American Standard Version of 1901
Versliste
Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth over the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in lovingkindness.
Who is like unto thee, O Jehovah, among the gods?Who is like thee, glorious in holiness,Fearful in praises, doing wonders?
He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth Jehovah require of thee, but to do justly, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with thy God?
Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth over the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in lovingkindness.
In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, came this word from Jehovah, saying,
Thus saith Jehovah: Stand in the court of Jehovah's house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in Jehovah's house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word.
It may be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way; that I may repent me of the evil which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings.
And thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith Jehovah: If ye will not hearken to me, to walk in my law, which I have set before you,
to hearken to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I send unto you, even rising up early and sending them, but ye have not hearkened;
then will I make this house like Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth.
And the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of Jehovah.
And it came to pass, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that Jehovah had commanded him to speak unto all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold on him, saying, Thou shalt surely die.
Why hast thou prophesied in the name of Jehovah, saying, This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, without inhabitant? And all the people were gathered unto Jeremiah in the house of Jehovah.
And when the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king's house unto the house of Jehovah; and they sat in the entry of the new gate of Jehovah's house.
Then spake the priests and the prophets unto the princes and to all the people, saying, This man is worthy of death; for he hath prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with your ears.
Then spake Jeremiah unto all the princes and to all the people, saying, Jehovah sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye have heard.
Now therefore amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of Jehovah your God; and Jehovah will repent him of the evil that he hath pronounced against you.
But as for me, behold, I am in your hand: do with me as is good and right in your eyes.
Only know ye for certain that, if ye put me to death, ye will bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof; for of a truth Jehovah hath sent me unto you to speak all these words in your ears.
Then said the princes and all the people unto the priests and to the prophets: This man is not worthy of death; for he hath spoken to us in the name of Jehovah our God.
Then rose up certain of the elders of the land, and spake to all the assembly of the people, saying,
{Hebrew: Micaiah.}Micah the Morashtite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spake to all the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Zion shall be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? did he not fear Jehovah, and entreat the favor of Jehovah, and Jehovah repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them? Thus should we commit great evil against our own souls.
And there was also a man that prophesied in the name of Jehovah, Uriah the son of Shemaiah of Kiriath-jearim; and he prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah.
And when Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty-men, and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death; but when Uriah heard it, he was afraid, and fled, and went into Egypt.
And Jehoiakim the king sent men into Egypt, namely, Elnathan the son of Achbor, and certain men with him, into Egypt;
and they fetched forth Uriah out of Egypt, and brought him unto Jehoiakim the king, who slew him with the sword, and cast his dead body into the graves of the {Hebrew: sons of the people.}common people.
But the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to death.
{Hebrew: Micaiah.}Micah the Morashtite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spake to all the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Zion shall be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
The word of Jehovah that came to Micah the Morashtite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of Jehovah, Micaiah the son of Imlah: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so.
Then the king of Israel called an {Or, eunuch}officer, and said, Fetch quickly Micaiah the son of Imlah.
Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, in {Hebrew: a threshing-floor.}an open place at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying before them.
And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron, and said, Thus saith Jehovah, With these shalt thou push the Syrians, until they be consumed.
And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper; for Jehovah will deliver it into the hand of the king.
And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spake unto him, saying, Behold now, the words of the prophets declare good unto the king with one mouth: let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak thou good.
And Micaiah said, As Jehovah liveth, what Jehovah saith unto me, that will I speak.
And when he was come to the king, the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we forbear? And he answered him, Go up and prosper; and Jehovah will deliver it into the hand of the king.
And the king said unto him, How many times shall I adjure thee that thou speak unto me nothing but the truth in the name of Jehovah?
And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd: and Jehovah said, These have no master; let them return every man to his house in peace.
And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell thee that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?
And Micaiah said, Therefore hear thou the word of Jehovah: I saw Jehovah sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left.
And Jehovah said, Who shall {Or, decieve}entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said on this manner; and another said on that manner.
And there came forth {Hebrew: the spirit.}a spirit, and stood before Jehovah, and said, I will entice him.
And Jehovah said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt entice him, and shalt prevail also: go forth, and do so.
And there was a man of the hill-country of Ephraim, whose name was Micah.
And he said unto his mother, The eleven hundred pieces of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou didst utter {Or, an adjuration}a curse, and didst also speak it in mine ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it. And his mother said, Blessed be my son of Jehovah.
And he restored the eleven hundred pieces of silver to his mother; and his mother said, I verily {Or, had dedicated}dedicate the silver unto Jehovah from my hand for my son, to make a graven image and a molten image: now therefore I will restore it unto thee.
