Uzziah Reigns in Judah^(A)

26 Now all the people of Judah took ^[a]Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. ² He built ^[b]Elath and restored it to Judah, after the king rested with his fathers.

³ Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Jecholiah of Jerusalem. ⁴ And he did what was ^(B)right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. ^5 (C)He sought God in the days of Zechariah, who ^(D)had understanding in the ^[c]visions of God; and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him ^(E)prosper.

⁶ Now he went out and ^(F)made war against the Philistines, and broke down the wall of Gath, the wall of Jabneh, and the wall of Ashdod; and he built cities around Ashdod and among the Philistines. ⁷ God helped him against ^(G)the Philistines, against the Arabians who lived in Gur Baal, and against the Meunites. ⁸ Also the Ammonites ^(H)brought tribute to Uzziah. His fame spread as far as the entrance of Egypt, for he became exceedingly strong.

⁹ And Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the ^(I)Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate, and at the corner buttress of the wall; then he fortified them. ¹⁰ Also he built towers in the desert. He dug many wells, for he had much livestock, both in the lowlands and in the plains; he also had farmers and vinedressers in the mountains and in ^[d]Carmel, for he loved the soil.

¹¹ Moreover Uzziah had an army of fighting men who went out to war by companies, according to the number on their roll as prepared by Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the officer, under the hand of Hananiah, one of the king’s captains. ¹² The total number of ^[e]chief officers of the mighty men of valor was two thousand six hundred. ¹³ And under their authority was an army of three hundred and seven thousand five hundred, that made war with mighty power, to help the king against the enemy. ¹⁴ Then Uzziah prepared for them, for the entire army, shields, spears, helmets, body armor, bows, and slings to cast stones. ¹⁵ And he made devices in Jerusalem, invented by ^(J)skillful men, to be on the towers and the corners, to shoot arrows and large stones. So his fame spread far and wide, for he was marvelously helped till he became strong.

The Penalty for Uzziah’s Pride^(K)

¹⁶ But ^(L)when he was strong his heart was ^(M)lifted up, to his destruction, for he transgressed against the Lord his God ^(N)by entering the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. ¹⁷ So ^(O)Azariah the priest went in after him, and with him were eighty priests of the Lord—valiant men. ¹⁸ And they withstood King Uzziah, and said to him, “It ^(P)is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the ^(Q)priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed! You shall have no honor from the Lord God.”

¹⁹ Then Uzziah became furious; and he had a censer in his hand to burn incense. And while he was angry with the priests, ^(R)leprosy broke out on his forehead, before the priests in the house of the Lord, beside the incense altar. ²⁰ And Azariah the chief priest and all the priests looked at him, and there, on his forehead, he was leprous; so they thrust him out of that place. Indeed he also ^(S)hurried to get out, because the Lord had struck him.

^21 (T)King Uzziah was a leper until the day of his death. He dwelt in an ^(U)isolated house, because he was a leper; for he was cut off from the house of the Lord. Then Jotham his son was over the king’s house, judging the people of the land.

²² Now the rest of the acts of Uzziah, from first to last, the prophet ^(V)Isaiah the son of Amoz wrote. ^23 (W)So Uzziah ^[f]rested with his fathers, and they buried him with his fathers in the field of burial which belonged to the kings, for they said, “He is a leper.” Then Jotham his son reigned in his place.

Jotham Reigns in Judah^(X)

27 Jotham ^(Y)was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was ^[g]Jerushah the daughter of Zadok. ² And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father Uzziah had done (although he did not enter the temple of the Lord). But still ^(Z)the people acted corruptly.

³ He built the Upper Gate of the house of the Lord, and he built extensively on the wall of ^(AA)Ophel. ⁴ Moreover he built cities in the mountains of Judah, and in the forests he built fortresses and towers. ⁵ He also fought with the king of the ^(AB)Ammonites and defeated them. And the people of Ammon gave him in that year one hundred talents of silver, ten thousand kors of wheat, and ten thousand of barley. The people of Ammon paid this to him in the second and third years also. ⁶ So Jotham became mighty, ^(AC)because he prepared his ways before the Lord his God.

