Israel, and he de- j smite the Syrians in Aphek, till thou livered them into the hand of Hazael ! have consumed them. 12 king of Syria all his days. 4 For there were left no people to Je- hoahaz save only fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand men on foot ; for the kiug of Syria had destroyed them, and had made them like the dust to be trampled on. 5 Now the rest of the acts of Je- hoahaz, and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the of Israel ? 6 And Jehoahaz slept with his And he said, Take the arrows. And he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, Smite upon the ground. And he smote thrice, and stayed. 13 And the man of God was wroth with him, and said, On smiting five or six times, then hadst thou smitten Syria till thou hadst consumed it. Whereas now thou shalt smite kings Syria but thrice. AndElisha died, and they buried him. (14 And the bands of the Moab- fathers ; and they buried him in Sa- ites invaded the land at the coming maria ; and Jehoash his son reigned in of the year. And it came to pass, in his stead. as they were burying a man, that be- 7 In the thirty and seventh year of Joash king of Judah [B. 0. 807] be- gan JEHOASH the son of Jehoahaz to reign over Israel in Samaria, for six- teen years. 8 Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he died. Jehoash the king of Israel down to him, and wept over his face, and said, my father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horse- men thereof. 9 And Elisha said to him, Take a hold, they spied a band of men ; and they east the man into the sepulchre of Elisha. And when he was let down, and touched the bones of Elisha, he came to life, and stood upon his feet.) 15 Now Hazael king of Syria had And oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoa- came haz. And Jehoash besought the face of the LORD, and G-od hearkened to him ; for he saw the oppression of Is- rael, because the king of Syria op- pressed them.* 16 And the LORD was gracious to bow and arrows. And he took to him them, and had compassion on them, a bow and arrows. and turned to them, because of his 10 And he said to the king of Is- covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and rael, Put thy hand upon the bow. Jacob, and would not destroy them. And he put his hand upon it. And } neither cast he them from his pres- Elisha put his hands upon the king'? ence as yet. hands. i 17 And Hazael king of Syria died ; 11 And he said, Open the windows | and his son Ben-hadad [the Illrd.] eastward. And he opened it. Then ! reigned in his stead. Elisha said, Shoot. And he shot, i 18 And Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz And he said, The arrow of God's I returned and took out of the hand of deliverance, and the arrow of deliver- ance from Syria. For thou shalt 1 * Transposed from Ch. xm., V. 4. 190 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XIV. Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the ci- ties, which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did Jehoash beat him, and recover the cities of Israel. 19 So the LORD gave to Israel a saviour ; so that they went out from under the hand of the Syrians. And the children of Israel dwelt in their tents as aforetime. 20 Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the house of Jerobo- am, who made Israel to sin, but walked therein ; and there remained the image of Ashera also in Samaria.* CHAPTER XIV. JN the second year of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel [B. C. 806] reigned AMAZIAH the son of Joash king of Judah. 2 He was twenty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reign- ed twenty and nine years in Jerusa- lem. And his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. 3 And he did what was right in the sight of God, yet not like David his father. He did according to all things as Joash his father did. 4 However the High Places were not taken away. As yet the people sacrificed and burnt incense on High Places. 5 And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was confirmed in his hand, that he slew his servants who had slain the king his father. 6 But the children of the murderers he did not put to death ; according to that which is written in the Book of the Law of Moses [Deut. xviv. 16], wherein the LORD commanded, say- * Transposed from Ch. xiu., V. 5-6. ing, The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the chil- dren put to death for the fathers; but every man shall be put to death for his own sin. 7 He smote in the Valley of Salt ten thousand Edomites, and took Sela [or Petra] by war, and called the name of it Joktheel [or captured by God] unto this day. 8 Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz the son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying, Come, let us look one another in the face. 9 And Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, say- ing, The thistle that was on Lebanon sent to the cedar that was on Leba- non, saying, Give thy daughter to ray son to wife. But there passed by a wild beast that was on Lebanon, and trod down the thistle. 10 Thou hast indeed smitten Edom, and thy heart hath lifted thee up. Glory thou at this, and tarry at home. For why wouldest thou rush into trou- ble, that thou shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah with thee ? 11 But Amaziah would not hear. Therefore Jehoash king of Israel went up ; and he and Amaziah king of Ju- dah looked one another in the face at Beth-sheinesh, which belongeth to Judah. 12 And Judah was smitten before Israel ; and they fled every man to their tents. 13 And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Joash the son of Ahaziah, at Beth- shemesh ; and he came to Jerusalem, and brake down the wall of Jerusalem near the gate of Ephraim unto the Corner Gate, four hundred cubits. 14 And he took all the gold and CHAPTER XV. II. KINGS. 191 silver, and all the vessels that were found in the House of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, and hostages, and returned to Sa- maria. 15 Now the rest of the acts of Je- hoash which he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel ? 16 And Jehoash slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel : and Jerobo- am [Ilnd] his son reigned in his stead. 17 And Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years. 18 And the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah? 19 And they made a" conspiracy against him in Jerusalem : and he fled to Lachish. But they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there. 20 And they brought him on horses; and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David. 21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. 22 He had built Elath, and restor- ed it to Judah, after that the king [Amaziah] had slept with his fathers. 23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah [B. C. 792] JEROBOAM [Ilnd] the son of Jehoash king of Israel began to reign in Samaria for forty and one year. 24 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD. He departed not from ! any of the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. 25 He restored the boundary of Is- rael from the Pass of Hamath unto ! the Sea of the Barren Valley, accord- ! ing to the word of the LORD, the ! G-od of Israel, which he spake by the 1 hand of his servant Jonah the son of I Aniittai, the prophet, who was of ! Gath-hepher. i 2(3 For the LORD saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter ; for I there remained none, whether bonds- man or free, nor was there any helper | for Israel. 27 And the LORD said not that he would blot out the name of Israel I from under heaven ; but he saved i them by the hand of Jeroboam the i son of Jehoash. 28 Now the rest of the acts of Je- roboam, and all that he did, and his might, how he warred, and how he recovered Damascus, and Hamath of Judah, for Israel, are they not writ- ten in the Book of the Chronicles of i the kings of Israel ? j 29 And Jeroboam slept with his I fathers the kings of Israel ; and Za- chariah his son reigned in his stead. CHAPTER XV. TN THE TWENTY and seventh year of Jeroboam [Ilnd] king of Israel [B. i C. 778] began AZARIAH [or UZZIAH] son of Amaziah king of Judah to reign. 2 Sixteen 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. 3 And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD according to all that his father Amaziah had done ; 4 Save that the High Places were 192 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XV. not removed ; the people still sacri- ficed and burnt incense on High Places. 5 And God smote the king, so that he was a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a house of beds [or a hospital). And Jothani the hing's son was over the house, judg- ing the people of the land. 6 And the rest of the acts of Azari- ah, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah ? 7 So Azariah slept with his fathers; and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David ; and Jothani his son reigned in his stead. 8 In the thirty and eighth year of Azariah king of Judah [B. C. 764] did ZACHARIAH the son of Jeroboam reign over Israel in Samaria for six months. 9 And he did 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. 10 And Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and smote him before the people, and slew him, and reigned in his stead. 11 And the rest of the acts of Za- chariah, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel. 12 This was the word of God which he spake to Jehu, [Ch. x. 30] saying, Thy sons shall sit on the throne of Israel unto the fourth generation. And so it came to pass. 13 SHALLUM the son of Jabesh be- gan to reign in the nine and thirtieth year of Uzziah [or Azariah] king of Judah [B. C, 763], and he reigned a month in Samaria. 14 For 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. 15 And 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. 16 Then MENAHEM smote Tiphash, and all that were therein, and its boundaries from Tirzah. Because they opened not to him, therefore he smote it. 17 In the nine and thirtieth year of Azariah king of Judah [B. C. 763] began Menahem the of Gadi to reign over Israel for ten years in Samaria. 18 And he did 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. 19 Pul the king of Assyria came against the land. And Menahem gave Pul a thousand Kikars [or hundred weights] of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand. 20 And Menahem exacted the money from Israel, even from all the mighty men of wealth, for each man fifty Shekels [or 100 shillings] of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and stayed not there in the land. 21 And the rest of the acts of Me- nahem, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chro- nicles of the of Israel ? 22 And Menahem slept with his fathers ; and Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead. 23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah [B. C. 752] PEKAHIAH CHAPTER XVI. II. KINGS. 193 the son of Menahein began to reign over Israel in Samaria for two years. 24 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD. He departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Ne- bat, who made Israel to sin. 25 But Pekah the son of Remaliah, one of his chiefs-of-three [or chariot warriors], conspired against him, and smote him in Samaria, in the strong tower of the king's house, with Argob and Ariah ; (and with him were fifty | men of the sons of the Gileadites;) and he killed him, and reigned in his room. 26 And the rest of the acts of Pe- kahiah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel. 27 In the two and fiftieth year of Azariahking of Judah [B. C. 750] I PEKAH the son of Remaliah began to j reign over Israel in Samaria for twenty years. 28 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD. He departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Ne- bat, who made Israel to sin. 29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abel near Beth-maachah, and Janoah, and Ke- desh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali, and carried them captive to Assyria. 30 And 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 [B. C. 730]. 31 And the rest of the acts of Pe- kah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the Book of the Chron- icles of the kings of Israel. 32 In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel [B. C. 749] began JOTHAM the son of Uzziah king of Judah to reign. 33 Five 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. 34 And he did what was right in the sight ,of the LORD ; he did ac- cording to all that his father Uzziah had done. 35 Howbeit the High Places were not removed ; the people still sacri- ficed and burned incense on High Places. He built the Upper Gate of the House of the LORD. 36 Now the rest of the acts of Jo- tham, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah ? 37 In those days the LORD began to send against Judah Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Rema- liah. 38 And Jotham slept with his fathers in the city of David his father ; and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead. CHAPTER XVI. I N the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah [B. C. 734] AHAZ the son of Jotham king of Ju- dah began to reign. 2 Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem, and did not do what was right in the sight of the LORD his God, like David his father. 3 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the nations 194 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XVI. whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel. 4 And he sacrificed and burnt in- cense on High Places ; and on the hills, and under every green tree. 5 Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Renialiah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war ; and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him. 6 At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, a'nd drove the Jews from E lath. And the E do- mites came to Elath, and dwelt there unto this day. 7 So Ahaz sent messengers to Tig- lath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy S9n. Come up, and save me out of the grasp of the king of Syria, and out of the grasp of the king of Israel, \vho rise up against me. 8 And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the House of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a gift to the king of Assyria. 9 And the king of Assyria hearken- ed to him ; for the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin. 10 And king Ahaz went to Da- mascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria. And he saw the altar that was at Damascus ; and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the Priest the likeness of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workman- ship of it. 11 And Urijah the Priest built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus ; so Urijah the Priest made it before king Ahaz returned from Damascus. 12 And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar. And the king approached to the altar, and offered up thereon. 13 And he burnt his burnt offering and his meal offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar. 14 And he brought also the copper altar, which was before the LORD, from the front of the House, from between the [Great] Altar and the House of the LORD, and put it on the north side of the Altar. 15 And king Ahaz commanded Uri- jah the Priest, saying, Upon the Great Altar burn the morning burnt offer- ing, and the evening meal offering, and the king's burnt offering, and his meal offering, with the burnt offering of all the people of the land, and their meal offering, and their drink offerings ; and sprinkle upon it all the blood of the burnt offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice ; and the copper altar shall be for me to in- quire by. 16 And Urijah the Priest did ac- cording to all that king Ahaz com- manded. 17 And king Ahaz cut off the panels of the basinstands, and removed the Laver [or basin] from off them, and took down the Water- cistern from off the copper oxen that were under it, and put it upon the pavement of stones. 18 And the shelter [or portico] for the sabbath, that they had built on to the House, and the king's entrance on the outside, carried he all round the House of the LORD for the king of Assyria. 19 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in CHAPTER XVII. II. KINGS. 195 the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah ? 20 And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David ; and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead. CHAPTER XVII. TN the twelfth year of Ahaz king of 1 Judah [B. 0. 730], began HOSHEA the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel for nine years. 2 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, but not as the kings of Israel that were before him. 3 Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria ;| and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him presents. 4 And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea; for he had sent messengers to Seve king of Egypt, and brought no present to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year. Therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison. 5 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Hezekiah [B. C. 724], which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Shal- maneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it. 6 And at the end of three years he took it ; that is the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel [B. C. 722], Samaria was taken. 7 And the king of Assyria did carry away Israel to Assyria, and put them in Halah, and in Habor by the river of G-ozan, and in the cities of the Medes ; 8 Because they obeyed not the voice of the LORD their God, but trans- gressed his covenant and all that Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded, and would not hear them nor do them*); 9 The LORD removed Israel out of his presence, as he had said by the hand of all his servants the prophets. So was Israel carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day. 10 And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Ava, and from Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel. And they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof. 11 And so it was at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the LORD ; therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which slew some of them. 12 Therefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast removed, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the man- ner of the God of the land. There- fore he hath sent lions among them, and behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land. 13 Then the king of Assyria com- m-anded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom ye carried away from thence ; and let him go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land. 14 Then one of the priests whom thy had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Beth-el and taught them how they should fear the Eternal. 15 Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the High Places which the *) Transposed from Chapter xvm. V.9-I2. 196 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XVIII. Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt. 16 And the men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth and the men of Cuth- ah made Nergal, and the men of Ha- math made Ashinia, 17 And the Avites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burnt their children in fire to Adram- melech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. 18 And there were some who feared the Eternal, and yet made for themselves of the lowest of them priests of the High Places, and there were some who acted for themselves in the houses of the High Places. 19 And some feared the Eternal, and some served their own gods, after the manner of the nations who had car- ried away [the Israelites] from thence. 