And when he restored the money unto his mother, his mother took two hundred pieces of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made thereof a graven image and a molten image: and it was in the house of Micah.
And the man Micah had a house of {Or, God}gods, and he made an ephod, and teraphim, and {Hebrew: filled the hand of.}consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest.
In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
And there was a young man out of Beth-lehem-judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite; and he sojourned there.
And the man departed out of the city, out of Beth-lehem-judah, to sojourn where he could find a place, and he came to the hill-country of Ephraim to the house of Micah, as he journeyed.
And Micah said unto him, Whence comest thou? And he said unto him, I am a Levite of Beth-lehem-judah, and I go to sojourn where I may find a place.
And Micah said unto 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.
And the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons.
And Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah.
Then said Micah, Now know I that Jehovah will do me good, seeing I have a Levite to my priest.
In those days there was no king in Israel: and in those days the tribe of the Danites sought them an inheritance to dwell in; for unto that day their inheritance had not fallen unto them among the tribes of Israel.
And the children of Dan sent of their family five men from their whole number, men of valor, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to search it; and they said unto them, Go, search the land. And they came to the hill-country of Ephraim, unto the house of Micah, and lodged there.
When they were by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite; and they turned aside thither, and said unto him, Who brought thee hither? and what doest thou in this place? and what hast thou here?
And he said unto them, Thus and thus hath Micah dealt with me, and he hath hired me, and I am become his priest.
And they said unto him, Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we go shall be prosperous.
And the priest said unto them, Go in peace: before Jehovah is your way wherein ye go.
And they took that which Micah had made, and the priest whom he had, and came unto Laish, unto a people quiet and secure, and smote them with the edge of the sword; and they burnt the city with fire.
And the children of Dan set up for themselves the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of {Another reading is, Manasseh.}Moses, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land.
So they set them up Micah's graven image which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.
The word of Jehovah that came to Micah the Morashtite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
Hear, ye peoples, all of you; hearken, O earth, and {Hebrew: the fullness thereof.}all that therein is: and let the Lord Jehovah be witness {Or, among}against you, the Lord from his holy temple.
For, behold, Jehovah cometh forth out of his place, and will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth.
And the mountains shall be melted under him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, as waters that are poured down a steep place.
For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria? and what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusalem?
Therefore I will make Samaria as a heap of the field, and as places for planting vineyards; and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will uncover the foundations thereof.
And all her graven images shall be beaten to pieces, and all her hires shall be burned with fire, and all her idols will I lay desolate; for of the hire of a harlot hath she gathered them, and unto the hire of a harlot shall they return.
For this will I lament and wail; I will go stripped and naked; I will make a wailing like the jackals, and a lamentation like the ostriches.
For her wounds are incurable; for it is come even unto Judah; it reacheth unto the gate of my people, even to Jerusalem.
Tell it not in Gath, weep not at all: at {That is, A house of dust.}Beth-le-aphrah {Another reading is, roll thyself}have I rolled myself in the dust.
Pass away, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Shaphir, in nakedness and shame: the {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Zaanan is not come forth; the wailing of Beth-ezel shall take from you the {Or, standing-place}stay thereof.
For the {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Maroth {Or, is in travail for}waiteth anxiously for good, because evil is come down from Jehovah unto the gate of Jerusalem.
Bind the chariot to the swift steed, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Lachish: she was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion; for the transgressions of Israel were found in thee.
Therefore shalt thou give a parting gift to Moresheth-gath: the houses of Achzib shall be a {Hebrew: achzab.}deceitful thing unto the kings of Israel.
I will yet bring unto thee, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Mareshah, him that shall possess thee: the glory of Israel shall come even unto Adullam.
Make thee bald, and cut off thy hair for the children of thy delight: enlarge thy baldness as the {Or, vulture}eagle; for they are gone into captivity from thee.
Therefore shalt thou give a parting gift to Moresheth-gath: the houses of Achzib shall be a {Hebrew: achzab.}deceitful thing unto the kings of Israel.
For her wounds are incurable; for it is come even unto Judah; it reacheth unto the gate of my people, even to Jerusalem.
Tell it not in Gath, weep not at all: at {That is, A house of dust.}Beth-le-aphrah {Another reading is, roll thyself}have I rolled myself in the dust.
Pass away, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Shaphir, in nakedness and shame: the {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Zaanan is not come forth; the wailing of Beth-ezel shall take from you the {Or, standing-place}stay thereof.