⁷ Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars and his ways, indeed they are written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah. ⁸ He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. ^9 (AD)So Jotham ^[h]rested with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. Then ^(AE)Ahaz his son reigned in his place.

Ahaz Reigns in Judah^(AF)

28 Ahaz ^(AG)was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and he did not do what was right in the sight of the Lord, as his father David had done. ² For he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel, and made ^(AH)molded images for ^(AI)the Baals. ³ He burned incense in ^(AJ)the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, and burned ^(AK)his children in the ^(AL)fire, according to the abominations of the nations whom the Lord had ^(AM)cast out before the children of Israel. ⁴ And he sacrificed and burned incense on the ^[i]high places, on the hills, and under every green tree.

Syria and Israel Defeat Judah^(AN)

⁵ Therefore ^(AO)the Lord his God delivered him into the hand of the king of Syria. They ^(AP)defeated him, and carried away a great multitude of them as captives, and brought them to Damascus. Then he was also delivered into the hand of the king of Israel, who defeated him with a great slaughter. ⁶ For ^(AQ)Pekah the son of Remaliah killed one hundred and twenty thousand in Judah in one day, all valiant men, ^(AR)because they had forsaken the Lord God of their fathers. ⁷ Zichri, a mighty man of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the king’s son, Azrikam the officer over the house, and Elkanah who was second to the king. ⁸ And the children of Israel carried away captive of their ^(AS)brethren two hundred thousand women, sons, and daughters; and they also took away much ^[j]spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.

Israel Returns the Captives

⁹ But a ^(AT)prophet of the Lord was there, whose name was Oded; and he went out before the army that came to Samaria, and said to them: “Look, ^(AU)because the Lord God of your fathers was angry with Judah, He has delivered them into your hand; but you have killed them in a rage that ^(AV)reaches up to heaven. ¹⁰ And now you propose to force the children of Judah and Jerusalem to be your ^(AW)male and female slaves; but are you not also guilty before the Lord your God? ¹¹ Now hear me, therefore, and return the captives, whom you have taken captive from your brethren, ^(AX)for the fierce wrath of the Lord is upon you.”

¹² Then some of the heads of the children of Ephraim, Azariah the son of Johanan, Berechiah the son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah the son of Shallum, and Amasa the son of Hadlai, stood up against those who came from the war, ¹³ and said to them, “You shall not bring the captives here, for we already have offended the Lord. You intend to add to our sins and to our guilt; for our guilt is great, and there is fierce wrath against Israel.” ¹⁴ So the armed men left the captives and the ^[k]spoil before the leaders and all the assembly. ¹⁵ Then the men ^(AY)who were designated by name rose up and took the captives, and from the ^[l]spoil they clothed all who were naked among them, dressed them and gave them sandals, ^(AZ)gave them food and drink, and anointed them; and they let all the feeble ones ride on donkeys. So they brought them to their brethren at Jericho, ^(BA)the city of palm trees. Then they returned to Samaria.

Assyria Refuses to Help Judah^(BB)

^16 (BC)At the same time King Ahaz sent to the ^[m]kings of Assyria to help him. ¹⁷ For again the ^(BD)Edomites had come, attacked Judah, and carried away captives. ^18 (BE)The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the lowland and of the South of Judah, and had taken Beth Shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Sochoh with its villages, Timnah with its villages, and Gimzo with its villages; and they dwelt there. ¹⁹ For the Lord ^[n]brought Judah low because of Ahaz king of ^(BF)Israel, for he had ^(BG)encouraged moral decline in Judah and had been continually unfaithful to the Lord. ²⁰ Also ^(BH)Tiglath-Pileser^[o] king of Assyria came to him and distressed him, and did not assist him. ²¹ For Ahaz took part of the treasures from the house of the Lord, from the house of the king, and from the leaders, and he gave it to the king of Assyria; but he did not help him.