20 So these nations feared the LORD, and yet served their graven images, both their children, and their children's children. As did their fathers, so do they unto this day. CHAPTER XVIII. MOW it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel [B. C. 728], that HEZEKIAH. the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. 2 Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign ; and he reigned twenty and nine years in Je- rusalem. And his mother's name was Abi, the daughter of Zechariah. 3 And he did what was right in the sight of God, according to all that David his father had done. 4 He removed the High Places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves of Ashera, and brake in pieces the copper serpent that Moses had made. For unto those days the chil- dren of Israel did burn incense to it. And it was called Nehushtan. 5 He trusted in the Eternal the God of Israel ; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Ju- dah, nor any that were before him. 6 For he cleaved to the LORD, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments which the LORD had commanded Moses. 7 And God was with him. He prospered whithersoever he went forth; and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not. 8 He smote the Philistines, even unto Gaza, and its boundaries, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. 9 Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah [B. 0. 714] did Sen- nacherib king of Assyria come up against all the fenced cities of Judah and took them. 10 And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying, I have offended ; return from me. That which thou puttest on me will I bear. And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah king of Ju- dah three hundred Kikar [or hundred weights] of silver, and thirty Kikars of gold. 11 And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the House of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house. 12 At that time did Hezekiah cut off [the gold] from the doors of the Temple of the LORD, and from the pillars which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and he gave it to the king of Assyria. 13 And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rab-saris and Rab-shakeh CHAPTER XVIII. II. KINGS. 197 from Lachish to king Hezekiah with | a great army against Jerusalem. And j they went up and came to Jerusalem, j And when they were come up, they j came and stood by the conduit of the j Upper Pool, which is in the highway i of the fuller's field. 14 And when they had called to i the king, there came forth to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder. 15 And Rab-shakeh said to them, Say ye now to Hezekiah, Thus saith the great king, the king of As- syria, What trust is this wherein thou trustest ? 16 Thou speakest only words of the lips, as counsel and strength for war. Now on whom dost thou trust, that | thou hast rebelled against me ? 17 Now, behold, thou trustest thy- self on the support of this broken reed, even on Egypt, on which if a i man lean, it will go into his hand, i and pierce it. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust on him. 18 But if ye say to me, We trust in | Yahveh our G-od ; is it not he j whose High Places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away? And he i saith to Judah and Jerusalem, Ye j shall worship him before this altar in Jerusalem. 19 Now therefore match thyself, I pray thee, against my lord the king of Assyria, and I will deliver to thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to put riders upon them. 20 How then wilt thou turn away the face of one Pacha [or captain] of the least of my master's servants, and put thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen ? 21 Am I now come up without Yahveh against this place to destroy it? Yahveh said to me, Go up against this land, and destroy it. 22 Then said Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebna, and Joab, to Rab-shakeh, Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in the Syriac language ; for we understand it. And speak not to us in the Jewish language in the ears of the people that are on the wall. 23 But Rab-shakeh said to them, Hath my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words ? Hath he not sent me to the men that sit upon the wall, that eat offal, and drink swill with you? 24 Then Rab-shakeh stood and cried with a loud voice in the Jewish language, and spake, and said, Hear ye the word of the Great King, the king of Assyria. 25 Thus saith the king, Let not Hezekiah deceive you ; for he will not be able to deliver you out of his hand. 26 Neither let Hezekiah make you trust in Yahveh, saying, Yahveh will surely deliver us, and this city will not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria. 27 Hearken not to Hezekiah. For thus saith the king of Assyria, Make peace with me, and come out to me, and then eat ye every man of his i own vine, and every man of his own fig tree, and drink ye every man the i waters of his own cistern ; 28 Until I come and take you away I to a land like your own land, a land I of corn and grape juice, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of the oil-olive, and of honey, that ye may live and not die. And hearken not 198 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XIX. to Hezekiah, when he persuadeth you, saying, Yahveh will deliver us. 29 Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered at all his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria ? 30 Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad ? Where are the gods of Sepharvaini, Hena, and Avah ? Have they delivered Samaria out of rny hand ? 31 Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have de- livered their country out of my hand, that Yahveh should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand ? 32 But the people held their peace, and answered him not a word ; for the king's command was, saying, Answer him not. 33 Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the house, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rab- shaken. CHAPTER XIX. . AND it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the House of the LORD. 2 And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to ISAIAH the prophet, the son of Amoz. 3 And they said to him, Thus saith Hezekiah, This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of scoffing. 4 It maybe the Eternal thy God will hear all the words of Rab-shakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to defy the living God ; and will reprove the words which the Eternal thy God hath heard. There- fore lift up a prayer for the remnant that is left. 5 So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 And Isaiah said to them, Thus saith the Eternal, Be not afraid of the words which thou hast heard, with which the lads of the king of Assyria have blasphemed me. 7 Behold, I will send a breath upon him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return to his own land ; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land. 8 So Rab-shakeh returned, and joined the king of Assyria warring against Libnah. 9 For he had heard that he [the king] had moved his camp from Lachish, because he heard say of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia, Behold, he is come out to fight against thee. 10 Now he sent messengers again to Hezekiah, saying, Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying, Let not thy God in whom thou trustest deceive thee, saying, Jerusalem shall not be given into the | hand of the king of Assyria. 11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly. And shalt thou be delivered? 12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them which my fathers have destroyed ; as Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden who were in Tel-ashar ? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and of^Avah? 14 A'nd Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the. messenger, and II. KINGS. 199 read it. And Hezekiah went up unto the House of God, and spread it be- fore the LORD. 15 And Hezekiah prayed before God, and said, Eternal God of Israel, who dwellest above the cherubim, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. Thou hast made the heavens and the earth. 16 Incline thine ear, LORD, and hear. Open thine eyes, Eternal, and see. And hear the words of Sennacherib, who hath sent to defy the living God. 17 Of a truth, God, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, and have cast their godi into the fire. 18 For the^ were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone ; therefore they have destroyed them. 19 Now therefore, Eternal our God, I beseech thee, save us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou, Eternal, art God, even thou only. 20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the Eternal the God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to me against Sen- nacherib king of Assyria I have heard. 21 This is the word which the LORD hath spoken concerning, him, The virgin the daughter of Zion despiseth thee, she laugheth thee to scorn. The daughter of Jerusalem shaketh her head after thee. 22 Whom hast thou defied and blasphemed ? And against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high ? Even against the Holy One of Israel. 23 By the hand of thy messengers thou hast defied the LORD, and hast said, With the multitude of my char- iots I am come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Leba- non, and I will cut down its tall cedar trees, and its choice fir trees ; and I will enter into its remotest lodgings, and into the thicket of its garden [or Carrnel]. 4 I have digged and have drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet I will dry up all the canals of Lower Egypt. 25 Hast thou not heard long ago how I did it, and of ancient times that I proposed it ? Now have I brought it to pass, that it should be for thee to lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps. 26 But their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb; as grass on the housetops, or blight [on corn] before it be grown to stalk. 27 But thine abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, I know, and thy rage against me. 28 Because thy rage against me and thine insolence are come up into mine ears, therefore I will put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou earnest. 29 And this shall be a sign unto thee, in this year shall be eaten what groweth of itself, and in the second year that which springeth from the same ; and in the third year they shall sow, and reap, and plant vine- yards, and eat the fruits thereof. 30 And the escaped of the house of Judah shall increase, those left shall take root downward, and bear fruit upward. 31 Therefore thus saith the LORD 200 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XX. concerning the king of Assyria, | thy sight. And Hezekiah wept with He shall not come into this city, nor a great weeping, shoot an arrow there, nor come before 4 And it came to pass, before Isaiah it with shields, nor cast up a siege- 1 was gone out into the middle court, that the word of God came to him, saying, 5 Turn again, and tell Hezekiah the LORD | the captain of my people, Thus saith | the LORD, the God of David thy shield to this | father, I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears ; behold, I will heal thee ; on the third day thou shalt go up unto the House of God. 6 And I will add to thy days fifteen mound against it. .'W By the way that he came, by the same shall he return ; and he shall not come into this city ; hath said it. 33 For I will be a city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David's sake. 34 And it came to pass that night, that the angel of God went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyr- j years : and I will deliver thee and ians a hundred and eighty and five this city out of the grasp of the king thousand ; and when men arose early j of Assyria ; and I will be a shield in the morning, behold, they were i over this city for mine own sake, and all dead corpses. j for my servant David's sake. 35 And Sennacherib king of Assyria } 7 And Isaiah said, Take ye a cake moved his camp, and went and re- of figs. And they took and laid it turned, and dwelt at Nineveh. 36 (And it came to pass [B. 0. 683], as he was worshipping in the ! What sha11 be the si S n that the LORD house of Nisroch his god, that Adram- melech and Sharezer his sons smote on the boil, and he recovered. 8 And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, will heal me, and that I shall go up into the House of God on the third day? 9 And Isaiah said, This shall be a sign to thee from God, that God will do the thing that he hath spoken. Shall the shadow go forward ten de- grees, or go back ten degrees ? 10 And Hezekiah answered, It is a i light thing for the shadow to grow zekiah sick unto death And Isaiah lo g nger ten g degrees . nay> bufc let % he the prophet the son of Arnoz came to shadow refcurn backward ' ten de him, and said to him, Thus saith the u And Igaiah th h f d LORD, Set thy house m order, for him with the sword. And they es- caped into the land of Ararat [or Ar- menia]. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.) CHAPTER XX. F those days [B. C. 713] was He- 1 1 -1 _ 1 - j 1 A 1 T 1 thou shalt die, and not live. 2 Then he turned his face to the wall and prayed to God, saying, 3 I beseech thee, LORD, re- member now how I have walked be- fore thee in truth and with a perfect heart, and have done what is good in God, And he brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down on the sun-dial of Ahaz, 12 At that time Berodach-baladan, the son of Baladan, king of Babylon., sent letters and a present to Heze- kiah ; for he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick. CHAPTER XXI. II. KINGS. 201 13 And Hezekiah hearkened to them, and shewed them all the house of his spicery, the silver, and the gold, and the scents, aud the precious ointment, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures. There was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah shewed them not. 14 Then came Isaiah the prophet to king Hezekiah, and said to him, What said these men ? And from where came they to thee ? And He- zekiah said, From a far country, they are come from Babylon. 15 Then he said, What have they seen in thy house ? And Hezekiah answered, All that is in my house have they seen. There is nothing among my treasures that I have not shewed them. 16 And Isaiah said to Hezekiah, Hear the word of the Eternal. 17 Behold, days will come when all that is in thy house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store un- til this day, shall be carried to Baby- lon. Nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. 18 And some of thy sons that shall be born unto thee, shall they take away ; and they shall be chamber- lains in the palace of the king of Babylon. 19 Then said Hezekiah to Isaiah, G-ood is the word of God which thou hast spoken. And he said further, Oh that peace and truth may be in ray days. 20 And the rest of the acts of He- zekiah, and all his might, and how he made the pool, and the conduit, and brought water into the city, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah ? 21 And Hezekiah slept with his fathers; and Manasseh his son reigned in his stead. CAPTER XXI. M ANASSEH was twelve years old when he began to reign [B. C, 698], and he reigned fifty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's- name was Hephzi-bah. 2 And he did evil in the sight of God, after the abominations of the nations, whom the LORD cast out be- fore the children of Israel. 3 For he built up again the High Places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed ; and he reared up altars for Baal, and made an image of Ashera, as did Ahab king of Israel ; and he worshipped all the host of the heavens, and served them. 4 And he built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the LORD said, In Jerusalem will I put my name. 5 And he built altars for all the host of the heave as in the two courts of the House of the LORD. 6 And he made his son to pass through the fire, and observed clouds, and used enchantments, and dealt with familiar spirits and wizards ; he wrought much wickedness in the sight of God; to provoke him to anger. 7 And he set a graven image of Ashera that he had made in the House, of which the LORD had said to David, and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of Is- rael, will I put my name for ever. 8 Neither will I make the feet of [srael move any more out of the land which I gave their fathers ; if they will only observe to do according to all that I have commanded them, and 202 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XXII. according to all the Law that my serv- ant Moses commanded them. 9 But they hearkened not. And Manasseh seduced them to do more evil than did the nations whom the LORD destroyed from before the chil- dren of Israel. 10 And the LORD spake by the hand of his servants the prophets, saying, 1 1 Because Manasseh king of Ju- dah hath done these abominations, and hath done wickedly above all that the Amorites did, who were before him, and hath made Judah also to sin with his filthy idols ; 12 Therefore thus saith the Eternal the God of Israel, Behold, I am bringing such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingled 13 And I will stretch over Jerusa- lem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab. And I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it, and turning it upon its face. 14 And I will forsake the remnant of mine inheritance, and they shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies ; 15 Because they have done that which was evil in my sight, and have provoked me to anger, since the day their fathers came forth out of Egypt, even unto this day. 16 Moreover Manasseh shed inno- cent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to an- other ; beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing what was evil in the sight of God. 17 Now the rest of the acts of Ma- nasseh, and all that he did, and his sin that he sinned, are they not writ- ten in the Book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah ? 18 And Manasseh slept with his fathers, and was buried in the garden of his own house, in the garden of Uzza ; and Amon his son reigned in his stead. 1 9 AMON was twenty and two years old when he began to reign [B. C. 643], and he reigned two years in Je- rusalem. And his mother's name was Meshullarneth, the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah. 20 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, as his father Manasseh had done. 21 And he walked in all the ways that his father had walked in, and served the filthy idols that his father served, and worshipped them. 22 And he forsook the LORD the God of his fathers, and walked not in the way of the LORD. 23 And the servants of Amon con- spired against him, and killed the king in his own house. 24 And the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon ; and the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his stead. CHAPTER XXH. TOSIAH was eight years old when * he began to reign [B. C. 641], and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Jedidah, the daughter of Adaiah of Boscath. 2 And he did what was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left. 3 And it came to pass in the eigh- CHAPTER XXII. II. KINGS. 203 teenth year of king Josiah [B. C. 624], that the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah. the son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the House of the LORD, | saying, 4 Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, that he may sum up the silver which is brought into the House of the LORD, which the keepers of the door have gathered from the people. 5 And let them deliver it into the hand of those doers of the work, that have the oversight of the House of j the LORD ; and then let them give it to the doers of the work that are in the House of the LORD, to repair the breaches of the House, 6 To the carpenters, and builders, and masons, and to buy timber and hewn stone to repair the House. 