For the {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Maroth {Or, is in travail for}waiteth anxiously for good, because evil is come down from Jehovah unto the gate of Jerusalem.
Bind the chariot to the swift steed, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Lachish: she was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion; for the transgressions of Israel were found in thee.
Therefore shalt thou give a parting gift to Moresheth-gath: the houses of Achzib shall be a {Hebrew: achzab.}deceitful thing unto the kings of Israel.
I will yet bring unto thee, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Mareshah, him that shall possess thee: the glory of Israel shall come even unto Adullam.
Make thee bald, and cut off thy hair for the children of thy delight: enlarge thy baldness as the {Or, vulture}eagle; for they are gone into captivity from thee.
He is come to Aiath, he is passed through Migron; at Michmash he layeth up his baggage;
they are gone over the pass; {Or, Geba is our lodging, they cry}they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramah trembleth; Gibeah of Saul is fled.
Cry aloud with thy voice, O daughter of Gallim! hearken, O Laishah! O thou poor Anathoth!
Madmenah is a fugitive; the inhabitants of Gebim {Or, make their households flee}flee for safety.
This very day shall he halt at Nob: he shaketh his hand at the mount of the {Another reading is, house.}daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.
Woe to them that devise iniquity and work evil upon their beds! when the morning is light, they practise it, because it is in the power of their hand.
And they covet fields, and seize them; and houses, and take them away: and they oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage.
Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no room, and ye be made to dwell alone in the midst of the land!
{Or, Prophesy ye not, they are ever prophesying, say they Hebrew: Drop &c. See Amos 7:16.}Prophesy ye not, thus they prophesy. They shall not prophesy {Or, of these things: their reproaches never cease}to these: reproaches shall not depart.
If a man walking {Or, in wind and falsehood}in a spirit of falsehood do lie, saying, I will prophesy unto thee of wine and of strong drink; he shall even be the prophet of this people.
that say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits,
get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.
I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as a flock in the midst of their pasture; they shall make great noise by reason of the multitude of men.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and they that are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again lean upon him that smote them, but shall lean upon Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
{Hebrew: shear jashub. See chapter 7:3.}A remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.
For though thy people, Israel, be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant {Hebrew: in it.}of them shall return: a destruction is determined, overflowing with righteousness.
For a full end, and that determined, will the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, make in the midst of all the {Or, land}earth.
Thus saith Jehovah concerning the prophets that make my people to err; that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and whoso putteth not into their mouths, they even {Hebrew: sanctify.}prepare war against him:
Therefore it shall be night unto you, that ye shall have no vision; and it shall be dark unto you, that ye shall not divine; and the sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be black over them.
And the seers shall be put to shame, and the diviners confounded; yea, they shall all cover their lips; for there is no answer of God.
{Or, Be ye amazed}Tarry ye and wonder; {Or, blind yourselves and be blind}take your pleasure and be blind: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.
For Jehovah hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed {Or, your eyes; the prophets, and &c.}your eyes, the prophets; and your heads, the seers, hath he covered.
And all vision is become unto you as the words of a {Or, writing}book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that {Hebrew: knoweth writing (or, letters)}is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I cannot, for it is sealed:
and the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I am not learned.
Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
For the palace shall be forsaken; the populous city shall be deserted; {Or, Ophel}the hill and the watch-tower shall be for dens for ever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks;
But in the latter days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of Jehovah's house shall be established {Or, at the head}on the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and peoples shall flow unto it.
And it shall come to pass in the latter days, that the mountain of Jehovah's house shall be established {Or, at the head}on the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.
But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig-tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of Jehovah of hosts hath spoken it.
If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land:
and I will make that which was lame a remnant, and that which was cast far off a strong nation: and Jehovah will reign over them in mount Zion from henceforth even for ever.
Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of Jehovah of hosts will perform this.
Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail; for now shalt thou go forth out of the city, and shalt dwell in the field, and shalt come even unto Babylon: there shalt thou be rescued; there will Jehovah redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies.
Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in thy house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon: nothing shall be left, saith Jehovah.
{[Chapter 5:1 in Hebrew.]}But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah, which art little to be among the {Or, families See Judges 6:15.}thousands of Judah, out of thee shall one come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, {Or, from ancient days}from everlasting.
Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she who travaileth hath brought forth: then the residue of his brethren shall return {Or, with}unto the children of Israel.
And he shall stand, and shall feed his flock in the strength of Jehovah, in the majesty of the name of Jehovah his God: and they shall abide; for now shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: behold, {Or, the}a {Or, maiden}virgin {Or, is with child, and beareth}shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name {That is, God is with us.}Immanuel.