Apostasy and Death of Ahaz^(BI)

²² Now in the time of his distress King Ahaz became increasingly unfaithful to the Lord. This is that King Ahaz. ²³ For ^(BJ)he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus which had defeated him, saying, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, I will sacrifice to them ^(BK)that they may help me.” But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel. ²⁴ So Ahaz gathered the articles of the house of God, cut in pieces the articles of the house of God, ^(BL)shut up the doors of the house of the Lord, and made for himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem. ²⁵ And in every single city of Judah he made ^[p]high places to burn incense to other gods, and provoked to anger the Lord God of his fathers.

^26 (BM)Now the rest of his acts and all his ways, from first to last, indeed they are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. ²⁷ So Ahaz ^[q]rested with his fathers, and they buried him in the city, in Jerusalem; but they ^(BN)did not bring him into the tombs of the kings of Israel. Then Hezekiah his son reigned in his place.

Hezekiah Reigns in Judah^(BO)

29 Hezekiah ^(BP)became king when he was twenty-five years old, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was ^[r]Abijah the daughter of Zechariah. ² And he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his father David had done.

Hezekiah Cleanses the Temple

³ In the first year of his reign, in the first month, he ^(BQ)opened the doors of the house of the Lord and repaired them. ⁴ Then he brought in the priests and the Levites, and gathered them in the East Square, ⁵ and said to them: “Hear me, Levites! Now ^[s]sanctify yourselves, ^(BR)sanctify the house of the Lord God of your fathers, and carry out the rubbish from the holy place. ⁶ For our fathers have trespassed and done evil in the eyes of the Lord our God; they have forsaken Him, have ^(BS)turned their faces away from the ^[t]dwelling place of the Lord, and turned their backs on Him. ^7 (BT)They have also shut up the doors of the vestibule, put out the lamps, and have not burned incense or offered burnt offerings in the holy place to the God of Israel. ⁸ Therefore the ^(BU)wrath of the Lord fell upon Judah and Jerusalem, and He has ^(BV)given them up to trouble, to desolation, and to ^(BW)jeering, as you see with your ^(BX)eyes. ⁹ For indeed, because of this ^(BY)our fathers have fallen by the sword; and our sons, our daughters, and our wives are in captivity.

¹⁰ “Now it is in my heart to make ^(BZ)a covenant with the Lord God of Israel, that His fierce wrath may turn away from us. ¹¹ My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has ^(CA)chosen you to stand before Him, to serve Him, and that you should minister to Him and burn incense.”

¹² Then these Levites arose: ^(CB)Mahath the son of Amasai and Joel the son of Azariah, of the sons of the ^(CC)Kohathites; of the sons of Merari, Kish the son of Abdi and Azariah the son of Jehallelel; of the Gershonites, Joah the son of Zimmah and Eden the son of Joah; ¹³ of the sons of Elizaphan, Shimri and Jeiel; of the sons of Asaph, Zechariah and Mattaniah; ¹⁴ of the sons of Heman, Jehiel and Shimei; and of the sons of Jeduthun, Shemaiah and Uzziel.

¹⁵ And they gathered their brethren, ^(CD)sanctified^[u] themselves, and went according to the commandment of the king, at the words of the Lord, ^(CE)to cleanse the house of the Lord. ¹⁶ Then the priests went into the inner part of the house of the Lord to cleanse it, and brought out all the debris that they found in the temple of the Lord to the court of the house of the Lord. And the Levites took it out and carried it to the Brook ^(CF)Kidron.

¹⁷ Now they began to ^[v]sanctify on the first day of the first month, and on the eighth day of the month they came to the vestibule of the Lord. So they sanctified the house of the Lord in eight days, and on the sixteenth day of the first month they finished.

¹⁸ Then they went in to King Hezekiah and said, “We have cleansed all the house of the Lord, the altar of burnt offerings with all its articles, and the table of the showbread with all its articles. ¹⁹ Moreover all the articles which King Ahaz in his reign had ^(CG)cast aside in his transgression we have prepared and ^[w]sanctified; and there they are, before the altar of the Lord.”