7 Howbeit there was no reckoning made with them of the silver that was delivered into their hand, because they dealt faithfully. 8 And Hilkiah the high priest said to Shaphan the scribe, I have found A BOOK OF THE LA.W in the House of the LORD. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it. 9 And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and brought the king word again, and said, Thy servants have melted [or coined] the silver that was found in the House, and have de- livered it into the hand of them that do the work, that have the oversight of the House of the LORD. 10 And Shaphan the scribe shewed the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath delivered me a BOOK. And Shaphan read it before the king. 11 And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the Book of the Law, that he rent his clothes. 12 And the king commanded Hil- kiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Michaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asahiah a servant of the king's, saying, 13 Go ye, inquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found ; for great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened to the words of this book, to do according to all that which is written concerning us. 14 So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahi- karn, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went to Huldah, the pro- phetess, the wife of Shalluin the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe ; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the second [or lower city] ;) and they spake with her. 15 And she said to them, Thus saith the LORD the God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me, 16 Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon its inhabitants, even all the words of the Book which the king of Judah hath read ; 17 Because. they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the work of their hands ; therefore my wrath is kindled against this place and shall not be quenched. 18 But to the king of Judah who sent you to inquire of the Eternal, thus shall ye say to him, Thus speak- eth the Eternal the God of Israel, As touching the words which thou hast heard ; 19 Because thy heart was tender, 204 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XXIII. and thou hast humbled thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against its inhabitants, that they should be- come a desolation and a curse, and thou hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me, I also have hearkened ; the LORD hath said it. 20 Behold therefore, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace ; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again. CHAPTER XXIII. A ND the king sent, and they gather- ed to him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem. 2 And the king went up into the House of the LORD, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great. And he read in their ears all the words of the Book of the Covenant which was found in the House of the LORD. 3 And the king stood upon the pillar, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after God, and to keep his commandments .and his testi- monies and his statutes with all their heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And he made all the people stand to the covenant. 4 And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the Temple of the LORD all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for Ashera, and for all the host of the heavens ; and he burned them without Jerusalem in I the fields of the Kidron, and carried I the ashes of them to Beth-el. | 5 And he put down the idolatrous | priests, whom the kings of Judah had i ordained, that incense might be burn- ed in the High Places in the cities of ! Judah, and in the places round about | Jerusalem, even them that burned in- cense to Baal, to the sun, and to the I moon, and to the signs of the Zodiac, I and to all the host of the heavens. ! 6 And he brought out the image of I Ashera from the House of the LORD, ! without Jerusalem, unto the valley of I Kidron, and burned it in the valley j of the Kidron, and stamped it small i to powder, and cast the powder there- : of upon the graves of the children of i the people. 7 And he brake down the houses of 1 abomination, that were by the House | of the LORD, where the women wove tents for Ashera. 8 And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled j the High Places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beer- sheba, and brake down the High i Places at the city gates, even that which was at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which was on a man's left hand at the gate of the city. I 9 Nevertheless the priests of the I High Places came not up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they did eat of the unleavened bread ! among their brethren. j 10 And he defiled Topheth, which ! is in the valley of the children of | Hinnom, that no man might make his | son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech. 11 And he took away the [images of] horses that the kings of Judah had CHAPTER XXIII. II. KINGS. 205 given to the Sun, at the entering in of the House of the LORD, near the chamber of Nathan-melech the cham- berlain, which was in the suburbs [or lower city], and burned the chariots of the Sun with fire. 12 And the altars that were on the roof of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the House of the LORD, did the king beat down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the valley of the Kidron. 13 And the High Places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the Mount of Corrup- tion for of Olives], which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtaroth the abomination of the Sidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of the Children of Am- mon, did the king defile. 14 And he brake in pieces the images, and cut down the groves of Ashera, and filled their places with the bones of men. 15 Moreover the altar that was at Beth-el, at the High Place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, both that altar and the High Place he brake down, and burned the High Place, and stamped it small to pow- der, and burned the grove of Ashera. 16 And as Josiah turned himself, he saw the sepulchres that were there on the mount, and sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these words [1 Kings, xiii. 2]. I 17 Then [Josiah] said, What grave- | stone is that that I see ? And the ! men of the city told him. It is the I sepulchre of the man of God, who came from Judah, and proclaimed I these things that thou hast done | against the altar of Beth-el. | 18 And he said, Let him alone ; let I no man move his bones. So they let i his bones alone, with the bones of the ! prophet of Beth-el. 19 And all the houses also of the ! High Places that were in the cities of i Samaria, which the kings of Israel | had made to call forth wrath, Josiah took away, and did to them according to all acts that he had done in Beth-el. ! 20 And he burned men's bones upon j the High Places, and returned to Je- rusalem. 21 And the king commanded all the ! people, saying, Keep the Passover unto the LORD your God, as it is j written in this Book of the Covenant. 22 Surely there was not holden such : a passover from the days of the Judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel and kings of Judah, as when in the eigh- teenth year of king Josiah [B. C. 1 624], this passover was holden to God | in Jerusalem. I 23 Moreover those that had fa- ! miliar spirits, and the wizards, | and the Teraphim [or images], and I the filthy idols, and all the abomina- | tions that were seen in the land of | Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah ! put away, so that he might perform I the words of the law which were i written in the Book that Hilkiah the i Priest found in the House of the i LORD. I 24 And like unto him was there no i king before him, that turned to the 206 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XXIV. LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the Law of Moses ; neither after him arose there any like him. 25 Now the rest of the acts of Jo- siah, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chron- icles of the kings of Judah ? 26 In his days Pharaoh Nechoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates. And king Josiah went against him. And [Nechoh] slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him. 27 And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead. 28 JEHOAHAZ was twenty and three years old when he began to reign [B. C. 610] ; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 29 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done. 30 And Pharaoh Nechoh put him in bands at Riblab in the land of Ha- math, that he might not reign in Je- rusalem ; and put a fine upon the land of a hundred Kikars of silver, and a Kikar of gold. 31 And Pharaoh Nechoh made E Hakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father. (And he turned his name to Jehoiakim.) And he took Jehoahaz away. And he came to Egypt, and died there. 32 And JEHOIAKIM gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh ; but he taxed the land to give the money ac- cording to the command of Pharaoh. He exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, of every one according to his taxation, to give it to Pharaoh Nechoh. 33 Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign [B. 0. 610] ; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Zebudah, the daughter of Pedaiah of Human. 34 And he did evil in the sight of G-od, according to all that his fathers had done. CHAPTER XXIV. [N his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant for three years ; then he turned and rebelled against him. 2 And the LORD sent against him bands of the Chaldees, and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moa- bites, and bands of the Children of Ammon, and sent them against Ju- dah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of his servants the pro- phets. 3 Surely at the command of the LORD came this upon Judah, to re- move them from before his face, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did ; 4 And also for the innocent blood that he shed ; for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood ; which the LORD would not pardon. 5 Now the rest of the acts of Je- hoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chron- icles of the kings of Judah ? 6 So Jehoiakim slept with his fa- CHAPTER XXV. II. KINGS. 207 thers ; and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead. 7 And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his land ; .for the king of Babylon had taken from the valley of Lower Egypt unto the river Euphrates all that had pertained to the king of Egypt. 8 JEHOIACHIN was eighteen years old when he began to reign [B. C. 600], and he reigned in Jerusalem three months. And his mother's name was Nehusta, the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. 9 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done. 10 At that time the servants of Ne- buchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. 11 And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants did besiege it. 12 And Jehoiachin the king of Ju- dah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his chamberlains; and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his [Nebuchadnez- zar's] reign. 13 And he carried out thence all the treasures of the House of the LOED, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieses all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the Temple of the LORD, as the LORD had said. 14 And he carried away all Jerusa- lem, and all the princes, and all the warriors of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the carpenters and smiths. None remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land. 15 And he carried away Jehoiachin ;0 Babylon, and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his cham- berlains, and the mighty of the land, hose carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. 16 And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his father's brother king n his stead. And he changed his name to Zedekiah. 17 ZEDEKIAH was twenty and one years old when he began to reign [B. ~j. 599], and he reigned eleven years n Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 18 And he did evil in the eyes of she LORD, according to all that Je- tioiakim had done. 19 For through the anger of the LORD it came to pass on Jerusalem and Judah, until he had cast them out from his presence, that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. CHAPTER XXV. A ND it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign [B. C. 591], in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his army, against Jerusalem, and en- camped against it, And they built a line of forts against it round about. 2 And the city was besieged until the eleventh year of king Zedekiah [B. C. 589]. 3 And on the ninth day of the [fourth] month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land. 4 Then the city was broken up, and all the men of war [fled] by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, which is by the king's garden ; (now the Chaldees were against the 208 II. KINGS. CHAPTER XXV city round about ;) and [Zedekiah] went by the way of the Barren Valley. 5 And the army of the Chaldees pursued after the king, and overtook Mm in the barren plains of Jericho ; and all his army was scattered from him. 6 Then they took the king, arid brought him up to the king of Baby- lon to Riblah ; and they gave judg- ment upon him. 7 And they slew the sons of Zede- kiah before his eyes. And he put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters of copper, and car- ried him to Babylon. 8 And in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which is the nineteenth year of king Nebu- chadnezzar king of Babylon [B. C. 589], came Nebuzar-adan, captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, to Jerusalem. 9 And he burned the House of the LORD, and the king's house, and all the houses of Jerusalem, and every great man's house burned he with fire. 10 And all the army of the Ghaldees, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down the walls of Jerusalem round about. 11 And the rest of the people that were left in the city, and the deser- ters that deserted to the king . of Babylon, with the rest of the rabble, did Nebuzar-adan the captain of the guard carry away captive. 12 But the captain of the guard left part of the poor of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen. 13 And the pillars of copper that were in the House of God, and the basin-stands, and the copper water- cistern that was in the House of God, the Chaldees brake in pieces, and carried the copper of them to Babylon. 14 And the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the [incense] ladles, and all the vessels of copper wherewith they ministered, took they away. 15 And of the censers, and the sprinkling buckets, of such as were of gold, the captain of the guard took away the gold, and of such as were of silver, the silver. 16 The two pillars, one water-cis- tern, and the basin- stands which So- lomon had made for the House of God ; the copper of all these vessels was without weight. 17 And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door. 18 And out of the city he took a chamberlain who had the charge of the men of war, and five men of them that waited upon the king's presence, who were found in the city, and the scribe the captain of the host, who mustered the people of the land, and sixty men of the people of the land that were found in the city. 19 And Nebuzar-adan captain of the guard took these, and brought them to the kipg of Babylon to Riblah. 20 And the* king of Babylon smote them, and slew them at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away out of their land. 21 And as for the people that re- mained in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of -Babylon had left, even over them he made GEDA- LIAH the son of Ahikarn, the son of Shaphan, governor. 22 And when all the captain's of the armies, they and their men, heard CHAPTER XXV. II. KINGS. 209 that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, there came to Ge- daliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Methaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite, and Jaazaniah the son of a Maachathite, they and their men. 23 And Gedaliah sware to them, and to their men, and said to them, Fear not to be the servants of the Chaldees. Dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it will be well with you. 2 1 But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Ne- thaniah, the son of Elishama, of royal descent, came, and ten men with him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews and the Chaldees that were with him at Mizpah. 25 And all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the armies, arose, and went to Egypt ; for they were afraid of the Chaldees. 26 AND IT CAME TO PASS in the seven and thirtieth year of the cap- tivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah [B. C. 564], in the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that Evilmerodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of J udah out of his prison. 27 And he spake kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon ; 28 And changed his prison gar- ments. And he did eat bread con- tinually in his presence all the days of his life. 29 And his allowance was a con- tinual allowance given him from the king, a daily rate on its day, all the days of his life. THE BOOK OF EZRA_. CHAPTER I. MOW IN THE FIKST YEAB of CyniS king of Persia [B. C. 588], that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah [ch. xxix. 10] might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put it also in writing, saying, 2 Thus saith Cyrus king of Persia, The Eternal the God of heaven hath given me all the kingdoms of the earth ; and he hath charged me to build for him the House at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. 3 Whoever there is among you of all his people, may his God be with him, and let him go up to Jerusalem, which is in Judah, and build the House of the Eternal the God of Is- rael, (he is God, ) which is in Jerusalem. 4 And whosoever is left in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver, and with gold, and with goods, and with cattle, beside the freewill offer- ing for the House of God that is in Jerusalem. 5 Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests of the Levites, with all them, whose spirit God had stirred up, to go up to build the House of the LORD which is in Jerusalem. 6 And all they that were about them strengthened their hands with vessels of silver, and gold, with goods, and with cattle, and with precious things;. Deside all that was willingly offered. 7 And Cyrus the king brought forth the vessels of the House of the LORD, which Nebuchadnezzar had brought forth out of Jerusalem, and had put them in the house of his gods ; 8 Even those did Cyrus king of Persia bring forth by the hand of Mithredath the treasurer, and num- bered them unto Sheshbazzar [or Ze- rubbabel], the Prince of Judah. 9 And this is the number of them ; thirty dishes of gold, a thousand dishes of silver, nine and twenty knives, thirty covered cups of gold, silver covered cups of a second sort four hundred and ten, and other ves- sels a thousand. 10 All the vessels of gold and of silver were five thousand and four hundred. All these did Sheshbazzar bring up with them of the captivity that went up from Babylon to Jerusa- lem, CHAPTER II. [the number of the men of the people of Israel that went up out the captivity of Babylon, to return to Jerusalem and Judah]; the whole as- sembly together that came with Zerub- babel and Jeshua, was forty two thou- sand three hundred and sixty, beside their servants, and their handmaids, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven. CHAPTER III. EZRA. 211 2 And there were among them two hundred singing men and singing women. Their horses were . seven j hundred thirty and six ; their mules, j two hundred forty and five ; their camels, four hundred and thirty and five ; their asses, six thousand seven hundred and twenty. 