And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the entrances thereof: and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and when he treadeth within our border.
that I will break the Assyrian in my land, and upon my mountains tread him under foot: then shall his yoke depart from off them, and his burden depart from off their shoulder.
Wherewith shall I come before Jehovah, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt-offerings, with calves a year old?
will Jehovah be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth Jehovah require of thee, but to do justly, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with thy God?
I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back; bring my sons from far, and my daughters from the end of the earth;
every one that is called by my name, and whom I have created for my glory, whom I have formed, yea, whom I have made.
But as for me, {Or, in Jehovah will I keep watch}I will look unto Jehovah; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.
And I will wait for Jehovah, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him.
In that day shall they come unto thee from Assyria and the cities of {Hebrew: Mazor.}Egypt, and from {Hebrew: Mazor.}Egypt even to the River, and from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord {Or, will again the second time recover with his hand}will set his hand again the second time to {Or, purchase See Exodus 15:16}recover the remnant of his people, that shall remain, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the {Or, coast-lands}islands of the sea.
If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; it is not therefore not of the body.
Therefore I will make Samaria as a heap of the field, and as places for planting vineyards; and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will uncover the foundations thereof.
And all her graven images shall be beaten to pieces, and all her hires shall be burned with fire, and all her idols will I lay desolate; for of the hire of a harlot hath she gathered them, and unto the hire of a harlot shall they return.
In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel, and reigned nine years.
And he did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, yet not as the kings of Israel that were before him.
Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and brought him tribute.
And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea; for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and offered no tribute 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.
Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years.
In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away unto Assyria, and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
And it was so, because the children of Israel had sinned against Jehovah their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods,
and walked in the statutes of the nations, whom Jehovah cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they {Or, practised}made.
And the children of Israel did secretly things that were not right against Jehovah their God: and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city;
and they set them up {Or, obelisks}pillars and Asherim upon every high hill, and under every green tree;
and there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the nations whom Jehovah carried away before them; and they wrought wicked things to provoke Jehovah to anger;
and they served idols, whereof Jehovah had said unto them, Ye shall not do this thing.
Yet Jehovah testified unto Israel, and unto Judah, by every prophet, and every seer, saying, Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.
Notwithstanding, they would not hear, but hardened their neck, like to the neck of their fathers, who believed not in Jehovah their God.
And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified unto them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the nations that were round about them, concerning whom Jehovah had charged them that they should not do like them.
And they forsook all the commandments of Jehovah their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made an Asherah, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal.
And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, to provoke him to anger.
Therefore Jehovah was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.
Also Judah kept not the commandments of Jehovah their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they {Or, practised}made.
And Jehovah rejected all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight.
For he rent Israel from the house of David; and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king: and Jeroboam {According to another reading, drew Israel away.}drove Israel from following Jehovah, and made them sin a great sin.
And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them;
until Jehovah removed Israel out of his sight, as he spake by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.
And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Avva, and from Hamath and 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.
And so it was, at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not Jehovah: therefore Jehovah sent lions among them, which killed some of them.
Wherefore they spake to the king of Assyria, saying, The nations which thou hast carried away, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the law of the god of the land: therefore he hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the law of the god of the land.
Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying, Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the law of the god of the land.
So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Beth-el, and taught them how they should fear Jehovah.
Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt.
And the men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima,
and the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak; and the Sepharvites burnt their children in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the {Or, god}gods of Sepharvaim.
So they feared Jehovah, and made unto them from among themselves priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places.
They feared Jehovah, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.
Unto this day they do after the former manner: they fear not Jehovah, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law or after the commandment which Jehovah commanded the children of Jacob, whom he named Israel;
with whom Jehovah had made a covenant, and charged them, saying, Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow yourselves to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them:
but Jehovah, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and with an outstretched arm, him shall ye fear, and unto him shall ye bow yourselves, and to him shall ye sacrifice:
and the statutes and the ordinances, and the law and the commandment, which he wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods:
and the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods:
but Jehovah your God shall ye fear; and he will deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.
Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner.
So these nations feared Jehovah, and served their graven images; their children likewise, and their children's children, as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.
In the ninth year of Hoshea the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away unto Assyria, and placed them in Halah, and on the Habor, the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.
And it was so, because the children of Israel had sinned against Jehovah their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods,
and walked in the statutes of the nations, whom Jehovah cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they {Or, practised}made.