Hezekiah Restores Temple Worship

²⁰ Then King Hezekiah rose early, gathered the rulers of the city, and went up to the house of the Lord. ²¹ And they brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats for a ^(CH)sin offering for the kingdom, for the sanctuary, and for Judah. Then he commanded the priests, the sons of Aaron, to offer them on the altar of the Lord. ²² So they killed the bulls, and the priests received the blood and ^(CI)sprinkled it on the altar. Likewise they killed the rams and sprinkled the blood on the altar. They also killed the lambs and sprinkled the blood on the altar. ²³ Then they brought out the male goats for the sin offering before the king and the assembly, and they laid their ^(CJ)hands on them. ²⁴ And the priests killed them; and they presented their blood on the altar as a sin offering ^(CK)to make an atonement for all Israel, for the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering be made for all Israel.

^25 (CL)And he stationed the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, with stringed instruments, and with harps, ^(CM)according to the commandment of David, of ^(CN)Gad the king’s seer, and of Nathan the prophet; ^(CO)for thus was the commandment of the Lord by His prophets. ²⁶ The Levites stood with the instruments ^(CP)of David, and the priests with ^(CQ)the trumpets. ²⁷ Then Hezekiah commanded them to offer the burnt offering on the altar. And when the burnt offering began, ^(CR)the song of the Lord also began, with the trumpets and with the instruments of David king of Israel. ²⁸ So all the assembly worshiped, the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded; all this continued until the burnt offering was finished. ²⁹ And when they had finished offering, ^(CS)the king and all who were present with him bowed and worshiped. ³⁰ Moreover King Hezekiah and the leaders commanded the Levites to sing praise to the Lord with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. So they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshiped.

³¹ Then Hezekiah answered and said, “Now that you have consecrated yourselves to the Lord, come near, and bring sacrifices and ^(CT)thank offerings into the house of the Lord.” So the assembly brought in sacrifices and thank offerings, and as many as were of a ^(CU)willing heart brought burnt offerings. ³² And the number of the burnt offerings which the assembly brought was seventy bulls, one hundred rams, and two hundred lambs; all these were for a burnt offering to the Lord. ³³ The consecrated things were six hundred bulls and three thousand sheep. ³⁴ But the priests were too few, so that they could not skin all the burnt offerings; therefore ^(CV)their brethren the Levites helped them until the work was ended and until the other priests had ^[x]sanctified themselves, ^(CW)for the Levites were ^(CX)more diligent in ^(CY)sanctifying themselves than the priests. ³⁵ Also the burnt offerings were in abundance, with ^(CZ)the fat of the peace offerings and with ^(DA)the drink offerings for every burnt offering.

So the service of the house of the Lord was set in order. ³⁶ Then Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced that God had prepared the people, since the events took place so suddenly.

Hezekiah Keeps the Passover

30 And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and also wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem, to keep the Passover to the Lord God of Israel. ² For the king and his leaders and all the assembly in Jerusalem had agreed to keep the Passover in the second ^(DB)month. ³ For they could not keep it ^(DC)at ^[y]the regular time, ^(DD)because a sufficient number of priests had not consecrated themselves, nor had the people gathered together at Jerusalem. ⁴ And the matter pleased the king and all the assembly. ⁵ So they ^[z]resolved to make a proclamation throughout all Israel, from Beersheba to Dan, that they should come to keep the Passover to the Lord God of Israel at Jerusalem, since they had not done it for a long time in the prescribed manner.

⁶ Then the ^(DE)runners went throughout all Israel and Judah with the letters from the king and his leaders, and spoke according to the command of the king: “Children of Israel, ^(DF)return to the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel; then He will return to the remnant of you who have escaped from the hand of ^(DG)the kings of ^(DH)Assyria. ⁷ And do not be ^(DI)like your fathers and your brethren, who trespassed against the Lord God of their fathers, so that He ^(DJ)gave them up to ^(DK)desolation, as you see. ⁸ Now do not be ^(DL)stiff-necked,^[aa] as your fathers were, but yield yourselves to the Lord; and enter His sanctuary, which He has sanctified forever, and serve the Lord your God, ^(DM)that the fierceness of His wrath may turn away from you. ⁹ For if you return to the Lord, your brethren and your children will be treated with ^(DN)compassion by those who lead them captive, so that they may come back to this land; for the Lord your God is ^(DO)gracious and merciful, and will not turn His face from you if you ^(DP)return to Him.”