3 And some of the chief of the fathers, when they came to the House of the LORD which is at Jerusalem, offered freely for the House of God to set it up in its place ; they gave after their ability unto the treasure of the work sixty and one thousand Darics [or pounds sterling] of gold, and five thousand Minahs [or 11,000 pounds' weight] of silver, and one hundred priests' under-coats. 4 So the priests, and the Levites, and some of the people, and the sing- ers, and the gate-keepers, and the Nethinim, [or Temple-servants] dwelt in their cities, and all Israel in their cities. CHAPTER III. WHEN THE SEVENTH MONTH was come, and the children of Is- rael were in the cities, the people gathered themselves together as one man to Jerusalem. Then rose up Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and his brethren the priests, and Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and his brethren, and builded the Altar of the God of Israel, to offer up burnt offerings there- on, as it is written in the Law of Mo- ses the man of God. 2 And they built the Altar on its foundations ; for fear was upon them because of the peoples of the coun- tries. And they offered up offerings thereon unto the LORD, burnt offer- ings morning and evening. And they kept the Feast of Tabernacles, as it is written, and offered the daily burnt offerings by number, according to the ordinance, each day's number in its own day. 3 And afterward they offered up the continual burnt offering, both of the new moons, and of all the solemn feasts of the LORD that were made holy, and for every one that willingly offered a freewill offering unto the LORD. From the first day of the seventh month began they to offer burnt offerings unto the LORD. But the foundation of the Temple of the LORD was not laid. 4 Now they gave money to the masons, and to the carpenters ; and food, and drink, and oil, to them of Zidon, and to them of Tyre, to bring cedar trees from Lebanon to the sea coast of Joppa, according to the grant that they had from Cyrus king of Persia. 5 And in the second year of their coming to the House of God at Je- rusalem, in the second month, began Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and the remnant of their brethren the priests and the Levites, and all they that were come out of the captivity unto Jerusalem ; and they appointed the Levites from twenty years old and upward, to set forward the work of the House of the LORD. 6 Then stood Jeshua with his sons, and his brethren, Kadmiel and his sons, the sons of Judah [or Hodavi- ah] as one man, to set forward the workmen in the House of God ; the sons of Hendad, with their sons and their brethren the Levites. 7 And when the builders laid the foundation of the Temple of the 212 EZRA. CHAPTER IV. LORD, they set priests in their ap- parel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the LORD, after the ordinance of David king of Israel. And they sang together by courses in praising and giving thanks to the LORD ; for he is good, for his kindness endur- eth forever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the House of the LORD was laid. 8 And many of the priests and Le- vites and chief of the fathers, who were old men, that had seen the former House, when the foundation of this House was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice ; and many shouted aloud for joy ; so that the people shouted with a loud shout, and the noise was heard afar off. CHAPTER IV. WHEN THE ADVERSARIES OF Judah and Benjamin heard that the children of the capitivity were building the Temple unto the LORD the God of Israel ; then they came to Zerubbabel, and to the chief of the fathers, and said to them, Let us build with you ; for we enquire of your G-od, as yo do ; and we have sacrificed unto him since the days of Esar-haddon king of Assyria, who brought us up hither. 2 But Zerubbabel, and Jeshua, and the rest of the chief of the fathers of Israel, said to them, Ye have nothing to do with us to build the House unto our God ; but we ourselves alone will build unto the LORD the God of Israel, as king Cy- rus the king of Persia hath command- ed us. 3 Then the people of the land wea- kened the hands of the people of Ju- dah, and troubled them while build- ing, and hired counsellors against them, to defeat their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Per- sia. 4 AND IN THE REIGN OF AHASUE- RUS [or Cambyses], in the beginning of his reign [B. C. 529], wrote they an accusation against the inhabit- ants of Judah and Jerusalem; even in the days of Artaxerxes wrote Bishlam, Mithredath, Tabeel, and the rest of their companions, to Artaxer- xes king of Persia ; and the writing of the letter was written in Syriac letters, and translated in the Syriac tongue. 5 Rehum the keeper of the decrees and Shimshai the scribe wrote a PUB- LIC LETTER against Jerusalem to Artaxerxes [or Cambyses] the king in this manner. This is the copy of the public letter that they sent to him. Unto Artaxerxes the king; thy ser- vants the men beyond the River, and so forth. 6 Be it known to the king, that the Jews who came up from near thee to us are come to Je- rusalem, and are building the rebelli- ous and the bad city, and are com- pleting its walls, and repairing the foundations. Be it known now to the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls be completed, then will they not pay custom, tribute, and road- service, and in the end thou wilt bring loss upon the kings. 7 Now because we have salt [or maintenance] from the palace, and it is not meet for us to see the king's dishonour, therefore have we sent and certified the king ; so that search be CHAPTER V. EZRA. 213 made in the book of the records of thy fathers ; so shalt thou find in the book of the records, and know that this city is a rebellions city, and hurt- ful to kings and provinces, and that they have made sedition within the same of old time ; for which cause j was this city destroyed. We certify j the king that, if this city be builded j again, and its walls completed, by this | means thou wilt have no portion be- ! yond the River [Euphrates]. 8 The king sent answer, Unto Rehum the keeper of the de- j crees, and to Shimshai the scribe, | and to the rest of their com- I panions that dwell in Samaria, j and to the rest beyond the River, j and so forth. 9 The letter which ye sent to us hath been plainly read before me. And of myself I made a decree, and search hath been made, and it is found that this city of old time hath made insurrection against kings, and that rebellion and sedition have been made therein. There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all the countries beyond the River ; and custom, tribute, and road-service was paid to them. Make ye now a decree to cause these men to cease, and that the city be not builded, until a de- cree shall be made by myself. Take heed now that ye fail not to do this ; why should damage grow to the hurt of the kings ? 10 Now when the copy of king Ar- taxerxes' letter was read before Re- hum, and Shimshai the scribe, and their companions, they went up in haste to Jerusalem to the Jews, and made them to cease by strength of arm and by power. 11 Then ceased the work of the House of God which is at Jeru- salem. So it ceased until the second year of THE REIGN OF DARIUS king of Persia. CHAPTER V. [B. C. 520] the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusa- lem in the name of the God of Israel, even to them. 2 Then arose up Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua the son of Jozadak, and began to build the House of God which is at Jerusalem ; and with them were the prophets of God helping them. 3 At the same time came to them Tatnai the Pacha [or governor] be- yond the River, and Shethar-boznai, and their companions, and said thus to them, Who hath made a decree for you to build this House, and to complete this wall ? 4 Then we told them in like man- ner what were the names of the men that were making this building. 5 But the eye of their God was upon the elders of the Jews that those men could not cause them to cease till a decree of Darius came; and then they returned answer by let- ter concerning this. 6 The copy of THE PUBLIC LETTER that Tatnai, the Pacha beyond the River, and Shethar-boznai, and his companions the Apharsachites, who were beyond the River, sent to Darius the king. They sent a letter to him, wherein was written thus ; Unto Darius the king, all peace. 7 Be it known to the king, that we went into the province of Judah, to 214 EZRA. CHAPTER VI. the House of the great God, which is being builded with great stones, and timber is being laid in the walls, and this work goeth on fast, and prospereth in their hands. 8 Then asked we those elders, and said to them thus, Who made a de- cree for you to build this House, and to complete these walls ? We asked their names also, to certify thee, that we might write the names of the men that were the chief of them. And thus they returned us answer, saying, We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and are building j the House that was builded these many years ago, which a great king of Israel builded and completed. But after that our fathers had provoked the God of heaven unto wrath, he gave them into the hand of Nebu- chadnezzar the king of Babylon, the Chaldean, who destroyed this house, and carried the people away to Baby- lon. 9 But in the first year of Cyrus the king of Babylon the same king Cyrus made a decree to build this House of God. And the vessels also of gold and silver of the House of God, which Nebuchadnezzar took out of the Temple that was in Jerusalem, and carried them into the temple of Baby- lon, those did Cyrus the king take out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered to one, whose name was Sheshbazzar [or Zerubbabel], whom he had made Pacha ; and said to him, Take these vessels, go, place them in the Temple that is in Jerusa- lem, and let the house of God be builded in its place. 10 Then came the same Shesh- bazzar, and laid the foundation of the House of God which is in Jerusalem ; and since that time even unto now hath it been in build- ing, and yet it is not finished. 11 Now therefore if it seem good to the king, let there be search made in the king's treasure house, which ia there at Babylon, whether it be so, that a decree was made by Cyrus the king to build this House of God at Jerusalem, and let the king send his pleasure to us concerning this matter. CHAPTER VI. DARIUS the king made A DECREE, [saying] Whereas search hath been made in the house of the writings, where the treasures are laid up in Babylon, and there hath been found at Achmetha [or Egbatana], in the palace that is in the province of the Medes, a roll, and therein is a record thus written ; 2 In the first year of Cyrusjthe king, the same Cyrus the king made a de- cree concerning the House of God at Jerusalem, Let the House be build- ed, the Place where they offered sacri- fices, and let its foundations be strongly laid; its height sixty cubits, and its breadth sixty cubits : [let the Great Court be inclosed with] three rows of great stones, and a row of new timber; and let the expenses be given out of the king's house ; and also let the golden and silver vessels of the House of God, which Nebu- chadnezzar took forth out of the tem- ple which is atJeiusalem, and brought to Babylon, be restored and brought again to the Temple which is at Jeru- salem, each to its place, and place them in the House of God. 3 Now therefore ye, Tatnai the Pa- cha beyond the River, Shethar-boz- nai, and your companions the Aphar- CHAPTER VI. EZRA. 215 sachites, who are beyond the River, be ye far from thence. Let alone the work of this House of God ; let the Pacha of the Jews and the elders of the Jews build this House of God in its place. 4 Moreover of myself I made a de- cree as to what ye shall do to the el- ders of these Jews for the building of this House of God ; that out of the king's goods, which are out of the tribute beyond the River, forthwith expenses be given to these men, that they be not hindred. 5 And that which they have need of, both young bullocks, and rams, and lambs for the burnt offerings to the God of heaven, wheat, salt, wine, and oil, according to the appointment of the priests who are at Jerusalem, let it be given them day by day without fail: so that they may bring gifts of sweet savour to the God of heaven, and pray for the life of the king, and his sons. 6 Also of myself I make a decree, that whosoever shall alter this com- mand, let a beam be pulled down from his house, and being set up, let him be hanged thereon; and let his house be made a dunghill for this. And may the God that hath caused his name to dwell there overthrow all kings and people that shall put their hand to alter and to destroy this House of God which is at Jerusalem. I Darius have made the decree ; let it be done with speed. 7 Then Tatnai the Pacha beyond the River Shethar-bozuai, and their companions, according to that which Darius the king had sent, so did they speedily. And the elders of the Jews builded, and they prospered through the prophesying of Haggai the prophet and Zechariah the son of Iddo. And they builded and finish- ed it, according to the command of the God of Israel, and according .to the decree of Cyrus, and Darius, and Artaxerxes king of Persia. 8 And this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar, which was in the sixth year of the reign of Darius the king [B. C. 516]. And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this House of God with joy, and brought as a gift at the de- dication of this House of God a hun- dred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin of- fering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribei of Israel. And they set the priests in their divisions and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God, which is at Jerusalem ; as it is writ- ten in the Book of Moses. 9 And the children of the captivity kept the Passover upon the four- teenth day of the first month. For the priests and the Levites were puri- fied together, all of them were pure, and they killed the passover for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for themselves. 10 And the children of Israel, who were come back out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the Gentiles of the land, to seek the LORD the God of Isreal, did eat. And they kept the feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy ; for the Eternal had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of As- syria [Darius] unto them, to strengthen 216 EZRA. their hands in the work of the House of God, the God of Israel. CHAPTER VII. CHAPTER VII. )W after these things, in THE REIGN OF ARTAXERXES [Xerxes I.] king of Persia, the chief priest was EZRA, the son of Seraiah. This Ezra went up from Babylon ; and he was a ready scribe in the Law of Mo- ses, which the LORD the God of Is- rael had given ; and the king granted him all his request, because the hand of the LORD, his God was upon him. And there went up some of the chil- dren of Israel, and of the priests, and the Levites, and the singers, and the gate-keepers, and the Nathinim, unto Jerusalem, in the seventh year of Ar- taxcrxes the king [B. C. 479]. 2 And he came to Jerusalem in the fifth month, which was in the seventh year of the king. For on the first day of the first month began he to go up from Babylon, and on the first day of the fifth month came he to Jerusa- lem, because the good hand of his God was upon him. For Ezra had prepared his heart to seek the Law of the LORD, and to do it, and to teach in Israel the statutes and judgments. 3 Now this is the COPY OF THE LETTER that king Artaxerxes gave to Ezra the priest, the scribe, even a scribe of the words of the command- ments of the LORD, and of his statutes to Israel. 4 Artaxerxes, king of kings, unto Ezra the priest, a scribe perfect in the law of the God of heaven, and so forth. 5 Of myself I made a decree, that all they of the people of Israel, and of his priests and Levites, in my kingdom, who are minded of their own freewill to go up to Jerusalem, do go with thee. Forasmuch as thou art sent from before the king, and his seven counsellors, to inquire concern- ing Judah and Jerusalem, according to the Law of thy God which is in thy hand ; and to carry the. silver and gold, which the king and his counsel- lors have freely offered unto the God of Israel, whose habitation is in Je- rusalem, and all the silver and gold that thou canst find in all the pro- vince of Babylon, with the freewill offering of the [Jewish] people, and of the priests, who offer willingly for the House of their God which is in Jeru- salem ; that thou mayest buy speedi- ly with this money bullocks, rams, lambs, with their meal offerings and their drink offerings, and bring them unto the Altar of the House of your God which is in Jerusalem. 6 And whatsoever shall seem good to thee, and to thy brethren, to do with the rest of the silver and the gold that do after the will of your God. The vessels also that are given thee for the service of the House of thy God, those do thou restore before the God of Jerusalem. And whatso- ever there shall be needful for the House of thy God, which thou shalt have occasion to bestow, bestow it out of the king's treasure house. 