And the children of Israel did secretly things that were not right against Jehovah their God: and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city;
and they set them up {Or, obelisks}pillars and Asherim upon every high hill, and under every green tree;
and there they burnt incense in all the high places, as did the nations whom Jehovah carried away before them; and they wrought wicked things to provoke Jehovah to anger;
and they served idols, whereof Jehovah had said unto them, Ye shall not do this thing.
Yet Jehovah testified unto Israel, and unto Judah, by every prophet, and every seer, saying, Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep my commandments and my statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by my servants the prophets.
Notwithstanding, they would not hear, but hardened their neck, like to the neck of their fathers, who believed not in Jehovah their God.
And they rejected his statutes, and his covenant that he made with their fathers, and his testimonies which he testified unto them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the nations that were round about them, concerning whom Jehovah had charged them that they should not do like them.
And they forsook all the commandments of Jehovah their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made an Asherah, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal.
And they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, to provoke him to anger.
Therefore Jehovah was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of his sight: there was none left but the tribe of Judah only.
Also Judah kept not the commandments of Jehovah their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they {Or, practised}made.
And Jehovah rejected all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until he had cast them out of his sight.
For he rent Israel from the house of David; and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king: and Jeroboam {According to another reading, drew Israel away.}drove Israel from following Jehovah, and made them sin a great sin.
And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them;
until Jehovah removed Israel out of his sight, as he spake by all his servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away out of their own land to Assyria unto this day.
For this will I lament and wail; I will go stripped and naked; I will make a wailing like the jackals, and a lamentation like the ostriches.
For her wounds are incurable; for it is come even unto Judah; it reacheth unto the gate of my people, even to Jerusalem.
In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, came this word from Jehovah, saying,
Thus saith Jehovah: Stand in the court of Jehovah's house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in Jehovah's house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word.
It may be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way; that I may repent me of the evil which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings.
And thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith Jehovah: If ye will not hearken to me, to walk in my law, which I have set before you,
to hearken to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I send unto you, even rising up early and sending them, but ye have not hearkened;
then will I make this house like Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth.
And the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of Jehovah.
And it came to pass, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that Jehovah had commanded him to speak unto all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold on him, saying, Thou shalt surely die.
Why hast thou prophesied in the name of Jehovah, saying, This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, without inhabitant? And all the people were gathered unto Jeremiah in the house of Jehovah.
And when the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king's house unto the house of Jehovah; and they sat in the entry of the new gate of Jehovah's house.
Then spake the priests and the prophets unto the princes and to all the people, saying, This man is worthy of death; for he hath prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with your ears.
Then spake Jeremiah unto all the princes and to all the people, saying, Jehovah sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye have heard.
Now therefore amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of Jehovah your God; and Jehovah will repent him of the evil that he hath pronounced against you.
But as for me, behold, I am in your hand: do with me as is good and right in your eyes.
Only know ye for certain that, if ye put me to death, ye will bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof; for of a truth Jehovah hath sent me unto you to speak all these words in your ears.
Then said the princes and all the people unto the priests and to the prophets: This man is not worthy of death; for he hath spoken to us in the name of Jehovah our God.
Then rose up certain of the elders of the land, and spake to all the assembly of the people, saying,
{Hebrew: Micaiah.}Micah the Morashtite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spake to all the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Zion shall be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? did he not fear Jehovah, and entreat the favor of Jehovah, and Jehovah repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them? Thus should we commit great evil against our own souls.
And there was also a man that prophesied in the name of Jehovah, Uriah the son of Shemaiah of Kiriath-jearim; and he prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah.
And when Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty-men, and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death; but when Uriah heard it, he was afraid, and fled, and went into Egypt.
And Jehoiakim the king sent men into Egypt, namely, Elnathan the son of Achbor, and certain men with him, into Egypt;
and they fetched forth Uriah out of Egypt, and brought him unto Jehoiakim the king, who slew him with the sword, and cast his dead body into the graves of the {Hebrew: sons of the people.}common people.
But the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to death.
{Hebrew: Micaiah.}Micah the Morashtite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spake to all the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Zion shall be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
And I said, Hear, I pray you, ye heads of Jacob, and rulers of the house of Israel: is it not for you to know justice?
ye who hate the good, and love the evil; who pluck off their skin from off them, and their flesh from off their bones;
who also eat the flesh of my people, and flay their skin from off them, and break their bones, and chop them in pieces, as for the pot, and as flesh within the caldron.
Then shall they cry unto Jehovah, but he will not answer them; yea, he will hide his face from them at that time, according as they have wrought evil in their doings.