¹⁰ So the runners passed from city to city through the country of Ephraim and Manasseh, as far as Zebulun; but ^(DQ)they laughed at them and mocked them. ¹¹ Nevertheless ^(DR)some from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. ¹² Also ^(DS)the hand of God was on Judah to give them singleness of heart to obey the command of the king and the leaders, ^(DT)at the word of the Lord.

¹³ Now many people, a very great assembly, gathered at Jerusalem to keep the Feast of ^(DU)Unleavened Bread in the second month. ¹⁴ They arose and took away the ^(DV)altars that were in Jerusalem, and they took away all the incense altars and cast them into the Brook ^(DW)Kidron. ¹⁵ Then they slaughtered the Passover lambs on the fourteenth day of the second month. The priests and the Levites ^[ab]were ^(DX)ashamed, and ^[ac]sanctified themselves, and brought the burnt offerings to the house of the Lord. ¹⁶ They stood in their ^(DY)place ^[ad]according to their custom, according to the Law of Moses the man of God; the priests sprinkled the blood received from the hand of the Levites. ¹⁷ For there were many in the assembly who had not ^[ae]sanctified themselves; ^(DZ)therefore the Levites had charge of the slaughter of the Passover lambs for everyone who was not clean, to sanctify them to the Lord. ¹⁸ For a multitude of the people, ^(EA)many from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, ^(EB)yet they ate the Passover contrary to what was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, “May the good Lord provide atonement for everyone ¹⁹ who ^(EC)prepares his heart to seek God, the Lord God of his fathers, though he is not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary.” ²⁰ And the Lord listened to Hezekiah and healed the people.

²¹ So the children of Israel who were present at Jerusalem kept ^(ED)the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with great gladness; and the Levites and the priests praised the Lord day by day, singing to the Lord, accompanied by loud instruments. ²² And Hezekiah gave encouragement to all the Levites ^(EE)who taught the good knowledge of the Lord; and they ate throughout the feast seven days, offering peace offerings and ^(EF)making confession to the Lord God of their fathers.

²³ Then the whole assembly agreed to keep the feast ^(EG)another seven days, and they kept it another seven days with gladness. ²⁴ For Hezekiah king of Judah ^(EH)gave to the assembly a thousand bulls and seven thousand sheep, and the leaders gave to the assembly a thousand bulls and ten thousand sheep; and a great number of priests ^(EI)sanctified^[af] themselves. ²⁵ The whole assembly of Judah rejoiced, also the priests and Levites, all the assembly that came from Israel, the sojourners ^(EJ)who came from the land of Israel, and those who dwelt in Judah. ²⁶ So there was great joy in Jerusalem, for since the time of ^(EK)Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem. ²⁷ Then the priests, the Levites, arose and ^(EL)blessed the people, and their voice was heard; and their prayer came up to ^(EM)His holy dwelling place, to heaven.

The Reforms of Hezekiah^(EN)

31 Now when all this was finished, all Israel who were present went out to the cities of Judah and ^(EO)broke the sacred pillars in pieces, cut down the wooden images, and threw down the ^[ag]high places and the altars—from all Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh—until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned to their own cities, every man to his possession.

² And Hezekiah appointed ^(EP)the divisions of the priests and the Levites according to their divisions, each man according to his service, the priests and Levites ^(EQ)for burnt offerings and peace offerings, to serve, to give thanks, and to praise in the gates of the ^[ah]camp of the Lord. ³ The king also appointed a ^[ai]portion of his ^(ER)possessions^[aj] for the burnt offerings: for the morning and evening burnt offerings, the burnt offerings for the Sabbaths and the New Moons and the set feasts, as it is written in the ^(ES)Law of the Lord.

⁴ Moreover he commanded the people who dwelt in Jerusalem to contribute ^(ET)support^[ak] for the priests and the Levites, that they might devote themselves to ^(EU)the Law of the Lord.