7 And of myself I, Artaxerxes the king, do make a decree to all the treasurers who are beyond the River, that whatsoever Ezra the priest, the scribe of the Law of the God of heav- en shall require of you, it be done speedily, unto a hundred Kikars [or hundred weights] of silver, and to a hundred Cors [or nine hundred bushels] of wheat, and to a hundred Baths [or seventy-five gallons] of wine, and to AFTER VIII. EZRA. 217 a hundred Baths of oil, and sal without measure. Whatsoever i commanded by the God of heaven let it be diligently done for the House of the God of heaven ; for why shoul there be wrath against the kingdom of the king and his sons ? .8 Also we certify you, thattouchin any of the priests and Levites, sing ers, doorkeepers, Nethinim, or serv ants of this House of God, it shal not be lawful to impose custom, trib- ute, or road-service, upon them. 9 And thou, Ezra, after the wis- dom of thy God, that is in thy hand set magistrates and judges, who may judge all the people that are beyonc the River, all such as know the laws of thy God ; and teach ye them that know them not. And whosoever will not do the law of thy God, and the law of the king, let judgment be execut ed speedily upon him, whether it be unto death, or to banishment, or to confiscation of goods, or to imprison ment. 10 Blessed be the Eternal the God of our fathers, who hath put such a thing as this in the king's heart, to beautify the House of the LORD which is in Jerusalem ; and hath extended kindness to me before the king, and his counsellors, and before all the king's mighty princes. And I was strengthened because the hand of the LORD my God was upon me ; and I gathered together out of Israel chief men to go up with me. CHAPTER VIII. I gathered them together to the river that runneth to Ahava ; and there abode we in tents three days ; and I viewed the people, and the priests, and found there none of the sons of Levi. , 2 Then sent I for Eliezer, for Ariel, for Shemaiah, and for Elnathan, and for Jarib, and for Zehariah, and for Meshullam, chief men, men of understanding. And I sent them with command unto Iddo the chief at the place Caspia, and told them what they should say to Iddo, and to his brethren the Nethinim, at the place Caspia, that they should bring to u& ministers for the House of our God. 3 And because of the good hand of our God upon us, they brought us a man of understanding, of the sons of Mahli, the son of Levi, the son of Is- rael, even Sherebiah, with his sons and his brethren, eighteen ; and Hasha- biah, and with him Jeshaiah of the- sons ofMerari, his brethren and their sons, twenty; also of the Nathinim, whom David and the princes had given for the service of the Levites, two hundred and twenty Nathinim ; all of them were appointed by name. 4 Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to- seek from him a right way for us,, and for our little ones, and for all. our substance. For I was ashamed to ask from the king a band of soldiers- and horsemen to help us against the enemy in the way; because we had spoken to the king, saying, The hand of our God is upon all them for good that seek him ; but his power and his wrath is against all them that forsake lim. So we fasted and besought our Grod for this; and he was entreated oward us. 5 Then I separated twelve of th & hief of the priests, Sherebiah lashabiah, and ten of their brethren* 218 EZRA. CHAPTER IX. with them, and I weighed unto them the silver, and the gold, and the ves- sels, the heave offering for the House of our God, which the king and his counsellors, and his lords, and all Israel there present, had offered ; I even weighed unto their hand six hundred and fifty Kikars [or hundred weights] of silver, and silver vessels a hundred Kikars, and of gold a hun- dred Kikars; also twenty covered ups of gold, of a thousand Darics ; and two vessels of fine yellow copper |or brass], as precious as gold. 6 And I said to them, Ye are holy unto the LORD ; the vessels are holy also and the silver and the gold are a freewill offering to the Eternal the God of our fathers. Watch ye, and keep them, until ye weigh them be- fore the chief of the priests and the Levites, and chief of the fathers of Israel, at Jerusalem, in the chambers of the House of God. So the priests and the Levites took the weight of the silver, and the gold, and the ves- sels, to bring them to Jerusalem unto the house of our God. 7 Then we departed from the river Ahava on the twelfth day of the first month, to go to Jerusalem ; and the iiand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way. S And we came to Jerusalem, and abode there three days. And on the fourth day was the silver and the gold .and the vessels weighed in the House of our God by the hand of Meremoth the son of Uriah the Priest; and with him wasEleazar the ;gon of Phinehas : and with them was Jozabad the son of Jeshua, and Noadiah the son of Binnui, the Le- vites; by number and by weight of every one ; and all the weight was written at that time, 9 Also the children of those that had been carried away, who were come out from the captivity, brought burnt offerings to the God of Israel, ninety and six rams, seventy and seven lambs, with twelve he goats for a sin offering : all this was a burnt offering unto the LORD. And they delivered the king's decrees to the king's Sa- traps [or lieutenants], and to the Pa- chas [or governors] beyond the River [Euphrates], And they furthered the people, and the House of God. CHAPTER IX. NOW when these things were finish- ed, the princes came to me, say- ing, The people of Israel, and the priests, and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the peoples of the lands, doing according to their abominations, even of the Canaanites, the Moabites, the Egyptians, and the Ainorites. For they have taken some of their daughters for themselves, and for their sons ; so that the holy tribe have mingled themselves with the peoples of the lands ; yea, the hand of the princes and Sagins [ser- vants of Persia] hath been chief in his transgression. 2 And when I heard this thing, I rent my garment, and my mantle, and plucked off the hair of my head and of my beard, and sat down desolate. Then were assembled unto me every one that trembled at the words of the God of Israel, because of the trans- gression of those that had been in captivity ; and I sat desolate until the evening meal offering. 3 And at the evening meal offering . AFTER X. EZRA. 219 I arose up from afflicting myself; and 1 having rent my garment and my man- j tie, I fell upon my knees, and spread out my hands unto the Eternal my [ God, and said, my Q-od, I am | ashamed and blush to lift up my face I to thee, my God; for our iniquities i are increased over our head, and our j guilt is grown unto heaven. Since j the days of our fathers have we been j in great guilt unto this day ; and for | our iniquities have we, our kings, and j our priests, been delivered into the | hand of the kings of the lands, to the ! sword, to captivity, and to plunder, j and to confusion of face, as it is this i day. 4 And now for a little moment grace hath been shewed from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant j to escape, and to give us a tent-pin in his Holy Place, that our God may give light to our eyes, and give us a | little reviving in our bondage. For we were bondservants ; yet our God did not forsake us in our bondage, but extended kindness to us in the sight of the kings of Persia, to give j us a reviving, to set up the House of ! our God, and to repair the ruins thereof, and to give us a wall in Ju- 1 dah and in Jerusalem. 5 And now, our God, what shall we say after this ? For we have for- saken the commands, which thou hast commanded by the hand of thy serv- ants and the prophets [Deut. vii. 1, xxiii. 6], saying, The land, unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land, with the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations, which have filled it from end to end with their filthiness. Now therefore give not your daughters to their sons, neither take their daughters to your sons, nor seek peace with them or their goodwill for ever ; so that ye may be strong, and eat the good of the land, and leave it for an inherit- ance to your children for ever. 6 And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great guilt, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliver- ance as this ; should we again break thy commandments, and join in mar- riage with the peoples of these abomin- ations ? Wouldest not thou be angrj- with us till thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant nor escaping ? O Eternal God of Israel, thou art righteous ; for we are left the escaped, as it is this day. Be- hold, we are before thee in our guilt ; for we cannot stand before thee be- cause of this. CHAPTER X. when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the House of God, there gathered them- selves to him out of Israel a very great assembly "of men and women and children ; for the people wept a great weeping. 2 And Shechaniah the son of Jehiel, and the sons of Elam, answered and said to Ezra, We have trespassed against our God, and have taken foreign women of the peoples of the land to dwell with us. Yet there is hope in Israel concerning this thing. 3 Therefore let us make a cove- nant with our God to put away all the wives, and such as are born of them, according to the counsel of my lord, and of those that tremble at the command of our God ; and let it 220 EZRA. CHAPTER X . be done according to the Law. Arise; for this matter belongeth to thee ; we also will be with thee ; be of good courage, and do it. 4 Then arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Is- rael to swear that they should do ac- cording to this word. And they sware. 5 Then Ezra rose up from before the House of God, and went into the cham- ber of Johanan the son of Eliashib; and when he came thither, he did eat no bread, nor drink water ; for he mourned over the transgression of them that had been in captivity. 6 And they made proclamation throughout Judah and Jerusalem un- to all the children of the captivity, that they should gather themselves together to Jerusalem ; and that who- soever would not come within three days, according to the counsel of the princes and the elders, all his sub- stance should be forfeited, and him- self separated from the assembly of those that had been in captivity. 7 Then all the men of Judah and Benjamin gathered themselves to- gether unto Jerusalem within three days. It was the ninth month, and the twentieth day of the month ; and all the people sat in the Broad Place of the House of God, trembling be- cause of this matter, and for the great rain. 8 And Ezra the Priest rose up, and said to them, Ye have transgressed, and have taken foreign women to dwell with you, to increase the guilt of Israel. Now therefore make a confession unto the LORD the God of our fathers, and do his pleasure; and separate yourselves from the peoples of the land, and from your foreign wives. 9 Then all the assembly answered and said with a loud voice, As thou hast said, so must we do. But the people are many, and it is a time of much rain, and we are not able to stand outside, neither is this a work of one day or two; for we are many that have transgressed in this thing. 10 Let now our rulers be set over all the assembly, and let all them that have taken foreign women to dwell with them in our cities, come at ap- pointed times, and with them the el- ders of every city, and the judges thereof, until, the fierce wrath of our God for this matter be turned from us. 11 So Jonathan the son of Asahel and Jahaziah the son of Tikvah were set over this matter ; and Meshullam and Shabbetheel the Levite helped them. 12 And the children of the captivity did so. And Ezra the priest, with certain chief of the fathers, after the house of tbeir fathers, and all of them by their names were separated, and sat down on the first day of the tenth month to examine the matter. 13 And by the first day of the first month they made an end of the mat- ter with all the men that had taken foreign women to dwell with them. 14 And among the sons of the Priests there were found some that had taken foreign women to dwell with them ; namely, of the sons of Jeshua the son of Jozadak and his brethren ; Maase- iah, and Eliezer, and Jarib, and Gede- lijah. And they gave their hands that they would put away their wives; and being guilty, they gave a ram of the flock for their guilt. 15 Also some of the Levites, of the Singers and of the Israelites had taken foreign wives ; and some of them had wives by whom they had children. THE BOOK OF 1STEHEMIA.H:, CHAPTER I. WORDS OF NEHEMIAH the son of Hachaliah. Now it canie to pass in the month Chislev, in the twentieth year [of Ar- taxerxes Longimanus, B. C. 445] as I was in Susa the royal city, that Hanani, one of my brethren came, he and certain men of Judah ; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, who were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. 2 And they said to me, The rorn- nant that are left of the captivity there in the Province [of Judah] are in great affliction and reproach; the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates are burned with fire. 3 And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned some days ; "and I fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, and said, I beseech thee, Eternal God of heaven, great and terrible God, that keepest cove- nant and kindness for them that love him and observe his commandments: 4 Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou may- est hearken to the prayer of thy serv- ant which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Is- rael thy servants, and I confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee. Both 1 and my father's house have sinned. 5 We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgment, which thou comman- dedst thy servant Moses. 6 Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou comrnandedst thy serv- ant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the peoples; but if ye turn to me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though some of you be ca*>t out unto the uttermost part of the heavens yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them to the Place that I have chosen to cause my name to dwell there. 1 Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou didst redeem by the great power, and thy strong hand. Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who delight to fear thy name ; and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him to find mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king's cupbearer. CHAPTER II. ^ND it came to pass in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes that wine was before him; and I took up the wine, and gave it to the king. Now I had not been be- fore time sad in his presence. 2 Therefore the king said to me, Why is thy countenance sad, seeing 222 thou art not sick? This is nothing else but sorrow of heart. Then I was very sore afraid, and said to the king, Let the king live for ever. Why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the house of my fa- ther's sepulchres, lieth waste, and its gates are consumed with fire ? 3 Then the king said to me, For what then dost thou make request ? So I prayed to the God of heaven. And I said to the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me to Judah, to the city of my father's sepulchres, that I may build it up. 4 And the king said to me, (the queen also sitting beside him,) For how long a time shall the journey be, and when wilt thou return ? So it pleased the king, to send me, and I gave him a fixed time. 5 Moreover I said to the king, If it please the king, let royal letters be given me to the Pachas [or governors] beyond the River [Euphrates] that they may convey me forward till I come into Judah ; and a royal letter to Asaph the keeper of the king's forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the cita-. del which belongeth to the House that I am going to. And the king gave them to me, because the good hand of my God was upon me. 6 Then I came to the Pachas be- yond the River, and gave to them the king's royal letters. Now the king had sent captains of the army and horsemen with me. 7 When Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the servant, the Ammon- ite, heard of it, it grieved them ex- ceedingly that there was come a man NEHEMIAH. CHAPTER 11. to seek the welfare of the children of Israel. So I came to Jerusalem, and was there three days. 8 And I arose in the night, I and some few men with me ; neither told I any man what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem ; neither was there any beast with me, save the beast that I rode upon. 9 And I went out by night by the Valley Gate, and to the front of the Dragon Well, and to the Dung Gate, and viewed the walls of Jeru- salem, which were broken down, and its gates were consumed with fire. 10 Then I went on to the Fountain Gate, and to the King's Pool ; but there was no place for the beast that was under me to pass. 11 Then went I up in the night by the Brook [Kidron], and viewed the wall, and turned back, aud entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned. 12 And the Sagins [servants of Per- sia] knew not whither I went, or what I did; neither had I as yet told it to the Jews, nor to the priests, nor to the no- bles, nor to the Sagins, nor to the rest that did the work. 13' Then said I to them, Ye see the distress that we are in, how Jerusa- lem lieth waste, and the gates are burned with fire ; come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach. 14 Then I told them of the hand of my God which was good upon me ; as also the king's words that he had spoken to me. And they said, Let us rise up and build. So they strength- ened their hands for the good work. 15 But when Sanballat the Horon- ite, and Tobiah the servant, the Am- monite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to scorn, -IV. NEHEMIAH. 225 and despised us, and said, What is this thing that ye are doing ? Will ye rebel against the king ? 16 Then answered I them, and said to them, The God of heaven he will prosper us : therefore we his servants will arise and build. But ye have no portion, nor right nor memorial in Jerusalem. CHAPTER III. THEN Eliashib the high priest, with his brethren, and the Le- vites, the rulers, and the people arose and earnestly builded the gates and repaired the walls of Jerusalem. * CHAPTER IV. RUT it came to pass, that when San- ballat heard that we were build- ing the wall, he was wroth, and be- came very angry, and mocked the Jews. 2 And he spake before his breth- ren and the army of Samaria, and said, What are these feeble Jews do- ing ? Will they make themselves free ? Will they sacrifice ? Will they make an end in a day ? Wilt they revive the stones out of the heaps of the rubbish which are burned? 3 And Tobiah the Ammonite was by him, and he said, Even that which they are building, if a fox go up, he shall even break down their stone wall. 4 (Hear, our God, for we are despised ; and turn back their re- proach upon their own head, and give them for a prey into a land of captivi- ty ; and cover not their iniquity; and let not their sin be blotted out from before thee ; for they have provoked thee to anger before the builders.) *Synopsis of Chapter III. 5 So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together as far as the half thereof ; for the people had mind to work. 6 But it came to pass, that when Sanballat, and Tobiah, and the Ara- bians, and the Ammonites, and the Ashdodites, heard that the repairing- of the walls of Jerusalem went on, and that the breaches began to be stopped, then they were very wroth, and conspired all of them together to- come and to fight against Jerusalem, and to bring trouble on it. 7 Then we made our prayer to our G- od, and set a watch against them day and night, in face of them. 8 And Judah said, The strength of the bearers of burdens faileth, and there is much rubbish ; so that we are not able to build the wall. 9 And our adversaries said, They shall not know, neither see, till we come in the midst among them, and slay them, and cause the work to cease. 10 And it came to pass, that when the Jews that dwelt near them came, they said to us ten times, From all the places whence ye shall return they will be upon us. 11 Therefore I set in the lower place behind the wall in the waste place, I even set the people after their fami- lies with their swords, their spears, and their bows. 12 And I looked, and rose up, and said to the nobles, and to the Sagins, and to the rest of the people, Be not ye afraid of them ; remember the LORD, who is great and terrible, and fight for your brethren, your sons, and your daughters, your wives, and your homes. 224 NEHEMIAH. CHAPTER V. 13 And it came to pass when our -enemies heard that it was known to us, ;and God had brought their coun- sel to nought, then we returned all of us to the wall, every one to his work. 14 And it came to pass, from that time forth, that the half of my serv- ants laboured in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and : the coats of mail ; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah. 15 They that builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, being loaded, every one with one of his hands la- boured in the work, and with the other hand he held a sword. 16 For the builders, every one had his sword girded to his waist, and so he builded. And he that sounde d the trumpet was by me. 17 And I said to the nobles, and to the Sagins and the rest of the people, The work is great and large, and we are separated upon the wall, one far irorn another- In what place there- fore ye hear the sound of the trumpet, resort ye thither unto us ; our G-od will fight for us, 18 So we laboured in the work ; and half of them held the spears from the rising of the morning till the stars came out. 19 Likewise at the same time said I to the people, Let every one with his servant lodge within Jerusalem, so that in the night they may be a guard to us, and may labour in the day. 20 So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us put off our clothes ; every one [went Tvith his sword for water. CHAPTER V. D there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren the Jews. For there were some that said, We, our sons, and our daughters, are many; there- fore we will get corn, that we may eat and live. 2 Some also there were that said, We have mortgaged our lands, vine- yards, and houses, that we might get corn, because of the dearth. There were also some that said, We have borrowed money upon our lands and vineyards for the king's tribute. 