Thus saith Jehovah concerning the prophets that make my people to err; that bite with their teeth, and cry, Peace; and whoso putteth not into their mouths, they even {Hebrew: sanctify.}prepare war against him:
Therefore it shall be night unto you, that ye shall have no vision; and it shall be dark unto you, that ye shall not divine; and the sun shall go down upon the prophets, and the day shall be black over them.
And the seers shall be put to shame, and the diviners confounded; yea, they shall all cover their lips; for there is no answer of God.
But as for me, I am full of power {Or, even the Spirit}by the Spirit of Jehovah, and of judgment, and of might, to declare unto Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin.
Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and rulers of the house of Israel, that abhor justice, and pervert all equity.
They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity.
The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet they lean upon Jehovah, and say, Is not Jehovah in the midst of us? no evil shall come upon us.
Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
Then spake the priests and the prophets unto the princes and to all the people, saying, This man is worthy of death; for he hath prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with your ears.
Then spake Jeremiah unto all the princes and to all the people, saying, Jehovah sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye have heard.
Now therefore amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of Jehovah your God; and Jehovah will repent him of the evil that he hath pronounced against you.
But as for me, behold, I am in your hand: do with me as is good and right in your eyes.
Only know ye for certain that, if ye put me to death, ye will bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof; for of a truth Jehovah hath sent me unto you to speak all these words in your ears.
Then said the princes and all the people unto the priests and to the prophets: This man is not worthy of death; for he hath spoken to us in the name of Jehovah our God.
Then rose up certain of the elders of the land, and spake to all the assembly of the people, saying,
{Hebrew: Micaiah.}Micah the Morashtite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spake to all the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Zion shall be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.
Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him to death? did he not fear Jehovah, and entreat the favor of Jehovah, and Jehovah repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them? Thus should we commit great evil against our own souls.
Now shalt thou gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: he hath laid siege against us; they shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.
And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judæa: for thus it is written through the prophet,
{Micah 5:2.}And thou Bethlehem, land of Judah,Art in no wise least among the princes of Judah:For out of thee shall come forth a governor,Who shall be shepherd of my people Israel.
For the son dishonoreth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house.
And brother shall deliver up brother to death, and the father his child: and children shall rise up against parents, and {Or, put them to death}cause them to be put to death.
For I came to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law:
and a man's foes shall be they of his own household.
I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as a flock in the midst of their pasture; they shall make great noise by reason of the multitude of men.
The breaker is gone up before them: they have broken forth and passed on to the gate, and are gone out thereat; and their king is passed on before them, and Jehovah at the head of them.
I am the door; by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and go out, and shall find pasture.
I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd layeth down his life for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd; and I know mine own, and mine own know me,
The word of Jehovah that came to Micah the Morashtite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
Hear, ye peoples, all of you; hearken, O earth, and {Hebrew: the fullness thereof.}all that therein is: and let the Lord Jehovah be witness {Or, among}against you, the Lord from his holy temple.
For, behold, Jehovah cometh forth out of his place, and will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth.
And the mountains shall be melted under him, and the valleys shall be cleft, as wax before the fire, as waters that are poured down a steep place.
For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria? and what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusalem?
Therefore I will make Samaria as a heap of the field, and as places for planting vineyards; and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will uncover the foundations thereof.
And all her graven images shall be beaten to pieces, and all her hires shall be burned with fire, and all her idols will I lay desolate; for of the hire of a harlot hath she gathered them, and unto the hire of a harlot shall they return.
For this will I lament and wail; I will go stripped and naked; I will make a wailing like the jackals, and a lamentation like the ostriches.
For her wounds are incurable; for it is come even unto Judah; it reacheth unto the gate of my people, even to Jerusalem.
Tell it not in Gath, weep not at all: at {That is, A house of dust.}Beth-le-aphrah {Another reading is, roll thyself}have I rolled myself in the dust.
Pass away, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Shaphir, in nakedness and shame: the {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Zaanan is not come forth; the wailing of Beth-ezel shall take from you the {Or, standing-place}stay thereof.
For the {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Maroth {Or, is in travail for}waiteth anxiously for good, because evil is come down from Jehovah unto the gate of Jerusalem.
Bind the chariot to the swift steed, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Lachish: she was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion; for the transgressions of Israel were found in thee.
Therefore shalt thou give a parting gift to Moresheth-gath: the houses of Achzib shall be a {Hebrew: achzab.}deceitful thing unto the kings of Israel.
I will yet bring unto thee, O {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Mareshah, him that shall possess thee: the glory of Israel shall come even unto Adullam.