⁵ As soon as the commandment was circulated, the children of Israel brought in abundance ^(EV)the firstfruits of grain and wine, oil and honey, and of all the produce of the field; and they brought in abundantly the ^(EW)tithe of everything. ⁶ And the children of Israel and Judah, who dwelt in the cities of Judah, brought the tithe of oxen and sheep; also the ^(EX)tithe of holy things which were consecrated to the Lord their God they laid in heaps.

⁷ In the third month they began laying them in heaps, and they finished in the seventh month. ⁸ And when Hezekiah and the leaders came and saw the heaps, they blessed the Lord and His people Israel. ⁹ Then Hezekiah questioned the priests and the Levites concerning the heaps. ¹⁰ And Azariah the chief priest, from the ^(EY)house of Zadok, answered him and said, ^(EZ)“Since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat and have plenty left, for the Lord has blessed His people; and what is left is this great ^(FA)abundance.”

¹¹ Now Hezekiah commanded them to prepare ^(FB)rooms^[al] in the house of the Lord, and they prepared them. ¹² Then they faithfully brought in the offerings, the tithes, and the dedicated things; ^(FC)Cononiah the Levite had charge of them, and Shimei his brother was the next. ¹³ Jehiel, Azaziah, Nahath, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were overseers under the hand of Cononiah and Shimei his brother, at the commandment of Hezekiah the king and Azariah the ^(FD)ruler of the house of God. ¹⁴ Kore the son of Imnah the Levite, the keeper of the East Gate, was over the ^(FE)freewill offerings to God, to distribute the offerings of the Lord and the most holy things. ¹⁵ And under him were ^(FF)Eden, Miniamin, Jeshua, Shemaiah, Amariah, and Shecaniah, his faithful assistants in ^(FG)the cities of the priests, to distribute ^(FH)allotments to their brethren by divisions, to the great as well as the small.

¹⁶ Besides those males from three years old and up who were written in the genealogy, they distributed to everyone who entered the house of the Lord his daily portion for the work of his service, by his division, ¹⁷ and to the priests who were written in the genealogy according to their father’s house, and to the Levites ^(FI)from twenty years old and up according to their work, by their divisions, ¹⁸ and to all who were written in the genealogy—their little ones and their wives, their sons and daughters, the whole company of them—for in their faithfulness they ^[am]sanctified themselves in holiness.

¹⁹ Also for the sons of Aaron the priests, who were in ^(FJ)the fields of the common-lands of their cities, in every single city, there were men who were ^(FK)designated by name to distribute portions to all the males among the priests and to all who were listed by genealogies among the Levites.

²⁰ Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah, and he ^(FL)did what was good and right and true before the Lord his God. ²¹ And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart. So he ^(FM)prospered.

Sennacherib Boasts Against the Lord^(FN)

32 After ^(FO)these deeds of faithfulness, Sennacherib king of Assyria came and entered Judah; he encamped against the fortified cities, thinking to win them over to himself. ² And when Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib had come, and that his purpose was to make war against Jerusalem, ³ he consulted with his leaders and ^[an]commanders to stop the water from the springs which were outside the city; and they helped him. ⁴ Thus many people gathered together who stopped all the ^(FP)springs and the brook that ran through the land, saying, “Why should the ^[ao]kings of Assyria come and find much water?” ⁵ And ^(FQ)he strengthened himself, ^(FR)built up all the wall that was broken, raised it up to the towers, and built another wall outside; also he repaired ^[ap]the ^(FS)Millo in the City of David, and made ^[aq]weapons and shields in abundance. ⁶ Then he set military captains over the people, gathered them together to him in the open square of the city gate, and ^(FT)gave them encouragement, saying, ^7 (FU)“Be strong and courageous; ^(FV)do not be afraid nor dismayed before the king of Assyria, nor before all the multitude that is with him; for ^(FW)there are more with us than with him. ⁸ With him is an ^(FX)arm of flesh; but ^(FY)with us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles.” And the people were strengthened by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.