3 Yet know our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children ; and lo, we bring into bond- age our sons and our daughters to be servants, and some of our daughters are brought into bondage already; and no power have we; for other men have our lands and vineyards. 4 And I was very angry when I heard their cry and these words. Then my heart took counsel within me, and I rebuked the nobles, and the Sagins, and said to them, Ye exact usury, every one from his brother. And I appointed a great assembly against them. 5 And I said to them, We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews, who were sold to the Gren- tiles ; and ye even sell our brethren. And they are sold to us. Then held they their peace, and found no an- swer. 6 Also I said, It is not good that ye do. Ought ye not to walk in the fear of our Grod because of the re- proach of the G-entiles our enemies? I likewise, and my brethren, and my CHAPTER VI. NEHEMIAH. 225 servants, are creditors against them | 13 Moreover there were at my table for money and corn. I pray you let a hundred and fifty of the Jews and us leave off this usury. Sagins, even those that came to us 7 Restore, I pray you, to them, j from among the Gentiles that were even this day, their lands, their vine- yards, their olive-yards, and their houses, also the hundredth part [monthly] of the money, and of the about us. 14 Now that which was prepared for me daily was one ox and six choice sheep ; also fowls were pre- corn, the grape juice, and the oil, for j pared for me, and once in ten days which ye are creditors against them. ! store of all sorts of wine. And with 8 Then said they, We will restore this I desired not the bread of a them, and will require nothing from cha, because the bond-service Pa- was them; so will we do as thou sayest. heavy upon this people. 15 (Remember, my (rod, for good, for my sake, all that I have done for this people.) CHAPTER VI. Then I called the priests, and took an oath from them, that they should do according to this promise. 9 Also I shook my lap, and said, So Grod shake out every man from his house, and from the fruit of his la- j JJOW it came to pass, when it was bour, that performeth not this prom- reported to Sanballat, and Tobi- ise, even thus be he shaken out, and j ah and Greshem the Arabian, and the emptied. And all the assembly said, j rest of our enemies, that I had build- Amen, and praised the LORD. And the people did according to this prom- ise. 10 Moreover from the time that I was appointed to be their Pacha in the land of Judah, from the twen- tieth year [13. C. 4-45] even unto the two and thirthieth year of Artaxerxes the king [B. C. 433], that is, twelve ed the wall, and that there was no breach left therein : (though at that time I had not set up the doors at the gates;) 2 Then Sanballat and Greshem sent to me saying, Come, let us meet to- gether in the villages in the valley of Ono. But they purposed to do me mischief. 3 And I sent messengers to them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down. Why should the work cease, whilst I leave the people, and had taken from them | it, and come down to you ? Yet they bread and wine, beside forty Shekels | sent to me four times after this man- [or eighty shillings] of silver [month- j ner, and I answered them after the ly.j Yea even their servants bare rule over the people. But so did not I, because of the fear of Grod. not years, I and my brethren have eaten the bread of a Pacha. 11 But the former Pachas that had been before me were a burden upon same manner. 4 Then SanbalHtt sent his servant to me after the same manner the fifth 12 Yea, also I continued at the work time with a public letter open in his of this wall, neither bought we any hand ; wherein was written, It is re- land ; and all my servants were i ported among the Grentiles, and Gre- gathered thither unto the work. j shemu saith it, that thou and the 226 NEHEMIAH. CHAPTER VII. Jews purpose to rebel; for which cause thou buildesl the wall, that thou mayest be their king, according to these words. And thou hast also ap- pointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem, saying, There is a king in Judah. And now it will be reported to the king according to these words. Come now therefore, and let us take counsel together. 5 Then I sent to him, saying, There are no such things done as thou say- est, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart. For they all made us afraid, saying, Their hands shall be weakened from the work, that it be not done. (Now, therefore, streng- then thou my hands.) 6 Afterward I came to the house of Shemaiah the son of Delaiah the son of Mehetabeel, who was in bondage ; and he said, Let us meet together in the House of God, within the Great Hall, and let us shut the doors of the Great Hall ; for they will come to slay thee ; yea, in the night will they come to slay thee. 7 And I said, Should such a man as I flee ? And who is there, that, being as I am, would go into the Great Hall [of the Temple] to save his life? I will not go in. And 1 considered, and behold, God had not sent him ; but he pronounced this prophecy against me, because Tobiah and San- ballat had hired him. 8 For this was he hired, that I should be afraid, and do so, and should sin, that they might Jiave matter for an evil report, so that they might re- proach me. 9 (My God, think thou upon Tobi- ah and Sanballat according to these their works, and on the prophetess Noadiah, and the rest of the pro- phets, who would have put me in fear.) 10 So the wall was finished on the twenty and fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty and two days. 11 And it came to pass, that when all our enemies heard thereof, and all the Gentiles that were about us saw these things, they were much cast down in their own eyes : for they per- ceived that this work was wrought of our God. 12 Moreover in those days the no- bles of Judah sent many public let- ters unto Tobiah ; and those of Tobi- ah came unto them. 13 For there were many men in Judah sworn unto him, because he was the son in law of Skechaniah the son of Arah ; and his son Johanan had taken the daughter of Meshullan the son of Berechiah. 14 Also they reported his good deeds before me, and uttered my words to him. And Tobiah sent public letters to put me in fear. CHAPTER VII. MOW it came to pass, when the wall' was built, and I had set up the doors, and the gate-keepers and the singers and the Levites were appoint- ed, that I gave my brother Hanani, and Hananiah the ruler of the palace, charge over Jerusalem ; for he was a faithful man, and feared God above many. 2 And I said to them, Let not the gates of Jerusalem he opened until the sun be hot : and while they stand by, let them shut the doors, and bar them ; and appoint watches of the in- habitants of Jerusalem, every one in his watch, and every one over against his own house. CHAPTER VIII. 3 Now the city was large and great: but the people were few therein, and the houses were not builded. CHAPTER VIII. AND [1 Esdras ix. 38 55] all the people gathered themselves to- gether as one man in tlie Broad Place that was before the Water Gate ; and they spake to Ezra the scribe [B. C. 458] to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the LORD had com- manded to Israel. 2 And Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly both of men and women; and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the Seventh month. 3 And he read therein before the Broad Place that was before the Water Gate from daybreak until mid- day, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were upon the Book of the Law. 4 And Ezra the scribe stood upon a tower of wood, which they had made for the purpose; and beside him stood Mattithiah, and Shema, and Anaiah, and Urijah, andHilkiah, andMaasei- ah, and Mishael, and Malchiah, and Hashum, and Hashbadana, Zechari- ah, and Meshullam. 5 And Ezra opened the Book in the sight of all the people ; (for he was above all the people;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up; and Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God . And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands ; and they bowed their heads, and wor- shipped the LORD with their faces to the ground. 6 And Jeshua, and Bani, and Shere- NEHEMIAH. 227 biah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Bodijah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, and the Levites, caused the people to under- stand the Law; and the people stood in their place. 7 So they read in the Book of the Law of God distinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to understand the reading. 8 And Nehemiah who was the Tir- shatha, [or Persian governor] and Ezra the Priest the scribe, and the Levites that taught the peo- ple, said to all the people, This day is holy to the Eternal your God ; mourn not, nor weep. For all the people wept, when they heard the words of the Law. 9 Then he said to them, Go your way, eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions to them for whom nothing is prepared ; for this day is holy unto our LORD. Neither be ye grieved ; for joy in the LORD is your strength. 10 So the Levites stilled all the peo- ple, saying, Hold your peace, for the day is holy; neither be ye grieved, 11 And all the people went their way to eat, and to drink, and to send portions, and to make great mirth, because they had understood the words that were made known to them. 12 And on the second day were gathered together the chief of the fa- thers of all the people, the priests and the Levites, unto Ezra the scribe, even to be made to understand the words of the Law. And they found written in the Law which the LORD had commanded by the hand of Mo- ses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the Feast of the seventh month ; and that they should NEHEMIAH. CHAPTER IX . publish and make proclamation in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, say- ing, Go forth unto the hill country, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is writ- ten. 13 So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the House of God, and in the broad place of the Water Grate, and in the broad place of the Grate of Ephraim. 14 And all the assembly of them that were come out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths; for since the days of Joshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness. 15 Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he [Ezra] read in the Book of the Law of God. And they kept -the Feast [of Tabernacles] for seven days; and on the eighth day was a day of restraint [from work], according to the ordinance. CHAPTER IX. MOW on the twenty and fourth day of this month [B. C. 444] the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackcloth, and earth upon them. 2 And the children of Israel sepa- rated themselves from all the sons of foreigners ; and they stood and confessed their sins, and the iniquities of their fathers. 3 And they stood up in their place, and read in the Book of the Law of the LORD their God a fourth part of the day ; and a fourth part they con- fessed, and worshipped the LORD their God. 4 Then stood up upon the steps these of the Levites, Jeshua, and the sons of Kadmiel, Shebaniah, the sons of Sherebiah, the sons of Chenani, and they cried with a loud voice unto the LORD their God. 5 Then the L-evites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, the sons of Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless the Eternal your God from ever- lasting to everlasting ; and let them bless thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise. Thou, even thou, art God alone ; thou hast made the heavens, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, all things that are thereon, the ocean, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all alive , and the host of heaven wor- shippeth thee. 7 Thou art the Eternal God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of Ur of the Chaldees, and gavest him the name of Abraham: and didst find his heart faithful be- fore thee, and madest the covenant with him to give the land of the Ca- naanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give it to his descendants ; and thou hast perform- ed thy words ; for thou art righteous. 8 And thou didst see the affliction of our fathers in Lower Egypt, and heardest their cry by the Red sea ; and shewedst signs and wonders upon Pharaoh, and on all his servants, and on all the people of his land; for thou CHAPTER IX. NEHEMIAH. 229 knewest that they dealt proudly against them. So didst thou make for thyself a name, as it is this day. 9 And thou didst divide the sea be- fore them, so that they went through the midst of the sea on the dry land ; and those who pursued them thou threwest into the deep, as a stone into the mighty waters. 10 Moreover thou leddest them in the day by a pillar of cloud : and in the night by a pillar of fire, to give them light in the way wherein they should go. 11 Thou earnest down also upon Mount Sinai, and spakest with them from heaven, and gavest them right judgments, and true laws, good sta- tutes and commandments ; and madest known to them thy holy sab- bath, and commandest them com- mandments, statutes, and laws, by the hand of Moses thy servant ; 12 And gavest them bread from heaven for their hunger, and brought- est forth water for them out of the rock for their thirst, and proinisedst them that they should go in to possess the land about which thou hadst lifted up thy hand [in oath] that thou wouldest give it to them. 13 But they and our fathers dealt proudly, and hardened their necks, and hearkened not to thy command- ments, and refused to obey, neither were mindful of thy wonders that thou didst among them ; but hardened their necks, and in their rebellion appointed a captain to return to their bondage. But thou art a God of pardons, gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abundant in kindness, and forsookest them not. 14 Yea, when they had made them a molten calf, and said, This is thy God that brought thee up out of Egypt, and had wrought great provo- cations ; 15 Yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the desert. The pillar of cloud was not removed from them by day, to lead them in the way, neither the pillar of fire by night, to shew them light, and the way wherein they should go. 16 Thou gavest also thy good spirit to instruct them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water for their thirst, 17 Yea, for forty years didst thou sustain them in the desert, so that they lacked nothing; their cloaks were not worn out, and their feet swelled not. 18 Moreover thou gavest them kingdoms and peoples, and didst di- vide them into districts ; so they took possession of the land of Sihon, and the land of the king of Heshbon, and the land of Og king of Bashan. 19 Their children also multipliedst thou as the stars of heaven, and broughtest them into the land, con- cerning which thou hadst promised to their fathers, that they should go in to possess it. 20 So the children went in and pos- sessed the land, and thou subduedst before them the inhabitants of the land, the Canaanites, and gavest them into their hands, with their kings and the peoples of the land, that they might do with them as they would. 2 L And they took strong cities, and a fat land, and gained possession of j houses full of all good things, wells digged, vineyards, and oliveyards r and fruit trees in abundance ; so they did eat and were filled, and be- came fat, and delighted themselves in thy great goodness. 230 NEHEMIAH. CHAPTER X . 22 Nevertheless they were disobe- dient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy Law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets who protested against them to turn them to thee ; and they wrought great provocations. 23 Therefore thou deliveredst them into the hand of their oppressors, who vexed them. Yet in the time of their trouble, when they cried to thee, thou heardest tliem from heav- en ; and according to thy manifold mercies thou gavest them saviours, who saved them out of the hand of their oppressors. 24 But when they had rest, they did evil again before thee. There- fore leftest thou them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them. Yet when they returned, and cried unto thee, thou heardest them from heaven ; and many times didst thou deliver them according to thy mercies. And thou didst protest against them, that thou mightest bring them again unto thy law. Yet they dealt proudly, and hearkened not to thy commandments, but sinned against thy judgments, (which if a man do, he shall live in them;) and thoy turned a stubborn shoulder, and hardened their neck, and would not hearken. 25 Yet for many years didst thou bear with them, and didst protest against them by thy spirit in the hand of thy prophets ; yet would they not give ear. Therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the peoples of the lands. 26 Nevertheless for thy great mer- cies, sake thou didst not utterly con- sume them, nor forsake them ; for thou art a gracious and merciful G-od. 27 Now therefore, our Grod, the great, the mighty, and terrible God, who keepest covenant and kindness, let not all the trouble seem little be- fore thee, that hath come upon us, on our kings, on our princes, and on our priests, and on our prophets, and on our fathers, and on all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria, unto this day. 28 Howbeit thou art just in all that is come upon us ; for thou hast done right, but we have done wickedly ; and as for our kings, our princes, our priests, and our fathers, they have not kept the law, nor hearkened to thy commandments and thy testimo- nies, wherewith thou didst testify against them. 29 For they have not served thee in their kingdom, and in thy great good- ness that thou gavest them, and in the large and fat land which thou gavest before them, neither turned they from their wicked works. 30 Behold, we are bond -servants this day, and as for the land that thou gavest unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof, behold, we are bond- servants in it. 31 And it yieldeth much increase unto the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins. Also they have dominion over our bodies and over our cattle, at thsir pleasure; and we are in great distress. And because of all this we make a sure covenant, and write it ; and our prin- ces, Levites, and priests, have sealed it. CHAPTER X. A ND the people, the priests, the Levites, the gate-keepers, the singers, the Nethinim, and all they that had separated themselves from the peoples of the lands unto the law CHAPTER XI. NEHEMIAH. 231 of God, their wives, their sons, and their daughters, every one having knowledge, and having unterstanding; 2 They clave to their brethren, their nobles, and entered into a self-curse, and into an oath, to walk in God's Law, which was given by the hand of Moses the servant of God, and to ob- serve and do all the Commandments of the LORD our God, and his Judg- ments and his Statutes ; 3 And that we would not give our daughters to the peoples of the land, nor take their daughters for our sons ; 4 And if the people of the land bring wares or any victuals on the sabbath day to sell, that we would not buy it of them on a sabbath, or on a holy day ; and that we would release the seventh year, and the exaction of every debt. 5 Also we made ordinances for us, to charge ourselves yearly with the third part of a Shekel for the service of the House of our God ; 6 For the ceremonial bread, and for the continual meal offering, and for the continual burnt offering, of the sabbaths, of the new moons, for the solemn feasts, and for the holy things, and for the sin offerings to make atonements for Israel, and for all the work of the House of our GoJ. 7 And we cast the lots among the priests, the Levites, and the people, for the gift of wood, to bring in to the House of our God, after the houses of our fathers, at times ap- pointed year by year, to burn upon the Altar of the LORD our God, as it is written in the Law. 8 And to bring the firstf ruits of our ground, and the firstf ruits of all fruit of all trees, year by year, unto the House of the LORD ; 9 Also the firstborn of our sons, and of our cattle, as it is written in the Law, and the firstlings of our herds and of our flocks, to bring to the House of our God, unto the priests that minister in the House of our God; 10 And that we should bring the first of our dough, and our heave offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, the grape juice, and the oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the House of our God ; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites, that the same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage. 1 1 And the Priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes ; and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the House of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house. 