Make thee bald, and cut off thy hair for the children of thy delight: enlarge thy baldness as the {Or, vulture}eagle; for they are gone into captivity from thee.
Woe to them that devise iniquity and work evil upon their beds! when the morning is light, they practise it, because it is in the power of their hand.
And they covet fields, and seize them; and houses, and take them away: and they oppress a man and his house, even a man and his heritage.
Therefore thus saith Jehovah: Behold, against this family do I devise an evil, from which ye shall not remove your necks, neither shall ye walk haughtily; for it is an evil time.
In that day shall they take up a parable against you, and lament {Or, with the lamentation, It is done; and say &c.}with a doleful lamentation, and say, We are utterly ruined: he changeth the portion of my people: how doth he {Or, depart from }remove it from me! to the rebellious he divideth our fields.
Therefore thou shalt have none that shall cast the line by lot in the assembly of Jehovah.
{Or, Prophesy ye not, they are ever prophesying, say they Hebrew: Drop &c. See Amos 7:16.}Prophesy ye not, thus they prophesy. They shall not prophesy {Or, of these things: their reproaches never cease}to these: reproaches shall not depart.
{Or, O thou that art named the house of Jacob}Shall it be said, O house of Jacob, Is the Spirit of Jehovah {Or, impatient Hebrew: shortened.}straitened? are these his doings? Do not my words do good to him that walketh uprightly?
But {Hebrew: yesterday.}of late my people is risen up as an enemy: ye strip the robe from off the garment from them that pass by securely as men averse from war.
The women of my people ye cast out from their pleasant houses; from their young children ye take away my glory for ever.
Arise ye, and depart; for this is not your resting-place; because of uncleanness that destroyeth, even with a grievous destruction.
If a man walking {Or, in wind and falsehood}in a spirit of falsehood do lie, saying, I will prophesy unto thee of wine and of strong drink; he shall even be the prophet of this people.
I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee; I will surely gather the remnant of Israel; I will put them together as the sheep of Bozrah, as a flock in the midst of their pasture; they shall make great noise by reason of the multitude of men.
The breaker is gone up before them: they have broken forth and passed on to the gate, and are gone out thereat; and their king is passed on before them, and Jehovah at the head of them.
Hear ye now what Jehovah saith: Arise, contend thou before the mountains, and let the hills hear thy voice.
Hear, O ye mountains, Jehovah's controversy, and ye enduring foundations of the earth; for Jehovah hath a controversy with his people, and he will contend with Israel.
O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have I wearied thee? testify against me.
For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of bondage; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
O my people, remember now what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him; remember from Shittim unto Gilgal, that ye may know the righteous acts of Jehovah.
Wherewith shall I come before Jehovah, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt-offerings, with calves a year old?
will Jehovah be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth Jehovah require of thee, but to do justly, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with thy God?
The voice of Jehovah crieth unto the city, and the man of wisdom will {According to Septuagint Version, Vulgate, and Syriac, fear.}see thy name: hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.
Are there yet treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and a scant {Hebrew: ephah.}measure that is abominable?
Shall I be pure with wicked balances, and with a bag of deceitful weights?
For the rich men thereof are full of violence, and the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.
Therefore I also have smitten thee with a grievous wound; I have made thee desolate because of thy sins.
Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied; and thy {Or, emptiness}humiliation shall be in the midst of thee: and thou shalt put away, but shalt not save; and that which thou savest will I give up to the sword.
Thou shalt sow, but shalt not reap; thou shalt tread the olives, but shalt not anoint thee with oil; and the vintage, but shalt not drink the wine.
For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab, and ye walk in their counsels; that I may make thee {Or, an astonishment}a desolation, and the inhabitants thereof a hissing: and ye shall bear the reproach of my people.
Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grape gleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat; {Or, not first-ripe fig which my soul desired}my soul desireth the first-ripe fig.
The godly man is perished out of the earth, and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net.
{Or, Both hands are put forth for evil to do it &c.}Their hands are upon that which is evil to do it diligently; the prince asketh, and the judge is ready for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth the evil desire of his soul: thus they weave it together.
The best of them is as a brier; {Or, the straightest is as it were taken from &c.}the most upright is worse than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen, even thy visitation, is come; now shall be their perplexity.
Trust ye not in a neighbor; put ye not confidence in a {Or, confidant}friend; keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom.
For the son dishonoreth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house.
But as for me, {Or, in Jehovah will I keep watch}I will look unto Jehovah; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.
Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I shall arise; when I sit in darkness, Jehovah will be a light unto me.