^9 (FZ)After this Sennacherib king of Assyria sent his servants to Jerusalem (but he and all the forces with him laid siege against Lachish), to Hezekiah king of Judah, and to all Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying, ^10 (GA)“Thus says Sennacherib king of Assyria: ‘In what do you trust, that you remain under siege in Jerusalem? ¹¹ Does not Hezekiah persuade you to give yourselves over to die by famine and by thirst, saying, ^(GB)“The Lord our God will deliver us from the hand of the king of Assyria”? ^12 (GC)Has not the same Hezekiah taken away His high places and His altars, and commanded Judah and Jerusalem, saying, “You shall worship before one altar and burn incense on ^(GD)it”? ¹³ Do you not know what I and my fathers have done to all the peoples of other lands? ^(GE)Were the gods of the nations of those lands in any way able to deliver their lands out of my hand? ¹⁴ Who was there among all the gods of those nations that my fathers utterly destroyed that could deliver his people from my hand, that your God should be able to deliver you from my ^(GF)hand? ¹⁵ Now therefore, ^(GG)do not let Hezekiah deceive you or persuade you like this, and do not believe him; for no god of any nation or kingdom was able to deliver his people from my hand or the hand of my fathers. How much less will your God deliver you from my hand?’ ”

¹⁶ Furthermore, his servants spoke against the Lord God and against His servant Hezekiah.

¹⁷ He also wrote letters to revile the Lord God of Israel, and to speak against Him, saying, ^(GH)“As the gods of the nations of other lands have not delivered their people from my hand, so the God of Hezekiah will not deliver His people from my ^(GI)hand.” ^18 (GJ)Then they called out with a loud voice in ^[ar]Hebrew to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, to frighten them and trouble them, that they might take the city. ¹⁹ And they spoke against the God of Jerusalem, as against the gods of the people of the earth—^(GK)the work of men’s hands.

Sennacherib’s Defeat and Death^(GL)

^20 (GM)Now because of this King Hezekiah and ^(GN)the prophet Isaiah, the son of Amoz, prayed and cried out to heaven. ^21 (GO)Then the Lord sent an angel who cut down every mighty man of valor, leader, and captain in the camp of the king of Assyria. So he returned ^(GP)shamefaced to his own land. And when he had gone into the temple of his god, some of his own offspring struck him down with the sword there.

²² Thus the Lord saved Hezekiah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem from the hand of Sennacherib the king of Assyria, and from the hand of all others, and ^[as]guided them on every side. ²³ And many brought gifts to the Lord at Jerusalem, and ^(GQ)presents^[at] to Hezekiah king of Judah, so that he was ^(GR)exalted in the sight of all nations thereafter.

Hezekiah Humbles Himself^(GS)

^24 (GT)In those days Hezekiah was sick and near death, and he prayed to the Lord; and He spoke to him and gave him a sign. ²⁵ But Hezekiah ^(GU)did not repay according to the favor shown him, for ^(GV)his heart was lifted up; ^(GW)therefore wrath was looming over him and over Judah and Jerusalem. ^26 (GX)Then Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the Lord did not come upon them ^(GY)in the days of Hezekiah.

Hezekiah’s Wealth and Honor^(GZ)

²⁷ Hezekiah had very great riches and honor. And he made himself treasuries for silver, for gold, for precious stones, for spices, for shields, and for all kinds of desirable items; ²⁸ storehouses for the harvest of grain, wine, and oil; and stalls for all kinds of livestock, and ^[au]folds for flocks. ²⁹ Moreover he provided cities for himself, and possessions of flocks and herds in abundance; for ^(HA)God had given him very much property. ^30 (HB)This same Hezekiah also stopped the water outlet of Upper Gihon, and ^[av]brought the water by tunnel to the west side of the City of David. Hezekiah ^(HC)prospered in all his works.

³¹ However, regarding the ambassadors of the princes of Babylon, whom they ^(HD)sent to him to inquire about the wonder that was done in the land, God withdrew from him, in order to ^(HE)test him, that He might know all that was in his heart.

Death of Hezekiah

³² Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and his goodness, indeed they are written in ^(HF)the vision of Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, and in the ^(HG)book of the kings of Judah and Israel. ^33 (HH)So Hezekiah ^[aw]rested with his fathers, and they buried him in the upper tombs of the sons of David; and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem ^(HI)honored him at his death. Then Manasseh his son reigned in his place.