12 For the children of Israel and the children of Levi shall bring the heave offering of the corn, of the grape juice, and the oil, unto the chambers, where are the vessels of the Sanctuary, and the priests that minister, and the gate-keepers, and the singers ; and we will not forsake the House of our God. CHAPTER XI. j/^ND the rulers of the people dwelt at Jerusalem; the rest of the people also cast lots, to bring one of ten to dwell in Jerusalem the holy city, and nine parts to dwell in other cities. And the people blessed all the men, that willingly offered themselves to dwell at Jerusalem. 2 Now these are the Priests [that ministered in the House of God] ; Jeshua [son of Jozadak ; I. Chr. vi. 15. B. C. 538]; Joiakim [490]; 232 NEHEMIAH. CHAPTER III. Eliashib [480] ; Joiada [430] ; Joha- nan [or Jonathan, 390]; Jadduah [340]. (Nehemiah Ch. xii. V. 10.) CHAPTER XII. at the DEDICATION of the wall of Jerusalem they sought the Le- vites out of all their places, to bring them to Jerusalem, to keep the dedi- cation and to rejoice, both with thanksgivings, and with singing, with cymbals, psalteries, and with harps. 2 Arid the sons of the singers gathered themselves together, both out of the Circle round about Jerusa- lem, and from the villages of the Ne- tophathites ; also from Beth-Gilgal, and out of the fields of Geba and Az- maveth ; for the singers had builded them villages round about Jerusalem. 3 And the priests and the Levites purified themselves and purified the people, and the gates, and the wall. 4 Then I brought up the princes of Judah upon the wall, and appointed two great companies of them that gave thanks. One went to the right hand upon the wall toward the Dung Grate ; and after them wentHoshaiah, and half of the princes of Juhah, and Azariah, Ezra, and Meshullam, Ju- dah, and Benjamin, and Shemaiah, and Jeremiah, and some of the priest's sons with trumpets ; namely, Zacha- riah the son of Jonathan, the son of Shemaiah, the son of Zaccur, the son of Asaph ; and his brethren, She- maiah, and Azarael, Milalei, Gilalai, Maai, Nethaneel, and Judah, Aanani, with the musical intrunients of David the man of God ; and Ezra the scribe before them. 5 And at the Fountain Gate, which was over against them, they went up by the stairs of the city of David, at the going up of the wall, above the house of David, even unto the Water Gate eastward. 6 And the other company of them that gave thanks went the opposite way, and I after them, and the half of the people upon the wall, from be- yond the Tower of the Furnaces even unto the Broad Wall ; and from above the Gate of Epraim, and above the Old Gate, and above the Fish Gate, and the Tower of Hananeel, and the Tower of Meah, even unto the Sheep Gate ; and they stood still in the Watchhouse Gate. 7 So the two companies of them that gave thanks stood in the House of God, and I, and the half of the Sagins with me ; and the priests ; P^liakim, Maaseiah, Miniamin, Mi- caiah, Elioenai, Zechariah, and She- maiah, and Eleazar, and Uzzi, and Jehohanan, andMalchijah, andElam, and Ezer. And the singers sang aloud, with Jezrahiah their chief. 8 Also on that day they sacrificed great sacrifices, and rejoiced ; for God had made them rejoice with great joy. The wives also and the children re- joiced ; so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off. 9 And at that time were some ap- pointed over the chambers of the heave offerings, of the firstfruits, and of the tithes, to gather into them out of the fields of the cities the portions fixed by the Law [Numb., xviii.] for the priests and Levites. For Judah rejoiced because of the priests and the Levites that waited. 10 And both the singers and the gate-keepers kept the ward of their God, and the ward of the purification, according to the command of David CHAPTER XIII. NEHEMIAH. 23S to Solomon his son [2 Chron. viii. ; U]. 11 For in the days of David and j Asaph of old there had been a head j of the singers, and songs of praise | and thanksgiving unto God. 12 And all Israel in the days of ! Zerubbabel, and in the days of Ne- 1 hemiah, had given the portions of the j singers and the gate-keepers, every ! day its' portion ; and they had set ! apart some as holy for the Levites ; | and the Levites had set apart some as j holy for the Sons of Aaron. CHAPTER XIII. N that day they read in the Book ! of Moses in the ears of the people; j and therein was found written, that the Ammonite and the Moabite should not come into the assembly of\ God for ever; because they met not the children of Israel with bread and \ with water, but hired Balaam \ against them, that he should curse j them ; howbeit our God turned the \ curse into a blessing. 2 And it came to pass, when they j had heard the Law, that they- sepa- rated from Israel all the mixed mul- titude. 3 Now before this, Eliashib the j Priest, being set over the chamber of ; the House of our God, was allied unto ' Tobiah ; and he had prepared for | him a great chamber, where afore- time f hey had laid the meal offerings, the frankincense, and the vessels, and the tithes of corn, of grape juice, and of oil, which were commanded to be I given to the Levites, and the singers, and the gate-keepers ; and the heave j offerings for the priests. 4 But in all this time was I not at Jerusalem ; for in the two and thir- ! tieth year of Artaxerxes king of Baby- lon [B. C. 433] I had come to the king. BUT AT LAST [B. C. 423 ?] I ob- tained leave of the king, and I came to Jerusalem, and unterstood of th& evil that Eliashib had done for Tobi- ah, in preparing him a chamber with- in the courts of the House of God. 5 And it grieved me sore. There- fore I cast forth all the household stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber. Then I commanded, and they cleansed the chambers. And thither brought I again the vessels of the House of God, with the meal offering and the frankincense. 6 And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them ; and the Levites and the sin- gers, that did the work, were fled every one to his field. 7 Then contended I with the Sagins, and said, Why is the House of God forsaken ? And I gathered them to- gether, and set them in their place. 8 Then all Judah brought the tithe of the corn and the grape juice and the oil unto the treasuries. 9 And I made treasurers over the treasuries, Shelemiah the priest, and Zadok the scribe, and of the Levites, Pedaiah. And next to them was- Hanan the son of Zaccur, the son of Mattaniah; for they were counted faithful, and their office was to distrib- ute to their brethren. 10 (Remember me, my God, for this, and wipe not out my good deeds that I have done for the House of nrr God, and for the observances there- of.) 11 In those days I saw in Judah some treading wine presses on the sabbath, and bringing in sheaves, and 234 NEHEMIAH. CHAPTER XIII. lading asses ; yea, even wine, grapes, and figs, and all manner of burdens, which they brought into Jerusalem on the sabbath day ; and on the day wherein they sold victuals I protested against it. 12 There dwelt men of Tyre also therein, who brought fish, and all manner of ware, and sold on the sabbath to the children of Judah, and in Jerusalem. 13 Then I contended with the nobles of Judah, and said to them, What vil thing is this that ye do, and pro- fane the sabbath- day? 14 Did not your fathers do thus? and our God brought all this evil up- on us, and upon this city. Yet ye will bring more wrath upon Israel by profaning the sabbath. 15 And it came to pass, that when the gates of Jerusalem began to be dark before the sabbath, I command- ed that the doors should be shut, and I commanded that they should not be opened till after the sabbath; and some of my servants set I at the gates, that there should no burden be brought in on the sabbath day. 16 So the merchants and sellers of all kind of wares lodged for the night outside of Jerusalem once or twice. 17 Then I protested against them, Why lodge ye over against the wall ? If ye do so again, I will lay hands on you. From that time forth came they no more on the sabbath. 18 And I commanded the Levites that they should cleanse themselves, Aid that they should come and keep the gates, to sanctify the sabbath day. (Remember this also, my God, for my sake, and spare me according to thy great kindness.) 19 In those days also saw I Jews that had taken to dwell with them wives of Ashdod, of Ammon, and of Moab; and their children spake half | in the speech of Ashod, and did not know how to speak in the Jewish language, but according to the lan- guage of each people. 20 And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear to God, [saying,] j Ye shall not give your daughters to I their sons, nor take any of their daughters to your sons or to your- selves. 21 Did not Solomon king of Israel sin in these things? And among many I nations was there no king like him | who was beloved of his God, and G-od | made him king over all Israel. Never- j theless even him did foreign women j cause to sin. Shall we then hearken i to you to do all this great evil, to transgress against our God in taking | foreign women to dwell with you? i 22 And one of the sons of Joiada the son of Eliashib, the high priest, had married a daughter of Sanballat the Horonite. Therefore I chased him from me. 23 (Remember them, my God, because they have defiled the priest- hood, and the covenant of the priest- hood, and of the Levites.) 24 Thus cleansed I them from all foreigners, and appointed the wards of the priests and the Levites, every one on his work ; and for the gift of wood, at the times appointed, and for the firstfruits. (Remember me, my God, for good.) SUMMARY OF EVENTS. 1 THE CONQUEST OF CANAAN (B. C. ABOUT 1300.) JOSHUA, the successor of Moses, eaters on his office ; he sends spies to Jericho. Their report. Passing over the Jordan. Celebration of the Pass- over in the camp at Gilgal. Fall of Jericho. The sin and punishment of Achan. Conquest of Ai. Covenant with the Gibeonites. Defeat of the five Southern kings. Confederacy of the northern kings of Canaan. They are defeated at the waters of Merom. Division of land by lot. The unconquered territory assigned to tribes yet unprovided. The Tabernacle placed at Shiloh. Six cities of Refuge are designated, and forty- eight towns are appointed for the Levites. The two and a half tribes, Reu- ben, Gad, and half Manasseh return to their inheritance eastwards of the Jor- dan. Agreement respecting the Altar built by them. Joshua's last address to the people ; renewal of the covenant in Shechem. He dies aged 110, and is buried in Timnath-serah. Eleazar the high-priest dies, and is buried in Gibeah in the portion of his son and successor Phinehas. 2 THE TIME OF THE JUDGES. The remnants of the Canaanites tempt the Israelites to idolatry. OTH- NIEL'S victory over the most wicked Cushan king of Mesopotamia. EHUD, a Benjamite assassinates Eglon king of Moab who, allied with Ammon and Amalek, harrasses Israel for eighteen years, and frees Israel from the tyran- ny of the Moabites. SHAMGAR, the son of Anath, defeats the Philistines. Jabin, the Canaanite king in Hazor, through Sisera, the captain of his host, oppresses the Israelites for twenty years. DEBORAH, a prophetess, judges Israel at that time. She encourages BARAK of the tribe of Naphtali to take the lead. Under their joint command the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali unite with West Manasseh, Ephraim and Benjamin, and completely defeat the host of Sisera at Megiddo ; he escapes by flight, but is assassinated by Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite. Israel has rest for forty years. Midian oppresses Israel for seven years. GIDEON (Jerubbaal) son of Joash in Ophrah in West Manasseh defeats the Midianites in the plain of Jezreel. Jealousy of the Ephrainiites assuaged. Gideon's refusal to become king. He establishes a sanctuary at Ophrah. The'land has rest for forty years. ABIMELECH, the son of Gideon, conspires with the people of Shechem, is proclaimed king ; he kills his brothers, of whom only Jotham, the young- est escapes. His parable of the trees. After three years Shechem rebells, and is destroyed by Abimelech; he himself falls at the siege of Thebez. TOLA, the son of Puah, of the tribe of Issachar, dwelling in Shamir, 236 SUMMARY OF EVENTS. judges Israel for twenty-three years. JAIR a Gileadite, judges Israel twen- ty-two years. JEPHTHAH, a Gileadite , is chosen leader in the war against the Am- monites. The Ammonites are defeated. Jephthah's vow. Jealousy of Ephraim punished. The pass- word Shiboleth. He reigns six years. ELON of the tribe of Zebulun, reigns ten years. ABDON the son of Hillel, a Pirathonite, eight years. The Southern tribes are oppressed by the Philistines. SAMSON the son of Manoah of the tribe of Dan. The vow of the Nazzarite. His gigantic strength, his feats. He judges Israel for twenty years. He is be- trayed by Delilah, taken prisoner, and blinded. His heroic death. A por- tion of the tribe of Dan emigrate, and conquer Laish (afterwards Dan) in the north of Canaan. Micah's image, and Jonathan, the priest at the sanctuary at Dan. ELI and his two sons, Hophni and Phinehas at the sanctuary in Shiloh. Samuel, the son of Elkanah and Hannah, of the tribe of Ephraim, is dedi- cated by his mother, and brought up by Eli for the priesthood. Defeat of the Israelites by the Philistines at Aphek. The Ark of the covenant taken by the enemy. Eli dies on hearing the news, aged ninety-eight years. The Philistines, in consequence of various plagues by which they are visited, send the Ark of the covenant back to Beth-shemesh. The men of the city of Jearirn carry the Ark to the house of Abinadab in Gibeah, and sanctify his son Eleazar to keep it. SAMUEL, Prophet and Judge in Israel. The assembly and the sacrifices in Mizpeh. The Israelites defeat the Philistines and recover the lost territory. Samuel's work. Rise of Prophetical Schools. Samuel's yearly circuits. His house and the High Place at Rarnah. His sons, unlike their father. Political misfortunes cause the Israelites to demand of Samuel to appoint them a king. Samuel resists in vain ; at last he anoint? Saul, the son of Kish, a Benjamite and presents him to the people assembled at Mizpeh. 3 ESTABLISHMENT OF THE KINGDOM (B. C. 1035.) THE FIRST THREE KINGS OF ISRAEL. SAUL, first king of Israel, defeats the Ammonites and brings deliverance to the people of Jabesh Gilead ; has a standing army of 3000 men. Suc- cessful wars of Saul and his son Jonathan against the Philistines. Ahijah the son of Ahitub of Shiloh, Saul's priest. Saul's successful wars against Moab, Ammon, Edom, Aram Gobah, and Amalek. Discord between Samuel and Saul. (David the son of Jesse of Beth-lehem in Judah at the court of Saul.) The Philistine camp in Ephes-damim. David comes to the camp, and slays the giant Goliath. Friendship of Jonathan and David. Saul gives Michal his daughter David to wife. The fame of David excites Saul's jealousy. He seeks to slay him. David's escape. Saul slays Ahimelech, and the whole priesthood of Nob for heaving provided David with weapons and ivictuals. Abiathar, the son of Ahimelech escapes and flees to David. David, in the fastness of Adullam, is joined by his family, and collects a band of SUMMARY OF EVENTS. 237 400 men. He places his parents in safety with the king of Moab. His ex- ploits in the wooded districts in the South of Judah. Joab, Abisha, and Asahel the sons of Zeruiah his sister are among the boldest warriors. David rescues Keilah in Judah from the plundering bands of the Philistines. Saul pursues David to the wilderness of Ziph, to Maon. and En-gedi; he' escapes from him with the utmost difficulty, but shows twice great generosity, when Saul in turn is in his power. t David and Nabal the Carmelite ; he marries Abigail the widow of Nabal. David's band of followers increases to 600 warriors. He goes over to Achish king of Oath, who assigns to him the town of Ziklag. The Philistines go to war against Saul. David and his men called by Achish to participate, are sent home on the suspicion of the Philistine leaders. He avenges himself on the Amalekites who, in his absence had plundered Ziklag, and divides the rich spoil among the cities of Judah. Saul before the battle. Defeat and death of Saul and his three sons on Mount Gilboa. Almost the whole of the north and central part of the country is in the power of the Philistines. Abner escapes withlsh-bosheth (Ish-baal) the son of Saul, to Mahanaim on the east side of the Jordan. David's la- ment over the death of Saul and Jonathan. DAVID (with the consent of the Philistines) removes to Hebron and is proclaimed KING OVER THE TRIBE OF JUDAH (B. C. 1016.) Wars between the followers of Ish-bosheth and those of David. Asahel is killed by Abner. Abner, offended by Ish-bosheth, goes over to David, is murdered by Joab who avenges the death of Asahel. Da- vid's lament over Abner. After Ish-bosheth is murdered by two Benjamites, David is made KING OVER ALL ISRAEL (B. C. 1008.) David conquers Jerusalem and makes it his capital. He is attacked by the Philistines, After many bloody battles the Philistines are driven out of the land. Tyrian workmen build David a palace at Jerusalem. The Ark of the covenant is brought from the house of Abinadab to the royal city with great rejoicing and festivity. David intends to build a temple to the Eternal the God of Israel, but is dissuaded by the prophet Nathan. (Arrange- ment for divine service, the Psalms of David.) Edom, Moab, and Ammon become tributary ; the Syrian districts Zobah and Damascus are conquered, strong garrison placed in the conquered countries. His sovereignty extends from the Euphrates to the Red Sea. David's sin against Uriah the Hittite. Bath-sheba, the wife of Uriah, becomes David's wife. David's officers: Joab commander of the host ; Jehoshaphat recorder ; Zadok and Abiathar priests, and Benaiah commander of the king's body guard, the Axe-bearers and the Runners. Discord among David's children. Absalom causes Amnon, the firstborn son of David, to be killed. He is banished from court and is only allowed to return after several years through Joab's intercession. Absa- lom's conspiracy. David flees from Jerusalem to Mahanaim. Ahitophel, the counsellor, Amasathe captain of the host of Absalom. Defeat of Absalom's army in the battle of Mahanaim. Absalom's end. David's grief at the death of his rebellious son. David is brought back to Jerusalem, and pardons his 238 SUMMARY OF EVENTS. adversaries. Jealousy of the Ephramites. Sheba the son of Bichri renews the rebellion. Joab treacherously murders Amasa who had been appointed to be one of the captains of the host : then pursues after Sheba to Abel near Beth-rnaachah. Sheba is killed by the inhabitants of the city, and the re- bellion is quenched. David's treatment of the house of Saul. Jonathan's son is remembered; but on the occasion of a famine seven men of Saul's family are slain at Gribeah to atone for Saul's breach of faith towards the Gribeonites. David numbers the people. A pestilence breaks out among the people. David re- grets his act. At the advise of the prophet G-ad David buys the threshing floor of Araunah, the Jebusite on Mount Moriah, and builds an Altar there, In his extreme old age, his son Adonijah, assisted by Joab and Abiathar at- tempts to seize the throne. By the advise of the prophet Nathan, Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, reminds the king of his promise that Solomon should reign after him. David immediately has his son Solomon proclaimed king by Nathan, Zadok and Benaiah. Adonijah is temporarily pardoned. David dies at the age of seventy. SOLOMON proclaimed king of Israel (B. C. 976.) He puts to death Adonijah, Joab, and Shimei, the son of Gera, and deprives Abiathar of his office. He marries the (laughter of the king of Egypt. Solo- mon's wisdom. (Proverbs and Songs of Solomon.) Magnificence of his court. He builds splendid palaces. His league with Hiram king of Tyre. The building of the Temple on Mount Moriah begun 973 and finished 965. Dedi- cation of the Temple on the feast of the Tabernacles. Buildings of Solo- mon. His ships sail from Ezion-geber to Ophir, and bring gold. Monopoly of the government in the trade of horses and chariots brought from Egypt. The queen of Sheba visits Solomon. Solomon's numerous wives; they tempt him to idolatry. Signs of discontent. Heavy taxes and oppressive labour- levy. Disturbances in Syria ; Hadad rebells in Edom. The prophet Ahijah of Shiloh and Jeroboam the son of Nebat of the tribe of Ephraim. Jeroboam, suspected of rebellion, flees to Egypt. Death of Solomon (936). Jeroboam re- turns from Egypt. The people demand of Rehoboam the son of Solomon to lessen their burdens. On his refusal they elect Jeroboam KING OVER ISRAEL. 