I will bear the indignation of Jehovah, because I have sinned against him, until he plead my cause, and execute judgment for me: he will bring me forth to the light, and I shall behold his righteousness.
Then mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her who said unto me, Where is Jehovah thy God? Mine eyes shall see my desire upon her; now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.
{Or, In the day that thy walls are to be built}A day for building thy walls! in that day shall the {Or, boundary}decree be far removed.
In that day shall they come unto thee from Assyria and the cities of {Hebrew: Mazor.}Egypt, and from {Hebrew: Mazor.}Egypt even to the River, and from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain.
Yet shall the land be desolate because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings.
{Or, Rule}Feed thy people with thy rod, the flock of thy heritage, which dwell solitarily, in the forest in the midst of Carmel: let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old.
As in the days of thy coming forth out of the land of Egypt will I show unto them marvellous things.
The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; they shall lay their hand upon their mouth; their ears shall be deaf.
They shall lick the dust like a serpent; like crawling things of the earth they shall come trembling out of their close places; they shall come with fear unto Jehovah our God, and shall be afraid because of thee.
Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth over the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in lovingkindness.
He will again have compassion upon us; he will {Or, subdue our iniquities}tread our iniquities under foot; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.
{Or, Thou wilt show thy faithfulness &c.}Thou wilt {Hebrew: give.}perform the truth to Jacob, and the lovingkindness to Abraham, which thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.
In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel began Jotham the son of Uzziah king of Judah to reign.
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.
And he did that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah; he did according to all that his father Uzziah had done.
Howbeit the high places were not taken away: the people still sacrificed and burned incense in the high places. He built the upper gate of the house of Jehovah.
Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
In those days Jehovah began to send against Judah Rezin the king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah.
And Jotham slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father: and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.
In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah Ahaz the son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign.
Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem: and he did not that which was right in the eyes of Jehovah his God, like David his father.
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, whom Jehovah cast out from before the children of Israel.
And he sacrificed and burnt incense in the high places, and on the hills, and under every green tree.
Then Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war: and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him.
At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered Elath to Syria, and drove the Jews from {Hebrew: Eloth.}Elath; and the {According to another reading, Edomites.}Syrians came to Elath, and dwelt there, unto this day.
So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, who rise up against me.
And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of Jehovah, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria.
And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him; and the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin.
And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus; and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof.
And Urijah the priest built an altar: according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so did Urijah the priest make it against the coming of king Ahaz from Damascus.
And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king drew near unto the altar, and {Or, went up unto it}offered thereon.
And he burnt his burnt-offering and his meal-offering, and poured his drink-offering, and sprinkled the blood of {Hebrew: the peace-offerings which were his.}his peace-offerings, upon the altar.
And the brazen altar, which was before Jehovah, he brought from the forefront of the house, from between his altar and the house of Jehovah, and put it on the north side of his altar.
And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt-offering, 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: but the brazen altar shall be for me to inquire by.
Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded.
And king Ahaz cut off the panels of the bases, and removed the laver from off them, and took down the sea from off the brazen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stone.
And the {Or, covered place}covered way for the sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king's entry without, turned he {Or, round}unto the house of Jehovah, because of the king of Assyria.
Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
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.
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, whom Jehovah cast out from before the children of Israel.
And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus; and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof.
And Urijah the priest built an altar: according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so did Urijah the priest make it against the coming of king Ahaz from Damascus.
And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king drew near unto the altar, and {Or, went up unto it}offered thereon.
And he burnt his burnt-offering and his meal-offering, and poured his drink-offering, and sprinkled the blood of {Hebrew: the peace-offerings which were his.}his peace-offerings, upon the altar.
And the brazen altar, which was before Jehovah, he brought from the forefront of the house, from between his altar and the house of Jehovah, and put it on the north side of his altar.
And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying, Upon the great altar burn the morning burnt-offering, 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: but the brazen altar shall be for me to inquire by.
For the transgression of Jacob is all this, and for the sins of the house of Israel. What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria? and what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusalem?
Therefore I will make Samaria as a heap of the field, and as places for planting vineyards; and I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley, and I will uncover the foundations thereof.
And all her graven images shall be beaten to pieces, and all her hires shall be burned with fire, and all her idols will I lay desolate; for of the hire of a harlot hath she gathered them, and unto the hire of a harlot shall they return.
Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob, and rulers of the house of Israel, that abhor justice, and pervert all equity.
They build up Zion with blood, and Jerusalem with iniquity.
The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet they lean upon Jehovah, and say, Is not Jehovah in the midst of us? no evil shall come upon us.
Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.