4. THE DIVIDED KINGDOM. THE KINGDOM OF JUDAH. THE KINGDOM OF ISRAEL. (936589.) 1. REHOBOAM (936-920) son of Solo- mon, prepares to subdue the ten tribes, but desists at the advise of the pro- phet Shemaiah ; fortifies many towns in the southwest. Shishak, king of Egypt, attacks Judah, enters Jerusa- lem (932) and plunders the temple (936722.) 1. JEROBOAM (936916) fortifies Shechem, and makes it his capital. He sets up golden calves in Dan and Beth-el ; institutes a new feast, and appoints priests not of the tribe of Levi. Warnings of an unknown prophet. Jeroboam sends his wife to JUDAH. SUMMARY OF EVENTS. ISRAEL. 239 and the royal palace. Hostilities with the kingdom of Israel. Idolatry and corruption in Judah. 2. ABIJAM (919-917) son of Reho- boam, idolatrous and corrupt, dies af- ter an inglorious reign of two years. 3. ASA (917877) son of Abijam, faithful to the worship of the LORD, removes idolatry, and replenishes the temple treasures. Asa, attacked by Baasha, bribes Ben-haded king of Syria in Damascus, to fall into the northern provinces of Israel. After Baasha' s retreat, Asa fortifies Gebah and Mizpeh with the material left in Ramah by Baasha, and increases the standing army. He is powerful and energetic, and strengthens the king- dom of Judah. 4. JEHOSHAPHAT (877 856) son of Asa, also faithful to the worship of consult the prophet Ahijah in Shiloh respecting the illness of their child. The destruction of the house of Je- roboam predicted. Jeroboam dies after a reign of 22 years, (including the two years of the reign of his son.) . NADAB (916915) son of Jero- boam, is murdered after a reign of barely two years by 3. BAASHA (915892) of the tribe of Issachar, during the siege at Gibbethon. Baasha destroys the whole house of Jeroboam. He makes Tirzah his capital. Attempts to cap- ture the kingdom of Judah by forti- fying Ramah, blockading Jerusalem. He is compelled to withdraw in order to protect his northern provinces from the ravages of Benhadad, king of Syria. The prophet Jehu, son of Hanani prophesies against Baasha. He dies after a reign of 24 years. 4. ELAH (892891) the son of Baasha, is murdered in the second year of his reign by 5. ZIMRI, captain of his chariots, who destroys the whole house of Baasha, while the army is at Gibbe- thon. After a reign of seven days he is besieged in Tirzah by Omri; sets fire to the palace and dies in the flames. 6. OMRI, (891880) after the murder of Elah, is the declared king by the army at Gibbethon; he defeats Ziinri and takes Tirzah, while Tibni is declared king by some. The civil war lasts 6 years, until Tibni died. Omri builds Samaria and makes it his capital. He conquers cities in Damascus. Friendly relation with the kingdom of Judah. 7. AHAB (880861) son of Omri, warlike and not without good quali- ties, but corrupted by Jezebel his wife, daughter of Ethbaal king of Zidon, 240 JUDAH. SUMMARY OF EVENTS. ISRAEL. *he Eternal the God of Israel, re- moves what was still left of the idolatrous practices and appoints judges and teachers for the people. He makes an alliance with Ahab, and later with Joram, and takes part in their wars against the Syrians, with the latter against Moab. Neither is followed by any special success. His ships, built in Ezion-geber, for an expedition to Ophir are wrecked in the Arabian Gulf. He strengthen the fortresses in Judea, places gar- risons in the conquered provinces of Israel, and successfully repels the attacks of the Moabites and Ammo- nites. 5. JEHORAM (856 849) son of Je- hoshaphat, marries Athaliah the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, mur- ders his brothers and other nobles of the kingdom. Edom revolts, and he can not subdue it again ; the neigh- boring southwestern states make in- roads into the country. Rapid spread of Baal-worship in the kingdom of Judah. After an inglorious reign, Jehoram dies of a painful disease. 6. AHAZIAH (849) son of Jehoram, j while on a visit to Joram king of Is- rael, in Jezreel, is slain together with j forty two of his brothers by Jehu. who introduces the worship of Baal and persecutes the prophets of Yah- veh. Summer-palace in Jezreel. The prophet Elijah the Tishbite de- nounces Ahab and the worship of Baal. Long continued drought. Miracles and legends of Elijah. Eli- jah and Ahab meet. Test on Mount Carmel; great judgment on the pro- phets of Baal. Elijah's journey to Mount Horeb; his vision. Elisha, the son of Shaphat becomes his disciple. Ahab's wars with Ben-hadad, king of Syria. Naboth, the Jezreelite is slain treacherously at the command of Je- zebel. Elijah's prediction to Ahab. Friendly relations with Jehoshaphat king of Israel. War with the Syrians to take Ramoth in Gilead. The pro- phet Micaiah, the son of Imlah before Ahab. Ahab is mortally wounded in battle, carried to Samaria and buried there. Moab frees itself. 8. AHAZIAH (861860) son of Ahab, a follower of Baal, falls out of a high window and dies of his injuries. 9. JORAM (860849) brother of Ahaziah, renounces the worship of Baal. Legend of Elijah's ascension to heaven. Elisha the acknowledged head of the prophets. His reported miracles: the widow in debt ; the Shunemite and her son ; Naaman the Syrian, Ac. War against Moab; Elisha in the camp. Famine in Samaria ; the Syrians, seized by a sudden panic, take to flight. Elisha in Da- mascus ; his prophecies to Hazael, the general of Ben-hadad Hnd. Hazael harrasses Israel with war. Joram wounded in battle, comes to Jezreel to be healed. Ahaziah, king of Ju- dah, visits Joram. Conspiracy of Jehu the son of Nimshi. Joram and Ahaziah are slain in Jezreel. JUDAH. SUMMARY OF EVENTS. ISRAEL. 241 7. ATHALIAH (849-843) mother of Ahaziah,puts to death all the males of the family of Ahaziah and usurps the government. Joash, the infant son of Ahaziah, is saved by his aunt Jehosheba, and brought up in the Temple. After six years, the high priest JEHOIADA, conspires against Athaliah, crowns Joash in the temple court and has her put to death . 8. JOASH (843-804) son of Aha- ziah, ascends the throne at the age of seven. Jehoiada governs in his name. Complete uprooting of the Baal-wor- ship. Laws for the payment of Temple dues. Hazael, king of Syria, having conquered Grath, threatens to march against Jerusalem. Joash induces him by gifts from the temple treasures to withdraw. After a reign of forty-one years, Joash is murdered by conspirators. The prophet Joel prophesies in his time. 9. AMAZIAH son of Joash (806 804 regent, from 801778 together with his son Uzziah), punishes his father's murderers, defeats the Edoin- ites, and takes Petra. He challenges Jeoash, king of Israel; is defeated, taken prisoner and compelled to make a disgraceful peace. He is finally slain by conspirators, in Lachish. 10. UZZIAH (801 778, together with his father ; 778 750 alone) son of Amaziah, sixteen years old when joining his father in the gover- raent; energetic and prudent, He 10. JEHU (849822) the son of | Nimshi, puts to death Jezebel, and I exterminates the whole house of Ahab, ! all the priests and prophets of Baal, 5 and restores the worship of Yahveh, I the G-od of Israel. Hazael conquers districts east of the Jordan. 11. JEHOAHAZ (821-807) son of Jehu, is, like his father, beset by Hazael. The power of the kingdom is greatly reduced. The army of Israel numbers only 10,000 foot-soldiers, and ten chariots. 12. JEHOASH son of Jehoahaz (807805, and till 792 with his son Jeroboam), successful in war against Ben-hadad, the son of Hazael of I Syria, reconquers the lost provin- i ces. Elisha dies, greatly lamented by the king. Jehoash defeats Ama- i ziah, king of Judah, at Beth-shemesh, i tears down part of the wall of Jeru- 1 salern, enters the city and carries away j much spoil. The prophet Jonah the son of Amittai, prophesies in his time. 13. JEROBOAM the Ilnd son of Je- hoash, (804 792 together with his father, 792 764 alone), conquers Da- mascus and Hamath, and restores the coast of Israel. A great earthquake takes place. High state of culture, great literary activity. The prophets Hosea and Amoz preach against 242 JUDAH. SUMMARY OF EVENTS. ISKAEL. defeats Edoin and conquers Eloth, and rebuilds that important seaport; defeats the Philistines, takes Gath, Ashdod, and Jabneh, strengthens the fortifications of Jerusalem, and for- tifies various places in the country; founds numerous halting-places and cisterns in the desert. The provin- ces east of the Jordan become trib- utary to him. A great earthquake felt in Jerusalem. The prophet AMOS comes to Judea. Uzziah becomes leprous and has to live apart the last years of his life. He dies after a reign of fifty-two years. ISAIAH the prophet delivers his first prophecy in that year (Isaiah Ch. vi.) 11. JOTHAM son of Uzziah (749- 741, from 741 734 with his son Ahas who has already been regent during his father's illness), increases the fortifications of Jerusalem. He subdues the Ammonites and makes them pay tribute. Hostilities of Pe- kah and Rezin against Judah begun. 12. AHAZ son of Jotham ; (741 726, the last two years together with his son.) In his days Pekah and Rezin infest Judea and threaten Je- rusalem. The prophet Isaiah meets Ahas and prophesies deliverance of Jerusalem and the near destruction of the kingdom of Israel (Isaiah Ch. vil. x, 4.) Ahaz bribes Tilgath-pil- leser by rich gifts from the temple treasure to make war against Rezin and Pekah. Ahas introduces the worship of Molech and sacrifices his own son. Imitation of the altar which Ahaz has seen in Damascus. Wan- tonness, idolatry and luxury in Jeru- wantonness and luxury, the worship of Baal, and other idolatrous practi- ces. 14. ZACHARIA (764) son of Je- roboam Hnd, is murdered, after a reign of six months, by 15. SHALLUM, (764) son of Jabesh, who, after one month's reign, is murdered by 16. MENAHEM (763 753) son of Gadi of Tirzah. He secures the aid of Pul king of Assyria, to strengthen his throne, through rich gifts which he exacts from the people, by a heavy tribute. Lawlessness and violence prevalent in Israel. The provinces east of the Jordan are taken by Uzziah king of Judah. 17. PEKAHIAH (752751) son of Menahem, is murdered by 18. PEKAH (750731) son of Re- inaliah, who allies himself with Rezin, king of Syria, and makes war against Judah, devastating the country for many years, without succeeding in taking Jerusalem. Tiglath-pileser, king of Assyria, induced through rich gifts from Ahaz king of Judah mar- ches against Pekah, conquers the provinces north east of the Jordan, as well as the northern provinces of Is- rael, and carries away the inhabitants captive into Assyria. In the twen- tieth year of his reign Pekah is murdered by JUDAH. SUMMARY OF EVENTS. ISRAEL. 243 19. HOSHEA (730722) the son of Elah, who becomes tributary to SHALMANESEE, king of Assyria. But as Hoshea secretly allies himself with Seve, king of Egypt, Shalnianeser takes him prisoner, conquers Samaria after a three years' siege, and carries away the inhabitants to the Assyrian and Median provinces. End of the kingdom of Israel. In the room of the exiled Isra- lites, Esar-addon, king of Assyria, brings settlers from Babylon, Cuthah, and other places. They partly adopt the Israelitish religion, at the same time retaining their heathen practices, and intermingle with the remnants of the Israelitish population, forming the nation of the Samaritans. salem, (Isaiah Ch. II. 6, V.) Isaiah's religious and political convictions. The prophet MICAH. 13. HEZEKIAH (727 699; the first two years together with his fa- ther) the son of Ahas, destroys all the High-places as the centres of idola- trous worship, brakes the brazen ser- pent of Moses to pieces, and removes all images from the temple. Isaiah the soul of this reform. Victorious war- fare against the Philistines. Assyrian invasion. Isaiah's prophecies against Assyria (Isaiah Ch. x, 5 34 ; xi xii.) Rab-shakeh before the walls of Jerusalem. Isaiah's assurance ; sudden destruction of the Assyrian army. Hezekiah's sickness. Bero- dach-baladdon's embassy toHezekiah, forshad owing the threatening danger from Babylon. Great literary activ- ity. Collection of Solomon's Pro- verbs at that time. 5. THE KINGDOM OF JUDAH ALONE. 14. MANASSEH (698644) son of Hezekiah, twelve years of age on ascending the throne, abolishes his father's reform, re-establishes the High Places and introduces all manner of idolatry. The prophets are persecuted. 15. AMON (643 642) idolatrous like his father, is murdered after a reign of two years. 16 JOSIAH (641 611) son of Amon, early inclines toward the teach- ings of the prophets of his time. Nabo-polassar, a Chaldean, frees Babylon and conquers Nineveh, freeing thereby Judea from its Assyrian yoke. The prophet Nahum (Ch. I. in.) describes the fall of Nineveh and of the Assyrian empire. The Scythes (Gog from the land of Magog) from the Caucasus and from the north of the Black Sea overrun Asia and threaten to invade Judea. The prophet Zephaniah (Ch. I.) Jeremiah (Ch. iv., 5 vi.) In the eighteenth year of the reign of Josiah (624) the BOOK OF THE LAW (Deuteronomy) is found in the Temple by Hilkiah the Priest. The prophetess Huldah. Josiah's Re- formation of the State and public worship in accordance with that Book of the Law. He removes every trace of idolatry, abolishes the High-places, and de- stroys the altar at Beth-el. Solemn renewal of the covenant. Grand cele- bration of the Passover. Pharaoh-nechoh, Hnd king of Egypt marches against Chaldea. Josiah falls at the battle of Megiddo. 244 SUMMARY OF EVENTS. 17. JEHOAHAZ (610) a younger son of Josiah, is deposed by Pharaoh- nechoh, who lays a heavy tax upon the land. Revival of the popular religion, the prophets' vehement complaints. After three months Pharaoh- nechoh sends Jehoahas prisoner to Egypt and places 18. JEHOIAKIM (610-600) an older brother of Jehoahaz, on the throne. Jehoiakim is wicked and idolatrous. Builds costly palaces, though the land is impoverished, extorts the money from the people and pays not the laborers. The prophets Jeremiah and Uriah courageously denounce the corruption. Execu- tion of the prophet Uriah. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon defeats the Egyptians at Charkemish (Circesium), makes Judea tributary. After three years Jehoiakim rebels against Nebuchadnezzar ; he dies during the rebellion. The people place his son 19. JEHOIACHIN [or Jechoniah] on the throne (600). Nebuchadnezzar be- sieges Jerusalem. Jehoiachin submits to him, and is carried captive to Babylon, together with ten thousand of the most prominent inhabitants, among them the prophet Ezekiel. In his place Nebuchadnezzar places on the throne 20. Zedekiah (600-589), formerly Mattaniah, son of Josiah, who listens to flatterers and false prophets to rebel against Nebuchadnezzar ; he secretly enters into alliances with Edorn, Moab, Ammon and Phenicia. Jeremiah's advise and prophecies (Jer. Ch. XXI.) (Ch. xxvu.) The true and the false prophets. (Jer. Ch. xxx., 9-40). In the ninth year of Zedekiah (591) Nebuchadnezzar conquers the whole of Judea and besieges Jerusalem. Jere- miah's counsel of submission rejected for fear of the leaders who trust for help in Egypt. The slaves declared free to increase the army. Temporary relief through the approach of an Egyptian army. The promise of freedom broken. The Egyptians are defeated and Jerusalem rein vested. The prophet Jeremiah is ill-treated, imprisoned as a traitor, threatened with death, and his writings burned. His scribe Baruch. On the ninth day of the fourth month (589) Jerusalem is taken. Zedekiah is seized in an attempt to flee, blinded and taken captive to Babylon. His sons are put to death. On the seventh day of the fifth month by command of Nebuzaraddon captain of the guard, the Temple, the royal palace and the principal houses are set on fire, the walls of Jerusalem are torn down, the high priest of Seraiah and many more prominent men slain at Riblah and the temple utensils and the larger portion of the inhabitants are carried away to Babylon. Jeremiah is permitted to remain in the land. Nebuchadnezzar appoints G-EDALIAH the son of Ahikam governor in Mizpeh. The prophets Habakuk and Obadia. Conspiracy against Gedaliah ; he is slain by Ishrnael the son of Nethaniah of the royal family. (Jeremiah Ch. XL., XLI.) The remaining people escape to Egypt against the advice of Jeremiah (Jer. XLII., XLIII.) whom they compel to accompany them. His prophecy to the Jews in Egypt (Jer, Ch, XLIV.) End of the kingdom of Judah, SUMMARY OF EVENTS. 245 6. THE BABYLONIAN CAPTIVITY. The prophet Ezekiel. Isaiah II. (Isaiah Ch. xm.-xiv.-23. Ch. xi* LXVI.) Vigorous literary activity. The book of Job. Psalms 14, 44, 51, 69, 71, 77, 82, 89,94, 102, 137. Conquest of Babylon by Cyrus 538 (Isaiah xxi. Jer. Ch. L., LI.) T. THE RESTORATION. Return of the Jews (about 50,000) from Babylon under Zerubbabel and Joshua 538. Building and dedication of the Altar on Mount Moriah on the first day of the seventh month 537. (Ps 121, 124) Lamentable condition of the returned exiles (Ps. 120. 126.) The prophets Haggai and Sachariah. The building of the Temple begun 535. The Samaritans offended, calum- niate the Jews ; the building of the temple stopped during the reign of Cain- byses. Under the reign of Darius Hystaspes 522 the building is continued and completed 516. Solemn consecration. (Ps. 25, 33, 34, 37, 67, 86, 91, 111, 112, 116,119, 125, 127, 145.) In the ysar 458 Ezra the priest, comes with a colony of Jews from Baby- lon. Sad condidition of the young congregation. The Law of Moses, or the complete Pentateuch accepted as the basis of religious and political life. His opposition to the marriages with foreign women. Reading and explana- tion of the Law an essential element of divine service. He meets with great opposition but is finally successful in his efforts through the assistance of Nehemiah the cup-bearer of king Artaxerses I. who in the year 445 is appointed governor of Judea. He rebuilds the wall of Jerusalem and forti- fies the Temple Mountain. Mixed marriages are forcibly dissolved. Strict observance of the Sabbath enforced. Malachi, the last of the prophets. Manasseh the son Joiada, son in law of Saballat the Samaritan, is banished from Jerusalem ; he builds a temple on Mount G-erizim and introduces the Pentateuch among the Samaritans. Enmity between the Jews and the Samaritans. The priesthood and the scribes. Apocryphical books appear. The sacred canon closed. Conquest of Palestine by Alexander the Great (B. C. 332.) fcAMOJYHAH &U-JT .0 .dO .8S-.vix-.nix .if! Vdtas r & tedqo-nj odT ,i gmfjBgl .doL to slood dT .-{iivjiojs v/us'i^il eno-tot-iV , : /dnolvcWnoteojjpnoO .T8i t 01 ',4-6,68 ',8 .IT ,17 ,(,'< ,.j .dO .-tol. 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